by Clayton Wood
“I'm cold,” he explained, rubbing his hands together briskly. Kalibar created his own shield as well.
“I think it's safe to use our gravity boots,” he stated, levitating a foot off of the ground. “Stay below the rooftops; any enemy lookouts flying above will have a harder time seeing you that way.” He flew upward then, rising a good twenty feet in the air, gesturing for the others to follow suit. Goran flew up next; Ariana turned to Kyle, climbing on his back. Despite her slim frame, she was still awfully heavy to carry around for very long...not that he was about to tell her that. Kyle created his own gravity shield, then activated his gravity boots, feeling her weight lessen to almost nothing as the boots' stabilization fields kicked in. He flew upward slowly, until he was level with Kalibar and Goran.
“Follow my lead,” Kalibar ordered, accelerating forward. They flew down the street, the sides of the tall buildings zooming past on either side, water running over their gravity shields like rain on a windshield as they went. Kyle tensed up, concentrating on following Kalibar's path and speed as they curved around a bend in the road. They reached an intersection, and Kalibar made a chopping motion with his right hand, slowing down and turning suddenly to the right. Goran followed, and Kyle slowed down – somewhat abruptly, making Ariana hold on painfully tight – and turned as well, accelerating as he straightened out. They continued forward, weaving through the city streets, and after a few minutes, Kyle felt himself relaxing. It wasn't very hard to keep up with Kalibar and Goran once he got the hang of it.
Kalibar raised his right hand sharply, his fingers spread wide, and slowed down, Goran doing the same. Kyle slowed – smoothly this time – and watched as Kalibar descended, touching down on the wet street below. Kyle descended as well, then cut the magic stream to his boots altogether, landing on the street gently. He set Ariana down beside him, then watched as Kalibar walked to a black fence in the distance, some three stories tall. Kyle immediately recognized it as the magical fence surrounding the campus of the Secula Magna. The shimmering domed shield – the Gate Shield – that usually extended from the top of the fence was gone
“Ariana,” Kalibar asked, “...do you sense anyone nearby?” Ariana frowned, then shook her head.
“No one nearby, but I hear something ahead, farther away.”
“Good,” Kalibar replied. He flew upward over the tall fence, landing gently on the other side, then gestured for the others to follow. They did so, landing on the well-manicured lawn beyond.
“This soil is depleted,” Kalibar observed, kneeling on the lawn. He inactivated his gravity shield, then grabbed a hunk of grass and pulled it out of the ground, tossing it away. Then he grabbed a glob of wet dirt from the same hole, smearing it over himself. “Come on,” he stated, gesturing for the others to follow suit. Soon they were all tearing at the grass, smearing cold, wet mud over themselves. After everything they'd been through in the last few weeks, getting messy was nothing alarming to Kalibar, Ariana, or Kyle. Goran, on the other hand, appeared thoroughly disgusted.
“Your Battle-Weavers won't recognize us if we meet them,” he groused, flinging mud off of his fingers.
“Neither will the enemy,” Kalibar countered, his gravity shield reappearing around him. “Shields up,” he ordered. “Fly low to the ground, aim for the Tower. Go to ground if you spot a Void sphere.” He flew up into the air, and Kyle flew up after him, Ariana clinging to his back. Kalibar kept them barely ten feet from the ground, the tall spire of the Great Tower still a few miles away. They picked up speed quickly, the slight drizzle pelting their gravity shields, leaving comet-tails of water in their wake. The Tower grew as they drew closer, towering over them, its pyramidal spire glittering in the starlight filtering through the clouds above. Kalibar slowed as they reached the cobblestone walkway surrounding the Tower, descending onto it. Goran and Kyle did the same, following Kalibar as he strode quickly toward the massive double-doors marking the entrance to the Tower. As they drew closer, Kyle noticed two shadowy figures standing on either side of the doors.
“Ariana?” Kalibar prompted.
“Battle-Weavers,” she replied instantly. Kalibar nodded, walking toward the two men confidently, his gravity shield vanishing abruptly. The two men – they were Battle-Weavers, Kyle realized as they drew closer – shouted at Kalibar, gravity shields appearing around them. Kalibar stopped, raising one hand.
