Free Dire Destiny of Ours by John Corwin Page A

demons? Our history only whispers about such creatures. Do they truly exist on the other side of the arch?"
    "There are more wonders and horrors in the universe than you could imagine, Cephus." Nightliss shook her head. "Even after so long, my mind is still incomplete. I remember only generalities, in most instances."
    "Our historians have long theorized that the closing of the Alabaster Arch was the precise moment when we lost our longevity." A look of profound regret shadowed his face. "Those who were far away at the time maintained their immortality while others were cursed with mere centuries of life."
    "We refer to it as the Desecration," Nightliss said. "A being named Melea removed the Chalon, the key, from the Grand Nexus. Her action closed the nexus and disrupted every Alabaster Arch within Eden. The backlash drained the light from any entity caught in its massive wake. While it did not kill them, it husked them—turned them into shadow creatures that would drain the light from any creatures they touched."
    Cephus's eyes widened with horror. "Was Eden overtaken with these horrors?"
    I shook my head. "No. They couldn't survive in daylight. We found a way to resurrect the cherubs—that's what I call husked Seraphim. As for the Flarks, humans, and other entities that were husked, they don't survive the resurrection process."
    "Flarks?" Our host touched his chin in a thoughtful manner. "Those were the shape-shifters mentioned in historical records. To the best of my knowledge they have not been heard from or seen in our time."
    I shrugged. "Won't see me crying about it. They're extremely hard to kill and mean as hell." Ivy's former bodyguard, Mr. Bigglesworth, claimed that he was the only Flark to survive the Desecration, at least in Eden.
    The sound of rushing air echoed from the levitator shaft. A young woman appeared a second later. Unlike most of the other Darklings I'd seen, she wore a long red dress that somewhat resembled a sari. It was certainly the most colorful article of clothing I'd seen so far.
    "Please state the nature of the medical emergency," she said with a bright smile as she looked around the room. Her eyes caught on me. "I certainly sense a fashion emergency. What sort of clothing is that?"
    "Hipster," I replied. "I haven't managed to grow a thick beard yet."
    She looked even more confused. Since hipster hadn't translated into Cyrinthian, I'd apparently said it in English.
    Cephus indicated me with his hand. "Chief Healer Pross, this is Justin Slade and Nightliss."
    Pross's forehead wrinkled and her eyes twitched as if her train of thought had just hit a semi-truck. "Who would dare name their child Nightliss?"
    I held up my hands. "Whoa, don't get so upset." I turned to Cephus. "There's a law against naming your child Nightliss?"
    He returned an affable smile. "There is a great deal of debate about her role in our history."
    Nightliss turned a confused look at Pross. "It is truly my name."
    "She is the Nightliss," I added.
    Pross stumbled back a foot. Her eyes flicked to Cephus. "She is truly the one?"
    He nodded. "She has returned."
    I was starting to feel positively bubbly about our chances of securing an alliance now. With Nightliss's status as a returning war hero, she might be able to single-handedly raise an army to take back to Eden.
    "Who else knows of her identity?" Pross stared at Nightliss with a slightly disturbed look.
    "Only those in this room." Cephus held up a hand. "I know what you will say, but perhaps I can convince the others she was not at fault."
    "Not at fault for what?" My jubilance took a shot to the ribs.
    Cephus leaned on the table. "The religious among us believe in a single deity, the Primogenitor, who built the heavens and the earth and also created the arches. It was believed we were once his direct servants and used the arches according to his will to aid his other creations."
    "This was not the belief in my day," Nightliss said. "We believed other beings created the