Convergence - The Last Science #2.2 - Heroes and Villains

Interlude VII - Call of Destiny - VII

  Riley stopped, looking around. "This seems wrong."

  "What's up?" asked Lani, catching up.

  "I could've sworn... but that can't be right." She checked her compass and her GPS, looking confused. "Hang on to this a sec, okay?"

  She dropped her bag and handed the GPS device to Lani. With a sudden leap, she grabbed the nearest branch of a tall tree and hoisted herself up. Arm over arm, she pulled herself up into the canopy. "I'm just gonna take a quick look! Try to see the town!" she shouted down.

  "Okay"

  Lani looked around, and—with no one else in sight—set the bag aside. He concentrated, and again, the spirit appeared. This time though, he made a request when he called for it, and it responded. It was still the pale smokey blue, only partly visible against the backdrop of the thick forest, but it wasn't a featureless shape anymore. It wasn't a work of art, but it had a face and eyes at least. It could express itself.

  Not that it did. It simply floated impassive, watching, waiting.

  Riley was well out of sight. Lani considered what he should ask of it. What could such a spirit do?

  What can you do? he tried to ask, but nothing came back. Lani didn't think they communicated in words, anyway. Certainly not a language invented by people. The spirits wouldn't be so forthcoming. It was up to him to determine.

  He tried to ask it where he should go, but again, it didn't respond in the slightest. Lani asked it a few more questions, but he got the feeling it couldn't understand such abstract ideas. He had to be more concrete. Lani asked the spirit to show him which direction the town was in, praying it could understand such a concept. It didn't move.

  Frustrated, Lani told it to move down to the ground, just to see if it would do anything. To his relief, it did so—sinking to the earth and stopping just above the layer of moss and leaves. He asked it to move other places, and it did, but he couldn't think how to get it to do more. On top of that, he could feel it draining him.

  Every time it moved, every time the spirit did anything beyond just float there, Lani could feel it drawing upon his energy, his mana. It subsisted off his own power. Without him, the spirit couldn't manifest itself, and as soon as he released that flow of power, it would vanish back into the void it came from.

  Curious, Lani let the first spirit sit there, and tried to call for another. It appeared, identical to the first. He tried a third, and a fourth. Both appeared, forming a small wall of pale blue smokey faces floating in front of him.

  Well, this is getting weird...

  Hearing a call above him, Lani dismissed the spirits. "What was that?" he shouted.

  "I can see the town!" Riley shouted back. "But..."

  "...But what?"

  A few thumps and Riley was swinging back down to the forest floor. "It's bizarre," she said. She took off her gloves, breathing heavily from the exertion. "I don't usually get lost, but the town isn't where it's supposed to be. Or... anything really. It's like we got totally turned around."

  "We were following the compass though, weren't we?"

  "Yeah..." Riley glanced around, looking uncomfortable. "You think... it's this place?"

  "I'd believe it."

  She reached out and took his hand. Hers were warm from the gloves she'd just been wearing, and they felt perfect slotted in between his fingers. Lani suddenly felt a wave of guilt over not telling her what he'd found.

  "Hey," he started.

  "Don't get me wrong," she interrupted quickly. "I mean, you're out here 'cause you want to find magic right? I'm not saying it's all bad. Just... well, I'd rather you have it than whatever did this weird forest," she finished, looking around nervously.

  "...I have a confession to make," Lani said, shifting uncomfortably in place.

  She looked up at him. "No..."

  "Just last night!" he said quickly. "I just... you know, kinda stumbled across it."

  "...Really?"

  With a slight smile, Lani called up a spirit again. It emerged from the smoke right in front of them, hovering a few feet away.

  "...Wow..." Riley reached out a hand toward it. "Oh! That's... sheesh, does it gotta be so cold?"

  Hey, maybe that'll work. Lani asked the spirit to be warm. He felt a sudden draw of energy from him as it agreed to his request. "Try again," he prompted.

  She did. "...Okay, now it's like my hand's sitting in the sun... That's amazing."

  "Sorry I didn't tell you," he said. He dismissed the spirit.

  "Are you kidding?" Riley smiled. "This stuff's crazy, and with everything that's happened? I don't blame you. Besides, you didn't wait that long." Before Lani could speak, she leaned up and kissed him again. "Trust me now?"

  "Definitely," he replied. He wrapped his good arm around her shoulders and hugged her, relieved.

  "...So how'd you do it? How's it work?"

  "Well—"

  A twig snapped.

  They both turned, and Lani saw her hand go to the knife on her belt again. Standing a few dozen feet away was a young Japanese man wearing a silvery-grey robe. His hands were raised in surrender.

  "Excuse me," he called out.

  "...Hi," Lani called back.

  "Hi there," said Riley. "Are you..." She glanced at Lani. "One of the... you know."

  "Yes," he replied. He beckoned them forward. As they approached, it became clear just how intricate the edges of his robes had been sewn, and the sheer strength of the material.

  "Not really the best forest color," she pointed out.

  He smiled. An instant later, the robe shifted through the spectrum, landing on a perfect modern jungle camouflage pattern. He held it there for a few seconds, before it returned to the silver hue.

  "Alright, I'm convinced," said Riley, grinning.

  He bowed. "I'm here to guide you."

  "To where?" asked Lani. "Out of the forest? Back to our jeep?"

  "Wherever," he replied.

  Lani smiled. He glanced at Riley, who nodded. She spoke first. "Can you take us to the Greywood?"