Summoning Light (38 page)

But it was his to take.

C
HAPTER 16

Elric stood in the customs area, his body stiff, muscles clenched. Within his skull, the cavity of darkness pushed outward, exerting an incredible pressure against the backs of his eyes, his forehead. He told himself he need endure only a few more minutes; then his task would be completed. In the meantime, his concentration could not flag.

Spread across Elric's mind's eye were the images from numerous probes and security cameras on Babylon 5. They revealed five hundred robed mages, a procession stretching out of Down Below, through corridors, up staircases, into the customs area, past the security checkpoint, and onto the Centauri freighter Ondavi. Of the five hundred, only one in ten was real, each creating the illusions surrounding him. To help maintain those illusions, John had posted security guards periodically along the mages' route, preventing anyone from coming near or interrupting their progress.

The one who absolutely could not approach was Morden, who would be accompanied by Shadows who could see through their illusions. Elric believed Morden would keep away, so that the mages would not grow suspicious of the Ondavi. After all, Morden intended them to believe he knew nothing of the Centauri freighter.

But Elric could not allow the slightest chance that Morden and the Shadows might appear. Conveniently, a section of the hallway ceiling outside Morden's quarters had collapsed, trapping him and his associates inside. Morden would expect a defensive action of this type as the mages departed; it should rouse no suspicions of their true plan.

Morden had protected his interests, though, by sending one of his agents to observe the mages' departure. The maintenance worker stood now across the customs area, watching. That was fine. He would see what Elric wanted him to see.

As the mages approached the Ondavi, one in twenty would step aside before entering the ship, giving the appearance that they were supervising the others. Those were the ones Elric hoped to save, the young ones. Slowly they faded into the background, or went back along the procession's route with the excuse of checking on the others, then disguised themselves with full-body illusions and returned to board the nearby Crystal Cabin under false names. Of the twenty-five Elric hoped to save, fifteen already had boarded.

Unfortunately, all fifty of those who had come to Babylon 5 could not be saved. The Centauri crew of the Ondavi must believe that five hundred mages had boarded their ship, and that five hundred remained in their cargo hold. To sustain that illusion required five mages at the very least, more when those mages' powers were failing. Elric thought of Burell, who had been the most skilled at creating large, complex illusions. She had also been the first of their losses. The throbbing in his head grew stronger.

More mages were required to interact with the crew, and to keep the crew away from the illusions. More were necessary to create false life-signs and mage energies, so that any who scanned the ship as it left Babylon 5 would be convinced they were all inside. Elric and Ing-Radi had discussed the issue at length, but no fewer than twenty-five seemed required to ensure the success of the deception.

Ing-Radi and Beel were on board the Ondavi now, supervising the others. They had planted probes about the freighter, so Elric and the others could observe. Although the mages had seen no evidence that the ship had been sabotaged, they knew it had been done. All those boarding understood that they would die.

They had gathered an hour ago to recite the words of the Code. None had asked to be released from his task. All were prepared to give their lives so that the rest of their order might escape unmolested. Or so it seemed. Gowen had monitored them and found no evidence of disloyalty. Of course, Elric could not be certain until they had boarded the ships, and the deception was complete. He felt angry at himself for even doubting them, yet he must, if he was to foresee all possibilities. But it seemed now those doubts had been unwarranted.

Of course, none but he and Ing-Radi knew the truth. None but he and Ing-Radi knew that escaping to a hiding place would not save their order but only postpone their end. None but he and Ing-Radi knew that the Shadows were not their adversaries but their creators. If the others knew that, Elric wondered how many of them would still give up their lives to see the mages safely to the hiding place. Perhaps all, perhaps none.

But they would not know. He would maintain the lie, and they would go to their deaths, each one a crushing burden.

And secured by those deaths, the rest of their order would flee, abandoning the galaxy in its time of greatest need.

