Gemini Warrior

by J D Cowan

  “I only had to take the place of one of the guards.” The large beast squinted. “You are Castor or Pollux I take it. Is one of these your woman? I certainly hope so.”

  Matthew sprang for the lizard man. As if he set off a trap, three smaller enemy warriors darted for him from the corners of the room. Blades barreled at him.

  A sword sliced his helmet, and an axe slashed his shoulder. Pain burst through his rage, and he cried out. But the giant lizard had already leapt past him. Matthew ran one enemy through and charged after the escaping monster.

  Other soldiers poured in to assist Matthew, but he left them to their work.

  The giant leaped up upon the ramparts, crushing stone under his massive feet, and bounded over the wall in one easy motion. Matthew rushed as fast as his legs could carry him, parrying whatever strikes came his way. He followed the giant enemy over the side.

  Split earth and upturned stone awaited around the perimeter of the defensive wall. Lizard men burst out from the fissures and slung themselves up the vertical surface like spiders. He fell between them into the pit below where the ground itself swallowed him inside of it. Broken rock and earth closed in around him like a closing maw.

  Matthew morphed into water, and let his form sink down into the shrinking gap. The earth absorbed him as his form stuck into it. The world became black as his existence evaporated.

  Indistinct cold air crashed against him from below. With as much force as he could muster, he willed his very atoms to press downward toward it.

  He splashed against the stone ground, his form raining through like a sudden downpour. Red sparks of pain ran through his being—he needed to pull himself back together again. With Castor on his mind, he reformed to whole human in an instant.

  Matthew landed with his back against a rock wall. A faint light beamed through a crack. His breaths fell hard, his bones rattling, but he held his groans in despite his throbbing muscles. Voices echoed against the darkness through the opening.

  “Take the girls to the Thief Town,” a woman’s voice said. It wasn’t Shaula, but it sounded suspiciously like it.

  The giant lizard man grunted. “I don’t take orders from you, Camille. The Queen is the only one I listen to.”

  “That’s irrelevant, Rantan,” she replied. “The Salamanders will give you cover for your escape. The Queen wants Castor and Pollux, and they are sure to come for this girl.”

  She had her hair in braids and wore light armor from head to toe across her well-toned form. Matthew tried to see her face, but it was next to impossible in the flickering torch she held. There was an air about her that reminded him of Shaula. A large group of red salamanders stood behind her, waiting for her word to strike.

  “Then let us be moving, girl.” The lizard’s tongue slurped air. “If the Queen doesn’t need them both then I will quite enjoy the useless one.”

  “That’s disgusting. But very much like you.”

  “I was the one who had to slip in and live among these weaklings. I deserve a reward for having to wait for you to finally make a move.”

  Matthew sunk into a puddle, his form allowing him through the crack in the stone. He slid forward in the obscure shadows that dipped in and out with the torchlight. The pair of villains continued arguing.

  The one called Rantan took a massive step forward toward Camille. Matthew slunk under it and plunged upward. He solidified whole and brought his sword upward in a vertical arc. The slash glided through flesh, and Rantan yelled.

  A massive scaly arm flew from the enemy’s body, dashing against the rocks. Matthew caught the loosed woman who fell into his arm. Rantan moved back to where Camille stood watching.

  Matthew could barely make out who he caught but instinctively knew that it was not Ordopha. Not the right proportions. Chel moaned and shook her head.

  “Matthew?” she mumbled.

  “Don’t worry, you’re fine. I’ll get you out of here in a minute.”

  “Castor!” Camille shouted. “I thought Pollux was the bull. The Queen said you were the snake.”

  “The Queen doesn’t know much of anything. Give back Ordopha and call off your Salamanders. If you’re lucky I won’t decide to cut you like I did your goon.”

  “You bastard,” the lizard man hissed. He held Ordopha tighter in his remaining arm. She let out a soft cry. “You are in no position for demands.”

  “Then tell me what you want!”

