Dawnbringer Read online

  Why worry overmuch for an outcome none of us can really control? Either they would find the Engineer and escape, or they wouldn’t and would likely be slain. Some, perhaps, would remain there to be tormented for all eternity.

  Now there’s a comforting thought. What shall Nera the Rogue do with her last night among the living?

  Taking a deep breath of the crisp night air, she gazed upward at the heavens. A huge full moon was rising over the horizon, casting its silvery gaze down on the land and coating everything in molten silver. A ruined keep in the distance beckoned her with its mysterious allure.

  As she walked aimlessly through the camp for a time, she was surprised to find she had missed being off plane with the Steel Rage. Before being collared, she had spent a few excursions off plane with Wyat and his company. Although she was more comfortable in the city, she missed the sense of freedom found while adventuring away from Nexus. In addition to the simple things like fresh air, the moon and stars overhead at night, and the warmth of sun on her skin during the day, she also missed the camaraderie.

  Several of the men greeted her when she approached their campfires. She waved in return but didn’t stop. The hour was too early to turn in for the night, and her restlessness made her want to explore. Preferring to remain unseen, she embraced the darkness away from the campfires and passed through the camp as a silent shadow.

  After making the rounds, she spotted Malek leaving the command tent. He chatted with Endira and Idrimel for a moment before heading toward his own tent to turn in.

  A sudden thought struck Nera. Fleet of foot, she sprinted through the camp, silent as a moonbeam. She appeared at Malek’s side just as he reached for the tent’s flap.

  “Turning in so early, luv?” she asked, a mischievous grin on her face.

  Malek jumped in surprise. He whirled, looking sheepish from his start. “Nera… you startled me.”

  Nera grinned at him. “A bit jumpy this fine evening, eh?”

  “Just as you planned, judging from that smirk on your face.” The irritation on his face faded, and he smiled in return. “I was just about to turn in for the night, actually. We will need our rest before tomorrow.” He sighed, and a resigned look came over his face.

  “What are you, some cattish old noblewoman that needs her beauty sleep? The night is yet young, man. Come on.” She grabbed his elbow and pulled him away.

  Malek relented and went with her. “Where are we going?”

  “Up there.” She pointed at the ruined keep on the hilltop in the distance, where the silent sentinel kept watch over the rolling plain they were camped on. She judged it to be about an hour’s walk from the camp.

  “The keep? What of it? I’m sure there’s no treasure to be found—it’s likely been looted clean long ago.”

  Nera pouted and clutched at her chest. “Again, you wound me deeply, mageling. You think I’m after naught but treasure?”

  “Well, that was my first thought. We’ve spent enough time together that I know you would never turn down the chance to pocket some shiny coin or gem that catches your eye.”

  “Hmph. I’m hurt.” At any other time, naturally, she would’ve been eager to explore although Malek’s words rang true about the keep having been looted long ago. But this night she had other ideas. “I was thinking… since this is our last night among the living, perhaps we should… I dunno, live a little?”

  “Have you that little confidence in our abilities?” Malek stopped and stared at her. “We’re going to survive this—not only survive but find this damned Engineer and save Nexus.” He reached out and cupped her cheek for a moment. “You just have to believe in yourself and in our companions.”

  A shiver ran through her, and she reached to touch Malek’s hand, but he had already drawn it away in embarrassment.

  He seemed to have noticed her shudder. “Are you cold?”

  “Aye, the night has a chill to it.” She pulled her cloak around herself and grasped Malek’s arm, pulling him along. “If we keep moving, it won’t trouble us.” She walked as close as she could to Malek, until their hips bumped together. She was pleasantly surprised when he put his arm around her shoulders. They walked in comfortable silence for a time.

  “I’m glad you saved me from the boredom of my tent,” he admitted after a while. “Between these grim meetings and reading Yosrick’s book on the Abyss, I feel I’ve already got one foot in the grave. We should savor our time here, for one never knows how long until we can enjoy a moment like this again.”

