Deathstalker 06 - Deathstalker Legacy

old-fashioned clothing. A chill ran through Lewis as he realized who they were, who they had to be. No one had seen their real faces for two hundred years; but every man, woman, and child on every planet in the Empire knew the idealized faces from church windows and ceremonial statues. To see their real faces at last was like seeing the god behind the mask, or the actor behind the makeup. Five very ordinary-looking people; not perfect, not in any way perfect. Lewis didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
    He looked to Jesamine, and her eyes were full of awe and wonder.
    "Owen," she said breathlessly. "That's Owen. And Hazel. I played them on the stage . . . but I never knew, I never really believed . . . they were real. . '.'
    "Owen Deathstalker," said the whispering voice. "Hazel d'Ark. Diana Vertue, also known as Jenny Psycho, one-time avatar of the Mater Mundi. Tobias Moon, Hadenman. And Captain John Silence, of the Dauntless. There were others, of course. Jack Random, Ruby Journey, Investigator Frost, Giles Deathstalker; but they are all dead. Of these five before you, it is possible that some or all are still alive."
    The image on the screen changed, showing just the one man. He was tall and rangy, with dark hair and darker eyes. He held himself like a fighter; no, a warrior. There was a tired, almost bitter quality to his face, like a man who'd carried heavy burdens, without complaint, for much longer than any man should ever have to. He looked competent, crafty, dangerous. Lewis recognized him from the scenes he'd been shown deep in the technojungle of Shub.
    "Owen," he said. "Oh God, look at you. What did they do to you, to weigh you down like that?"
    "Yes," said the dusty voice. "This is Owen Deathstalker. The reluctant hero, who walked the Madness
    Maze to its very heart, and learned there the answers to questions we can only guess at. Owen; lost to us now, in Time. Who died alone, far from friends and succor, in the dirty back alleys of Mistport."
    A familiar weight settled over Lewis's heart, crushing newly raised hopes. "So; he really is dead? You're sure?"
    "No. We are not sure. He died, but... he has been seen in the future. Alive, and fighting at your side.
    When you know the answer to this mystery, perhaps you will come back and explain it to us."
    "Hold it!" Jesamine said sharply. "Everyone go back to their starting position. Is Owen alive or not?"
    "The Deathstalker died on Mistworld," said the gray man. "That much is certain. But we are dealing with time travel here. Many things are possible, with time travel. Supposedly."
    "In other words, you haven't got a clue either," said Lewis. "I think this is why Humanity never invented a practical means for time travel; because it makes your head hurt just thinking about the implications."
    Owen's image disappeared from the screen before them, replaced by a young woman. Tall and lithely muscular, she scowled out of the screen with a sharp pointed face and a mane of long untidy red hair.
    Her eyes were hooded, and a piercing green. She gave off the same dangerous quality as a cornered rat, and looked like someone you'd be really stupid to turn your back on. Lewis could feel his nose wrinkling as he looked at her. Surely this couldn't be who he thought it was. Surely this gutter bravo couldn't be the legendary love of the blessed Owen Deathstalker?
    "Hazel d'Ark," the dusty voice said remorselessly. "A great fighter. A brave and canny warrior. She endured stresses and strains that would have broken most people, from Blood addiction to the loss of good friends to the birth of a new social order she knew she could never really be a part of; but in the end she broke, faced with one loss too many. She loved Owen, but she never told him; and with his death she knew she never would. She ran away, and disappeared, after the last great battle against the Recreated. She saved Humanity, but she couldn't save the one man she truly cared for. She never got to see the Golden Age her courage and her actions helped to bring about. No one has seen anything of her for two hundred years. Her fate remains a mystery. Even to us."
    "Poor girl," said Jesamine. "We owe her so much, and the universe wouldn't even let her have the one thing she wanted."
    "She made the mistake of loving a Deathstalker," said Lewis. "We've never been lucky in love."
    "Perhaps I can change that," said Jesamine.
    "Perhaps," said Lewis, and they smiled at each other.
    Next up on the screen was a short