  The woman laughed. “We will return with our queen by the next moon fall. You and Pollux are to meet us at the gate to that monastery when she arrives. If you do not, she will die, and everyone inside will be put to the sword and burned. Is that simple enough for you, sir?”

  “Why not just take me now?” He glanced at the red lizards. Many fled down the tunnels. They clearly did not have the numbers left for a full assault. But Shaula would be able to defeat the two of them, as she had almost done in the mountains. “Or can you?”

  “I might convince you to throw down your arms, but what about Pollux? Where is he?”

  “Probably cutting your pets apart. Bring Ordopha back, and I will go quietly. She has nothing to do with this.”

  Camille paused and looked over her shoulder as if she were being talked to. Her fingers trembled and dried dirt fell from them. How long had she spent making these tunnels and how many more could she make in her tired state? Before he could puzzle it out, she turned back to him. “We have no more time to play these childish games.”

  She crouched and slammed her hands down. Tremors ran from her fingers along the ground towards the walls and then the ceiling. The stone above them broke open like God ripping open the universe itself. Rubble formed from the crags. A trail of rock forty feet tall lead back up to the surface. Stone stairs split into steps from his feet.

  “Go and tell them,” she said. “I do not know how you found us down here so fast, but you will not be following further.”

  Once more she clapped down. The ground before her lifted up then slammed into the stone ceiling like a sliding door. The solid surface had to be several feet thick. He saw no way through.

  From the opening above chimed familiar voices. Several soldiers peeked through the gap and called down into the dark.

  “We’re down here!” he yelled.

  “Is that you, Matthew?” one asked.

  “Chel is with me,” he replied. “She’s coming up.”

  She looked at him sideways. “You’re not coming?”

  “No. I have to get Ordopha back. You heard what they said, right?”

  She nodded. “Yes, but how can you—”

  “Be sure to tell everyone what these guys are up to.”

  Matthew sunk back into water and pushed himself to soak through the stone just as he did in the mountains. His atoms ached as they were torn apart in his squeeze through the cracks. Castor held tight through the red flashes before him.

  When he kissed air, he reformed back into the dark again. His brain swirled as his matter reconstructed. His vision focusing on the black atmosphere, he spotted the low flicker of torchlight far ahead. Matthew took off through the tunnels in a mad dash.

  “What do you mean that Matthew left?” Jason asked. “Why would he just run off?”

  The soldier mentioned Ordopha being taken and all of a sudden everything made sense. One of the lizards had gone for her. Matthew chased it out of the abbey.

  A crowd of soldiers led by Sir Orach fought beside the burning remains of the servant quarters. The number of lizards had thinned, but plenty still remained. Alain made a move toward the wall and the ramparts. Jason seized his shoulder.

  “Leave it to Matthew,” Jason told the warrior. “We need to help Sir Orach.”

  “I will never abandon anyone again.”

  “You aren’t. I’m telling you that we need to help the people here first. Matthew can find her. We can help here.”

  “But can you?” a new voice said.

  Jason and Alain spotted a warrior emerge from one of
the burnt out stables. He wore a large helmet over his oval head and large black eyes peering through. This warrior dressed in heavy dark armor and stood half a foot taller than Alain. He carried a large axe and shield.

  “Are you with them?” Jason asked.

  “Come and see.”

  “Forget the boy,” Alain growled. He shook with every word. “I’ll be the one to end you.”

  Alain crossed blades with newcomer. Their swords crashed against each other.

  A hand clamped on Jason’s shoulder. He turned to see the same man who just challenged Alain to a battle. A twin? Had he been hiding in the shadows to strike the boy from behind? The clone grinned sorrowfully.

  “Pollux, I presume,” the duplicate knight said. “I hope you do not mind sharing a piece of yourself!”

  The strange knight jerked his hand back, and Jason’s soul rattled inside his skin. The boy saw double for a moment. A sharp pain like a bone being ripped from his skeleton ran through his shoulder. He struggled back and saw exactly what his attacker was doing. The knight pulled a whole body free from Jason’s shoulder like a rabbit from a hat.

