by Ren Curylo
The Prophecy
Children of the River Book 1
Ren Curylo
The Children of the River Series is ©2017 Ren Curylo. This volume, The Prophecy, Children of the River, Book 1 ©2017 Ren Curylo.
Cover Design: ©2017 Gene Curylo Cover Art: ©2017 Laurie Patton
Map: ©2017 Ren Curylo
All rights reserved.
Acknowledgements:
This book is lovingly dedicated to Gene, who is always supportive and always encouraging.
And to Branden, whose advice is unparalleled and whose opinion means so much.
To Haylan, the bravest & most talented woman I know. Thank you for your help & your vision.
To Eric, whose adventures are always entertaining & inspiring.
Honorable mention goes to my friend, Mary, who is more like family than a lot of my actual family. Your encouragement is one of the most valuable resources I have.
A special thanks goes to Cruddy, who sits on the back of my chair, or better yet, right in front of my monitor so I can’t see anything but her cute little furry face.
Kudos to Nigel Rupert Toastwater III. You pretty, man. Our own little Tigmuc.
And to you guys From The Dark. You’re all part of my heart.
This book is a work of fiction, completely & wholly. The characters in this book have no basis in reality and any similarity to a real person, living or dead is purely coincidental and accidental…and maybe all in your head.
Author’s Notes: This series has turned into a tremendous undertaking, far more complex than I imagined when I first conceived of the project. I couldn’t have done any of this without the help & support of my family & friends.
I have placed a number of resources in this book to aid the reader in keeping track of information, characters, places, names & words that may seem strange to you.
First, there is a map of the mortal world, Lerien, in the front of the book. It shows the continents and several islands of this world. It does not contain any places markers because I think avoiding spoilers is important. As the story unfolds, I may, in future volumes, add markers for places that become familiar.
In the back of the book, you will find quite a few resources that may or may not be spoilers. I suggest using them at your own risk or don’t look at them until you’re finished reading. I have tried not to include any storyline spoilers, but some may have accidentally sneaked in. In the back:
You will find charts and explanations of the calendar used in this series. This section explains months, days, holidays, etc. The last entry in the back of the book is a glossary of names, places, & words used in this series. I have included a pronunciation guide for the stranger or harder to pronounce words & names as well as a brief description or definition.
PART ONE
The Old World
Ianualis 10
Laboratory 7 The lights in the laboratory flickered on and continued to flicker for several seconds, alternating from bright to harsh with the occasional flash of blinding. Dr. Broussard squinted his brown eyes in response to the sudden transition from near darkness, but he quickly adjusted. He stepped inside the lab and shut the door behind him.
He immediately opened the door again and spoke to someone on the other side. “Captain Teel, do you know which hallway Dr. O’Ruairc uses to come to this lab?”
“He usually comes in from the east side, doctor,” Captain Teel replied.
He looked up, more out of reflex than curiosity, at the sign on the wall beyond the captain, which read ‘Access West’. The man nodded and closed the laboratory door.
Dr. Broussard strode, on sturdy legs, to the filing cabinet and fingered his way through the documents within until he found the one he sought. He pulled it out, crossed over to a stainless steel table, and slapped the folder down with a sharp smack. Dragging up a padded stool, he settled in to read up on the today’s experiment while he waited for his supervisor.
As he sat, reading and waiting, he felt a tremor rumble beneath the tiled floor of the underground laboratory. Though it was slight, it drew his attention and his concern. Laboratory 7 was the most vital of all their labs, and for that reason, was located far from every known fault line. The hum of a vibration emanated from the walls around him. He could feel it in his bones.
Moments later, the door on the eastern side of the lab slipped open and a slender, dark-haired man with a closely cropped beard stepped inside. “Good morning, Dr. Broussard,” he said jovially. “What’s on our schedule for today?”
“Good morning, Dr. O’Ruairc,” Dr. Broussard said, looking up from the file before him. “I’m reading over the case file, now.”
