Note, this is a an early sneak peak for my newsletter subscribers and is a first draft and has yet to be edited, and is therefore subject to change!
Kiara drifted through the halls of the Oblivion Gate. She couldn’t ignore the fact there were others here. Flickers caught the corner of her eye, but when she looked, there was no one there.
Not knowing what else to do and still trying to adjust to her new reality, Kiara concentrated on exploring the empty halls. They were breathtakingly beautiful. A green glow illuminated the high ceilings and washed over the walls. Elegant reliefs decorated the corners and columns lined the sides, leading into darkened alcoves and concealed chambers.
Corridors led off in a maze of halls and passageways. It would be easy to get lost, though she wasn’t concerned, it wasn’t as if she would starve to death; she was already dead. She shivered as a chill flashed through her at the thought. It was weird how she still felt things, even though her body didn’t exist and she was an ephemeral mist floating above the shiny floors. She was disappointed to see that she didn’t even have a reflection.
The only time she seemed to have any substance was when she was with Mav. Something about him helped to anchor her, but then he always had. Mav was the one person who had believed in her and her abilities without question. He had never treated her like a child, always an equal. Someone he believed in.
Kiara straightened her shoulders. He had made her his Gate Wraith. He had given her purpose at a time when her world had been shattered. He had been there for her, and she wouldn’t let him down.
Continuing down the corridor, she gasped as a huge room opened before her. At one end, a grand staircase rose in an elegant curve, splitting into two branches half way. It was a gorgeous room and completely empty. She wasn’t sure what furnishings would suit such a picturesque room.
Choosing the darkened doorways beneath the staircase, she ventured deeper into the halls. She was surprised to find a spotless kitchen, store rooms filled with various produce, all fresh, so someone was cooking for people who ate, though there was no sign of them. Where did they go? And who were they?
Stairs led down into darkness, and Kiara floated down the steps and halted with a gasp. Green flames flared in the torches on the walls and lit a complex matrix of metalwork, cogs and chains. Her gaze followed the linkages, revelled in the complexity, delved into the brackets and the joints, winced at the signs of rust and neglect.
Why had such complicated machinery been allowed to become so atrophied? She paused. What was it supposed to do? Was this the gate? Part of it? This Gate not been used decades. Was there another? Where had all the soulless gone in the meantime?
She frowned and traced the linkages, following the pattern, seeing the result. The wall was supposed to slide open, though the wheels were rusted solid and weren’t moving any time soon.
There had been a pot of grease in the kitchens. She headed back down the corridors, eyeing the torches that flared and died as she passed. Was someone watching her? How did they know she was here?
At the first attempt at picking up the pot, her hand passed right through it. She hissed her breath out. She was here for a reason, and that reason was to look after the Oblivion Gate. “I’m here to help you, blast it,” she muttered under her breath and tried again. Her fingers brushed something as they passed through the pot, and her heart rate quickened.
“I’m a Gate Wraith,” she said out loud and concentrated on the clay pot.
“What…is a Gate Wraith?” The voice grated on her ears, rough and fractured.
Kiara stiffened. Peering around her, she said, “The one who will grease these wheels if I can pick up this stupid pot.”
“Why do you need to grease my wheels?”
“Because they are rusted.”
“Why do you care?” The voice was slow and dejected.
“Why do I care?” Kiara twisted, looking for whoever was speaking but she couldn’t see anyone. “That’s complex machinery. You have to care for it. How could you allow it to get into such a state?”
“I didn’t have a choice.”
“Of course you have a choice. Who was responsible for maintaining it? Where are they?”
“I don’t know.”
Kiara spun again, searching the shadows. “Who are you? Where are you?”
“Why do you care?” the voice faded as if they were leaving.
“I care, because Mav asked me to help maintain the Oblivion Gate. He asked me to be his Gate Wraith and I said yes.”
“Mav?”
“Yes, Mav. Demavrian.” She stared at the pot and scowled. “If I am dead, how do I make myself more solid?”
“You are dead?”
Kiara rolled her eyes. “Duh! Can’t you tell? I’m a ghost. A spirit. Not real.”
The chuckle was rasping, as if the person wasn’t used to being amused. “You look real to me.”
“Who are you?”
“I am the Oblivion Gate.”
Kiara froze. “The Oblivion Gate?” she whispered.
“Yes. And you look solid to me.”
“I do?”
“Yes. Why are you here? You are not like the others who roam my halls.”
“I told you. Mav asked me to be his Gate Wraith. He wants me to look after you.”
“Why?”
Kiara scowled up at the ceiling. “Why? Because you are the gate! The soulless pass through you. Mav will help you look after the people of Ediolon.”
Silence. After an extended pause in which Kiara thought the Gate might have withdrawn, he said, “Kaenera is the Gate Keeper and he doesn’t care about anyone except himself.”
“Not anymore. Mav defeated him.”
“He what?”
“Mav defeated him. Kaenera isn’t dead as far as I know, but he lost all his power and Mav inherited it. Mav’s a really good guy. He’s an Archdeus, though he doesn’t have a soul. He’s been living in Eidolon for years. Mav needs to become the Gate Keeper, however that works.”
“A new Gate Keeper?”
“Mmm.” Kiara concentrated on the pot again and placed her hands either side.
“You have to believe you can pick it up. It’s all in the power of the mind.” The Gate snorted. “There’s nothing else left!”
“Believe in myself. Mav believes in me, so should I.” Kiara tightened her grip and picked the pot up. “Yes!”
“What are you going to do with that?” the Gate inquired. His voice had smoothed out with use and vibrated with a deep timbre. Kiara thought it was a nice voice.
“Which bit hurts the most? We’ll start there.”
“Start with the wheels. They really ache.”
Kiara returned to the complex wall of machinery and kneeling on the floor began rubbing the grease around the joints. “Who else is here?” she asked after a while. “I haven’t seen anyone.”
“Few stay. Kaenera’s people come and go. Dybbuks. We usually ignore each other.”
“I don’t understand. How can Kaenera ignore you? He was the Gate Keeper. How did he pass the soulless through you?”
“They didn’t. That’s why most of my mechanisms are seized. I’ve only managed to keep the small gate open.”
“The small gate?”
“The one I assume you tried to go through.”
“The one with the flowers?”
Again with the silence. “Flowers?”
“Yes. The trellis work had green vines and pink flowers.”
“No, it doesn’t.”
“It did when I was there.”
“That’s not possible.”
Kiara shrugged and continued working. “Do you want to see if you can rotate the wheels so I can reach other bits?”
A deep groan echoed through the hall, but the wheels didn’t move. Kiara wedged her shoulder against the bracket and tried to rock frame, but it wouldn’t move. “Let me add some more grease,” she said, panting heavily.
It wasn’t until she was slapping on more gloop that she realised she had been able to brace against the structure. It had been solid and so had she. She smiled as she worked. They tried again, but the mechanism was seized solid.
“Do you have any tools? Wire brushes? Looseners? Spanners? Oil?”
“There’s an old box in the sub-basement. I’m not sure what’s in it.”
“Can’t hurt to look,” Kiara replied. “Show me the way.”
OblivionGate is on preorder.
Release date July 1st 2024.
Helen Garraway 