Maia and the Xifarian Conspiracy (The Lightbound Saga Book 1) (23 page)

“Maia,” she squealed. “Look, I found some more.”

“You found some clues?” Maia edged closer, hoping to see some miraculous discovery about the relic.

“Huh?” Nafi seemed distracted as she pored over the
Book of Treasures
. “No, not that. This book mentions the R’armimon.”

“Come on, Nafi, forget the R’armimon.” Maia felt a wave of frustration well up inside. Now was not the time to indulge in figuring out some mystery. Every moment counted. “I would rather look for clues to identify the relic.”

“I didn’t go looking for them,” Nafi snapped. “They’re mentioned in this book, in connection with the powers of the Seliban Temple. It says here that the Seliban Temple, mostly due to its enhanced biometric design and its location in the lava field, has been found to augment extrasensory powers. It enhances the powers of Telekinetics, and it boosts the abilities of the Tierremorphes. In a sense, it rivals the Xienotaph System of the ancient R’armimon Empire, the infamous training grounds of the dreaded R’armimon assassins and infiltrators.”

“They had training grounds for assassins and infiltrators? What sort of people are these?” Maia wondered aloud.

“Intriguing and somewhat creepy.” Nafi shut her book and stretched. “I wouldn’t plan on being best friends with them.”

***

The next morning, Maia was taut with anxiety as she walked with the team toward the Dyosican Hangar from where their mission was scheduled to start. Even the simple task of breathing took some effort, and keeping the unending chain of thoughts from crowding and badgering her tired mind was next to impossible. And to top it all off, she felt miserable thinking about her failure to solve the clues to the relic. It was the one task she had been assigned, and instead of leading the team to victory, she would now be responsible for their ruin.

Miir met them at the entrance of the hangar and handed out personal communicators to everyone, looking curiously at their droopy faces.

“Why do all of you look so sad?”

“What’s the point of going through all of this when we don’t even know what we need to retrieve,” Nafi sighed and looked away. “We’ll never be able to win this.”

Maia knew they were all thinking the same.

“Well, you will get to fly an Onclioraptor . . . that is one excellent reason that justifies a happy face,” Miir replied. Surprisingly, there was no trace of malice or mockery in his voice. “And sometimes, thoughts clear up and things start to make sense when you are in the middle of the action. So, do not give up yet.”

During the few weeks preparing for the final challenge, Maia had found Miir to be an engaging and intelligent guide, always inspirational and always supportive. Lately though, his kindness seemed overwhelming. And Maia was sure that she was not the only one who relished the camaraderie while it lasted.

“Besides, you have been too worried with this whole drill. While I would like to see my team win, you should probably also have some fun . . . within reasonable limits of course.”

Dani shook her head with vigor. Ren turned toward Nafi and nudged her arm.

“That’s right, Nafi. We’ll be flying in a real Raptor today. Isn’t that super?” he said.

“Yes, and we get to fly over Xif in it,” Kusha added.

“And hopefully find an ancient hidden temple that lives and breathes,” Maia said. The newfound excitement made her feel a little carefree. Something in the discussion triggered a lost memory of a conversation long past; it swept through her mind but was gone before she could pin it down. She struggled to grasp at the string of thoughts that she knew for sure was valuable.

“Maia?” Dani shook her arm. “Are you all right?”

“Yes,” Maia flushed. “I thought I remembered something, but it slipped away.”

“Come on in,” Miir called from the head of the procession.

On this particular occasion, the hangar looked more impressive than on any other day, mostly due to the assortment of spacecraft that dotted its floor. A few groups were already gathered around their respective crafts, looking intimidated and anxious, their faces drawn and eyes restless. Miir strode toward one end of the hangar, while Maia and her teammates following with brisk steps. They passed a spacecraft with four immense curved wings and a shiny silver-white center shaped like a puck, whose transparent top was no doubt the flight deck. On the side of the body was a winged horse engraved in gold.

Pegasus! Maia remembered the tale of a mythical flying horse, a story from the planet they called home long before the Scattering. It was true then, the people on Tansi did share the same roots as the Xifarians. She fell back, studying the puck with the fearsome wings.

“Is this it? Really?” Nafi’s excited shrieks made Maia rush to where the rest of the team had gathered, her worries disappearing into oblivion at the sight ahead. An enormous Raptor loomed over them like a mammoth condor ready to swoop on its prey. It was the color of midnight, its dark wings stretching wide across the floor. The edges of its wings, tail, and nose gleamed with artistic stripes of Xifarian royal colors—dark red and majestic gold.

