“Quaelyne,” Warren and the boy said at the same time.
“Yeah, whatever,” Trenton said. “A few years ago we were all together hunting Dracairei, and now the tables have turned. Five of the Vigilantes are dead, including our leader, and there’s little we can do to help those that are still alive. The gods have damned us.”
“We have not yet forsaken you,” a female voice said from the top edge of the amphitheater.
“Cypheria…” The boy said as he looked up with a mix of awe and anger.
“Indeed,” she said as she gracefully strolled down the dirt path. The dirt seemed to refuse to cling to her shoes or her gown, which flowed gently behind her. “There are many limitations that have been lifted now that you know the truth.” The Goddess said as she neared the boy. “I thought perhaps you might be interested in learning how you could be of use to your once-companions.”
“I can help them?” the boy replied, looking up at the woman who had helped create the creature that lived inside his mind. She looked slightly different than he remembered from the memory. I wonder if she looks different to everyone?
“Most assuredly.” Cypheria smiled, and then winked, letting him know she was answering both of his questions.
His first reaction was to bristle at the invasion to his personal thoughts, but he had realized after living with the Quaelyne that those thoughts were not as personal as he had once believed. He was beginning to take for granted the fact that there were creatures who could probe his mind so easily.
“What do I need to do?”
“No, my lady,” Warren said, stepping in front of the boy. “He no longer remembers who he is, he’s just a boy.”
“The Watcher named him Victor Deus for a reason, good Druid.” Cypheria smirked. “He has never been just a boy.”
You have not been invited to this place, Ethereal. A strong female presence inserted itself into the conversation.
“Now Sovereign, this is no time for name calling,” Cypheria said, her clothes momentarily changing from a dress to battle regalia. “I am simply here to give my champion some options.”
“Champion?” Trenton said, the boy had noticed the Half-Ogre’s disposition change in the moment that Cypheria had been battle ready. Apparently, the big man liked a woman who could fight.
“Yes indeed, friend Grimbash.” Cypheria laughed. “The boy you knew as Victor is, and always has been, my champion.”
“Well that explains a lot,” Warren mumbled.
Cypheria acknowledged Warren’s comment with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.
“Not that I had any say in the matter,” the boy said.
“Yes,” Cypheria said, the smile dropping from her face. “That is one of many things that are regrettable. You are my champion, however, and it behooves me to help you become as strong as you can be.” She tapped him on the nose. “Especially because doing so will make you strong enough to resist the will of those that might use you for ill.”
“What do I need to do?”
“Simple. Go to your friends and help them. You won’t be able to help with the combat, but you might be surprised at what you can accomplish.”
“That’s it? Go to this town and help?”
“Yes,” Cypheria said before leaning down to whisper in his ear. “Also, Stewart Cantel may hold the key to helping you remember who you were, and who you might become.”
He could still feel the warm air from her breath on his ear in the few moments it took for him to realize that she had simply disappeared. The buzz of the Quaelyne’s voices buzzed through him like a disturbed hornet’s nest. It rose to a crescendo that had him holding his temples as the noise pressed in on his mind. His legs went weak and he fell forward, but strong hands caught him before he hit the ground.
“I got you,” Trenton said.
Quiet, the voice Cypheria had identified as Sovereign sent out loudly.
As the boy reached out to grab Trenton’s arm to steady himself, he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. Looking at his manacles, he could see the silver cracks that had appeared steadily growing, creating a web of silver throughout the blood red metal.
Understanding burst through him at that moment, the thing inside of him was drawing on the Nexus to thwart the cuffs. He looked around frantically for a moment at all of the Quaelyne in the amphitheater and realized he had to get away from this place. With all of the power the Nexus was putting out there was no way that he would be able to contain the creature if it tried to assert control, and everyone else would probably die during the struggle.
He twisted out of Trenton’s hands and ran.
No, let him go. He heard as he ran up the amphitheater’s incline.
Looking above himself, he noticed he was running along the same direction that one of the strange flowing lines traveled, and he veered off to the right in order to get as far away from the power as possible. He ran as far and as fast as his body would take him. It was dark when his body began to reach its limits. Knowing that staying on the ground alone was an almost certain death in the forest, he used the last of his reserves to climb a nearby tree, falling asleep cradled by the massive boughs.
Fourth Thirdday
Victor! the boy awoke to Troublefinder’s voice ringing through his mind.
Don’t call me that, the boy sent back along the connection that Troublefinder had established with his mind.
Sorry! It is what the men kept calling you during the gathering. Why did you run off? Sovereign said you had a good reason, but wouldn’t tell anyone. I think my parents know too but they won’t tell me either.
He heard the movement of several large creatures below him, and peeked over the edge of the branch. Relentless and Dauntless stood below with Troublefinder sniffing at the bottom of the tree where he had climbed the night before. Warren walked out of the forest behind the Quaelyne looking worn out from the trek. The Druid’s breathing was returning to normal by the time the boy’s feet touched the ground.
