by C. M. Carney
Behind him, three distinct shards of liquid lightning pushed up from the ground, spun and slammed into the ground again. They deposited a trio of goopy sacks of chaotic sludge and disappeared back into the singularity, which promptly blinked out of existence.
“Move, you doofus!” Lex roared and pointed over Simon’s shoulder.
Simon's eyes overflowed with pain, but he turned in time to see the sacks burst. Gobbets of chaotic sputum flew in a wide circle, some splattering across Simon. Simon flinched and almost hurled as the red-orange muck ran down his face and got into his mouth.
“Oh crap, crap, crap, I’m gonna mutate into something awful.”
Then, things got worse, as three humanoid forms rose from the muck. They were near-exact replicas of the cart driver and his family, but where fear had filled that man’s eyes, hate and madness filled this iteration. The young boy set his eyes on Simon and rushed towards him.
“Oh gods,” Simon said and fell backward.
“Simon!” Lex yelled in alarm. There was no way they would reach Simon before the boy did. I cannot lose another one, Lex thought and raised his hands to cast Order Bolt. Before the mana had moved down his arm, a blinding shard of pure white energy the size of a surfboard zipped past him. It passed so closely it ruffled his hair. The massive Order Bolt slammed into the rage-filled boy and disintegrated him. A split second later another pair flashed by incinerating the man and the woman.
“Woah,” Lex said, his eyes drawn to the impacts. The chaotic rune-form dimmed as the pure power of order burned through the scrawl. A moment later nothing remained but three spots of shimmering white glass.
Lex spun seeking the origin of the massive Order Bolts and saw the crystal atop the Harlan's Tower was glowing the brilliant white of a star, before dimming.
“Looks like somebody is looking out for us,” Vonn said.
“Yeah and thank the Source they are.” Lex turned to see Errat helping Simon to his feet. The undead teen thanked the warborn, abashed at his outburst. Errat grinned down on the lad and pulled him into a fierce bear hug.
"Errat is very happy to see friend Simon is not more …" A look of panic filled Errat as he realized what he was about to say.
“Dead?” Simon said. For once, there was no venom in his voice, only acceptance. He smiled up at Errat and then looked to Lex and Vonn. “Don’t worry guys I’m only, mostly dead.”
“Ha,” Lex blurted, both at Simon’s unintentional movie quote and as a release of tension. Simon gave him an odd look but said nothing. Lex walked up to Simon and drew him into a big hug. “I’m sorry, kiddo.” Simon hugged him back.
“I’m pretty sure I swallowed some of that chaos afterbirth. Am I gonna die?”
“Probably not,” Vonn said. “But keep an eye out for any extra limbs.”
Simon glared at Vonn for a second before his face broke into a wide grin. “I love you guys.”
“It’s amazing how nearly being eaten by a chaos doppelgänger reminds people of the important things in life,” Vonn said, returning the smile. He tousled Simon’s hair, and an odd look of panic flashed across his face. He grinned and hastily hid his hand behind his back. “There’s no sense standing around. We have a mission to complete, people to find.” He made an ‘after you’ gesture with his other hand and Simon and Errat walked towards town. Lex gave Vonn a suspicious glance.
“What the hell was that all about?”
Vonn pulled his hand from behind his back and showed Lex a clump of Simon’s hair with a good chunk of desiccated scalp still attached. Lex blinked in surprise and looked at the back of Simon’s head. A patch of white skull peaked through Simon’s hair in the exact spot where a middle-aged accountant might sport a bald spot.
“Yeah. We should keep that one to ourselves for now,” Lex said.
“Agreed, but if we come across one, some sort of hat might be in order.”
As Vonn and Lex rushed to catch up with the others, several screams rose across Harlan’s Watch. The top of Harlan’s Tower flared bright white again and a dozen Order Bolts blasted down into the town.
“That can’t be good,” Lex muttered. Then blazing lines of silver-white light shot up the sides of the tower. The lines met at the tip and the entire tower flared. A point of opalescent energy built over the tip and then with a near-deafening twang sound, expanded outwards like a canopy. It flowed over them, each man cringing as it passed, and continued over the bridge where it stopped, flared white and formed a dome of energy.
