Deviance of Time

by Dan O'Brien

  “Can’t we ever get a break?” called Rider as he attempted to right himself on the shifting plains. “Wei, do you have the book?”

  “No. We can’t let them get it back.” Wei turned and began to scour the ground around him to see if the book had fallen. The familiar shine of a spacecraft in the atmosphere caught his eye, distracting him from his search. “Rider, look up there. Someone is coming.”

  Rider’s eyes followed Wei’s hand. The gleam was getting closer to the surface. The craft lowered and came to a halt, the ship slowly descending to the ground. It hit hard, a sign of a bad pilot.

  The hatch creaked open and the interior of the ship was encrusted with dust. The demons settled out of the air and moved their attention to the ship. Reftein extended his hand. He held the transparent book. Edge and Hocher disembarked from the craft and walked forward to greet Reftein. He bowed to them and handed the book to Hocher. Edge yelled something to Reftein, and all of the demons were airborne again.

  The ship was gone again in an instant.

  Wei moved beside Rider and grabbed his arm. “I think that we just lost the book,” he said, powering up his bio armor to full. “Now we can just concentrate on fighting our way out.”

  The green aura surrounded Rider once again, and the energy flowed so immensely that his eyes shone like obsidian. His hands glowed and he hovered above the ground by about a meter. He looked at Wei. “Let’s do this now. Then we’ll find Mela and that damned book.”

  Rider flew forward and was met by the barrage of demons. His figure blinked out and then materialized again directly behind the first of the demons. As the demon turned around to find him, it was obliterated by the energy flow from Rider’s hands.

  Not breaking stride, Wei struck a demon with his crimson sword and sliced another in half. Grabbing the black mane that flowed from its misshapen skull, he brought his sword against a creature’s throat and sliced off its head.

  Rider looked over at his friend who, in one hand was grasping the severed head of a demon and in the other wielding a sword with all the fury of the universe. Rider let loose a volley of energy blasts that erased each demon from existence.

  All that remained was Reftein, alone.

  He stood in the carnage of wings, and, for one moment, Rider thought he smelled the demon’s fear. Rider came to a hovering stop. He raised his hand and the green energy began to swirl about him. The energy destroyed everything in its path, extending far into the atmosphere, and then Rider called it back and made a dome that covered him and Wei.

  “Reftein, I will give you the one courtesy you did not have the decency to show us. Surrender now, and we will leave this world, and you with it,” called Rider through the vibration of energy.

  “Never,” roared Reftein, as he rose up on his mighty wings, flapping against the current of the energy flow. Rider’s aura began to glow a deeper emerald, and he hovered a few meters above the ground. Unable to hold out any longer, he reached his hands into the sky, and the dome surrounding them began to shimmer.

  Rider let loose a frightening scream that made the land quiver and the sheer impact of his voice knocked Reftein back. The dome pulled itself thin and extended straight up into the atmosphere and then began to radiate out, destroying all that lay in its path until the glow descended upon Reftein and erased him from this world and the next.

  Reftein’s body dimmed and disintegrated into billions of particles that were absorbed by the emerald aura originating from Rider. The demon did not even have a chance to emit a cry of defeat. Rider fell to the ground in a crouch and stayed there for a moment, trying to center himself, his breathing ragged.

  “Are you okay, Rider?” asked Wei as he tried to pull his friend to his feet. Rider just kneeled, motionless, as if he were unable to function any longer. “That was incredible, how were you able to wield so much energy?”

  “The crystal ….”

  “The one the demons use as a power source?”

  “There is something in that crystal, it told me ….”

  “What did it tell you?”

  “It told me that I was destined to stop Xzin. That I was a child of time.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “I don’t know, but it has something to do with the book.”

  “The book is well on its way to Baldor by now, no doubt,” replied Wei, looking up into the sky, as though he could reach out and bring the ship back here with only a glance.

  “I ….” began Rider, his steps wobbly and his eyes glazed as though he were on the brink of unconsciousness. Wei caught his friend; a worried glance spread across his usually focused features.

  “What’s wrong?” queried Wei urgently.

  “The darkness ….”

  “What darkness? Rider, you are growing cold,” spoke Wei in shock. He had grasped his friend’s hand and he felt the cool chill that had passed over him, the icy hand of death was all Wei could compare it to.

  “The darkness has come for me, and I cannot stop it,” replied Rider dreamily, his eyes stark white again, as they had been when Mela had been taken at the casino.

  “You aren’t making any sense,” urged Wei. “This is not the time to fall to pieces. We need action now.”

  “I am no more,” whispered Rider as his body slid from his friend’s arms and onto the ground below their figures. Wei looked wide-eyed at the collapsed heap that was his friend.

  Wei hoisted his friend upon his right shoulder as he energized his shadow armor and made his way through the gales to locate their only chance off this rock, the Quicksilver.

  * * * * *

  What have I done? thought Rider. I put Wei and, even worse, the woman I love, in danger just to satisfy some petty revenge. What am I going to do if I lose her again? What if it’s forever this time?

  You are a fool, called a voice from deep within his mind.

  Rider’s world was evaporating quickly. He could no longer see his surroundings. He felt himself falling as if he would never stand again.

