Chapter 30

Rain awoke. She had let Hammer sleep while she watched Rajin, and then had, herself, slept. Now they had to deal with that misguided monster.

Bleary eyed, she got out of bed. Hammer had made her some blue mangrove tea, which she thankfully drank whilst thinking of what needed to be done.

She didn't want to kill Rajin, did she? No. At least, she didn't think she wanted to – there was something pitiful about that creature. The way it saw the world was so alien to what was needed to survive here. Was it Rajin's fault that she behaved the way she did? Well, it may not be, but her behaviour would affect those she came into contact with, and that meant they would have to deal with the problem.

She released the haze-wrought ropes with which she had bound Rajin, glad to be relieved of the pain that channelling them created. It was not as bad as it had been originally, but it still hurt. Avan had said that she would both grow used to it and that the intensity would increase. She hoped that both were happening, but she thought that maybe she was just building up tolerance. She didn't realise, but she had become inured to the pain long before most hazeshapers would normally be expected to.

She drew a breath.

“Rajin. First, I'm sorry to have tied you up like that for so long. I hope you understand I couldn't just leave you to run free while we rested and you were, well, trying to kill Hammer.”

I understand. This makes sense.

“Good. Are you going to try to kill anyone again?”

No.

“Why?”

I understand. You work together. One intention, one body, in many parts. This is how these things work here. This is the way of survival. You gain more from sharing.

“Hmm.” This might be what she needed. She didn't want to kill again. Not kill like she had Torion.

Unbidden, a sob chocked in her throat. Guilt rose like a tsunami, like a great wall of water. What had she done? She had killed someone. She knew that. Would anyone find out? What would they do? Torion had wanted to kill her. Did that make it okay? She had destroyed the evidence, created that toothy thing to eat the body. Clothes. Flesh. Bones. It would even eat the hair and nails. And it wasn't here. The cameras would provide footage that she had entered the room, and that made a good alibi. There was not conceivable way she could have got to the other side of the world and back in that short time. But this thought still left her with the question of morals. Was it right to kill that which had tried to kill you? Yes, she thought. It must. But that doesn't mean I want to do it again. Rajin was an animal, but she was an intelligent animal. Did that make a difference? Some of the larger salamanders were intelligent, and she had no qualms about having killed that one on the ferry. She recognised that now. The insect things had been her creations. She had chosen one of her fears and made it real. She had turned her fears and made them her protection. What if she had imagined them as attacking her? She had done that, with the first one, and it had fled when she wanted it to go away. There shouldn't be any danger from them then.

Her thoughts were wandering. Rajin. What would get through to Rajin. She brought her emotions under control, not without some effort.

“Rajin, I'm not familiar with... wherever you came from, but it seems like that place is a very cut throat world.”

Yes. That's interesting terminology, but it makes sense here. We all have throats here.

“Uh, yes. We all have throats. The thing is, there is more to cooperation than just working together.” How could she couch this is terms Rajin would understand? “If you develop a reputation for being untrustworthy, no-one will work with you. You will be alone, and here you cannot survive alone. It isn't just about gain. If you refuse to cooperate and you are known to be untrustworthy, you will be hunted. Your survival depends on you being seen to be trustable.”

Ah. I understand this.

“In particular, if you kill either of us, the other will pursue you, and those we know will pursue you.”

Then you will not kill me now? Such hope in Rajin's thoughts!

“No. But it has become difficult to trust you. Hammer and I work together. We aren't waiting to betray each other.”

All this time Hammer had been watching in silence, hand on sword. He patted it now, as if reminding Rajin he was there, keeping an eye on her. Which he was.

The creature was acting cowed now, but could she be trusted? She was lightning fast and unpredictable.

“What would guarantee your loyalty? Or at least our safety from you?”

If you do not kill me, I will not kill you. It is a great kindness not to be absorbed.

