Deviance of Time

by Dan O'Brien

“Take them out. Make sure they do not leave here alive,” ordered Edge to the anxious troop of soldiers. Hocher held Mela in his arms and he started out the doors, but Rione placed her hand on Edge’s chest to stop him.

  “We were supposed to capture all three of them. Dead was not part of the equation,” scolded Rione angrily, her eyes staring through Edge.

  Edge smacked away her hand and leveled a finger at her. “I don’t have time for this. If you want to stay and test your luck with the two of them combined then you are more than welcome. If nothing else, we need to keep them occupied so we can get out of here.”

  “Fine,” spat Rione as she spun on her heels and followed Hocher and Edge out the door. Rider could see the exchange from across the room, but the legion of soldiers at his front kept him from progressing.

  “Move aside,” roared Rider, his voice rebounding off the walls as he heard the thrusters engage, and then the ship lift off into the atmosphere. The soldiers were indistinguishable beneath their purple masks and armor, they merely moved forward.

  “No time for discussion, old friend. There is only one way to end this,” reasoned Wei as Rider grew angrier and angrier, his power exponential compared to when he had first come back.

  His aura radiated out and consumed both Wei and himself, the translucent dome reflecting the volley of fire that the legion released upon them. Rider began to rise into the air, his power driving him from the ground, as he did so the dome disappeared and once it had dissipated completely he fell to the ground in a crouch, his eyes completely white, the trails of emerald no more.

  “Rider,” whispered Wei incredulously.

  “Now,” snarled Rider as he moved forward in a flash, his body moving from one point to another as if by teleportation. His hands were energized once again and he slammed his fists into the soldiers, each blow knocking a foe far into the surrounding walls.

  Wei’s crimson sword blazed and slashed through the air creating intricate carvings as he struck down soldier after soldier. For every man Wei struck down, Rider vaporized three or more. The battle lasted mere moments, and Wei saw the last soldier in Rider’s grasp. He was being held high in the air by the scruff of his uniform, and Rider held his free hand a short distance from the man’s face, the energy radiating out and searing the mask that guarded the man’s features.

  “Rider,” called Wei from across the room as he ran toward his friend, his armor powering down as he came to Rider’s side. “Put him down. You’ve killed enough.”

  “I’ve killed enough? It will never be enough. These fools never stop, so neither shall I,” retorted Rider turning toward Wei. Rider’s face was consumed by the energy now. His stark white pupils and featureless face was a horrid sight.

  The man struggled beneath Rider’s grip as his attention was upon Wei. The soldier attempted to draw his pistol. As he did so, Rider’s energy fluxed one last time and consumed the soldier, erasing him from existence. Rider fell to his knees, his energy leaving him, and Wei placed a hand on his shoulder.

  “What was that all about?”

  “I don’t know. It is happening again. I am going to lose everything again.”

  “Rider, what are you talking about?”

  “They are light years from here now. All of that training for what; to watch those two bastards take Mela from me again. I am going to get her back. This will end.”

  “Calm down, Rider. We have to figure out a plan. The choices we make will determine Mela’s fate and ours as well.”

  “I know what I must do,” replied Rider coldly.

  “What happened, why were you so consumed?”

  “The voice was mocking me for allowing Mela to be taken. I couldn’t bear it, rage took over,” answered Rider defensively. Wei looked at his friend with confusion and turned away, not wanting to place his accusing gaze upon him.

  “You speak as though you are tormented.”

  “I am. This voice plagues me always, sapping my strength and threatening my sanity. It is too much sometimes. I don’t know if I can handle it. The power takes over and then I can only react,” replied Rider, his eyes drained completely of the strength he had moments before.

  “I can see that. You must fight this voice. To lose to one’s own fears is to lose your mind. You must fight back.”

  “I know,” replied Rider. He turned back to the charred exit. “We really need to be on our way.”

  “One question.”

  “Hmm?”