  The voice began calling to him again.

  You will never make it. You are no hero; you are a failure.

  I will, I have to, pleaded Rider to the invader of his mind.

  You are nothing. You will never harness truth, laughed the voice manically.

  You are not the dictator of my actions, screamed Rider, lashing out wildly with his arms.

  I am the master of time and space. I control everything. It is you who controls nothing, called the voice, tearing Rider’s mind apart.

  I will save the people I love. You cannot stop me, roared Rider, fighting against the engulfing darkness.

  You are a fool, and in time you shall see the folly of your ways, mocked the voice again. Rider felt the darkness choking the life out of him.

  The invisible hold wrenched tighter until the darkness began to fade and familiar warmth came over him. He felt distant from his body, his mind a separate entity no longer governed by the ways of the flesh.

  He swam within these translucent tides, his mind’s eye remembering a time to which he truly had no memory. He envisioned himself as a child, yet there was no childhood that Rider could recall.

  The events of his life up until now regressing further and further back in time, sometimes cryptic blinks of his fallen existence and other times beautiful visions that served as guiding lights when he was at his lowest. Rider’s mind drifted away until finally it was the way when he was born, his body just gave up and he moved in to an eternal light. He swayed dreamily in the tides of his mind.

  * * * * *

  Wei walked along the barren earth near the monolith. Where the ship was, he could no longer tell. He laid Rider to the side and sighed hard, the anger and frustration clouding his judgment. His thoughts churned like his muscles.

  “James Rider,” called a distant, whispered voice.

  Wei’s head went up because he could hear the voice, his head moving from one direction to another. “Who’s there?”

&nbs
p; “You need to return to us, James Rider,” called the voice again, still so very distant. The voice almost sounded familiar, as if it had been heard before.

  “Identify yourself,” called Wei over the roaring winds, as he drew his crimson blade and brandished it with both his hands.

  “You must return because you are in great turmoil.” This time Wei recognized the voice, it sounded like an aged version of Xzin.

  “Damn you, Xzin, no more mind games,” roared Wei menacingly, slashing his blade at nothing.

  Rider’s body shifted and grew pale, almost translucent. Wei raced to his friend’s side, placing his hand on the slowly rising chest.

  Wei felt energy pass over him.

  He raised his free hand to his face and turned it in front of his eyes, marveling at the same quality of translucence that Rider’s body now possessed. He could hear a sucking sound growing closer, and Wei used his frame to cover Rider’s.

  When he looked up again, he saw that they had been consumed, their forms careening through darkness and leaving the land of Nevar far behind them. Rider’s eyes were wide open, but had the same stark white consistency as before, a sight that worried Wei even more so as he peered out into the flowing darkness.

  * * * * *

  The emerald ship landed with a defiant hiss, and the landing ramp creaked, the sign of an ill-maintained ship. Edge and Hocher stumbled clumsily from the darkened confines of the ship, their faces shadowed by blackness.

  The docking platform was empty with the exception of one form: a miniscule, delicate shadow of a man. He hobbled forward and raised his hands to adjust his glasses upon his twisted, crusted nose.

  “Did you retrieve the Dark Compendium?” asked the decrepit figure.

  “We did indeed, Delgado,” called Edge, handing the book to the crooning form. Delgado slithered forward and reached for the book. He exhaled sharply under its weight and clutched it closely to his frame, turning away from the two men without so much as another word. Edge and Hocher exchanged glances and made their way into Xzin’s domain, their weapons energized and drawn.

  “The hidden path is not necessarily righteous. Some things are left hidden to protect the Light, and to take such a path under the pretense of understanding is death.”

  -Proverb of the followers of Exodus

  The energy faded and dimmed as they materialized inside the dense mists of Xeon. Winds kicked up the air and drove the clouds across the land, causing the mist to swirl. The light patter of footsteps echoed against the shallow breathing of Rider.

  Wei drew his blade slowly, the deep crimson glow of the steel reflecting against the drab gray of the mist. The footfalls sounded louder now and Wei held Rider upright against him. Rider’s body jerked violently and began to glow the same clear green as when they were fighting the demons on Nevar.

  His body rose ever so slowly, and the ground beneath them stirred. The dust mixed with mist, changing it from gray to green. The footfalls halted and the distinctive sound of a weapon being drawn permeated the mist.

  Soon, the entire area glowed with the same gentle emerald. The footfalls neared and increased in speed. It seemed there were scores of people about them. Wei swung his saber from one side to the other, anticipating the oncoming assault, but as the green light dimmed, other colors entwined themselves from within the mist until there was a cornucopia of shades and colors. Wei turned toward the hovering body of his friend.

  “Learnsman Rider,” called out a voice from the mist.

  “Yes, James Rider is here,” replied Wei, extending his hands out into the rainbow of colors, searching for the voice.

  “You are not James Rider,” replied the voice simply.

  “I am Jonathon Wei. I have brought James Rider. He is hurt, and we need your help,” called Wei as he searched blindly in the mist for a face to go with the voice.

  As if the hands of gods reached in, the mist receded suddenly, and Wei could see twenty or so figures within meters. One stepped forward and placed the butt of his staff upon the ground.