“Um … Vonn?
“The Order Lance has enacted the Armageddon Protocol and erected its counter chaos shield.”
“Well, that’s good, right? Simon asked. “Keep the chaos out.”
“It’s not keeping chaos out,” Vonn said. “It is keeping it in.”
“But we’re in here,” Simon said, his voice rising in pitch.
“Yes, yes, we are.” Vonn looked at Lex, and Lex did not like what he saw in his friend’s eyes.
“Crap.”
8
As Vonn told it, Harlan’s Tower was not just a tower. It was an Order Lance, a matrix of pure Order Magic made physical and powered by a time dilation device known as an Order Engine. Millennia ago, the Lords of Order had grown the tower from a single piece of crystal. Its mission was to defend the Realms from chaos incursions.
“Lemme guess, that’s where we’re going,” Simon said.
“Yep,” Lex said with a grimace. “And I’d bet my jumblies those bolts were targeting more of those chaos lightning zits.” He turned to Vonn. “Why’d they stop?”
“Power,” the rogue said. “Once Armageddon Protocol is initiated, the lance’s power is diverted to the dome. Those trapped inside are deemed acceptable losses.”
“Great, we’re on our own, again?”
Before the rogue could answer, a rush of wind pushed between them, spinning them about and nearly knocking them to the ground. Lex and Vonn raised their hands and readied Order Bolts. A blur of motion, almost like a mirage reflected in a dirty mirror, bounced off the shimmering dome, and a deep thung noise reverberated up and out from the impact.
The shimmering form came into momentary focus to reveal a thin, wiry boy. He shook his head as if confused and then placed his palms against the shield. His hands began to vibrate faster than Lex’s eyes could follow. Energy pulsed from the dome at the point of contact, but the shield held. The boy slowed again and pushed an errant strand of hair from his eyes, giving Lex a clear view of his face.
“Furrick?”
The boy spun, rage turning his face ugly. The cocksure laissez-faire attitude Furrick normally bore was gone, replaced by anger and fear. He glared at them, blurred again and before Lex’s mind processed the motion was all up in his face.
“Let me out,” Furrick demanded, his eyes those of someone used to getting their way. A thin, dagger appeared from nowhere adding immediacy to the demand as it eased under Lex's chin.
“Wait, what?” Lex sputtered, his eyes lowering to the blade. It seemed somehow familiar, and he got the distinct impression the dagger had drawn his blood before. Lex had no time to muddle his way through that mystery, as Furrick eased the blade closer to Lex’s chin. Any moment it would break skin.
“I said, let me out,” the kid hissed.
“You can’t think I have anything to do with this?”
Furrick bared his teeth and eased the blade upwards, drawing a drop of blood from Lex’s neck. Lex’s eyes were wide and Furrick’s fierce. “Of course, you do. Every rotten thing that has happened to me these last few months all started the day I met you.”
“Huh? I thought we were buds.” Furrick leaned into the blade and Lex panicked. “I swear, I've got no clue what you’re talking about kid. I tried to help you, man. I taught you how to steal, so you could feed your sister. We shared those fun times in Grimslee’s hideout. Can’t forget about that. Come on kid, we’re buds. Let’s lower the knife and we can have a nice chat. What d'ya say?”
Fur
rick’s face told a tale of confusion as if he had no idea what Lex was talking about, but the blade lowered slightly. Vonn, sensing the opening, took a careful step closer and spoke in his patented calm voice.
“Hey kid, I’m Vonn. You remember me, right?” Furrick’s attention snapped to Vonn and Lex realized the kid wasn’t just angry, he was terrified. “Okay, good. We just got here. So, all this has nothing to do with us. Now I know it’s easy, and often quite pleasurable, to blame Lex for, well, everything. But in this case, he speaks the truth. This is not our doing.”
Vonn’s argument seemed to sway the ex-street urchin and he pulled the tip of his blade from Lex’s throat. “I need to get out of here.”
“You and us both, kid,” Lex said, breathing easier and rubbing his throat. “But that isn’t gonna happen with all these chaos freaks about.” Lex pointed to the tower. “Now, we need to get there. You remember Sean? Nerdy dude? Helped us last time we were in town? He works in the tower, and if anybody can help you get out, it’ll be him. Help us get there and I promise, I'll do all I can to get you out of here.”
