But Duchess Mircalla, the supreme commander of the counterinsurgency forces, could only blink in disbelief upon hearing the analysis reports from the aerial reconnaissance sensors.
“As unconventional as the Western Frontier overseer may be, it’s impossible that he is shielding his entire dominion with a gravitational barrier! It can’t be done without the Capital’s galactic energy changer.” This was Thorzak Yanzarlai, a duke of the Eastern Frontier sector.
“Then Mayerling must have procured a copy of the very same device,” said Mircalla, having already regained her composure. Glancing at Greylancer with her blue pools, she said, “You’re awfully calm. Why is that?”
“No reason. Only that I have always believed anything is possible—things that both the Nobility and humanity might struggle to fathom.”
“How very mindful of you.” Mircalla turned to the data projected in the air. “According to the data, the barrier’s strength is a hundred quadrillion joules—nearly enough power to keep the barrier up and running for eternity. We are nowhere unless we dispense with this barrier first.”
“So a full-force assault would require some time…then how about the age-old tactic of starving out the enemy?” remarked Lieutenant General Dreyse Ghishirshin of the Capital Defense Division, in jest. Though the strategist’s record against the OSB was unblemished, he had an unfortunate knack for souring the mood with his arrogance. When no one laughed, he winced.
Needless to say, human blood was the Nobility’s—vampires’—source of sustenance. This supply, collected both willingly and unwillingly from the local population, not only sated the Nobility’s appetites, but also filled frozen or otherwise dried and pressure-packed storage units scattered across the land.
A year’s worth of blood was typically kept on hand in any Noble castle.
In addition, Mayerling had perfected a cocktail of mineral-infused synthetic blood that tasted much like the real thing. He manufactured it in large quantities in a factory near the castle. A prolonged siege of a year or two years was exactly what Mayerling desired.
Of course, Lt. General Ghishirshin had quipped about starving the enemy, knowing so. Yet the members of the war council remained still as stone.
“Every castle floorplan includes secret evacuation tunnels, but the possibility of escape is rendered nil since the entire territory has been shielded by the barrier. No escape, no entry. It will be a long, drawn-out war.” Scanning the data, General Lei Huo Chao took a drag from his pipe. He was an elite strategist from the War Ministry. Given his background, perhaps he was well suited for a long-term conflict.
“That will not be the case.”
The generals, who’d resigned themselves to a protracted campaign, made no attempt to hide their anger or disbelief toward the voice of dissent. “Just what is it you mean, Lord Greylancer?”
“You possess some stratagem against Lord Mayerling?”
“What I possess is an understanding of Mayerling’s character.” Greylancer extended his left arm.
The image of a Noble appeared.
“Mayerling?” Despite recognizing it was nothing more than a hologram, the generals looked aghast, partially thanks to how lifelike the young Noble appeared, and partially due to the fear he inspired.
“Behold his face,” said Greylancer, jerking his chin at the handsome face. “His lineage, rank, and record are beyond question. You can recognize a warrior by his look alone. Do not be fooled by his handsomeness. His is a face to fear, Commander.”
“Agreed,” Mircalla answered flatly. “His fierce will for a fight, incisiveness, and ample confidence.” She addressed the hologram. “How did you come by these qualities, Mayerling? This is the face of the enemy that we must fight. No doubt, you will stand your ground to the very end. What clever gambit will you try?”
“His only option is to wait out the siege. We need only come up with an anti-barrier to neutralize his defenses. Far better than suffering casualties through needless skirmishes. Mayerling may have played right into our hand.” This was General Sade Jermyn, General Lei Huo Chao’s colleague and the number two man in the War Ministry. A standout in a ministry derided for their armchair strategists, he was recognized as one who piloted his own aircraft.
“Who do you think you’re dealing with?” Greylancer scoffed. To the battle-weary warrior, Jermyn was nothing more than an untested general, an impostor trying to pass as a hero. Despite the general’s sneer, Greylancer continued, “Look at his eyes. The jaw. This is the face of a man who will lead his men into enemy territory himself. Such a man will not be content to hole up in his castle and play a waiting game. Open your eyes. The moment we let down our guard, he will strike us with his army—a cunning attack that we cannot even imagine.”
“You’re an impudent one,” seethed Jermyn, baring his teeth. His fangs gleamed in the moonlight streaming into the war room. “You are speculating without substance. What knowledge have you about Mayerling? Grow up together, did you?”
“Today may well be our first encounter.”
“Do you mean to mock me, Greylancer?”
A murderous air that made the warriors want to turn away swept across the room. Jermyn shot to his feet.
“That’s enough, both of you!” The voice of the supreme commander immobilized Jermyn. “As long as I am commander, I will not have any infighting. If you desire bloodshed, let it be Mayerling’s.”
On the battlefield, a superior’s command was ironclad.
Jermyn sat down in indignation as Greylancer stifled a smile.
“The Privy Council’s orders are to end this conflict within five days. Time enough left to our own devices,” said Mircalla, smiling. Had she been entrusted as overseer on pedigree alone, the duchess would lack the wherewithal to manage the Frontier. “At any rate, let us put forth our best efforts. Lord Greylancer, can you verify your assessment?”
