Title: The Crucible
Disclaimer: I don't own anything
Author's note: Alright, so this is Day 14 in my story, which means, for those of you who remember my previous Author's notes, that this is also the last chapter (of this story in the series). So I have two things to say: first, this is dark and has death, so if you don't like that sort of stuff, don't read. Nothing graphic though.
Second, most of this is done is flashbacks, and all the flashbacks are in italics.
Okay, just a reminder of who the major players are:
Tess and Larek, of course
Alex-Tess's son, named after Alex Whitman
Audin-diplomat to Larek from the planet Byor
Arya-the regional ruler from the province of Tel'ai, which is the capital province on Antar. She was recently deposed by Khivar
Khai-main general and leader of the Resistance, Rath's younger brother
Sria- the original Ava's best friend, one of Larek's advisors, and a native of the planet L'so, killed by skins.
Lotho-general of Larek's army (like Rath was for Zan), married to Kani, killed by Khivar's army.
Kani-married to Lotho, she is one of Larek's closest friends and advisors
Tunia-a Resistance spy killed by Khivar, most likely set up by a traitor
Resistance members with smaller roles: Radim, Trell, Zyith, Shalimar, Sirch, Nasada (Zyith and Radim both killed by Khivar's army)
Places of importance:
Tel'ai-capital province of Antar, has Dimaras Rock, where Zan met Ava. The Triaji Desert, the Cortai Jungle, the Landra River, and the Fel Mountains are all located in this province as well.
Antar-the capital city of Antar has the same name as the planet.
Sab and Drasu-cities in Tel'ai that Khivar attacked and decimated, no adults were left alive in either.
Mt. Sinai-a mountain in Tel'ai, it's name means (in Antarian) 'mountain of fate'
Daila: The capital city of Larek's planet.
Lexan: A city on Larek's planet.
crucible: an object made stronger as it is passed through fire
Chapter Fifteen: Queen
Day 14
It was hot. The sun shone brightly, casting harsh rays of light at the desert. Tess stepped out of the ship and looked around, her eyes scanning the sand for any sign of life. But she saw nothing, for Larek had been right, it was a barren wasteland.
She turned and glanced towards the west. In the far off distance she could see the shadowy outline of mountains. The Fel. They rose up against the sky, shimmering in the heat. That was where she was going.
So far away.
"Your Majesty?" Shalimar murmured, holding out a swaddled Alex. Tess turned and took her son in her hands. She held him close to her chest and stared up at Shalimar, who was glancing around in concern. "Are you sure this is what you want to do?"
"Yes," Tess replied in a determined voice. "Yes, I'm sure."
Shalimar nodded and pointed out into the distance, towards the mountains. "Walk to the west, then, Majesty. Arya will guide you on your way."
"Thank you, Shalimar," Tess replied. She reached down and lifted a bag, pulling it on to her back. Then she lifted another bag and held it over one shoulder. Holding Alex tightly in the crook of her elbow, she straightened and nodded to Shalimar. "You had better go."
Shalimar inclined her head slightly, agreeing with the words, although the expression in her eyes shows clearly her reluctance to leave the Queen and the newborn Heir. "May the stars watch over you," she murmured, than turned and walked out of the sun and heat and into the cool recesses of her ship. The metal door clanged shut behind her.
A moment later, the engines sprang to life, and kicked up the sand and dust around the bottom of the ship. Tess backed away and watched as the ship lifted off the ground, then diseapeared abruptly, shooting off into the sky. Tess followed the trajectory, watching long after the aircraft had faded from view.
Then she turned towards the west, and began to walk resolutely onwards, with nothing to keep her company but the memories of the previous day.
Tess felt the tears slip from her eyes as she knelt by the still form of her best friend. She placed a hand on Sria's heart, and another on the side of her throat, praying for a heartbeat, but feeling nothing. Sobs caught in her throat as she turned her head and looked at the destruction around her.
Sria was dead.
