And before she had time to ask why there was loud screech from the heavens and she looked up to see the suns being erased from the sky.
There coming fast downwards was a creature that the Nomads called the God of the Skies. It was many times larger then the flying beasts of the Sky Riders, its wingspan was five times the length of a Karrack, the things head was long and narrow with a beak like a Daggermouth and clawed feet that could carry off a Whiptail with ease.
In an instance Andra raised her weapon and prepared to stand by her King.
The warriors of the Almadra knew the creature they were facing; it was an Arabus bird. It was not really a bird for it had no feathers like an arrow tail of Doff-bird, instead its wings were large flaps of skin supported by its front arms much like a Nightflyer. But the people of the Outlands knew it meant great danger for it lived on flesh and knew no fear.
With a wild cry the defenders of their tribe rode into battle, the Arabus swooped down on the Almadra with a blast of wind that made a cloud of dust obscuring the vision and causing panic among the Elders. The Trofars pulled hard on their harnesses and the wagons began to rumble through Romas-Agor.
Endo fought hard to hold onto the reins of his beast, next to him Osh looked up to see the great reptile heading straight for them with its clawed feet stretched forward ready to grab anything that came into its reach. “Good Gods!” the old man cried out, “it is a gigantic example of a cocorus nitalius!” and seeing such a rare creature the Callaxion did not realize that the flying beast was heading right for him. It was only at the last moment that the Sandjar boy reached over and pulled his father to one side and watched the great claw of the Arabus miss its mark by a fraction of an inch. With a loud cry the bird ripped the roof of their wagon and then rose up into the air.
And before the old man could say anything Endo pushed his head down out of danger, “stay down father” he said loudly then reached for one of the chamber rifles that had been the weapons of the Talsonar, he quickly loaded it and turned and fired at the great bird. The rifle emitted a burst of smoke and fire but the bullet did not hit its mark. The Sandjar started to reload as his father took over the reins of their Karrack, “I will drive” the old man said, “you shoot!”
Endo nodded his head and together they raced off with the rest of the tribe.
Arn and Andra watched at the Arabus turned in the air and headed straight back at them.
“Can we fire the long range guns at it?” she shouted as he fought for control of her roaring Whiptail.
“They move to fast”, replied the King. He also knew that the disrupters would take to much time to charge there power cells and the Bird would be long gone before then. He also knew that Kuno the Captain of the Spikeback must have been cursing loudly that he would not be able to help in the battle. We have to stand and fight while the tribe moves to safety, he called out to Lux who was nearby, “lead the wagons to that outcropping” and he pointed with his ax to a large rocky overhang to one side of the canyon.
Lux nodded her head in understanding then called out to the lead wagons to follow her. They did and Arn turned to his remaining warriors, “strike at the wings, it is their only weak spot!”
A great cloud of dust rose as the huge reptile swooped down once again. This time the Almadra were ready, with a shout from their King they flung their war-axes at the outstretched wings and watched as the sharp edges of the weapons tore through the thin membrane. The sky God was hurt but it still managed to grab one of the Whiptails and its rider and pull them into the air.
Andra watch the warrior woman known as Lux being held tightly in the massive claw of the sky bird, she saw her striking at the leg of the beast with one of her daggers and uttering curses for it to let her loose. As it rose into the air it must have heard the words of the warrior for it opened his foot and let her fall to the ground. The Selcarie girl watched as she hit the ground hard. For a moment she thought the fight was over but she was wrong for as she looked up again she saw another Arabus falling out of the sky.
They travel in pairs, she thought, just like sand dragons. She was right, they did travel in pairs, male and female, and much to her horror she realized that the first bird was indeed the female and this one was much larger.
But there was little time for thinking about this for the Sky God dropped from the heavens and brought with it a storm of dust and rock.
Egmar and the Handmaidens held tightly to each other as the shrine of the Goddess headed for safety, the twenty strong Trofar pulled with all their might as the Thungodra beat them with Rimar hide whips and shouted for them to move. The guardians of the Holy Mother took an oath to keep the High Priestess safe and they would do so even at the expense of the rest of the tribe.
Egmar knew this but it did not ease her fear, the Goddess did not hear my prayer, perhaps she no longer listens to my voice? It was a strange question to ask at a moment like this, she should have been thinking of all the fear and danger that her people were now facing, but for some reason all she could think about was herself. Does Isarie know my words...or is she deaf to me?
She continued to think on this as her Handmaidens clung to her side. And with them was Kela, for she sought comfort at the side of her Enor.
I will be safe here; she told herself for Egmar is beloved of Isarie and will not bring her to harm. And hearing her mind say those words brought comfort to her heart and eased the fear in her body.
The great sky bird raked the warriors with its huge claws, two of the Nomad fighters were ripped from their saddles and died instantly, but the Outlanders stood their ground, they continued to fight as best they could and give time for their tribe to reach safety.
Andra watched as the monster rose skyward and prepared to dive upon them once more.
If only I had a good blaze cannon, but there were none of the destructive weapons on Gorn, there was only wits and hand ax to defeat the beast.
