The End of the Fantasy (Book #6 of the Sage Saga) (19 page)

“That’s how you see it,” Bastion replied. “I’m thinking of it as wiping the slate clean. And you know what? It’s not because of some bitter hatred I have for the people of this world. In actuality, I love them more than I thought possible. I was willing to sacrifice myself for them all, but then I started thinking of who I’m about to trust, and I knew I couldn’t go through with it. With how you’ve used the Quietus, the Yama, the stones, Me, and everyone else…I know that you are incapable of telling me the whole truth, and if you won’t do that, there’s no point in placing my complete trust in you.”

“What lies have we told?” Veer asked him. “Please, tell us.”

“It’s not what you’ve said. It’s what you haven’t. Tell me. Who’s in charge?”

“I…I don’t understand,” Veer stammered as Catherine looked to her Sages and nodded.

“Who’s in charge?” Bastion yelled, taking a step toward him. “It’s a simple question. Lily, to me.” Lily nodded and began transforming into her stone form. Bastion kept a close watch over her, and when she was finished, he made sure to fuse her within him before he continued. “It’s not you two who are the leaders of all this. There’s no way it could be. Not in a world this violent. There is no way you would be able to attract so many warriors and get the Quietus to do your bidding unless you used force. And from what I’ve seen today, your particular skills are in manipulation. That means that someone else is handling the dirty work. So tell me, before I cut off one of your heads…WHO’S IN CHARGE?!”

“Ecio,” Veer said quickly, putting up his hands in surrender. “He’s the one.”

“And who is that?”

“He’s the current Emissary. He’s been looking for an heir. Someone to take over his job.”

“And did he truly want an heir? Or a body?”

“A body,” Tillian said sheepishly. “That’s all he needs.”

“And then he can rule however he pleases, couldn’t he?” Bastion asked. “Being free of this job…he could really rule all three worlds. Without anyone to truly stop him. Anyone that opposes him…he could just kill and then kill them again once they went to Paradise or Oblivion.”

“He’s—”

“SHUT UP!” Bastion snapped at them. “You’re done talking. You only speak when I have a question that needs answered.” But before he could continue, a rumbling outside the building caught their attention. His neck snapped behind him toward Catherine and the other two Sages but it wasn’t them. The distant rumbling sound, like a stampede was near, was coming from the
outside.

“Reinforcements,” Catherine muttered. Bastion sighed and turned back to Veer and Tillian.

“Who’s that?”

“Everyone we could manage,” Tillian said low. “Yama and Delilah.”

“We’re not going to survive that,” Talia stated matter-of-factly. “We need a plan.”

“And you can’t go unconscious,” Catherine warned Bastion. “We can’t risk them gaining control of you.”

“That’s okay,” Bastion said with a smile. “I’ve come to an understanding of myself recently. If I do go unconscious, it won’t be until after I’ve given it everything I’ve got. I’m not that angry kid I used to be.”

“Then what are we doing here?” Daisy asked, unsheathing her hook sword eidolons. “They’re not too far away. Several miles out, but closing the gap quickly.”

“Where’s the Emissary now?” Bastion asked the two Delilah before him. Veer shook his head.

“I won’t tell,” he said, and a second later, Bastion’s Gladius was ran straight through his abdomen. He shrieked in pain as Bastion twisted and then pulled the blade back out. Veer crumpled to the ground, clutching his midsection. Tillian glanced down at his friend, shaking from head to toe, and then he stared at Bastion’s eidolon, stained in blood.

“He’s, uh, at the far edge of the island. Further north.”

“Thank you,” Bastion replied, sheathing his eidolon. “That’s where I’ll be headed after I finish up business here.”

“You won’t be able to beat him.”

“I don’t care what you have to say.” Bastion turned to leave and Tillian suddenly leapt forward, so fast that Catherine could barely register the movement. In one swift movement, Tillian reached his hand through Bastion, ripped his Gladius from his body, threw it to the ground and then stomped on it, shattering it to pieces. Bastion roared in agony as Daisy swiftly came to his side, cutting off Tillian’ head and catching Bastion before he hit the floor.

“I should have been more careful,” Bastion groaned as Daisy eased him to the floor. Though he was already feeling better, he decided to lay there for a moment and catch his breath. The sensation was so violent and raw, it felt like Tillian had ripped out one of his lungs. Though his body was compensating for the loss, he knew that it would take a while before he was at a hundred percent.

“The Yama are outside the door,” Talia said, looking to the ceiling, “and crawling around the roof. The Delilah are being a lot more cautious, standing at a distance and observing.”

“I need to get this done,” Bastion muttered, taking the hand Daisy offered him and climbing to his feet. “I’ve got to get to that machine. Do you know where it is?”

“I think over here,” Daisy said, pointing to the outline of a person in the wall. “But there’s no guarantees that’s it. We didn’t see a demonstration, and with all the plans the Delilah had in place, it could be a trap for all we know.”

“I’ll have to risk it,” Bastion said, examining the outline closely. “Lily, have you got anything?”

“No clue,” she said from inside of him.

“Come on out. If this things tries to hold me here, I’ll need you to rip me away.”

