Book of Darkness
Chapter Twelve: Theories of Life and Death
Something was wrong.
Pixel woke up and knew instantly that something was dangerously wrong. “Destiny,” he whispered urgently, shaking her by the shoulder to wake her up. “Destiny, get up. We have to get out of here.”
Destiny opened her eyes and looked at him, frowning. “What is it?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” he said, shaking his head. “But something is wrong. I just feel it. There’s a power imbalance or something.”
She stared at him uncertainly, then bit her lip. “I don’t feel anything.”
It was getting harder for Pixel to focus - he knew, knew without a shred of doubt, that something was wrong. There was an imbalance in his own personal power - not the power the Void had granted him, but his original inbred power. “My power,” he said, his voice pleading. “Destiny, something is wrong. It’s…it’s fading. I can feel it.”
Destiny could see that Pixel was nearing the edge of panic, and swore to herself. She grabbed his shoulders and forced him to lie down. “Stop,” she said, leaning over him and staring straight into his eyes. “Relax. Rest.”
Pixel’s eyes closed almost immediately, and Destiny breathed a sigh of relief. Then she stood up and stared down at him, taking deep, even breaths until she was completely focused. Only then did she close her eyes, and when they opened again she could clearly see Pixel’s aura.
Gods! she gasped. Pixel’s aura was as red as the ruby that bore his soul, the gem that was totally connected to his life energy, just as the amethyst had been for her. But there were threads of blue and green that ran through it, a connection to Score and Helaine showing that they were a Triad of power. Destiny had once seen a similar aura around Nantor when she was in the Triad’s service, although that had been a long time ago, and his aura had also been extremely corrupt.
Pixel, Destiny suspected, didn’t yet know the finer points of aura reading. For Destiny, she had found that it was the best way to determine the truth about someone. And what Pixel’s aura was showing right now was that the feeling he had been experiencing hadn’t been a lie - his power was fading.
Or, rather, the connection was.
Destiny banished her aura sight and groaned. Part of the purpose of joining magic-user souls together was so that they could lend each other power - forming a magical connection was a tricky thing, and sometimes only possible through a soul connection. Such was the connection Score, Helaine, and Pixel shared, allowing each to borrow strength from the others and to use strength to aid them.
The downside, however, was that the longer the connection lasted, the more important the balance of the power became. If, for example, one member of the connection died, then the other two would begin to feel its loss. They would feel as if something were always missing - even if they hadn’t seen the dead soul in ages. But that was just one example. The power balance could shift in other ways - and Destiny could suspect what it was.
Outside of the Void, something had happened between Score and Helaine that was drawing them closer together - and binding their souls in a tighter bond than the connection of power. Since there was only so much to a soul, the tighter the bond between Score and Helaine, the looser the bond between those two and Pixel.
Destiny had seen something like this happen only once before, and had seen the suffering that the third member of the connection had suffered. The feelings of loneliness, of abandonment, of having lost something impossible to retrieve had proved too much for the seasoned sorcerer, and he had taken his own life.
Damned if she would let that happen to Pixel!
Destiny took a few more deep breaths and reopened her aural sight, refocusing on Pixel. The lines of blue and green were already beginning to fade - they would not disappear entirely, but it was enough to already leave a couple of tears in the red. Without those pieces of Helaine and Score, Pixel would begin to lose some of the power that he unconsciously drew from them. Is that why the Void gave him the additional power - so that he wouldn’t be helpless? Did they know this was going to happen to him? Is there anything I can do to stop it? She had the sinking suspicion that she knew what had happened between Score and Helaine, just given what she had observed four years earlier. Granted, four years was a long time - but time didn’t necessarily mean anything in these cases.
She needed to solve this problem, and fast. And she was going to need Pixel’s help to do it, which meant telling him her theory, and having him face a painful reality without truly knowing all the facts. She couldn’t do that to him. She needed to know everything first.
And then, in a flash, she remembered the mysterious man who had appeared on Earth to give the three aid - what had his name been? Recalling him now, she knew that he had all the makings of being a guardian - and if she could just remember him…
Oracle!
Yes, she was positive that was his name. She smiled, and banished her aural sight once more. “Well, Oracle, let’s see if you can give me some advice.” She pictured his flickering form, his black clothes, closed her eyes and whispered the words of the calling spell. Even in death, after all, she was still a magic-user.
When the shocked cry echoed the dim shelter that she and Pixel had made for the night, Destiny lunged forward and covered his mouth with her hand. “Shut up,” she hissed to Oracle. “Come with me outside. We need to talk.”