  “How did you free-fall seventy meters without any armor back on Earth III?”

  “On the night of that assault on Baldor’s moon, I made my way to the Dark Realm and eventually to the planet Xeon.”

  “Planet Xeon?”

  “They trained me in their ways – powers of the mind and body – in order to combat Xzin. Their leader warned me that my powers would ebb here in the human world unless I could remain focused.”

  “Don’t give up hope just yet, my friend. I think I know where they are going, or at least a place to start looking for some answers.”

  “Where?”

  “You remember the last words Heiko spoke?”

  “Vaguely.”

  “He mentioned the Dark Compendium. There is a book by such a name capable of merging realms and bringing forth the Dark Lord Chaos.”

  “Merging realms? I just want to get Mela back.”

  “Well, if Xzin is indeed looking for the Dark Compendium, and he sent those two idiots after it, we may be able to beat them there. We could get Mela back and keep them from getting the book.”

  “Won’t merging the realms destroy us?”

  Rider felt confused. It wasn’t that he did not understand physics and complicated conceptual mathematics, but he found when he began to ponder such things that his mind slipped away to the plane of angles, where science dominated his being.

  “Precisely, I doubt that Xzin knows the magnitude of the ritual he is performing.”

  “You said there was a place to begin looking?”

  “Nevar. The Demons of Nevar housed the Dark Compendium for thousands of years. It was never meant to be seen by the living, but somehow Xzin got a hold of it. If anyone can give us answers, it would be them.”

  “How difficult is it going to be to get information from them?”

  “Depends on how subtle you are.”

  “I can do subtle.”

  This brought a grin to both of their faces.

  * * * * *

  The hills of Fasen Minor were beautiful even under the cover of night. The moon lit a path through the sullen hills. To anyone else the silence would have been alarming, but to Mela Alvarez it was as though the world had come to a complete stop, magnificent because she could spend each moment without fear of it passing.

  A mist flowed over the hills and surrounded her as she ventured through the night. In the distance, a form shimmered as if a beacon to follow. The closer she got, the more familiar the man appeared, and the brighter the light seemed.

  Within meters of the figure, she called out, but received no answer. Frustrated, she began to run, but in her haste the figure seemed to move away from her. She screamed at the top of her lungs for the man to stop, but she had no control over the fleeting image.

  “Mela,” something called from beyond.

  “James, is that you?” cried out Mela. She halted and searched the mist for some sign of him. Again she saw the shimmering, unreachable figure.

  “Mela, where are you?” called the voice again.

  “I’m here. Come to me, please, I need you.” Mela fell to her knees and began to sob softly into her hands. The flickering form finally drew nearer, a mere meter away.

  “Mela, I can’t see you. Where are you?”

  The voice sounded urgent.

  The shimmer changed to a deep purple.

  “James, it is you, isn’t it? I’m scared, and I need you. Please come to me.” Mela turned to face the glittering figure as it made its way toward her. Purple changed to brilliant
red, and Mela could finally make out the features. It was, indeed, James Rider, but he looked haggard, and the clothes he wore were not of a world she knew. “James, please talk to me. I need you, and I love you. Please come back to me.”

  The figure seemed to look through and around Mela as though she were not there at all. Without warning, the figure disappeared from view.

  * * * * *

  Mela blinked her eyes sleepily. Her view of the metallic interior of the spaceship was hazy. The room was small, and a cot lay in the corner with no blanket upon it. She realized that she was lying on the floor naked.

  Her eyes searched the room for something to cover herself. She spotted a blanket on a chair at the opposite end of the domicile. She immediately moved to the chair and wrapped herself. As she turned again, the door slid open to reveal one of the men from the casino. He looked at her with a disgusting grin that showed his razor-sharp teeth and pointed tongue.

  “Who are you?” asked Mela, meeting the man’s gaze.

  He didn’t answer.

  “Why have you kidnapped me?” called Mela again.

  Still no answer.

