by Riker Kane
Before I could finish, the ram finished the job, hitting me on my legs. Lyra grunted as she fell from my arms. I tumbled across the ground and rolled over onto my back. My body was sore from the impact and my head was dizzy.
“Virgil.” The familiar cool feeling of Zafina’s healing spell was followed by her looking down on me.
“A sight for sore eyes,” I sighed as I fired a Radiant Beam at a vulture trying to come at me. “This thing has a tough hide… Can’t slow it down.”
“What about Rhiannon?”
“I don’t wanna risk her taking that thing head-on, even with a Mana Fort.” I straightened up to my feet and dusted myself off. “We do it the old-fashioned way. It’s undead, so flames should hurt it.”
“Why do you assume that?”
“…Isn’t that how it works?”
Zafina raised an eyebrow at me.
“Never mind,” I said. “Just let me pin it down and we’ll hit it with everything we got.”
I ran forward to get the ram’s attention before it could focus on Rhiannon, who was busy fending off a group of vultures trying to peck her eyes out.
“Oh, man… That was a nasty trip…” Lyra pushed herself up to her feet and gathered her bow. “I guess you got a plan to beat this thing.”
“We beat it by force!” I yelled out to her. “Lyra, Zafina, take opposite sides of the plateau.”
They followed my instructions and moved across from each other.
“Rhiannon! When you see your opening!”
She cut through the last vulture pestering her then nodded to me.
I turned my attention to the ram as it moved to the center of the clearing. “All right, big fella. You might be unstoppable but you can only focus on one target at a time. This should work.” I summoned my Light Clone and ran alongside it, heading right toward the ram.
The ram roared and moved into a dash right toward my mimic as we both fired Radiant Beams. My clone landed right on the ram but didn’t slow it down. That didn’t matter. The light was enough to blind it long enough so that it couldn’t see where it was going. My beam hit its mark, tearing through the grass just as the ram passed through. The divot was big enough to trip the ram. It landed on its side but its momentum sent it careening forward like a car with no brakes.
“Take it down!”
Lyra and Zafina summoned their flames and fired on the ram’s exposed underside.
“Rhiannon!” I aimed a fireball at her.
In one motion, Rhiannon leapt into the air and caught my fireball with her dagger before plunging right into the undead ram’s broken face. It roared in pain, bucking violently on the ground.
“Let’s go!” I summoned a Black Viper and ordered it to latch onto one of the ram’s legs to hold it in place.
As Rhiannon continued to stab it in the face, Lyra and Zafina kept their assault going.
I ran around to the ram’s front and charged another Radiant Beam. “Rhiannon!”
The Mana Dancer dug her heels into the ram’s fleshy hide then pushed herself off with a cartwheel right as I fired. My aim was perfect, blasting the ram right between the eyes.
The ram screamed in pain, struggling to get up from its feet. I didn’t seem to be getting through. But as I focused on the iridescent beam, I could tell its face was breaking up. More of its rotten flesh melted and the rest of its skull slowly revealed itself.
“Rhiannon!”
I called her name out again and she leapt back into the air with a hard plunge back into the ram’s thick skull. As soon as she sank her dagger down all the way to her fist, the ram exploded into a shower of Mana.
The vultures circling burst just the same and drenched the grass with even more Mana. The dark cloud above cleared and the sun shined back down on us. Though the stench of the blood and bones around me stayed, I let out a deep breath of relief.
“Not bad,” Lyra said to me with a grin.
I winked back at her. “What would Nameno say if he found out I lost to a billy goat?”
“Virgil,” Rhiannon got my attention. “I think there is something here you should see.”
I walked with her toward the end of the plateau to where the wind was coming from. The path continued up the mountain but off to the side, there was a small cavern.
“I wonder what kind of killer mountain goat is waiting for us in there,” I said.
Rhiannon and I walked together into the cavern, which turned out to be shallow. Rhiannon pressed her hands against the walls and broke off a piece of the shiny surface. “This is ore. It smells of iron. And this darker ore to the side is copper.”