“No, it is solely my assessment of Mayerling. But make no mistake, anyone with a passing glance of Mayerling, even from a distance, would concur.”
“As much as I’d like to agree with you, that alone will not do. General Jermyn, I believe yours is the most sensible course of action. But we haven’t time for a drawn-out war. Have you a strategy to cross swords with Mayerling within five days?”
Jermyn distorted what was already reputed a menacing face and closed his eyes in deep contemplation. The battle-tested warrior and master strategist thrived in times like these. Smiling, he opened his eyes almost immediately and nodded, “Yes, I do.”
CHAPTER 8:
RAIN OF JAVELINS
1
A most distressing incident befell the counterinsurgency forces early next morning.
At daybreak, Mayerling lowered the gravitational barrier shielding his dominion and fired a torrent of javelins over the camp.
Because the barrier encircling Mayerling’s dominion did not quite stretch over the entire sector, the troops were encamped just inside the border’s perimeter. Thus not one javelin had landed outside in neighboring territory. The javelins, which the counterinsurgents effortlessly fended off, measured three meters long, five centimeters around, and weighed five hundred kilograms. Falling at twelve hundred meters per second, they hit with a thousand tons of force on impact.
And yet the damage inflicted was minimal. The innumerable javelins had merely fallen like an endless volley of arrows around the encampments protected by gravitational barriers, around the super-alloy coffins of the Nobles.
The Nobility also employed once-bitten half-humans and androids to guard against day raids by human resisters. Whereas the javelins felled these servants outside the barrier, the Nobility’s weapons and materiel went undamaged.
After the first wave of attacks subsided, three minutes passed before the second wave split the clouds and poured down from the sky. Greylancer appeared under the sun.
The ground was riddled with gleaming black javelins as still more deadly blades were repelled by barriers and fell feebly about Gre
ylancer’s feet.
The javelins coming within meters of Greylancer ricocheted away from the Noble. It was the work of his long lance. Greylancer twirled the lance in his right hand almost casually, flicking away every javelin that fell in his path.
As soon as Mayerling’s domain lowered its barrier, counterinsurgent sensors returned fire. Countless arrows shot into the horizon from the camp toward Mayerling’s castle.
Oddly enough, Mayerling chose not to launch nuclear missiles. A heat-based attack was ineffectual against the Nobility, and human fatalities were of little consequence to the Nobles who regarded the mortals as no better than insects.
The rain continued. The waves of javelins blacked out the sky from the distant horizon to Mayerling’s castle overlooking the hills a thousand kilometers away.
“Well played, Mayerling. You’ve effectively avoided any cause for complaint by any of the territories, no matter who may be in league with whom. As well, this rain of javelins is a demonstration of your strength.”
A security vehicle approached, weaving and steamrolling past the thicket of javelins on the ground, and stopped next to Greylancer.
Four half-humans, wearing black-visored helmets, stepped out of the vehicle.
While able to roam about in the light of day, these once-bitten humans were vulnerable to sunlight, requiring them to be covered in blackout gear from head to toe.
“My lord, you must seek cover!”
“It’s too dangerous!”
They were the only words they managed to get out before the next volley of javelins impaled them from back to front.
So sudden was their end that they each continued several steps toward Greylancer before falling dead at his feet.
“Fools—serves you right,” he spat out, and then he summoned a trio of AG—Android Giants.
Three androids standing three meters tall emerged from the encampment. They approached, brandishing their long swords and striking down the javelins raining down from above, filling the air with the sound of metal clanging against metal. The AGs stopped before Greylancer.
“See that the bodies are buried.” It was an order that would have stunned anyone who knew the Noble.
Regardless of the devotion with which half-humans served their master, in death, they were cast aside like so much monster fodder. Such was the fate of half-humans. Yet the Nobility’s greatest warrior had just now ordered a proper burial for the dead.
The AG carried the bodies away, and the javelin attack ended soon after.
An invisible shield went up over Mayerling’s territory again.
“My chariot!” The half-humans were the only ones to hear Greylancer’s call resounding through the camp.
Seconds later, only the wind witnessed the chariot tear through the seemingly unbreakable barrier and blaze a path above the wintry plains.
†
There were no responses to his incursion, and in less than a minute, Greylancer landed on the eastern edge of a village a mere stone’s throw from Mayerling’s castle.
“A necessary flight, I’m afraid. Circumstances what they are, it couldn’t be helped. There isn’t time to lose. But first—” Greylancer alighted from the chariot and strode toward the village.
Not a soul could be found on the sun-drenched road. He had no choice but to force his way in. Greylancer had not satiated his thirst the night before and was parched.
A house came into view from between the trees.
The Noble bristled at the sound of the turning waterwheel. That the Nobility disliked running water was a fact known throughout the land.
“I have no choice.”
The other houses were quite a distance away and likely located riverside. Even in his state of dormancy, Mayerling would certainly be alerted to any trouble in town. What Greylancer desired was a surreptitious encounter. Mayerling was not yet aware of Greylancer’s encroachment into Western territory, thanks to the chariot’s stealth program, which allowed him to pass undetected by both radar and clairvoyance. This was another invention that Laria had conceptualized and Varossa created.