  The removed body was, in fact, a whole human being. Jason looked it over, mouth agape. It was another Jason. The doppelganger wore the same clothes and held the same sword. He wore a blank expression as he stared at Jason with dead saucer eyes. A clone!

  “You’re a Prime,” Jason said to the knight. “How is that possible?”

  “You will find us three more than common fodder. I am Oronidamus the Cutter. I apologize for stealing a piece of you, Pollux.”

  Jason did feel lighter, and his posture had been thrown off kilter. He could not seem to remain calm as if his emotions became unbalanced. His clone clashed blades with him, flat expression and all. The fake breathed and moved as if it were the real Jason. Sharp pain rolled inside Jason like shattered glass. The boy yelled as he pushed back against his doppelganger.

  “What did you do to me?” His breaths were almost choking him.

  “I cut out a piece of the subject to create more of them. I only needed to hold you off but mere moments. Since we have achieved what we came for, I believe I can leave you with a few words.”

  Pollux thumped in Jason’s bones as he slashed the sword. The clone Jason moved with him, deflecting his blows as if it also had Pollux to rely on.

  But his thoughts were off. Bloody visions of the clone before him began to flood his mind. There were so many ways to kill this beast and then the Cutter right after him. Deflect the blow, wait for the moment, and dive in with teeth bared and—

  “I’m going to eat your heart,” Jason growled. He leaped in on the clone with his sword dancing. The deflection and his heavy stomps on the earth shook the ground itself. “Stop running!”

  Pollux had energy to spare, and Jason was willing to burn through it all. He would push it to the wall. All he needed was the right moment and the right chance. Then the blade would come down and the blood would—

  “Jason!” Alain yelled.

  Jason stalled in mid-swing, and his copy moved in. When their swords bounced, a third party had moved in. Alain stabbed through the clone Jason. The doppelganger hardened and turned to ash, blowing away in the wind.

  Jason blinked. Bloodlust pulsed through his veins. He wanted to kill, and wanted to do so very badly. Was it so wrong? Even if killing this thing wasn’t enough, there would be other targets. Meat hung all over this place.

  Before these thoughts could continue, a tremor rumbled inside his stomach. It took a moment for his senses to return to normal. He had been punched in the gut. His lungs seized with the impact as he doubled over. Alain had punched him.

  “Jason!” Alain repeated. “Regain your composure! We are not done.”

  Jason’s heart burned like a spear had been lodged inside. Was this the missing piece? Was it coming back? His face fell against the grass as he clutched his heart. A short vision passed before his eyes—a girl with platinum hair suspended in a cocoon of light. A name beat up against him. He could almost remember it. Was this a forgotten dream? Tears welled in his eyes.

  “I will be your opponent,” Alain said to the Cutter.

  “Was it really proper for you to jump into the boy’s fight? That is not the way a man of honor should act.”

  “Some things are beyond honor, knave. You tore out a piece of his soul and forced him to fight it. There is nothing honorable about that.”

  “I suppose not,” the Cutter said with his usual sad tone. He paused as if he were listening to someone speak. “But it does not matter. We are done.”

  “We agree on that!”

  Alain rushed in and slashed. Their blades beat and Alain grunted as the skin on his forehead sliced open. The Cutter ducked his reprisal swing. Alain screamed the most intense battle cry Jason had ever heard and parried the attack. The enemy wobbled as his weapon bounced back. Blood flew from light slashes not quite reaching their mark, but one man just would not relent. Alain leaped in and ran the enemy through, and then swung for the neck. The Cutter’s head rolled across the grass, turning to dust. Alain let out a hard breath and dropped to one knee.

  “You did it!” Jason shouted. He slowly climbed back up. “It feels like he split something off of me, and then it snapped back after. What was that guy?”

  Alain gazed at where the body had fallen. “Something foul is afoot.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t know. My gut tells me this is not as it should be.”

  Jason struggled back up to his feet, his chest still aflame. The battlefield was emptying. Lizard corpses, soldiers, and ashes were strewn about all over. At least it was over.

