“It means nothing, son,” Xian stepped up to Crinnan’s side, “It is all simply what has happened.”
“No meaning…” Crinnan repeated. He snorted at the thought, “No purpose… why do we live then? Why do we fight?” Xian was one of the original creators of Black Knight. One of the original rebels. Crinnan looked at the old Elf’s handsome face and saw no expression.
“That is for you to decide, young Lord Jamiso," Xian gently offered, “Not for me to dictate. Swing your sword, pull your trigger. Fight for a reason or fight for orders. None of it can be explained by me, only you.”
“I died…” Crinnan muttered, “Didn’t I?”
“I believe so," Xian replied softly, “It is the only explanation that makes sense at this point."
“But here I stand,” Crinnan shook his head, “For no reason, and now I must... define my existence?”
“Life is a great responsibility," Commander Xian glanced at the young soldier beside him, “Gods cannot make you valuable. Governments and armies cannot make you valuable. Nothing matters if it does not matter to you.”
Crinnan reflected on that. Sage had said nearly the same thing to him earlier that day after they had saved the children from the slavers. He looked down at his hands, at the Sage's blood that had stained them. He groaned as his mind replayed Sage's, death. He wished he had understood it all more, why the Elf helped him, why he went so far as to sacrifice his life to keep Crinnan moving. None of it made sense, Crinnan wondered what detail he was missing.
“Eon draws near," Xian’s voice interrupted his thoughts, “Soon we will expel him from this world and be rid of him once again.” He drew his sword and began scanning the area, “I can feel him.”
“Open up!” A voice suddenly shouted from behind the metal door that led back into Racon Tower, “We are here to play!”
“They’re here!” Captain Bran announced as he ran through and rallied his soldiers, “Create a firing line, let ‘em come, we’ll mow ‘em down! Flox and Baron, get on top of the transport. We’re about to make a damn bloodbath.”
The Centurions got into formation in front of the doors, the Marauders were in a choke point and would be easily disposed of. Six of the fourteen Centurions present took a knee and shouldered their freshly loaded weapons, six more stood behind them. They professionally and steadily trained their sights on the door, and Captain Bran stood in the middle of everyone spinning his minigun.
“Matalo!” He shouted, “Blow the door!” Matalo nodded and fired his grenade launcher. When it struck the doors, it blew them inward and off their hinges. After a few moments, the Marauders began to come.
“Fire!” Bran bellowed as he pulled his trigger. A heavy stream of bullets exploded from his minigun and riddled the space where the door had been. Marauders began falling left and right. Crinnan stood between Alec and a Vampre lieutenant named Mace Tarnfell and fired his rifle with the rest of them. Occasionally Flox and Baron, Century Squad’s sharpshooters, would fire their high-powered rifles if one of the Marauders got too close.
“Keep it tight!” Bran’s voice boomed above the gunfire, “Don’t let any through!” He let off his minigun for a moment to allow it to cool and noticed the piling bodies. He snickered at the sight and looked back to see Lord Xian standing quietly. He had only his sword drawn and faced away from the Centurions. He stared quietly beyond the tower and into the ruins of the weald. Bran took a drag of his cigar and returned his focus to the Marauders.
“Where are you?” Xian asked quietly, “I can feel you.” He scanned the ruins and the trees. He looked in all directions and waited. He was, to say at the least, apprehensive about his upcoming encounter. One hundred years prior Eon had given him a fight from which he had barely walked away. He prayed to the Brothers that Eon had not grown stronger.
“Are you afraid?” Xian whispered, “Do you fear me?” He received no response, only silence, “Come, Eon. Let us end this.” A breeze blew through Xian’s hair, and he felt a shiver on his spine.
“I feel you,” Xian continued to whisper, “But I am too strong for you. We both know…” A graphite colored masked being suddenly phased in front of Supreme Commander Xian. For a moment the two old enemies stood within arm’s reach and silently faced one another, neither said a word. Xian stared at his nemesis with eyes like daggers and gripped the handle of his sword tighter. Finally, a white beam of pulsing light emerged from Xian’s hand and swallowed his sword as it extended to the tip of his blade.
“Old friend…” Eon sang, “Tis a wonderful surprise to find you here. Have you come to swear fealty? To hand over your armies and join the new world I am creating?”
