The Venerate Order

by Troy Dukart

  In the final seconds, the game felt like poetry. I had the look I did back when we first practiced, and Rousseau took a shot towards me. Only the opposing Wing and I had a chance at the ball. It was a back shoulder throw, meaning I would spin and catch it in the goal zone. Time slowed down as I jumped up in the air towards it. Spiraling perfectly, the ball came down and was going to hit me right between the numbers. The Wing guarding me held tight coverage, but I used my strength to out-muscle him and instead of falling threw my fingers, I held on tight to the ball and landed in the Goal Zone. The clock only had fifteen seconds on it and we went up 26-25. The crowd went wild!

  The game wasn’t over yet, and the scary thing was they could tie or worse, win. After we scored the extra point making the game 27-25, we kicked them the ball and it went right into their Masterback’s hands. They made a long pass to one of the Wings on the outside right but Roya tackled him and stripped the ball. From there we passed it to Rousseau, and all he had to do was outrun them for 15 seconds.

  As the time winded down, the crowd started to chant, “5! 4! 3! 2! 1! YYEEEEAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!”

  When the clock hit 0:00, we’d done what many thought to be impossible. We had become the King’s Tournament Champions!

  “WE DID IT! I CAN’T BELIEVE IT!!!” I yelled in ecstasy.

  We all ran over and smothered Roya with a group hug and then threw her back up on our shoulders. Surprisingly, I felt someone grab my back and legs and soon I was on someone’s shoulders too. Rousseau also joined us, and we could hear them chanting our team’s name. The three newest and least experienced members had helped a team with no chance to become national champions. Who would have thought?

  Chapter 29/

  A Fallen Prince

  Strafe

  The stadium was filled with Yuwherian confetti and fireworks floating through the air.

  The crowd was ecstatic. They were jumping up and down, hugging and high fiving each other and had smiles from ear to ear. I even saw a few tears from the diehard fans of Rodin Pirates.

  “Good game mates. That was one hell of a show,” Castle Bell’s Masterback said to us.

  We all embraced each other and shook hands. Good sportsmanship is something I’ve always practiced in life because sometimes we win, sometimes we lose but you have to handle both the same. You have to do so with the highest level of dignity. I’m not saying you cannot lose your mind and celebrate, just don’t rub it in. Castle Bell got their own round of applause and flowers as they exited the stadium.

  We stood in the middle of the field on a raised platform with flowered crowns in a straight line. Captain Cali came from the sideline with Charity, who had her arm in a sling. The Royal Guard marched onto the field and walking with them was King Othen who was to give a speech and present us with the King’s Trophy. We awaited for him to take to the podium, but again I felt a small tremor, like the one before.

  “Is this place known for earthquakes?” I whispered to where Rousseau was standing, but to my surprise he was gone. I looked all over and he was nowhere to be seen. Captain Cali had taken his place on the podium.

  King Othen walked up on the platform and down the line of players, shaking our hands. When he made it to Captain Cali, he asked him, “Congratulations Captain! I must ask, where is your superstar Masterback? I was dying to meet him!”

  “Me dear King, I am afraid his shoulder was injured badly in the last play and he needed to be attended to. He sends his regards and wishes to meet with you soon,” Captain Cali replied.

  “Well, that’s a rather shame. Alas I am not a doctor so I understand if he is hurting. Please allow me to be the first to visit him,” King Othen said.

  “T’would be me pleasure me King,” Captain Cali bowed.

  After he shook all of our hands, he made it to the podium in front of us. The King’s Trophy rested on a pedestal to his right, and as he looked to the crowd before he began his speech.

  “My dear Yuwherians!!! What a game, should I say so myself!” he said as they cheered, “Today, we witnessed the impossible, become the incredible. I was honored to watch this historic game and we can all learn a great lesson from it. Teamwork gets the job done, and for these players, it got them their names on the King’s Trophy, our 500 year-old national treasure!”

  Again, the crowd cheered, but once more I felt the tremor, only this time it was more violent. The platform shook and the King had to grab the podium to keep his balance. His Royal Guard was quick to assist him, but assured them he was okay, and then he continued his speech.

