A thunderous crash hurled them all from their feet. A torrent of stone and metal barrelled through the roof of the catacombs, sending dust rushing down all the passages away from the hub.
‘Down!’ yelled Densyr.
Diera covered Hirad’s head. Jonas was lying half on his mother. The dust howled past them, carrying with it shards of rock and wood. The wolves ran on, away from the avalanche at their heels. The sound of the falling structure, the noise of rock on rock, splintering timbers and the grind of twisting, tearing metal, boomed around their heads. On and on it went. Densyr felt debris cover his boots and the lower part of his legs.
As the din subsided, he could hear crying. He lifted his head, relief making him a little light-headed. Diera and Hirad clung to each other, tears streaking their grimed faces. Jonas was shaking muck from his back, legs and hair. Densyr stood and held out his hands. Behind them, the hub and corridors were gone, filled by tons of rubble.
‘Come on. The enemy will be down here next. We have to make one short stop and then get out of here.’
Diera got shakily to her feet and looked behind her, gasping in a breath. Hirad had stopped crying but wouldn’t be put down. Diera nodded and gestured Densyr to lead on. Jonas came to his shoulder.
‘What are you going to do?’ he asked.
‘Light a fuse, in a manner of speaking. One long enough to allow us to get out.’ Densyr dropped his voice as they took a right turn then another left. ‘Can you use a sword?’
‘My father taught me a few things.’
‘Good. We’ll find you one. Just in case.’
‘You will do no such thing,’ said Diera.
Densyr didn’t pause or look behind him. ‘Sorry, Diera, but you need to know what the collapse of my tower means. The outer defence has failed. We can assume no one has survived up top. The Garonin will be down here ripping the walls out to get to the Heart. We’re liable to run into some of them. Right turn, Jonas. Second door down on the left. Go straight in.
‘We have little choice but to arm ourselves. Just in case.’
‘Where are the wolves, Mama?’ asked Hirad.
‘They’ll find us again,’ said Diera. ‘Don’t you worry.’
She caught Densyr’s eye and he did nothing to hide the doubt he felt. He ushered Diera and Hirad intro Dystran’s chambers and closed the door on the disaster unfolding outside. Densyr cast his eyes around a dust-filled oasis of calm. A fire was in the grate. A servant was pouring tea and Vuldaroq was seated in front of Dystran, a hand on his wrist.
‘How is he?’ asked Densyr.
‘Fading,’ said Vuldaroq. The old Dordovan Tower Master took in Sol’s family. His face cleared and he smiled. ‘It’s time, is it?’
‘Yes,’ said Densyr.
‘He can’t speak but he can hear you,’ said Vuldaroq. ‘But he is proud of you and the decision you’re taking. As am I. It is a fitting end.’
Densyr knelt by Dystran. ‘We’ve had our battles, my Lord Dystran. But I like to think we’ve carried ourselves with respect. Most of the time, anyway. The Garonin are crawling all over this place. You know what to do. Don’t leave it too long. Don’t build too much. You will be remembered as a hero of Xetesk for this even more than the demon wars. May your soul find peace.’
The slightest of smiles crossed Dystran’s face. Densyr rose.
‘Come with us, Vuldaroq.’
Vuldaroq shook his head. ‘I don’t think so, Densyr. I’ll stay with him. We both need the rest.’
The two men shook hands. Pain flitted through Densyr’s head. Dystran had begun his work.
‘What’s going on?’ asked Diera.
Densyr smiled. ‘The end of magic, Lady Unknown. Only way to make this world not worth further plundering. Come on, we’ve fresh air to breathe.’
The yearning was overwhelming. Sol knew there were tears falling down his cheeks. He knew he should feel the anxiety that the rest of his friends were experiencing as they awaited the inevitable attack. But he felt a joy that he could not confine. The hopes of every soul around filled him. Their lights shone so bright within him.
Sol reached out to gather in the strength of The Raven. He could touch each one of them. The huge presence that was Hirad. The determination that shone from Erienne. Ilkar’s stoicism through his frustration. Sirendor’s will buoyed by Hirad’s refusal to let him fade. Darrick’s calm purpose. Thraun’s animal power. He would have wished for more of them to be with him, but they were enough.
The weight of the body of souls was his foundation. The Raven were his keystone. Sol opened his soul to the void. Warmth washed through him. He had never paused to wonder how he would find their new home. The soul searches and the soul finds, so Auum had said. And it was true. He could smell trees and flowers, sea and stone.
Yet there was nothing to see. There was no passageway down which to travel, no door that needed to be opened. There didn’t need to be. Sol was all these things and he was the bridge to a place he would never see. A place where hope would be kindled by the fact of his death. Yet a place open to plunder unless the final battle was won.
Sol opened his eyes to find his vision changed. He could still make out the forms of his friends standing in front of him but they were altered. They were shadows again though now with a pulsing white soul energy that coursed around them. The Garonin too were changed. No longer the tall imposing soldiers he knew. They too were silhouettes though no energy shone from them. They were dark mist. No soul, no cohesion.
Sol breathed in the wonder of it all, forgetting for the moment that the enemy were massed to attack. The ivory of the land had gone too, so had the blackness in the sky. It was an even grey to Sol and there was what looked like dust in the air. Clouds of it. Not dust, he realised with a gasp. They were the marks of souls. Thousands, maybe millions. Travelling towards life or to their rest. Painting patterns in the comforting grey, like flocks of birds in flight.
‘It’s beautiful,’ he breathed.
‘Unknown.’ Hirad’s voice. Close. Sol looked and thought he could make out the barbarian’s shadow. ‘Unknown, can you hear me?’
‘Yes, Hirad.’
‘You’re sounding like you drank something way too strong, old friend.’
‘You can’t see or sense what I can, Hirad. It’s wonderful.’
‘I’m sure it is. But the Garonin are getting restless; we can see our people dying in the sky, though that might be a trick. We can’t see how we can stop them taking us, then you, and ripping the heart out of wherever it is you’ve found… You have found something, haven’t you?’
‘Oh yes, you could say that. And I can’t hold the door closed any longer. My soul desires to feel a new dawn. All these souls need a berth just as yours does. Keep strong, Hirad. You’re the heart of The Raven, don’t forget that. Trust me. Help is coming.’
‘From where?’
‘From everywhere. That’s why it had to be me that died for this.’
‘What are you talking about?’
‘Just be ready. We’re going home, Hirad. Home.’
Sol closed his eyes again. Everything had become very clear. The only risk now was that the Garonin would overwhelm the defenders before he was ready. But if he trusted anyone, it was The Raven. Sol let his soul fly. The scents of life suffused him. A breath played over him, gentle caressing growing to a breeze. It was the passage of souls, flooding forward into their new lands, there to find their resting place, there to find the paths back to their loved ones. There to end the torment of those marooned on Balaia.
Yet not all the souls that flowed over Sol passed through. Again and again he felt the touch of familiarity amongst the mass. And each one responded to his call to arms. To turn from sanctuary and defend the resting place none had yet seen.
‘My brothers, the world is forever in your debt,’ said Sol.
‘We are one,’ they responded.
Sol, the bridge between worlds, the director of the souls of the dead and the seeker of the paths back to the
