by James Somers
"Master Soone?"
"Yes, Emil?"
"How are you able to sense Kale, when I can't?"
"To tell you the truth, I'm not quite sure myself. I only know that I can. Maybe it's because he is my son. But whatever the reason, I'm glad."
"It's probably because you're so powerful."
"Well, I doubt that. Anyway, I've noticed that you're quite powerful as well. I have to admit I thought I would be looking out for you if we faced any trouble, but you certainly are your father's son. You don't need any minding at all."
Emil smiled as he thought of his father. Grod was a great leader and warrior; worthy of the high standing he had with King Tiet.
"It's taken some time to understand the way of using these abilities we have. I still don't understand how it all works," said Emil
"You're not alone in that. The Barudii have believed different things over the years as well. But we came to understand that it was simply a gift from the Eternal One."
"I read that some of the older Barudii once worshipped these abilities, likening themselves to gods," Emil said.
"That's true. Idolatry comes in many forms and that was one. They considered the energies that are tapped into as more than just a tool to be used, but as some impersonal god. Many Barudii mistook their own ambitions for the will of this god and followed their own hearts for good or bad, all the while claiming to be doing its will. They were even involved in a civil war amongst themselves for a time."
"What happened to them?"
"The Lord, Elithias, sent a prophet to the people during that time to warn them to turn from that deception. Many turned, but most were taken in a great plague sent by Elithias to destroy them."
"That wasn't very wise of them."
"The Eternal One gave them plenty of opportunity to turn, but instead they rose up against the king of that day because he followed the Lord's prophet. As I understand it, that's when my family entered the royal line, much later when a new king was chosen."
"That's great. But why do you suppose Elithias allowed your people to be wiped out by the Vorn."
"I don't know, Emil. Of course, not all of them were. I've been finding that out more and more, as the years go on."
"You mean Kale's uncle, the one he was named after?"
"Well yes, he and my father were both named Kale. But I didn't even know about my brother until he appeared in Baeth Periege and that wasn't on friendly terms, to say the least."
"Kale has told me the story."
"Then again, your father and I weren't friends until about that same time either," Tiet said.
"But now you are…and good friends."
Tiet smiled at the boy's enthusiasm. "Yes, very good friends."
The meat crackled on the spit that had been fashioned from a branch. Emil pulled it out of the flame and sniffed at the smoke rolling off of it.
"I can only hope Kale doesn't have an encounter with this Elam person," Tiet said.
"But Kale is so strong."
"He is, but this Elam is far too dangerous. He was working with those creatures that were attacking the civilians. He's got some sort of racket going on here, playing the two groups against one another for his own gain."
"Well, I know you only want to get Kale and escape, but do you suppose, maybe, Elithias would have us to stop this man?" Emil asked. "I mean, maybe, that's why we've been led here?"
Tiet looked into the fire and considered the possibility. Emil divided a portion of the meat to the king and let the words hang in the air.
Tiet wondered if Emil could be right. His faith had been tested before. Tiet had often wondered why the Eternal One had led him in the way he had gone-through the events he had faced. He had never ceased to wonder why his kingdom had come to ruin at the hands of the symbytes. All he could do was walk in faith and trust that Elithias was in control, as the prophets had written.
"We had better get a little sleep while we can." Tiet said. "I want to get back on the move before dawn."
"Yes, sir." Emil finished off the last bits of meat clinging to the bone in his hand. "I sure hope we can find him."
"So do I."
0
Within the catacombs of Eseras-jad, Dirge settled himself into his chair. He looked around as the other members of his ruling council did the same. Light shone from oil lamps in the corners of the rock hewn room and one sitting in the middle of the large round wooden table where they all sat. A musty odor hung in the room like a fog. The light cringed away from the very presence of those convened within the chamber. A council of the wicked was in session.
"Tonight, we move toward Odem, but I do not think we will be alone."
"What do you mean, Lord Dirge?" said one of the Agonotti.
"The off-worlders have been present at our last two cullings," Dirge said. "Their power is felt throughout the land-they are near."
"But what of Elam? Isn't this his responsibility?" said another. "He must keep with our bargain and kill these trespassers."
"I don't believe Elam has the power to do what he says anymore." Dirge said. "He has lost many of his own Guardian soldiers in the encounter with the man and boy in Sector City. And our spy at his headquarters has just reported even more casualties when Elam tried to take the boy that I first encountered outside of Briceton."
"Are we to abandon our food supply then? What can we do if we cannot depend upon Elam?"
"Yes, and we also have faced casualties in the fight with the boy and in the city. And your leadership has done nothing to stop them, Dirge!" protested one named Illian.
No one blinked. The challenge had been put upon the table. Dirge bore down on the challenger with looks that could kill.
"Do you wish to challenge me for the right to lead, Illian?"
Illian looked around. Perhaps it was not wise to posture as he had just done. No one appeared ready to stand with him against Dirge. Instead he lowered his own gaze in submission.