“Yes, this is my little
Shadow
,” Miir said, his voice brimming with pride.

“Little?” Ren sounded incredulous. “That’s . . . little?”

“
Shadow
definitely seems smaller to me now, although I was more in awe of the size when I first started.”

“And when was that?” Kusha asked.

“It has been about six years.
Shadow
was given to me when I was ten,” Miir replied with a casual wave of his hand.

At that comment, everyone stopped gaping at Shadow and turned to stare at its keeper instead.

“Okay,” Miir turned somber. “While all the teams check in, you should take the time to look at the aircraft, inside and out. Go on now.”

He waved a dismissal, an indulgent smile curling at the corners of his mouth. Dani was first to scramble up the stairs that led into the belly of the Raptor, Ren and Nafi followed. Maia and Kusha walked around outside, looking at the big opening at the back of the craft from where their Cylopedes would launch. After that, Kusha decided to take a look inside. Maia walked toward Miir, who stood next to the stairs, studying a thick manual intently.

“May I ask you something?” Maia hesitated.

“Yes.”

“That one,” Maia said, pointing toward the puck-craft. “What is it? I’ve never heard or read of anything like that before.”

“That,” Miir’s voice was reverential, “is called the Ghiamera. It is a rare and expensive craft. It was built extensively before the dawn of our First Passage, one of the first crafts that we used to traverse the surface of the then stationary planet. They were designed to travel at very low altitudes, but had the agility and speed of the best fighter crafts.”

“If it was so popular, why haven’t we seen illustrations of it anywhere?” Maia asked.

“It was banned, and the entire fleet was terminated after one of these crashed. It was a particularly foul incident—a whole settlement perished,” Miir explained. “The records were expunged to prevent anyone from building more of them. Those crafts, although exceptional flying machines, were prone to imbalance of rotary stabilators. Their fuel systems were not very reliable either, which resulted in staggering disasters in the event of a crash.”

“So, why is this one allowed to fly?”

“It has been modified to correct all those problems. This one, the handiwork of Master Miizuken himself, is specially equipped to handle very high altitudes as well.”

Miizuken was the aeronautics whiz who had designed most of the groundbreaking crafts that transformed the Xifarian Space Fleet, Maia remembered. He was also Miir’s grandfather, which explained his deferential tone when he spoke of the Ghiamera.

“It’s a significant competition for us, then?” Maia asked.

“Yes, it is,” Miir said simply.

Maia heard the gang clambering down the stairs behind her. They were gushing over the fantastic interior of the craft when Master Demissie’s voice boomed across the hangar.

“The final challenge will begin very shortly. The participants will please come to the entrance for the briefing.”

Karhann and his teammates were gathered around Master Demissie, who stood at the door of the hangar with a scowling Master Kehorkjin by his side. By the time Maia and her friends made their way to the masters, Core 3, as well as Core 17, had also found their spots.

“You know the contest rules better than I do, so I will skip that discussion,” Master Demissie spoke once all the teams had assembled. “I want to remind you of the Code of Honor—please adhere to that. There will be one winning team. The one team to return to this hangar with the relic before nightfall will take all the honors.

“All your equipment and accessories have been loaded into your spacecraft. You will depart for the surface through Aperture 26 in Quadrant 8. After all of you reach the Field of Two Six, Master Kehorkjin will flag off the race to the Seliban Temple. Good luck. Be honorable and brave.”

As soon as he stopped speaking, the crowd dispersed like swift colonies of ants, trooping back to their respective crafts in resolute clusters. Maia paused briefly before climbing into Shadow with her companions, needing a moment to take it all in. The promise of a thrilling journey that lay ahead of them and the commanding assortment of crafts around her both excited and concerned her.

She skidded to a stop as soon as she stepped inside
Shadow
, captivated by the array of equipment. An Onclioraptor was imposing enough in the books they studied and the mock panel they struggled with, but in reality, it was simply awe-inspiring.
Was it any wonder that Sophie was persuaded into switching sides?
It was hard to not be enticed by the plenty around Xif; it was just too easy to fall for the thrills.

