Horizon Storms - Kevin J. Anderson [205]
Making his choice, Pery’h held his head high and moved his legs so that he walked alongside the guards. Resistance would be foolish at this point, and arguing or struggling with these soldier kithmen would gain him nothing. Though he strode next to them, the young man felt separated by a wide and immeasurable gulf. Gathering the shreds of his pride, Pery’h increased his pace so it appeared that he was leading the guards.
Crowds of Hyrillkans looked at him with vacant stares. These should have been his people, but they no longer felt the same thism that bound him to the rest of the Ildiran Empire. Pery’h should have become their next Designate.
Now, though, as the young man stepped into the receiving courtyard, where his hedonistic uncle had always thrown celebrations, Pery’h saw how much had changed. He had never felt so numb and isolated.
Rusa’h reclined in an ornate replica of the chrysalis chair, more spectacular than the one Jora’h had in the Prism Palace. He wore robes identical to those of a Mage-Imperator; he had even braided his hair in a fashion similar to the great leader’s. Pery’h felt queasy as he wondered if Rusa’h had also had the lunatic conviction to inflict upon himself the castration ceremony, a mockery of the true leader’s ascension. He couldn’t sense any answers, any motivations. “What is this…masquerade?”
Seeing Pery’h, the Hyrillka Designate sat up and gave him a superior smile. “Sacred traditions must be restored and protected. Lost Ildirans must return to the true path that made us great, that preserved our civilization over the long millennia.”
Leaving the guard escort behind, Thor’h strolled forward catlike to take a place at his uncle’s side. From the familiar way the Prime Designate moved, Pery’h was sure his brother had become quite comfortable next to the mad Designate.
“My father will learn what you are doing,” Pery’h said, not raising his voice, keeping his tone reasonable but firm. He could not even imagine what sort of punishment might be appropriate for these outrageous actions. “The Mage-Imperator will not allow you to continue this…this atrocity. You cannot keep it a secret for long.”
A hot edge of madness threatened to cut its way into Pery’h‘s mind. He was so alone. Alien thism surrounded him, yet not a thread of it penetrated the solitary confines of his mind.
“Oh, but we intend for Jora’h to know. Even with his inept grasp of the thism, I’m sure he already senses something is wrong. But you, Pery’h, must send him a clear message. Our pilgrims are already in place in the Prism Palace. The usurper will learn the gravity of the errors he has made and the crimes he has committed.”
“You call my father a usurper?” Pery’h was more shocked than angry. “He is the Mage-Imperator—”
“I am the true Imperator!” Rusa’h roared.
Thor’h sighed, leaning close to speak to his uncle. “He will never surrender the Prism Palace to you, Imperator.”
Rusa’h was saddened. “I know, and many Ildirans will suffer because of it.”
The guards held their crystal-tipped spears and glared at Pery’h.
So utterly abandoned and isolated, Pery’h found it difficult even to talk, but still he forced out the words. “Listen to me, Uncle. You were injured. Your mind must have been…damaged by the hydrogues. You have to see that this is folly—”
Rusa’h grasped the edge of the false chrysalis chair and hauled himself upright. His braid twitched and thrashed. “Oh yes, Pery’h, I can see—I see more clearly than any Ildiran. I have followed the soul-threads, witnessed how tangled and frayed they have become. Jora’h and our father before him caused a great deal of damage, but it is not too late to save our people. We must return to the proper ways.”
Pery’h raised his eyebrows. “Is it proper to speak treason against the Mage-Imperator who holds the thism?”
“I hold all the threads of thism here. You can sense it yourself.”
Pery’h could indeed sense it. The pain of emptiness seared his mind.
“Every person on Hyrillka is bound to me,” the Designate went on, “and our enlightenment will spread across the Horizon Cluster and