Cypher Theorem Series Box Set: Books 1-3, The Zero Class, Shadow Moon, Dragon Fire: A Science Fiction Fantasy

by Mark Brandon Powell

  He yells out, “Hello. My name is Vernon, and I have my wife Marie with me.” The word wife was foreign to his tongue but tasted sweet across his lips, making his mouth crinkle up into a smile. “May I ask who are you?” He tries to politely ask. Not knowing if he should even be where he is right now.

  The monstrous doors fly open, slamming up against the sides of the mountain with a thunderous clash, creating a gust of wind in its wake. Dirt, leaves, twigs, alongside the drones get flung backward from the gale. Vernon and Marie didn’t fall over, but they can hear the drones scraping against each other, as their view point tries to stabilize. Once they can see straight, they peer into the depths of the now open cave. All they can see is the black that lay in front of them. The small blades of light that venture in through the leaves of the canopy unwilling to breach the darkness.

  The ground tremors.

  Vernon remembers this feeling. It happened to him only a few weeks ago, still fresh in his mind. Something large and scaly that attacked him. It was during his final trial to become a Paladin, there was a Tyrannosaurus that attacked him in the shifted area he was in. This was not a shift area, and not Earth. They were in a virtual projection not a magically created space. Whatever it was making that tremor, wasn’t going to be good.

  His eyes begin to shift around instinctively, looking for something to hide behind, overriding the part of his intelligence telling him he was safe. It didn’t care about what he thought, but by that point it was too late. The ground shakes again, as a large scaled foot breaks through the dark veil of the cave. The next step reveals another scaled foot with the chest and head between.

  A dragon.

  Its scales are covered in what looks like metal, with a slight opalescent sheen to them. Vernon can't tell. His training on how to deal with and decipher between dragons was scheduled for when he returns from his honeymoon. Even if he had the information, this dragon is talking. Something he was sure they didn’t do.

  12

  Vargas ate in silence. His mind trying to mull over what he just witnessed. He had a video of the murder, and saw the killer. The person in the black hood, with white mask, but no other distinctions. That person. So even with that, he was still in the same place that he had been before he found the gruesome footage. Only it made him angrier.

  Magic was something everyone had, but not everyone was good at. Not only did it take practice, but there are elements a person can be more aligned with, and differing depths of power people could pull from. For someone skilled and powerful, enough so, to pull off a spell like the one he witnessed, and use that power to kill. That’s what was making him so angry. He was gifted by being aligned with all of the elements, but his mana pool was never all that deep. The spell he uses, only known by him and his master, lets him pull mana into himself from all around him. He would not be where he was today without it. Yet there is someone out there, with the gift and the depth, killing people instead of making their life mean something.

  Miku had been someone he admired. He originally didn’t get angry at the scene, he was just taking it all in. His first real dead body was laying in front of him, and he didn’t know how to handle it. Now that he started to have a chance to process the information, he was putting real effort into staying in control of his emotions, but this video just brought his anger up to a nice frothy boil.

  He checks the time within his overlay, and it was nine o’clock, one hour after the HaLO Dives started for the day. It would be a good time to find out where his mark was. He pulls up a map of the ship, and requests location data from his John’s HaLO. The agreement that everyone signed when they boarded, allowed the crew to track people, and their vitals while aboard. This was useful for tracking, but it wasn’t something he would normally have had access too, so he told himself not to get used to it.

  He found all three John’s in the same place, The Dive Bar. It was located below the casino, on the lower levels of the ship, near the dock exits. Since they were all in the same location, he send a message over to Yeti and Amber, telling them he will meet them there.

  The Dive Bar had a gentlemen’s club feel to it. Something he wasn’t expecting on such an expensive ship, but maybe it was something to do with the name, like a play on words. He shrugs off the thoughts, and looks at all of the passengers, laying on their chairs. Everyone was as still as death, with the only sound coming from the crew, and a thrumming music playing in the background. He had never seen so many people diving before at once. There was a weirdness to it. At least the staff was watching over everyone, making sure no one would be touched, or have personal effects stolen.

