Page 91 of Silent Lucidity

A chill crept up Tenthil’s spine. He clenched his teeth as the sensation solidified and pressed into his skull.

“I warned you, Tenthil. Warned you of the consequences,” the Master continued. “You made your choices knowing full well what I would have to do. I am disappointed. Despite your flaws, you were my best.”

The Master’s words projected from everywhere and nowhere, and seemed to curl around Tenthil like wisps of smoke clinging to his clothing—intangible, persistent, and unavoidable. Normally, his hearing could pinpoint the source of even soft sounds, but it couldn’t be trusted here. Couldn’t be trusted against this foe.

For Abella. Must overcome him for her.

The icy touch in his mind slithered deeper.

“Forher?” the Master asked. “Everything I gave you—every enhancement, every advantage—you’ve thrown away to chase a female like an animal maddened by mating season heat. I suppose I expected better of your inevitable betrayal. Better thanthis.”

Tenthil inhaled through his nostrils. This room had always possessed a unique aroma that was slightly separated from the Master’s, which itself had a faint spice to it unlike anything else Tenthil had smelled in the Infinite City.

It was that slighty spicy scent upon which Tenthil focused. Though it was diffused throughout the air, it was most strongly concentrated at one particular point amidst the shadows.

No more games, he thought.

“Indeed,” the Master purred.

Snapping his torso toward the Master’s scent, Tenthil fired three quick shots into the shadows. The glowing plasma bolts were swallowed by the darkness, hissing as they impacted something unseen within it.

“Clever beast,” the Master said, darting out of the shadows to the right of Tenthil’s shots.

Tenthil swung his weapon toward his foe, but the Master caught his wrist in his long-fingered right hand. The strength in that grip rivaled Tenthil’s. He could feel the Master’s smile even through the concealment of that featureless black mask.

For Abella.

Tenthil lifted his foot off the floor and unleashed a quick kick at the Master’s leg. Before Tenthil was halfway through the action, the Master tugged him forward and slammed his left fist into Tenthil’s cheek.

The force of the blow snapped Tenthil’s head to the side and blasted a wave of pain across his face. A tang of blood joined the venom induced bitterness on his tongue. The Master twisted Tenthil’s wrist, breaking his hold on the blaster, which clattered to the floor. Tenthil flicked on the energy blade in his left hand and thrust its point over his right arm, aiming for the Master’s face.

The Master swayed out of the blade’s path and forced Tenthil’s right arm up. The edge of the blade seared through Tenthil’s armor and bit into the flesh of his forearm, sending an agonized, stinging jolt along the entire limb.

Growling, Tenthil raised the blade slightly and swung its tip toward the Master’s head with a flick of his wrist.

The Master’s black robes fluttered as he leaned backward, avoiding the energy blade, and lifted a bent leg. He released Tenthil’s wrist and straightened the leg suddenly, his boot striking Tenthil in the ribs. Even through his armor, Tenthil felt the blow, and he was launched away, stopping only when his left shoulder and the side of his head slammed into the shadow-masked wall. He hurriedly disengaged the energy blade before it cut him again.

For Abella, Tenthil repeated in his head. He had to succeed for her. Had to overcome this final obstacle so he could give her the life she deserved, the life she wanted.

He had to win so she couldlive.

“Your little human cannot help you,” the Master said. He maintained the few meters of distance between them his attack had opened, making no move to advance on Tenthil again. “Such base, animalistic drives are what brought you to this point. Though I must confess, her fiery spirit has inspired me to offer you one final gift before I end you. A last secret you may carry to the void.”

Tenthil pushed himself off the wall and swayed as his legs reluctantly took his weight. For a moment, his vision blurred. If he’d been forced to choose between taking another of the Master’s kicks and getting run over by a tralix, he would’ve picked the tralix without hesitation.

The Master raised his hands, grasping his mask with one and his hood with the other. He pulled back the hood and slid off the mask simultaneously.

Over his years in the Order, Tenthil had speculated as to the Master’s species many times, though he’d never come up with any solid guesses. There’d been too few clues to pierce the cloud of mystery the Master had kept around himself.

He would never have guessed the truth.

The Master was a kal’zik—a member of the ancient species who’d founded the Consortium and built Arthos. A member of the species who lorded over the Infinite City and a huge swath of the universe beyond.

A member of one of the most powerful races in existence.

The Master stared at Tenthil with four pairs of red eyes, and his dark lips were quirked up at one corner. He tossed his mask aside, grasped the inside hem of his robes, and pulled them apart, shrugging the garment off. The dark robes fell to the floor, revealing a lean but solidly built body clad in a form-fitting combat suit and a second set of arms.

Stretching those extra arms, the Master turned and walked to the side, preserving the distance between himself and Tenthil. “This is my gift to you. My final boon. Look upon the face of your Master before the Void takes you.”

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