Arn could see that the Arabus was coming around for another attack; he could also see that most of the tribe had reached the outcropping and with the massive overhang of rock to protect them his people would be safe. Now he turned his attention back to the flying creature that was fast approaching.
He decided on a disparate plan, he quickly called for the warriors to gather around him and his mate, they heard his commands and in a matter of moments several of the best rode close to their King and waited for further orders.
Andra’s Whiptail pulled hard at its reins, it knew that death was fast approaching and its instincts told it to flee, but the Selcarie girl pulled hard on the bit in its mouth and it remained were it was. Then she looked over at Arn, “what is your plan?” she asked him.
“We wait till the last moment then strike for its mouth” he said calmly.
It sounded like a good plan to the girl. The beak was too thick for an ax cut and its neck and head were too well armored for their weapons to do much damage so the best idea was to wait till it opened its great mouth then throw their weapons at the soft pallet of the bird. But it was also very dangerous, waiting till the last moment meant that if they missed many of the Nomads would die a horrible death.
But the Outlanders had taken an oath to stand with their King and they would do so even at the expense of their lives. So as the flying reptile came for them Arn called out to his warriors.
“There is a great feast waiting in the golden hall of the Goddess” he said loudly, “if you get there first save us some Rimar!”
These words made the warriors laugh, and then a wave of dust rose up before them and the light vanished from the sky.
The night was warm and calm as the warriors of the Almadra sat around their fires and spoke of the day’s events,
“And it was only by luck that my ax struck the eye of the beast rather than its mouth!” Andra said as she lifted a cup of Po to her lips, “so don’t go giving me medals for something I didn’t mean to do”.
Arn smiled at her as he lifted his drinking horn in a toast,
“to Moonbud, a warrior who found victory by missing her mark”.
The others around the fire also lifted their cups.
“To Moonbud!” they shouted, and then poured great amounts of sour wine down their thirsty gullets.
Kuno wiped his mouth with the back of his large hand, “a victory is a victory, do not question the Gods on their choice of methods”.
And hearing those words they lifted their cups once more to the wise words of the Captain.
When their thirst was quenched they feasted on the flesh of the Arabus, it was not the best of meat but victory makes the taste all the sweeter.
And so the Almadra rested in the night, they had buried the dead and sang songs to their names. Lux the great woman warrior was laid to rest in her armor and with her ax in her hand. And because she would not be content with one cup of Po in the Afterlife they placed a whole barrel of their best wine next to her knowing that she would smile and speak well of them in the Golden Hall of Isarie.
The Elders of the Tribe gave thanks to the Gods for letting them pass through the womb of the Goddess with little loss of life. They did not question why some should die while others live; it was not there place to ask such things of their Gods. They were content knowing that their faith would carry them through their lives and into the Afterlife and that the great Goddess Isarie was always watching them and knew the paths that lay before them.
Osh wrote down all that he had seen hoping that someday it would be Mindlocked into the great Tollacian computers of the Outer Rim and be placed alongside such noted authors as Vardas Cocam or V.V. Yar. But if that did not happen he would still be content knowing that he had witness what few others had and that he survived to write about it.
Endo on the other hand was not content, for he wished to show his father and the others of the tribe that he was also a great warrior and not just a Scavenger. But he had no Gods to pray too so he spent the evening cleaning his chamber rifle and hoping that a day would come when he could show his true character.
Anais had escaped the dangers of the Arabus birds and was now safe inside his tent, he could hear the members of his tribe talking outside and telling of the day’s events and offering prayers to the Holy Goddess for their safe passing. But these words had no meaning to the blind Prince; he was still living in a dark world of his own making, a world without hope or pity.
He had just finished his third cup of Po and was feeling as well as he could.
Why do they pray? He thought if they truly understood they would ask why Isarie would send the sky Gods in the first place? This made him take another drink of his sour wine, can they not see that it’s all foolishness, if your time has come no amount of prayers will change that ending. And again he took a deep drink of his wine for this reminded him of the Pit of Marloon and the punishments that were waiting for him, here may or may not be a Goddess, but if there is perhaps she will hear my voice?
These thoughts were something that only a short time ago would have been unknown to his mind, but now they did not seem quite so distant. Now he was alone and with only a dark future ahead of him, but maybe that future could be changed? Maybe it wasn’t too late. And so he put down the golden cup and began to utter words that he never thought he would speak.
“Isarie, it is I Anais Prince of the Almadra, and I wish to pray”.
What he said to the Eternal Goddess after that we will never know for those words are not meant for us and we are forbidden to listen.
Egmar laid an offering of fresh cut field flowers and a bowl of Balbar fruit at the foot of a statue of Isarie. She kneed before the image in her tent with her Handmaidens chatting praises to the Goddess and thanking her for protecting them from the fury of the Sky God. But as the sweet smell of incense floated through the air and the ringing of silver bells mixed with ancient words the Holy Mother listened to a sound that she had heard before, a faint rattling noise that seemed to be all around her.
What is that sound? She asked herself, why does it come to me? She lifted her bowed head to look into the face of the sacred stature, but has she gazed into the warm eyes of the icon she thought she saw something moving on its face?