“Sure,” she said, beginning to pour out of his body like a thick liquid onto the ground. She slowly formed into her human self. Bastion gave her a quick peck on the lips and she laughed.

“There’s no time for that!” she exclaimed. He gave her a sly smile.

“Always time,” he said, and she giggled again. Daisy was surprised by the exchange, and although she would never admit it, she felt a twinge of jealously at the sight.

“How do I get in this thing?” Bastion muttered, climbing into the grooves in the wall, matching his arms to where the arms were and so on. Once his entire body was pressed up against the wall, thin slivers of metal came out of slits in the wall and began to wrap over him like he was being mummified. Bastion was grateful that nothing covered his neck and face.

“Feel anything?” Lily asked as a low hum was heard in the distance. They were unsure if it was the machine or if it was the enemy outside. Catherine didn’t care which. She was tired of waiting.

“Let’s give them something to worry about,” Catherine said, nodding to Talia.

“You want to go out there?” she laughed.

“Not really, but it’s better than waiting for them to come to us.”

“Agreed,” Talia replied, unsheathing her eidolon. “Let’s go. Daisy, stay here.”

“Not arguing,” Daisy said as Catherine and Talia went out the door.

“It’s starting,” Bastion whispered as he closed his eyes. “Here we go.”

It felt like his body was being pulled forward, as if he was a kite and someone with uncanny speed and strength was taking him miles away from his starting destination. The wind blowing past his face was so strong that he couldn’t even see where he was. Yet somehow, he realized that it was just his consciousness flying away from him. His body was still secure in the machine.

When the winds died down, and he was able to open his eyes, he was afraid.

He was standing on a bridge made of grated metal, with holes under him that were big enough to stick his foot in if he tried. There was a railing on each side of him, and the width of the bridge was five feet. But what fascinated him the most was the tunnel
around
the bridge, spiraling beneath it and over it. A kaleidoscope of every color imaginable, twinkling and shining so bright that he had to squint his eyes for fear of going blind. There was a haze in the air, making it even harder to see, but in the distance, he was sure he could make out the outline of a person. A silhouette that stood there the same as he did. He wasn’t sure if it was his reflection.

“Do you see this?” he asked Lily, but then he remembered that Lily was not with him. He tried not to think about her too much. He couldn’t turn back now. Turn…

Bastion swiveled his head behind him and saw that the tunnel ended only a few yards away. A dull, rusted, steel door lay in wait. On the edge of it, where the door met the spiraling tunnel, the colors were dull, and the rate of the spin was slower. The longer he looked at the door, the more he realized what it was.

Oblivion
, he thought to himself. He faced forward and looked off into the distance.

Paradise is on the other side,
he realized.
The Emissary must be controlling that gate in particular.
It made sense, considering that was where the Emissary resided in his off time. He looked at the grated floor at his feet.
Our world is the bridge.

Bastion took a step forward and found that nothing happened. He wasn’t weighted down nor was he thrust in any direction. It felt normal.

Deciding to try something out, he touched the railing to his left. Immediately, he felt a great deal of energy being sapped from his body. Terrified, he let go and looked up. The silhouette was gone.
Was that the Emissary?

Bastion pressed the tip of his finger against the railing and a miniscule, steady stream of energy began leaving his body. He let go.

So Oblivion would be the first to open,
he thought to himself. It gave him an uneasy feeling. What if he was unable to defeat the Emissary? Then Paradise would still be shut…but then again, would that be so bad? Even if those in Oblivion killed everyone in his world, they could all go to Paradise, knowing that they were safe there. Of course, then the gates would be vulnerable. All anyone would have to do was find the Emissary’s body in the real world and dispose of him. The gates to Paradise would go down in no time, but surely those in Paradise would be ready by then for such an assault.

Once he thought it through, it seemed like everyone would have a fair chance.

“Here we go,” Bastion sighed as he turned to the Oblivion gate. He unsheathed his eidolon and made it bigger and stronger than usual. He wasn’t sure how much power it would take to break the gate, but considering the bridge was not a place people normally went to, he assumed it wouldn’t be a lot.

Bastion swung his eidolon down, slashing at the door from top to bottom, and a red, festering scar appeared. Bastion raised his arms and brought the eidolon down again, making an X in the door, and then he made sure to cut from top to bottom and left to right. When he was finished, he sheathed his eidolon, took his hands, and tried prying open the seam. He didn’t want to open it all the way, for he still wanted time to get to the Paradise gate, but he figured it was enough. A two foot hole was now in the middle of the Oblivion gate.

Bastion glanced inside for a second, but he could see nothing but darkness. There was no sounds. Not even a whisper. Feeling a little uneasy, he turned and began running along the bridge to the Paradise gate. At full speed, it only took him a few minutes, and he was surprised to find that it was left defenseless. Yet there had definitely been someone standing there before.

Of course,
he thought to himself.
The Emissary’s waiting for me on the outside.

It was a smart play. For one, it would be foolish to fight on the bridge. If they hit the rails at any time, their energy would be stripped away from them, and also, Bastion could damage the two gates all he wanted and it wouldn’t matter if he couldn’t stop the Emissary. With Bastion’s defeat, the Emissary could easily go back and repair the doors afterwards. Meanwhile, Bastion was already spending precious energy, trying to bring each gate down. He hadn’t even met the Emissary yet, and he was already scared of him.

