Do the Gods Give Us Hope?

by Jeff Henrikson

  None of these conflicting emotions helped him now. All he knew was that there was a Krone very closeby that he could kill. Nero took several more steps and deep breaths to calm himself. The Guild was working with the Krone for the time being, and he had to use that to his advantage. Even Venal made deals with the Krone in the short term if it helped him kill more of the white-haired demons in the long run.

  Nero turned to Evisar and made a reasonable request to excuse himself. He said it in as polite a manner as he could muster, even though these companions were not worth his time. They were weak. He didn’t know how they had managed to survive up to this point, since he had already saved their lives twice. They were worthless do-gooders. He wouldn’t stay a day longer than was absolutely necessary to steal that damned gem from Xander.

  Nero waved politely to the companions and moved off to the south. He went down a narrow alleyway and quickly lost sight of the others. The houses were packed tightly together, creating shadows and darkness. Nero had always liked the dark, performed his best work in the dark, but now that he could sense anyone who was around him, he moved through the dark with impunity. He could sense the male Krone one house over. Nero moved around where the Krone had been observing the companions and began to sneak up on him from behind. The problem was that the Krone was on the move as well. Nero wondered if the Krone saw him slip away and was moving to sneak up on Nero, or if he just decided to move to a new location. Nero crouched down and waited as the Krone went across the street Nero had just walked through and found a new hiding place. Nero had to admit this Krone was smart. He had moved to the perfect observation point. Had Nero continued on his original path, the Krone would have easily gotten the jump on him.

  Instead of falling into the trap, Nero turned to the left, continued down another street, and looped even farther around the Krone’s rear. The plan worked, and Nero snuck up on the unaware Krone for the second time.

  Not wanting to startle the Krone into doing something stupid, Nero moved close enough so he could actually see the Krone hiding in the shadows, and softly whispered, “Pssst.”

  To his credit, the Krone did not panic, run, or do anything else to give away his position. He turned around and saw Nero standing there with his arms crossed over his chest.

  Nero spoke in a conversational tone. “I’m here to make a deal with you. I work for the Talon Thieves Guild, and I think we can help one another with the elves you were watching.”

  The Krone stood up and took a few steps toward Nero. “I just saw you walking with them. Why would you want to help me?”

  Nero took a few steps forward into the open sunlight and stopped well outside of sword range. “Because I want a large diamond one of them is carrying, and you want the ring on Valihorn’s finger. Am I right?”

  “How do you know what I want?”

  “I assume that’s why you are here. Unless you’re here to generally harass the citizens of this town.”

  Once Nero stepped out into the sunlight, the Krone’s eyebrows went up with a question. He looked Nero up and down and said, “I think I remember you. You were at the Old Shetley Fortress just before it was destroyed.”

  “Yes I was. I am of the Thirteen. I was at the fortress when the dragon attacked and the portal opened. I can speak for the Talon Guild. I can make arrangements and authorize exchanges in their stead, so long as I get the diamond back for the Guildmaster. I must say I am curious. How is it that you arrived in Wessex before us? We made fairly good time.”

  The Krone stood briefly silent, obviously trying to decide if Nero’s story was plausible. “When the portal was opened at the Old Shetley Fortress, there were twenty or so of my kin who were immediately sucked into the Plane of Chaos. Most of us managed to link up, but we were still drifting aimlessly between the landmasses.”

  “So, then what happened?”

  “After we floated for half a day, we saw another blue portal off in the distance. This portal was much smaller, but otherwise it looked the same. As we drifted toward the new portal, Mortem appeared before us.”

  The Krone stopped speaking because he was either waiting for something, or he was afraid of something. Nero asked, “Who was it that appeared?”

  “I’ll tell you soon enough. It’s your turn to tell me how it was that you came to travel with these elves. You don’t seem to care at all about their wellbeing.”

  “That is true enough.”

  “Why would they travel with someone they don’t trust?” questioned the Krone. “Why would they travel with someone who doesn’t care if they live or die?”

  “Because they think I care. That’s why. I’ve already saved their lives more than once, so they are beginning to trust me.”

  “Why did they accept you in the first place?”

  “Because they think the Crown of Armena sent me to help them bring the First Heir back,” Nero responded.

  “And did the Crown of Armena send you?”

  Nero smiled with pride. “In fact, they did.”

  “But you are trying to capture this diamond of yours and return it to the Talon Guild?”

  “I am.”

  “And how do you manage to keep all of what you just told me straight in your head?”

  Nero smiled. “It takes a good deal of practice.”

  “I would imagine.”

  “Now tell me. Who was this other person who appeared before you in the Plane of Chaos?”

  The Krone looked even more frightened than before. “His name is Mortem. He was sent by Evona.”

  “Excuse me?”

  The Krone looked him in the eye, conveying the absolute truth of what he was saying. “Evona sent one of her divine helpers to guide us and give us our godly mission.”