She had no idea how long she stayed there, in that position, praying for a miracle she knew would not come. From the floor above her, she could hear the sound of footsteps in the hall, the shouts and clamor of fighting. The air was hot, a heat she now knew meant that weapon fire was being used. Through the confusion and pain, her tired brain registered that the palace was under attack.
She needed to get back to Larek. She needed to get back to safety.
But she was loathe to leave Sria's body unguarded. With the skins desecrate like they had Lotho's, burning the corpse?
And then she jolted as another thought occurred to her, one so terrifying it took her breath away.
Alex.
She spun around and fled up the stairs, her feet barely touching the floor as she made her way towards her son's room, praying she was not too late.
She had no idea how she managed to find her way to her son's room through the labyrinth of interconnecting pathways. But some sixth sense brought her to the room, and she flung the door open with all her might, raising both hands in preparation to attack whoever was there.
She stopped herself just in time.
It was only Audin.
He was holding Alex, trying in vain to soothe the crying infant. He turned as the door flew open, and stared, quite startled, at Tess. Then relief flooded his face and he cried, "My Lady! We feared you had been captured. Larek sent me to retrieve the Heir and take him to safety. The palace is under attack!"
Tess took her son from Audin's hands and ordered, "Take me to Larek."
"He is fighting in the front lines, Majesty. It is too dangerous for me to take you to him, but I'll take you to the safe house. Shalimar and Sirch are there, trying to find a way to defeat Khivar's army."
Tess nodded and followed Audin from the room, her heart beating wildly.
They ran through a set of double doors at the end of the hallway and down stairs that Tess did not recognize. The entire building began to shake, and Tess fell to her knees, both arms circling around her son to protect him. Audin bent down next to her, pulling her hurriedly to her feet and giving her his arm to support her.
"Not much farther, Majesty," Audin whispered encouragingly. He pulled her out into another hallway, and Tess froze in horror at the scene before her.
The ground was soaked with blood. Soldiers lay around her, dead and dying, their faces fixed in expressions of horror. The walls were covered with scorch marks, the effects of energy blasts, and cut deep with grooves caused by slashing swords. Tapestries were yanked off the walls and fell in heaps on the ground.
"Come on!" Audin hissed, grabbing Tess and pulling her away from the gruesome sight.
Tess shook her head to clear the stinging tears and murmured, "Sria…"
"What about Sria?" Audin asked as he led Tess down yet another hallway, this was dark and narrow.
"Dead," Tess gasped as the choking sobs filled her again.
Audin turned to her in confusion. "Sria's dead?" he asked. "How?"
"Skins," Tess murmured, pausing and leaning against the wall as tears coursed down her face. "Killed her in the hall of mirrors."
"Oh, you went to see the hall of mirrors?" Audin inquired distractedly. He was not looking at Tess anymore, but instead at her son, his eyes fixed on Alex, and burning with a strange and intense light.
"She said you suggested it," Tess whispered. "After the incident in the garden, you were there… I mean, when Sria went to tell Larek, you where there…and then you knew that the attack happened…you suggested…mirrors…so pretty…" Tess gasped through her sobs. Audin's eyes narrowed as he looked at her, and, as though something had suddenly clicked into place, Tess suddenly leapt backwards and away from Audin.
He had known where she was going to be when the city went up in flames.
He had suggested she go to an unguarded hallway and then Khivar had so conveniently attacked.
And Khivar had a spy in the Resistance.
"Audin…" Tess breathed, her eyes widening in fear. "Where are you taking me?"
"To safety!" Audin cried, his face filled with sudden panic as he saw the thoughts moving through Tess' eyes. "We have to go, now! We can talk later, but it isn't safe here."
Tess lifted a hand and blew Audin backwards and away from her, then turned on her heel and fled, praying silently that she and her son would make it out of the palace alive.
Audin, a traitor. It had been almost inconceivable at the time. Inconceivable that the man whom she had come to trust was really a spy for her worst enemy. How could she have been so naïve, so foolish, to assume that everyone was exactly what they said they were?