“I am here to banish you from this world once again,” Xian scowled and gritted his teeth together, "I am stronger than when we last met, you would be wise to submit.”
Eon laughed and waved a finger at Xian. He drew his sword, and the blade quickly became shrouded by dark, pulsing energy.
Xian stepped back and raised his weapon; Eon followed suit. The two danced around each other for a moment, and finally, Eon spoke.
"Strike true, Commander," Eon taunted, "Can you do it? Can you kill a god?"
At that, Xian darted forward. He feigned an attack to the right but spun and slammed his blade into Eon's. Eon howled and pushed Xian back, thrusting as he did so. Xian evaded the strike and put some space between him and his enemy.
"You are strong," Eon declared as the two circled each other, "We could rebuild this world together you know. I can forgive your past transgressions, and you can become one of my generals. Come Xian! Join me; we fight the same enemy after all!"
“Never, Eon.” Xian firmly declared, “My enemy is evil. Yours is anyone stronger than you. I fight for freedom; you for power.” Eon cocked his head, and with a laugh, he nodded.
Xian growled and closed the space between them. Their swords met once again, and for a moment more they fought. As Xian jumped back from one of Eon's swipes, Eon seemed to vanish. Xian’s eyes darted around, and he realized something was wrong.
Xian suddenly felt something... odd. It did not hurt, but it did not feel right. He could not speak for his tongue seemed to have split into two. His field of vision strangely seemed to grow, and he felt as if he was losing balance. The sword fell from his hand, and the white light faded. He blinked, or he thought he did, and then the two halves that Eon had turned Lord Xian’s body into fell in opposite directions, his blood splashed onto the ground beneath him and his entrails piled atop the puddle. The bisected mess that was once the mighty and noble Commander Xian’s body gently twitched on the ground as his lifeforce completely vanished.
Everyone stopped firing their weapons except for the Humaans, Bran, and Crinnan. It was not that they no longer wanted to shoot, but it was that they no longer could. Eon had taken control of the NaNe of the eleven Elf, Vampre or Faire Centurions and while he could not control the Humaan or Gaian, he certainly could still kill them.
Crinnan, who was indeed capable of using the NaNe and thus susceptible to Eon’s power was strangely unaffected. Something prevented Eon from locking his body into place like his squadmates. Crinnan broke formation and turned to find Eon standing on the edge of the building, facing him.
“So you are him,” Crinnan tossed his rifle aside for he knew it was useless against such power. His fight with Sage that morning flashed in his mind, and he recalled the Elf phasing out of the way of his bullets. He stepped forward and stared at the menacing masked being before him.
“Why me?” Crinnan shouted, “Surely someone like you would not be after the bounty?”
“My friend,” Eon's modulated voice seemed to surround him. His feet floated a few inches off the ground, and he closed in toward Crinnan, “You truly do not remember?”
“No... What is behind the mask, who are you?” Eon laughed and ran his hand across his mask and up to the pointed bone crown he wore.
“Oh my friend,” He said amid his laughter. “‘Tis too soon to reve
al this face to you.” Crinnan was silent, and Eon got within arm’s reach of him.
“What do you want?” Crinnan asked.
“I want you,” Eon admitted, “You freed me from the Hells, returned me to this world… to my ambitions. My dear friend, you are the harbinger of salvation, the savior’s savior if you will.”
“That… really doesn’t tell me what you want with me,” Crinnan said.
“To join me, as I joined you in the war that tore apart the Hells. I want you to fight by my side as we did in the other world, to conquer and rule this plane together.”
"Why would I want any of that?" Crinnan asked, "I do not want to rule; I do not want to hurt people."
"That may be your truth now, but you have yet to taste the sweet fruit that is power," Eon seethed, "You know nothing of it, you only know what it is like to be ruled, to be commanded. Break free from your chains Crinnan! Become your true self and fight alongside me. Let us stop this bloodshed together!"
Crinnan looked back and saw his squadmates firing and fighting to keep the Marauders at bay. He looked over at the pile of gore that was once the celebrated and esteemed Commander Xian. He rubbed his face with his hand and squeezed the handle of his sword.
