The Black Knight Box Set

by Christian J Gilliland

  "She's…" Cade whispered, his voice was broken and inconsistent. He could not stop blinking, and he reached up and pulled his glove off, "She's little."

  "Yes," Smirnov gently replied, his voice sounding a bit hollow from the mask he wore. He recognized Cade's fragile state and knew it was in everyone's best interest that he make the President feel comfortable. He did not want to see him turning his weapon on himself again, "She is small, weak. She needs a strong father to keep her alive."

  Cade did not look up at Smirnov; instead, he reached out and gently caressed the baby's cheek. She winced in response and her eyes squeezed more tightly shut. A small, thin arm jerked, and Cade sniffled.

  "She has hair," Cade commented as the glazing over his eyes began to fade. He brushed the tuft of blonde hair and softly cupped the child's tiny head in his hand, "She is alive…"

  "She very much is," Smirnov nodded, "But Cade, look at me." Cade finally looked up at Smirnov, and the doctor leaned in closer.

  "You have to be strong," the doctor urged him, "You have gone through hell, you have every right to fret, to mourn but you cannot lose yourself to this. Right now, you need... no, she needs you to rise above your feelings. Be the man that Nida fell in love with, the strong, capable leader who could crush the world in his hands if he willed it. This baby, she should not be alive, but she is. We need to work together to make sure that this miracle stays a miracle and does not turn into something else. Do you understand?"

  "Yes," Cade nodded his head and cleared his throat. He took in a deep breath and wiped his tears away as he stood up a little taller.

  "Now what is her name?" Smirnov asked, raising his eyebrows, "You must give this small person a name."

  "Her name…" Cade thought back to a conversation he had with Nida. He remembered the two arguing if it was a girl he wanted to name her Ladia after his mother. Nida wanted to give her a traditional Humaan name, Charlotte. Cade hated the name at the time, but in his present moment, he realized there was no other for her.

  "Charlotte," He nodded, and a smile spread across his face, "You win Nida, her name is Charlotte."

  "Little Charlie then," Smirnov grinned and raised his chin as he turned toward the others, "Nora, I trust you can guide us to the… facility, correct?"

  "Of course," Nora nodded, "There is nothing more for us here, we cannot make it back to the top of the tower…" She looked down at the baby and cocked her head, "And that child needs medical attention. My people can provide that."

  "Your people are dead," Cade commented, thinking of Pado Village, "I saw the village burning from atop Racon Tower. Eon's army already sacked it."

  "Those are not my people," Nora rolled her eyes, "My people could withstand that kind of attack. Sage, Xydos, Guntz, they were all my people. There are so many more of us. We are hidden, safe from the outside world."

  "Your people…" Cade turned toward her and took a step forward. His interest had piqued, he had spent his entire life researching the Ancients, though he had met only two.

  "You mean, Ancients?"

  "Yes," Nora sighed and shifted her weight to her other leg, "Though hear me, Cade; we know who you are, we know what you do. You can observe, but we are not your test subjects. This is not a field day for you. We exist, we survive, and we hold onto our lifestyle. You must realize that when you leave your memories of us will be erased."

  Cade began to protest but looked back at the child. He lowered his head and accepted Nora's conditions. While the President wanted to use the opportunity to learn as much as possible, it was clear to him that the child was more important. Though, with the knowledge that the Ancients undoubtedly had, he knew he could take his division of the ATC to a level that he had only dreamt.

  Forgoing an opportunity to make massive amounts of money was out of character for Cade. He had always heard that people change when they have children, though he doubted that it was that quick of a transformation. He worked it out in his head that he was just compassionate, that he would want to take care of any child that needed help. That was what he wanted to think, but when he looked back down at Charlotte, or Charlie as Smirnov called her, he felt like a shell around his heart was cracking.

  "That's fine," Cade finally blurted, "Just save my…" He paused and looked up at Smirnov who gave him a wink, "my daughter." Emotion welled up inside him again as he seemed to speak his role as a father into existence, "My Charlotte." He shook his head violently and focused on his breathing. He did not want to lose it again.

  "Very well," Nora looked over at Dauid and Freyja. The whole time they had been sitting on the ground and watching. When Nora looked at them, Dauid pushed himself up with a loud, obnoxious groan and moved his breathing mask out of the way.