Ing-Radi did not think of it as Elric did. She believed the success of the deception would be an affirmation of their order and their solidarity. He had spoken with her privately before the recitation of the Code. It had been the first time she had risen from her bed since falling ill, and Elric had feared she was not equal to the demands of the task that faced them. They had met in the small room Ing-Radi had taken for her own, which was much the same as Elric's. He had been shocked at her deterioration.

The orange had faded completely from her skin, leaving it a pale greyish white marked by the crisscrossing blue lines of veins. Her tall, thin body had become skeletal, disjointed, and something in the tentative way she moved gave him the impression that she could collapse at any moment into little more than a pile of bones.

"You have done well," she had said to him. "I believe your deception will be successful."

"That remains uncertain."

"If I may, I ask again that you do not join us on the Ondavi. You are not needed there among the dead. You are needed much more among the living."

"We agreed that twenty-five were necessary."

"One more or less will not matter. If you believe it will, choose another. Any would volunteer to take your place."

"I cannot ask one more to make such a sacrifice. And I cannot ask any, if I do not make it myself."

"You do not ask. The situation requires that some of us die. Just as the situation requires that you live. To make any other choice would be selfishness."

Elric shook his head. He did not have the energy to argue, and he could not concede.

Yet Ing-Radi persisted. "You said you fear Blaylock may be dead. Would you have Herazade be the sole survivor of the Circle? Would you have her alone guide the mages through the difficult decisions ahead?"

The thought appalled him, as she had known it would. But it changed nothing. Besides, his health too was failing.

The slash of her mouth smiled gently down at him. "I live in hope that our order may discover the secret of producing our own tech. Then we may at last be in control of our own destiny. With such a hope, the retreat to a hiding place is sensible. I am willing to make any sacrifice to keep that hope alive. But I know that you have no such hope. You believe the mages have initiated their last, and will now begin their long twilight. You envision our order dying, one by one, until a hundred years from now the last of us passes to the other side. For what, then, do you offer your life?"

Elric spoke with finality. "For solidarity. Our only weapon against the Shadows. Please don't ask me further. I will not change my mind."

After that, he had turned the discussion to the final details of their plan. He had tried to focus on the good they would achieve if they were successful, yet Ing-Radi's words continued to haunt him, even now. She was right, of course. He had no hope for the mages' future. He had lost his dreams, and they could not be resurrected. His one regret was Galen. He did not want to leave Galen. But if Alwyn had not arrived in time, Galen might already be waiting for him on the other side.

Elric could not think of that. That way lay despair.

The throbbing in his head was building, spreading throughout his body, echoed in counterpoint by the tech. He forced himself to straighten, checking the various images in his mind's eye. The last of the mages had left Down Below, and the end of the line was winding its way up toward the customs area.

Elric realized he was pressing the heel of his hand to his temple, and he lowered it.

Carvin, wearing a simple black robe, reached the hatch of the Ondavi and stepped out of line, speaking with Fed and Gowen, who also stood to one side. Gowen said something to her, and she glanced toward Elric. Then Carvin pointed down the line of mages, appearing to send Fed and Gowen to check on the others. She came back through security and approached Elric.

Elric recalled the conjury she had done in her last training session before becoming a mage. With assured, graceful movements, she had juggled Alwyn's boots, mixing them with illusions of other shoes, sending them flying into complex patterns. In all the activity, illusions had replaced the real boots, which she had hidden away. Their current shell game was very much the same.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

He was about to send her on to the Crystal Cabin, when the pressure in his head suddenly built into an incredible, over-whelming pain. His muscles were quivering, his legs about to collapse. "I must withdraw. I will return in a moment."

She nodded, eyes wide.

He barely made it into an empty corridor before his legs gave way beneath him. He conjured an illusion around himself, a section of wall that bumped out around him. He pressed his forehead against the cold floor and tried to focus on the images in his mind's eye. The pain, that tumor of desolation growing inside him, seemed to block out everything else. He felt as if he were being consumed by it, by all that had been lost, and all that would be lost.