  “I am Herado,” stated the man, allowing his features to be seen by Wei. “I am the father of Hira Xzin. James Rider is of our family now. Follow me.” Herado turned and made his way back through the mist. Wei followed him. Rider floated along, aided by some of the other inhabitants of Xeon.

  “Why have you remained in hiding all of these years?”

  Herado merely bowed his head in and extended his hands toward the heavens above. “There was a time when the people of Xeon attempted to venture out into space and colonize, but our first launch resulted in scorn and hatred from the people of the universe. We decided to remain separate from you and your ways. Our powers exceed those other beings possessed. We can manipulate the universe in a way no mortal can, except for James Rider, that is,” finished Herado, sighing softly.

  “Then why has Xzin taken it upon himself to obliterate our universe?” asked Wei, a noticeable edge to his voice.

  “My son was a very headstrong man, and he refused our peaceful ways and sought power. His greed led him to long for more power. The ultimate power can only be brought forth by the Dark Compendium, which I gather he already possesses.” Herado’s face grew dark and his heavy eyelids closed. His breath slowed, as if reaching into his soul for an explanation.

  Wei shuddered, feeling Herado’s mind pulling on his own as if searching for a path long forgotten. “I fear that he has already initiated the powers of the Compendium, and once those final passages are spoken, there can be no reversal.”

  Wei stood in stunned silence. His shoulders sagged as the weight of the universe’s peril dumped upon his mortal frame.

  * * * * *

  The ceremonial tower crested the grand castle of Xzin, and the energy surrounding it hung viciously, alive and willing to eviscerate anyone who trespassed. The tower was magnificently contrasted, comprised entirely of a stained, transparent alloy that reflected the rebounding energy storm and accented the trials within.

  Delgado seemed to crawl across the ground as if his body could not support itself. Edge and Hocher moved cautiously behind Delgado, their eyes darting from one corner of the sky to the other. They almost cried out when the sky exploded in a flash of purple lightning.

  Silence dominated the inner tower.

  Xzin stood in the center of a ring of candles that shone emerald green. He wore a hooded robe with his hands tucked into his sleeves creating the image of a single circle. The candles lent very little light to the room, and only the shadows of men could be seen. When Xzin turned to his guests, his face was shrouded by darkness. Delgado knelt before his master and did not raise his head.

  “Have you brought me the book?” Xzin’s voice bounced off the walls and echoed through the dark silence.

  “Yes, my master,” replied Delgado simply.

  He placed the book in Xzin’s hands.

  “The Rose and his companions have been erased, I gather,” called Xzin, turning his back on Delgado and pacing to the altar to place the book. Edge cleared his throat nervously and stepped forward, in desperation rather than confidence.

  “They were too strong for the demons on Nevar. The companion of the Black Rose truly is James Rider,” whispered Edge, in the vain hope that his master would not eradicate him where he stood.

  “Rider is powerful, you say?” began Xzin, bringing his gaze upon the crumpled form of Mela. “How strange that he rushed to defeat me when I could grant him ultimate power. No matter. If he makes it this far, make sure he goes no further.” Xzin’s eyes blazed beneath the shadow of the hood and his eyes reflected the evil that he wished to unleash upon the universe.

  * * * * *

  The city of Xeon was nothing like the history books and tabloid papers described; it was the landmark of a dwindled civilization. At one time, it probably glittered in the darkness, but now with rationed supplies and no connection to the outside universe, it was little more than a museum, a catalogue of a lost race.

  The city buildings
were small and made in a crude adobe fashion. The fields were a sickly blue, not green as on other worlds. Their procession made its way down the hill and toward a large dome structure with a dull, gray exterior. The dome appeared to be a half of a sphere of ore ending deep in the earth.

  Herado was the first to enter the building, followed closely by the hovering body of Rider and its assistants. Herado raised his massive hands in front of him. The doors closed behind him and the other Xeonians milled about. Wei looked around, unsure of the surroundings.

  What can I do? The thought echoed; the words were hollow in his mind. Wei felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to find himself eye-to-eye with an unfamiliar member of the Xeonians.

  “I am Madon. I was learnsman Rider’s teacher. He is the strongest mortal I have ever known, both in body and mind.” The man turned as if he was going to leave.

  Wei stopped him. “Is he gone?” Wei felt like a small child asking the question.

  “He has fought the only true battle one can fight: with himself, and his mind has lost. I fear that even Herado will be able to do nothing for him.” Madon’s head bowed slightly in reverence of a comrade lost.

  “Without Rider, we can’t stop Xzin,” replied Wei, aghast.

  “The Dark Compendium states that upon the speaking the passages, a chain reaction will be started that cannot be stopped. Perhaps we were simply too late.”

  The masked sun of Xeon glowed with an eerie tint as if the heavens were falling. “It has begun. The tides of time are offset, and we do not have any options left.” Madon looked up at the eclipsed sun and the vanishing stars with sorrow in his eyes.

  “All is lost,” said Wei in defeat. The blackened sky reached far into the heavens and blended through to the blackness of space and on through the universe, crashing through stars and planets.