Day Seven

Da'an had been calm the day before, and he remained that way now. When Liam went to check on him the next day, it was as if his companion was just dreaming. It made him wonder if the ritual was actually working. Maybe Da'an was truly going to survive and be free. Mem'na and Alo'in were looming over Da'an. In Mem'na's hands was a small clay bowl. It contained a thick blue liquid so dark that on first glance it appeared black. Liam wondered if this was the final product of the potion Mem'na had brewed the day before.

"What is that?" Liam asked.

"The final solution," Mem'na said. "It is time for your companion to break away."

"Then, what were all those other days meant for?" Liam asked. "I thought he was already on his way to breaking away."

"He was," Alo'in said. "I have been monitoring the experiences of your companion. He has adjusted to the near death state well, which surprises me. I thought for sure he would not survive this long. I believe that the priests are tampering with him."

"What do you mean tampering?" Liam asked.

"If the priests wanted your companion dead, he would be," Mem'na said. "Despite the fact that Da'an is in the near death state, he is still under the control of the Commonality, and therefore the priests. They want Da'an to believe that he is succeeding. They are playing with his mind."

"But why?"

"Because they can," Mem'na replied. "As Nye has taught us, it is not enough to merely be in a near death state to break away. The only true way a Taelon can leave the Commonality is to in fact die. The near death state that we have kept Da'an in until now was done to prepare him. Most of our subjects do not adjust to the near death state and they die. We believed the priests would choose to attack Da'an at that time, but now we realize that they have been waiting for this moment."

At the corner of his eye, Liam saw Renee watching from the doorway. He didn't have to truly see her. He could feel the fear and worry from her as she listened to their discussion.

"This moment?" Liam asked, dreading the response.

"Now that your companion has adjusted to the near death state, he has in fact adjusted with death and the land of the dead," Alo'in said. "It is now time for him to journey even further. It is time for him to truly break all ties to the Commonality. It is time for him to die."

Liam felt his heart sink. All of his hopes for Da'an came crashing down. How could a Taelon return from the dead? "And…that's…gonna kill him?" he breathed pointing to Mem'na's bowl.

"That is the unique difference between drugs and poisons," Alo'in said. "They both give off the same reaction, but only one truly kills."

"No! No! You are not going to poison Da'an like a sick puppy!" Renee screamed. "He's worked too hard for you to just kill him."

"Renee—"

"No! No, Liam! For the last seven days, I've been able to accept all of this. I've been able to accept you drugging him. I've been able to accept him in the near death state. Hell, I've even been able to accept why you're doing all this to him. But I am not in a million years going to accept you poisoning him. Can you resuscitate him?"

"Definitely not," Alo'in said. "He has to do that on his own."

"How in the hell can he bring himself back to life on his own?" Liam asked sternly.

"This is the way it has been done for years, major," Alo'in said. "We all endured this process for our freedom, and we all succeed. Do not presume to tell me that it cannot be done! Until he survives, your companion belongs to us. We have the power to do with him what we wish—"

Mem'na put one hand up to silence the minister. Then, she turned to the two concerned humans. "I understand your worry, but you cannot stop this. This was his choice, and therefore it must be his solution. Your faith has endured for this long, and your companion has come so far. How would he feel to lose it all just because the very people he trusted enough to help him through this pulled him out in fear of death? Time and time again you have asked me why you are here and how you could possibly help your companion. Well, this is it. This is why you are here, and this is the period where Da'an will truly need you. We have not just been preparing Da'an for this. We have been preparing you for it as well because after we administer the poison into Da'an's system, you will be the only ones here. Alo'in and I will not be able to assist."

Liam didn't know what to say. Renee grew pale white. "But we can't take care of Da'an if something happens. We're not medical professionals," Renee protested.

"That is not your purpose," Mem'na explained. "You are Da'an's most trusted and cherished friends. You are here because Da'an shares a deep and sacred bond with you. Your duty is to provide moral support. Only you belong here now. When Da'an is gone, only you will be able to reach him. He will only hear and listen to you."

"Count yourselves and your companion lucky," Alo'in said bitterly. "When Mem'na and I underwent the ritual, it was at a time when no one was allowed. We had to endure it alone, and if I had my way, it would be the same for Da'an."

Mem'na darted a threatening look at Alo'in. Before she could act on it, however, she was alerted to Renee's sudden gasps. When they turned to discover why, they saw Da'an's hand twitch. Liam and Renee rushed to his aid. Mem'na and Alo'in retained their postures.

Slowly and painfully, Da'an returned to awareness. Liam felt his companion's forehead while Renee took his hand.

"He's ice cold…in a way I've never felt before," Liam said.

"Da'an, can you hear me?" Renee asked softly.

Da'an weakly squeezed Renee's hand to acknowledge her voice.

"Can you talk?" Liam asked.

Da'an attempted to speak, but he was so weak, all he could do was croak.

"Da'an, you're not through yet," Renee said slowly and as calmly as she could. "Mem'na says that this is the last step of the ritual. It's going to be painful."

Da'an squeezed her hand in acknowledgement.

"The priests—"

Mem'na placed her hand on Liam's shoulder to prevent him from finishing. Then, she shook her head. Telling Da'an was not going to change anything. They both knew that.

"If you ever need us Da'an, if you ever feel afraid, or if you ever want to quit," Liam said, "just listen for us. We'll always be here, and we'll be there to help you."