“I’d say it’s something interesting, judging from your look of concern when I came in.”
Dr. Broussard frowned and slid the documents over to his supervisor. “Take a look,” he said.
Dr. O’Ruairc picked up the paper and scanned over it for a moment before looking sharply at his partner. “This case is GreenwaltJones 616,” he said.
Dr. Broussard nodded.
“Aren’t those the two field agents who were found mutilated last year?”
Dr. Broussard nodded again. “Agents Greenwalt and Jones were both found in a meadow near where they were gathering samples. Their bodies were basically shredded. We still don’t know what attacked them. The rescue crew found this genetic material in their wounds. It appears to be saliva, but there’s something strange about it. They collected it from the agents’ corpses and marked it unknown in origin.”
“And the folks in Laboratory 1 weren’t able to ascertain what type of creature it came from,” Dr. O’Ruairc said. “I remember the case. I guess it’s fitting that it’s been passed on to us to figure it out. When I initially read about it, I felt something was oddly wrong with the sample they took. It seemed a bit mixed, if you ask me.”
Dr. Broussard shook his head. “Those were my thoughts exactly, but unfortunately the directive in the work order here isn’t asking us to determine what it is,” he said, bringing another document forward. He waved a paper, separate from the file.
Dr. O’Ruairc looked up questioningly. “What do they want?”
“They want us to reproduce the creature.”
“They must be mad,” Dr. O’Ruairc said in protest. He took the single sheet of paper from his coworker and scanned over it with a frown. “This came in as a separate order from the file?”
Dr. Broussard nodded. “It’s signed off by the Commander himself.”
Dr. O’Ruairc moved to stand behind Dr. Broussard and looked at the case file over the man’s shoulder. “Has he lost his mind?”
“Or maybe it’s a method to wrest the command of The Israa from you,” he suggested.
“Command of the tenth ship hasn’t been decided,” Dr. O’Ruairc said, “but I am certainly at the top of the list for it. I wonder who’s behind this. If the Commander didn’t want to give me that role, he simply wouldn’t. He would never resort to something like this.”
“It’s more likely someone behind the scenes, if there are any dirty tricks going on. Do you want me to call his office and see if we can get to the bottom of this request? It seems to be a fool’s mission. I would think it would be far more prudent to know what type of creature this is before we replicate it.”
“I agree, but I’ll call the Commander’s office myself.” Dr. O’Ruairc slipped his gan-sreang from his pocket and spoke to someone in the commander’s office. As he plied the person on the other end with questions, his agitation grew more evident. At the end of the conversation, he slipped his darkened device back into his pocket and turned to Dr. Broussard. “Apparently, that�
��s the correct directive, as crazy as it is. I can’t believe they would authorize something so dangerous. Who’s on guard this morning?”
“Captain Teel,” Dr. Broussard said.
“Only Captain Teel?”
“Yes, he’s alone.”
“Fuck,” Dr. O’Ruairc said. “If this is the same creature that Greenwalt and Jones encountered, he’s probably going to need backup. Alert him to the mission here and have him stand guard inside the lab, Dr. Broussard. I’ll prepare the replication equipment.”
*****
The Commander’s Office There was an odd and slightly shimmery aura about the Commander’s appearance as he hung up the phone. He looked up at Hermolaos with a grim expression. The corners of his mouth turned down, causing creases in his chin. “Now,” he said, “you keep your end of the bargain.” As he spoke, he shifted into a woman, quite striking in appearance. Her hair, rosy red in hue, was short and spiky on the sides with slightly longer spikes on top. Her bangs were long and flopped over her right eye obscuring it from view. Her exposed left eye was bright orange. Her skin was yellow—the exact color of a sun-ripened lemon.
Hermolaos grinned wickedly at her. “Have I ever let you down, dear sister?”
Éad snorted. “Always,” she said. “I don’t want to be on a crew with you. You had better keep your word and have me transferred to another as you promised.”
