by Nikki Moyes
Copyright © 2017 Nikki Moyes
All rights reserved.
This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Author: Moyes, Nikki
Title: The Castle/Nikki Moyes.
The Castle
I breathe silently as I peer through the slits of the air vent into the Castle Conquest Room below. Cold air swirls around me and I shiver in my sleeveless dress.
Below me stands the hulking form of Kyllar of Arna City, more commonly known as Class Three Warlord Kllrarn. I followed him here after his meeting with Father this morning. I clench my fists at the memory of how easily Father had agreed to Kllrarn’s demands.
My fingernails dig into my palms. Powerless, that’s what I am, even more so than Father, because I am female and not yet fully grown. People assume I know nothing, can achieve nothing worthwhile.
This is why I’m hiding in a tight air duct system observing a man I usually go out of my way to avoid. I have Father’s scientific mind when it comes to problems. I will observe until a solution presents itself.
Kllrarn heads a squad of heavily armed warriors. The capacity of the dimly-lit room limits players to one hundred, although occasionally the door opens to admit an additional man, and I catch a glimpse of more loitering outside.
My eyes flick over them taking in the details of the thick leather trousers and shirts under tight-linked chain mail. Many of them wear wide belts slung with large leather pouches, as well as their usual swords, knives, and shields.
I wriggle forward in the narrow space until the monitoring screen comes into my line of sight. The glow of the active screen reflects off the polished black walls and floor. My bare shoulder presses against the cold metal tube and I flinch away.
Kllrarn – warlord names are traditionally reduced to a single vowel in an effort to sound more menacing – speaks loudly and slowly to the program which does the same thing in return whenever Kllrarn tries to skip a step.
‘That request is not possible. Please state which level you would like to attempt.’ The game’s gender neutral tone states carefully.
I smother a grin and wonder if the game’s creator, Warlord Waldn, based the program’s personality on someone he’d known personally.
“Castle Two, you incompetent piece of machinery,” Kllrarn growls, swiping a beefy hand through his unruly, dark hair. “As soon as I’m married to that damned Suri girl, I’ll make her fix this idiotic program so it does what I want,” he mutters to his men.
I draw back from the vent slightly as though he may sense me above him. My body tenses in a flight or fight response and sweat beads on my forehead despite the cold air. My ears fill with the sound of my pounding heart.
“She’s just a little kid. What would she know about fixing…” Rakon, one of Kllrarn’s commanders, glances at the monitoring screen beside them, “...stuff?”
“She’s Sci. Suri’s daughter. She has like his memories in her head or something,” Kllrarn explains what little he knows.
“So she’s like the same as Suri? Wouldn’t that be like marrying Suri, himself? Wouldn’t make for a fun wedding night, now would it?” The man’s laughter is cut short as Kllrarn buries his knife into the man’s gut. He makes a brief gurgling sound and collapses on the shiny black floor.
Kllrarn bends down to wipe his knife clean on the man’s trousers, before he returns it to its sheath and turns his attention back to the screen. I cover my mouth and swallow the bile rising in my throat.
“Get him out of here and send in the next bloke,” Rakon instructs the wary men standing nearby. Two step forward and grab the dying man under the armpits. They drag him outside the room and return moments later with a replacement warrior.
“If I control her, I control Suri Technology, see?” Kllrarn continues as though he hadn’t been interrupted. “Then I won’t have to pay for all these weapons, get it? I’m sick of that little man telling me he can’t make me projectile weapons because the Ethics Committee said it was bad.” Kllrarn thumps his fist against the wall.
‘Do you wish to exit…?’ The program asks helpfully.
“NO!” Kllrarn bellows. “I want to capture the castle!”
‘All participants must take their place.’
“They will when I’m good and ready,” he growls, although he waves at his men to move into position.
“Damn funny watching Suri shaking in his fancy white coat when you threatened to rip his brains out through his nose.” Rakon makes a swirling motion as though he is using a tool to carry out the threat. The men around him laugh and even Kllrarn relaxes marginally.
Each of Kllrarn’s warriors steps into an individual square marked on the floor. A shimmering barrier surrounds them as one by one their minds enter the virtual world. The noise from the room dies away to be replaced by the screen’s speakers recording the game.
Kllrarn is last to step into his square at the front of the room. Moments later his image appears at the head of his hundred-strong army within sight of Castle Two. Their physical bodies remain motionless on the squares marked out on the floor.
For a brief moment, I consider sneaking down into the room and ending Kllrarn’s life with a swift knife attack like he just carried out. I could probably get in and out of the room without anyone knowing until they found his body.
But I’m not a killer. I could never take a life, even one like Kllrarn.
From my vantage point, I watch the wall-sized display screen as virtual Kllrarn marches on the castle he has attempted to capture twice before. Time moves faster in the program and I attempt to estimate how long Kllrarn will need to capture the castle.
An explosion blossoms across the screen in flashes of red and orange that casts shadows across the motionless warriors in the room. My heart beats faster. The outer Castle Two wall cracks. If Kllrarn destroys the castle it will eliminate the level from the game and he will be that bit more unstoppable in his pursuit of power.