  “What a time for an earthquake!” he joked, “Like I was saying, teamwork can get you anywhere in this world. On top of that, integrity, faith and love for your country are fundamental values I hope that this game can instill into each and every one of you. I was saddened to hear that the sensational Masterback for this team was injured on the last play of the game, but we would like to present him with the ‘House of Othen Blue Violet’ for most valuable player!” King Othen said as he held up a blue violet with his house colors decorated on it.

  After he finished, an extremely violent tremor shook the entire stadium, and I could hear people’s screams and shouts of fear. We all got knocked to our hands and knees, and then I could feel something pushing up underneath the platform. At first it was just a small push, but then got more and more violent. We were all bouncing around and the crowd was screaming in horror. Then, after a quick lull in the rumbling, the entire platform was lifted up in the air and tipped over. Everyone, including the King was thrown underneath it as something sprouted up from the ground.

  We were all being squished from the weight of the platform. I better get us out of here. I turned on my strength and began to slowly lift the platform up, but I needed to make it look like we all did it, so I yelled, “HELP ME LIFT THIS UP!!!”

  We pushed the heavy platform off the team and King. King Othen’s Royal Guard rushed over to check on him, with their guns drawn. I turned my head over to where we were standing to find a large crystal shard had shot up out of the ground. It was translucent in color and must have been five stories in height.

  It stood there in silence for a few moments, even so much that the crowd actually quieted down. We all looked at the strange obelisk with curiosity, but suddenly it started to crack and small chunks began to fall down on to the field. After they landed, the chunks began to shake and slowly take the form of Slates. Some of them looked humanoid, some looked like wolves, and a few like large Golems. They then began to attack anyone in sight.

  Some of the referees and band players were still on the field, and they were the first victims to the Slates. They attacked with indiscrimination and viciousness, ripping off arms and legs, and mangling whoever they could get a hold of.

  “SAVE THE KING! DEFEND HIM WITH YOUR LIFE!” one of the Royal Officers ordered to his men.

  King Othen was dragged off the field during the battle, leaving the crowd to fend for themselves.

  “Shit! We left the swords in our lockers!” I yelled.

  I caught a blur in my peripheral vision to find one of our Rodin Pirates pounced on by a wolf-Slate. He tried to hold back his large fangs, but he couldn’t withstand its strength and was bitten on the neck and was thrown across the stadium. It turned toward me with crimson red eyes and with great quickness leaped at me. Weaponless, I pulled back my right arm and threw it forward toward the approaching beast’s face. I put everything I had behind it and when my knuckles met the crystal cheek of the Slate, I noticed there was a red glow that flashed around the impact. The force of my punch knocked it down to the ground, where it laid prone. “AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!” I screamed as I ran at it.

  I shattered it to pieces with a kick to its ribcage. My adrenaline was notching all of my senses up to the highest level, and everything seemed so fast. I knew this was going to be a nasty encounter, and I needed to be on my A- game to survive. Brutus had just bit a Slate in half and ran over to me, “Strafe, are you okay?”

 
“Yeah, I just kicked that thing to pieces,” I shook my head in disbelief.

  “We need to stay sharp, get on my back!” Brutus commanded.

  I jumped on and rode around looking for Roya and Rousseau. People in the seats were rushing for the exits as the creatures climbed up toward them. The Slates were destroying the marble statues, signs and everything else they could get their claws in. They were attacking in packs and in surprisingly advanced formations, which even the Royal Guard were having trouble with. I knew Brutus could take these bastards on one-on-one, but without my weapon we needed to pick our battles.

  I looked around to see Roya defending the Rodin Pirate players with a large slab of stone and no Rousseau in sight. We were making our way to her but I was punched by a giant fist. One of the Golem Slates snuck up on us and knocked me off Brutus. These Slates were about 12 feet tall and slow, but extremely powerful and could crush a man with their huge arms and legs. They had protective skin from the look of it, which made it easy to assume they wouldn’t be the easiest ones to kill.

