by Reiter
But it was neither the Energies swirling about the construct nor its dark and ominous tone of form that had caused the woman to hesitate. It was the chosen decoration of the fortress that had given her pause… and turned her stomach. Bodies hung from the tops of the wall and served as feeders for the carrion birds of the region. “They are so small,” she observed. “So young… too young. Where has my search brought me?!”
It was not long before several men, riding caballions, came out to greet her. They looked first at what she had wanted them to see: the accoutrements of wealth and security. Between the gems she wore about her ensemble and the three robots that walked with her, she projected the very image of wealth and influence. After a very brief conversation, a signal was given and a hovercraft was made available for her to use, at a ‘minimal’ cost.
The interior of the city was more depressing than the outside walls. It was clear where the funds that supported this facility had been spent. Slums gave way to well-fortified constructs that were inns, brothels, or barracks.
“A Slaver City,” Prynsura thought, crossing another first off of her ever-growing list of lifetime achievements. “And the reason why I did not detect such a strong life-sign… this place is warded.”
The young woman checked in at the largest inn that was closest to the coliseum. She received several brochures on the upcoming events. The thickest handout was a catalog of the slaves to be sold at the next auction.
“How quaint,” she remarked, looking at the material the brochure had been printed on. A very simple treatment would remove the ink and allow for the parchment to be used again. “I take it these are not meant to leave the city.”
“Not unless they are purchased,” the innkeeper replied as he handed the woman her keystone.
“And the locks are EnerJa-fixed,” she thought as the stone was attached to a very fine bracelet and clasped around her wrist. “That is a very expensive key and lock system. I cannot allow my disgust for this place to paint my perspective. A great deal of wealth moves through here. With that sort of power, contingencies to keep that power in place should be expected.
“I notice there are no events planned for this evening,” Prynsura commented, causing the innkeeper to laugh.
“Oh, there’s an event. The City-God will be in attendance.”
“The City-God?!”
“Kemphrus himself,” the old man nodded. “He will grace us all with his presence.” The man’s tone made Prynsura smile, but she would not speak of his irony.
“Add the cost of an invitation to my account,” she directed.
“My lady, that is fifteen thousand credits,” he stated. “I will need to see some measure of collateral or verification of funds.”
“Of course you will,” Prynsura said with an even brighter smile. “Robot, one black ruby please.” The large automaton stepped forward, extended its left hand and dropped a small black stone on the counter. The innkeeper quickly examined the stone and smiled at Prynsura.
“I will see to it that you have an escort, my lady.”
“I have just set a time limit to my stay here,” Prynsura thought. “I have made myself exceptional, which is something I do not wish to be. Not here. Hopefully my instincts are once again true and I will find what I seek tonight.”
Taking her seat and feeling somewhat relieved that her earlier fears might have been excessive, Prynsura looked over what was, for her, too heavy a crowd. She did not receive special seating as she could see some others had, and there was a smile on her face.
“And what fresh insanity is this?” she thought, looking up into the night sky. Lightning arched over the coliseum, coming from three points, meeting in the middle, creating a booming thunderclap. In the wake of the lightning flare, a gray cloud lowered into the arena. A man, clad in gold dress armour and adorned with four scantily-clad dancing women, stood at the center of the cloud. A fifth woman stood behind him, holding the leashes to the other four. “She’s controlling the cloud,” Prynsura determined. “I wonder if this City-God if a front.”
After music and more dance, the City-God Kemphrus stepped off the cloud and into his sky-box. With a wave of his hand, he commanded his servants to their places. He looked over the crowd and lifted his hand, signaling the crowd to cheer. Pushing his palm out toward the crowd silenced them.
“Friends and followers, I thank you for gathering here with me tonight. On this occasion, we will celebrate the continued glory that is this fine city of Ulgrin in the sport of blood!” Cheers, roars and outright screams filled the air and Prynsura acted accordingly so that she would not stand out. “Our first offering to you came to us just a few days ago. A drifter who dared to place his hand on one of my maidens!”
“That sends a strong message,” Prynsura thought. “Curious though. What sort of man would venture to do such a thing in a place such as this?”
“Behold, the nameless fool who is soon to join our wall fodder!”
They led him out with chains attached to a thick neck-shackle and shock-sticks. His strides should have been labored with the amount of restraints he wore, but he walked normally and Prynsura wondered how light his strides would have been without the chains. It took a few moments to unbind the man and remove the tattered robes he wore. There was a palpable tension as many gasped, gazing on the man’s physique. He was a specimen who would have humbled many of the various gods of strength, had that been his ambition. It was clear he had spent some time in the sun, but he was not overly dark. Standing over two meters in height, he was a chiseled, black-haired Adonis with emerald eyes that he closed the moment he was freed from the restraints. He wore no shirt, no shoes, and the dark beige pants he had on were form-fitting, flaring out wide at the ankles.
Prynsura looked at the sky-box and it was easy to determine which of the girls the man had touched. She was the only one who looked to be concerned about his welfare. The others, like most of the patrons of the event, looked on with growing expectations.