  "What a night," He proclaimed as he took a swig from a flask he had in his pocket, "You better have some more damn juice for me when we get to your facility or whatever."

  "We have a thousand-year-old vintage herbal wine that I can permit you to taste," Nora proudly smiled, "And of course a cellar stocked full of various liquors. Recipes from my time, flavors and potency you could not imagine."

  "I like the sound of potency," Dauid smiled widely. He lifted a cigarette to his lips and lit it as he walked over to Cade.

  "I remember my first child," He hummed as he stood next to the President. Cade looked over at him and nodded.

  "The name's Landkeeper," Dauid announced, "Dauid Landkeeper." He held the cigarette with his good hand and extended his "better hand". Cade reached out and squeezed the artificial appendage, and Dauid grinned.

  "Don't know how you got wrapped up in all this mess," Dauid commented, "And I'm sorry for pounding the back of your head, but you needed it." Cade reached up and touched the large lump on the back of his head and pursed his lips.

  "You hit hard for an old man," Cade looked down at Dauid's robotic arm, "I suppose you used that?"

  "Why wouldn't I?" Dauid chuckled, "I can split skulls with this damn thing. Hells, at the bar back in Canrom City I've knocked more teeth out than I know how to count. But at the same time, I can only count to eleventeen." Cade smirked, and Dauid let out a growl of a laugh.

  "Eleventeen isn't a number," Freyja commented with a benumbed tone. Dauid looked down at the boy with a perplexed expression and with a great deal of effort knelt to face him.

  "You've seen some shit, ain't you?" A wave of memories seemed to cascade over the child, and he briefly closed his eyes and nodded.

  "Yeah," he finally huffed. He cocked his head as if he were trying to hear something better, "No, I can tell them if I want to. Shut up." Dauid nodded and let out a whiskey smelling sigh.

  "Well, you and ol' Dauid are gonna learn you a thing or two," The old Humaan grinned, "Life ain't all about the shit we have to deal with," he poked Freyja in the chest, "We just have to deal with the shit to get to the good parts. Kid, you're about to hit one of the good parts."

  Freyja looked up at Dauid and started to show a hint of a smile, but quickly turned away. He stomped off in the opposite direction, fists clenched and tail dragging through the mud. Dauid eased his body back up, and Nora approached.

  "We are going now," She announced, "Everyone, follow me. If you have a weapon, get it out. This weald is crawling with Marauders, Govian soldiers, Toraan, and where we are going, the shambling corpses of the Ancient undead." She looked over at Cade, and he pulled his sword from its scabbard.

  "You are with me," Nora told him, "We will take point. We move now!"

  "Nobody is going anywhere!" A gruff and winded sounding voice shouted from behind them. The tone was furious, and Cade closed his eyes tight and grumbled. He knew the voice all too well.

  "There is a fat person here." Freyja idly declared.

  "Ebren…" Cade sighed as he turned around. He looked at his portly assistant's torn clothing and bleeding forehead as he shuffled toward him. Cade did not know what to say; nor what to do. The last thing he wanted was to tow Ebren along.

  The two stood in t
he darkness of the Belhaasi Weald, wet from the rain above them yet warm from the fires that roared around them. Ebren held his head upward and stood as tall as he could as the ATC President approached him. He sniffled a bit and spat a glob of blood onto the ground, and as Cade neared, he rubbed his sausage-like fingers together.

  "Mister President," Ebren cleared his throat and licked his lips. He raised a hand and firmly pressed against the wound on his forehead and exhaled a wheezy breath as he met Cade, "Mister President, it is a prayer answered to see you breathing. I never doubted that you were coming back for me, I understand that my behavior was… uncalled for and I am willing to let bygones be bygones. It is apparent that we need to get you back to headquarters, to be rid of this cursed forest forever. For that reason, I have contacted a team. They are on their way, and we need to prepare for our pending extraction."

  Cade looked back at Racon Tower behind him and then in the direction of his wrecked craft. His brother was safe; his child lived. He lamented the fact that the price for those lives had been the one he loved the most. As his gaze met Ebren again, he knew he could not return to headquarters. His child needed care; he was on the brink of his life's most significant discovery, and Ebren was not going to stand in his way.