  “Answer me, dammit.”

  The man moved farther into the room, reached into his coat, and produced his blaster. He pointed it at Mela and motioned for her to move.

  She rose slowly and raised one hand above her head. The other hand maintained a tight grip on the blanket. They walked in silence through the metallic corridors of the ship. There was no light in the craft. Mela tried to remember this hunter’s name, but the trauma had rendered it a distant, unrecoverable memory.

  He motioned for her to enter a door at the end of the corridor. Behind the far door was the grinning visage of Xzin. Mela froze. If it weren’t for the shove from the razor-toothed man behind her, she would not have moved at all.

  It took a moment for Mela to realize it was a holographic figure of Xzin that she was looking at. The holograph’s eyes seemed to glow a piercing red color and its gaze caused Mela to shiver as though a cold breeze had swept across the room.

  “The ever-evasive Starhawk, or should I call you Captain Alvarez?” Xzin’s words echoed throughout the room.

  “The murdering pig Xzin,” replied Mela, gathering her wits to return Xzin’s icy stare.

  Xzin merely shifted his weight from one foot to another.

  “Very well, now that we have gotten past the pleasantries we may get to business. I have hunted for you for quite some time. I wanted to thank you for your past failures. They have been crucial to my successful rule.”

  Xzin paused for a moment.

  “We would have succeeded if not for your little worm Welvon,” retorted Mela, trying to contain the emotion in her voice.

  Xzin allowed himself to smile and take a breath before continuing. “Yes, Welvon was useful in his time. It still stands, however, that your pathetic little Alpha Zero members were the only ones who could have changed this course of history, and you failed.”

  “You murdering bastard. You slaughtered heedlessly those who got in your path, as well as those who just happened to be nearby. Maybe now we will finally rectify your wrongs.”

  “Such strong words. You are in no position to make idle threats.”

  “Idle? We will kill you this time.”

  “Such brashness for our first meeting. You will be surprised at the power I possess, and it’s only growing stronger.”

  “You are a fool. Whatever power you believe you have will be taken from you. You are nothing more than a miserable tyrant with ridiculous aspirations, a madman seeking surreal powers.”

  The visage of Xzin darkened slightly from Mela’s verbal slap, but he merely smiled back with his ravenous grin. “On to more pertinent matters: the reason you are here.”

  “Why am I here? You could have taken us all, why take only me?”

  “So many questions,” scoffed Xzin’s visage. “Your foolish companions are going to scour the universe following the clues I left them and the paths that I have already chosen.”

  “What?”

  “You are merely bait. I made sure Heiko would utter the proper words before dying. Edge and Hocher can be quite persuasive when they want to be.”

  “All this to lure Rider and Wei into a trap?”

  “I need the Dark Compendium, and I am betting that the two of them will locate it first in order to keep it from me. You are merely an interesting little addition to my plans for your universe.”

  “You monster,” replied Mela, her eyes narrowed and her face twisted into a grimace.

  “There’s a problem with that, boss,” interrupted Edge quietly, his head lowered.

  “What is it?” boomed Xzin, visibly annoyed with his moronic underling.

  “Both Wei and Rider were there at the casino, and they were a bit too much for us to handle, so we left a regiment there,” spoke Edge slowly, each word harder than the previous.

  “You fool, I told you alive. I wanted them alive.” Xzin looked as though he was going to say more, but he raised his hand calling for silence. “Enough. I will see you when you arrive.” Xzin’s figure shimmered and disappeared, and with it went Mela’s composure.

  * * * * *

  The world of Nevar was shrouded in darkness except for a red, flowing mass that crawled across the surface as though it had a soul of its own, blood boiling and intestines toiling. The Quicksilver slid through the crimson giant and crawled close to the surface, scouring the area for a place to land. As they came over the ridge, they saw a pillar reaching up into the heavens. Much like the planet of Xeon, the crimson serpent that caressed the sky was merely a cover for what lay beneath the clouds on the surface.

