by Eric Vall
“It’s not so much about that,” I said with a wince. “It’s that the Gelm can’t explain how we have helped them, so they’re treating it as a dark magic. They don’t trust us.”
“The villagers were so happy to be helped,” Neka said with a frown. “Why are these people any different?”
“These are the rich,” Akela snorted. “They don’t care about help, they can help themselves.”
Akela’s words mimicked my thoughts from earlier. Lord Anix, and probably the Elphad as well, would be difficult to convince, since they were so set on the feelings of their gods, but I thought the king was a better shot, especially if we had a crowd. They may not trust us, but the people of this planet were desperate after a three-year bout with The Gray Cough, and if we could convince them we could help, then we stood a chance of making it out alive.
“How long do you think they’ll keep us down here?” Neka asked, and she looked around with wide, sad eyes.
“Not long,” I said with a soft smile, and I pulled the cat girl close to me. “With how upset Lord Anix was, I’m sure he’ll want to get us there fairly quickly.”
“Colby,” O’s voice came over my earpiece, though it crackled a bit since we were underground.
“What’s up, O?” I asked.
“I thought you might like to know where you are going,” the AI responded.
“Did Terra Nebula visit with the Elphad and the king the last time they were here?” I asked, and I was curious since I hadn’t seen anything about that in the report.
“No,” Omni said, “but I have done some further scans, and there is a large congregation of structures and Gelm four point two kilometers southwest of your current location. That is the largest city I have found, and I believe it is where the king will reside.”
“Sounds like you’re right,” I said with a grin. “Hey O, how much longer till sunset on this planet?”
“There are six hours left until moonrise,” Omni informed me.
“Thanks,” I said, and I turned to the girls. “I don’t think they’ll take us there tonight. Probably the first thing in the morning.”
“You mean we’re stuck here all night?” Neka yowled and clutched onto me. “I don’t wanna be stuck in this yucky place til morning.”
“It’ll be okay,” I assured her.
“But I’m so hungry,” the cat-girl pouted.
“We have dehydrated food,” Akela said, and she pulled some pouches out from her small duffle bag.
Neka gasped as her eyes went wide, and then she dove for the mechanic.
“Hey, watch it!” Akela laughed, and Sef’sla hissed out a chuckle as well.
While the girls ate, I also made a call to O and asked him to send us some droids with supplies for bedding. We might be stuck in a dungeon for the night, but I’d like to see the Gelm try to stop me from taking care of my women.
About half an hour later, the droids arrived and squeezed through the tiny basement window.
“What are those!” our guard screeched, and he backed away from the small mechanical creatures.
The droids paid him no mind as they headed straight inside our cell, where they started to inflate a large mattress and pillows and expand vacuum sealed blankets. Watching them unpack all their goods was kind of like witnessing a magic trick. I had no idea where they stored everything, and the explosion of goodies just kept coming. Along with the bedding, Omni had also sent some Almort fruits and other snacks, and I thought I even saw one of the droids unpack a teapot.
“Y-You c-can’t d-do that,” the guard stuttered, but his eyes were wide with awe as he watched the droids work.
“You’re welcome to come stop them,” I said with a shrug.
The guard let out a harrumph, but he said nothing else as he continued to stare at the droids in confused amazement.
Within moments, our bed was set up, and the droids scuttled back out the window the way they’d come in.
“CT,” Neka mewled, and she came and kissed my cheek. “This is great, thank you!”
“I have to say,” Akela added, “I’m mad I didn’t think of it first, but this was a good idea. I’m glad we don’t have to sleep on the floor in here tonight.”
“I am grateful as well,” Sef’sla said with a smile.
“O really did all the work,” I chuckled.
“You are correct,” Omni said into my earpiece, and I rolled my eyes.
Then I smiled as I looked around at the cell we were in. The droids had swept the floor before they’d left, and the large bed in the center looked fit for a king. Fluffy blankets of numerous colors were heaped across the mattress, and I could only see the tips of Neka’s orange ears as she burrowed into a mountain of pillows.
Akela and Sef’sla were a little more reserved, but they did lounge across the bed and passed Almort berries back and forth while they chatted.
Now that we had a few more creature comforts, I took a seat next to my lovers, and I thought about the next day and what I would say to the king.
Whatever it was, it had to be good.
Chapter 7
The next morning, we were woken at dawn by a platoon of guards when they walked into the dungeon and saw the lavish additions to our cell. The Gelm weren’t too happy, and they argued in short, staccato baas and grunts, but the guard from the night before could barely even describe the droids. Eventually, the Gelm just decided to move on, and they ushered us out of the castle.
“I’ll send the droids back for the bed and things,” Omni said in my earpiece as we stumbled through the early morning city.
I hummed a sleepy response and rubbed at my face as I tried to wake up. The city around us was too quiet, though, and once again, the citizens hid from us. I half expected them to boo and throw rocks, but I wasn’t sure if they were more scared of Lord Anix or of us.
The lord rode in a carriage in front of us, and we walked behind him. Guards surrounded us on all sides, but I thought this seemed like overkill since we’d gone with them willingly the day before. We’d even gone peacefully into the dungeon, but I didn’t figure Lord Anix for someone to not make a scene when given the opportunity.
