The Venerate Order

by Troy Dukart

  “Huh, you had one of the Keys to Heaven practically sleeping next to you, and no idea what they are? You had the only one not located on Eternia. It was brought to your planet, millennia ago. All I know is my father has gained a great fascination with them, saying they were crucial to gain the ultimate position in war. These keys will help us to unlock that power.” I looked down to ground and with honest sympathy, I asked, “It was not our orders to kill them, only to take them aboard our ship. Did you know anyone down there?”

  “There was a woman who knew my brother. I’d thought I’d never seeing him again, but, she gave me hope. Her name was Rose. She was killed. She told me my brother needs my help. I will find him, Yessa and Gain if it kills me. Then, I will return to Earth to make sure my mom’s okay,” he said while rubbing his face.

  He looked emotionally sore from recent events. My heart, usually cold, was aching for him.

  It was getting late. Strafe told his wolf to curl up next to him. Brutus made sure his sharp teeth pointed at me. We spent the rest of the night under the starlit sky of the Grasslands. Lucky for me, Strafe had a utility pack that had a myriad of uses. He said he wore it all the time in case of emergencies. He personally created it back in college. It had all the necessary things to survive in the wild, a bed, knife, flint, and even some food.

  I learned about how to craft similar objects in small capsules back at the Military Academy in Sentium. The capsules break down an object’s matter and shrink it to the size of a pill. Extremely useful but they can be delicate; they’re still being prototyped in Sentium. In Strafe’s world they must be fairly developed. He popped open the bed and motioned for me to take a seat.

  “That’s an interesting invention. I’ll be fine on the ground though,” I stated coldly.

  “The bugs look like they get pretty bad out here. Doesn’t matter to me though,” he pointed out.

  Damn reverse psychology. After looking around, I decided to sleep on the bed. That giant wolf, what we call Whiteclouds, are natural bug-shields. Bugs hate their smell.

  I smiled because I knew I could kill them both if I wanted, but, he was worth my time. He was different. There was something I felt, that I don’t normally, guilty curiosity. Most men back home don’t have the courage to even speak to me. I felt as though he was brought here for a reason. Maybe to end this war.

  “Do you have any family?” Strafe asked me; I didn’t respond, “My friends and family are why I fight. Why I live. They’re all I really give a damn about. Could you help me find them? My girlfriend Yessa. . .I can’t even imagine what she must be going through.”

  When he talked about his girlfriend, I felt uneasy. It was jealousy. I’d never felt that way. The way he looked at me, it was into my soul. I looked down and played with my fingers, and then look back at him, “To tell you the truth, I don’t know. If we do have them, maybe it has to do with the key, or you.”

  “Me? I’m not a warrior or from this world! What do they want with me?” Strafe wailed.

  “There is talk in my ranks of someone carrying a weapon, capable of destruction on a level nobody has ever seen. It is said this person is not from this world. That’s got someone’s attention,” I explained while nodding to his weapon.

  “Sounds like they are making a ransom,” Strafe put his hands on his head while touching his knees to elbow, “I can’t believe this.”

  “Do you believe your father alive?” I asked, looking for any weakness to extract.

  Having a girlfriend made me more interested in him but I had to focus. The need to fulfill the mission took over my heart and I got back to espionage. He had to think whether to answer me or not; he knew I was on the enemy’s side and everything he told me gave me ammunition. He was a sincere guy and not like the Sorians who I had been trained to fight. I’d made some foreign friends years ago, but never. . . an alien from a different world. He was special.

  “Yes, of course. I haven’t seen him in over seventeen years. He took my brother and ran away, to this world I know now. I don’t understand why he left me and my mother though,” Strafe explained.

  “Did you ever resent your father for leaving?” I asked.

  “Yes, many times. It was hard sometimes to grow up without him. I would get mad that he was never there to be a dad to me. There were times when I really wanted him around, to ask him questions about girls or how to ride my bike, but life isn’t always a rose bed. My mom was strong. We didn’t have a lot growing up, but she did everything she could to make me happy. It was because of her that I am what I am. That’s why I am so hurt by what your people did to the townsfolk of Mylintus. I wonder how many sons and daughters lost their parents in that attack. It was atrocious,” Strafe expressed.