Still, he didn’t waste any time in creating the same slashes and hole as he did on the Oblivion gate. Upon completion, he took a glimpse inside Paradise as well, and he saw the meadow of tall grass and roses that Tillian and Veer had shown him. No one was there at the moment, but he wouldn’t have time to chat even there had been.

Bastion stepped away from the Paradise gate and looked around him. How was he going to get out now? Could he just will it? Or was there a lever on the outside that Lily would have to pull? How would he even get the message across?

“Hey!” Bastion shouted, waving his hands toward the spiraling ceiling. “I’m ready to get out of here!” There was no answer. He waved his hands again and shouted as loud as he could, but if there was a response, he couldn’t identify one. He looked around him and sighed.

Now what?

*              *              *

“How will we know when his work is done?” Daisy asked, watching as Bastion’s lifeless body twitched.

“I don’t know,” Lily said, looking over him with concern. “He’ll find a way to tell us. Somehow.”

“I should really check on Catherine and Talia,” Daisy said, beginning to back away. Lily glanced at her suspiciously.

“I thought they told you to stay here with me.”

“Yeah, I know. It’s just I don’t like seeing him like this. I’m sure he’s not in pain…but he’s got to be uncomfortable at least.”

“You said your name was Daisy, right?”

“Yeah,” Daisy said, keeping her eyes away from Lily’s.

“Bastion talked a bunch about you. He looks up to you.”

“Don’t know why.”

“Maybe it’s because you were one of his closest friends.”

“Yeah,” Daisy scoffed. “Some friend I was. I left him when he needed me most.”

“You did what you had to do, and for what it’s worth, I’m glad you did. I wouldn’t have met him otherwise.”

“Yeah,” Daisy replied, looking back at him. “I guess it all worked out. I’m happy that you two found each other.”

“Thank you,” Lily said, blushing. A low rumble was heard from outside and Daisy sprinted to the entrance and wretched open the door. Catherine and Talia were right outside the entrance with their eidolons held high before them, blood dripping from the tips.

“What was that?” Daisy asked and Catherine let out a chuckle.

“Looks like they’re done playing around. Talia, you ready for the second round?”

“You mean the round that counts?” Talia asked. “Ready when you are.”

Daisy looked ahead to see the great army before them. There were Yama in the forefront, picking themselves up and dusting their armor off, but what lay behind them was the scariest. A row of Delilah, about twenty in all, were standing nearly shoulder to shoulder, staring them down, and waiting for the right moment to strike. They were still wearing their Delahcourt garb and there was no signs of them wanting to change. The only consideration for their style was that their sleeves were rolled up and anyone with long hair had pinned it up into a bun.

Beyond the Delilah was a man. A man in a suit of thin armor. There were Yama around him but they made sure to keep their distance, giving him so much space that it was as if they were terrified of his presence. His breastplate was grey with blue banners extending from his torso up to his shoulders and over his back like suspenders. His gauntlets had sharp claw like hands at the end and they were sharp at all points. His armored pants were steel and his boots chimed and clanked whenever he took a step. Only his face was visible. A middle-aged man not yet past fifty and possessing a countenance that was still young and vital. His blonde short hair blew in the wind as his grey-blue eyes showed little signs of awareness. It was as if the whole world stopped upon his arrival. All were silent, even the Yama, and Daisy was sure that no matter how the battle ensued, facing him was the final hurdle.

“Do you see him? Talia asked them, unsure herself of what she was seeing.

“He might be the Emissary,” Catherine replied. As if hearing her, the mysterious man nodded in her direction slowly. Daisy sighed and took out her hook sword eidolons, gripping the hilts so tight she thought she might break her hand.

“Is Bastion okay?” Catherine asked and Daisy cleared her throat.

“As far as we know. He can’t tell us what’s happening, but there’s no sign that he’s being attacked.”

“We’re going to need him,” Talia said. “We should see how far along he is.”

“Wake him,” Catherine said. “We’re going to need him.”

“Sure,” Daisy said, beginning to go back inside when a loud authoritative voice stopped her in her tracks.

“WE WILL NOT YET FIGHT,” the Emissary said, his voice echoing across the cliff side. He glanced at the Delilah and Yama around him with contempt. “Leave. Those who called you here are already dead. Go back to Delahcourt and wait for my orders.”

The crowd didn’t respond. They simply left, as if his words controlled them explicitly. The Emissary, Ecio, lifted his head and gazed upon the Sages.

“There is a hall inside, a room fashioned expressly for me and my training sessions. We will go there, where we can finish this without harming the machines. Much of this land has networks of wires underneath it, extending for miles. The hall will ensure their safety.”

Daisy shuddered at the sound of his voice, and she wasn’t sure if it was a good shudder or a bad one. If it wasn’t for the fact that he was the enemy, she might have fallen in love. His voice was deep but smooth as silk. And his confidence was overwhelming.

Catherine, on the other hand, found it all unnerving.