Quest for the Moon Orb: Orbs of Rathira (6 page)

“Let me guess,” Karma said, “the thousand years are up, right?”

“Yes, Lady Techu,” Samyi said, a smile curving her lips.  “The thousand years are now up, and the Guardian must be replaced.”

“What must we do to replace him?” King Rhobar asked.

“The orbs must be found and used to unlock the keystone.  That will control the pyramid’s return to Rathira.  The old Guardian must be replaced with a new one, and then the keystone must be locked again, sending the pyramid back to the between place for another thousand years.”

“You make it sound almost easy,” Karma said.

“No, it will not be easy,” Samyi said.  “Only a female descendent of the creator of each orb may claim it, so you must identify, and find those women.  You must also discover the location of each orb and travel to it before it can be claimed. 

“Once you have all three orbs, you must find the keystone.  And through all of this, you must be ever watchful, for the demons here on Rathira and those still on Skiatos will work tirelessly to stop you.  This is the only chance they will have to escape Skiatos for a thousand years, and they will do all in their power to succeed.  They have nothing to lose.”

“Where do we begin?” Karma asked.  “The Ti-Ank wasn’t even on Rathira until I brought it here, so the orbs could be anywhere in the Thousand Worlds!”

“No, the Ti-Ank was removed from Rathira, but the orbs were not,” Samyi replied.  “We scattered them very carefully, and their true purpose has been forgotten by most, as was meant, but they remain on Rathira.  Your quest begins with the Moon Orb.”

“Where do we find it?” King Rhobar asked.

“Go north, to the Kytherian Sea, and speak with the Sirelina, the water people.”

“What about the other orbs?” Karma asked.

“As I said, we scattered them carefully.  I have knowledge of the first orb only.  After the Moon Orb is rightfully claimed, you will be given knowledge of the next orb.”

“How do we find the woman who must claim the Moon Orb?” Karma asked.

As she asked the question, Karma noticed Samyi begin to grow misty. 

“She of the Blood of the Tree of Life is the woman you seek,” Samyi said her voice growing distant. 

“Oh gee, thanks, that’s helpful,” Karma muttered.

“You must hurry,” Samyi said, fully transparent now.  “Time grows short.”

“How much time do we have?” King Rhobar asked. 

Karma thought that Samyi answered, but her voice was too faint to hear.  A moment later the golden light of the Ti-Ank flickered, then went out completely.  Samyi was gone.  Karma reached up to touch the metal of the Ti-Ank, surprised to find it cool.

She turned to King Rhobar, her mouth open to ask a question, when the room seemed to tilt around her.  She tightened her grip on the staff and lowered herself carefully into a chair. 

“Are you all right?” King Rhobar asked.

“Yes,” Karma replied.  Then the world went dark. 

**

Karma opened her eyes and saw the tired, worried face of King Rhobar hovering above her.  She blinked and sat up straight, relieved to note that she was still in the chair, just slumped over.

“Are you feeling better?” King Rhobar asked.

“I think so,” Karma replied.  “I just got a little dizzy there for a moment.”

“More than a moment,” King Rhobar said as he settled himself back into his own chair with relief.  “You were out for perhaps fifteen minutes.”

“I’m sorry,” Karma said, feeling embarrassed.  She had never passed out before.

“There is no need to apologize,” King Rhobar said.  “Not for you, anyway.  I cannot say the same for myself.  Samyi warned that it would take a toll on you, and I am sorry for forgetting that.  Are you sure you’re all right?  I can call for a physician.”

“No, thank you,” Karma replied quickly, the idea of some superstitious quack with a box of leeches and mysterious, dried leaves making her ill.  “I just feel a bit tired is all.”

“Lady Techu,” King Rhobar began after giving Karma a few more moments to regain her color.  “Will you remain here, on Rathira, and aid us in our quest to save our world?”

“Lady Techu, huh?” Karma asked.

“Yes, for whether you remain or not, that is who and what you are,” King Rhobar said.

Karma took a long, deep breath and blew it out.  “I don’t think I
can
refuse,” she said.  “This is what I’m meant to do.  In a strange way, I think everything in my life up to now has prepared me for this.”

“That is why your name is Karma,” King Rhobar said, nodding sagely.

“I suppose so,” Karma replied with a sigh that she tried to hide.  “Yes, King Rhobar, I will remain here, on Rathira, and do all that I can to help find the orbs and prevent the demons from taking over your world.” 

It was King Rhobar’s turn to release a long, heavy sigh of relief.  “I thank you, Lady Techu.  I know this can’t have been easy for you, but I promise we shall be forever grateful.”

“Actually, I think the really hard part is yet to come,” she said with a rueful smile.  “I have to convince Aisling to leave without me.” 

Chapter 2

Karma wandered around the large apartment she had been given within the palace.  It was large, airy and, for a non technological world, surprisingly luxurious.  The bed was beautifully made up in crimson silk with a dozen large, invitingly fluffy pillows, surrounded with sheer curtains that were currently tied back.  There were thick, soft rugs scattered about the cool marble floors, and the few pieces of furniture were all beautifully carved of variously colored and exotic woods.  Like the palace itself, the room was designed to take advantage of everything cool, so it had polished stone walls and very high ceilings.  The balcony overlooking the palace gardens was angled to catch every breeze and funnel it into the room, yet was deep enough to prevent direct sunlight from reaching the interior. 

Aside from the main room which held the bed, balcony and a sitting area that consisted of several thick cushions around a low wooden table, there was also an ante room, bathing room, dressing room, and a pantry for preparing light meals, snacks or drinks.  All of the rooms were richly appointed and beautiful in every detail.