  The land was sour brown, and there was no foliage in sight, but there was definitely life; the pillar was evidence enough. The Quicksilver came half tilt to a halt and gracefully extended its landing claw and attached itself to the surface. The atmospheric hatch erupted from the pressure of the oxygen and the gleaming ramp thrust itself into the earth. There was no sun caressing the ground on this world, and the ship’s interior remained shrouded in the darkness of the land.

  “This place gives me the creeps,” Rider called to Wei. “What is the matter? What is taking so long?” Rider was standing on the ramp, waiting.

  “Sorry,” replied Wei as he stepped out from the shadows of the ship. Wei had already activated his bio-armor. Rider cast him a sidelong glance, and Wei smiled back.

  “Well, I guess we should head for the pillar. What do you think?”

  “The Nevar people are subterranean. They were once quite powerful, the chosen ones that first received the Dark Compendium.”

  “So why did the people of Nevar let the book go?”

  “Good question. I think our answers lie there,” replied Wei, pointing into the distance at the only defining landmark on the landscape.

  The monolith stood like a stone gargoyle on the walls of ancient cathedrals, ominous in appearance. The surrounding land smelled burnt and there seemed to be no life on the planet’s surface. A mass of dust particles resembling a passing cloud marked the trail of their ship. “Do they not cultivate the earth in any way? How could any civilization have existed here?” called Rider.

  Wei stood motionless, taking in the surroundings and processing the information. “Something, as is beginning to be common, feels wrong,” replied Wei.

  The air was calm, and the land was very still. Then, as if some divine power crept down upon them, the air thickened and a coarse wind blew. The howling soon rose to deafening levels. Rider had trouble maintaining his footing against the gale.

  “Wei, can you hear me?” called Rider.

  He tried to use the communicator, but all he got was static. Rider inhaled sharply in frustration, taking in some of the sand that was blowing across the land. He leaned forward and began to cough heavily, finally falling to one knee, clutching his throat.

  “Wei – there’s – something – in the – air,” gargled Rider as he collapsed on the
ground. The winds slowed and stilled. Wei lay upon the earth only a few meters from Rider. The doors of the monolith opened with tremendous force, and several hooded figures scurried out to the two unconscious men. The hooded individuals exchanged no words, but merely grabbed hold of Rider and Wei and carried them into the structure.

  * * * * *

  The purple candles cast an eerie glow.

  In the chamber’s center, Xzin was dressed in the ceremonial robes of Xeon. He was gracefully moving through the forms of J’yretu, the Ever Flowing. Practiced only by the Xeonians, it created an incredible focusing of energy. The room reflected his every movement as if he had become one with the shadows. Then, as if time had stopped itself, the shadows took shape and emerged from the wall. It was a man, and its mouth moved as though it were trying to speak.

  “Xzin.” The faceless form spoke his name.

  “How do you know my name, creature?” inquired Xzin, startled by its voice.

  “You are the harbinger of death,” replied the form. The form began to take more detail. Clothes became more apparent, and its posture started to slope.

  “Who are you to pass judgment? You are formless, less than nothing,” replied Xzin with a noticeable hint of fear in his words.

  “You know nothing. You believe yourself to be the most powerful, but you are ruled by cruelty and greed. You will never know truth,” laughed the shadow. The form shimmered once again and James Rider stood grinning before Xzin.

  “You will never defeat me. I hold all the cards,” replied Xzin, rising to his feet and pulling his robes close.

  “You may have the upper hand, but you do not control time, and you will lose that race I am afraid.”

  “I am the master of this realm,” shot back Xzin defiantly.

  “That may be, but this realm is weaker than many, and you shall be no more than a pawn in the Dark One’s games. You are a fool.”

  “Who are you? Do I know you?”

  “I am time. I am nothing. The question is: what are you?” mocked the voice.

  “How can you be here in my sacred place?”