The image looked at her and spoke in a voice that was not human.
Terrified she cried out and fell to the floor, the Handmaidens stopped their prayers and came rushing to her side, they gathered her up in their arms and looked into her scarred face, but the eyes that looked back at them showed no sign of recognition.
Kela bent down to whisper to her Enor, “Holy Mother, are you well?” she asked.
But Egmar did not answer for her mind was filled with the image that she saw on the face of the Goddess.
A large black spider that knew her name.
Chapter 10.
The Trap.
It is a common practice among the Nomads of the Outlands to conceal their presents; they do this in many ways. They do not leave anything behind when they move their camps or travel over the lands, the tracks of their wagons and beasts are erased by a large rake-like devises that the last in the column drag behind them. They do this because of the constant danger from scavengers and other predators on Gorn.
From the mindlock of Oshismarie, Inastro Sistashion.
Doff-birds are a curious breed, they travel in family groups much like the Sandjar, the leader is usually a male and with him can be several females with their young. They are strong and agile creatures with powerful beaks and sharp claws on their hind legs and long spurs that they use for killing larger game. Over the milleniums they have lost the power of flight and now walk or run over much of the Outlands, they will attack if provoked but prefer running away rather than face danger. Their diet consists mostly of small animals such as Burrow Babies or Rock Runners but they will also eat fruit or carrion if they find any. Their wailing cries can be heard at night when they stand together and call out in a screech that can be heard over a great distance.
The Nomads sometimes hunt them for their very colorful plumage that consists of long feathers that run from the crown of their large heads down their backs to a cluster on their tails. Their eggs are very delicious and the empty shells are sometimes used for drinking cups or ground up to be used as a healing medicine.
It is also told in stories to the children of the Outlanders that they were once human.
They say that long ago a tribe of Nomads set a trap for Wowana the Goddess of the air. They succeed in their plan and held her hostage, for they were a cruel and greedy people. They told her that they would set her free if she turned them into birds for above everything else they wish to fly in the heavens, Wowana agreed to this and they set her free. And being a Goddess she kept her word, she turned them into birds. But for their arrogance and cruelty she made them creatures that looked like birds but could not fly, and for all time they would wander the Outlands looking up at the stars knowing that they would never reach them and calling out to the Goddess to forgive them.
There was a wind blowing from the west when the leader of the family of Doff-birds came up over a small ridge and saw the huge twisted mountain of metal that had once been the terror ship M-91. The simple-minded creature had no way of knowing that this had once been the most powerful battleship in the Trajion war fleet, it also had no way of knowing that it was not dead. But eons of life on Gorn had produced a creature that knew when to approach and when to run, so emitting a loud screech the leader of the feathered beasts turned and quickly raced away from the metal monster that lay half buried in the earth.
The Darkman no longer slept, he did not understand why but he was thankful for not having to endure those little stabs of death every time he closed his eyes. And with the darkness in sleep came the nightmares that had been his constant companion’s since he wandered into the Poison lands and became a Shadowman.
Now he sat in the chamber of the God that had given him a new body and the power to once more continue his fight against his enemies. Around him moved the metal creatures that had taken pa
rts of his rotting body and replaced them with new limbs, and not legs and arms that would feel the cut of a Nomads ax, no, these were appendages that could crush a man skull or grind him into the sand.
The Shadowman watched their strange movements, they are like blaze-ants around their nests, he thought, they move with a purpose and do not question where they go this made him smile, someday all the Outlands will move as I say. Then he looked up at the glowing Orb near him, I will serve this God and in return the Nomads will serve me.
He stood up and began to walk out of the chamber, he went through a passageway that was filled with small spider-like mechanisms, they had been working without stopping and each passing hour saw more of them. He did not ask where they came from and simply accepted the fact that a God can create at will and should not be ask the extent of his power.
Even if he did ask and the Orb that now called itself Atos had told him he could have hardly understood, for how would a Shadowman know of the technology that allowed the sphere to manufacture Repairbots as needed, these smaller and more agile mechanisms were called Spotters. They could do simple or complex tasks if needed; they also help the larger Task robots in diagnostic reports and a hundred other things that were needed.
But the Darkman did not care about such things; all he knew was the God was makings itself stronger with each passing day.
The Shadowman moved pass the tiny workers and entered a large chamber that was being worked on by a group of creatures that were once called Sandjars. But there was very little left that would have told you that these were once scavengers of the Outlands, their green skinned bodies were now covered in an organic flexible compound that protected them from damage as they went about their work repairing and moving equipment. They did not speak because there was no need too, their brains had been inserted with biomechanical interactive responders and they had been programmed to know what needed to be done and went about it with precise movements and no wasted energy, and they also did not sleep. Their food if you could call it food was injected into what was left of their stomachs by specially equipped nourishment robots that could sustain them with an organic compound much like the substance that kept the Orb alive. This food was a simple organic fungus that would grow with very little input; it absorbed sunlight and compounds and produced a rudimentary digestive material that would go on reproducing indefinitely.
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