The Silver Sphere (38 page)

The Sphere remained a bright sterling while the halos glowed
in red, gold, and white. A humming noise pierced the vacuum of space like some massive
machine revving up. Numbers materialized one at a time along the colored bands.
The Silver Sphere blossomed—the most beautiful object Zach had ever witnessed. A
green skull appeared on one of the ringlets. Zach knew who it was.
Biskara.
The shape of a spacecraft emerged closer to the Sphere.

"I summon the truth seekers," Bianca said. Her lips
pursed and her forehead pinched.

Across from them a blinding glare rose. When Zach's vision cleared,
a man floated before them in white robes, tendrils of long ebony hair wandering
around his face. The figure looked human, but Zach felt an innate bond with him.
It was different than the link he shared with the other Kin; this man seemed almost
part of him. Zach channeled the truth seeker's thoughts as they whispered across
time and space.

"Welcome, Lord Sturge," Bianca said.

"Welcome, Assembly. We sensed upheaval on Azimuth. It is
good to see you are safe."

Bianca nodded. "Biskara resides between the Eridanus and
Dorado planes. The United Forces'
Fomalhaut
is near Fornax."

Lord Sturge examined the Sphere. He drifted closer, running his
fingers across the circles. Luminous lines seared in the wake of his long digits.

"I sense confusion on the
Fomalhaut
. Something is
keeping the Star Darts at bay." He hovered around the orb, silent as he worked.
Before long, his deep voice resounded. "I have the coordinates. Time is crucial
now. You must return to the mortal plane and defend Meracuse. The city is under
great duress. Thank you, Assembly members. Godspeed to you."

A blaze of white whipped around him and he vanished. The Sphere
spun in a slow, deliberate orbit, emitting a faint glow.

Zach's gaze locked on the starship.

"Shut your eyes again," said Bianca. "Meditate.
Think of the fire in the cave." Droplets of sweat fluttered off her forehead
and floated. They sparkled as they passed before the armillary sphere.

Zach focused on the campfire, and dreamlike fuzziness engulfed
him, similar to when the Fugues first arrived. For a time, he existed neither on
Azimuth nor in the presence of the Silver Sphere. The world became discolored; rock
was blue, mulch was orange, and pine needles were purple.

Someone prodded his body. Zach opened his eyes and spied Bianca
kneeling by his side. He was supine on the cavern floor, drenched in sweat. The
warmth of the flames burned close and sleep clotted his mind. He rubbed his face,
groggy, as if he had awakened from a deep slumber.

"Excellent, Zach. Brock would be so proud of you,"
said Rowan, rubbing his neck from behind.

"Th-that was amazing. Like a... trance." He slid to
his knees. His boots scraped against the hard earth, the sound unusual after being
away from the planet.

Bianca smiled and nodded.

"We must head back to the battle now," said Elita.

Macklin strode over and assisted Zach to his feet.

Satchel stamped out the blaze, and smoke smoldered from the ashes.

Bianca handed Zach the torch and grinned. "Lead us out."

Zach turned and ambled to the exit of the chamber. Though his
boots touched rock and soil, he thought he still glided. His heart lightened, his
head swam, and the image of the Sphere bedazzled him, even now.

Nick sat on a deck overlooking the truth seeker's headquarters,
Horologium. A glistening bubble encased the immense city, and a beautiful backdrop
of space and dazzling stars surrounded the dome. Across from him was Corvan, who
had been sent to brief him on his transformation.

"I am no different. My legs are sore from walking so much,"
said Nick, waving his hands.

Corvan nodded. "You are flesh and blood out here on the
celestial stratum. You may be killed in battle and reach a higher plane. We eat,
drink, and sleep as we used to." He had flaxen hair and dark skin, and claimed
to be from a southern country on Azimuth.

"The desert is made of glass," Corvan had said when
Nick first met him. "And our city, Mehabal, is of milky stone near an oasis.
Perhaps one day, you will see it."

Nick returned to the moment. "Does a higher plane exist?
Heaven?"

"We're not in touch with the higher plane, though our studies
and customs suggest so." Corvan's shaved head shined in the starlight, as did
his black leather jacket.

"Can I visit Earth?"

"We are unable to enter the mortal atmosphere. Albeit as
a Kinsaver, the rules are skewed for you. I'm not sure what your abilities are."

Nick nodded, a little dejected, as he yearned to go home to visit
his family once more. He gazed off into Horologium with its several high towers.
In the center stood the tallest, a large silver clock adorning the top. The emblem
of a sphere rested below it.

A knock drummed from the chamber's door behind them. Denon entered
the room and approached the deck. Spiro strode in behind him.

Denon said, "The Aulic Assembly has contacted us. Biskara
resides on a plane between Eridanus and Dorado. The star darts are having problems
launching. We must go."

Nick wrung his hands. "Am I to participate?"

"Yes, we need every able soldier." Denon turned to
Corvan. "You are to join the others in distracting Biskara."

Nick and Corvan rose.

"Come with me," said Denon.

They exited the chamber and walked down bright hallways flooded
with brilliant moonlight. Nick met Spiro's gaze. He wondered what a star dart was.

Denon said, "It seems Biskara has captured the
Fomalhaut
.
She's being raided by celestial monsters, and we have to get rid of them. They are
grounding the star dart fleet, which is needed to help repel the offensive on Meridia's
capital, Meracuse."

