Takeshi withdrew from the gate and headed deeper into the Boundary. Fiyorok followed at a safe distance, neither closing nor falling behind. A minute earlier, Vissyus had thrown the guardian at him like a javelin. Why would he pull it back now? This was wrong. A trap, perhaps?
Vissyus couldn’t take the Gate from a distance. He had to be close – close enough for Takeshi’s Searching to detect. But Takeshi had blanketed the Boundary with a continuous Searching and found nothing.
Frown deepening, he sent his thoughts to his guardian. I’ve lost Fiyorok. Can you see it? I need to know where it’s gone. An uncomfortable prickling grew between his shoulders, and he spun around, expecting to find the dragon bearing down on him.
It’s disappeared, lord. Gaiyern sounded harried, fearful. Vissyus too. I checked his section of the Boundary for Fiyorok, but it was empty. I’m sorry, my lord. It’s the Weakening. He’s found some way to move within the Boundary.
Takeshi’s pulse quickened. Empty. That meant Akuan was out too. Vissyus must have gone back for the ice dragon after he left Lon-Shan’s Boundary. He hadn’t expected that. The guardian should still be injured. How had Vissyus healed it so quickly?
We need to flush him out while we still have the advantage, Takeshi said grimly. Swerving, he opened a new pathway and accelerated toward it.
Gaiyern’s response was immediate. Fireball! Right Boundary, coming in fast!
Starlike comets exploded out of a glittering wall ahead, and Takeshi rolled in a wide corkscrew to let them roar past. They missed by yards, intense heat buffeting him despite his shield.
He grimaced at the undeniable power behind them. The reality of Vissyus was far worse than a memory soothed over the eons. He’d grown complacent, arrogant even. If he wanted to survive, he needed to adjust his perceptions. Quickly. Looking over his shoulder, he opened a hole in the Boundary and dove. Light and shadow intermixed, shivering cold crisscrossed with boiling heat. Over and under he sailed until he broke through into the daylight of some alien world.
An overcast sky spread out before him, extending from one side of the Boundary to the other. The filmy clouds did little to blunt the sun’s scorching rays, which had, over the centuries, turned the ground into a barren wasteland. He ignored the desolation, dipped below the lowering ceiling, and flew on as though the ruins didn’t exist.
Fiyorok has changed its course, my lord, Gaiyern reported.
Has it broken off?
No. It appears to be running parallel to you and picking up speed. I think it means to cut you off before you reach the next wall.
The temperature around him climbed unexpectedly, and he weakened his shield’s outer layers to prevent accidental sparks. Not that it mattered. He couldn’t have stopped the explosion anyway. As expected, the sharply rising heat ignited hydrogen and oxygen. A vortex pulled the burning gases into a pressure well, where they detonated with a low whump.
Takeshi banked away and sliced into the nearest Boundary wall. Below, a world of sand-crusted hills and lavender seas flashed by.
Where is he, Gaiyern? Why can’t we find him? The Boundary gleamed in the distance. He picked up speed.
I don’t know. Frustration filled Gaiyern’s normally cool tone. Heat and light are part of every Boundary world. He might use them to Mask his movements.
We should still detect his spirit. His signature’s different. Unique. Takeshi rubbed a hand across his chin. Vissyus has put us on the defensive in our own territory. We need to regain the initiative.
He crossed over the rugged landscape and came to a stunningly beautiful forest of rolling hills and evergreens. A big cat padded out of the underbrush to stare up at him, seventy-five feet long with fangs like spears. Takeshi’s heart sank. Fa-Tan, a lesser guardian of animals. Its mistress, Tygrenne, must be here as well. A mistake. He had to leave… immediately. Turning, he made for the nearest Boundary wall, a ribbon of undulating light a thousand miles to his left.
The Boundary loomed in front of him. He relaxed. A few more miles and Tygrenne would be safe. He opened a portal, and fire roared out to meet him. Fiyorok burst through in a blaze of shield, smoke, and flame. Air whooshed toward the opening as if it was a chimney.
Takeshi slammed the path closed as the shockwave tossed him back into the temporary world. Too late. Fiyorok passed inside, igniting the air before the Boundary resealed. Fire consumed everything, feeding on all levels of matter like some ravenous beast. Forests became kindling, seas boiled to increase the pressure. Fa-Tan’s shield was far too weak to stand against the conflagration, and Takeshi watched in horror as the cat disintegrated into ashen fragments. He wished he had time to grieve; he wished for so many things.
Are you there, Gaiyern?
His guardian’s voice drifted back to him, soft and sad. I am so sorry, lord.
We’ll honor them when we’ve finished. Open a Gate over the Sea of Japan, and make sure you position it right behind me.
My lord?
Vissyus wants a way out. I’m going to give it to him.
But…
As soon as he arrives, invert the Boundary to trap him. If we’re lucky, it’ll take him a few moments to understand what we’ve done.
And then what? This section of the Boundary isn’t as secure as his fortress. I’m not sure I can keep him from tearing it apart.
We can’t go on like this, Takeshi snapped. We have to lure him into the open.
Fiyorok crested a distant mountain whose once-pronounced outline was now little more than a lump of melted earth.
We’re running out of time. Do it. Now!
A huge circle appeared within the impregnable wall behind him. Beyond, lazy waves churned over a vibrant ocean. Japan’s west coast filled the right half of the Gate, while, to the left, Korea and China framed a teardrop-shaped sea.
