The Winds of Khalakovo - Bradley P. Beaulieu [92]
It was one of several possible ways the Aramahn believed the world would end. Indaraqiram, the point at which Adhiya and Erahm become one, when all souls meld, both here and beyond. The Grand Duchy gave no credence to such beliefs, citing the failings of the most powerful of the qiram as proof. They believed, rightly, that one’s ancestors watched over a person, that by building one’s legacy, by paying homage to those that came before, that they would protect their progeny from beyond the grave. One day they would become more powerful than the fates, making them masters of their own destiny.
“They were unsuccessful,” Nikandr said.
Ashan granted that with a tilt of his head. “Da, but not completely so. There are many who believe that those three qiram lived on beyond the devastation they caused. The life they lived—halfway between Erahm and Adhiya—twisted their souls. Eventually they went mad from it. They fought with one another for supremacy, none ever quite able to swing the balance fully in their favor. Many feared that when one finally did win out that it would mark the beginning of the end of the world—the path of destruction instead of the path of enlightenment.”
Nikandr remembered the rush of the wind as he flew down to the tower, the feelings of oneness with the city around him, the island, the sea and the world.
Nikandr swallowed. “You’re suggesting that Nasim was one of the three.”
Ashan nodded. “I believe this to be true. There are many signs.
Nasim’s ability to walk between worlds, the way the aether shifts around him...”
“The way the hezhan cross when he is near?”
“Nyet. Do not make the mistake of discounting Soroush. He has discovered many secrets from Nasim, not the least of which is the ways in which the aether has shifted. There are rifts that have been forming for years. They may be the cause of the blight, of the wasting.”
“All this from one boy?”
“Not from one boy, but from his absence on Ghayavand. If I am right, his death would have caused a severe imbalance around the island, not only from his absence but from the renewed battle between the other two.”
“Preposterous,” Nikandr said, leaning back in his chair. “Nasim is no more than twelve. The blight has been building for decades.”
“When we pass, we are not reborn immediately. We live a life there before returning. No one knows how long. The arqesh who was Nasim could have easily spent that time in Adhiya before returning. Since his rebirth he has been struggling to understand the world, but it is no longer with the perspective of a man who had the time to absorb the ways of flesh and bone. He was raised struggling, always, to tell the difference between the material and the spiritual. It is what causes him such pain, his inability to reconcile the two while living within the shell of a boy.” Ashan stared at Nikandr meaningfully. “Until he met you...”
“Our link?”
“Just so. He has taken great strides. You have provided a grounding for him, allowing him to relate to the world around him in ways he never has before. The nature of this connection still eludes me, but it certainly exists.”
Nikandr grabbed his gut as a wave of nausea washed over him. He was tired and at the moment unable to hide the effects of the wasting. Surprisingly, he found that he didn’t really wish to in front of Ashan. The man had a calming influence, a way of making one want to confess.
“I didn’t tell you everything the other day.” Nikandr pulled his soul-stone out from beneath his shirt. Though only days ago he had worn it openly, he had come to feel exposed when it was not tucked away. “I have the wasting.”
Ashan eyed the stone. He seemed to be looking at it anew, revising his assessment.
“Stasa Bolgravya,” Nikandr continued, “had been struck as well. In him the disease was very advanced, whereas in my case it is early. Still, it is a connection that may have been overlooked. That day we found you near the lake, I felt a havahezhan, and unlike the ship where I had been attacked, I could control it, as a qiram must do. I’ve thought on