Deathstalker 06 - Deathstalker Legacy

spirit, when they needed most to be at their strongest. They needed the legend. Perhaps Robert and Constance had known what they were doing after all... Of course, it made the Quest of the Paragons meaningless; but the people needed the Quest too, and the hope it represented. And the Paragons needed the Quest most of all.
    Lewis sucked in a deep breath, and slowly raised his head again. He felt like he'd been through a long illness, and was only slowly beginning to recover his strength. Owen Deathstalker was dead. It was like being told the sun wouldn't come up in the morning anymore. Lewis looked at the robot as he rose fairly steadily to his feet.
    "Thank you for your candor. You've given me a lot to think about. Including just how much of this I should pass on to Douglas, and the House."
    He held out his hand for the robot to shake, and the robot froze suddenly, looking down at the hand.
    "That ring, sir Deathstalker. Where did you get that ring?"
    "It was Owen's ring," said Lewis, holding his hand still, just a bit selfconsciously. "It's the old sign and seal of my Clan, long thought lost with Owen. It was given to me at Douglas's Coronation, by a rather strange little man in gray called Vaughn."
    The robot pressed Lewis eagerly for every detail he could remember, making him go over it again and again. The viewscreen reappeared suddenly, showing an image of a short hunched figure dressed in gray.
    Lewis nodded.
    "Yes, that's him. Do you have any information on him?"
    "This is Vaughn, other names unknown, planet of origin unknown. A leper, from the old isolation planet of Lachrymae Christi. He died there, from the disease, one hundred and ninety-two years ago. The venerable Saint Beatrice kept excellent records. We even have his death certificate." The screen changed to show the document, and then it disappeared again. The robot looked thoughtfully at Lewis. "Our sensors indicate that the ring on your finger corresponds in every detail to the description we have of Owen's ring. Which, as you say, disappeared with Owen. So how has it reappeared now, and who was the person in gray who gave it to you? Did a ghost come to you, to give you a dead man's ring?"
    A serious chill went through Lewis then, and he tried to keep his voice light. "Do Artificial Intelligences believe in ghosts?"
    "The Recreated died, and were returned to us. The Ashrai were exterminated, and reborn. Dead worlds blossomed into life again, as we watched. Who is to say what is possible, where the Madness Maze and its people are concerned? Keep the ring, Lewis. Keep it safe. Its reappearence, at the same time as the coming of the Terror, cannot be a coincidence. There is purpose in this, and perhaps destiny too.
    Deathstalkers have always been connected with destiny. It is their honor, and their curse."
    A sudden thought struck Lewis, and he gave the robot a hard look. "You know what happened to Owen. Do you also know what happened to Hazel d'Ark?"
    "No, Lewis. No one knows. It is one of the great mysteries. She disappeared after learning of Owen's death. Took off in her ship, and was never seen again, by anyone. Which should have been impossible, given how hard everyone was looking for her. Even her fellow Maze survivors couldn't locate her. We can only assume . . . that Hazel d'Ark didn't want to be found. She loved him very much, you know."
    "Their legendary love . . ."
    "Yes. She may be dead, or alive. We have no way of knowing."
    "Perhaps the Quest should be to find her, not Owen," said Lewis. "But I don't think I'll suggest that to anyone, just yet."
    "We remember Hazel d'Ark," said the robot. "The person, not the legend. She worked marvels, and was a wonder in combat. We remember them all... every encounter we ever had with the Maze people is still with us, as sharp today as it was then. Would you . . . like to see some?"
    "Yes," said Lewis, suddenly breathless, his heart leaping in his chest. "Show me. Show me the truth, of what they really were."
    The viewscreen reappeared before him, and there was Owen Deathstalker and Hazel d'Ark, fighting their way through the packed streets of Mistport, during the Imperial invasion of Mistworld by the Empress Lionstone's terror troops. Fires blazed and buildings crumbled as huge gravity barges moved ponderously by overhead, energy beams stabbing down, illuminating the night. People were running and screaming and fighting everywhere, soldiers and rebels and panicking civilians. Swords clashed, guns