Tess sat down on the hot desert sand for a moment, gathering her thoughts. The sun was setting slowly, turning the sky crimson. The air was not cooling, though, she wondered briefly if the nights would be as hot as the days.
She was stuck in this desert until she reached her destination point at the foot of the Fel. And that meant she was stuck here for a very long time.
Audin.
Tess closed her eyes and pictured his face, remembering the way he had looked at her right before she had attacked him, the fury and frustration in his eyes. She had turned and run, desperate to get away from the man who had betrayed them all.
Another traitor, another painful memory, another moment in time she wanted to forget.
Tess yanked a door open and found herself in a small, dimly lit room, somewhat like a storm cellar. The walls were heavy stone, covered in a thin layer of dust. The floor was carpeted in a ragged brown rug with several patches as bare spots. There was a wooden door on the other side, with hinges so rusty Tess assumed they had not been used in decades.
The blonde advanced to the door and pressed her ear against it, listening for any sound. On the other side of the door she could hear the sharp rap of shoes as someone paced rapidly down the hallway, then a few voices, rising and falling in hushed whispers. She could not make out the words, or tell whether the people were friends or foes.
And then she heard a sound, a voice, one that she recognized, and that she had never been happier to hear.
It was Khai.
"Is there any news on the Queen or the Heir?" Khai's sharp voice asked, loud enough to be heard through the wood door.
Before a response could be given, Tess shoved the door open and stepped into the hallway.
It was a long hall, lit with torches on the walls. Khai was standing near the wall, speaking to Shalimar and Kani. Shalimar's dark eyes were filled with fear and anger, but Kani's face was blank. Her blonde hair was pulled away from her face, revealing a series of long gashes along her cheek and neck. Her eyes were a cold blue.
"My Lady? You're safe," Shalimar breathed in relief, her eyes quickly glancing over Tess and little Alex. "We sent Audin to find the Heir, we thought you were lost…" Shalimar let the sentence drift for a moment, then smiled hesitantly and said, "It is a relief to see you are alive."
"Come. We must hurry," Khai instructed, barely giving Tess a second glance. He grabbed her arm and propelled her forward and through the hall, his eyes sweeping left and right as he watched for enemies.
The sound of a small explosion caused the group to turn in time to see a door blown off its hinges and thrown across the hallway. It crashed into the opposite wall and shattered, and several skins poured forth.
Kani reacted almost instantly, lifting a hand and creating a shield between herself and then skins. "Run!" she hissed as she struggled to maintain the protection.
Tess hesitated, knowing that if they did not stay and fight, Kani would eventually be overwhelmed and killed. She wanted to stay, wanted to protect the woman who was so obviously willing to die in the service of the Resistance, but Khai grabbed her tightly and dragged her away.
"She'll be killed!" Tess protested as Khai shoved her around a corner and through a doorway into a narrow set of stairs.
"I know," Khai said grimly, his eyes filled with a pain so raw that it hurt Tess to hold eye contact. She looked away, and Khai continued in a hard voice, "I doubt many of us will be alive by the end of the day."
"It doesn't matter," Shalimar added. "All that matters is that you and the Heir are safe." She looked back up the stairs towards the door they had come through and murmured, "Hurry, Khai. We do not have much time."
"Audin," Tess said abruptly. "Audin betrayed me."
"Don't be ridiculous," Khai snapped as he pushed Tess through yet another set of doors and down another hallway. "Audin is on our side. He is no traitor."
"No…I know he did," Tess replied, licking her dry lips and pulling Alex closer to her chest. "He got Sria killed," her voice hitched slightly as she said the words. She still could not believe it, would not have believed it, if she had not seen it with her own eyes. Sria, dead.
"Sria was killed?" Shalimar asked gently. "Oh…I'm so sorry, my Lady." She knew Sria and Ava had been best friends, and that Sria was close to this hybrid Queen as well.