“Looks like we found what we’re looking for. We should start hauling this down so they can start processing it back at Haven—”
“Uh, Virgil.” Lyra’s voice interrupted me. “I think you’d better come out here.”
“Is something up?”
Why did I ask a question I already knew the answer to? Maybe I was just hoping she was joking. But I reluctantly stepped back outside of the cavern to find Zafina standing there.
She had her hands at her sides, a calm look on her face. I had to admire how calm she was, considering how she had about twenty arrows pointed right at her. And the guys aiming them were dressed in fancy-looking silver silk tunics and black leather pants.
They all glared at me, their weapons still pointed at Zafina. “Who are you?” one of the men said to me like a drill sergeant.
“My name’s Virgil. I’m guessing you guys are Nobles.”
“You are trespassing. You will be taken to face Queen Cellica.”
“Hmm… It’s funny. I was as rich as anybody back home but I never meet a queen before.”
I looked over at Rhiannon and Lyra. Neither of them laughed at my joke. So much for a silver lining.
14: Nobility
Despite twenty men in shiny silver threads pointing their arrows at me, I didn’t mind because they were escorting me away from the wind and the mass of decaying flesh. The blackened grass slowly changed back to the lush green I was used to as we ascended the mountain. And the higher we got, the closer the clouds got.
“Any chance any of you guys will tell me how much longer it’ll be?” I asked.
“Keep your mouth shut,” one of the men ordered.
“If you keep that attitude up, I don’t know if I want to go to this party you’re inviting us to.”
“Virgil…” Zafina said it softly under her breath. She was always the most diplomatic of us all. She gave me a reminder to stay quiet, though her subtle smile told me she wasn’t threatened by these men either.
So we walked for a few more minutes until we were so high I could reach out and touch the clouds. We moved through an open path straight through the clouds and when we emerged on the other side, I wondered if were still up in the mountains.
“What the…”
All around me, there were stone buildings straight out of a medieval fantasy. They weren’t the fanciest things I’d ever seen but considering I’d been staring at huts for the longest time, it was like I’d traveled to another world.
Gray stones and mortar made up dozens of homes where the townspeople made their living. They didn’t have the same fancy silk silver linens as my escort but their clothes were noticeably white and cleaner. Several fires burned with enough cauldrons bubbling over them that Yuma would’ve been jealous. The aroma of savory meats and spicy seasonings filled the air. They were joined by the scent of fresh flowers you’d only smell when you were at a florist or garden. I looked to the side along the edges of the village and saw the different colors of flowers lining the mountainsides surrounding the village.
“Nobles, huh?” I nodded in approval. “You guys are sure living up to your name—”
“Keep moving! You will have to answer to Queen Cellica.”
The escort managed to keep their arrows on us as we walked through the town. It was a sprawling village that looked to house a few hundred people. Each of them gawked at u
s, their faces full of fear and taken aback.
“Get a good look, you bums,” Lyra muttered. “You’re all Qashians just like me.”
“Patience,” Rhiannon said. “When they learn why we are here, they will see reason.”
“Good luck with that. The Nobles might just be as thick-headed as the raiders—”
“Quiet!” our escort said. “No more discussion.”
We headed through the center of the spacious village, walking along the green pathways until we made it toward the building at the edge of town. It was considerably larger than the others. A giant stone square like a medieval castle. Fitting, since everything else looked the same.
At the front of the castle, there was a large set of wooden doors that were guarded by even more of the men in silver linens. There appeared to be no shortage of silver or arrows in this place.
The guards at the door eyed us then pushed the doors open. The first thing I noticed inside was the long red carpet leading toward the center of the main hall made of gray stones. More pathways led deeper into the castle while two sets of stairs led to the floors above. In the short amount of time they’d been here, the Nobles managed to construct a sprawling mansion that would rival the Central Keep.