Fists curling with determination, Maia braced herself. She would not be waylaid; her allegiance lay with Tansi. With a quick twirl of her pigtails, and a few fast steps, she got into position. Her team was already strapped into their designated seats. Ren was in the co-pilot’s seat alongside Miir, while Dani settled into the navigator’s desk. Maia placed herself next to Nafi, toward the rear hold of the craft where the Cylopedes hung suspended from the ceiling. Kusha ran some quick tests on the personal communicators and strapped himself into a seat beside Nafi’s.

Soon the outward doors of the hangar opened, and when their turn was announced, a pair of podgy tug-bots that had attached themselves to the Raptor’s wheels steered
Shadow
out. The tug-bots left once
Shadow
was placed outside on the grounds, and within moments
Shadow
came to life. The engines roared and a rumble at once majestic and menacing spread through the cabin. A shudder, a swish and Maia realized that
Shadow
had lifted off. It hovered for a few moments and then took off into the skies above the XDA. It was so unexpected, Maia mused, that a machine so immense and powerful could take to the air with such gentleness. They cruised over the iridescent sea of buildings toward Aperture 26, a sparkling string of competing crafts stretched in front and behind them. The Aperture swallowed one craft at a time.
Shadow
emerged from the brief darkness within the tunnel only to be engulfed by a fog of haze that covered the Field of Two Six. As soon as
Shadow
lined up in the southernmost corner of the murky field, the team flocked to the flight deck.

Dani raised a respectful finger toward the horizon.

Beyond the pall of smoke and haze that made visibility practically nonexistent, a menacing red glow stretched across the distant sky in a long and continuous arc.

“Welcome to the Draegen fields,” Miir said, gazing resolutely at the bleeding skies.

Maia stared, her eyes frozen on the view beyond the window. The pounding of her heart had reached a crescendo.

38: Into the Darkness

Along with the ominous sight came an air of gloom, swiftly spreading its heavy presence around the fight deck. The blazing red edge of the sky was a dreaded reminder of the perils that lay ahead. Master Kehorkjin’s voice crackling on the communicator brought Maia’s attention back to their present bearings.

“Take the next few moments to prepare yourselves for the journey. We will begin shortly.”

Maia retrieved Bellator from the holding alcove at the back of the craft. At the pilot’s station, Miir updated the Raptor’s flight path to follow the route through Faith’s End. The first part of the flight was to be driven by autopilot; Miir planned to take over once they neared the canyon.

“We shall wait a bit. We do not want anyone to follow us to Faith’s End,” Miir said as they waited for the master’s signal.

“You are now cleared for takeoff,” Master Kehorkjin’s voice sounded momentarily. At once, crafts around them began to rise and move northward.

Maia did not have a clear view from the backseat, but the Field of Two Six seemed empty when
Shadow
lifted off and headed westward in the direction of the canyon. About the same time as
Shadow
entered the narrow valley leading up to the canyon, they came upon a cluster of crafts with a silvery Onclioraptor in the lead, making a beeline for the entrance.

“Guess we’re not the only ones who thought of coming this way,” Nafi grumbled.

Maia felt
Shadow
pick up speed. A tiny long-nosed craft that was at the tail end of the procession roared immediately. Although miniscule compared to
Shadow
, it was not about to give up its lead without a fight. But it was no match for
Shadow’s
swiftness—the Raptor soon zoomed ahead. A round-nosed Dochquar-ship was next and it tried a different trick, inserting itself in front of
Shadow
each time the Raptor tried to pull ahead or veer away.

“What a pest,” Ren commented loudly, as the Dochquar-ship cut
Shadow
off abruptly making Miir swerve to avoid a collision.

“We’re losing time in this back and forth,” Nafi hissed next to Maia. “Shouldn’t have waited that long to take off. We simply gave away our lead.”

Maia fidgeted. Nafi was right, this was not looking good, but Maia knew they could not let their frustration show. She leaned over to whisper a word of advice to Nafi but only a gasp came out of her mouth—a sudden weightlessness made her heart skip a few beats.

We’re falling.
Shadow
is losing altitude. Too fast.

Maia felt the fear well up at the pit of her stomach and the sweat seep out of her skin. Her heart pounded in wild frenzy.

We’re going to crash. I’ll never get to see Dada again.

Maia was about to close her eyes and brace for impact when she looked at Miir.

He is far too calm, too collected. This is no loss of control. He’s letting
Shadow
fall on purpose.

Miir’s plan became apparent in the next moment. The Dochquar-ship took a while to locate the swiftly falling Raptor, and in that time
Shadow
picked up speed and gained on his rival from below. Nafi screamed, Ren jumped up and down, and happy shouts filled the flight deck as soon as Shadow had left the annoying Dochquar-ship behind.