"Audin told her to go to the mirrors with me…we were attacked by skins there. And he also knew she was going to the gardens with me when the fire happened…he was there when Sria told Larek…" Tess gasped, out of breath, her face flushed with exertion and terror.
But Khai was not looking at her anymore. He was staring contemplatively into the distance, his eyes filled with a strange light. For a moment, it seemed as though he had quite forgotten that they were in the middle of a war.
But at last he shook his head and said swiftly, "No matter. We do not have time to dwell on this. Audin will be dealt with. Come, we must hurry." And he turned and ran down the hallway, Tess and Shalimar following behind him.
They arrived in a large room, open to the sky above. In the center of the room was a large ship, surrounded by several men dressed in an army uniform. They saluted the moment Khai entered the room, then turned to stare at Tess and little Alex in open-mouthed wonder.
"You will take the Queen and the Heir from this planet," Khai instructed one o the soldiers, the one who seemed to be in charge. "Shalimar will accompany her."
"Where will we take her?" the soldier questioned, already signaling his men to start up the spacecraft.
"Wait…what do you mean?" Tess demanded hotly. "I am not leaving!"
Shalimar switched her gaze from Khai to Tess, then glanced over at the soldiers, who were staring at Tess, unsure of what to do. Although they knew that Tess far outranked Khai, they had little doubt in their minds that there would be hell to pay if they did not follow Khai's orders.
"Yes, you are," Khai ordered, his tone harsh. "It is too dangerous for you to stay here. If Khivar did not know you were here before, he knows it now. The skins saw you. Kani must be dead by now, Sirch, Trell, and Nasuda will die shortly, and Larek himself stands little chance. The entire royal army of Antar is here. You must leave!"
"I can't just…" Tess let the sentence drift off as a memory floated to mind. Sria's angry face, glaring at her in exasperation. The raging fire on the other side of the garden wall, the shouts and cries as people died, the smoke that hung heavily in the air. And then Sria's words.
You may be the people's servant, but there are times when you life is more important that theirs could ever be. Sometimes you have to let them die.
"Ava, you need to go," Khai murmured in an undertone, his eyes boring into her. "The rest of us, we are all dead. You are the Resistance's only hope now." There was a silence, stiff and tense, as the two stared at each other, then Khai pressed, "You are their Queen. You must do this. For them. Do you understand?"
Tess nodded dumbly, her eyes wet with tears. "I understand."
"Where do we take you, my Lady?" the lead soldier asked, after he had decided that the issue of Tess' departure was apparently all worked out.
Tess glanced questioningly at Khai. Khai stared at her for a long time, his expression unreadable, then he turned to the soldier and said, "Her Majesty will inform you when she is in the air. It is best if I do not know where she is, just in case I get captured." But there was something in his tone, in the way he said the words 'in case' that caused Tess to look up at him sharply.
She knew in that moment what Khai had known since the first attack.
They were not going to survive this war.
"Shalimar, soldiers, go on board," Khai ordered. "I must speak to Her Majesty alone." The others obeyed the order without question, although Shalimar gave Khai a confused look before she disappeared onto the ship. Tess watched them leave, then turned her attention back to Khai, her eyes wide, her arms clutched tightly around her son.
"What is it?" she asked, suddenly fearful of what he would say.
Khai looked at her for a long moment, then said, "When you first arrived here, I told you I did not think you would be able to become a true Queen. I told you that I saw you as useless, as worthless, as a waste of time." He licked his lips and turned away, his eyes dark and filled with troubled thoughts. "I see now that I was wrong."
Tess bit her lip to keep from shouting in joy, but the words also pierced her heart as she realized this would be the last time she saw him. She did not like Khai, never had and never would, but she could not help but respect the General.
And she would miss him.
"Come with me," Tess said abruptly, unable to stop the words from leaving her mouth. She wondered briefly whether or not she meant them. But she knew, deep down, that she would morn Khai's death as much as, possibly even more than, the deaths of everyone else.
