War of Kings and Monsters

by Christopher Keene

  “That’s the thing about war . . .” Nathan reached for his glove. “Death isn’t picky. You possessed my friend, you killed the man who raised me, and now you’re trying to kill everyone else?” His hands shook with fury. “No, not while I’m here.”

  Aisic shouted, “No, get out of here, now!” Without waiting for a reply, Aisic charged forward into an attack.

  Ramannon smirked and drew out his own broadsword, striking away Aisic’s first attack, his armor gleaming from the light of the red moon as he spun and struck back.

  Aisic locked blades with him, attempting to pin Ramannon’s sword with his own, but Ramannon’s strength was far greater than Aisic in his human form. Ramannon grinned, aware of his advantage, so much so that he didn’t struggle when he pushed forward, making Aisic stagger backward.

  Aisic cried, “Go. Run!”

  Nathan hesitated, gripping the seams of his glove. “No, I can help. It’s two Melkai against one!”

  With a scream, Aisic forced Ramannon back and looked like he was about to explain, but before he could get any words in, Ramannon raised a hand out in front of him.

  “Two against one, you say?” He shook his head. “The Melkai behind the barrier are in league with me now.”

  Although close to being so, the moon was not yet completely red. There was still a little time left.

  “The barrier has not given way. Without that, you have no Melkai here to control!” Nathan called.

  Ramannon’s grin remained. “I may not yet be able to control the Melkai that have a physical presence here, but remember that I once ruled this kingdom. I know what is buried below this chapel.” He looked down, his eyes burning a bright red. “And the very spirits of the Melkai that can come from the Melkairen can possess them just as I have possessed this body here!”

  There was a sudden rumble, and Nathan finally realized why the soldiers Aisic had burned up hadn’t screamed, not to mention the sheer size of the army. Ramannon’s soldiers were the army of the dead, and now the dead buried below the chapel were digging, climbing, and reaching toward the surface.

  Nathan felt a terror pull inside him. His possessed friend’s smile widened, and with a splintered crack, a bony arm penetrated through the floorboards. It was a thing of nightmares. Nathan stumbled back in horror. Aisic ran forward and cut the arm off with his blade.

  More arms began breaking through.

  Nathan was freezing again, hands trembling in fear. He told himself he would never do that again, but Melkai possessed corpses was on another level of horror. It was ridiculous.

  Nathan’s hands stopped trembling. Ridiculous circumstances demanded ridiculous actions. He stamped down on the nearest hand rising from the floorboard, snapping it off at the wrist. However, for every arm he shattered with his boots, two more would start breaking through.

  This isn’t getting us anywhere!

  Ramannon laughed in glee. “Now, now, don’t be so hasty. Some of these could be your old relatives after all. Don’t you believe in respecting your elders?”

  More cracks and groans arose from the splintering wood, and with it, the Melkai-possessed dead, tattered, and decomposed, rose all around them. Aisic tried to cut them down as they rose up, but the sheer number of them revealed how pointless his struggle was.

  Ramannon laughed harder, and before long, they were encircled by the dead, back to back. The corpses halted.

  “Living in the Melkairen taught me one important thing,” Ramannon said. “It’s the humans of this world, those who have no spirits, who are the true monsters.”

  Aisic slowly rose from his fighting stance and slid his sword back into his scabbard. Before he began his transformation, he spoke.

  “Nathaniel Armalon, heed my words and obey this last wish of mine.” His head was high and proud. “I want you to run from here and finally allow me to repay my debt to your ancestor in full by killing this Melkai.”

  “No, I can’t! You’ll—”

  “I didn’t choose to be your protector because you saved me by the river that day! Your ancestor, Cullen Armalon, took me in as a child and taught me everything I knew, but I was never able to repay him. When I escaped the Melkairen, I thought my chance gone forever, but then sensed his Kairen magic from you. After your sister attacked me, I figured it was you who would need my help the most. When your mother revealed you to be Cullen’s heir, I knew it was fated to be so. I was glad to be able to fight beside you, but no more.