“I am Grand Weaver Kalibar,” he shouted imperiously, wiping the mud off of his face with his free arm. “Councilman Goran is with me, as are my children,” he added, gesturing to each as he spoke. The Battle-Weavers wavered, but did not lower their shields. Kalibar smiled. “Traven, isn't it?” he asked, pointing to one of the men. “Your father served with me in Kall.” The Battle-Weaver's eyes widened, and he dropped his gravity shield, kneeling before Kalibar.
“My apologies, Grand Weaver,” he blurted, “...we didn't recognize you.” Kalibar gestured for the man to rise.
“You're a credit to your father,” Kalibar countered, putting a hand on Traven's shoulder. “Where is Grand Runic Erasmus?”
“High Weaver Urson knows,” Traven answered. “He didn't tell anyone else, in case we were interrogated.”
“Urson's alive?” Kalibar exclaimed. Traven nodded.
“He's on the other side of the Tower.”
“Is the area secure?”
“Yes Grand Weaver,” Traven confirmed. “The military entered the city about an hour ago. They've neutralized most of the escaped prisoners. They're fighting off the Death Weavers and enemy soldiers in the Southwest Quarter as we speak.”
“What about the Chosen?” Kalibar pressed.
“I think Master Owens took one out with that new weapon,” Traven answered. “We haven't encountered any others since.”
“Thank you,” Kalibar stated. “We need to debrief with Urson. Traven bowed sharply, then opened the lobby doors, and Kalibar led the others through. The lobby was deserted, the room in shambles. Kalibar took them right through it, into a broad hallway beyond, one that led them to the other end of the massive Tower. After a few minutes, they reached a set of double doors at the end of the hallway, the two men guarding them reacting in the same way Traven had earlier. Kalibar somehow recognized these soldiers as well, greeting them by name, immediately defusing the situation. Kyle recalled Kalibar's advice to him way back when he'd first met Jenkins; despite having met the butler once or twice a few years ago, he had remembered the man's name, immediately earning Jenkin's respect and loyalty. Kalibar's insistence on knowing his subjects had paid off yet again.
“Urson's just beyond,” Kalibar stated as the double-doors opened. The cool night air ruffled Kyle's hair as they walked through the doorway, the campus of the Secula Magna spread out before them. At least a dozen Battle-Weavers were standing just outside of the Tower, a tall man in silver and black armor standing among them, black cloak rippling in the wind. Kyle immediately recognized the man as High Weaver Urson.
“Urson!” Kalibar exclaimed, walking up to the man. Urson turned about, his green eyes narrowing for a split second, then relaxing. He broke out into a huge smile, walking up to Kalibar and embracing him, ignoring the mud covering the Grand Weaver. Kalibar chuckled, then held Urson at arm’s length. “You're alive,” he observed, looking the man over. Urson grinned.
“Better lucky than good,” he replied. “Almost didn't recognize you,” he added, gesturing at the dirt caking Kalibar's entire body.
“A bit of insulation,” Kalibar explained. “Keeps those Void spheres from draining us,” he added. Urson frowned.
“You'll have to explain how that works.”
“Kyle will,” Kalibar replied. “He's the one that figured it out. Where's Erasmus?”
“In a random residence in the Northeast Quarter,” Urson answered. “Guarded by a dozen of my best men.”
“Is he...?”
“Alive and well,” Urson reassured. “I'm keeping him there until I can confirm that the city is secure.”
“The Tower is secure,” Urson replied. “The fighting is mostly limited to the Southwest Quarter. A full legion entered the city about an hour ago. Most of the enemy soldiers and Weavers have been killed. A few of those Void spheres are still roaming the city, and we've evacuated the areas around them.” He shook his head. “Containing them is going to be a problem.”
“What about the Chosen?” Kalibar pressed. “There were...reports of one near the Tower right before it was attacked.”
“Dead now,” Urson answered. “After you were evacuated, that Void sphere decimated most of my men in the Tower. We managed to escape, then regroup with Master Owens and a few Runics. They had that new weapon with them...”
“The killerpillar gun,” Kalibar interjected.
“...and they managed to kill the Chosen with it,” Urson continued. “We haven't encountered any more Chosen since.”