Renee nodded.

Alo'in nodded, and Mem'na approached Da'an with the bowl. She and Alo'in began praying once more and then she poured the liquid into a pocket in the energy shower. She told Liam and Renee to step back, and then she turned on the energy shower. The once bright blue shower turned pitch black like a menacing cloud. All Liam and Renee could see was Da'an's left hand shaking violently and then falling limp.


As Da'an walked out of the memory, he found himself in another. This time, it was extremely dark. The only source of light was a ray through the window from the moons. At the corner was a boy with his knees pulled toward his chest. His head was buried in his knees, and he was so stiff he could have been mistaken for a solemn statue. He could see an older Taelon attempting to awaken him. It was not Bel'lie, Da'an could tell. It was someone else. This one looked kinder and more caring.

The Taelon softly called for a little child standing in the darkness. Can you help him? He has been like this ever since you saw the Caste Minister. I am worried.

The Taelon child came into the light and hugged Tam'bi. Tam'bi left as if he understood the sacred bond the two twins shared. Still, Tam'bi could not shake his fear.

Ma'el, it is your twin.

Nothing.

Ma'el, you must come out of this.

Nothing.

Ma'el…see me. Please see me. Please.

Ma'el's head slowly lifted to gaze in the eyes of his twin with unusually dark sockets. He grabbed the little Da'an's hand pulling him into a terrifying image that Da'an could only imagine.

I can see the prison!

What prison? Da'an asked.

The one that belongs to us. It will be our destruction.

Ma'el slowly reached out, and the young Da'an disappeared. The boy was looking straight at Da'an with those dark eyes. Unleash the beast within.

Da'an hesitantly reached for Ma'el. His entire energy flow increased rapidly with his growing sense of fear. This is what an adrenaline rush feels like. When their hands made contact, Da'an's nucleon heart sunk into his stomach. The boy that was Ma'el disappeared and grew into the image of the high priest.

"You! You…tricked me!" Da'an gasped.

"You think this is a game, child!" the high priest cried. "You cannot leave the Commonality so easily. You are a part of it. You are a part of us, and as long as you belong to us, we can control you. You will beg for death when we are through with you."

"You…used me!" Da'an winced. "You've been playing me like a harp this whole time!"

"We should have killed you when you were born, but we were weak," the high priest said. "We sympathized with you. We thought you could be saved. We protected you from yourself, and now you have unleashed a whirlwind. After all we did for you, you faithless swine, you repay us by making your bed with humans. You are an abomination!"

"I repaid you with my servitude," Da'an gasped. "And I do not need you to save me!"

"Because you cannot be saved," the high priest said. "You are a killer. Not once have you used your gifts for good. All you have done was use them for evil."

"You never wanted to suppress my gifts. If you wanted to, you would have done it while I was still your slave. You blame me for all the deaths I caused with my gifts, but the fact is that you meant for those deaths to happen. You wanted me to kill for you! I was never your disciple. I was your weapon! You used me as a weapon to enforce your power and authority, and when I turned from you, you used Zo'or. But you can only control people so long before they learn. Now, Zo'or has turned against you too. That's why you want me to stay. You need me! You need me as your sleeper. Your wolf in sheep's clothing! Your wretched enforcer!"

"You will never touch the blue rose!" the high priest bellowed. "You will taste our wrath through the poison of the thorns. You will remain with us, or you will die. Either way, you will beg for our aid. Your renewed memories change nothing. You are still a dangerous and deadly criminal. You are a monster! A beast!"

"Let go!"

"You should have faced the Synod's trial, traitor."

"Get out of my mind!"

"Weak and pathetic traitor!"


Da'an awoke slowly to a faint voice in a white light. Someone was squeezing his hand and hard. Someone else's hand was on his forehead.

A faint voice…he could barely understand it. "He's ice coldnever felt…before."

Liam? Renee?

"Da'an…can you hear me?" Renee's soft voice asked.

Her hand was squeezing him so hard that his whole arm soon felt the pain. He squeezed back in an attempt to release his hand, but found his own strength suddenly drained.

"Da'an, you're not through yet," Renee said slowly and as calmly as she could. "Mem'na says that this is the last step of the ritual. It's going to be painful."

Ritual? He had been out of it so long that he had forgotten the ritual. If that was the case, were those images—the priests, his memories—was it all just a dream? Or maybe a vision? No it was real. It had to be!

"If you ever need us Da'an, if you ever feel afraid, or if you ever want to quit," Liam said, "just listen for us. We'll always be here, and we'll be there to help you."

Ma'el had said something similar. It was comforting to know, but it did not relieve his dread. The priests had been waiting for this moment. They had been waiting for something…something terrible. All of this drifting between memories had been child's play as those divine charlatans waited for this moment. This would be when they would attack him. This is what Nye had been dreading.

A black shower interrupted Da'an's thoughts. Sharp pains ignited like fires all over his body, and he felt his body stop moving. There was a terrible tightness accompanied with a burning sensation as his body struggled to start up again. Soon, he found himself floating once more, and in front of him was a blue rose with strange thorns. Da'an could not control his hand as it reached for the rose. His hand wrapped itself around, and Da'an felt the painful sting of the thorns. The bud of the rose closed as if it had been alerted to the intruder, and Da'an saw and felt a blue liquid drain from his cut hand. As it dropped on the ground, Da'an fell backwards…

…and he knew he would never touch the rose…