Oracle narrowed her eyes at her, then widened them in recognition - and then in amazement when he realized that she had actually touched him, and she hadn’t gone through him.
“In this realm, you’re as flesh and blood as I am,” Destiny whispered. “We don’t have much time before the Omnipotent get you out of here, and I need to talk to you away from him.” She nodded to Pixel. Oracle stared at him, relief evident in his eyes. Then he swiftly followed Destiny out of the shelter and into the meadow outside.
Under the light of the full moon (the only type of moon to Void had, for the benefit of weres), Oracle turned to look at Destiny. “What’s going on here?” he demanded. “Is Pixel okay?”
“He’s just been sleep-spelled,” Destiny said. “He was panicking, Oracle. He woke up not long ago, and said that he could feel his power draining. I checked his aura - and he’s right. He’s losing his connection to Score and Helaine.”
Oracle opened his mouth to say something - and stopped. “Are you sure?”
“I’m positive,” Destiny said. “Has anything happened between those two that would make their connection stronger than Pixel’s? Something that would leave him out?”
The guardian looked worried. “I…I can’t be certain, but I think Score and Helaine have been getting closer. Romantically, I mean.”
Destiny groaned. “I was afraid of that. And for Pixel to suddenly be feeling the strain, they must have just gotten much closer in a short period of time.” She rubbed the bridge of her nose in aggravation.
“You’re his guide?” Oracle asked.
“Yeah,” Destiny said, shaking her head ruefully. “Surprise, surprise.”
“If you could call me, why didn’t you do it earlier?” Oracle demanded.
“I only saw you once, forgive me if I didn’t record it into my memory,” Destiny said, rolling her eyes. “And Pixel’s power was nil since he got here - his offensive power. And now the power that makes him a magic-user is being drained because of this damned connection.” She looked at him pleadingly. “If you know anything, anything, that I can do to stop it, you have to tell me. I need him strengthened enough to get through the Void. We’re nowhere near the end.”
“There is no end,” Oracle replied. He outlined everything that Thunder had told them about the Void just hours earlier at the castle.
Destiny opened her aural sight, and knew immediately that he wasn’t lying. “I don’t believe it,” she said, shaking with bridled fury. “The Omnipotent never told us anything about that! If that’s the case, then hundreds of magic-users have died in the Void for a meaningless quest! Pixel has already gained some power,” she told him.
Oracle looked cheered by that. “Excellent,” he said. “Then I’ll tell you something else - Thunder, one of the unicorns that has befriended the three, knows of an entrance to the Void from Dondar. He and Score will be arriving through it shortly, in our time. If you could try and find them, that would make our job much easier.”
Destiny was about to agree, when suddenly she stopped. “I don’t know if Pixel’s going to be able to travel,” she said soberly. “He’s losing power fast. His aura is beginning to tear. Score and Helaine are going to have to stop doing what they’re doing and go no further, at least until we can figure something out for Pixel.”
“I’ll talk to Shanara,” Oracle promised. “The most important thing is that we get you and Pixel out of here.”
“I don’t know if I can leave,” Destiny said, more to herself and to Oracle. But when she looked up to ask if he had heard of any guide leaving the Void, she saw that he was gone. “Damn. The Omnipotent found him.”
Sighing, she hurried back into the shelter. She was going to have to find some way to get to Score and the unicorn Thunder, and it was going to have to be soon.
“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?!” shouted Oracle.
Helaine and Score woke up instantly, and Helaine immediately grabbed the blankets and wrapped them around herself. “What are you doing in here?” she demanded, more embarrassed than angry.
Score sat up and glared at Oracle. “Yeah, what’s your problem, Oracle?” he asked.
Oracle just shook his head and groaned. He could see their auras perfectly, and knew instantly that Destiny hadn’t been making anything up. Helaine’s blue aura had much more green in it than red, and Score’s green was complimented by blue with just a few traces of red. Pixel was vanishing.
“Whatever you’re doing, stop,” Oracle commanded. “You can’t let this thing go on any further.”
Score and Helaine glanced at each other. “Uh, I think we were done awhile ago,” Score said sheepishly. “We were just getting some sleep.”
Oracle had the grace to blush, but he glared at Score. “I mean, no more of this. You two are going to have to stop any romantic urges between you, and do it now.”
“I really don’t think this is any of your business,” Helaine said coldly.