"Go back to the Hells!" He shouted. His sword began pulsing with electric NaNe power, and he charged forward. Eon phased out of the way, and Crinnan sliced his weapon through nothing but air. Quickly, he spun to find his enemy.
"I will forgive that lapse of judgment," Crinnan heard Eon purr from behind him. He felt something solid slam into his kidneys, and he shouted as he fell to the ground. His sword fell from his hand and quickly, in spite of his pain, he drew his revolvers and pointed them in front of himself.
"You persist," Eon hissed. Crinnan could not see him anywhere; he hurried to his feet and began to spin in place as he searched for the Ancient. Something slammed into each of his knuckles and sent both of his revolvers to the ground, and suddenly, Eon was in front of him, and Crinnan felt icy fingers around his throat.
"I can only be so forgiving," Eon growled as he squeezed and lifted Crinnan off the ground.
"No!" Crinnan wrapped his hands around Eon's wrist and tried to pull his arm away. It would not budge; he was too strong. Crinnan gasped for air, and Eon slammed him to the ground.
"It's so simple for me!" Eon flicked his wrist toward Century Squad, and one of the soldier's bodies exploded. Blood and gore rained down on all of them, and Crinnan pushed himself off the ground.
"Shall I continue?" Eon shouted, pointing his hand toward Elia, "Shall we watch your friend burst into nothingness?"
"No!" Crinnan screamed. He fell to his knees and clasped his hands together in front of Eon. "I give in! Take me and do what you will, but do not harm Elia!" tears streamed down Crinnan's eyes as he knelt and desperately begged the masked being.
"Don't hurt them! Please, I beg you." Eon lowered his hand and smiled. He knelt and placed one of his palms on Crinnan's cheek.
"Then you shall become my new host."
At that, Crinnan felt a biting, icy chill spread through his spine. He cried out and fell to the ground, writhing in pain as Eon began to laugh maniacally. The cold spread through Crinnan’s body, causing him to convulse wildly and just as he started to hear Eon laughing inside his mind, everything stopped.
Eon fell backward, and a look of fury spread across his face. He growled and balled his fists in anger.
"No!" He shouted as he reached a hand out toward Crinnan, "It cannot be!"
A burst of NaNe energy blasted from Crinnan’s body and knocked Eon down to a knee. Crinnan found himself on his feet, confused. He looked down at the blood on his hands and heard a voice.
"I should say it is time to end this."
"You..." Crinnan gasped as Sage spoke within his mind, "Just like Eshan..."
"I would be delighted to explain in full detail and with much terminology that you will not understand what precisely is going on," Sage declared from within Crinnan's mind, "But I fear that in our current state of being, that would be unwise. For now, step aside son, let me take care of this delusional asshole for you."
Chapter Eighteen
Cade V
23rd of Ramlia - 346AG
05:30 - Belhaasi Weald, Racon Tower
“Nida...” Cade whimpered as he rappelled down the side of the tower. He had hurried away from the others after his ship had been shot down. He needed to find his beloved. He had nearly descended the tower, and as he took one final leap, he let go of the rope. His feet hit the ground, and he quickly drew his sword.
"Move!" He shouted as he cut through one of the Marauders. Two others ran up to join the fight, and Cade pulled a pistol from his hip, firing into each of their chests and leaving them writhing on the ground.
"Nida!" He screamed as he mowed three more of them down. He leaped over their twitching bodies and made his way toward the fire that had begun to rage in the forest before him.
The ship was easy to find, it had knocked over a cluster of trees and while most of the hull hung in the air, its nose had smashed into the ground. He knew he had no time to waste. He sprinted to the smoking ship, not ceasing to call out Nida's name as he ran.
"Where are you!" he panicked as he searched the grounds surrounding the vessel. He saw no sign of anyone, not Nida, Smirnov or even Ebren. Cursing, he hurried to the crumpled nose of the ship and began to climb.
The metal was hot even against his gloved hands, but he did not care. He climbed up bit by bit until he was able to reach the cockpit. He found that the front window had shattered during the crash and as he scrambled through, he saw Nida lying on the floor with a blood-covered Doctor Smirnov next to her.