The walk itself took several hours, but I had Omni send some ATVs that Akela had fixed. The Gelm were frightened and suspicious of the large vehicles, but the short natives decided not to fight me on this, not even Anix. So, for the rest of the journey, we rode while the guard walked.
The road we took out of the city was much prettier than the one we’d taken in. A river flowed parallel to this path and there was plenty of lush vegetation to look at as we walked. It was another sunny day, and I was beginning to think those were the only type of days the planet of Zalia had. I hadn’t seen one speck of rain since we’d arrived, but I knew from the water on the planet that it had to rain sometimes.
I could tell the guards were growing tired as we traveled, but I just smiled happily and continued to steer the ATV Sef’sla and I rode on. Akela and Neka rode another one of the vehicles, and while we could have easily outrun the guards, it was more fun to watch them glare at us while we rolled easily along beside them.
Eventually, a castle rose up in the distance, though it made the one we’d just come from seem tiny. This structure was practically a town in itself, and the city surrounding it was three times as large as any we’d seen so far.
A sign on my left had foreign words printed on it that I assumed were Gelm writing.
“O,” I said into my earpiece.
“Yes, Colby?” the AI replied.
“Can you translate that sign for me?”
“I can do anything,” he replied, and I rolled my eyes at him.
“Well, can you do it in five seconds?” I laughed.
“The sign says ‘Kingdom of Iilmea’,” the AI informed me.
“Right,” I said.
“And I believe that was two point one seconds.”
“Thanks, O,” I said with another roll of my eyes, and I cut the comms.
As we grew closer to the city, I saw people gathered outside in the streets, and I wondered what kind of welcome we would receive. If this was the home of the Elphad, then I didn’t imagine it would be good. We were being brought to trial on the charge of using magic to heal people, so I doubted anyone lived long after opposing those who spoke for the gods.
“We are almost to the city now,” Lord Anix called from his carriage, and he turned to look at us with a wicked grin. “Your punishment is nigh.”
“This guy is hell bent on punishing us,” Akela muttered.
“I still don’t understand what we’ve done wrong,” Sef’sla sighed.
“Me, either,” Neka agreed with a nod.
“We didn’t do anything wrong,” I assured them. “We’ll get this all cleared up soon.”
Once we reached the city, it was clear the citizens were torn. Some of them shouted at us and were obviously angry, but others stood with pleading eyes. One in particular, a young Gelm boy, stared up at me with hopeful eyes as we passed, and he placed his arm over an older woman’s shoulders as she coughed and wheezed.
I realized some of the citizens feared us, and those were the obvious followers of the zealots, but others hoped we truly did have medicine. As much as the rich and powerful wanted to ignore it, their people were dying in the streets from the plague that had overtaken them years ago. It was a wonder the royalty wasn’t sick, though I wondered if maybe they’d been sick but had already passed and been replaced.
It wouldn’t surprise me either way.
The castle grew more massive and ominous as we approached. Even though it was a beautiful, sunny day, it was almost like the castle itself had a gloom over it. It could have been because of the deep, black stone it was made from, but I felt something else in my gut.
The gates of the castle were huge, and I could tell they were meant to keep the commoners out. The walls around the place were made of tall brick and appeared to be impenetrable, and as we walked, I got the sense I might have been wrong about the king. If he was unwilling to listen to us, then we would have a major problem. I hoped he was a king who took his subjects’ needs into consideration, but from the size of the castle, I couldn’t be sure. I had to remind myself, though, that this structure was probably built a long time ago, and any reigning king would live there.
Still, I didn’t like it.
Two knights with deep silver armor opened the gate for us, and once more Lord Anix turned around to flash us his unnerving grin. I knew he was excited about the punishment he felt we deserved.
I turned to look at my girls before we entered. Akela’s eyes were hard, and her jaw was set with determination. Neka bit her lip, with her orange ears pressed against her head with apprehension, and Sef’sla, ever the princess, held her head high and stared forward with unwavering dignity.
I was incredibly proud to have these women on my team, and even more proud to have them as my partners. They were intelligent, beautiful creatures who deserved the world, and I only hoped I would be able to give it to them.
So, I gave them a wide smile, and then I throttled the ATV and rolled through the gate.
The other side of the castle wall was a stark contrast to the city behind us. Where the city was dirty and dingy, the castle courtyard was lush and full of life. There was a large garden and a pond to the right of us, and I shook my head once more at the greed that had obviously overtaken the rulers of this planet.
After we parked the carriage and ATVs, we were ushered up a set of stone steps and inside a set of double doors. Once again, we found ourselves in a throne room, but this time there were three thrones in front of us instead of just the one. A deep red fabric with gold accents lined the floor, and large pieces of it hung between the windows.
It was then I noticed the sigil. There, on a large piece of fabric that hung above the three thrones, was the same sigil the assassin the woods had worn on his robes.
I turned to glance at Akela, and she returned my look of shock. If this was the king’s castle, then that meant either he or the Elphad were out to kill us. I couldn’t be sure yet who the sigil belonged to, but it was royalty of some sort, and that didn’t bode well for us.