  He walks into the room, and there was an odor lingering in the air. The up side for everyone diving like they were, he thinks, is they couldn’t smell the place. Which Vargas now wished he didn’t have to either. It smelt like a sweaty locker room. Mix that with the humidity of having that many people in one place it wasn’t an enjoyable smell or feeling.

  “Vargas.” Yeti yells from across the room.

  He sees him, waving, and rubs at the bridge of his nose. Walking over he asks in a stern voice. “What part of stealth mission don’t you understand?”

  “Don’t get your panties in a twist now Cap. All these people are set on timers. We have another five hours, easy, before anyone wakes up.”

  “What if someone wants to end it early, what then?”

  “There is a little beep that takes place, indicating that someone is headed back to the ship. Gives us about ten minutes to slink away, or hide amongst the masses. Either way, no beeps, no worries.”

  Vargas sighs, “Alright. What do you know?”

  “I know you turned down one of Amber’s advances earlier this morning.”

  Vargas’ face flushes. “Wha.. What do you know about that?”

  “What she told me. You shouldn’t leave a woman on the edge like that. She might let it slide now, but she’ll bring it up till the day you die.”

  “I couldn’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “Look just drop it, I believe I couldn’t, so I didn’t. Tell me what you know about the John’s.”

  Yeti raises his hands in a dismissive gesture. “Just remember what I said Cap.”

  “Ok. Mission info please.”

  “They all went for a dive. It’s a private world contained within the ship. It would be a great place to communicate with someone, who you didn’t want the conversation to be heard or seen.”

  “No outgoing communication at all? Like you can’t trace it from this side?”

  “None that I can find, and this is kind of my thing.”

  Vargas nods. “Right. So we need to follow them, or rather find them.”

  “Correct.”

  “Then I better get to it.”

  “Hold on a minute, Amber will be here soon. Go in with her.”

  “She can follow after.”

  Yeti looks sternly at Vargas. “Wait for her. You might be my captain, but you’re a novice when it comes to women.”

  A few minutes later, Amber shows up with a smile on her face. She was holding a pair of oatmeal cookies, and offered one to Yeti and Vargas. “You like right?” She says facing Vargas.

  He nods, “Yea I do. I guess you remembered.”

  She beams.

  “Alright, we have to find the Johns inside the dive. I’m not sure how big the space is, but it might take a while to find them.”

  “Are you sure about this Cap? You might be chasing a goose here.”

  “Well we can’t break into their HaLOs without Paladin access. Which would send off alerts, that we don’t want. So we have to try to do it the hard way.” He thinks back to something that Tyler gave him before he left. It was a chip for his HaLO, and it was the only one of its kind. It allowed him to hide the fact that he was a Paladin, by diving into his own HaLO. Something that normally would have been impossible. The chip allows the user to create an id of whoever he wished to be, and move around his own body. It was a miniatu
re Virtual Network server inside one chip.

  “Alright Cap, let’s find you a pair of chairs.”

  Most of the seats were already taken. A pair of chairs sat open near the entrance to the Dive Bar. He looks around at the people around him before they get settled in. The man lying next to him looked familiar. Taking a close look he recognized him.

  “We need to find new seats.” Vargas says with haste.

  Amber and Yeti give him an odd look.

  Amber asks, “Why we need move?”

  He points to the man laying down next to him. “This is my friend Vernon. The Paladin. He shouldn’t know that I am here, so we need to find new chairs.”

  “Don’t worry Cap.” Yeti says calmly. “We can put down the helmet cover, they won’t even see your face. Not to mention the fact that I will be sitting at the bar. So I’ll watch over you.”