"Well then, we Agonotti are great in number when we are united. I not only believe I can lead us to victory against the off-worlders, but we will also rid ourselves of Elam. We must not cower in the face of man. We are higher beings-we are superior!" Dirge cried confidently.
"But we have been cursed by Elithias!" shouted one of the others.
The agitated council member stood as he broadcast his reservations to everyone in the room. He ruffled his midnight, tattered apparel and beat upon his chest. "We are no longer what we were. Our greatness has been reduced to this semi-mortal existence!"
Before anyone else realized his movement, Dirge plunged a blade into the chest of the Agonotti council member. "Then die in your mortality and await the judgment!"
He let the body fall to the ground and did not regard it further as the molecular structure began to disintegrate. "Will anyone else join him or will you stand and fight to take the dominance we deserve over men?"
Some of their fists pounded the air approvingly. The reluctant others joined them as they watched their fellow Mithri's physical form decay on the chamber floor.
"Good," Dirge said. "When the time is right, we will strike Elam down and control the human population ourselves from now on."
"But what about the off-worlders?"
"We will give Elam another chance to kill them. If he wins, then we've not had to deal with it. But if he fails then he will be out of the way and we've not had to do that either. Then we will carry out a slaughter against the off-worlders and overwhelm them."
The others seemed unsure of the plan, but what else was there?
"When we are rid of Elam and the off-worlders, we will ravage the race of men on Draconis whenever we please-no more dividing our numbers to various regions to feed as Elam demanded. Tomorrow, when we descend upon Odem, we will have thousands of our brothers with us."
0
The restaurant owner watched the two cloaked strangers as they ate their breakfast meal in the booth next to the main window. He didn't have any idea who they were and
he didn't like it. Of course, being a stranger in town wasn't against the law, but most townsfolk didn't appreciate having people they didn't know among them.
Their robes were a little upscale for this small town. The farmers made up the majority here would never be found in such garments. The only consolation the restaurateur had was seeing enough of their faces to recognize their humanity-at least they weren't Agonotti. And they had paid in cash, always a welcome sight, even if it was a large piece of currency. "City folk," he mumbled under his breath as he went back to wiping the serving counter.
0
Elam peered out from under the edge of his hood toward the robed boy sitting across from him. He sure doesn't look like he's possessed, he thought as he watched Kale wolf down his food. Glad it's him rather than me!
Dawn had come in Odem, but no one else was in the restaurant except for them. It was normal for farmers to eat at home in the mornings while doing chores and caring for their livestock. In the city it was just the opposite. People worked outside of the home and stopped along the way for their breakfast.
The Agonotti will be arriving soon, Elam thought as he looked down the main street toward the crowded market area. The Agonotti knew by now when to find the most people milling about in the streets and market day was certainly the time in these small towns.
"So when do the Agonotti show up to feed?" Kale asked quietly.
"It won't be very long. I want you to stay out of sight until I have Dirge face to face. If he spots you he may try to dematerialize before you can strike him down. You must get him by surprise while he is preoccupied arguing with me. He will no doubt want to know why I'm here."
"He won't know what hit him."
"Good. Now, after Dirge is dead, I will pretend to attack you. After some brief sword play to build it up well, I'll knock your weapon away then you will appear to attack me kinetically, knocking my sword away as well. Then I will pretend to attack you mentally, overcome you and kill you that way. There won't be any need for wounds to show the other Agonotti that I have killed you for striking down their leader."
"Neat and tidy, but how will you get me home?" Kale asked.
"How do you think I got here with my family years ago? I told you I have long range vessels at my disposal. I can get you back to Castai with no problem."
Kale sipped on his water after finishing the last of his food. Elam looked down the main road again at the people gathered in the market area. There were several hundred-all waiting for the Agonotti to pluck them away. Then he noticed a shadow, so ominous it threatened to blot out the sun. The dark veil moved steadily down the street and over the buildings.
"Something is wrong." Elam got up from the booth and headed out into the street where he could get a look at what was approaching. Usually when the Agonotti attacked, they comprised a cloud that rolled into a city or town-one or two hundred at best in number. This Agonotti cloud moving in over Odem was absolutely massive. It must have been a number in the thousands to be so large and so dense-full to the brim with the molecular structures of an army of Agonotti.
Kale stood beside Elam, in the street, gazing up at the monstrous cloud. "I have never seen anything like it," he said.
"Neither have I. They'll kill every living thing by attacking this way."
"Does this change our plan?"
Elam looked at the boy again. "Not at all, but if you fail to kill Dirge with your first strike we might not leave this place alive."
Kale did not reply. He remained focused on the massive vortex of terror moving in over the town. The civilians had noticed it by now. Chaos ensued. Most screamed at the top of their lungs and ran for cover anywhere they could find it.
"Go ahead and get away from me," Elam said. "We don't need to be seen together. Find a place where you can strike from quickly."
He had not even finished his instructions before the cloaked young man sped away and vanished within the crowd of screaming people. Elam removed his cloak to expose his garments underneath. People running by looked at him with a small measure of hope, recognizing him now as Lord Elam, the leader of the Guardians, but it wasn't enough to cause them to stop panicking.