The mouth of Faith’s End was visible now, but the fight for the lead was not over yet. The silver-gray Raptor in the front sped up as soon as
Shadow
drew close. The two behemoths rushed forward, side by side, and for a while it seemed like neither would give in. The gap between the ranges that flanked the two sides was growing narrower and time to pass the Raptor was quickly slipping away.

“Come on, come on, come on,” Nafi muttered.

Maia shot a cautionary glance at Nafi, but the younger girl barely noticed.

The other Raptor edged past
Shadow
.

“Oh, come on,
Shadow
,” Nafi yelled.

Everyone whirled around to look at Nafi, shocked. Maia steadied herself, expecting a rebuke from Miir.

“Yes!” Nafi’s excited screech made Maia forget about Miir and she looked out of the window instead.

Shadow
had started to pull ahead. When Nafi screamed again, Maia joined in, and soon everyone was cheering
Shadow
on. The silver Raptor persisted, but
Shadow
kept gaining until it was in the lead.

Maia felt lightness in her heart. If they made it to the canyon ahead of this group, they could very well reach the temple-fortress first. There was suddenly a chance—a chance that they could win.

A flash of white and a glitter of wings at the mouth of the canyon sunk her hopes right away. Someone had already reached the canyon. It looked like the Ghiamera.

“We are too late, the Ghiamera just entered Faith’s End,” Miir had noticed it as well.

“So what? Can’t we try to pass those guys while we are in the canyon?” Ren asked.

“No, the Ghiamera creates too much turbulence around it. It would be dangerous to even follow it closely.”

“What about after we get out of the canyon? We can catch up then.”

“That stretch isn’t long enough to make up for this lag,” Dani explained.

“What?” Nafi shrieked. “We lose?”

An agonizing hush fell. As the burden of certain failure started to make Maia’s heart grow leaden, a plan that was almost as reckless as it was bold formed in her mind.

“What if we . . .” Maia hesitated, but just briefly. “What if we fly through the Draegen instead?”

Everyone turned to stare at her, and for a moment Maia felt utterly foolish that she had made the suggestion. It would be much too dangerous crossing a sea of liquid fire, through a maze of incessant eruptions of molten rock, ashes, and mud. Maia’s nervous glance fell on Miir last, and she froze for a moment.

Could that be a flicker of approval? Admiration even?

“We absolutely can,” Miir said emphatically. “Dani, do you still have those coordinates with you?” he continued as she nodded. “Good, chart the course now.”

The Raptor turned northwest in an instant and dashed for the blood-red horizon. Soon, the screen of smoke drifting out from the Draegen and the orange-red patches of fire were all they could see.

“Ren, all set?” Miir asked a few moments later. ”Once we reach the Draegen, I will maneuver Shadow with the tertiary thrusters. You hold the primary thrusters steady to keep us on our cruising path.”

“We’re nearing the active zone,” Dani announced right after.

“I am switching to manual flight mode now,” said Miir.

Next to Maia, Nafi breathed sharply. Desperate to feel safer, Maia clutched the hand rests of her seat. In the very next moment she gasped as a large ball of fire streaked across the window, missing the nose of the Raptor by what seemed like a miniscule amount.

“Take over the primary thrusters, Ren,” Miir yelled as the Raptor careened toward the ground. A volley of stones passed an area where the Raptor had been moments before.

Maia craned her neck to look out the side windows and caught a glimpse of the bubbling field of molten rock below. Blackened and smoking heads of gigantic conical mountains rose out of the scarred ground, spewing bloodied stones and fire with unbridled venom. As they passed above a deceptively smaller head, a shower of gray mud shot out of the dark spout and headed toward the left wing of the Raptor.

“Mud!” Maia screamed. “Left wing!”

There was a moment of perfect silence as everyone held their breath.
Shadow
veered sharply to the right. Maia winced as the seat restraints dug into her shoulders. An ominous whoosh came from beyond the belly of the craft signifying the passing of the threat. After what seemed like a never-ending cycle of dives, yells, pitches, yaws, screams, rolls, and spirals, the aircraft floated steadily. The thickest of the smoke screens rose like a solid wall in front of them.

“Dani, find our position,” Miir said. “I think we are a bit off course. I need new coordinates to the destination.”

“Look out!” Ren yelled.