“Are you sure you do not wish to give us your name, stranger?” Kemphrus inquired. “We keep good records here; it would be a shame to have to put you down as a blank place.”
“I will not die,” the man said softly, yet his voice reached the ears of everyone. “Not today. Not here.” The crowd reacted to the claim, making jokes and berating the man. Prynsura leaned forward in her seat.
“By the Stars!” she thought. “Paint him blue, bleach his hair… he’s an exact match for the man!”
“Bold words often come from those who are about to die,” Kemphrus countered. “Where are my Dogs of War?!” Double doors slid open at the in-between compass points and the man slowly made his way to the center of the arena floor. Kemphrus cackled as large, muscular men – dressed in peculiar-looking armour – waded out of the doors, each carrying a short sword and a spiked mace. Three men came out of each doorway and the doors quickly slammed shut after the third man exited from the waiting area. Each man had his own style of approach, but most of them were stretching their necks or checking their grips on their weapons… save for the three that locked their eyes on their target and never looked away. Those three seemed to be especially eager for blood.
“And to think… no one cried havoc,” the dark-haired man said as he looked at the approaching horde, massaging his wrists.
“Oh my word!” Prynsura thought, taking hold of the armrests for her chair. “Kemphrus doesn’t know what he has a hold of. That tone… and what he said. This man is educated! How many people with bodies like that go around making Shakespeare quips?! And if I am right… people like that are not captured… unless they want to be… so they can be closer to their true targets!”
Each of the lead men gave a sharp war shout and came to a stop. The others then moved to either side of the lead man and formed something of a circle. They looked up to Kemphrus for their cues… again, all save for the three more focused men, and Prynsura frowned looking at them. Something about them was not right, and it was someth
ing more than their apparent thirst for blood. Kemphrus clapped his hands and Prynsura soon came to see why the armour looked strange. The chest, forearm, and shin plates were covered with receptors. With the clap of the City-God, one of the men was struck with lightning. That electricity danced around his body and he extended his weapons to his left and right. Now there was a ring of electricity flowing around the large man… and still he did not look pressed.
“Kill him!”
Two of the three blood-hungry men charged the back and right side of their target, respectively. The man hopped back to avoid a thrust for his side, but squatted low under the swing meant for the back of his head. It was only then that he stopped rubbing his wrists, lunging forward in a leaping punch that swung wide, striking his back-attacker in the shoulder and his side-attacker in the face.
“He wasn’t grounded!” Prynsura thought. “The charged armour did nothing to him!” The man who had been struck in the shoulder dropped his spiked mace as he was spun around with the force of the blow, falling to his knees and screaming as his arm now hung lower than it should. The second man struck was lifted from the ground and thrown back three meters. He landed on his back and did not move.
There was silence as the mysterious man picked up the dropped mace. He brandished the weapon, strongly demonstrating that he knew how to wield it. “Not today. Not here,” he repeated. “You gentlemen might want to go and get your resumes in order. There is about to be a change in management!”
“Kill him now!” Kemphrus commanded.
It was a cue the man took to initiate his action. He grunted, squatting low into a powerful spin. He gave a sharp shout, hurling the mace at the sky-box. There was a slight ripple in the air where his hand released the weapon. The mace struck the underside of the sky-box, shredding along the floor of the box. Along with the debris, the woman holding the leashes fell to the arena floor. She hit the rims of two lower levels before reaching the sand. She hurt her right leg on the first rim, her left arm on the second, and landed hard on her back. The lightning dancing over the specialized armour faded and the man looked on the groaning woman, his wide eyes squinting for a moment.
Grunting once more the man bent at the knees, blew air out between his lips and jumped up. Prynsura could see another ripple in the air between his feet and the ground as the man ascended the three stories up to the edge of the sky-box.
“Without the woman, you’re no longer shielded,” the man pointed out. “Now… show me your godliness!”
Kemphrus grabbed one of his dancers and thrust her toward the man. Prynsura was up out of her seat, seeing how quickly the man moved. It appeared that he was going to dodge the woman and she would just spill over the side. The spell Prynsura was readying was aborted. The man had indeed moved to keep a clear view of Kemphrus, snatching the collar away from the woman’s neck. He stopped her forward progress with his foot and while he stood on one leg, he threw the other end of the chain, entangling Kemphrus’ ankle. The City-God fell, and Prynsura decided to prepare a different incantation.
“You have ascended to a great level of power and influence, Kemphrus,” the man said, and now everyone in the city could hear him. “You have wasted your opportunity, spreading only hate and contempt. You could have cradled life and it would have cradled you. The cycle of your darkness ends today.” With one hand, the man grabbed the belt of the City-God and hurled him up and out of the sky-box; he was still ascending when he passed over the ledge. The man then ran and jumped over the edge himself. Prynsura could hear rolling thunder as the man ascended. Kemphrus crashed down to the arena floor, followed by the man’s pounding fist that struck alongside a lightning bolt that was not elementally generated. It was smaller than what the ElementalisT had created, but it gave off a blinding light. When the arena floor could be seen, the man was still kneeling in his striking pose. The only remains of Kemphrus was a large circle of charred dirt.