Khai responded with a harsh laugh. "If only I could. But there are things that I must do." He reached out and placed a hand on Tess' shoulder. "When you are in the spacecraft, when the soldiers ask you where you want to go, you will truly be on your own. But have faith in your ability to chose the right path, Ava. You have chosen it already by coming here, now it is time to see it through."
And then he was gone, disappearing down the hallway and through the doors, and laving Tess alone next to the ship, with her uneasy and distressed thoughts.
Tess forced herself to put one foot in front of the next as she pushed onwards, her eyes shadow with exhaustion. The day had been grueling, and not just physically so. She was emotionally tired, tired of this rollercoaster ride that had been her life. Why couldn't things just be easy for once? Why couldn't things just be plain and simple and straightforward? Why did life have to throw her these twists and turns and spin her round in circles until she couldn't see straight?
Why couldn't she just be happy?
"Where to, my Lady?" the lead solider, who, Tess recalled after a moment of thought, was named Cree, asked.
Tess looked at him, then over at Shalimar, unsure. Shalimar stared back at her, unable to provide an answer. Tess sighed and closed her eyes. "I don't know yet. How long before I have to make a decision?"
"About twenty minutes, my Lady," Cree replied. He bowed and left Tess alone in the room. After a moment, Shalimar left as well, presumably to see to the controls of the spacecraft as it flew through the sky, leaving Larek's planet far behind.
"Why, Audin?" Tess asked the empty room. "Why did you do this to us? To me? Were you ever on my side?" She rubbed her tired eyes as a thousand questions plagued her mind. "Why did you wait so long to betray me? You could have told Khivar about my presence so long ago, why did you wait these past two weeks?"
Tears welled up in her eyes. "How could you take Sria? How could you sell her out like that, how could you let her die? And Lotho, Tunia, Zyith… Why, Audin?"
She walked over to the makeshift crib were her son lay, sleeping soundly. She ran a finger over his silky hair and stared at his angelic face. "What has happened to you, Larek?" she murmured. "And Kani, Khai, Nasuda, Sirch, Trell… Have any of you survived? Or am I alone again? Alone in all this…"
"What will they do to your bodies?" Tess continued. "Will they burn you like they did to Lotho, or will they give you a proper burial? Or will they leave your corpses to rot in the palace?"
Time was ticking rapidly away, and Tess wiped the tears from her eyes, knowing she needed a plan. She closed her eyes and leaned against the cold, hard metal of the ship, trying to think.
What to do? Where to go? Who would take her, who would give her protection? How could she help the people of Antar? What could she do to stop Khivar?
Think!
And then a flurry of memories appeared in her mind, memories that eventually turned into thoughts, into ideas, and into the rough outline of a plan.
"And everything is being watched? Every secret pathway?"
"Except the one over the Triaji desert."
Khivar was taking cities around the capital. He wanted to bring Vilandra there.
Resistance bases hidden all over Antar. One in the Fel Mountains near the Landra River, near the capital city.
Mt. Sinai. "Sinai is an Antarin word also. It means fate."
"There are many different types of connections… Arya can send mental words and images."
"Except the one over the Triaji Desert."
Tess opened her eyes abruptly, and knew what she had to do. She got up and sought out Shalimar, determined to put her plan into action as soon as possible.
Shalimar was not so thrilled with the plan, however.
"You want to cross the desert?" Shalimar demanded, realization dawning on her as Tess outlined her plan. "But…my Lady, that is impossible. We would only be able to take you to the Southern part of the desert, and…" She let his sentence drift off, seeing the determination in Tess' eyes.
"I have to do this," Tess replied quietly. "It is the only way."
There was a silence, then Shalimar tried again.
"My Lady, if we were to give you any form of technological transport, Khivar's soldiers would sense it. They would be able to tell that someone is using a transport in the desert, and they would come to investigate it. They would come to you."