0
It's going to be a hot day, Tiet thought as they continued their jog toward Kale. The night before Kale had seemed so distant from them, but now it was as though he were just over the next rise.
Tiet and Emil had gotten up before dawn as planned and had gotten an early start back on the hunt. Emil picked away at the last of the previous nights meal as he ran beside Tiet, tossing away small bones along the way. A small road intersected their path and soon they found themselves running along it. They passed a sign as they jogged along that read, City of Odem: 2 miles.
Tiet suddenly stopped and Emil, over shooting him a little, stopped and came back to him asking, "What's wrong?"
"That city up ahead, Odem, I think Kale is there!"
"Great! Let's go!"
"Wait, something has happened."
"I don't-" Emil paused mid-sentence as he noticed something approaching from the east. "What is that?" A massive black cloud that looked like death itself moved, not far above the tree tops, toward the city ahead of them. A great shadow covered the land and the cloud seemed to swallow up the sun itself from where they were standing. The wind increased by ten fold from the cool breeze that had been blowing.
Branches snapped as the trees waved together in the wind like great hands coming out of the ground to worship the Eternal One himself.
"I feel like it's alive." Emil muttered.
"It is!" shouted Tiet as the wind blew stronger. "It's those things we fought before, back in the city-only a whole lot more of them!"
The maelstrom moved over the town ahead.
"We've got to get to him! Hurry!" Tiet shouted.
The pair broke into a sprint up the road. Tiet mumbled a prayer under his breath as he ran, hoping that Elithias would give strength to them against their enemies today. Otherwise, they might be about to breathe their last.
0
The ominous fog descended on the town of Odem and dwarfed it in size. Agonotti warriors began to drop out of the vortex on top of their prey as they took form from the elements of the dark cloud. The civilians of the city ran frantically through the streets trying to find shelter from the onslaught, but there was no place to hide.
Elam couldn't believe the sheer number of warriors coalescing from the Agonotti matrix-and more than numbers the fact they were armed for battle. They hadn't come to feed, but to wage war.
Elam knew it would not take long for them to telepathically inform Dirge of his presence and he was right. Within moments he saw the Agonotti leader form in front of him along with several others who appeared to be acting as bodyguards. Elam determined not to be intimidated by the power play. He kept thinking to himself, you may be alone here, but this Agonotti is about to be dead.
Dirge arrogantly pointed his finger at Elam's face and began his rhetoric as he approached. "Why are you here?" he demanded.
"I have every right to be here," Elam said. "Why have you gone against our agreement and brought all of these warriors to destroy Odem?"
"We have to feed."
"This isn't a culling, it's a massacre!"
"It's our business Elam, not yours!" Dirge shouted. "We are through taking orders from you! For far too long, we have bowed to your terms like lap dogs. We Agonotti have been the element of fear that has kept your greedy extortion enterprise profitable all this time."
Elam became infuriated and would have probably taken action himself, had there not already been another plan in place. Instead, Elam calmed himself and let the Agonotti leader ramble on. He wasn't even listening anymore. Instead, he watched for the boy who he supposed should've already been here by now.
Dirge continued his ranting as the noise of the feeding frenzy continued around them. The screams of hundreds threatened to drown him out, but he stepped closer into the Guardian leader's face to punctuate wh
at he had kept pent up for so long.
A yellow spire suddenly burst through the Agonotti leader's chest, silencing him in mid-rant. Kale withdrew the kemstick and struck down Dirge's guards before they could react. As he cut a great swathe between the bodyguards he finished the arc of his attack just above Dirge's shoulders, catching the Agonotti leader as he sank to his knees from the first strike. Dirge's last look at Elam ended as his head left his body.
Elam stood stunned by the speed and efficiency of the boy. It was time for the ruse to play out. Elam quickly pulled his own weapon and ignited the blade. "Let the show begin," he said to Kale.
Elam struck at the boy and found him more than able to keep up a convincing part of the charade. They dodged, parried and struck at each other over and over again. With Dirge's destruction, they had the full attention of many of the Agonotti warriors now.
While the attack on the town continued, many of the Agonotti moved toward the ensuing battle between the boy and the Guardian leader. Their own leader, decapitated along with his guards, disintegrated as his molecular life bond gave way.
Was Elam really the enemy as Dirge had declared or was he fighting to kill Dirge's assassin? The battle turned to Elam's favor as he made a subtle move that kicked the boy's weapon out of his hand and knocked him backwards to the ground. Elam rushed over the boy with his blade raised for the deathblow.
0
Tiet and Emil ran hard toward the town of Odem. The cloud had already touched down in the valley where the city was located. They heard distant screams growing in number as they approached. They ran into town on the main road.
The city didn't look very big at all-Tiet supposed maybe a few thousand residents at best and the housing all appeared to be rural with a main city square in the middle. He sensed Kale very strongly now near where most of the attack on the city had concentrated.