Moments later, there was still a level of panic throughout Ulgrin, with those of any military might doing what they could to establish fear and control. Prynsura moved against the tide of the running people as she left the coliseum. When she saw the man again he was opening cages, freeing the slaves. While many were grateful for what was being done, a group of children remained off to the side, standing close together, patiently waiting for the man to finish his work. When the last chain was shattered, the man acknowledged those he had freed, but then he turned his attention to the waiting children. He walked over to them and the youngest, a dirty little girl with the light of a thousand stars in her eyes, looked up at the large man.
“They came while you were away,” she said. “Did they kill O’Toole?”
“He was injured, but he is on the mend,” the man replied, smiling down at the girl. “I’ve got to get the lot of you back to the settlement. Your Spring Break is just about over. Classes will be waiting for you.” There were several moans and groans as he picked the little girl and put her on his back. “Okay, I’ll let you all explain your point of view to the Headmistress.” A silence fell over the group as they followed behind the man. “I see. Apparently this experience has not robbed you of all your faculties. Come on. We have a ship waiting.”
“Excuse me, sir. My name is Prynsura Flaryce and I was wondering if I could speak with you as we walk.”
“I don’t see why not,” the man replied, shifting the little girl to the other side of his body and away from Prynsura. “I am called Fortessan.”
“But we call him Fort for short,” the little girl added before hugging the man tightly about the neck.
“I will come to the meaning of this, Fortessan,” Prynsura said, looking around to insure no one was within earshot of her voice. The robots would see to electronic surveillance, and the stone she wore on her clothes were attuned to detecting the known Energies. “What do you know of a blue-skinned man with gold eyes?”
“Farrah, I need you to walk with Hossan for a moment,” Fortessan said, gently putting the girl down next to the oldest boy. “If anyone should even give you a cross look, call out. I won’t be far away.” Though his hand moved faster than she could see, Prynsura was surprised at the softness of his grasp on her arm. He led her away from the children where he stopped, turned to face her, and steadied himself. “As rude as it is to answer a question with a–”
“He saved my life,” Prynsura explained. “He liberated me from my owner after she had attacked him with the fiercest Fire MajiKs I had ever seen her wield. He moved like a ghost, easily besting her.”
“Hmmm, you have seen him then,” Fortessan concluded. “For ghost is the only word that seems to apply. I have trained for years and I can only remember seeing the man when I look back through my memories using the sharpest focus of meditation. And even then, I don’t always see him. In short, he is a ghost who chooses when he wants to be seen.”
“What he did for me was years ago,” Prynsura shared. “I’ve learned how to turn what I am into an advantage.”
“And if I may ask…”
“I possess what some call a wild talent,” she stated.
“You are Star-Touched,” Fortessan said, showing that he had read more than fine literature. Prynsura looked up into his eyes. She could see concern, but it was not for him or even the children. He was worried about the woman standing in front of him.
“Yes!” she exclaimed. “Mine makes me something of a nexus point for MannA.” The man’s eyebrows lifted high over his eyes as he considered all the possible applications of such a thing.
“I see. Yes, I could see where some would want to take advantage of such a thing. Wait, he easily bested a SpellCasteR who traveled around with her own battery?!”
“You can see my motivation for wanting to find this man.”
“And I would like to say that I cannot see why your search for him has brought you to me,” Fortessan stated as he began to calculate. “You are looking for him, but some sort of incantation has brought you to me.”
“No
spell I could research and cast has helped me to locate the man,” Prynsura said. “It took a combination of a PsyondaR and a Seer. Looking at my memory of him, the Seer read the light that came from that moment. He could not find the blue man, but he could find seven splinters of that light. Three could not be identified… you are one of the remaining four. All of you are men with dark hair and green eyes.”
“That is a very strong implication you are making,” Fortessan remarked.
The woman nodded, swallowing hard. This was no time to back down, and at least the man seemed receptive to what she had to say. “And so far… each of you is a magnificent physical specimen with the skills of a Master in one field or another.”
“I am no master, Ms. Flaryce,” Fortessan declared.
“Then I do not wish to meet your definition of the word,” Prynsura said, offering an enchanted stone to the man. “I have given one of these to each of the ones I’ve been able to make contact with. When the makes contact with me–”
“No,” Fortessan said, taking hold of Prynsura’s arm and ushering her to walk with him. “When the fourth makes contact with us! I am surprised the others did not come with you.”
“They appeared to have a number of things to tend to, like the people who traveled with them.”
“I see,” Fortessan nodded. “I will see my charges to their home, and then I will accompany you to your meeting place. I would not want anything to happen to someone who might be able to take me to answers concerning the ghost.”
Prynsura smiled, believing two things: it was simpler not to argue with the man, and, he was not going with her for the sole purpose of protecting her. The mystery of the ghost was of major concern to him. It was time for it to be resolved.