  Nera looked up at him, and they shared a smile. “My thoughts exactly.”

  Soon, they reached the base of the hill. The keep’s crumbling walls had shed large blocks of stone, littering the hillside and edge of the plain. One relatively intact tower still stood.

  “Race you to the top of the tower.” She hooked Malek’s leg with hers and shoved, sending him tumbling backward into the grass in surprise. She held onto his arm to ease his fall, grinned wickedly at his surprised face, and sprinted up the hill, disappearing into the shadows cast by the once-sturdy walls.

  ***

  Malek watched as Nera’s lithe form vanished behind some rubble. He recovered quickly and pursued her up the steep hill, caught up in her playful mood. By the time he reached the top, he was breathing heavily. The Staff of Preservation had restored his vitality, and some rest and hearty meals had done well for his health, but his endurance still wasn’t what it had been prior to his grueling ordeal in the Gray Lands.

  I hope I’m up to the challenge of entering the Abyss. He choked out a bitter laugh at how ridiculous the thought had been. Could anyone truly be up to such a challenge?

  Taking a moment to catch his breath, he glanced around and noted the southern wall of the ruined keep had collapsed, leaving the main hall open to the elements. A passage extended off to the left. With moonlight illuminating the ruins, he entered the dimly lit passage. He followed it for a few dozen paces, but disappointingly, the stairwell was choked with rubble. He wouldn’t be able to climb that way. Malek retraced his steps back outside.

  “Do I need to toss you a rope?” Nera’s mocking voice came from above. The rogue was clinging precariously to the wall of the tower, ten paces up. She was about halfway to the top. “I should’ve bet you double my pay you still owe that I’d beat you.”

  Malek grinned in spite of himself and walked around the small keep, searching for another way up. Looks like it’ll be climbing, or wait for her to toss a rope. Wait… perhaps…

  Focusing his thoughts, he gently gathered the flow of magic from the earth around him. After his battle with the lich Stolak, he had become adept at creating a shield of force, so he didn’t see why his idea wouldn’t work.

  It’ll hurt if it fails midway.

  He focused on forming a flat barrier of force on the ground beside him. He stepped onto the platform, seeing his feet were a few inches off the ground. Concentrating, he willed the force to lift him off the ground. It did so, and he nearly lost his balance at first but quickly compensated and stabilized himself.

  Swiftly, the disc rose into the air, and Malek felt a rush of adrenaline. Nera was nearing the top of the tower, scaling it as easily as a lizard might. Her eyes widened in shock as he soared up toward her.

  “Oi! That’s not fair—cheating with magic!”

  “You never laid any rules out, only that it was a race to the top.” Malek slowed his ascent and let the disc drift even with the top of the crenels. He stepped neatly between the merlons and onto the roof of the tower, which was about fifteen feet across. The tower’s wall on the opposite side had crumbled away, leaving an open drop to the ground below. The plains extended into the distance, where the campfires of the Steel Rage’s encampment glowed in the darkness.

  Nera’s head poked over the edge as he watched. The thief snorted when she saw him. He walked over to help her up, but she easily pulled herself onto the roof before he was halfway there.

  “Come to gloat, I suppose,” she
grumbled.

  “I wouldn’t dream of it,” he replied. He extended a hand and helped her to her feet.

  Nera’s grumpiness was soon forgotten as she beheld the vista around them. “Look at that,” she breathed. Her eyes glimmered with their soft ember glow in the silvery moonlight. Malek could feel her warmth beside him as they leaned back against one of the intact merlons and enjoyed the view.

  Even with the bright full moon, the field of stars was immense. Nera stared up at it with almost childlike wonder. “This reminds me of those recurring dreams. In them, I’m in some temple with nothing but stars all around, as if it was a small moon up there in the heavens.”

  “What happens in these dreams?”

  A gust of chill wind picked up momentarily. Nera shivered and drew her cloak closer around herself, huddling against Malek’s side. He didn’t mind in the least and put his arm around her shoulders. Malek focused some of his energy and poured it into the blocks at their back until the stones radiated warmth.