I walked along the red carpet and through another set of double doors into a room that looked like the Main Hall. There were even more guards lining the walls, though these ones had their bows harnessed over their shoulders. Among them, there were more townsfolk dressed in the fancy linens that were made from fine silk. Judging from their appearance, the mountains weren’t abundant in just ore.
They led us to the end of the room before eventually bringing us to a stop.
“Wait here,” one of the guards ordered.
“I can’t leave now,” I said. “It’s all been built up too much.”
In front of me was a lone chair. Whoever worked the silver it was made from knew what they were doing because it was etched with fancy designs. The armrests connected to the back to the seat itself had been twisted into something that belonged in an art gallery. And my mom always dragged me to art galleries to see fancy sculptures, so I knew a thing or two.
I waited patiently and it wasn’t long before a door at the side of the room opened up. The silence was broken by a couple of heels clicking against the stone floor.
I stared at the woman appearing. She wore a sleek, shining white dress made of sheer silk that hugged her slim figure. A slit on her legs revealed the pale thigh underneath but did just enough to hide everything else. I worked my eyes up her waist, past the cleavage of her round, supple chest, then toward her face. The way she glared at me, she must’ve thought I was staring at her body. I mean, I was staring at her body, but I wouldn’t expect a complete stranger to look at me callously because of it.
Her face was pale though her cheeks appeared to be powdered pink. The curls of her short blond hair were tucked underneath a small silver tiara. And it wasn’t one of those cheap tiaras you saw during Halloween. No, the glimmer coming from it indicated it might’ve been the most valuable thing in the entire village.
Her glare didn’t go away as she took a seat on her silver throne. Her head raised, she looked down her nose at me. “I am Queen Cellica,” she said, her voice full of the regal quality that matched her rigid posture. I knew it wasn’t the first time she ever addressed an audience. “Who are you?”
“I’m Virgil York. This is Rhiannon. That’s Zafina. And over there is Lyra. She’s a Qashian. Maybe you know each other.”
“…And what business do you have in Euphoria?”
“Euphoria?” I chuckled as I looked at the other guards. “That’s what you call this place? You really went for it, huh?” Despite my laugh, nobody else joined in. Not even Zafina was willing to bail me out with a smile like she always did.
“She asked you a question,” one of the guards said, still aiming an arrow at me. It was a wonder he hadn’t gotten tired yet.
“I’m here to save you and the rest of Iorus,” I said.
Cellica raised an eyebrow at me. “Is that so? Such an ambitious endeavor. I could have you killed for lying to my face.”
“If you did, you’d have to try a little better than a few arrows. I’ll save you the trouble though, since I’m telling you the truth.”
The queen leaned back in her seat as she tapped her fingertips together. “My soldiers informed me you defeated the undead ram near the wind tunnel. Several of my men died in combat with it.”
“Sorry I couldn’t get here sooner.”
“I would have defeated it one way or another. But because you accomplished a task to my benefit, I will allow you to explain yourself.”
“Good…” I took a step forward then paused to see if the guards would actually put an arrow in me. When they didn’t, I took another step forward. “Queen? Cellica? I’m not sure what to call you—”
“You may address me as Queen Cellica.”
“Full name. Got it. Queen Cellica, I know what you and all other Qashians have been through. Where I’m from, we dealt with this malevolent world, too. We call it Pandora.”
“Pandora… Then it is not chasing us only.”
“Nobody knows exactly their intentions but they won’t stop at Qashia. They already had a presence here on Iorus before you arrived. And now they’ve followed you. They’ve taken residence to the east of the Sol Lands, where we reside now.”
Cellica sighed deeply through her nose. Her face softened slightly though she was still gazing at me like she didn’t completely trust me.
“Our people were foolish to think we could stand against them,” she said. “We were ill-prepared to face them. They have come here but those of us in Euphoria will thrive. Under my leadership, we will not lose again.”
I held back a laugh. She might have been the first queen I ever met—not counting that giant insect back in the Bee Forest on Valen—but she had the arrogance of every rich CEO or venture capitalist I’d ever met.
