Cloud Rebel (R-D #3)(80)

"You're just as safe here as anywhere else," I said. I'd folded space to arrive at the villa for breakfast, bearing bags of groceries.

Food that was untainted by radiation would be hard to come by in the near future. In one way, it was fortunate that Earth's population had taken such a hit. It would be difficult enough to feed the few survivors.

Still, there'd been no word or actions from Corinne.

I was beginning to worry.

After all, I understood that Rafe was still out there, doing his master's bidding. I wanted to laugh humorlessly at the fact that Phillips' bid for world domination would be over a shrinking, dying world.

He'd be in charge of poisoned fields and mountains of rotting corpses.

In other words, he'd be a despot in charge of nothing. It would be laughable if so many hadn't been sacrificed. What good would crown jewels and an alliance with an Asian dictator do him now?

He'd been played, just like the rest of Earth's population.

That's when I felt the first tremor.

Yes, I, like many others who held power, expected Corinne to Change What Was for a handful of people. To be there at the right moment to restore their lives.

Nobody would blame her if Ilya were among that number.

Nobody expected something of this magnitude.

*

Lyristolys

Grand Chambers of the Prime Potentate

Corinne

Only a Sirenali, a Larentii—or a god or godling—can hide themselves so thoroughly from those who hold power.

Geethe Cheriss was alone in the Grand Chamber—he'd sent his aides and servants away.

He was expecting company, after all. Company that wasn't supposed to exist. Company that would brand him an outlaw if they and their deeds were revealed. I waited just as Geethe did, for their arrival.

I'd made preparations and I intended for everything to go without a hitch.

Of course, I expected an outcry from Kalenegar and several others when time shifted afterward, but I was resolved now and there was no turning back.

Fisk Boralus and his crew arrived, courtesy of Wymarr Belancour. Well, Wymarr and his half-talented family had dabbled too often in the wrong waters. They would continue to do so, but without Wymarr's assistance.

The time had come. Employing power, I locked all the doors leading into the chamber and placed a shield to prevent Wymarr's escape.

Then, I Pulled in my weapon.

He was hungry.

Dinosaur Boy had a feast that day; eventually Wymarr grew too weary to fold space away from him and his spells and blasts just bounced off DB's tough scales. Eventually, when DB tired of the game of chase, Wymarr was also devoured.

No, I didn't turn my eyes away from the carnage. Not after the visions had come to me of children turned to dust by nuclear weapons, or babies dying afterward quickly because they had no defense against radiation sickness.

Fisk and his crew never turned a hair or felt a moment of guilt over the deaths of innocents. Morrett, on the other hand, did feel sorrow. I'd sent him away before DB began eating—there was no reason to inflict further trauma on him. I'd finally figured out what to do with him and imagined how surprised he'd be when and where he'd landed.

I also imagined that he'd be safe enough there, and he'd end up keeping those around him safe from the predations of those intending harm.

Yes, a root of history had just been destroyed. I was about to destroy more of them. Peeling myself away from the wall, I studied the Grand Chamber for a moment. DB had been neat in his table manners—for the most part. Only a blood-slicked floor remained of Fisk, Geethe, Wymarr and company.

Nice work, I sent to DB before neutralizing his blood and sending him to the planet where he should have been born. There, the oceans were filled with his kind. He'd learn to communicate with them and live his life as he should.

What in the name of the Three are you doing? Kalenegar's voice snapped in my head. I folded space before he had time to follow those words with his arrival.

*

Opal

"What's happening?" Katya quavered. She, Sergei and their friends were terrified. James and Nathan had arms wrapped about each other after the quiet settled.

"Time in limbo," Bekzi explained. "Course change. More coming, I think."

"What does that mean?" Leo Shaw whispered.

"It means that someone powerful is affecting the timeline," I whispered back. There really wasn't any need to stay quiet, but the entire planet had gone still and shadowy. Even the lights overhead flickered and went out, leaving us in darkness.

*

Corinne

My next stop was a gamble. This one—it could kill me. There was a danger in that—to the one who might raise his hand against me. I had to play my hand and play it deftly, when I'd never been a good poker player.

I'd have to see Ilya, too—the Ilya who was obsessed with killing me. I could shield myself against his attacks, including those from the warlock he'd become. Those would have to be muted so Agent Smith, AKA Liron the god, could hold a conversation with me.

I had to do something no Larentii had ever done before, and it felt painful.

I knew Liron's weak spot. I knew why he had a weak spot.

After all, few artists want to destroy their masterpieces. He'd been tasked with creating a world. He hadn't known why he was given that task, but took it with joy and a great deal of planning.