"Then I will have to cross it without a transport," Tess replied simply, as though it was the most obvious answer in the world.
"On foot?" Shalimar asked, incredulous. "That could take you months! If you actually manage to live that long… The Triaji desert will kill you."
Tess sighed and shook her head. "I've looked at the maps before. I could cross it in a little over three months."
"Your Majesty…"
Tess cut Shalimar off with a wave of her hand. "How do you know the desert is impossible to cross? Have you ever tried? Has anyone ever tried?"
Shalimar shook her head mutely. What could she say to change the Queens mind now that it was already made up?
Tess sighed and closed her eyes. "Arya can create mind links. She can link with me every night to guide me to the Resistance base. She can keep me up to date on what is happening. Once I reach the Fel, I can join the Resistance, and they can take me to the battle. To Khivar."
"But the war could be over in three months."
Tess shook her head. "No," she replied. "No, it won't be. It will take the Resistance more than three months to defeat Khivar's army."
"And what if Khivar crushes the Resistance before you have a chance to join them?" Shalimar countered, her eyes darkening with worry.
But again, Tess had an answer. "The Resistance survived for decades without any of the Royal Four. Tell them that the Queen is coming, and that they only have to hold on for a few more months, and they will manage."
"You have quite a lot of faith in them," Shalimar commented.
Tess nodded. "I do. I have met many leaders of the Resistance, and I have seen their determination and their courage. They will survive."
Shalimar was silent for a long time, knowing there was nothing she could do but agree. But how could she agree to a plan that would most likely get the Queen killed?
"Shalimar, look at me," Tess ordered. "There are enough provisions on this ship for me to take what food and water my son and I will need with me. You know how to access a secret pathway, you will get us into the desert. Then one of the soldiers here will contact Arya and tell her the plan…one of them must have dream-walking as a power. Meanwhile, Khivar has to return to the capital city eventually if he is to try to bring back Vilandra. Once he is there, the Resistance can keep him occupied until I arrive, then we can engage him in battle right there at the foot of the Fel. At Mt. Sinai. The mountain of fate."
"Poetic," Shalimar murmured, looking away in defeat.
Tess placed a hand on Shalimar's shoulder, forcing the other woman to look at her" Shalimar, it will work. It has to."
And so she had ended up here. Everything had been so rushed, she had barely had a chance to think since she left the hall of mirrors.
And now she was here.
Alone.
Tess shook her head slowly and stared back and the footprints behind her, the indentations in the sand that slowly faded away as the wind whipped by her. The desert erased her, erased every mark she made, until she was simply a phantom figure, making her solitary way through the expanse of nothingness.
Tess sat down on a rock, her eyes tired, her lips dry and cracked, her throat feeling sore and scratchy. She closed her eyes and sighed, breathing in the stifling hot air. She thought back to Shalimar, to the soldier who had contacted Arya, to the planning stages, to the landing in the desert… She thought of everything except the one memory that haunted her, that she wanted to forget, but that still remained.
She had kept it at bay for so long, but now the memory came to the front, and she didn't even bother trying to push it away.
It wouldn't have done any good.
They were several kilometers from the surface of the desert, making the descent rather rapidly but with decreasing speed, when one of the soldiers suddenly fell to his knees and cried out in shock and pain. He clutched his head as Cree, Shalimar, and Tess all ran to his side. There was a moment of silence while they waited for him to say something, to explain what was wrong, then he looked up at Tess sharply, his eyes boring into hers.
"Ava."
Tess stared at the soldier in complete shock as it took her mind a moment to comprehend what was happening. He was being possessed.
"Larek?"
"Yes." The soldier leaned forward, apparently in a great deal of pain, although no wounds showed on his skin. "I don't have long, Ava, so you must listen."
"I am listening," Tess replied. "But are you hurt?"
"Yes," Larek breathed. "Badly. Ava…I won't make it." The soldiers voice was barely more than a whisper.
"What? What is happening? What is going on?" Tess practically screeched.