Kllrarn directs several more explosives against Castle Two’s walls before it occurs to me that the men below me carry the actual live weapons in the pouches on their belts.
I wriggle quickly back through the narrow tube system to the grate I came in through. The corridor of the Warlord Training Facility below is silent and I lift the grate, slip through and tug it back into place as I drop. I use the strategically placed cleaning cart to step down to the floor. My next growth spurt will most likely prevent me crawling through the ducts again.
I walk quickly away and as I round the corner I almost collide with a cloaked figure walking beside Zander. The hooded man is almost as tall as the warlord trainer, although he possesses the slender build of someone who doesn’t fight for a living.
“Risha, I wasn’t expecting to see you here today,” Zander breaks the silence of me staring at the Dragon Temple Keeper.
“Why are you here?” I ask the Keeper, ignoring Zander.
“Castle One is about to fall for the first time in history. The new Warlord will be known as The Destroyer and I see the person being influential in the direction our world will take. I felt Warlord Trainer Zander should be aware of the development,” Takarna Orlan says in his melodic tone.
Shivers slide over my body as my mind wanders back to Kllrarn in the Conquest Room. The men waiting outside the room must be replacements so he can take Castle One as soon as he has finished with Castle Two. The destruction I witnessed of Castle Two certainly fits the description.
Time slips away from me. I need help if I’m to avoid the deal my father made, preferably without Father having his brain removed through his nostril, and Kllr
arn will be virtually unstoppable as a Class One Warlord. My chest constricts in a moment of panic, and I shuffle my feet, eager to get out of here.
“You expect us to believe some vision you’ve had?” I ask.
“Your brother believes, although he didn’t at first, too occupied with trying to see the science in everything instead of surrendering to faith.”
“You two know each other?” Zander glances between the pair of us.
“Her twin, Ritash, is my apprentice,” Takarna says and Zander gives me a look of surprise. “Ah, I see you weren’t aware she has a brother.”
“Risha doesn’t say much about family, just turned up when she was barely five years old begging to be taught self-defence. I look out for her when I can. Never had the opportunity to have children myself,” Zander says.
Takarna reaches out and touches his fingertips to my bare cheek. A tingle starts in the back of my mind like an itch about to form. I blink up at him and he drops his hand.
“Interesting, your mind appears to be deviating from that of your brother. I suspect I’ll be seeing more of you in the future.” Takarna Orlan nods his head once as though agreeing with himself and then vanishes.
“How does he do that?” Zander mutters to himself.
“No idea.” I wonder if my brother, Tash, knows and for a moment jealousy attempts to worm itself into my mind for the knowledge I don’t possess.
“I figured you’d make yourself scarce with Kllrarn here today,” Zander says.
“I’m not planning on running into him. Shouldn’t you be monitoring his attempt to make history?” My voice is steady, but my thumb and finger tap together in a tiny repetitive motion.
“Castle Two hasn’t been captured in thirty years and Castle One is infallible,” Zander says. “It can’t be conquered with a hundred men and Kllrarn has the IQ of a cumquat, I’ll read the highlights when he withdraws.”
“You don’t believe in the Keeper’s vision?” I ask.
I take a few steps forward as the sense of time slipping away settles over me. Zander takes another look at me.
“No. What on Lordinia are you wearing?”
I wipe my hands over my course brown tunic dress in an attempt to remove the dirt from my recent excursion through the air conditioning ducts.
“There’s a fancy dress party in Central Zone. I’m going as a peasant girl.” I clasp my hands behind my back. My eyes dart down the hall, but we are still alone.
“I honestly can’t imagine you at a party with other twelve years olds,” Zander says.
“I never said the party was for people my age.”
“My mistake, maybe one day you will trust me sufficiently to share whose genetic memory you were born with,” Zander says.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I open my eyes wide in my best innocent look. “You might want to check on Kllrarn. His men have brought some pretty powerful explosives into the Castle Conquest Room. You may need to evacuate the entire building.”
An annoyed look crosses his features and he hurries off in Kllrarn’s direction. As soon as he is out of sight, I dart down a different hallway.
I almost run into a warrior near the dining hall, but I duck down a secondary hallway before he sees me, ending up in a wing of the original building with its now mostly unused rooms.
I check the signs above the doors and try the handle of one unused room. I slip inside, turn the lock and rest my head against the door of the tiny room, taking deep breaths and focusing on the cool smooth surface until my heart beat is no longer the loudest sound in the room.
My nose itches with the musty, disused air. A motion activated monitoring system hums quietly against the wall.
‘Welcome, Player One. Do you wish to conquer Castle Ten?’ It greets me as I step away from the door.
I scan the tiny room. A small screen is mounted on the far wall, its red-lit camera following my movements. Several chairs are stacked in a corner beside a table as though the room has been used for storing excess study room furniture.
“Is it safe…from Warlords?” I ask.
‘Castle Ten is the base level. It is the most frequent castle conquered by Warlords.’