Hermolaos glared at her and spoke with a coldly measured tone. “Don’t be a bitch, Éad. I never promised I’d have you transferred, only that I’d try.”
“Bullshit,” Éad said hotly, jumping to her feet. “That’s the sole reason I agreed to this little charade of yours. You know what will happen to us both if we get caught.”
Hermolaos brayed with laughter. “If you get caught,” he said, “you’ll stay here to die on this dying planet. Nothing will happen to me.”
“Don’t be so sure of it,” Éad said, marching toward the door. “Keep your word.” She wrenched the door open to leave, only to find her way blocked.
“Keep a civil tongue, Éad,” Hermolaos warned. “If you get snotty with me, you’ll find yourself getting nowhere.”
“I want nothing more than to be away from you,” she said. “I don’t want to spend an eternity on the Na Réaltaí with you.”
“Never fear, Éad,” he said. “If you did a good enough job at your ruse, you can stay on the Na Réaltaí without me. I fully expect your little impersonation to garner me the full command of the Israa.”
Éad turned toward the woman blocking the door and snapped, “Get out of my way, Éadomhain.” Not waiting for the woman to move, she jostled her over with a quick elbow to the ribs.
Éadomhain looked at Hermolaos with bright turquoise eyes. “What crawled up her butt?”
Hermolaos shook his head. “Nothing to worry about dear,” he said. He stepped forward to greet her with a kiss. “She had to make a call so she stopped in here to do it.”
“Why didn’t she use her own gansreang?” Éadomhain asked.
“Well, my sweet,” he said, “it isn’t that simple. She actually had to take a call that was incoming here. She was doing me a favor.”
“Oh, I see,” Éadomhain said. “Who was the caller, Hermolaos?” asked the woman with turquoise hair and eyes that matched.
The dark-haired, handsome man chuckled. “It was Dr. O’Ruairc in Laboratory 7.”
“Isn’t he expected to get command of The Israa?”
Hermolaos frowned. “He will never get command of the tenth ship if I have anything to say about it.” He paused before giving his companion a smile that hinted of evil. “And I think I just had something to say about it. The second phase of our plan is moving forward today.”
“It’s about time. I thought we were stalled out after they were so reluctant to reconstruct the genetic matter they gathered from GreenwaltJones’ wounds. What did you do today to move things along?”
“I managed to give Éad what she wanted, a ship away from me.”
“And what else?” Éadomhain asked knowingly. “You do little for others when it doesn’t benefit you.”
“I sealed their fate.”
“We sealed their fate, Hermolaos,” Éadomhain said.
“Of course, darling, I could never forget how instrumental you’ve been in helping me secure command of my own ship.”
“Mixing the genetic material may have been your recipe, my love,” Éadomhain said with a prideful tone, “but I’m the one who placed the sakaje pinkie in the woods to await its first meal.”
Hermolaos pushed the desk chair back and patted his lap, inviting her to sit. “You’re a genius, my girl,” he said, kissing her bare shoulder as she settled into place.
The woman looked at him over her shoulder. “So what’s the next part of your plan?”
“As I said, Éad was here to take a call from Laboratory 7 where Drs. O’Ruairc and Broussard are, as we speak, beginning their experiment.”
“I’m confused,” she said.
Hermolaos rolled his eyes and his tone was condescending, as if he thought her stupid. “She answered as Commander,” he said.
“You assigned them to recreate the creature that killed those two field agents?” she asked with a slight gasp in her tone.
Hermolaos laughed. “I did indeed. If I’m lucky, it will kill the doctors, too and I’ll get command of The Israa.”
“If you’re unlucky, you’ll be drawn and quartered,” the woman said.
“The only way I’ll be that unlucky is if I get caught, and I won’t be caught,” he said with an arrogant tone.
“What about Éad?”
Hermolaos shrugged. “What about her?”