  "Very good," Cade nodded at his assistant, "But I fear that a transport will not be necessary, not yet at least. I am traveling with these people to an Ancient medical facility. One that is still in operation. The baby needs help, the information we could gain there..."

  "I have already called the transport, Mister President," Ebren spoke slowly and with an agitated tone. He glanced over at the doctor and the baby in his arms, and he paused to think for a moment. His lips formed into a frown and he spoke once again, "We are going to wait for extraction. Cade, you need to answer for all of this treachery. Your apparent fraternization with subordinates, your ties to terrorist organizations, you do understand that the board will hear of this?"

  "I would expect nothing less of you," Cade sighed. He drummed his fingers around the sword in his hand and took another step toward Ebren and cocked his head, "Have you already made your report?"

  "I mentioned our situation to President Trabia," Ebren raised his chin once again, "I did not go into great detail but…"

  "Did you tell him of the Marauders?" Cade asked.

  "Well…" Ebren wore a confused look, "Yes, I did. Though I do not understand why such an arbitrary…"

  "Good." Cade took another step forward and raised his blade. Ebren jerked his hands up and took a step back, but Cade lunged forward, thrusting his sword through Ebren's chest. Ebren squealed and wrapped his fingers around Cade's throat.

  "You are a disgrace to the memory of your aunt," Cade growled as he pushed his assistant off of him. Ebren's fingers broke free from Cade's throat, and he fell backward onto the ground, writhing in pain.

  "You think for one moment that I, Cade Larynks, president of one-third of the Agra Triangle Corporation will continue to answer to your pitiful waste of breath? You believe that I will put up with your treachery any longer?" Cade kicked Ebren in the ribs, and Ebren yelped and gurgled.

  "Your aunt was my teacher, my friend, my mentor," Cade hissed, "That is what kept me from killing you all this time. Karna, she…" Tears welled up in his eyes, and he shook them away, "She fucking loved me. Too damn much. She was jealous of Nida. She threatened her, and when I walked in on her holding a gun to Nida's head I… I snapped. Just like her neck."

  "T... traitor!" Ebren weakly cried out. He fumbled for his communicator, and Cade thrust his sword through Ebren's wrist.

  "Me?" Cade stared down at the bloated soon-to-be corpse lying in the mud, "I am not the one spending your money and then whispering behind your back. I treated you well Ebren, I gave you a life of luxury, and you squandered it. You are the real traitor. Karna died because I was protecting the one I love."

  "The dead bitch," Ebren choked with a devious smile, "The commoner you couldn't keep your dick out of. I hope she was worth it Cade, for you… you are going to burn for all this." Without another word, Cade thrust his sword through Ebren's mouth. The blade shattered Ebren's teeth and pierced through his skull and into his brain. Ebren's body went limp, and as Cade thought he was finally going to be silent, he let out a loud wretched fart.

  "I fucking hate that guy!" Cade ground his teeth together as he ripped his sword from Ebren's face. A stream of blood arced out and showered the area behind them. Cade looked down at the growing mess of gore and teeth and scowled.

  "I can imagine that felt good," Smirnov approached and observed the mess before him, "For you at least. I was never fond of that person. An irritating and delusional creature, no doubt."

  Cade grumbled as he cleaned off his blade and looked down at his daughter. He reached out and gently touched her forehead and then looked up to Smirnov.

  "How is she?" he asked the doctor.

  "Her blood oxygen level is fine," Smirnov replied, "Not ideal, but fine." Cade noticed that a small battery-powered blood oximeter was attached to her foot. He patted the doctor's shoulder and walked up to Nora.

  "Sorry, I needed to take care of that," he joined her side, and Nora nodded at him.

  "We all have to take care of our business sometimes," She commented as the two began to walk, "However grisly it may be."

  "You're more badass than Crinnan." Freyja ran up to Cade's side and looked up at him. Cade turned his head and snickered at the Lycaani child.

  "Yeah, I am," Cade agreed as he looked back to check on Smirnov and his Charlotte, "I would not be much of a big brother if he surpassed me."