“Why hasn't Xanos sent more Chosen?” Kalibar wondered aloud. He turned away from Urson, gazing out beyond the gently rolling grassy hills of the campus, to the shadowy cityscape surrounding them. “They're his most powerful weapon. It doesn't make any sense.”
Kyle frowned, following Kalibar's gaze. Black smoke lingered in the air above the tall buildings several miles away, mixing with the angry thunderclouds above. Brief flashes of lightning pulsed from cloud to cloud, faint rumblings echoing through the cool air. He felt a cold hand grasp his left arm, and turned to see Ariana staring up at the sky, her eyes wide with terror.
“Kyle...!” she screamed.
And then the heavens opened up above them.
Chapter 26
Massive thunderclouds loomed over Stridon, their black underbellies flashing as jagged bolts of lightning lit up the night sky, crackling thunderclaps rattling the windows of the buildings far below. Light from the countless unseen stars beyond lined the very tops of the clouds with the faintest silver, a stark contrast with the black tempest that roiled underneath. The thunderclouds blanketed the sky, dwarfing the city below, as if mocking the petty constructs of Man.
A faint light grew within that dark underbelly, widening and brightening until it shone like the sun. The thunderclouds tore open, a giant ray of light bursting through, cutting a swath through the gloom. The ray descended onto the buildings of the Southwest Quarter, bathing them in a huge golden spotlight. The stone walls flashed, their windows glittering brilliantly, like diamonds in the sun. The air above the rooftops rippled, the golden-brown walls turning a pinkish hue, which deepened into a dull red. The redness spread from the rooftops down, until the top halves of each were glowing in the dazzling spotlight.
And then the stone sank into itself, the rooftops turning to mush, molten rock dripping down the sides of the buildings. The spotlight intensified, every building in its path melting like so many burning candles, black smoke rising upward into the night sky.
A powerful wind tore at Kyle flinging chunks of dried mud from his clothes. He braced himself, feeling Ariana's powerful fingers digging into his arm.
“My god!” Kalibar cried.
The beam of light vanished, the dark clouds rushing inward to fill the void it had created, the four city blocks below glowing red-hot against the blackness of the night. Countless jagged bolts of lightning pulsed within the thunderclouds where the beam had been only moments before, the clouds darkening until they were almost pitch black.
A faint white light shone through the darkness.
“Run!” Ariana screamed, yanking Kyle backward by his arm. Kyle cried out, pain shooting through his shoulder, and stumbled backward, falling onto the ground. Ariana let go of his arm, and he clutched it to his side, scrambling to his feet, his eyes on the single faint light piercing through the clouds above. It grew brighter, then sharper, turning from a dull glow to a brilliant white beacon.
The clouds parted suddenly, a massive domed head piercing through, a single white diamond-shaped eye staring down at them.
“Run!” Ariana screamed again.
Kyle tried to turn and run, but his body refused to obey. His legs gave out underneath him, and he landed on his butt on the grass below. His eyes were riveted on that brilliant eye hundreds of feet above, that domed head more massive than any he could have imagined. Enormous fists punched through the clouds, each wrought of black, shimmering metal.
This was a Behemoth, but not the one he'd been attacked by earlier. This was twice the size, its eye white, not green. Tiny white lights ran down the length of its limbs, like stars glittering in the night sky. Its legs, each twenty stories tall, descended through the clouds. Down it fell, until its enormous feet smashed into the buildings below, miles from where Kyle stood. The buildings crumbled as if made of sand, the Behemoth crashing through them silently, its feet slamming into the ground.
Kyle saw Kalibar cover his ears, saw Urson doing the same. Gravity shields appeared around them.
A deafening boom blasted Kyle backward, knocking him onto his back on the wet grass, the air blasting from his lungs. Pain shot through his ears, and all he could hear was a loud, high-pitched ringing sound. He covered his ears too late, crying out in pain, barely able to hear his own voice. Ariana appeared in front of him, grabbing him under his armpits and lifting him to his feet. The ground shuddered underneath them.
The ringing in Kyle's ears faded, his hearing gradually returning.
“Get them out of here!” he heard Kalibar shout. “The city is lost, run for your lives!”
“But the Empire!” Goran protested.