Maia stared, forgetting to breathe. Emerging fast from beyond the pall of smoke was the dark craggy slope of an enormous volcano. It stood like a wall to intercept
Shadow
in a stony embrace.

“Hang tight, everyone.” Miir could not have sounded any calmer.
Shadow
flung itself back as sharply as an uncoiling spring and started to climb almost vertically, parallel to the slope of the behemoth beyond, rising higher and higher until it shot out above the smoky gloom into the grayish sky above.

A collective sigh of relief filled the air as the craft straightened itself in the safety of clearer skies. Maia closed her eyes to appreciate their still being alive, thankful that Miir was such a skillful pilot. Suddenly, she thought of her mother, again.
Had Sophie been a good flyer? Had she been out here in the dangerous fields of the Draegen?

“That was the Draegen-Mor, the sleeping patriarch of the Draegen

fields,” Dani informed, her voice pulling Maia out of her thoughts. “We should be very close to the temple-fortress.”

No sooner than Dani had stopped speaking, the Raptor lurched violently to the right following an ear-piercing screech and a heart-numbing thud that came from somewhere near the left side of the Raptor’s belly.
Shadow
steadied again, and within moments they descended swiftly toward the surface in the hopes of finding the sunken temple-fortress. Except for the shallow, nervous breathing of the occupants and the steady click-clack of Miir’s deft fingers dancing across the control panel, no sound could be heard.

“Must have been a stray projectile,” Miir said after a while. “Everything looks normal according to the body scan. I will check again after we land.”

The Raptor moved on but worries lingered.

“We have arrived. And it looks like we are the first ones here,” Miir announced finally.

Maia, Kusha, and Nafi sprang to their feet. It was time to launch the Pedes.

“Nothing but black rocks,” Dani said, peeking at the ground below.

“The entrance won’t be visible, not from up here,” Kusha replied, rushing to secure himself in a Cylopede. “I just hope that we have enough time to find it.”

The Raptor hovered steadily above the rugged, austere terrain, and the door of the hold slowly opened. As far as Maia could see, the ground lay fuming. Hillocks, small and large, dotted the charred surface, their gray facades dull, lifeless, and unwelcoming. The full and unobstructed view of the bleak landscape outside did nothing to lift Maia’s spirits as she prepared for launch. At the open threshold, Kusha completed a final check on his Pede. On his signal, Miir unfastened the slider hook that held the Pedes in place, and Kusha glided out into space, followed closely by Nafi.

Maia launched last. The wind made the Cylopede teeter a little as she dived out of the Raptor. A boulder dropped inside her stomach, churning her insides, making her heart skip a few beats. She grabbed the handles tightly with clammy hands, holding her breath, hoping that the sinking feeling would go away. She had to get over it quickly; there was not much time to lose.

The swift fall through the super thin atmosphere was far more disquieting than in the practice fields or hangars, and Maia was grateful to Ren for modifying the Pedes to give them extra buoyancy. The specialized Cylopedes were also completely covered in transparent shields for safety and comfort. Balancing her Pede to hover in midair, Maia started the thrusters and the sounding equipment. The Raptor, which had lingered briefly overhead after dropping them, took off in the direction of the Draegen-Mor. Kusha’s voice came through the communicator that hung around her neck.

“We’re all set. That’s the Origesa-8 to our right. I’ll check out the north of that hillock ahead, and Nafi you take the east, Maia the west.”

The hillock, whose flat southern edge stared the trio in the face, was the biggest in the vicinity of the sizable Origesa-8. It was an obvious hideaway for the temple, Maia thought, smiling at Kusha’s quick thinking. The mound looked like a smoked-out beehive, its dark puckered sides spotted by a hundred caves that led into the sleeping giant to the east. Maia wondered if one of those was the entrance to the temple. Kusha yelled before Maia could start her sounding tests.

“This is it,” he sounded excited. “I can detect an enormous hollow structure below.”

“We pull to the west then?” Maia asked.

“Yes,” Kusha replied, “the path of the light, the gate facing the rising sun.”

The western side of the hillock was similar to any other side. Each of the burrows that jutted out could be a possible entryway, so the trio started scanning them one at a time. Moments trickled past, with no success in finding the gate of the Seliban Temple. They had just about completed checking a third of the openings when Kusha’s excited howl drifted through the communicator.

“Kusha, stop shouting,” Nafi yelled irately. Maia could not have agreed more; the sudden hollering had nearly made her lose footing.