We made the long walk across the throne room until we were about five meters from the thrones themselves. They sat at the top of a small flight of stairs, so they were even further above the room itself and all the people in it.
Once we were in place, a knight who stood at the side of the thrones beat a small, metal staff on the ground several times.
“What does that mean?” Neka whispered to me.
“Silence!” the knight yelled, and I narrowed my eyes at him.
I could hear fear in Neka’s voice, and her orange ears fell flat against her head when the knight yelled at her. All I wanted to do was pull her into me and assure her it would all be alright. Unfortunately, we had a job to do here, so that would have to wait. In the meantime, I reached out and rubbed her back for a second, and she leaned her head against my arm.
After a moment of unnecessary silence, four knights led three Gelm I assumed were the Elphad to the thrones. The one on the far right had light gray skin and wore a robe of a deep, ruby red with a gold trim. Large, black horns sat atop his head, and his throat and hands were covered in jewels. Once again, I was sure some of them were mior stones.
The Gelm on the far left matched the one on the right, but it was the one who sat in the middle that was far more interesting. He wore a robe made totally of gold fabric, and his jewels were the most extravagant I’d seen thus far, with more mior than either of his companions. This Gelm had a deep, gray skin tone, much darker than the Elphad at his sides, and while his horns were a dark black color, they were not very large and were far less impressive than the others.
“You are in the presence of the Elphad themselves,” the knight at the side of the thrones intoned, and he banged his staff on the floor once more. “Residing is Elphad Jix.”
The Gelm on the right took a small bow.
“Elphad Rim,” the knight continued, and the one on the left took a small bow. “And Leader of the Godsmen, Elphad Shaso.”
At this point, the Gelm in the middle stood up and took a deep bow. Lord Anix was the only outsider in the room besides the knights, and he clapped with an annoying level of enthusiasm before Shaso finally returned to his seat.
The Elphad whispered amongst themselves for a moment, then the one in the middle turned to my group with narrowed eyes.
“You are the demon we have heard tale of,” the one they called Shaso said, and it obviously was not a question, but rather an accusation.
“Not exactly,” I replied, and I put on a grand broker smile to try and ease the tension I felt in the room. “My name is CT, and this is my crew. We came to your planet to--”
“I care not about what you call yourself,” he hissed. “I know who you are.”
“High Elphad,” I tried, “sir, if you would allow me to explain, I think you will find we are not enemies of you, or of the gods.”
“If you were not enemies of the gods, then you would know The Gray Cough is a punishment sent here from above,” he spat.
“What have the people done to deserve such a punishment?” I asked.
Sometimes it worked better to go along with the bullshit rather than fight against it. Perhaps I could show him I was on his side, and still provide a chance to heal his people.
“The same thing as yourself and your demon crew,” Shaso said with narrowed eyes, and he regarded Neka, Akela, and Sef’sla with disgust, which made my blood boil. “You and your demons have gone against the gods, much the same as our people outside. We were to be punished until the prophecy came to fruition.”
So, now there was a prophecy.
I inwardly rolled my eyes at the ridiculous nature of these Gelm. They didn’t care about their people, they only cared about the false words of their gods and prophecies. It didn’t matter to them how many innocent people died outside of the cast
le walls, they just attributed it to the gods’ work.
“Our prophecy foretold of a falling star,” the Elphad on the right, Jix, added with a small smile. “A falling star that would come when the Gelm were at their weakest. This star marks the end of the world as we know it.”
“And the prophecy has been fulfilled,” Shaso said, and he looked up to the sky. “Just four days ago, we saw the star, and we have received the signs from the gods.”
Wait … four days ago?
Sudden realization slammed into me.
Oh shit, so we were the prophecy now. The Lacuna Noctis was the falling star they thought they saw, which meant we had inadvertently marked the end of the world on Zalia.
Not off to a stellar start.
“Actually,” I said and took a small step forward, “I believe the star you saw was my ship as it arrived on your planet. And as far as The Gray Cough, my crew and I have medicine that will help those who are ill.”
“It’s true,” Sef’sla hissed from beside me. “I believe your gods would want your people to be healed. Have they not suffered enough?”
“Do not speak here, demon!” Shaso shouted at Sef’sla, and I pushed the Almort princess behind me and locked eyes with the Elphad leader.
That outburst made my heart speed up. Where the common people of Zalia had been kind and accepting of all of us, their leaders were so closed minded they regarded all of us as demons. It was this kind of closed mindedness that had led to all the wars back on Old Earth.
“Please,” I said after a deep, steadying breath. “We have a way to help your people who are ill. You may visit the village we provided medicine to and see we have healed those who were afflicted by The Gray Cough. We have the medicine with us, we could heal those in your city as well. You would be the heroes of your people. The ones who brought them the cure to their ailment.”
“Silence!” Shaso shouted, and I felt my jaw set.
It seemed even the promise of the affection of his people wasn’t enough to make him pause. I should have known.
“There is only one way to cure the Gelm,” Elphad Rim said. “We must provide a sacrifice to appease the Gods.”