  “Now that’s a useful trick.” Nera sighed in pleasure, nestling against him and the stone. “Sometimes in the dream, there’s a voice telling me I must fulfill my destiny or some such nonsense. Other times, there’s a shadow dragon lurking behind me. It seems like it’s protecting me, not menacing at all. And then there’s the altar. On the altar is a chalice with some silver liquid in it. It usually ends there once I pick up the chalice. I think I’m meant to drink from it.” She shrugged. “I wish I could just be Nera the Rogue again, but seems the gods, fate, or whomever won’t leave me be. But enough talk of destiny and fate for one day. That’s what tomorrow is for.”

  Malek silently agreed. He was content to simply enjoy the view and the company.

  After a few minutes, she spoke up again. “I suppose you’ll be wanting some prize for being first to the top.” She turned until she was facing him, pressed against his side, her face just inches from his own. Her hand rested on his chest.

  “No, it’s fine. It’s nice to just be here… together,” he replied honestly.

  “I was hoping you’d say that.” She slipped her arms around his neck, and grasping a handful of his hair, she pulled his head down.

  Their lips met. Malek stiffened in surprise for a moment but then relaxed, quickly responding to the kiss as her soft lips parted. Her tongue briefly caressed his lips then slipped between them, exploring the inside of his mouth.

  He slid his hands inside her cloak and around her back, crushing her to him. Her body radiated an unnatural heat, and her nails dug into his back as she returned the embrace, unwilling to let go.

  She finally pulled back from the kiss, short of breath. Her eyes blazed in the darkness like stoked embers.

  He flicked the silver earring dangling from one of her horns and traced his finger along the curve until it reached her thick lavender hair. The horn wasn’t cold, as expected, but warm like the rest of her and smooth to the touch.

  Nera captured his hand in hers and put it to her breast. She unfastened his cloak and let it fall to the floor. That seemed to remove the last of their inhibitions, and they fumbled out of their clothes. Nera pushed him down, and the cold of the stone floor made him wince as it seeped through his cloak beneath him. He poured some more energy into the floor until it was radiating heat as well.

  She climbed atop him, straddling his hips. Her body was lean, her skin smooth to the touch. Her scars faded from sight in the moonlight, as if she became some otherworldly creature, ethereal in her beauty. He ran his hands along her smooth sides and down to rest upon her hips.

  They joined together, becoming one beneath the majesty of the stars.

  ***

  Nera lay in Malek’s embrace, staring up at the stars above. The mage was breathing deeply in his sleep, chest steadily rising and falling beneath her cheek. She didn’t want the moment to end.

  She thought of the Seer’s words: “The time will come soon when you will stand at a crossroads and have to make a grave decision. One path leads to a normal life as you are now—a life with many possibilities, most ending in death and failure, but a few paths could lead to a life of contentment, whatever that may be. But certainly, none of those include salvation for Nexus. The other path—that one culminates in greatness. It will require immense sacrifice yet yield tremendous reward. Some will die that others might live. That path leads to the salvation of Nexus and your true destiny.”

  In that moment, she wished with all her heart to take the path to a normal life. We could be happy like this—just us, together. Let the machinations of the Engineer, the gods, and whoever else be damned. I could be Nera the Rogue, and Malek could be mine. We could find a life together, somewhere under a beautiful sky like this, away from the troubles of Nexus.

  She sighed, knowing her thoughts were those of a selfish girl. Somewhere, that pesky sense of duty she had acquired nagged at her, and she knew she could not ignore it forever.

  A shooting star lit up the sky, blazing from north to south in a spectacular blaze. After a moment, it was gone. Such are our mortal lives, significant but for a moment in this vast multiverse.

  “Sabyl, I know what you want of me,” she whispered to the night sky. “Is this the time we bargain? Or am I being irreverent? I’m willing to pay your price to make things right, but my condition is that you please protect Malek, Arron, Wyat, and the others, and grant us success in our journey into the bowels of the Abyss.”