  “This is my dying wish, Nathaniel. For the sake of your ancestors, go!”

  I . . . no! This was not about freezing or running away. This was more than Nathan; this was a wish that had come from over five hundred years ago. To repay his debt, to even his score with Ramannon, I must grant him this wish.

  “Don’t lose!” Nathan cried. “That’s an order from your king!”

  Aisic ground his sharpened teeth to show his intent, and with a quick exhale, the wings from the hilt of his sword stretched out. The blade of his sword became his tail which swept out at the walking skeletons behind him, clearing a path for Nathan to the door.

  With the harsh fury of his dragon’s voice, he shouted, “Run!”

  Nathan didn’t hesitate. He ran to the door in the sheer shock of his guardian’s voice.

  With a sudden pulse, Aisic’s body grew into its dragon form, smashing the bones of the living dead around him, crushing them underfoot.

  Nathan saw this in his one glance back. He spun and burst through the chapel door. Hearing the sound of the battle waging between Ramannon and Aisic inside, he shut it and ran.

  He heard footsteps running toward him and paused. A person stood on the wide footpath in front of him. The shock paralyzed him as he came face to face with the one person he never considered meeting in a situation like this.

  Not only was she the one he had been sent to find since the beginning of his journey, but also someone he had met before. Someone who was unknowingly one of Avatasc’s rightful heirs. Laine Armalon, his sister, stood before him.

  Chapter 27: Sister

  The world felt like it was spinning around him. Nathan stared at Laine as she glared back. From her narrowed eyes, he couldn’t tell if her expression portrayed suspicion or confusion. There was too much to explain everything all at once, and he knew it. But he had to try and get everything out before she made up her mind.

  “Nathan?” she asked.

  At least she’s not calling me boy anymore.

  Although taken aback by her appearance, he was honestly glad to see her, not just because he knew she was his sister now, but because he could finally complete his quest to unite the Kairen Key. And if the moon was anything to go by, they had left their reunion to the very last minute.

  His heart dropped as her puzzled expression became cold, warning him that even if he walked on eggshells during their conversation, she still might not listen to him.

  “I was told you were imprisoned by Kissick; did you escape or have you . . .” Her eyes widened as she saw what he was wearing under his chain mail: a doublet of green and gold. “You work for him now, don’t you?”

  Nathan raised his hands, noticing the glove, her glove, still on his right hand. “Wait! Please let me talk before you jump to any conclusions. I’ve learned a lot that you need to know!”

  She stepped back, her hand slowly rising to the collar of her cloak, the one that turned into that massive savage bat. He had to explain what was going on as carefully as he could, but first, he had to get her attention.

  “Laine . . . you’re . . . my sister!”

  She hesitated. “What?”

  “I’m Nathaniel Armalon. I met our mother while in Avatasc. She recognized me and showed me our family tree.” He breathed in deeply, and before she could interrupt, he continued, “Kissick was our uncle. He wanted the throne and our father knew this. He also knew that killing him wouldn’t be enough to usurp the throne but that Kissick would have to make sure there
were no legitimate male heirs. For that reason, I was sent here to live before our father was murdered.”

  “What do you mean Kissick was our uncle?” she asked, her chest quickly rising and falling.

  “I killed him myself; the Snake King was crushed beneath the weight of his own Melkai.” He shook his head. “But please, let me finish before the world ends.”

  Laine’s mouth dropped, but she continued to listen, though he was unsure how much of what he was saying she would actually believe.

  “Unlike Kissick, our father was friends with the King of Terratheist; the two kingdoms had been friends ever since the War of the Two Kings until Kissick took over. It was the Terratheist king who our father sent me to stay with when we were both children. You must have thought I looked familiar. Well, it’s because we’re twins!”