  Vargas lets a few scenarios play out in his head. The worst of which, Vernon sees him, and begins to ask questions. Marie didn’t know him that well, so he wasn’t worried about her recognizing him. Since he was on his honeymoon, there might not be anything that tips him off to be aware of his surroundings. That and after doing a quick scan of the room, there weren’t any other chairs that were open.

  “Yeti, just make sure that we aren’t seen by him ok. He’s a good friend and I don’t want him to get mixed into any of this alright.”

  “Loud and clear Captain.”

  Amber sits down first, leaning back into the chair. Yeti is standing behind her, and gestures for Vargas to help her get situated, which he didn’t have to do, but does anyway. After helping her in, he gets into his own chair, which is as far away from Vernon’s that he could manage. Yeti steps over and helps him into his.

  “Alright you two,” Yeti says, “I’ll be right here. At the bar, having a drink. See you in a few.”

  Before Vargas could protest, the dive was already activated. His perception shot through the ship, and hovered above a round metal drone. No more than a second later, he was loaded into it, and pointed toward the sky. He tried to look around, but wasn’t able to move his head. He notices a message in the upper corner of what he can see; temporary perception lock. Lights began to flicker on up the tunnel, with a beep increasing in repetition. Dun, dun, ding.

  Even though it was a virtual projection, he could feel the thrust as he’s shot out of the tunnel. This was the first time that he had ever flown before. It was exhilarating. A clicking noise from somewhere behind his head releases him, allowing him to look around. The ship is far below, surrounded by pure blue. Out in front of him is Viviana, a mostly unexplored region of Eden. It had been that way because humans have yet to really push toward it. Several failed attempts at expansion were recorded throughout the years, but that had been decades ago.

  A second sphere comes flying out of the ship, and Vargas watches it ascend. It only takes a minute for it to reach where he was. A moment later, the air around it shimmers, revealing Amber. She was wearing a smile, alongside a similar looking sundress to the one she wore when he first met her. Wavy blond hair hangs shoulder length, and a gaze from hazel brown eyes send him back four years in time.

  Her mouth moves but he doesn’t hear anything.

  He shakes his head.

  “Ready?” She repeats herself.

  “Yea, sorry about that.”

  She shakes her head. “It ok.”

  “I guess we should head toward the town.”

  “Yes. I have map.”

  “Oh! Great, then lead the way.”

  13

  Deep mahogany eyes gaze at Vernon and Marie, focusing and readjusting its eyes to the light. The dragon sniffs at the air, and wrinkles its nose.

  “Oh,” The voice bellows out, but not as commanding as before, “I thought you were standing here, not in those metal things you humans use. Drones if memory serves. They smell of burnt magic, which is a something I could do without. Since we still have an accord with your kind, I will warn you that the drigh are very active in this area since those boats of yours started showing up on a regular basis along our coastline.”

  Vernon gathers up every bit of intelligent thought he can muster, the years of training he went through at the academy to prepare him for situations out of his depth and control. All so he could reply, “Uh…, you can talk?”

  The dragon huffs, rolling its eyes. Black smoke billows out from its nostrils. The smoke flows over both Vernon and Marie, hot against their skin, filling their noses. “Yes I can, and we dragons have done so since before your species landed on our planet. You should know of this already, why do you not know this?” The dragon questions impatiently, smoke lazily flowing from its nostrils.

  Marie steps in before Vernon can answer, “We were never taught dragons could talk, they only show us the destruction caused by your kind. We have a whole group devoted to containing dragons.”

  The dragon’s brow lifts, “Ah you must be referring to the whelps. They don't yet know how to talk and we are much more aggressive in our younger years. Once we reach our first hundred years or so, we calm down quite a bit. My son Dray-Gos should be handling relations with your people, is he not?”

  Vernon replies, “No, I have never heard his name before, and we have never been told about any dealings with dragons, other than us getting eaten by them. I am a Paladin who is assigned to Dragon squad. We are there to help keep the peace against beasts and act as a standing army.”

  Vernon could tell the dragon winched at him saying he was a Paladin, but didn’t see anger in the dragon’s eyes.