  “Who is this Mortem?”

  “Just another of my kin.”

  Nero looked confused. “Evona sent another Krone into the Plane of Chaos to find you?”

  “Not just any Krone. She sent one of her personal servants from her kingdom in the heavens. Evona spoke to Mortem personally about where to find us and what our mission would be.”

  “And what is your mission?”

  “You ask too many questions. As you said, we want the ring.”

  “Why does Evona want the ring?”

  “I’m not sure, but when Evona asks for something, you do as she commands if you want to live.”

  It wasn’t that hard for Nero to speculate. The ring on Valihorn’s finger gave the wearer the ability to control gates that went from Tellus to the Plane of Chaos, and the Plane of Chaos led directly to all the different kingdoms of the gods. Nero was no expert, but the texts said that the power of the gods depended directly on how many worshipers they had on Tellus. In reverse, the gods could affect events on Tellus, but largely in an indirect way. Evona was seeking to gain a great advantage over every other god by obtaining the ability to effortlessly send her heavenly forces directly to Tellus.

  Alarms immediately went off inside Nero’s head as he realized what Evona was trying to accomplish. Nero knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that if Venal were here, he would never let the ring fall into Evona’s hands. With the image of his god clearly focused in his mind, Nero had two possible choices. He could kill the Krone in front of him and run to help the companions, or he could stay focused on his mission to recapture the gem and gain favor with the Guildmaster. Nero took a moment to mull over his choices while the Krone evaluated him. A single moment was not enough time for Nero to run through all the ramifications of this important decision, so he went with his instincts. He hadn’t come this far by playing it safe.

  Nero said, “I think if we can manage to trust each other just a little bit, we may be able to achieve both of our goals.”

  “What is it you propose?”

  “I assume that there are ten or so Krone in this town along with this servant of Evona.”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m supposed to be meeting the elves at the church right now. Why don’t you follow me
back to the church and collect any of your friends that you find along the way. In a short time, hopefully while we are still in the church, when you think the timing is right, you should attack the elves from several sides. When you attack, I will turn on them as well. There are only four of them. By the time they realize what is going on, they will all be dead. Then you can take your ring, I can take my diamond, and we can all part company with our alliance intact and our missions accomplished. What do you say?”

  The Krone thought about the deal for a short time before saying, “That sounds acceptable. I will gather whom I can and attack the elves while they are inside the church. When you see our attack, you had best turn on them as well, or I will come for you when they are dead.”

  Nero said, “Don’t worry about me. I will have no trouble holding up my end of the bargain.”

  Chapter 86: Evona in Sentinel’s Church

  Evisar began to wonder if anyone was left in Wessex until he heard the commotion coming from the back room of the church. He motioned to Xander and Valihorn to stand ready as he drew Neverlost and stepped up to the wooden door. Evisar knew there was no stealthy way to open a closed door, so he instead resolved to open it quickly. He grasped the doorknob with his free hand, turned it sharply, and moved into the room as quickly as he could. Xander and Valihorn were right behind. What they found was altogether ordinary, surprising, and terrifying.

  The room was ordinary enough, with religious artifacts stored on shelves along the walls and the living altar to Sentinel in the back center of the room. The surprise came from how messy the thirty-foot by thirty-foot room was. Broken icons littered the floor with crates of church goods scattered throughout the room. The fear came from the angelic-looking male Krone they found standing behind the altar. The Krone did not glow per se, but he did have an undeniable aura about him. His physique and face were too perfect. Unearthly perfect. His skin was a dark gray and his hair was snow white. As the companions rushed into the room, the angelic Krone picked up a brass candlestick from the altar and flung it at the elves. Evisar dodged instinctively to the left, allowing the candlestick to fly out the door with an incredible amount of power and lodge into the sanctuary wall with a loud thud.

  The angelic Krone spoke up loudly but without anger. “How can anyone worship this human god of justice? Sentinel has no real power. These people should worship a real god. Don’t you agree?”

  Evisar spoke with a questioning voice. “Like Evona, for example?”

  The angelic Krone smiled with delight, a superficially beautiful sight. “Yes, like Evona. Now she is a goddess that anyone can respect.”

  Evisar said, “I can certainly respect Evona, but if the stories are correct, I would never turn my back on her.” Evisar thought that was enough of the chitchat. “I don’t mean to sound rude, but who are you and what do you want?”

  The angelic Krone stopped destroying things all at once and walked behind the altar that represented the living presence of Sentinel. “My, my, you are a demanding little mortal, aren’t you? I am called Mortem, and what I want is you, of course.”

  He brought up his hand and snapped his fingers. The sound reverberated throughout the temple as if the air itself rushed away from this foul being. As the sound died down, three Krone came running in through the main temple doors, effectively blocking any escape.

  “I see the ring on the young elf’s hand and it calls to me. Give it to me freely and all of this will end.”

  Evisar said, “You think three of your minions can block our escape? We’ve been through tougher scrapes than this.”