“This is nice,” she said as she stepped out onto the balcony after touring her rooms, Nikura at her side.

“
Indeed
,” he said, leaping lightly to the top of the low wall bordering the balcony.  “
You have been given a singular honor with this apartment.”

“How so?” Karma asked.

“These rooms are reserved for the highest ranking and most honored of guests,”
Nikura said as he laid down on the wall, making himself comfortable. 
“It has been years since they have been offered to anyone.”

“Wow,” Karma said, both impressed and a little unnerved by the information.  It wasn’t always a good thing to be singled out, and she knew it.”

“You seem troubled,”
Nikura said.

“I miss my friends,” she said as she gazed down at the palace gardens below, replaying the scene with Aisling that afternoon.

“Karma, are you sure you want to stay here?” Aisling asked for at least the tenth time.  Karma frowned, but Aisling held up her hand.  “Never mind,” she said.  “I take that one back.”

 “I know you’re worried,” Karma said, “but I also know this is the right thing for me.”

 “It might be easier if I understood why you are so determined to stay here,” Aisling said.  “All I know is that you spent two hours locked in a room with King Rhobar and that giant cat, and when you came out, you announced you’d decided to live here.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you, Ash,” Karma said, half wishing she could tell her friend everything, but knowing it was best this way.  “I do.  I trust you more than anyone.  But I promised not to speak of it, and I cannot break a promise.  I will tell you this much though; I’m needed here.  Really and truly needed.”

 “If you are needed here, then of course you must stay,” Aisling said, giving in with a sigh. 

Karma swallowed hard, knowing that Aisling was the only person in the universe who knew her well enough to know how important it was for her to be needed.  She was going to miss Aisling, and their friendship.  She wondered how she’d survived alone for so many years without at least one friend, and knew that she did not want to live that way again.  Aisling had taught her that much. 

 “Do you regret your decision to remain on Rathira?”
Nikura asked.

Karma watched a pair of large golden birds soar past the balcony in the deepening dusk, their voices raised in song, and smiled.

“No, I do not regret staying here.  This is what I’m meant to do.”

“What is it that worries you then?”
Nikura asked.

Karma looked at him, mildly surprised by the note of sincere concern she’d heard in his voice.  “I don’t understand why Riata came to me, or why she guided me here,” she said after a moment’s debate.  Perhaps the Sphin would have answers for her on this subject.  “She’s a Spirit Guide for the Jasani people.  I am not Jasani, nor am I meant to be mated with Jasani.  So why does she care about me, or Rathira, for that matter?”

“Just because you don’t see the reason for something, does not mean that there isn’t one,”
Nikura replied.

“That’s true,” Karma replied grudgingly.  She’d been hoping for more than that.  She shook her head and sighed.  Time to change the subject.

“Nikura, are you going to help me find these orbs?”

Nikura’s large, round blue eyes fixed on hers for a long moment without blinking. 
“I will help as I can,”
he said finally.

“Oh, that’s a big relief,” Karma said testily.  If the Sphin was going to be this enigmatic all the time, she wasn’t sure she wouldn’t be better off without him around.

“Tell me something,”
Nikura said,
“if you had to sacrifice your life for the lives of everyone and everything on your world, would you do it?”

“Is that what you have to do?” Karma asked in surprise.  “Sacrifice yourself?”

“If you answer my question, then I shall answer yours.”

Karma’s first reaction was to say
yes
, but she hesitated and gave it serious thought.  “It would not be an easy thing to do,” she said finally.  “I think I would fight it.  I’d try very hard to find another way to do whatever had to be done.  But, in the end, yes, I would.  At least, I hope that I would.  Such a thing would take a kind of bravery that I can only hope to have.”

“I thank you for your honesty,”
Nikura said, his tone, for once, courteous rather than snooty. 
“To answer your question, no, I do not have to sacrifice my life, and yes, I do have to sacrifice my life.  I know that is confusing, but it is the best answer I can give you.”

Karma studied the Sphin’s eyes for a long moment, then nodded in acceptance.  “Will you tell me why you follow me all over the place?”

“I suppose now is the time for honest answers,”
Nikura said with a hint of his usual annoyance.

“Yes, I believe it is,” Karma agreed.

“I follow you around because you are Techu, and you have possession of the Ti-Ank,”
he said. 
“The combination of the two compels me to remain within close proximity to you.  I did not know of the Ti-Ank at first, and thought that I followed you by choice, but now I know differently.”

“You’re compelled to follow me?” Karma asked with obvious distaste.  “What if you decide you don’t want to?”

“I don’t think that would be a very good idea,”
Nikura replied. 
“For either of us.”

“Why not?  What happens if we get separated?”

“It depends on how far apart we become,”
he replied.
“I do not need to be at your side all of the time, but if I am forced to remain any distance from you, it would likely kill you, and cause me great harm.  In time, as our connection to one another grows, so too will the distance we can be apart grow.”

“How far can we be apart from each other now?” Karma asked, not liking the sound of this at all.

“I do not know,”
Nikura said.  “
We should test it.”

“Good idea,” Karma replied, determined to do that as soon as possible.

The door at the far side of the room opened without warning and a woman with very short red hair, dressed in the dark gray livery of the palace servants entered, and bowed low.

“Your pardon, Lady Techu, Princess Kapia requests a moment of your time, if it is convenient for you.”

“Is everyone going to be calling me
Lady Techu
?”
Karma asked Nikura silently.

“Yes, that is who you are to the people of Rathira,”
he replied. 
“It is a title of utmost respect.”