“I can't save the Empire,” Kalibar shot back. “But I can save my family!”
The Behemoth stood among the ruins of the buildings it had demolished, flaps on the front of its shoulders lifting upward, revealing dark chambers underneath. Dozens of tiny white lights shot outward from those chambers, arcing through the night sky like shooting stars, spreading outward across the campus as they fell. One of the lights arced toward Kyle and Kalibar, landing on the grass a hundred feet away, then bouncing toward them until it came to a rolling stop a few dozen feet away.
“No,” he heard Kalibar breathe.
The white object lifted up into the air until it was at eye-level, a white sphere floating in the cool night air. Kyle stared at it, then looked down at his arms, seeing blue light escaping through the gaps in the mud covering him, shooting forward toward the levitating sphere.
“Fly, now!” Kalibar shouted, grabbing Kyle.
Kyle felt Kalibar's arms tighten around him, felt a powerful force pull him to Kalibar's side. They shot up into the air, twisting around and flying away from the white sphere, the ground dropping underneath them with dizzying speed.
“Ariana!” Kyle cried, searching the ground frantically for her.
“Goran has her,” Kalibar shouted back. Kyle searched the sky, spotting Goran flying a dozen feet to their left, Ariana clinging to his back. The Behemoth stood there in the distance, one leg lifting upward and forward, then slowly descending onto a few buildings below, demolishing them. There was a muffled boom a few moments later. Despite himself, a part of Kyle's brain began to count.
One, two, three...
The Behemoth's other leg lifted upward, demolishing a few buildings as it swung forward.
...ten, eleven, twelve...
The leg lowered to the ground, debris flying up into the air around it as it crushed everything in its path.
...twenty-one, twenty-two...
Another muffled boom echoed through the air.
“It's coming after us!” Kyle heard Urson shout. The High Weaver was flying a dozen feet below them, pointing to the Void sphere speeding toward them. Kyle wasn't too worried....it was moving far too slowly to catch up with them. His eyes swept the landscape, searching for other spheres. There were dozens of them, moving across the campus toward the Tower in a slow crawl, none of them moving as quickly or purposefully as the one chasing them.
Kyle looked forward, saw the Behemoth's lone eye turn to
look directly at them. A chill ran down his spine.
“It's using the spheres' movement to track us!” Kyle realized. He saw Kalibar glance back at the Behemoth, felt them accelerate forward with gut-wrenching force, arcing tightly to the right. The white sphere fell farther behind, far too distant to absorb their magic, but the Behemoth's diamond-shaped eye tracked them unerringly, growing even brighter as Kyle watched, until it flashed once.
“Kalibar, dodge!” he shouted.
Kalibar shot upward and to the left so quickly that Kyle felt the blood drain from his head, his vision blackening. He grit his teeth, desperately trying to hold on to consciousness, feeling his whole body go numb. An impossibly bright light burst into life below them, hot air rushing up and around them, searing Kyle's lungs. Kyle coughed uncontrollably, his eyes watering with the heat. He heard Kalibar coughing, knew that the only thing preventing them both from burning alive was Kalibar's shield.
The impossibly hot air rose up around them, following them as Kalibar shot almost straight upward, a huge expanse of the lawn below bursting into flames, the grass blackening and curling instantly. Despite the gravity shield, Kyle felt the temperature rising, sweat pouring from his roasting skin. Sweat dripped from his forehead and into his eyes, making them smart even more.
Water!
Kyle wove magic in his mind, creating a stream of water at his feet. He felt hot air rush in, burning his skin, heating the dried mud on his clothes until it was unbearably hot. But it was quickly followed by a blast of cold air that swirled around him. The cool air felt incredible, and Kyle continued his water stream as they flew ever upward, until he was so cold he was shivering.
“Nice work,” Kalibar shouted, leveling off and shooting forward. They were hundreds of feet above the massive campus of the Secula Magna now, the dormitories like miniature toys below. The intense spotlight below them faded, the superheated earth below the vaporized grass still glowing red-hot from the Behemoth's beam. To Kyle's relief, he spotted Goran and Ariana flying above them, Urson and his Battle-Weavers to their left. The Void sphere that had been tracking them earlier was nowhere to be found.