  Brutus was rolled and got disoriented. I saw he was stumbling as he tried to get to his feet. I was in-between the Golem’s legs, trying to get behind him but he kept backing up. I tried to trip his legs, but the Golem bent down and picked me up with his massive hand. He stood up and brought me up to his face and shrieked a nasty, high pitched scream that made my ears pound. After the screech, he spiked me into the ground like he just scored a Brave-Down and it felt like my ribcage collapsed, leaving me gasp for air. As I laid on the ground, the Slate walked over to finish me off, and stood above me like he had before. Shit, is this how I’m gonna go?

  With great calm, the Golem raised his leg and looked at me with a grin like a child about to squash an ant. I closed my eyes but Brutus had jumped up and bit his neck and wouldn’t let go. The Golem shrieked and was trying to throw Brutus off but I heard a piercing crack and saw an arrow sticking through the Golem’s chest. It threw its arms back in pain. I got my strength back and rose to my feet as the Golem knelt down in front of me. I saw Zon on the field and he was carrying a new weapon, a bow.

  He holstered the bow and he tossed me my sword.

  “Hey, how’d you?” I pointed to the God Blade; nobody else could hold it before.

  “You should be more thankful in life Strafe,” Zon advised, “Finish it.”

  “With pleasure,” I smiled.

  I twirled my sword in my hand and then with all my strength I slashed it from its crotch all the way of to its head with one stroke, splitting it in two. “WOOOOOO!!!! How ya like me now bastard?” I taunted the fallen Golem, “You okay Brutus?”

  “I’m fine. I’m glad you’re okay too,” Brutus responded.

  We made our way to Roya, and Zon gave Roya her sword too. I mounted Brutus and we began to fight our way through the stadium. There was chaos everywhere, with people having to step over corpses as they ran for their lives. More Royal Guard poured into the stadium, but the Slates kept crumbling off the obelisk. It felt never-ending.

  “Did you see Rousseau!?” I asked Zon.

  “No, his sword was gone as well. The Pirates have already left the stadium and are boarding their ship,” Zon turned to me after he fired an arrow.

  “These people are near death; we need to fight Zon-Sah!” Roya observed.

  “We’ve been made. We need to get out of here immediately. I found this out while I was tracking who was responsible for my village’s massacre,” Zon told us.

  “Why does that matter to them?” I asked.

  “Because we are now wanted by both the Senti and the Yuwherians. I don’t know who they ally with, but either way we are fugitives,” Zon explained.

  “We must find Rousseau and our other friends!” Roya pleaded.

  “I think so too, but right now we gotta stop this infestation from reaching more innocent people, and then we can plead our case to the Yuwherians,” I suggested.

  “You do not understand Strafe, Rousseau lied to us. He’s. . .” Zon was saying before we were attacked again by Slates.

  We now faced at least ten humanoid Slates. Some of their arms were weaponized in the form of scythes and blunt weapons. I charged toward them with Brutus while Zon readied his bow. I slashed at one of them with a downward strike but it blocked my attack with its arm. It tossed me off Brutus into the bleachers. I flew through the air and came down hard on my side on the steel plated seats.

  I got up and prepared for the three Slates coming at me. I kept my sword in front of me as they were approaching from three different angles. Brutus jumped up into the stands and ran to my side. We got each other’s back as we were surrounded. Brutus let out a fearsome growl as they approached.

  The one in the middle lunged through the air towards me, and I deflected the Slate off my sword. It was tossed it into the air. Brutus jumped up and caught it in his mouth and crushed it into a million pieces.

  “Another one bites the dust,” I taunted.

  “Watch out!” Brutus warned.

  In anger the two remaining Slates both ran at me and tackled me down, and we all tumbled down the stairs in the bleachers. Brutus chased us as we fell all the way down to the field and then we separated from our tussle. I knelt on the ground with one hand and knee with my leg sprawled out and my sword in hand and eyed-up the Slates. Brutus joined me.

  “You know, you should really get that twitch looked at!” I joked.