"Nida!" Cade cried as he fell to his knees next to her. Large shards of glass stuck out of her chest, and her face bled from multiple large gashes. Cade's hands instinctively reached for the shards, but Smirnov stopped him.
"No!" He shouted as he grabbed Cade's wrist. Cade pulled his hand back and bent over to look at his beloved. He pressed his forehead against hers, and she began to cry softly and winced with pain at each noise she made.
"The... baby," she whispered, "I can feel her... she’s kicking..." Cade grabbed Nida’s hand and held it tight. He kissed her face over and over and finally looked to Smirnov.
"What can you do, doctor?" He asked, his tone soaked in desperation, "How can we get her out of here?"
Smirnov shook his head and gave Cade a somber look, "I am truly sorry, but there is nothing that can be done..." He sighed, feeling a bit defeated, "If we remove the glass, her lungs will fill with blood, and she will drown. Moving her will only worsen her situation; the glass will shred her insides and potentially break. Cade, I see that you two are in love; at this point you can only try to make her comfortable. You have to say goodbye."
"No!" Cade cried. He did not have the strength to scream, barely had enough to speak at all. His throat felt like it was clogged and his heart felt as if it had turned to dust. Snot and tears dripped from his eyes and nose, and he squeezed Nida's hand tighter, "There has to be something... the sap? What about the sap from the Sentinel?"
"Cade, I did not bring any with me. Even so, it does not work that fast; it is a long-term healing agent..." He frowned and placed a hand on Cade's shoulder, "She doesn't have much time, Mister President. Comfort her, be with her in her last moments."
Cade groaned and pushed his forehead against hers again. For a moment the two wept together, but then Nida spoke again.
"I am fine, Cade," she said weakly but with more strength than he realized, "Save the baby, please... save her." She closed her eyes and with weak hands reached down and grabbed her belly.
"How... far along is she?" Smirnov asked.
"Over two months," Nida choked, “Two hundred twenty days... or so."
Smirnov nodded and quickly reached into his pack. He dug out a small folded leather case; two blunt metal hooked tools, a spool of clear tubing, a long plastic syringe looking tube
with a bulb at the end, a blood pressure cuff, and a plastic breathing mask with a hole in the front where a tube would go. He set all his items in line and looked down at Nida.
"Wait, what are you doing," Cade snapped at the doctor. He sat up and looked back and forth between Nida and Smirnov with a panicked expression on his face. Smirnov sighed and held his hands up as he faced Cade.
"Get ahold of yourself Mister President," Smirnov exclaimed, "Or get out of here. There is... there is no chance for Nida. I may be able to save the baby though, but you have to let me..."
Cade snarled and bore his teeth as he quickly raised his pistol to Smirnov's face. The doctor went silent and slowly took a step back, trying to remain calm.
"You will save her!" Cade spat as he bitterly wept, "Nida! You will save Nida!"
"Nida cannot be saved!" The doctor yelled as his face turned red, "I can only save your child!" Cade took a furious step closer and smashed the barrel of his pistol against Smirnov's forehead. The doctor cringed, and at the feeling of the gun against his head, he could only pray that the President didn’t completely snap.
"Cade!" Nida rasped. Blood leaked from the corners of her mouth as she spoke and she coughed a wet sounding cough, "Stop, please let him..."
"No..." Cade grit his teeth and pushed the pistol harder against Smirnov. His nostrils flared, and his cheeks reddened as his finger caressed the trigger of his weapon. As he reached up and grabbed the doctor’s collar, he exhaled the breath he had been holding and finally lowered his pistol.
"Nida..." he sobbed as he let the doctor go and turned toward his beloved. He fell to a knee next to her and kissed her head again, "Nida I am sorry, I am so sorry..."
"Stop it," she weakly whispered, "You're the... strongest man I know. So be fucking strong and let him save our baby. I... love you."
Cade caressed the side of Nida's head and bit his lip. She weakly reached up and touched his face, forming a smile as she did so.
"Let him work..." She sighed, "I am ready." Cade grabbed her hand and kissed it, accidentally smearing the blood on his lips as he did. Nida smiled. Cad stood and turned towards the doctor, "I am sorry," he lowered his head, and Smirnov snorted in response. He ignored Cade and knelt to address Nida.
The Black Knight Box Set Page 76