  I felt for him, because I too lost my mother, “It sounds like you grew up with a mother who loved you, and wanted the best for you. I love my family too, but, it can be hard being a General’s daughter. Always moving around, never able to keep friends, and having the military be your everything. Whenever I wanted to play an instrument or learn a new dance, my family always told me it was a waste of time and that only the weak focused on such things. I didn’t get to be a child really. I’ll never forget my first kill, I was young.”

  “Any brothers or sisters?” he asked.

  I shook my head no,

  “My father was hoping for a few children; I was the only one he had.”

  “Your mother died?” he asked respectfully.

  “Yes, she was my first. Childbirth.” Being around him made me soft; I felt a tear fall down my face.

  “I’m sorry,” Strafe comforted.

  “I am alone, but I have a family with my brothers and sisters in-arms,” I responded.

  “Why are you fighting in a war you don’t believe in?” Strafe insisted.

  “I will always believe in my country, no matter what path it goes down. Don’t you New Santa Barbara people think the same?” I retorted. His words resounded inside me, but I couldn’t show it.

  “I’m from a place called the United States of America. We don’t need to kill people to prove that we love our country anymore, war has been banned throughout the world I live in. The quickest way to extinction is to keep war alive. Can’t you see what is wrong with what your people have done? That’s why I didn’t kill that jackanape you were with,” Strafe advised as he spit out a seed from the apple he was eating.

  “That’s noble of you to say, but remember your enemy may not feel the same. Hendrick is as slippery as they come,” I chuckled.

  “I don’t know why you were hanging out with a guy like that. Anyway, I’m going to sleep. If you run away, you probably won’t get far. We’re in the middle of nowhere. In the morning we will get to Dhenfen’Ce and I’ll bring you in as proof of what your people did to Mylintus,” he explained while snuggling up to his wolf before closing his eyes.

  The warrior in me was debating on ending him in his sleep and making my way there alone, but he treated me with mercy, I thought I should do the same. They both had Guardian power. If I killed them I could become extremely powerful due to the fact the power gets absorbed by either transferring the power or by killing another person who has Guardian power. Killing unfortunately doesn’t always work though, sometimes the power will enter someone else.

  It wouldn’t have been right to kill someone as honorable as Strafe in his sleep. Charming and a gentleman. He wasn’t a warrior. I felt like he was my friend, something I couldn’t say I had a lot of. I turned and fell asleep.

  Chapter 9/

  The Violet Rose

  Taleri

  Morning sunshine danced across my eyelids to awaken me.

  As I leaned up off the bed, I saw Strafe was still asleep. He looked like a model as he laid there; I wouldn’t mind seeing him every day. I was curious to hear more about the United States of America and his world. The fire had died but left a great smelling aroma of burnt wood. Meditation was how I began my day. With so much death throughout my life it was necessa
ry to keep my sanity. I looked toward the sun and crossed my legs. I breathed in and out. It was so refreshing.

  After a while Strafe finally got off his lazy butt. He did some morning stretches and took a great big yawn. He retracted my bed, which woke Brutus up. The wolf made sure to keep his eye on me at all times. By the time Strafe got done cleaning up, I was still looking toward the sun. He had a puzzled gaze when I turned around and winked at him. He had his guard up.

  Strafe told me we had to get going. Brutus was getting restless, so we jumped on his back and were on our way. We traveled about another twenty miles before we could see Dhenfen’Ce in the distance. It resided in a valley and stretched for miles. The Grasslands were slightly elevated and looked down to the city. The amazing part of Dhenfen’Ce was what irritated my father the most, the Crystal Dome that surrounded the entire metropolis. Translucent shielding protected it from shelling and most other ordinance. The city was a feast for the eyes for those who have never seen it before. Strafe stood there in amazement.

