Chapter Eight #3
Tension coiled inside her chest, making it hard to breathe. Unbidden, her mother’s chastising voice rang in her head. ‘Uri ttal! Daughter, what are you doing right now? Get a grip and focus.’
Toni bit her bottom lip. Okay, eomma. She scolded herself. Trust the memory of her mother’s persistent voice to steady her. Her jaw clenched. When she was done with this shit-show, the first thing she’d do was to apologize to her mother for giving her a hard time. Teenage years notwithstanding.
There, ahead, was another narrow corridor.
“Is this the right way?”
“Yes,” JR14 said.
“Down this hallway.”
Pressing her lips together, she followed his instructions. The farther she went, the more the light faded. Shadows stretched around her, making her squint to see through the growing gloom.
Then the walkway widened, opening into a balcony with a transparent railing.
Toni sucked in a breath and froze.
Expanding before her was an enormous dome of clear crystal that arched high overhead.
Underneath it lay a city carved from light and glass.
Towers rose in elegant spirals, their peaks radiating soft hues of every color imaginable.
Bridges of transparent rainbows arched between them, glittering like threads of silk.
Floating platforms hovered through the space, carrying Krystalii passengers that glided on streams of light.
Suspended walkways looped in intricate patterns, creating a lattice of pathways that pulsed in sporadic rhythms. Smaller orbs of light flitted like fireflies as they wove through the city, illuminating hidden alcoves and courtyards lined with crystalline flora.
“Da-ang!” Toni whispered, gripping the railing. “It’s a kingdom made of crystal!” She peered at JR14 on her shoulder.
“Observation: a true triumph of geometric precision,” JR14 replied. “Analysis would specify that the Krystalii use photonic energy to manipulate matter. Their structures are likely grown rather than constructed.”
This is no mere city. Sensos added. It is a living organism, resonating in harmony with its inhabitants. It’s better we remain vigilant. Such beauty often conceals danger.
Toni tore her gaze away, heart hammering. “Yeah, you’re right. It’s not like we’re tourists here. Let’s keep going.”
JR14 jumped off her shoulder and buzzed ahead, turning into another hallway that opened onto a vast chamber. Columns of translucent crystal spiraled toward the vaulted dome ceiling, pulsing, as though transmitting energy.
Toni ducked behind one column, her breath catching at the sight of two Krystalii figures parading across the room.
Their chunky crystalline forms refracted light, their bodies in deep hues made up of murky green moldavite.
They were the first she’d seen that appeared androgynous, having neither the form nor figures of male or female. They somehow seemed unfinished.
She shivered as their voices drifted through the air, a strange blend of chimes and whispers. She might not understand a damn word they said, but the tension between them was easy enough to sense.
“Do you understand what they’re so worked up about?” She glanced at JR14, who had resumed his place on her shoulder.
“Scanning: they are having a dispute,” JR14 stated. “They differ about what is causing the resonance shift detected in Sector 7 that interferes with their connection to Lord Baelon. Opinion: the shift may relate to Azazel’s presence. Advice: proceed with caution.”
Caution. Right. Toni gritted her teeth as the Krystalii headed right for her, then walked past without so much as a nod. Releasing her held breath with a whoosh, she pursed her lips and swallowed, watching the guards walk away. “Okay, let’s ‘proceed’.”
Edging around the chamber’s perimeter, she followed JR14’s whispered directions. The coiled tension in her chest eased a bit once she slipped into another narrow corridor. Here, the light from the crystalline walls was even dimmer.
“Warning: we are approaching the containment vault,” JR14 announced. “Eighteen meters ahead.”
Sensos emitted a low hum against Toni’s skin, the suit tightening as if bracing for impact. I should warn you. Azazel’s psychic signature is becoming more difficult to register. I deem the possibility that his restraints are increasing.
The corridor ended in a set of crystalline doors, glowing with embedded symbols that shifted and pulsed with veins of light.
Toni reached out.
Before she touched them, Sensos spoke sharply. Wait. JR14, do these patterns show a psychic lock?
“Analyzing,” JR14 responded and flew closer to the doors and extended his antennae. “Live neural waves trigger the lock. Sensos’ field should counteract this. Analysis complete. Advise to continue.”
Okay, this was it. Now or never. Sucking in a deep breath, Toni stepped closer.