“There you are. Want to tell me why you ran off like that? Trenton almost got in a fight with the Quaelyne when you took off like that and they told us not to go after you. They made us sit there for hours listening to all of them drone on about how their forest is sacred and we are upsetting the balance. I’m a damned Druid, I know all of that!”
I think they realized that, Dauntless sent. In fact, I think that was part of the problem, and why Sovereign decided she needed to call the gathering. Normally the events that transpire on the boundaries of the forest and beyond are considered sacrosanct. The sheer amount of Dracairei that dared to trespass into our territory, however, was a matter for all of the tribes.
He’s right of course, Relentless chuffed. And that happens with about the same frequency as this type of incursion. She turned to the boy. The fact that you happened to be in the area at the same time was brought up on several occasions as well, and that Ethereal showing up didn’t help your case much with many.
“Right, so the tribes in their infinite wisdom decided you were to be removed from their territory and are not allowed to return until you’ve managed to tame the beast, whatever that means,” Warren said.
Looking at Troublefinder and Warren, the boy realized that he was never going to be able to keep everything a secret from those closest to him. Especially when they had already been given so many clues; they would find out someday, they might as well find out from him. He told them about his vision of the hours before his birth and what the gods had done, and what they had inadvertently created in the process.
“So now I have this part of my mind that is independent from me, that has the memory and skills of all of the people in my bloodline, and no real sense of right or wrong. It has been changing people around me without their permission for who knows how long, and I’m fairly certain that it is part of the reason that I can no longer remember who I used to be.” He looked at Warren who was the only one who hadn’t known most of what he just said, expecting to see revul
sion, but instead he saw acceptance.
“Lad, we all have our inner beasts to face. Yours is just a little more unruly than most.” Warren placed a hand on Victor’s shoulder and knelt down. “What does that have to do with you running out of the clearing, though?”
Holding up his hands he showed Warren the manacles. They were still mostly blood red, but tiny silver cracks webbed their way throughout the metal, and the strange inscriptions were starting to flake away to reveal silver beneath. “Whoever hid Victor away also put these on me. I’m pretty sure they block my connection to whatever energies it is that are floating around in the lines and that big ball back there. The thing inside me is limited in what it can do with these on, and it is trying very hard to break them, or make them useless. I could see the silver patterns growing as I stood in the center of the gathering and realized what it was doing.”
Tears streamed down his face. “I can’t control it, and I don’t even want to think what it would do to you, Trenton, and all of the Quaelyne if it managed to get free with so much power at its beck and call.”
He found himself wrapped up in the Druid’s strong embrace, and felt Troublefinder shove his head into his right hand. Running his hand through Troublefinder’s fur seemed to help him get his emotions under control, and he pushed gently on Warren’s chest. Warren released him and backed up several steps.
“So, I’m to be exiled huh?” the boy said as he wiped the moisture off of his cheeks.
For now, Relentless sent.
“What about you and the rest of the squad?” he asked Warren.
“We’re allowed to stay until we heal, or until the others come and then we will be given safe passage to the other side of the forest.”
“Ah, then we’d best see to getting the rest of the squad out of that town then.”
“It’s called Verge, and you don’t need to go,” Warren said.
“I know I don’t need to, but I think I should.”
You are going to listen to that Ethereal, even after all that she has done to you? Relentless pawed the ground, sending up a cloud of debris behind her.
He smiled. “Yes. As little as I know about the gods, I feel like she has my best interests at heart, though I also feel like it will benefit her in some way in the long run as well.”
“Such is the way of the gods,” Warren said bowing his head slightly.
Gods, phaw! Relentless sent and extended her claws. Anyone with enough power can claim to be a god. Those Ethereals are no more a god than you or I.
“That’s blasphemy,” Warren said, though he sounded more like he was pointing out the idea would be considered so than accusing her of it.
Then you had better burn us all at the stake, Dauntless sent, his tongue hanging out of his mouth in mirth. We’ve been trying to tell your people this ever since you...
The point being, Relentless sent, you shouldn’t trust everything they say. Not only do they enjoy being mysterious, but they are also constrained by their oaths, so there are things they aren’t able to say.
“You mean the oaths that they took when the One God gave them stewardship over Terrazil?” Warren asked.
Yes and no. Relentless sat down. It is the oaths that they took when they became guardians of this world. However, the being your people call the One God is not only not the only one of his kind, but he would also probably be appalled to hear that he is worshipped.
“How do you know all of this?” Warren walked to the tree and held up his hand. A few moments later, a branch dropped from somewhere higher in the tree straight into his awaiting hand. It was perfectly smooth, and seemed to have been made for him to use as a walking stick.
The boy’s mouths fell open at the display, but the adults all seemed to take it in stride. Troublefinder shot him a look that seemed to say, “You saw that right?”
My people have kept an oral history of this planet for years beyond counting. We were exiled here long ago, shortly after this world formed. The only sentient race that was here at that time was the Dragons, and they had their own tasks to accomplish. Dauntless disappeared into the surrounding foliage as Relentless continued to tell the story. Some enterprising explorers found the planet and because of the “aggressive local wildlife,” the planet was deemed inhospitable for colonization. Many years later, the government that had funded the exploration began to drop off a wide variety of life.