  “Look here!” Sir Orach yelled from nearby. He guided what looked to be Chel. She was shaking. Her dress had been torn. “Please tell them what it was you told me, Chel.”

  Chel could not look either Alain or Jason in the eyes. “They have Ordopha. You have one full day to surrender Castor and Pollux, or they will kill her and raze the abbey.”

  “This is impossible,” Alain said. He gripped her shoulders and scanned her over. “Is she hurt?”

  “No,” she said, quietly. “I was to be bait for Castor and Pollux, just as Ordopha.”

  “Who led the attack?” Sir Orach asked.

  “One was the giant lizard who did not act like a lizard, and the other was a beautiful woman wearing armor. She controlled the earth and sealed off her escape with it. That was how they got so close to the wall without us knowing.”

  “And where is Matthew? I thought he went after my sister?”

  “He is still following her. He turned to water and chased her through the wall. I do not know where he went after that.”

  “Get her inside!” Sir Orach told the others.

  The other soldiers led her away. On the field, the remaining enemies had been slain, and the fires put out. The battle had come to an end. But many were still wondering about Matthew.

  “You ride to the next town,” Sir Orach said to Alain. “We need aid to mount our defenses. Hurry.”

  “We should follow Matthew,” Alain grumbled. “But I understand that it would do no good now. There is little chance of catching him. Jason, come with me. We will ride to find the Count.”

  Few things were stranger than Alain not being the one to rush into battle. The older warrior’s fists still trembled, but Jason wouldn’t argue with him. He felt much the same.

  Jason’s throat seized. An odd spark flashed through him like lightning. Invisible hooks penetrated his soul and dragged him back. He first thought the Cutter was responsible until he realized this sensation pumped inside like blood. His muscles stiffened.

  He transformed into mist. An intangible force roped him backwards and out of reality. He flew through the wall of the abbey and down into the earth. Sir Orach and Alain yelled after him, but it was of no use. He vanished before they could do anything.

  Jason launched through down black tunnels and solid rock and dirt like a mis
sile.

  Chapter 14

  Thieves’ Town

  A force from behind Matthew shot toward him at blinding speed. He didn’t let it stop him from sprinting through the pitch black tunnel. Regardless of his pursuer, he couldn’t let Ordopha get any further ahead. He would deal with it when it reached him.

  The tunnel lightly tremored around him and began to shrink. The woman had begun sealing it up.

  The heavy weight crashed into his back. Matthew tripped before slamming against the side of the tunnel. But there was nothing there. Whatever hit him had to be no heavier than air.

  That was when he realized just what it had to have been.

  “Jason?”

  “Is that you, Matthew?” Jason’s familiar voice bounced around the inside of Matthew’s skull. “Why am I here? Our time limit isn’t up yet.”

  “I guess there’s a distance we can’t cross. Sorry about that.” Matthew grunted as he stood back up from the shaking wall. Dirt bounced off his boots as he continued on. “I didn’t mean to take you out of the battle.”

  “The fight was over. The bigger problem is that we have one day until they return to attack the abbey. Unless we give up. Damn, I can’t get out of here. I guess we need to wait a bit. Where are you going, anyway? Is Ordopha down this way?”

  “I guess Chel told you. There’s two of them. One is a giant lizard, and the other has control over rock. I think they’re Primes.”

  “No way. We fought one up top who could create clones. Alain killed him, but I dunno. He thought it smelled fishy.”

  Now Matthew’s anger cooled towards confusion. There were three Primes on top of Shaula’s pyrokinetic abilities, and they now had Ordopha. Where they really going so far out just for Castor and Pollux, or was that seed really so valuable? “I think it’s time you spilled about the seed. You saw something in your dreams again, right?”

  “That‘s . . . hard to say. I don’t know, man.”

  “Don’t give me that.” The shaking walls rumbled his words. “You’re not a good liar. Just say it, Jason. At this point, it could be the key to what Shaula and her followers want.”