The doors quivered before sliding apart. The chamber beyond was dark, save for a single column of light pouring down from above.
She did a double take. There, in its center, suspended, was a floating figure of a man. Azazel.
He hung in tendrils of light, as if supported by them.
Still as a statue, his body was encased in faint energy ripples over the tunic and loose pants he wore.
His dark hair floated around his face, and his muscular frame looked oddly vulnerable in the cold light.
Chains of glowing crystalline shards looped around his wrists, ankles, and torso. Pulsing.
Maybe the crazy stuff fed off his energy.
“Azazel!” Toni’s whisper cracked as she stepped forward.
Please be careful. Sensos’s voice cut in. I suspect the restraints might react to sudden movement.
Toni swallowed hard, her fingers twitching. “So, JR14. Any advice there, bub?”
“Analyzing. I must determine whether disrupting the containment field’s structure will injure Azazel.
” After a brief silence, the bot continued.
“Estimated analysis complete. You do not have sufficient capabilities or the necessary tools to release Azazel. We will have to disrupt the Nexus Core to utilize the release gate hidden on the port side of the cage.”
Toni frowned. How in the hell was she going to do that?
A moan from Azazel escaped his chapped lips. His eyelids fluttered before they slid open. His dark-brown eyes locked onto hers. Although he didn’t speak, his face turned ashen as beads of sweat glistened on his forehead.
“Hang on,” Toni whispered, taking another step closer. Sensos tightened its protection around her. “We’re trying to come up with a way to get you out.”
Azazel’s lips moved, but no sound came out. Instead, his voice resonated inside her mind, faint and strained.
Toni... run!
“Observation and opinion,” JR14 announced from her shoulder. “Azazel is uninformed of the invisible status Sensos has given you and thus is unaware the Krystalii cannot detect you.”
It was hard for Toni to pay attention to the bot. She was too busy panicking as Azazel squirmed, struggling to get loose.
He pursed his lips in a hard line while the tendons in his neck stood out.
Rushing to him with her hands outstretched, she reached the edge of his crystalline cage and put both gloved palms close to the surface without touching it. She shook her head and mouthed, “It’s okay,” over and over.
“Caution.” The bot continued. “If the male becomes overly emotional, it will trigger the encasement he is in and will render him unconscious. Advice: urge him to become still while we continue with our plan to release him.”
As Azazel continued to struggle, Toni became desperate. She turned to the spider-android that flew off her shoulder and buzzed over the surface of the clear cage. “How are we going to tell him that without alerting the Krystalii?”
“Feasible solution is about to present itself.” JR14 announced as he faced Azazel and hovered in one place.
“Suggestion: be on guard. An Elite sentry is about to enter. Back away from the cage to ensure negative detection. Once Azazel is aware the Krystalii cannot detect you, he should become calm.”
Right. Just because the Krystalii couldn’t sense her, it didn’t mean she should stand in the way and allow herself to get tromped by one. She jumped back just as a crystal giant entered the room.
JR14 fluttered and landed on her shoulder.
“Observation: interesting development. Instead of clear common crystal, it appears this one is made of danburite material, which will allow the Krystalii to have a higher component of psychic abilities. Advice: stay still and keep your mind as blank as possible. Sensos, if capable, tighten Toni’s protection. ”
Already accomplished. Sensos replied. However, I would do as JR14 suggests and remain still and calm.
Toni’s breath hitched as she watched the Elite guard.
The thing stomped into the room like a cartoon villain.
Its crystalline form caught and fractured in the dim light, creating dazzling shards of brilliance.
Composed of pale pink and white danburite crystals, its towering frame glinted with an almost ethereal beauty—one that belied the menace in every deliberate step it took.
Each movement was precise, sharp, and silent, as though it glided on air rather than walked.
Its crystal joints ground together with faint, melodic chimes that set her teeth on edge.
The angular planes of its face were alien in their lack of soft curves.
All it bore were sharp edges and jutting facets, with two piercing eyes embedded deep within the crystalline structure.
Though featureless in the human sense, its face exuded an air of haughty disdain, as if the very sight of Azazel’s caged form was beneath it.
Toni couldn’t tell if its expression was one of curiosity or contempt. Probably both.
The subtle tilt of its head as it observed Azazel seemed almost thoughtful, but the stillness of its gaze unnerved her. It was like watching a predator assess its prey.