  She lay like that for a while, but sleep didn’t claim her again. She had slept briefly following their lovemaking but was now wide awake, determined to hold onto that moment as long as she could. Despite her relative lack of sleep, she felt strong and rejuvenated after a wonderful night she’d always remember.

  The moon had traveled across the sky and was fast approaching the other horizon, reminding her that, unfortunately, the night couldn’t last forever.

  Malek stirred beside her. He looked over and saw she was wide awake. He leaned in and kissed her tenderly. “We should head back to camp before the others awaken.”

  Nera snorted. “Pox on the others. I care not what they think. Are you ashamed of me?” she challenged him, feeling spirited.

  “Of course not. I’d just hate for your brother and friend Wyat to think I somehow dishonored you…”

  Nera kissed him hard, biting him softly on the lip as she pulled away. “You did, but it was the best dishonoring I could imagine. Enough that I’d do it all over again.” She laughed and pulled Malek atop her, him unresisting.

  They made love again, fierce and desperate in the face of the coming dawn.

  When they had finished, Nera sighed and began dressing. “Anyone at camp should know better than to say anything, or else I’ll smack ’em a good one.”

  Malek joined her in laughter, and they got dressed. He stood and looked over the edge as Nera finished pulling on her boots.

  “There’s one more thing I want of you, mage.” Nera grabbed his hand. “I want to fly back to camp.” She remembered back to the time she had fallen off a cliff, which she supposed was the closest she had come to flight. That desperate plunge hadn’t allowed time to enjoy the trip, however. And the end had been anything but enjoyable.

  “My lady, it’s more levitation than true flight, but I am much obliged to make you happy.”

  After stepping upon his magical disc, they flew back to camp.

  ***

  To Malek’s chagrin, the camp was already up when they arrived, and their companions seemed troubled by the fact he and Nera were not in either of their tents that morning.

  He set them down right outside the command tent at Nera’s urging. Wyat watched with a raised eyebrow as they stepped off the disc, hand in hand. Arron had his typical amused grin on his face but didn’t say anything.

  Waresh, however, had no such misgivings. “Hah! Looks like these two lovebirds needed some time alone!”

  Malek felt a flush creep into his cheeks, but Nera was untroubled.

  “You’re just j
ealous that the most action your cock’s had of late has been your knobby hand,” she retorted.

  Waresh’s eyes grew round, but then he guffawed in laughter. The rest of the companions joined in after a moment.

  “Enough worrying about us. Don’t we have somewhere to be?” she asked.

  “Aye, entering the Abyss,” Wyat said somberly.

  “All in due time. I was thinking of breakfast first,” she said. “No reason to suffer on an empty stomach.”

  ***

  Nera returned to her tent after they had broken their fast, in a cheerful mood despite the impending doom they were about to march into. The past night with Malek had been deeply satisfying, but her mood was due to more than that—for the first time, she had both feet firmly planted on the path to her destiny. People were depending on her, a plane-cursed orphan thief, to bring salvation to Nexus. When she stopped to think about the enormous duty she carried, she nearly lost her mettle, which was why she sought to keep herself busy so she couldn’t think those thoughts. The feeling of having worth—being needed instead of a nuisance or, worse, someone despised just because of who she was—was a significant and welcome change for her.

  For the first time in her life, she felt she truly had a purpose.

  She swiftly took stock of her possessions. Her pack was still heavy with gold and gems she had liberated from her former guildmaster Rollo’s chest back in Nexus. “No matter how great the fortune, a dead thief can’t spend nary a copper” was a saying she’d long taken to heart. She’d have no use for the clink in the Abyss, but the potions she had carefully wrapped in a tunic were another matter. There were six of them, four containing pink liquid, which she guessed were healing potions due to the hearts etched on the phials. One was yellow, with a lightning-bolt icon, the last a blue liquid with a sword icon.