“It is when it’s killing Pixel,” Oracle retorted.
They paled. “What?” Score whispered.
“I just came from a very interesting meeting in the Void,” Oracle said. “Pixel’s guide finally thought of the bright idea of calling me there, and before the Omnipotent dragged me out, she told me that Pixel is feeling a power imbalance. I bet you didn’t know that the three of you were connected by your souls, did you?”
Numb, they shook their heads.
“It’s what makes you such great magic-users, and friends, too,” Oracle went on. “This of each of you individually as one-third of a greater power. When you lose part of the triangle, the entire balance is damaged. By becoming involved with one another, your souls were binding together much more than previously - and leaving Pixel out. You were pulling away from him, even if you didn’t mean to, and he could feel it. He’s losing power that he was born with, power that makes him what he is. It’s a good thing Destiny contacted me, or we could’ve had a disaster on our hands. This is why the original Triad kept their relationships purely platonic.”
“Destiny?” Score asked sharply. “What’s she got to do with anything?”
“She’s Pixel’s guide in the Void,” snapped Oracle. “And in a couple of hours, you and Thunder are going to have to find her. I’m going to Shanara’s right now to get the information for a locator spell that you can use, since you’ve already seen her. While I’m gone, I want you to get moving to the unicorn herd. And Helaine, you’re staying here.”
Helaine stared to protest, but Oracle’s glare cut her off. “This is serious, you two. I don’t care what your personal feelings are - this can’t go on until we figure out something with Pixel. He’s unconscious right now, but that’s only delaying the drain. We’re lucky Destiny was trained with aural sight, or we could’ve ended up with a dead Pixel.” With those words, he vanished, on his way to Rawn.
Score gazed miserably at the floor, then sighed and got up. “Where are you going?” Helaine asked.
“To the herds,” Score replied. “You heard what Oracle said - we’re killing Pixel. I have to leave immediately.”
“But…why?” Helaine asked, confused. “Why immediately? So we just won’t go any further - we can’t be much further than this, anyway.”
“It’ll still have an effect on Pixel,” Score said. “Could you really live with this, knowing what it’s doing to him?”
He had her there - Helaine knew she couldn’t. Pixel meant just as much to her as Score did, although more as a brother than a lover. “This is a nightmare,” she groaned, covering her face with her hands.
“It is,” Score agreed, pulling his shirt over his head. He checked his jeans to make sure his gemstones were still in his pockets, and looked at her. “I’ll be back soon,” he said. He stepped forward, moving to kiss her…and stopped. “’Bye,” he said after a moment.
Helaine watched him leave, then flopped back onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Will this ever end? she thought angrily. Why is this all happening to us, now?
“Why indeed. After all, you never did anything to deserve this, did you? You’re just the innocent little backstabbing bitch, aren’t you, Eremin?”
Helaine gasped and sat up, looking around angrily. “Who are you?” she shouted. “Where are you?”
From behind her, a pair of arms came out of the wall and wrapped around her, pulling her up against the wall. Helaine struggled angrily, until it became evident that the owner of the arms wasn’t going to hurt her.
“Did you forget that I can come into your castle any time I want?”
“Chronos!” Helaine spat.
The arms disappeared, releasing her, and the magic-user materialized before her. “In the flesh,” Chronos said, giving her a mocking bow. “So good to see you again, Eremin. You’re looking awfully well.”
Suddenly remembering her state of undress, Helaine gripped the blankets around her tighter, and stood from the bed, dragging them with her. “Bastard,” she snarled. “You’re the one who took Pixel from us, aren’t you!”
“But of course,” Chronos said, smirking. “Surely you know the reason. That arrogant bastard deserves what he gets. You should’ve thought about that before reducing yourselves to children - there are plenty people who want you dead, and it’s so much easier when you aren’t at your full power.”
He really thinks I’m Eremin, Helaine realized. He really is crazy. She stared at him, seeing the family resemblance between himself and Destiny. Both were of Asian descent, obviously, and Chronos looked to be in his late-twenties, although it was probably magic that kept him looking so young. He also had the same psychotic look in his eyes that Destiny had worn, only much, much more controlled.
It was that control that scared her.
Chronos suddenly snapped his fingers, and Helaine found herself fully dressed - minus her sword, of course. “The least you could do is give me my weapon,” she sneered.
“I’m sure you could do just fine with your magic,” Chronos replied. “You always were the strong one, Eremin. Not as strong as Nantor, granted - but that ruby of yours certainly gives you power.”