  “So if I understand you correctly, you kill the dragons that terrorize you, you don't know we are intelligent creatures, and you are a member of the Paladins, yes?” The dragon lets the words end with a sigh.

  “Yes.”

  “Ok, Vernon, was it. I am known to your leader as Dray-Gon, king of the dragons. A name I am not fond of, but was given to me. Do you know of the war against the drigh?”

  “The drigh are just annoying insects, as far as I know. There may be a death or two a year, but a war, you can’t be serious?”

  “Humans,” Dray-Gon says sarcastically, “Most of you have such short life-spans, it’s a miracle you have survived for as long as you have. Do you know of your leader, the one known as Adam?”

  “If it is the same Adam I know of maybe. I didn’t know him personally, but I know of the name. He died like, nine hundred years ago though, is that when you are talking about?”

  “Then you know nothing of the war. Interesting. The one known as Adam sealed the master of the Drigh away in the great mountain that was once on your continent. It now sits as a large lake. This was the turning point in the war, they lost their ability to organize their attacks. Do you know of what I speak?”

  Vernon’s mind starts to race. The lake where New Atlantis is, his new home, was once a mountain. Then to add to that, a human took that massive mountain and made it vanish. Things like that just don’t go missing from text books. Plus for one person to cast a spell that powerful is unheard of. Spells that powerful do exist but need groups of people, and there is technological ways of blowing up mountains no matter the size, but the dragon said he used it, not blew it up.

  There was a moment of silence, before the dragon spoke again, “Well human Vernon, do you know of what I speak? I cannot see your bodies, only drones, I am unable to see if you have heard me.”

  “No I don’t. When was this war you speak of?”

  “It was around five hundred years ago. It was then I met a human who saved me. In exchange I granted him a favor, which then lead to the accord between your kind and mine from which I spoke. Adam was his leader, and still is your leader. His presence has not faltered.”

  “That’s impossible, even you said it, we humans have short life-spans in comparison to you. How could a human live five hundred years?”

  “He knows the secrets of the gatekeepers, the ones who created us. He can make his life-span what he wishes it to be.” />
  Vernon’s mouth gapes open wide. Gatekeepers, the ones who created us, make his life-span what he wants. His brain wasn’t able to process everything he was just told. Religion was something very few people were taught anymore.

  The notion of God and the afterlife is something of an antiquated idea. Vernon’s father and mother are believers, as was his father’s father, which he never got to know. The bible which they owned was one of a very few printed copies that still remained. There were some digital copies, but most had pieces missing, or were rewritten. Trying to downplay certain books, and verses.

  His parents made sure to teach him religion, so he could know. So to hear Dray-Gon speak of those who created us, Vernon isn’t sure what to think.

  Marie asks, “Who are the gatekeepers?”

  Dray-Gon raises his head into the air, arching an eyebrow, “If you know not who they are, then I am unable to explain. They are only to be experienced.”

  Vernon asks, “What gate do they keep?”

  Dray-Gon shakes his head, “I know little of it, but it is known to us as the beyond.”

  Vernon rubs at his temples, trying to take it all in. “So let me get this straight. Your saying that someone, named Adam, defeated a leader of the Drigh, sealing him inside a mountain by making the mountain disappear. Then he has also lived for the last five hundred years based on knowledge only known to the gatekeepers. Does that about sum it up?”

  “Yes human, it is good to see that your kind can still hear.”

  Vernon waves his hands in the air across his face, trying to dismiss what he has just heard. “You have got to understand Dray-Gon, this is all a little hard to believe. There is a talking dragon in front of me, which I am not even sure is really there since we are virtually projecting ourselves here. The drigh you speak of are only known as a nuisance. Most are the size of mosquitoes, and about once a year a swarm of them might kill someone, maybe two. Then to top it off, you’re saying that there is a human that has lived for four centuries longer that I have ever heard anyone getting close to.”