Fiyorok slowed its advance and moved as if to let something pass. Clouds mushroomed at its back while recurring explosions strobed within them. Gradually, the clouds rotated around some hidden eye, gaining momentum, shredding as they spun. A thermonucleic orb appeared at the storm’s heart like a great, ringed sun, and there, hovering inside the inferno, Vissyus materialized from the flames.
“Trickster,” he said triumphantly, his tone a breathy caress. “At last.” A globe of blue ice floated over his right shoulder. Fiyorok moved back into place on the opposite side, its eyes glowing malevolently.
Takeshi inhaled to steady himself as they advanced. One mile, half. Just a little more.
Now, Gaiyern!
A sliver of the Boundary bucked and twisted and peeled away from the greater wall. Clouds shredded and then reformed as Gaiyern wrapped them around Vissyus and his dragons. Light flashed inside, muffled explosions filling the air. Takeshi circled it, taunting Vissyus with each pass.
I don’t know how much longer I can hold him, Gaiyern protested. He’s set off a series of explosions along the inner ring. I’d forgotten how strong he is.
Takeshi marked time in his head while Searching another section of the Boundary for Yui. Just a little longer, my friend. Let his rage build. He won’t hide this time. He’ll come after me with everything he has.
Fire and ice ripped through layer after layer, freezing and burning until brittle cracks formed around a tiny breach. Vissyus grinned and pointed a trembling finger at the Boundary. Smoke coiled about his wrist, flame orbiting his hand. Yellow light streaked away from his upraised arm to pound the fissures until Gaiyern’s makeshift Boundary shattered.
Bits of burning debris flew at Takeshi, but he held firm as smoke poured into the chamber to hide him. Enshrouded, he slipped into another section of the Boundary, careful to leave traces of his passing for Vissyus to follow.
But Vissyus didn’t take the bait. He lifted his chin proudly and raised his booming voice. “I can’t do this anymore. I see where you’ve gone, and I know why you’re running. I’d run too if I abandoned those closest to me.”
He lowered his head and shook it as if to clear his thoughts. A flash of regret dimmed his eyes, but when he looked up again, accusation filled his face. “This game of yours is over. Finished! You can’t keep me from Teacher any longer. She asked for my help, and I won’t desert her. I will find her, Trickster, even if I have to obliterate every world within this Boundary until I do.”
Vissyus waved a hand, and his shield pushed outward. A second layer formed around it, thermal energy building between the two. He looked at Takeshi, almost pleadingly, shook his head again, and let the increasing pressure trigger a massive explosion. Shockwaves pounded the Boundary’s walls, though unlike the more temporary cage Gaiyern erected, these held firm.
Madness! Gaiyern cried. You can’t let him do this. We brought them here to protect the other Kami. What good is saving one world if we sacrifice so many others to do it?
We’ll save as many as we can, Takeshi said. Reinforce the internal Boundaries! All of them!
But some of the worlds are empty. We shouldn’t dilute the Boundary to protect them.
If you only secure the sections holding Kami, you’ll give their positions away. Let’s not make it easy for him. And be sure to throw a Masking around Roarke’s fortress… just in case. Quietly, Gaiyern. We don’t want him to know what we’re doing.
Shall I warn the others?
Takeshi shook his head. No. See to the Boundary. I need to tell Seirin what’s happened. We’ll need her help for this.
Vissyus may have left a Searching near Aeryk, Gaiyern warned, eliciting a frown.
I know. Unfortunately, we can’t afford to wait. Add a second Masking to hide my message. Just to be sure.
He felt Gaiyern’s energy seeping into his thoughts and instantly hurled them through the Weakening. Hurricane Point opened before him. Seirin was already asleep, and as much as he hated to tap her private thoughts, he knew his options were limited.
A gentle Delving would be enough to wake her. He slipped it into her mind, but once inside, once her raw emotions roared up to meet him, he reconsidered. She needed sleep to heal her wounds – the grief over Lon-Shan’s treachery, the guilt over his death.
Instead of disturbing her, he insinuated himself into her dream. “Seirin,” he whispered, calling to her subconscious spirit. “Can you hear me?”
“Takeshi?” she answered drowsily. “Where am I? What are you doing here?”
“I don’t have time to explain.”
Seirin bristled in her sleep. “You never have time. Not then, not now, not ever.”
He let that pass. “I need to show you something. Will you allow it?”
She grunted her assent, and he relaxed. He fed images to her slowly, though she thrashed when he neared the end.
“I am very sorry, Seirin, but this is the only way. Now, one thing more. I need you to prepare the battlefield. Your power could save large sections of Tokyo. Will you do it?”
She nodded without speaking, as her thoughts drifted toward Japan.
“I apologize for the intrusion.” Bowing, Takeshi withdrew his mind. “Sleep well.”
As Hurricane Point faded away, he turned back to Gaiyern. “Have you secured the Boundary?”
“I did what I could, but I doubt the reinforcements will hold for long.”
“It’s enough.” It had to be. He spun his shield and headed for a wall of pulsating energy. “Once I prepare the White Spirit, I’ll take my position south of Tokyo. Be ready when I call you.”
Outside the Boundary, exactly as Seirin promised, a heavy, soaking rain materialized over Tokyo in the middle of a perfect spring day.