  "Yeah, that's pretty cool," Freyja cast his eyes downward, "That you guys are brothers. I had a brother once... but he died."

  "O-kay." Cade could sense that the boy was going to be a downer the whole time, not that he could blame him from what he knew about his past. In all honesty, Cade's spirits were as low as they had ever been with everything that had happened.

  "Well I don't know about the rest of you," Dauid hollered, "But it seems like everyone's gone through some shit tonight. Hells, that little girl Freyja probably has had the best damn day out of all of us!"

  "I am a boy," Freyja corrected him.

  "No shit?" Dauid chuckled, "Look, step one in Dauid the Great's training program. You gotta lighten up kid. Can you do that?"

  "What does that mean?" Freyja looked back at the old man, and Dauid handed him his flask.

  "Take a sip of that," Dauid nodded as he gave the boy a wink, "Just one though, we don't need you getting sloppy."

  "What are you doing!" Nora shouted back, "Stop that; he is only a kid."

  "A kid that has gone through more terrible shit than most adults, we gotta break that down!" Dauid nodded at Freyja, and the boy cautiously brought the flask up to his lips.

  "It stinks," Freyja's nose wrinkled up, and he pulled the container away, "What is it?"

  "Something that'll put some hair on your chest," Dauid chuckled, "Have a sip."

  "I already have hair on my chest; I am Lycanni…" Freyja informed him, "But okay." He threw his head back and gulped down a swig of the whiskey. His eyes immediately opened wide, and he made a dry rasping noise. His ears twitched, and he looked up at Dauid.

  "That tastes bad," he began coughing, and Dauid laughed and turned toward everyone to see their expressions. Cade grinned, and Doctor Smirnov and Nida frowned at him.

  "Oh don't be a bunch of sticks in the mud," He slapped the back of the boy's back and smiled down at him, "We are in a rough place, all of us. We have to smile to get through everyone; this doesn't need to be as terrible as half of us want it to be. Come on; everybody have some fun!"

  "This is not a party," Nora snapped back, "We need to stay silent and walk. When we reach the facility, we can… drink or whatever it is you do. But for now, we need to stay alive."

  "Stay alive? Hells, that's what I do every day!" Dauid laughed, "It's what I'm best at!"

  "How much has he had to drin
k?" Cade asked Nora as the two pushed their way through the dark and overgrown weald.

  "He has a bottle in his bag that he has filled his flask with at least three times," Nora replied, "He is… really enjoying himself. He hasn't stopped drinking since we left the others back at Racon Tower."

  "Do you think it will be a problem?"

  "As long as he doesn't attract the undead or the Toraani," Nora looked around and groaned, "I wish I still had my own NaNe. This guy will not shut up, and Crinnan was a weakling."

  "What guy?" Cade asked, curious what she was talking about.

  "Eshan," She grumbled, "He keeps telling me that the area is clear, that he misses his son, and that Crinnan at least talked to him. I get it, Eshan, I will talk to you when I am alone. Until then though, you need to chill out and take a nap."

  "Crinnan had someone… in his head?" Cade repeated, baffled by the idea, "What do you mean?"

  "Someone else's NaNe," Nora shrugged, "He somehow became a shaman. It was a role we gave a rare amount of NaNe users back before the Church. It essentially turned a person into a NaNe vehicle; you could fit an indefinite number of images inside one person. The most we fit into somebody was one thousand."

  "What do you mean, we?" Cade asked, "You keep saying we."

  "I mean… Life Links."

  "The Life Links?" Cade felt a rush of excitement come over him. He knew it was an inappropriate time to be thrilled, but he had only ever heard stories of Life Links even though their work was the main focus of his career. He knew that they had created the NaNe, as well as the architecture for Heaven and the Hells. He also strongly felt that they somehow had something to do with the Sentinel Trees.

  "Yes," Nora glanced over at Cade, "As I said, we know about you… in all these years that you have chased after us, I have to say: you have never once come close to learning a damn thing."

  Cade nodded silently at the Ancient Faire, and they walked onward. The weald continued to blaze around them, and the rain fell from above. The sound of thunder and fire cracking filled their ears and as they began their journey to the Ancient medical facility, Cade could not help but feel defeated.