  Laine shook her head, as though trying to reject this claim. “But why are you here now? If you’re now the king then you should be in Avatasc, unless you were sent by Kissick and you’re lying to me!”

  Ramannon must have planted these suspicions in her.

  She sighed and caught his eyes. “Why did you even go to Avatasc in the first place? Can you at least tell me that without lying?”

  That’s right, I lied about our journey. That’s why she doesn’t trust me.

  “How can I believe anything you tell me?” she asked.

  She could use this lie to undo his whole argument, but he had to try. He looked down and took off the Kairen Key necklace from his collar to reveal it to her. It was out on his sleeve now, or his collar at least, everything that was important about his quest.

  “Here’s how!” he shouted, lifting it high. “Now, you show me yours.”

  Startled by this, she slowly pulled out her own key. It was exactly the same as his, the crystal sparkling in the red moonlight. Silence filled the air, and they looked at each other’s keys. He knew that, to both of them, this signaled the end and success of their quests.

  Laine’s eyes became hawkish. “I need your key.”

  Nathan nodded. “We both need each other’s; we both know that, but do you know why?”

  Laine stalked forward. “This will be what creates the power shift I spoke to you about. With it, I will be Queen of Avatasc and make my country better, once I give that key to King Michael.”

  Nathan shook his head and returned the key around his neck.

  “You don’t understand what’s going on yet. Look!” He pointed to the red moon. “That means that the barrier to the Melkairen is weakening. You know what that means as much as anyone. The only thing that can stop this weakening is to combine these keys! After that you can have them, I don’t care, but first we need to reinforce the barrier!”

  “What, so you can bring it back to Kissick? I don’t think so!” She reached up to her cloak, removed it from around her shoulders and threw it at him.

  “I’m telling you he’s dead!”

  The bat transformed before him. Negotiations had broken down. He ground his teeth, removed his glove, and threw it. Taiba flew from it toward the massive bat.

  The sharp talons of the bat stretched out, but before Taiba could be caught, he used his impressive speed to turn sharply. As Terachiro was forced to land, Taiba jumped onto its back, sinking his teeth into its furry skin.

  Laine ran toward Nathan with one hand out to grab the key. As he leaned back, he noticed a bright blue glow behind her back like some kind of blade. As she brought it around, he caught her wrist and fell backward as she slashed over his head with a magical blade. He landed hard on the cobblestones, but he managed to kick his sister over him and then roll back on top of her, pinning her glowing hand to her chest.

  Nathan growled as he struggled to restrain her. They were running out of time, and she was too stubborn to listen to him. It was his fault too, he knew. He had wasted so much time in Avatasc while he let the true threat creep up on him. Now, like forgetting to study for an exam and cramming as much study in as possible, he had rushed what should have been a drawn-out conversation.

  Terachiro spun and flapped its wings, trying to get into the air. Taiba flew from its back, landing in a hard roll on the tiles before coming to his feet again. Both the dog’s and bat’s fangs were bared in a snarl, but sensing their masters were in danger, they both turned toward them.

  Nathan used his weight to make sure she could not strike him with her spell again. However, leaning over her made his necklace fall from his collar. Seeing her necklace, he knew he just needed to rip it from her neck and it would be over, the threat of the Melkairen annulled. However, as he snatched at it, Laine reached up and grabbed his own necklace and with a sharp kick managed to push him off her as they both stood again, holding each other’s keys. They both gasped as a paralysis pulled them in like a vortex.

  There was no doubt now, they could both feel it pulsing between their fingers. There was magic within the Kairen Keys, a lot of it. As the power of the crystal keys had sucked in and sealed away the spirits of the Melkai, it had also drawn in their memories while they had worn them.

  Nathan saw all of Laine’s memories in the blink of an eye, just as he was sure she was seeing his. However, he knew his own memories, and they were nowhere near as cruel as hers. He saw every verbal slight and dismissal from their uncle, every scornful glare and harsh remark, as well as her memory of watching Kissick treat their mother even more coldly. He watched as their mother became distant and bitter, saw her hopeless frustration under her new husband.