  Mortem said, “Indeed you have. You have caused quite a bit of trouble for my mistress. That is why she sent one of her own lieutenants to retrieve the ring.”

  “You may be of the heavens, but unless I am mistaken, if you die on Tellus, then you are forever dead. Do you want to risk it?”

  Mortem actually laughed. “Risk what? Do you honestly think you can hurt me?”

  Just when Evisar was about to spring into action, the floor in the back-right corner began to move. A trapdoor opened, and out of the trapdoor came a fourth male Krone carrying a five-year-old human girl. Mortem motioned for his minion to bring the child over to him.

  Valihorn leaned over to Evisar and said, “That trapdoor is where the townsfolk shelter whenever there is trouble.”

  Mortem said, “If you do not give me the ring, this child will die and so will all of you.” Evisar looked at Xander and Valihorn in turn, wondering what to do.

  Evisar said, “We can’t give you the ring, even if we wanted to.”

  Valihorn finally spoke up, “The ring is cursed. It will not come off my finger. I would gladly give it to you if I could.”

  Mortem was undeterred. “I wager that if your finger or your hand comes away from your body that the ring will come off easily enough. Come forward and give me the ring or this child dies.”

  Evisar spoke up angrily, “Give you the ring! You mean cut off Valihorn’s hand so you can take the ring!”

  “Come forward or the child dies, and then we will kill all of you.”

  Evisar said, “Even you wouldn’t hurt a defenseless child.”

  “Why else would I have had the child brought up from the cellar?” Mortem pulled a dagger from his belt and moved to cut the little girl’s throat.

  At the last moment Valihorn yelled, “Stop! I will give you the ring.”

  Evisar grabbed Valihorn by the collar. “What are you doing? Giving him the ring won’t solve anything. Once they have it, they’ll just kill us anyway. And without your whole hand you will never be able to cast another spell.”

  Valihorn pointed at the little girl. “Look at her. I have known Cameron since she was born. This is my town, remember? I will do what I must to protect it!”

  Valihorn stepped forward without another word. There was nothing else Evisar could do but let him go. His mind was racing, trying to think of some solution. Anything he did would take time, and by the time he did it the little girl would surely be dead. Where was his brother? Where was Nero, for that matter?

  Valihorn moved to stand in front of the living presence of Sentinel and placed his hand on the altar right next to the silver scales of justice. Mortem smiled with pleasure as he raised his sword and moved toward the altar without hesitation.

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  Mestel stopped in shock at what he saw. Not more than ten feet in front of him, Ellen was pressed up against a male Krone who was tearing her clothes off. Ellen had clearly been fighting the Krone for all she was worth, but it was a losing battle and she had the bruises to prove it. The Krone was stronger than she and he had been hardened by a life in the Underworld.

  As the door crashed open, they both turned to look at him. At first Ellen had a look of complete horror on her face, but it quickly turned to a look of hope when she realized someone may have come to save her. It took Ellen less than a heartbeat to realize who had just broken in the door.

  She screamed out, “Jefon! Help me!”

  The Krone backhanded her hard across the face and spoke in the language of the Underworld, which Mestel had always understood to some degree, but now understood perfectly. “Shut up, whore.”

  Then the Krone subtly nodded his head and the room went completely dark.

  There had been a time at the Old Shetley Fortress when Mestel had been terrified of a Krone chasing him through the darkness. He overcame his fear now as he overcame it then. Mestel’s momentary hesitation was over as he pulled a nocked arrow back to his ear. He centered on his god’s purpose and his gift of night vision returned. He saw the cold forms of the bed, floors, and walls as different shades of dark gray. Ellen and the Krone were both a soft white. Mestel centered his aim on the Krone’s back, being careful to avoid Ellen. He was about to release his arrow when he saw the outline of a white figure running toward him from the left.

  Mestel didn’t have time to think, only to react. The second Krone ran hea
dlong at him, unaware that Mestel could see in the dark. Mestel ducked just as the Krone came on at a sprint, swinging his sword over the spot where Mestel’s head had been. The Krone’s momentum carried him into Mestel, who let the Krone fall on top of him before he lunged upward and to the right with all of his strength. Completely unprepared for Mestel’s acrobatic move, the Krone flew end over end up against the wall ten feet away.

  Mestel ignored the Krone he had just thrown against the wall and refocused on Ellen. Mestel released an arrow with all the fury he could summon and watched it plunge into the back of the Krone standing over Ellen. Knowing the kill had already been made, Mestel wasted no time nocking another arrow and targeting the Krone off to the right, who was only just now getting up off the floor. Mestel shot the second Krone through the chest and watched with grim satisfaction as the Krone collapsed to the floor. Thinking the battle was over, Mestel lowered his bow and turned back toward Ellen. Martel must have been with him, because he turned just in time to see the first Krone charging at him in silence with a dagger in his hand.