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The wavering illusion stared at them. "The Ice Palace is melting, and I
can do nothing to stop it. Nothing." Behind him, an avalanche of icicles came
tumbling down. Delrael silently urged the old Sentinel to flee the danger. But
Sardun's eyes filled with a far-off gleam, a shining emotion that made him
want to shudder.
"The _dayid_ is calling me, clamoring in my mind. The voices have not
let me alone since I woke them to create the Barrier River."
His words dropped to a whisper. "The voices in the _dayid_ want me to
join them. With the spirits of the other Sentinels."
"No!" Tareah said. "Don't..." Her voice sounded very small.
Delrael stood beside her, but he didn't know what he could say to
comfort her. "This already happened, days ago."
In the image, Sardun drew a ragged breath, blowing steam through his
drooping moustache. "I have lived far too long. It is time I leave Gamearth to
those who deserve it. You, Tareah, are the last of us. Make the right
decisions. Do what is best for yourself and for the memory of our race.
"Give my utmost thanks to those who have rescued you. I can withstand
the pull no longer, the urging of the voices. I must join them in their
loneliness, and make it better for awhile."
Sardun's skin had taken on a translucent, whitish glow. The firm
distinction between his skin and the air around him grew fuzzier as the light
intensified. Behind him, water poured down the blue walls of the Ice Palace,
breaking the bonds that held the ceiling arches together, letting an avalanche
of ice boulders come raining down.
But Sardun was consumed in a flash of blinding white fire that
swallowed up his flesh, the huge ice blocks, and the vision itself.
The dimness of sunset filled the air again.
Tareah stood motionless for a long moment, and then, slowly, started to
cry.
* * * *
"You'll like the Stronghold. You'll see," Delrael said, trying to
convince her with the enthusiasm in his own voice. They hiked down out of the
mountains, resting and discussing what to do next about Scartaris.
"I'm going to kill that thing," Vailret said under his breath. "I made
a promise."
Tareah turned against Delrael, craning her neck to look into his eyes.
She was tall enough now to stand face to face with him. "I'll try to like it."
She wore her grief like a half-healed wound. "And I will try to help."
They crossed a hex-line into new terrain, heading back home.
--------
*Epilogue*
Melanie stretched her arms and glanced at the clock. Scott yawned
loudly.
"We played a long time," Tyrone said. "That was great."
Melanie felt delighted. At the climax they had been shouting, rolling
dice, cheering, enthralled by the adventure. She tried to see if David's
expression had grown softer.
"Didn't you have fun, David?" she asked. "That was better than any of
the other adventures from before."
"Yeah," Tyrone said as he carried the dishes to the sink. "You can
lighten up now."
David shrugged into his denim jacket. He seemed unable to take his eyes
from the new line of blue hexagons marking the Barrier River. "I don't think
so."
Melanie felt disappointment stab through her. David stood up and moved
toward the door.
"You don't understand," he turned back to them and said. "If we don't
stop now, and stop for good, we'll never be able to quit. The Game will
control us. The Game will be everything and we'll never get away from it."
He turned to point at the changed map. "Can't you see how powerful it's
getting already?"
Then he walked out the door. By the way he moved, he had intended to
let it slam, but the door-closer eased it shut against the jamb.
"Well, see you next Sunday," Tyrone said as he gathered up his things
and left. Scott followed him to the door.
Melanie went back to clean up before her parents got home. Of course
she wouldn't say anything about what had happened.
"Yeah. See you next Sunday."
-- END --
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