“Sorry but it’ll take more than a queen’s leadership to defeat Pandora.”
“What other reason would you be here if you did not need my assistance?” she said.
“I wouldn’t need your assistance necessarily. What I do need are the resources from the mine. Iron. Silver. Copper. From the looks of things, you’ve got plenty to spare.”
“I see…” She clenched her jaw, looking me up and down like I was some criminal. “How do I know you are not working in collaboration with the raiders? You travel with an Ignoble.”
She eyed Lyra. In response, Lyra took a step forward and raised her hand. Before the archer could try anything, Rhiannon put a hand on Lyra to calm her.
“Nobles. Ignobles. Whatever.” I put my hands up and shrugged. “You’re all Qashians. Differences in attitude won’t change that. Even if I can’t change your mind on that, the fact remains—Pandora is here and the longer we sit around, the stronger they get. I need to mine the resources from the caves before it’s too late.”
The blond shifted in her throne without taking her eyes off me. I knew she was considering it. Someone like her wasn’t stupid enough to blow something like this off. But anybody who could become a queen sometimes let their ego get the better of them.
“You speak as if you have my best interests at heart,” she said.
“I do. Along with everybody else who lives here. This is bigger than all of us—bigger than this world.”
“I have no reason to believe you. However… You did prove yourself a worthy warrior by defeating the ram. I will give you another chance to prove you are telling the truth.”
“Okay,” I said with a shrug. “What do you got for me? Some dragon pooping in the sewer? Or maybe a wolf is stealing chickens from the coop? Or maybe you’ve got a tournament set up as a test of strength, eh? I heard they were doing that at the Districts…”
“None of those things. I require your attendance at the royal reception.”
“…Huh?”
“
There will be a gathering this evening. I am a magnanimous ruler. This hall can house many of our townsfolk. It will be a celebration for all. There will be food and drink and dancing. If you are indeed true to your word, then you will have no problem conversing with the same people you want to save.”
Attending a fancy dinner party instead of fighting a sea monster might’ve been more appealing to most people. But looking back on all of the shindigs I was forced to go to as an acting CEO, I couldn’t think of anything I loathed more. Being a Battle God wouldn’t help me in this case. Too bad I wasn’t in the position to argue.
I looked at Zafina, Rhiannon, and Lyra. All of them remained silent, though they looked just as eager as I was.
“If this is the only way…”
“It is,” Cellica said without hesitating.
“Then we’ll attend your party. Just as long as you don’t dress me up like a jester. Nobody ever laughs at my jokes.” I chuckled to myself and looked around the room at all of the deadpan faces. “See what I mean?”
15: High Society
“How were your quarters?” I held back a smile as I looked at Lyra next to me. She shifted her blue hood around like it didn’t fit her properly even though she’d been wearing it the entire time I knew her.
“Comfortable enough,” she sighed with her arms crossed.
“I’m guessing it’s the first time you ever got to relax on a mattress. I didn’t see any back at Haven.”
“I’d take sleeping on the floor of my hut if it meant not having to spend time around these people.”
“Once we’re done here, I’ll talk to Joris about maybe getting everybody at Haven a mattress.”
“I hope we’re done real soon.” Lyra shifted her eyes around the spacious ballroom. “Since they’re being so inviting, I’m gonna help myself. Stay on your toes, Virgil.”
Lyra walked through the crowded hall toward a table where everybody congregated around the food.
It had been several hours since we stood in Queen Cellica’s presence. Each of us was given our own quarters to relax and unwind. After battling an undead ram, I needed it.
In the short hours we were away, the hall had been transformed completely. Several silver tables had been set up where the townsfolk sat and mingled with one another. A space at the center of the room had been cleared, where couples danced close to one another in a slow waltz. A glass chandelier on the high ceiling hung over everybody like a thousand pieces of shining jewels. Off to the side, a small band of minstrels plucked their lutes and whistled with their recorders an elegant, classical-sounding tune that provided perfect accompaniment to the chatter.