Helaine paused. Ruby? But Pixel is the one with the Ruby. But at that moment, before she could think anymore about it, Chronos struck.
Helaine sensed the danger before it actually happened, and threw herself to the side just in time to miss being zapped by a lightning bolt. She hit her bed, rolled over to the side, and threw out her arm, using her levitation power to call her sword to her. The weapon came to her at once, and she sighed with relief - and lunged for the door that Score had left open just before another lightning strike hit where she’d been.
Helaine stumbled out into the hallway and used her sapphire the slam the door shut, then formed an invisible barrier around it. Hoping it would hold long enough, she ran for the stairs - and heard Chronos laugh behind her.
“Barriers can’t hold me, Eremin!”
Damn! The voice was coming from the stairs - he must have transported himself there. To be able to do that - it took incredible power. She looked around wildly for some escape, and caught sight of a window just a few feet away from her.
“You’re trapped, Eremin,” Chronos said from the top of the stairs.
Helaine stepped over towards the window. “Don’t underestimate me, Chronos,” she said threateningly.
“You wouldn’t dare,” Chronos said with assurance.
She removed one gemstone from her pocket and held it up for him to see. “Just try me.” Focusing, she summoned the power - and the wall directly behind Chronos broke apart to come crashing down on him. Without bothering to see if he was distracted or not, she lunged for the window and threw all of her weight into it, crashing through the glass.
When the dust from the fallen wall cleared, Chronos ran to the window and looked down. “DAMN IT!” he shouted. There, lying three stories below, was the glass from the window and the still form of Helaine. “All that power, wasted!” Cursing to himself, Chronos pounded his fist on the windowsill. I didn’t think she’d do it, he thought. Eremin never used to give up so easily. He shook his head and vanished.
A few minutes went by, and then the body on the ground faded away as the illusionary magic vanished. “Thank God for quick spellcasting,” Helaine said as she levitated herself to the ground. “And the fact that he didn’t know I had a sapphire.” She frowned. “Though why he thought I would have the ruby is beyond me.” She glanced behind her at the broken window. I don’t care what Oracle said - I need to get to Score and warn him that Chronos is on the move.
Flame watched with mixed feelings as her father and Score disappeared into the Void, and sighed. Be careful, you two, she thought silently to herself.
“Flame!”
The white unicorn turned around to see Helaine sprinting towards her. *Helaine!* she exclaimed. *Score said you wouldn’t be coming.*
“I’m not supposed to,” Helaine said. “Is Oracle here?”
*He was, but he left,* Nova replied, joining them. *He went back to Rawn, I think.*
“Have Score and Thunder already left?” Helaine asked.
*Just a minute ago,* Flame replied.
Helaine cursed softly, and bit her lip. “Damn. I was hoping to catch them. Listen, when they get back, tell them that I’m on Rawn. They can’t go back to the castle - it’s not safe. I just had an unwelcome encounter with Chronos there.”
*What?!* Flame and Nova exclaimed, shocked.
“He thinks I’m dead, but he’ll probably realize that he’s been tricked as soon as he thinks to check,” Helaine replied.
*Of course we’ll tell them,* Nova promised. *How soon will you leave?*
Helaine was already flipping through the Book of Magic, which she had taken just enough time to grab before leaving the castle. She located the Portal spell, and quickly cast it. “Right now,” she said. “Be careful, you two. He might come after the herd if he knows about our friendship.”
*Okay,* the two said as Helaine stepped through the Portal.
Shanara listened to Oracle seriously. “So it’s true?” she asked. “The connection really is unbalanced?”
“Right,” Oralcle sighed. “But I checked Score’s aura just before he went into the Void. He’s completely focused on Pixel right now, although it’s a big strain for him, as he desperately wants to think about Helaine, too. But the total focus is giving a little bit of strength back to his connection with Pixel. If we’re lucky, we can keep it going until we figure out some way to sustain Pixel.”
“You’re not going to insist that Score and Helaine not see each other?” Shanara asked, frowning. “That’s usually the best thing to do in these cases.”
“They’ve already become intimate,” Oracle replied. “Forbidding them would just cause the same imbalance between their souls - no, the only thing to do is find another way to sustain Pixel, to make up for the lack of Score and Helaine. I was hoping you could figure out something.”
Shanara sighed and stroked Blink’s fur absently. “Unfortunately, I don’t know much about connections,” she said. “Most of what I do know are nothing more than theories.”