When Greylancer was a mere ten paces away from the house, the door opened and through it emerged a girl of about sixteen or seventeen and her mother.
They sighted the giant in front of them before anything else.
Their shock gave way to suspicion, and as their expressions arrived at terror, Greylancer strode forward.
A Noble’s presence alone was enough to paralyze humans where they stood. At least in Greylancer’s experience.
But this mother and daughter were exceptions. The emotion that broke through the fear and burst out of their mouths was pure anger.
“A Noble!”
“An enemy of Lord Mayerling,” said the mother. Then she called out, “Dear!”
Seconds passed. The door flew open again, and out rushed two men—a boy in his early twenties and his father this time. The scythe and long barrel in their hands as well as the wailing siren explained their delay.
“You must be with the invading army! You’re not getting a step past us.”
“If you’re aiming for the castle, you’re going to have to kill us all! Take this,” the father said and handed the women a hatchet and a wooden stake.
Arching a brow, Greylancer said, “Seeing how you’ve armed your wife and daughter, it appears you value Mayerling more than your family. Is that true of all humans in the West?”
“No ruler cares more about his people than Lord Mayerling. He’s saved the lives of every one of us here. No, that goes for the entire village. We might as well be dead. We’ll gladly give our lives for him.” The father was trembling, and his face was dripping with sweat as if to affirm the genuineness of his brave intentions.
Greylancer turned his gaze on the girl. “You too?”
“Yes, that’s right,” said the girl, with a hint of innocence still about her even as she nodded sharply. Suddenly, Greylancer realized why he’d felt something was amiss. Teeth chattering in fear, the girl continued, “When Mother and Father were afflicted with a mysterious bacteria that began to rot away their flesh, Lord Mayerling came from the castle himself to deliver the medicine. Both my parents—and my brother and I—when we became infected, he saved us. Even though most of the village fell ill, no one had to die. Afterward, we were also able to receive periodic exams. Lord Mayerling saved our lives.”
“I came to this land fifty years ago.” It was the mother’s turn to speak. “In other parts of the Frontier, children and babies that could have been saved with a little food and medicine died by the dozens at the slightest outbreak of disease. The rulers did nothing but take our blood. Some kind of rulers they are! They can’t even protect their own people! When I came here, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. Fifty years—fifty years living here is plenty. I won’t let you lay a finger on Lord Mayerling.”
“Did you ever live in the North?” Greylancer asked.
“No, just South and East.”
“Hmm.” Greylancer looked upon the girl. “When I look upon your faces, they are different from those of humans living in the other sectors, including my own. Your faces are peaceful. Do you also credit Mayerling for this?”
‘That’s right,” answered the girl’s father, nodding. “The people of this sector live with smiles on their faces. Sure life is hard, but we will never starve or freeze from cold. We aren’t forbidden from having festivals, either That’s why the people here have peace of mind. Try visiting any other sector of the Frontier. You can’t get even a newborn to laugh. Life’s so hard and bitter that there isn’t a soul able to smile. A land where its children are just as scared as the adults isn’t any place to live. Well? What about your land? Do the children laugh there?”
“Hm…” Mayerling, that favormonger, thought Greylancer. Listen to how brazenly your people talk. They are a disgrace to your good name. Then the Noble asked one final question: “Why do you all not have stakes?”
After father and son stare
d at one another, the son answered, “The stakes are for killing evil Nobles like you. We have no need for them against Lord Mayerling. So we only keep one on hand.” As the boy started forward, the heavy thunder of footsteps drew nearer from down the road.
It was the villagers answering the siren. In the blink of an eye, twenty or so men and women surrounded Greylancer. There would be more coming. All of them had come armed, the hatchets and lances gleaming in their hands.
A leather-vested man, who appeared to be the leader, shouted, “Prepare to die! Lord knows why you can walk about during the day, but from the looks of you, you’re a Noble to be sure. Which parts are you from?”
“The North.”
“North? Then you’re from Greylancer’s sector?” His voice fell. Even in a land safeguarded by an iron ruler, the name of the Northern Frontier’s overseer was capable of rousing fear in humans.
Would they fall silent or stir in excitement upon hearing the name again? Beneath the light of day, the Noble proclaimed, “I am Greylancer.”
The humans chose silence, as if they feared the light.
2
Then they heard the sound of footsteps, like a moving mountain.
The hulking shadow came toward them, each footfall shaking the ground like aftershocks.
The humans gazed up toward the heavens.
Stopping in front of the family cowering in front of their home, Greylancer wrapped an arm around the girl’s waist.
Snatched up into his embrace as she was, the girl let out not a sound. Hearing his name had stunned her into a state of shock.
One of the villagers let out a doleful moan.
“Close your eyes,” the Noble whispered in a strangely gentle voice.
A massive hand brushed over the girl’s eyes, which had been held open by sheer terror.
Oh, light, what evil is this, so threatening in your presence? The humans succumbed to the darkness.
When they opened their eyes and uncovered their ears, they watched the girl leaning her cheek inside the Greater Noble’s cape.
Noble V: Greylancer Page 13