"Audin let Khivar's soldiers in, Ava. He was the traitor all along. But Khai managed to stop him before he did too much harm…and Khai got you away safely…" the soldier gasped, his eyes clouding as he clutched at his stomach. "Khai took the Granolith…I tasked him with getting it…safely off the planet…" It was clear that simply speaking was causing Larek and the possessed soldier a lot of pain.
"Did he manage it? And the others?" Tess pressed. "What about them?"
"They're gone…I think…I don't know…the planet it so…he's destroyed us…Ava. I think the others were not too lucky…I don't know if even Khai escaped, but I think…I hope and pray he did…the Granolith must not fall to Khivar…you understand that?"
"Of course," Tess breathed, fear in her eyes as she felt her friend's life force fading. "Oh, Larek, I am so sorry. I brought this on you all. If I had not arrived, Audin would never have betrayed me to Khviar and Khviar would never have attacked…this is all my fault…" She was sobbing now, unable to keep back the tears.
"Khivar caused our destruction," the soldier spoke quietly, his voice serious but still filled with pain. "Khivar and Audin. Not you."
"Why did Audin wait so long to betray me?" Tess asked through her tears.
"I don't know…" the soldier closed his eyes for a moment, his body tensing. "I don't think… we will ever know why, Ava…he is…dead now…" There was a silence, long and tense, then Larek continued in a barely audible murmur of a reply, "You came back to be the Queen, to save Antar and us."
"Larek…"
"Don't give up. Don't forget…you are…always the Queen…Always." And then the soldier collapsed forward, slipping into unconsciousness, and Tess realized that Larek's spirit had slipped from his mind and faded away in oblivion.
And Tess broke into more sobs at the passing of her friend.
Tess continued walking, but every step was so difficult. She had to put all her effort into each movement. She had to dedicate each attempted stride to someone's memory.
"For you, Alex Whitman, Lotho, Tunia, Zyith, Radim, Trell, Sirch, Nasuda," Tess murmured as she walked. "For the little boy hunting for his sister in Sab, and the two girls in Drasu, for the people killed in the fire in Daila."
Khivar had tried to erase everything. Antar, Larek and his people and planet, Earth, the Royal Four… He had tried to obliterate them all. And he had very nearly succeeded. But he had not won, not yet.
Tess took another step. "For you, Kani," she murmured.
It was so hard to keep going, to walk away from everything she had ever cared about, everything she had ever treasured. All she had now was her son, was the tiny infant huddled in her arms. He was all that mattered, all the was left, of the world she had once known.
Another stride. "For you, Sria."
Another step. "For you, Larek."
And quite suddenly she could hear Larek's words in her head, rebounding around with growing intensity, providing her hope.
For good or ill, you are the Queen, and it is up to you to decide what you do with that.
The end.
Author's note: The next story in the series will be a one shot, and it will be called "Interlude: Rembrance," and it will take us back to Earth. So keep an eye out for it, it should be up within a couple weeks, but I'm going out of town (and away from a computer) for a while, so it may take a bit before it gets posted.
Also, just to clear up everything in this story, I purposely did not answer several of the questions so that you could think up your own answers. I give no reason why Audin waited so long to betray Tess, or if he was ever on their side to start with, or why he betrayed them all. Audin's story is one you will have to create on your own, and I imagine that everyone will come up with different answers, so it would be kind of cool if you posted them as reviews for everyone to see. I may post my own theory as a review as well, if enough people show interest in that.
Also, while I am not going to explain how everyone died, I will tell you that, of the main characters in this story, only Tess, her son, Arya (who has been on Antar for the past several chapters), Khai, and Shalimar are still alive. The others were killed in the attack. I don't know how they were killed or if they were given a proper burial or any of that. All the blanks are left there for you to fill in on your own.
However, what happens to Larek's planet after the attack, and the adventures of Khai and the Granolith will be dealt with in following stories as they will play a pivotal role in my series.