“Theories seem to be our strong point right now,” Oracle said.
“It would help if I could talk to Destiny,” Shanara added. “It sounds like she knows something about this. Is there anyway for you to contact her again?”
“She contacted me, first of all. Second, the Omnipotent are probably keeping an eye on my travels now. They wouldn’t let me back into the Void even if I could get there. It was only possible the first time because Destiny called me.” Oracle massaged his temples. “This whole thing is giving me a headache.”
“I’m sure,” Shanara said, rolling her eyes. She brushed her currently purple hair back away from her face and looked at the ceiling thoughtfully. “Okay. Here’s a theory. And it’s just a theory.”
“I like your theories,” Oracle said truthfully.
“What if we made a connection between Pixel and another magic-user - someone outside of the Triad?” Shanara suggested. “Someone to fill the gaps that Score and Helaine are leaving in him.”
“Can we do that?” Oracle asked.
“In theory,” Shanara said. “Although connections are usually made in groups of threes, I have heard of some cases where it’s just a double connection.”
“But Pixel is already connected, to Score and Helaine,” Oracle said. “Would he even be able to form a connection with another magic-user?”
“I don’t know,” Shanara said, shaking her head. Then she bit her lip. “There is another option, though. And it would definitely work - but it’s pretty drastic.”
“What?”
“Cut Pixel off from Score and Helaine entirely,” Shanara said.
Blink and Oracle stared at her in shock. “Destroy the Triad?” Blink whispered. “Could we do that?”
“What would that do to their power?” Oracle asked.
“It would cut it down,” Shanara admitted. “It would leave Score and Helaine bound together, but with their reinforced connection through their feelings, they’d be able to survive. Pixel, however, would need to be bound to another magic-user almost immediately to live. At least, to live on Dondar.”
“Why?” Oracle asked. He didn’t know much about the effects of connections.
“The reason Score, Helaine, and Pixel are so strong is because they share power,” Blink explained. “They were connected since before they were born - it’s because of that connection that they were also able to defeat the original Triad.”
“Natural-born bonds - bonds created from the time of birth - are hard to come by,” Shanara added. “The Triad were not naturally bonded, so their bond was weaker than the bonds our Triad have. If Pixel were separated from Score and Helaine, he would most likely be brought down several levels, and would be at his own personal magic level - and if I’m correct, he’d probably only be able to move as far as Treen.”
“I don’t understand,” Oracle said, shaking his head. “Why would he go down so far?”
“Pixel doesn’t hold as much magical power as Score and Helaine,” Shanara said. “You had to have noticed - Pixel relies more on logic than magic to get himself out of situations. Score is much more talented with magic, and when Helaine’s warrior-mind isn’t running the show, she can almost match him. Those two, staying connected, could still remain on the Inner Circuit, but Pixel would have to retreat to the Outer Circuit.”
“So he’d need to be bound to another magic-user that had enough power to keep him on Dondar,” Oracle said. “Could you do it, Shanara?”
“I could, but it’d be stressful,” replied Shanara. “My power only gets me as far as Rawn. I’d have to relocate to Dondar to keep the levels up, and while I’d love to go there, it would put too much stress on myself and Pixel.” She bit her lip. “What about…well, this may sound crazy, but what about Destiny?”
“You’re right,” Oracle said, nodding. “That does sound crazy. Pixel might go for it, but there’s not way Score and Helaine would. You should have seen their faces when I told them Destiny was Pixel’s guide.”
“Have you both forgotten something else important?” Blink demanded.
Oracle and Shanara looked at him.
“You can’t separate the Triad!” Blink exclaimed. “You might as well be destroying the Diadem! Separating their power would mean they’d all lose power, and their levels would be somewhat different, even if it wasn’t drastic in Score and Helaine’s cases. It would effect the Diadem analog on Jewel, and the Diadem would begin to disintegrate again.”
“That’s right,” Oracle groaned. “To seal in the spirits of Traxis, Nantor, and Eremin, they left a bit of their power there. If they died, it’d be one thing - but if their power levels were to actually change, it’d disrupt everything. So separating Pixel from Score and Helaine wouldn’t work because it’d effect all of them, and likewise adding another magic-user to Pixel wouldn’t work because it’d effect Pixel’s level.”
“So that leaves us at point zero,” Shanara said dejectedly.
At that moment, a Portal appeared in the middle of the room, and Helaine stumbled through.
“Helaine?”
She looked at them. “Chronos,” she said, “is stark-raving mad.”