He had gone too long without rest. Now, at this critical time, he was failing.

Angry at his weakness, he forced himself to focus, to access the camera in the customs area. He must not allow the plan to fail.

Carvin was standing in his place, waiting for his return.

Londo strutted into the customs area behind her, his black halo of hair restored to perfect order.

Elric had known that eventually he would emerge, driven by curiosity, a twinge of guilt, but most of all, a desire to assuage his ego, to prove to himself that he was not afraid of the mages. Elric should be the one to deal with him.

Elric climbed to hands and knees. His limbs trembled, rubbery. He did not have the strength to rise.

"The arrangements are satisfactory, yes?" Londo said to Carvin.

"Londo. Yes, you've honored your debt." She extended her hand. "No kiss?"

His expression softened. "You make it difficult to remain angry at you." He took the hand, kissed it.

"There's no need for hard feelings between us. We required a ship; you were able to provide one." Although she was unprepared for the encounter, she was playing the gracious winner, as she should. She revealed no sign that she knew the Centauri ship would soon take twenty-five of her order to their deaths.

Londo looked toward the line of mages, and his lips parted. He turned back to Carvin. "I wish that you and I could have gotten to know each other better. Is there any chance you could stay? Follow the others in a few days?"

So Londo did have a scrap of conscience, at least for a beautiful young woman. The rest of them could die without causing him undue upset.

"I must go with them. You should be glad we're leaving before you've lost everything."

"Yes, I still have my stock in Fireflies, Incorporated. Sure to bring me security in my old age."

Carvin glanced at the end of the line of mages, which had wound its way into the customs area. "It's time now, Londo." With a smile she took his hand, kissed it in a perfect impression of his overly solicitous manner. "Good-bye, dear ambassador." She took her place at the end of the line.

As Londo looked after her, his mouth widened, as if he thought to say something, and he seemed to come to a decision. He went after her.

Elric struggled to push himself up. Carvin needed to get to the Crystal Cabin. Londo must be distracted. He raised a hand to the wall to brace himself. It slid down again, again, as if the muscles in his arm had been removed. Waves of emptiness pushed through him.

"The Ondavi is a freighter," Londo said, walking beside her as the line progressed toward the ship. "Really not fit for passengers. The cargo hold" – he shook his head – "it's quite unpleasant."

"Thank you for your concern. But I'll be fine."

"But you needn't be, dear lady." They reached the security checkpoint, and Carvin presented her identicard to Lou Welch. Londo continued. "I've made special arrangements for you to sit up on the flight deck. You'll find it much more pleasant there."

Lou cleared Carvin, and Londo attempted to follow her through.

Lou barred the way with his arm. "Passengers only, Ambassador."

"Oh, but this is ridiculous! This ship belongs to a highly placed Centauri, a friend of mine. I am handling this–" Londo called toward the Ondavi. "Lieutenant! Lieutenant!" He looked at Lou. "Security. Are you ever there when you are actually needed?"

A Centauri in a shabby uniform came out of the ship.

Londo pointed to Carvin. "This is the charming woman I was telling you about. You must allow her to sit with you on the flight deck. She's my most honored guest. Provide her every convenience you can offer. Make her happy. Keep her safe. Or you will have me to answer to."

Damn Londo. He'd somehow gotten the idiotic notion that he could save Carvin by keeping her out of the cargo hold. In an ill-considered attempt to appease his conscience, he was going to kill her. Elric clawed his way up the wall, his legs shaking. He must reach her. He must reach her before she boarded.

Ing-Radi appeared at the hatch of the ship. She was looking into the customs area, for Elric. She could say nothing to stop Londo. Any objection would reveal what they knew.

Elric dissolved the illusion, stumbled down the corridor toward the customs area, his body throbbing in time with his heart. He slammed into a wall, pushed himself along it.

The shabby-looking lieutenant, playing the gracious host, bowed and waved Carvin inside. She hesitated only a moment. Then she entered.