“That’s doesn’t sound safe,” I say, dragging the table towards the door.
‘Do you require protection?’ the program asks, its tone gentler and less official this time. I shove the table into place and turn to face the screen.
“You know someone who can protect me from Warlord Kllrarn?” I ask.
‘Class One Warlord Waldn resides at Castle One. Class Three Kllrarn is no match for him.’
“Won’t someone notice if I enter the virtual world?” I ask.
‘A conquest is currently in progress. You entry will go unnoticed.’
“How do I get to Castle One?” I allow the hitch in my voice to be heard. It’s the sound of a young girl who needs protection.
‘Standby…’
I wipe my sweaty palms on my rough tunic dress.
Full name…The words appear across the screen.
“Tarish Suri.”
I tap my finger and thumb together as the out-of-date system scans the room. The light travels over me twice before a rendered image of myself appears on the screen.
My image rotates so I can see my brown dress, sandals, and a brightly coloured butterfly clip holding my hair off my face.
‘Step forward when ready.’
I cross the carpeted floor and the world flickers around me. A faint whirring sounds in my ears before the room fades away.
I appear at the edge of a dense forest, the trees a vivid combination of browns and green with hints of rainbows when I catch sight of a flower. My home city of Lordinia outgrew its green spaces a long time ago. Father still recalls the time before when there were plants and insects and little creatures, which is where his interest in genetics first developed.
To my left, thick black smokes billows into the pale blue, cloudless sky from Castle Two. The sounds of distant screams drift towards me on the breeze.
Ahead in the distance, Castle One stands in the open. It’s appearance is similar to a child’s book Zander one gave my before he caught me reading the Warlord Rules of War from his office.
I slip back into the trees. Staying among the foliage will take longer but limit the chance of Kllrarn’s guards noticing me.
Near the outer edge of the forest, my foot catches a tree root, sending me sprawling. I roll several times, a sharp stick ripping the hem on my dress, until I come to a sudden wet splash in a small stream. I shake the cold water from my ears in disgust and run a hand down my face.
For a moment I trail my fingers through the stream, marvelling at the realistic sensation of temperature and texture, as though I’m actually sitting in cold water that stings as it flows over my injured leg.
I haul myself up the muddy bank, a narrow line of blood trickling down my thigh from the gash. The strap on one sandal is about to part and strands of wet hair fall across my dirty face where they escaped from my mud-covered butterfly hair clip.
A series of horn blasts from the army in the distance indicate they are on the move. I listen carefully to the codes. Kllrarn is gathering his remaining men and the reinforcements for an assault on Castle One.
I drop to my knees and cover my head with my hands as Father’s memories invade my mind — the fear he feels towards Kllrarn making my entire body tremble.
“I am not you, Father,” I hiss between clenched teeth. “I am Risha. I will not be afraid,” I repeat as I block out the genetic memory until it is only me in my mind. I force myself to my feet and wrap a stray lock of hair around my finger. Father’s hair is always short and neat. I keep mine long for when I need to remember I am my own person.
The dark plume of smoke billows across the fertile land. At the edge of the forest, there is nothing between me and Castle One but my fear and rough open plain. Behind me unseen, an army ma
rches towards my location.
I hike my skirt up and run, watching the ground to avoid twisting an ankle in the knee-high grass. The strap on my left sandal snaps and I trip, grazing my shoulder as I tuck into a protective ball and tumble through the rough grass. I glance behind me as I struggle to my feet, kicking the broken shoe away. I keep running, although now it is more of a hurried limp.
When I reach the heavy outer timber entrance, I beat my fists against the small door set into the right-hand gate. The guards are shadows above me on the stone wall that stretch away in either direction. For a brief moment, the wall shimmers and I receive a tiny electric shock. I jerk my hand away.
“Help! Help me! The soldiers are coming! Please, help…” I scream.
I glance back towards the forest. In the distance a cloud of dust heralds Warlord Kllrarn’s advance. I’ve misjudged the time it would take him to cover the distance between Castles.
I rest my forehead against the barrier, my heart hammering in my chest. The wind blows making me shiver now I’ve stopped running. The ground around the castle is cleared, making it impossible to retreat from the approaching army undetected. I kick the door as tears slip down my face, I’m out of time, I’ll never be free of Kllrarn.
The door gives way and I fall to my knees inside the entrance. Several hands reach out to haul me to my feet as the door bangs shut behind us.
“She’s just a child,” a soldier says. I look up through wet lashes at the hulking warrior and his three heavily armed companions.
“What are you doing here?” his commanding officer demands, aiming his weapon casually at the ground.
“Everything on fire, people screaming, soldiers everywhere.” I wave in the direction of the plume of smoke. “I lost my shoe,” I add, pointing at my filthy foot.
“Get her inside. Kllrarn’s army will be here shortly,” the commanding officer orders his men.
“Yes, sir.”
Several women stationed within the second wall take me from the men. A tall woman with short cropped hair and the tight black uniform of a warrior runs her hands down my sides. The dress has no pockets and I carry nothing but my butterfly clip which is now dull with the mud in my hair.