Keel inclined his head as if he thought her words were a compliment.
Night wasn’t in the mood to be as kind as Tate, striking out without warning. Keel yelped and tripped as Night’s claws shredded the bottom of his robes. Taking advantage of the fact Keel was now on his level, Night perched on the other’ man’s chest. He stared down at the grandmaster from a distance of only inches.
Tate had been privy to such scenes before, only, every other time it had been a cub doing the perching and the person being perched on didn’t look like they were seconds from wetting themselves.
The exchange that took place was silent, giving Tate no clue what Night was saying. After a short while, he stood and prowled away, leaving the grandmaster to pick himself up off the ground.
Night ignored Tate’s questioning gaze as he leapt onto one of the glass casings, paying no attention to the priceless relic inside.
“Want to tell me what that was about?” Tate asked him.
Nothing important.
Tate narrowed her eyes at him before letting it go. Whatever that was about, she knew he was simply protecting their interests.
“Show me what you found,” Tate ordered.
With one eye on Night, Vale rummaged through several stacks of books. “After what you shared, I went through our records to find anything referencing the Creators and their resting spots.”
He handed her a book that looked as new as the day it had been made, its pages crisp and shiny. What Tate found more interesting was the fact it was also a relic—though the rest probably didn’t realize it.
Tate interrupted when Vale looked like he was about to translate for her. “It says—I tracked the traitor for two years before I lost his trail.”
Vale sent her a sheepish look. “I forgot you could read Ancient.”
“Perks of it being my first language.” Tate pulled the book closer to her, recognizing the handwriting even after all this time. It was undeniably Jax’s.
Tate bent closer to read.
Where the forces converge, and this world meets the next. I don’t know how I didn’t see it before. I don’t know it’s original purpose but it is clear that it is a massive energy source. If I were to modify the Aurelia’s engines with the Ijiri’s technology I could lead us home. We would no longer be stuck on this planet.
Several things keep me from that action. Decades have passed since we were brought down. There is no way to tell how the war ended or if there’d be anything to return to. There is also the fact the Ijiri’s experiments have swelled our population beyond what the ship could sustain. To say nothing of how our people would react to the differences now inherent in many of us.
For now, I’ve refrained from sharing my findings with the others. Without her presence to steady us, we are too easily swayed by our own greed. Another war would likely break out between the factions if they learned of this.
Tate read the rest of the page and then the next few but found nothing else pertaining to the Rift or the Ijiri.
Tate lowered the book, finally understanding why Nathan had targeted the Rift. It was essentially a giant battery, drawing from the other side. What wasn’t written was the likely consequences of using such a power source.
It would take a significant amount of power to lift the Aurelia from her grave. Such an act would destroy the delicate balance between the two worlds. Not just Ilith’s world, but this one too would be placed in jeopardy. A catastrophic failure on both sides could result, laying waste to a good chunk of the planet.
The more immediate problem was the city of Aurelia.
The ship Aurelia didn’t just crash land. From what Jax had shared, the crew phased it to pass through matter. It was likely the origin of the extensive tunnels under the city. Removing it would require it to rise from the ground, destroying everything above.
This was what Christopher must have meant when he wrote that when one Aurelia falls the other rises.
It even made sense for Nathan to go after Ai. As the person who controlled all of the Aurelia’s auxiliary systems, he’d need her to have any chance of implementing his plan.
But why did Nathan want to raise the ship? That’s what Tate didn’t understand.
Returning to their home after all this time made absolutely no sense. Anything he hoped to find would be long gone.
“Anything about the Apportens Mortis or the Aurelia itself?”
“My family has a story said to have been passed down since Jaxon Kuno’s time,” the duke said. “It’s something his daughter recorded on his deathbed.”
Tate made a gesture for him to continue when he hesitated.