“What if you fail and you’re both stuck on Na Réaltaí together?”
He chuckled unpleasantly. “I have ways to deal with her, don’t you worry.”
“I would think that the fewer people who know, the better.”
“Éad is in this deeply enough that I don’t think she’s a threat. Commander already told her she’d be imprisoned if she was caught impersonating other people without written consent from everyone in her chain of command. I have nothing to fear from her wagging tongue. Other than her, you’re the only one who knows, and I’m sure you won’t betray me, my love.”
The woman’s turquoise eyes flooded with love and affection as she looked at him and smiled. “I would never betray you, darling,” she said. “It wouldn’t go well for me either, if we were caught.”
*****
Several hours later “We’ve done everything we can to recreate this creature, Dr. Broussard, and I’ll be damned if I can tell what it is. I am, however, completely convinced that this is an engineered creature, rather than something naturally occurring.”
“I’ve never seen anything like this. I agree with your assessment that it’s a modified, artificial creature.”
“It seems to have a soup of DNA,” Dr. O’Ruairc said, poking at the tiny pink lump of meat with a tool resembling a wooden chopstick. It was barely an inch long, putty pink and completely hairless.
“Well, it has four limbs,” Dr. Broussard said, peering at it critically. “And a rather flat face. It doesn’t have a snout like a lot of land mammals.”
“It’s breathing air,” his colleague said.
“I don’t know if its breathing is a good sign or a bad one.”
“Nor do I, but I think we should put it in the incubator and keep a close eye on it before shift change. I’ll write up documents telling the next crew not to do anything with it. They are to observe it, only.”
“It’s kind of creepy looking, though, isn’t it? It’s got rather large, bulging eyes. Its nose is more two holes in the center of its face than a real nose.”
“We don’t know what this thing is or how to care for it.”
“We don’t even know if the settings we have on the incubator are optimal for its survival and growth. I’m not sure I really even want it to survive. If this is what killed Gree
nwalt-Jones, I surely don’t want any real contact with it.”
“I think we should lock the incubator up,” Dr. Broussard suggested. “Just in case.”
“I agree. I’ve felt several tremors as we’ve worked, and they have yet to abate.”
“They are getting worse.”
“The walls are starting to quiver, doctors,” said Captain Teel.
The two scientists looked up with concern at their guard.
“Have there been any temblor alerts, Captain?” Dr. O’Ruairc asked.
“None,” Captain Teel said with a shake of his blonde head. “But I did see an alert for a Category 8 hurricane that blew up suddenly from the southeast.”
“Good thing we’re underground,” Dr. Broussard said, moving to the area near the incubator. He carried the tiny pink, fleshy creature with him. It lay in a shallow flat pan lined with soft paper. As he reached forward to grasp the clear lid for the incubator, the walls of the underground lab groaned again, accompanied by a loud popping noise as a crack formed in the tile lining the northern wall. The man paused in sudden fear and stared at his companions.
The shifting of the floor beneath them caused the incubator lid to slide and Dr. Broussard had to juggle the creature in his hand. He nearly dropped the dish where it rested and his wrist bent painfully under the weight of the incubator lid.
Dr. O’Ruairc rushed forward to help with the heavy lid as a deep, earthy rumble shook the lab. The eastern door blew open, the quickly banged shut, giving them a brief view of the hallway. The roof had caved in twenty feet down the hall that had once been the eastern passageway into Laboratory 7. “What the Ifreann,” he muttered.
“Doctors, look,” Captain Teel said with a burgeoning terror in his voice.
Movement caught the eyes of both doctors and they turned their attention from the caving-in hallway to the creature in the incubator that was now many times larger than it had been mere moments before. When they had placed it in the incubator, it was roughly the size and shape of a mouse pinkie. Now, it looked like a hairless, newborn kitten. As they watched, it shifted again, growing rapidly as another screeching sound echoed from the hallway and another section of the building fell in upon itself.