You bring great evil into our home.
They will become Elekai, I said. The Wanderer purchased them with his death.
Hmm. Even those as dark as these?
Yes, I said. They have not come to realize it.
Their minds are dark, Askal thought. As is their intent. If we appear, it will go badly.
They will not disobey a direct command from me, I said. Is there a way we can make them turn faster?
They must decide for themselves, Askal said. The Wanderer has opened the path to their redemption. It is up to them to continue down that path.
Then they’ll never turn, I said. They truly hate everything. They have no hope and find joy only in killing.
Many things that seem impossible actually aren’t, Askal thought.
Can’t I just order them into the pool?
Willing obedience is better than forced obedience, Askal though. Do you think we began as Elekai?
The Wanderer changed you?
He helped us…remember.
Remember what?
Who we truly were.
That really didn’t help me. I certainly didn’t know anything more than the Wanderer, and I was expected to just step up and do his job.
It’s hard to make them remember when I don’t even know what it is they’re supposed to remember.
You came here to listen, did you not? The Eternal Song still resounds in the stars.
How do I listen?
You must quiet yourself, until there is nothing. Then a Voice will fill the silence…many voices. When you hear them, you will know. And make sure they also hear. The Song is the core of our being. Hearing it will help them remember.
I didn’t really understand exactly what Askal meant, but I decided to give it a try.
“What were you doing?” Anna asked.
“Talking to Askal. He says that I have to listen to the song of the Elekai.”
“And then you’ll know what to do?”
I paused. “I really don’t know. I have to start there, though.”
I closed my eyes, and listened. All I heard were the sounds around me — a dragon padding his foot on the fungus, the drip of liquid in the cavern. It became so quiet that I thought I could hear even the fungus growing. Something about that fungus drew me — I felt its consciousness fill my mind. The feeling was…overwhelming. I realized that this — the collective consciousness of the fungus — was the beating heart of the Elekai. Here were stored all the memories, thoughts, and instincts that guided a race. All the dead who had passed. All the spirits that awaited rebirth. Information continued to be added in a never-ending stream, from the stars themselves…
I realized that this was the Eternal Song of the Elekai.
Now in tune with the fungus, I turned my attention skyward — and I heard it. I could never interpret this information myself, or translate it into words. The fungus was the intermediary, and only through its vast intelligence could I begin to comprehend the soul of the Elekai beaming down from the heavens. There were Elekai, not just on this world, but on many others. There were also worlds that should have been, and worlds now dead. But still, every world had its own Song — all blended with perfect majesty of sadness and joy. It was a Song, never-ending, that I could never tire of hearing.
And I understood, in that moment, why the Radaskim could not win.
I conveyed the song to the Radaskim dragons. It was as if some ripple of energy coursed through them, paralyzing them. They realized the truth, just as I did, that the Radaskim’s quest for the Secrets of Creation could never come to pass. They sought to acquire the consciousness of every race in the universe, and even if successful, they would still come up short.
Because the Elekai held the Secrets. And the Elekai could never be conquered.
The truth was in the xenovirus itself. The dominant gene was Elekai, the recessive was Radaskim. A recessive gene could never countermand the dominant. The Radaskim could never conquer the Elekai, so long as the Elekai version of the xenovirus was in existence — and if it wasn’t in existence, that meant the Elekai were gone from the universe, along with the Secrets.
What these Secrets were, I could never comprehend — something older and deeper than the universe itself, woven into the very fabric of space-time. And, somehow, the Elekai were the key to unlocking it — a key the Radaskim could never acquire.
All of this information passed in a single moment from me to the Radaskim. Their entire philosophy — their religion — existed so that they could find those Secrets to recreate the universe. And here those secrets were, all along, living within themselves, the only place they could never find them.
Unless they became Elekai.
We will do as you say, Alex, Quietus answered at last. The Song speaks a truth higher than any I have ever known. This day, we become Elekai!
With that pronouncement, Quietus gave a terrifying roar, echoed by the rest of the dragons. He stepped forward toward the pool, setting one foot inside at first. The ichor surrounded it, but Quietus did not hesitate, only pressing on until the liquid reached the tips of his wings and rose up to his breast. Then, his long neck descended and plunged into the surface. The liquid frothed and churned about him, becoming cloudy. I realized it was cleansing him, converting the Radaskim virus that formed the essence of his being.
Next, other dragons stepped forward, entering the pool.
“What’s happening?” Anna asked.
“They are becoming Elekai,” I said.
“It worked!”
“They realized the truth.”
Anna turned to me. “What’s that?”
“The Secrets of Creation — the Secrets that can destroy and recreate the universe — they are known only by the Elekai. And the Elekai can never be conquered.”
“How can they not be conquered?” Anna asked. “Haven’t they been conquered on every world so far?”
“I mean, yes, they can be physically destroyed. I was referring more to the xenovirus itself. The Elekai version can’t be conquered by the Radaskim version.”
“Because it’s dominant, right?”
I nodded. “The only way a Radaskim can learn the Secrets is if they become Elekai. But doing so defeats the purpose of being Radaskim. If the Elekai ever die out — the Secrets go with them. That is why they can’t be conquered.”
“And what are those Secrets?”
I shook my head. “You kidding me? I don’t know. I don’t think anyone does. It’s so deep that it can only be understood by the entire collective consciousness of the Elekai, and maybe not even then. Maybe that’s the Elekai’s purpose: they only know the Secrets because they are its guardians. They plant the gardens, that they might understand them more. But maybe with all the gardens in the universe, it wouldn’t be enough.”