Furrick’s eyes snapped from Lex to Vonn and then to Errat. His eyes widened in alarm on seeing the warborn, as if it was the first time he’d ever laid eyes on one of the automaton warriors. Suspicion tickled the edge of Lex’s awareness. Something was off with the kid.
A quick glance at Vonn told Lex that the rogue sensed it too. Was Furrick a chaos doppelgänger? It seemed unlikely, for he’d never seen a chaos spawn show fear, and they didn’t make threats so much as commit wanton murder.
“What do you say, kid? Help us help you.”
“We don’t need his help,” Simon muttered, his hands resting on the daggers at his belt. The meek, nervous boy disappeared and for a moment his body had defaulted to Dirge’s mannerisms. All present sensed the imminent outbreak of violence.
A tense silence hung for several seconds as the two teens stared at each other. Vonn moved closer, ready to separate the two if violence broke out. Errat put a comforting hand on Simon’s shoulder. Lex spoke in a calm voice.
“Simon, easy bud. This kid is a friend, kinda.” Lex eyed Furrick sideways, his eyes drawn once more to the thin dagger. “Point is, we’re all on the same side. The more the merrier. Am I right?” After a moment, Simon nodded. Lex looked to Furrick and after another small pause, he agreed.
“Okay, I’ll help you get to the tower,” Furrick said. “Then you get me out.”
“Deal,” Lex said. “See that wasn’t so hard, we’re all pals now. What’s say we get off the street before some of those chaos freaks find us, okay? Lex motioned to Errat and Simon to go first. He gave Vonn a look, and the rogue nodded, taking up the spot between them. It was clear he did not trust Furrick, nor his intentions either. Better to keep a buffer zone between the kid and Simon.
They made their way into town, cutting through a few back alleys and ducking into side yards, to avoid the chaos spawn as they hunted the townsfolk. Lex felt like a coward for not rendering aid, but Vonn reminded him that finding Gryph had to be their priority.
They ducked behind a stack of old crates as a pair of gangly chaos spawn shambled by, muttering to each other in some chaotic dialect. Lex recognized them from his endless days in The Shining Unicorn Inn, and his unease increased. A moment later they passed from sight and Errat, Vonn and Simon rushed across the vacant road.
“What’s with the dead guy?” Furrick asked as he and Lex waited for a pair of townsfolk to sprint by. Furrick nodded towards Simon’s skull-white bald spot.
“It’s a long story. The better question is what’s up with you kid?”
“What do you mean?” Furrick looked up, eyes panicked.
“I mean, I get being in a real damn hurry to leave this town, with all this chaos and whatnot.” Lex waved his hand around to encompass ‘all the chaos.’ “But, why are you alone? Where is your sister? Where is Meara?”
Furrick hung his head, and a sad look came over his face. “She’s um … she died. A few days back. Right when all of this started.” Furrick sniffled and for the first time since their reunion, he looked every bit the lost teenage boy that he was. It was quite the performance.
There was just one problem. Furrick’s sister’s name wasn't Meara, it was Ariana. Lex clenched his hand and stared at the Furrick that was not Furrick. Lex activated Analyze.
Analyze has Failed.
Lex blinked in surprise. He was a Master of Analyze, and few beings in the Realms could block his use of the skill. Who, or what, are you?
9
With the adage about assumptions tickling the edge of his brain, Lex went with the theory that faux Furrick was not a chaos spawn in disguise. Errat detected no chaos within the kid and none of the other spawn they’d encountered had shown any faculty for mimicking humans. So, Lex would run with the assumption that Furrick was not chaos spawn. He hoped it would not prove him the ass.
That meant Lex could let the mystery of Furrick’s real identity remain unsolved, for now. Whomever he was, Lex suspected they were using a Mimic Stone. Vonn had introduced them to the magical devices that allowed the user to take the form of another. The transformation was physically perfect but only lasted for an hour. While this made the list of suspects huge, it also meant that the mystery would soon solve itself. Once again, he hoped his assumption didn’t doubly prove him the ass.
