Garden of Embers: Beneath Devouring Eyes #2

Chapter 16, Part C

At least the Devouring Eyes weren't visible over the sprawling landscape of broken ice and stone. Not from this angle. Still, Domi shivered.

"Promenia crystal is not promenia," the smaller eidolon said, appearing around the corner.

Their childlike voice, combined with their matter-of-fact tone and the way they hovered in the nook's entryway like some lost kid, was one of the creepiest things Domi had ever encountered in his life.

As the thought crossed his mind, they eyed him with glittering pink and gold eyes, their hair shifting from magenta to tangerine. "Rather, the crystal is promenia arranged into a lattice and then converted into various metamaterials that store promenia. This particular kind isn't indestructible, but it's extremely durable and not subject to corruption by rogue promenia. Not even diamond can cut it. Though all things degrade over time, your Ancients designed this tower to withstand earthquakes, nuclear strikes, and hypercanes if necessary."

"And to restore the Trellis," Domi said.

"Yes." The taller feminine eidolon answered, joining her companion at the edge of Domi's nook.

"Are you... are you going to stop us?" he asked, sitting down next to Daedalus as much to get away from the eidolons as to be near his twin. His normally-stuffy brother promptly slumped against him in testament to how bad he was feeling. Not that Domi needed any special clues; his own body throbbed in echo of his twin's pain and fatigue. He rubbed Daedalus's shoulder soothingly.

"Stop you from bringing the Trellis back?" the promenia woman asked.

"Yeah."

The eidolon waited long enough to respond that Domi's heart began to race in his chest. "I am... going to advise you against it," she said at last.

He gritted his teeth. "And when we don't take your advice?"

"You will." Her steady stare, gold glittering in sparkling gray eyes, made his heart sink.

Still, he needed to ask. "But if we don't?"

She sighed. "I don't know. I haven't decided yet."

"Decided what?" He shook his head, frustration welling and swiftly overtaking fear. How could there be anything to decide? There was only one thing to do now to protect the world. Why would she stand in the way of the only possible solution? She'd been human once. Didn't she have descendants she was worried about? "Decide whether to let everyone live? What's to decide?"

"Who to let live," she said slowly, "and at what cost. But you need not fear me. As you said before, if I were going to hurt you, I would have already."

"You might later."

She shook her head. "I don't need to hurt you to stop you. But I don't think even that will be necessary. Now--" She glanced at Daedalus. "--May I borrow his crystal for a moment? It will allow me to diagnose your companions."

Domi glanced at his twin, uneasiness gripping him as Daedalus, remaining slumped against him, didn't stir except to crack open his eyes. "I-I don't know. Dae needs it." But Valens and Aix needed it too. His heart hammered.

"Here."

Domi swallowed as Daedalus shook off a mitten and plucked the yellow and gold gem from his temple. "Dae..."

"I... I am fine." His twin held the promenia crystal out to the eidolon, breathing hard.

"You can't even stand!" Domi snapped.

The promenia woman accepted it into her hand. Literally; the crystal sank partway into her shimmering palm but did not fall to the floor below as she curled golden fingers over it. She stepped around the corner and disappeared.