  There were monuments and beautiful Sorian architecture in every direction. When entering the city from the main-gate, visitors walked through the Victory Promenade. There were statues of their past heroes, war memorials and most importantly the statue of Soria's first president riding a horse with the golden flag raised high above into the sky. His name was Saeson Dhenfen’Ce. Regardless of how I viewed them, even now as my enemy, I was always breath-taken with this place. Strafe helped me get off his wolf and grabbed me gently around my elbow. I felt like showing him what I could do, my armor would hide it from him.

  Slowly, I turned on my aura and I could feel the tattoos etch themselves all over my skin. I was chosen to wield the Power of Compassion. The gift let me control the actions of anyone I touch. My eyes and hair changed color to pink and I looked into his eyes. Strafe stopped in place like a soldier going to attention.

  “What’s wrong Strafe?” Brutus asked him.

  Strafe was frozen, like a statue. If I hadn’t forgotten how smart that damn wolf was I would have escaped.

  “Let him go Taleri, or I will show you how sharp my teeth are,” Brutus spoke.

  It was too late to react. I saw military personnel approaching us. Word must have gotten out about the attack. People were whispering and pointing fingers. I decided it was time to hop on the Air-tram.

  “Listen wolf, let’s not do anything hasty. We don’t want Strafe to say, swallow his tongue? We’re going to the Senti Embassy. I’m not going to rot in a jail cell. Let’s get on this train up ahead.” I commanded him.

  “I could smell you were hiding something from us. I made a mistake of not killing you,” Brutus replied with his teeth showing.

  “You wouldn’t have been the first. Let’s go,” I slammed my foot into the ground and led them away.

  We made our way through the crowd and hopped on an Air-tram. Air-trams weren’t like a normal train with tracks on the ground but instead flew through the air in wind tunnels. They acted as hyper loops, transporting people in a vacuum. There weren’t any physical tracks and trains could switch directions simply by connecting to other wind tunnels. It helped to free up space around the city. The best part, no noise and it felt like riding on a surf board. All I needed to do was get to the Senti Embassy. I didn’t want to hurt Strafe, but if the wolf or military tempted me I would do what I had to do to escape.

  We rode the train to the Government center and to my surprise were greeted by the Sorian Elite Guard. They literally dropped right in front of our eyes out of the sky. These soldiers could navigate through the city by using propulsion boots in their armor. They wore jet-black helmets that made them look like robots. Their armor was skin-tight and they all carried Gun-Cannons. The Cannons could put a hole the size of a bowling ball in a person.

  I sized them up. If I didn’t have Brutus breathing down my neck I would’ve made them tear each other apart with my gift. The wolf was too smart to get too close to me, as I would’ve commanded him to shred these military guys to pieces. One man stepped toward us; he wasn’t part of the Elite Guard. He had green and white armor on and was carrying his helmet in his hand. Brutus growled, but he didn’t flinch. This man was middle-aged, I could tell by his wrinkles. In the other hand he held a gold scroll. He had eyes of a real man. Eyes that had seen glory. Eyes that have accomplished a lot in life. True Warrior traits.

  “My name is Captain Richard Ghennon, SkyGuard Commander of the Aero Force here in Dhenfen’Ce. Please come with us,” the man said, motioning us to enter a building behind him.

  I powered down my aura and let Strafe go. There was no getting away now. As Strafe pulled his arm away he quickly rubbed his face to clear his mind.

  “What the hell?” he moaned while looking back at me.

  “Our visual scanners picked up this murderer you’re with, but we have no database for you young man. We have some very important business to discuss,” Captain Ghennon replied. We followed them into the building.

  The building opened up into a great hall, lined with balconies. From the looks of it, we were in a court room. Flags lined the wall as well as insignias from various states across Soria. At first, they suggested Brutus to wait outside but after he showed them his teeth, they let him inside graciously. Before I could react, the Guards placed heavy metal cuffs on me and escorted me to the middle of the room.

  “Thank you for your finding this killer, but we will take her off your hands. How you captured her Mr. Rocknus, I don’t know, but you can be assured you did us a great favor. I will escort you to the International Intelligence Agency to get your full report on the incident in Mylintus,” Captain Ghennon said to Strafe.