  They let out a sinister hissing noise as they surrounded us. I powered on my aura and Brutus did too. Whenever we tried to escape the sandwich they put us in, they moved with us.

  “Well, if you wanna dance, let’s dance ya bastards! I got a championship party to go to!” I ribbed.

  The Slates charged us. I stood ready and waited for them to get close. The one to my left jumped in the air and began to do a spinning summersault and the other got low to the ground to take a swipe at my legs. I jumped in the air to dodge the scythe swipe and impaled the other in mid-air. Brutus grabbed the other one and bit it a few times before tossing it in the air. I tossed the one I had into the air as well and when they came down I did a flipping slash and cut them both in half.

  “We’re making it rain baby!” I hyped. Brutus ran up to me and I rubbed his head.

  I felt a red-hot slash fall down my back and I fell to the floor; one of the Slates got a cheap-shot on me. Another Slate jumped on Brutus’ back and kept him occupied.

  The Slate that cheap-shotted me knocked my sword to the ground. It then raised its arms high to perform a stab but yet again, an arrow pierced through its chest. I was treated to a shower of crystal confetti. Zon shot another arrow and killed the Slate on Brutus’ back.

  “Ahhh,” I moaned in pain. The cut wasn’t deep but ran down my back and stung badly.

  Zon ran down to check on me, “I would’ve got him sooner but I didn’t have a clear shot.”

  “Don’t worry about it, now I owe you twice!” I winced.

  Roya made it down to us, but the stadium was packed full of carnage. She pointed over to the shard and we could see more Slates cracking out of it.

  “Damnit! Cut one head off and two grow back!” I grunted.

  “Maybe there is a way to stop this,” Zon pondered.

  “We need to destroy the Shard,” Brutus said.

  “How?” Zon asked.

  “Just like we destroy these creatures. But why are they attacking us!?” Roya said.

  “Aren’t they usually nice?” I asked.

  “Yes, this is why I am so confused. The Slates only attack when the planet is threatened,” Roya said as she gazed on the Shard.

  “Are you sure this will work?” Zon asked.

  “We have to try,” Brutus acknowledged.

  We ran over to the shard. We tried to strike it down with our swords, but it was too strong, even for me. I took a few hard swings at it and only left small cracks. I saw Roya bend down to the ground and close her eyes, “I see Rousseau, he is close!”

  It sounded
like a huge motorcycle entered the stadium, and soon enough, we could see the Pirate’s ship floating above the rafters. It was a silver and red ship painted with a bull on one wing and a rose on the other. The plane used circular propellers on each side of the wings to hover and had an engine in the back to push it forward. The cockpit was covered with glass panels and hung in front of the aircraft. Each wing had machinegun turrets as well as missiles.

  “Hot damn! They’re just full of surprises!” I laughed.

  The aircraft began to fire down at the Slates in the stadium. It was an awesome show of firepower. One after another, the Slates were being mowed down and shattered, and we jumped up and down in joy. After most of the Slates were taken care of, we saw a familiar face emerge from a hatch on the top with a giant weapon in hand. Rousseau motioned for us to get away from the Shard. It looked like a giant cannon and part of it actually rested on the ground next to him.

  Over his right shoulder he held the cannon, and I could see a red light begin to flicker in the chamber, and after a few seconds it glowed bright. Rousseau got his footing and with a push of the button he fired a huge laser blast directly into the middle of the Shard. Rousseau held down the trigger for a few seconds and I watched as the Shard was turning black. Rousseau put down the laser as it needed to recharge.

  Before we could assess what to do next, we saw a rocket shoot toward the Pirates ship and hit under its right side. The blast shook Rousseau off the ship and he fell toward the stadium. With no other choice, the Pirates ship retreated. Brutus ran toward where Rousseau was falling and caught him gently in his mouth. We all rushed over to Rousseau to make sure he was alright.

  “Are you okay Rousseau-sah?” Roya said as she put her arm on his shoulder.

  “Ah, damn bastards! They could have blown us up!” he joked after he kissed Brutus on the head, “Thanks Mr. Wolf.”

  “No problem Rousseau,” Brutus.