Nick scratched his crown. He wondered what the
Fomalhaut
was, but figured he would find out soon enough. "I'm new. Aren't you going
to train me more first?"

"No time. These are dire circumstances, and a Kinsaver may
come in useful." Denon shook his head and sighed. "Besides, we need as
many soldiers as we can rally, as most of the truth seekers are at the main battle."

"You said monster
s
. Plural," said Spiro.

Denon nodded, appearing grim. "You'll see what I mean. Come
with me." He pressed a sword into each of their hands.

Looking back, Nick could not say how they traversed time and
space in order to reach the
Fomalhaut
. All he knew was that one minute he
was walking away from the brilliance of Horologium, and the next he floated just
outside an enormous starship.

Even the city of the truth seekers paled in comparison to the
ship, the most glorious thing he'd ever seen—sleek and beautiful, the color of a
comet in the night sky. Windows glinted in the tempered steel hull, a thousand strong,
each a portal into the small world within. Turrets and massive guns lay mounted
across the bow of the ship, and a few hung from the underbelly. The gigantic bay
protruded into the cosmos, akin to a shark lurking near the shoreline.

Inside rested a hundred smaller ships, each streamlined and elegant.
Nick gaped at them. A red light flashed within the hangar, and he spied men scurrying
over the deck. The hangar doors were only a quarter opened, providing not nearly
enough room to launch any of the star darts safely. A force field must have been
in place to keep the vacuum of space at bay.

Behind the
Fomalhaut
, Azimuth swelled like some behemoth,
fertile moon. Azimuth's yellow sun rose, spreading its golden fingers along the
eastern horizon. All around them, stars dotted the sky, and beyond, a shooting star
streaked.

Nick's heart pummeled against his ribcage.

As they glided closer, Denon handed each of them a pair of metallic
bifocals.

Nick handled his with care. "Sunglasses?"

"No." Denon put his on over his eyes. "The Sight.
Nick, we cannot always behold both planes—mortal and celestial—and these spectacles
allow us to switch from one plane to the other. Press the button here...."
He touched just behind the hinge on the left arm of the glasses. "...and you
can shift planes."

Nick slid the goggles on, and the vision of the
Fomalhaut
instantly changed. While he still observed the gleaming ship, he no longer glimpsed
the troopers rushing around inside.

"Everyone's gone."

"Click the button."

Nick did so, and the crew returned. Rather than being in color,
though, only their infrared images appeared. He switched again, and this time a
single, pale specter glided across the hangar bay.

"Come," said Denon, and they glided closer to the hull.

Nick glanced around. "We are the only other truth seekers
on this mission?"

"I told you, the rest are battling Biskara," replied
Denon somberly. "Once aboard, we'll not be able to view the humans without
the Sight. Our world is a reflection of theirs, but ours will not have life. The
demonic apparitions you recognize there are stalling the ship and keeping the star
darts from launching."

"How?"

"I do not know."

Nick repressed a shiver. At last, they reached the
Fomalhaut
and boarded the hangar. A slight buzzing rang in Nick's ears as they passed through
the force field. As Denon had said, the crewmen Nick had seen on the deck were no
more. He hit the button on the Sight and spotted them rushing about. They shouted
in the dark hangar, trying to operate the power of the ship.

Nick grimaced. He couldn't hear anything, as if he'd gone deaf.

Once or twice, he thought he caught movement out of the corner
of his eye, but when he glanced, no one was there. Switching the Sight again, he
found a few pale beasts fleeing the hangar.

Denon said, "First, we must find out what they're doing
to stall the ship. Hurry—the ghosts will know we're here soon enough."

As Nick scurried along behind Denon and Spiro, he scanned around.
This was nothing like the craft he'd seen outside. Though brilliant to behold the
exterior, the halls inside were dark and devoid of life. Cables hung from panels
in the ceiling. A few sparks of electricity zapped when a swinging wire touched
another. Nick turned away, and thought he spied something beside the cord. It was
white and pale, but disappeared after he blinked his eyes.

A shiver thrilled down his spine. The things he'd seen in the
hangar were everywhere, slipping in and out of the shadows. He hurried after Denon
and glanced back.

A swarm of them materialized and now followed them.

"Denon," whispered Nick. "They know we're here."

"Keep walking," said Spiro gruffly. "Sooner we
find out what's happening, the better off we'll be."

Nick tried not to eye the sinister beings. One he viewed clearly,
as they strode by the thing in the hall. Its head was positioned upside down, its
mouth gaping in an eternal, silent scream. Black eyes followed him as they passed
it by. The creature froze and faded, reappearing almost directly beside him. Their
bodies shifted and snapped, crackling like lightning. Any humanoid form they took
lasted only a few seconds before they became something else entirely. A moan filled
the hallway.

"A hive mind," said Denon. "They're monitoring
us. If we don't interact, we should be fine."

A light glimmered ahead and the bellow of voices screaming down
the dark corridor echoed on the portside.

Nick halted. He recognized one of the cries.
Emily....

"Hey," he whispered to Denon, but when he turned to
look, both Denon and Spiro had vanished. Skin crawling, Nick glanced down to the
left, then back where his companions had gone. The flickering light ceased, leaving
him in complete darkness. He tried switching the Sight, but only a few dark shadows
hurried down the hall: human soldiers. He clicked the button again and another electric
ghost vanished around a corner ahead. An eerie cackling followed behind.