  “Hang on Mr., ah, Captain Ghennon. My memory is a little fuzzy. I don’t remember getting into Dhenfen’Ce,” Strafe replied as he rubbed the back of his head.

  “Probably fatigue. You look like you’ve been through a lot,” Ghennon patted him on the shoulder.

  Strafe nodded and then looked at me, “What are you going to do with her?”

  “She is being charged with committing war crimes against Soria. I understand you brought her to us because she is a person of interest. More than likely she will end up in prison, unless a deal can be brokered,” Ghennon replied coldly.

  “What?” Strafe responded.

  “Son, this is way over yours or even my head. The colonel, our boss, gave us these orders specifically. You are lucky she didn’t cut you into pieces in your sleep. She’s killed more people than the winter volcanoes. The Violet Rose, General Taleri Ganser has a reputation for being Senti’s top assassin,” Ghennon explained as he turned toward the escort.

  Strafe looked speechless. He took one more glance at me, as I now had two people restraining me with a neck collar. I stood calmly as the doors started to close. I turned around one more time and locked eyes with Strafe. I gave him a wink and blew a kiss to him just as the doors slammed shut. He looked terrified.

  Chapter 10/

  Whiteclouds

  Strafe

  No matter how hard I tried to stop it, my hand wouldn’t stop shaking.

  After about fifteen minutes I regained control. Taleri did something to me that I couldn’t explain. She took full control of my body and it felt like I was her puppet. After hearing that she was Sentium’s greatest assassin, I was surprised to still be alive. Why didn’t she kill me in my sleep? Brutus must have helped keep her in-check.

  “Please follow me this way. We had to call over a bigger Mag for your wolf over there,” Ghennon showed me.

  “I appreciate that Captain,” Brutus responded.

  Captain Ghennon didn’t see where the voice came from and turned to me, “Did you say something?”

  “No! Must have been the wind,” I reassured.

  Brutus needed to be mindful of his ability; a lot of people would probably have interest in a talking wolf, let alone one with Guardian power. I would talk to him later about it.

  Some things looked the same in this world as
they did on Earth, such as the transportation. I entered the Mag-van Captain Ghennon provided and we rode on the Air-tram to the International Intelligence Agency or IIA. I sat next to Brutus and stroked his head to keep him calm. No matter how smart he had become, he always appreciated it when I petted him. It helped me de-stress too.

  Captain Ghennon and a few men accompanied us. We were heading toward the middle of the city, passing the market and business districts as well as the Freedom Garden. It was beautiful; they said there were trees and flowers planted from all over their world. Sculptures of peace lined the garden and in the center was Hope’s Fountain, a beautiful bronze fountain that was erected by one of their past presidents. It reminded me of Washington D.C. and Millennium Park in Chicago.

  We stopped at a station next to the garden. After stepping off the Air-tram, the Mag-van rode away on the air current. To my surprise, Brutus jumped off the platform and ran towards the fountain; he must’ve been thirsty. I couldn’t believe my eyes; the drop was at least thirty feet. The Aeroman looked back and asked, “Is this the first time you’ve seen a Whitecloud before? You look mesmerized.”

  “Whitecloud? He’s a wolf from my planet! That’s not normal for him,” I objected.

  “Well, in this world wolves like that have always been able to glide on the wind. They got their names because they can ride through the air like clouds,” the Aeroman answered.

  “Just as long as it doesn’t take a shit in the fountain, I don’t care what the wolf does,” Captain Ghennon interjected.

  We had a laugh. After getting a drink, Brutus jumped up some buildings to get back to us. We then walked into what felt like a hotel building. This place is crazy!

  We walked over and took an elevator up to one of the top floors. When we exited, we took a right down a hall to the most breathtaking room I’d ever been in. The there were no walls, only windows showcasing the entire city. The bright blue sky mixed with the vibrant metropolitan was a feast for the eyes. It felt like we were on top of the world.