67

Caving In to Destiny

The heat surprised Deilune. When Beilla led them into the cave entrance, Deilune braced himself for a damp chill. But, once inside the narrow opening that Beilla and Abzeig had blasted open the night before, a dry warmth enveloped them.

By the time they were fifty feet into the cave, Deilune and Linda stopped to remove their jackets. Deilune noted Abzeig removing his cape until a harsh look from Beilla stopped him.

"Sacrificing comfort for style, Beilla?" Deilune mocked.

"Soon, Deilune, your comfort will be sacrificed altogether," Beilla snapped back.

"Why don't we talk about what you intend to do?" Deilune provoked, but got no response. Indicating the cavernous passage they stood in, he tried again. "This is an impressive discovery. Where does it lead?"

"This is as far as Abzeig and I went last night, but I believe the passage will take us to the Heart of Breima."

"Which is what?"

"Where the Tireima will be made complete. No one, not even that fool Weirhamatt, understands what reuniting the lifestones means. He had daily access to the literary treasures of Lebreima for decades, but could not solve the puzzle of the Tireima, but I have unearthed it."

"Then why did you need to travel all the way to America to kill me and my wife?" Deilune goaded him.

Beilla shook his head slowly. "The same reason that you are here now. The Kareima is essential. It must take its place with the other two stones."

"But you have only the Fareima. According to all the legends Raven dropped the Astreima. It has never been found."

"That is because it was swallowed."

Deilune was surprised. "Swallowed?"

"Yes, you and your fine bride provided the final link to solve the mystery. Just as you swallowed the Kareima, the Astreima was swallowed by Mount Breima. It has rested at its heart for millennia."

"How can you be sure?"

"Open your eyes, Deilune. You know the legends as well as I do. You have seen the missing piece that was lost for so long. The image is the formula for combining the stones. I alone saw this!” Beilla’s voice echoed triumphantly. “Don't you see the power growing in the Fareima around my neck? It is lighting this entire chamber. Certainly, the Kareima is feeling the call as well. It is our destiny."

Instead of answering Beilla, Deilune looked down at his chest where through his shirt a sharp blue light pulsed joining the fiery glow given off by the Fareima. Deilune unbuttoned the top three buttons, exposing his almost completely rejuvenated skin through which the Kareima's pure light shone. A beacon beating time with his miraculous existence.

Feeling the light of the Kareima, course through him, Deilune felt as if Beilla and Abzeig no longer held dominance over him. That an even stronger force had taken charge: the truth of the Breimas and the lifestones.

In going to America, Deilune had run away from being a Breima. But his destiny, his birthright, had still caught up with him, pounding in his veins with all the force of ancient time and tradition.

Taking Linda's hand, he strode past Beilla and Abzeig, heedless of their weapons and intentions. Down the narrowing passage, Deilune led the way, the darkness broken and scattered by the Kareima, once again, proudly shining forth from the heir of le Breima.