“Let’s go,” Lex said, giving Furrick one last suspicious look before rushing across the street to join the others.
“You and your new pal took long enough,” Simon whined, giving Furrick a foul look.
Great, cuz an overdose of teenage jealousy is exactly what I need right now.
Lex ignored Simon and caught Vonn’s eyes. He surreptitiously pointed the first two fingers of his right hand at his eyes and then at Furrick. He grumbled to himself on seeing the raw flesh of his missing finger taunting him in his peripheral vision but kept his attention on Vonn. The rogue gave a slight nod and glanced in Furrick’s direction. Lex exhaled, releasing a bit of tension. He felt much better knowing Vonn’s eyes were on the imposter.
A moment later, the sound of many heavy boots running on the cobblestones reached their ears. They ducked into the alley and watched a group of armed militia rush towards the tower. Once the militia had passed, Lex motioned for the others to follow, hoping the way would be clear behind the townsfolk.
The streets were empty, the doors locked, curtains drawn, and shutters closed. They passed through the deserted market. Stalls laden with foodstuffs, cloth, and other items lay unmanned, likely abandoned by their owners at the onset of the chaos incursion.
A heavy silence hung over the town, which made the occasional distant scream and the howls of unseen chaos creatures, that much more frightening. After several minutes they reached the tower’s plaza. Every constable or otherwise able-bodied citizen stood about the tower, armed and armored in whatever they’d been able to grab on a moment’s notice.
Scattered across the plaza were a dozen or more bodies. A few were the mutated corpses of chaos spawn, but the majority were ordinary townsfolk who’d died protecting their families and their homes. Lex knelt by Vonn. “We should help them.” He clenched his jaw so tight, the muscles in his neck and face twitched.
“I know that is what your heart demands, but we cannot,” Vonn said. “We need to find Gryph.”
“Gryph can wait,” Lex said, and instantly felt the traitor. “We cannot leave these people to this fate.”
“Do you think we’ll turn the tide in this battle? Against a chaos incursion?” He pointed to the top of the tower. "The dome is active, which means this town is already lost. These people know that. They fight not for themselves, but for the rest of Korynn. That is why they have gathered here. Why they defend the tower."
“We can’t just do nothing,” Lex begged.
“Why did chaos choose now?” Vonn asked, his question vague, meant to force Lex into questioning his own words like some sort of charming Socrates
.
“Friend Vonn thinks this invasion is somehow connected to Gryph?”
“I do. It is far too convenient that we lose our best hope on the eve of this invasion. There has to be some connection.”
“So, you think we find Gryph and then we save the world.” Lex hated leaving these people to die, but Vonn’s argument was sound.
“Yes.” Vonn met his friend’s gaze. “He is our best hope, but to find him we need to get into that tower.”
“You guys are idiots. Have you seen what these things can do? I have, and I say we get the hell out of here as fast as we can,” Furrick disagreed.
“Yeah, you’re a kid. You don’t get a vote,” Lex said, trying to draw out whoever was wearing Furrick’s form. Lex turned his head down in thought, and when he looked back up he saw the others looking at him, waiting on his decision.
His eyes widened in realization. How the hell did I end up being the leader? It was not a role he’d coveted nor one he was at all suited for, but here he was, huddled in an alley with a gaggle of other idiots trying to save the world.
With misplaced surety born of desperation, Lex laid out his plan. “Okay, Errat since you look like a giant, bald, Ken doll and Simon smells like your recently dug up little brother, you two hang back. We don't want some local yokel to mistake you for chaos spawn. Let Vonn and I do the talking and wait for our signal. Furrick, you stay close, but keep your mouth shut. Agreed?”
Errat’s goofy, wide grinned smile said he understood and had taken no offense to Lex’s comment. Simon pouted and crossed his arms, casting another jealous glance at Furrick. Furrick nodded, but a worried look crossed his face.
“Okay, we’re gonna try to find my boy Nahrman. He may not be constable anymore, but if he’s alive, he’ll be here, leading his people. He’ll understand what we need and help us get inside. If he’s dead, then we make do with whoever is in charge.” He gripped his hammer, letting the dull throb of his missing middle finger ground him and then stood. “Stay low and move fast.”