“Absorbed!?” Rain was shocked, “We wouldn't eat you! You are much too smart. Knowing what you feed on – raw energy – I doubt you'd be able to benefit from us much either.”

I thought you were adversaries.

“Well, we aren't.”

I know that now.

Rain had somehow lost control of the conversation. She attempted to rein it back in.

“Your assurance that you just will not kill us is not, well, assuring.”

Rain waited for a response. Rajin seemed to be considering something.

There is a thing we have. A relationship. One's energy is entangled with another's and a communication takes place. A sharing of wills. I do not know if you have this thing here. Perhaps we can try.

Rain didn't know if it was safe or not.

“For now, I think we can leave it. It sounds rather dangerous. If I find out more, we can reconsider.”

Rajin bobbed her head. As you wish.

Hammer continued to glare at the feathered lizard.

“I still don't trust it,” he said, “it tried to kill me.”

“I doubt Rajin is actually capable of that. Her teeth could not even puncture your skin, if you recall.”

“Well, it bruised me, and made me hungry.”

“Hungry?”

“Yes. It's odd, but... I have a craving for sand.”

“Interesting. Whatever Avan did to you, you must need to replenish the toughness of your skin when it comes under stress.”

“Good thought. It probably was damaged by that bloody thing!”

Rain was lost in the theory of the transformation. “I wonder if your sword requires similar sustenance. Does it need sand to remain hard? Fresh wood to regrow chips? Does it need to kill regularly? Does it thirst for blood? I can sense that it is living. Yes! Now that I pay attention to it, I can see it has a soul! Avan truly is amazing!”

“What! Avan transformed me without my permission! I didn't know anything about this! In case you forget, I am a reluctant participant in this who has so far been completely useless. I have not saved you, as Evan, I mean, Avan requested. You did that on your own. In fact, it's the other way around! You've saved me from being lost in that desert city, and from Rajin just now! I killed a bunch of priests for no reason at all! If it wasn't for Avan, well, I don't know. We wouldn't be in this situation.”

Rain was frowning at him.

“Hammer, if it wasn't for Avan, we'd be dead.”

“What?”

“This place we call the universe was dying. Remember the giant in the room you saw? That was the god the Panens worshipped. I don't really know how to explain it, but he was changing the equations that governed our universe. Not deliberately, but he was causing it. That's why we saw the Llul line – that was the extend of his influence.”

“But why did the line suddenly go forever?”

“That was Avan's ability to hold the status quo failing. I know he wasn't really holding the status quo, but he was keeping things together.”

“Of course he would tell you this!”

“He didn't. After freeing Tera, I was shown a vision. At least, that's what I think it was. The universe we live in is but one of many, each communicating with the others in bizarre but wonderful ways. Together they interact enough to form a quasi-brain, which might be alive. It was alive enough to talk to me, at any rate.”

“It talked to you? A universe of universes talked to you? This sounds crazy.”

“Any more crazy than teleporting tunnels and living swords?”

“Um, a little more crazy?”

“Well, it happened. Anyway, This being, Garon, showed me something. He is under attack by another, similar being. Do you know what Garon told me? 'Something will be born soon' is what he said. I think that Avan is something important. Some agent of Garon dedicated to preserving him. Something like an immune system. Avan shut down the channel between here and that other place because it had become poisonous. He probably set it up in the first place to be like that, but I doubt he realises he was acting that role. He probably thinks it was an accident.”

“He seemed quite wise. Why do you think he wouldn't have thought of this?”

That gave Rain pause.

“It's just what I think.”

Rajin looked on, listening quietly, her forked tongue slithering over dry lips. These people were right. She was a fool to have tried to harm Hammer, even though she thought she was helping Rain. There was no way she could have won. She was lucky to be alive. She didn't understand why they had let her live; she certainly wouldn't have had the roles been reversed, but she was thankful nonetheless. They had indeed earned her respect and loyalty, the joint display of kindness and strength like a breath of fresh air to one who had never before experienced that combination.