“From other worlds?” The boy said.
Yes, there is no life on this planet that started here. Species that can likely not be found anywhere else in the universe now call this planet home, but none of them are native. The Ethereals came to this world shortly before the creator returned. The Dragons had continued to see to their task to his satisfaction, but he saw that all of the new races upon the world would eventually lead to destruction. To thwart this he charged the Ethereals with keeping the new races in check. The agreement benefited them greatly—even if it limited them in some ways—so they agreed. Ever since, they have been trying to skirt the rules while maintaining their personas.
“Fascinating. So you are saying that Terra is also one of these Ethereals?"
Relentless nodded.
“What do they get out of the deal?”
Energy. For each “follower” they have, they are allowed to siphon a tiny bit of energy.
“And a small amount of energy from thousands or millions every day adds up.” Warren shook his head and looked at the stick that had fallen from the tree. “In return, they grant their most devoted followers boons so they will sing the praises of their god.” He laughed. “That’s a pretty good racket.”
“Is anyone getting hurt though?” The boy asked causing, Relentless and Warren to look at him.
They are harvesting energy from people, Relentless said, as if the answer were obvious.
“Yeah, but they have been doing it for thousands of years, right?” When Relentless nodded he continued. “And if we don’t die from one of the millions of things that can kill us, do we live shorter lives?”
Warren began to laugh, and Relentless grimaced.
“He’s got you there,” Warren said. “From what I’ve read, we are actually living a lot longer than we used to. Of course, there are a lot of other factors involved in that, but what the Gods are syphoning doesn’t seem to be shortening our lives much.”
Relentless pushed herself up onto all four paws. It is going to take several days to reach the town, if we take the druid it could take twice that.
Warren mock whispered, “Pretty sure that means the argument is shelved for the moment.” Relentless showed him her teeth and he stepped back. “Right, so I’ll just head back the way we came and leave our young friend here under your careful aegis.” He turned and looked down, proffering his hand. “You be careful out there. Trenton and I both wish that we could help, but we’d just get in the way. I’d tell you not to do anything stupid, but I know better, just don’t get killed doing it.”
Taking the outstretched hand, the boy smiled. “Maybe someday we’ll be able to have that conversation about the good old days. Hopefully I’ll even remember them by then. I’ll send whoever is left your way.”
“I have a feeling that conversation won’t happen for a long time,” Warren said, regret creeping into his tone. “Don’t let anyone change who you are, kid.” With that, he turned and walked off into the forest, the steady thump of his walking stick slowly becoming fainter until it vanished altogether.
We should go. The other denizens of the forest seem to think that spring has arrived. No reason to stand around and give them a free meal, Dauntless sent as he roamed back into the clearing.
Troublefinder leapt after his father and the boy and Relentless shared a grin before turning to follow. He didn’t know what was to come, but for now he was surrounded by friends.
Fourth Eighthday
Serenity Valley
Verrian and Shawnrik hadn’t made it out of the Tailor’s shop early enough last week in order to make it to G
norman’s before he closed, so they had decided to leave early this morning to make sure they got the cufflinks before the dance tomorrow night.
Verrian wasn’t happy getting up and heading out early on their only regular day off during the week, but his own excitement about the Winter Festival tomorrow combined with Shawnrik’s helped to motivate him to get up and go. The girls had decided to do their own thing today, so for the first Eighthday this month he and Shawnrik were on their own.
The trip to Gnorman’s Family Jewels took about thirty minutes. Verrian noticed that the walk from the train to the gem shop was much easier for him than it had been the first time they came nearly two months prior. He now felt like his body was floating along. There had been moments in the first few Eightdays where he felt like his body wouldn’t hold up to the punishment that he had been subjecting it to, but slowly his body had gotten used to the training.
Shawnrik had been vital during that time, because he seemed to understand what Verrian was going through. From the stories Shawnrik had shared with him, it sounded like he had gone through much the same thing when the man named Ashur began to train him. Trying to imagine Shawnrik struggling to move had been difficult at first, but after living and training with him for two months it was easier to see the boy hidden within. The constant stream of questions that his roommate had asked helped Verrian come to terms with the fact that Shawnrik was just a kid stuck in the body of a warrior.
That warrior was in there, though. He had seen that more than once over the last few months whenever Shawnrik sparred with Instructor Boulette, or got really into his martial training. Those moments reminded him that behind the kind, affable personality that Shawnrik showed the world was a street rat whose best friend had given up his freedom in order to ensure the safety of his companions. Verrian thought about the destruction that Shawnrik would wreak upon the next group of people who got between him and someone he cared about. He almost felt sorry for whoever the poor bastards were, but he knew that if Shawnrik was against them, they most likely earned whatever vengeance he would bring down upon them.
Vitiosi Dei (Heritage of the Blood Book 2) Page 33