  He watched as the years went past and Laine was punished for expressing any emotion. How, when she let one sneer for the king slip out, the king had forbidden her from talking to her mother. Although she had snuck out to see her often, her mother refused to see her. Her giving up had hurt Laine more than anything.

  In a strange way, he wished he had seen this before the king had died. It would have made defeating him in their fight a lot more cathartic. It also made Laine’s intentions clearer. She had been trying to return glory to Avatasc, to free their mother from Kissick’s grasp, and most importantly, prove to herself that she wasn’t the weak girl that he made her out to be. She had been no one, nothing but the power to create pacts and summon Melkai.

  * * *

  The liar was on top of her, stopping her from using her spell to finish him. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t free her pinned hand to slash at him. She hated it. She hated him. Despite being the same age, Nathan still had more weight and physical strength than her. Just another man in a long line of men who thought that strength made them better than her.

  She knew otherwise. Strength didn’t matter, and nothing made this clearer than when a powerful magical artifact fell right before her eyes as they wrestled. Dangling in front of her face, Nathan’s key looked nearly symmetrical to her own. She just needed to grab it from him and the power would be hers, but with him pinning her, there was no way she could reach it.

  Suddenly one of Nathan’s hands let go of hers, freeing the one not glowing with her blade. She didn’t have time to ask herself why. She snatched at the key, bucked under him, and just as he grasped something with his free hand, she kicked him off her and scrambled to her feet. However, even as she stood, she felt like she was falling.

  A scene played before her eyes. It was windy, and she was standing beside someone massive . . .

  No, I know this place. I’ve been here before. This is a memory!

  In the first memory the necklace showed her, Laine could see the fields outside Avatasc. From her place hiding behind the skirts of her mother, she could see herself as a little girl.

  This confused her. If this was her memory, how could she see herself?

  Her vision was brought forward, her hand passed from her father to another large man. The man gripped her wrist tightly and pulled her across the field.

  It wasn’t until the man in her memory said, “Come, Nathan. We have a long journey ahead of us,” that she reali
zed what she was seeing.

  He said . . . Nathan?

  She knew then that she was feeling the same fear and sorrow Nathan had felt back then. She looked back to see herself, the emotion of being taken away reflected in her own young expression. They were two halves of a person: twins.

  If these are his memories, then why am I in them? Why didn’t I remember this? Why didn’t he? Did the keys take these memories from us?

  The scenes continued: flashes of memories of his lessons with Master Morrow, every bit of emotion and information, struggle and failure. She witnessed the summoning of his first Melkai, the horror of nearly being killed by the second-circle that came partially through into his room.

  Next, she was playing with the prince who was now the king. Michael seemed such a different person to the one who was commanding her now. Through Nathan’s eyes, they explored the castle and were brought before the previous king and scolded. Year upon year of accumulated experiences were flung at her in little bits and pieces, revealing large chunks of Nathan’s life.

  The next series of memories showed Nathan’s journey to Avatasc, how they met Aisic at the lake, losing Michael in the forest, until finally, she saw herself again. She had grown up, and when they saw each other, she could hardly recognize herself from the innocent girl she had been in the previous memory. The change was frightening.

  Her suspicion of men had blinded her, even to the point that she failed to see how much they resembled one another. Yet their meeting in the forest had been their first true reunion in ten years and the first time since their separation that she had let her emotional walls down and allowed herself to act normal around someone.

  He was so naive, without a malicious bone in his body. His life hadn’t hardened him as it had me.

  Despite wanting to stay in this time, Nathan’s memories continued to flow into her. She watched as he and Aisic arrived in Avatasc, snuck into the castle, and ran into her mother. Every word of their conversation with the queen made her want to cry out . . . every explanation of Nathan’s lineage, revealing him as the heir, that they were siblings. They all felt as shocking to him as it was for her now.