The Gilded Empire

by Ryan W. Mueller

  Markus turned to Nadia. "It makes sense to me. I think she's telling us the truth."

  "I'm not so sure," Nadia said.

  "Very well," Karin said. "I'll let you see for yourselves." She went to a computer by the wall and began working on it. Soon the image on the computer screen appeared on a much larger screen positioned on the wall. Then, with a few more clicks and taps, the image started moving.

  "This is a video recording taken by a camera," Karin said.

  The screen showed a view from perhaps a hundred feet in the air. Armies were assembled below, facing each other. At the front of each army stood a single man. The view focused in closer on each man. One wore white, the other black.

  "The one in white is Lionar," Karin said. "The one in black is Krinir."

  On the recording, Krinir said, "If you don't surrender to me, I will destroy your army and the city you're protecting."

  Lionar glared at him. "Even you wouldn't sink that low."

  Krinir laughed. "Oh, you'd be surprised how little anything bothers me anymore."

  "I know you don't want to do this. You are both Creator and Destroyer. You can't embrace one side of the coin without embracing the other as well."

  "I will do as I please," Krinir said. "This is war, and people must die. Cities must be destroyed. Surrender to me, and we can avoid all this."

  Lionar's gaze was fierce. "You know I can't do that."

  "Then all the lives lost here are blood on your hands."

  Both gods commanded their armies to charge. The air exploded with magic. Waves of fire. Bursts of lightning. Windstorms that knocked down hundreds of people at once. The clinking of swords echoed through the air. Plasma rifles fired from all around. In all, it was a scene of chaos. Smoke obscured the battlefield. Spells of every color flew back and forth.

  Soldiers had fallen all over the battlefield. Black and white had merged into one mess, hurling spells at each other, hacking away at their enemies. Markus felt sick watching it. Even from high above, he could see the blood staining the ground.

  The camera shifted its focus away from the battle, watching Krinir, who had broken free from the battle. He stood facing the city, no one else anywhere near him.

  The god raised his hands into the air, and a horrifying sight appeared—one Markus had seen before. A ring of fire at least a hundred feet tall formed ahead of Krinir, encircling the city, and then closing in with alarming speed. People screamed as they ran for cover.

  "Please stop it!" Nadia shouted.

  "I know it's difficult," Karin said, "but you have to see it."

  Markus glared at her. "We know what's going to happen. We've experienced the same thing ourselves. Not at Krinir's hands, but it was the same."

  "All right," Karin said. "I believe I've made my point, then."

  "You have," Nadia said. "Krinir is evil. How can we stop him?"

  Karin had begun pacing. "I can't tell you exactly how to stop him, but I do know the first few steps. There are tunnels that lead out of the palace. First, though, we have to get rid of your bots. I'll get the equipment necessary, but you'll have to wait until you're in the tunnels. Otherwise, you'll set off an alarm all through the palace, and you won't stand a chance of escaping." She paused a moment. "I must warn you, though. The tunnels are very dangerous."

  Markus swallowed nervously. "How dangerous?"

  "They're full of dangerous machines that could kill you all too easily. And, unfortunately, I have duties here, so I can't come with you."

  "That's not a very detailed description," Nadia said.

  "I know, but it's the best I have. These tunnels are a closely guarded government secret. They have a lot of advanced technology down there, so they must protect it."

  "Then how can we even stand a chance?" Nadia asked.

  "You'll have to be resourceful."

  Chapter 10: The Secret Path

  Markus and Nadia met with Karin in her chambers late at night. She had with her two small glass bottles, at the end of which were long needles. Markus's stomach twisted. He didn't want to think about those needles plunging into him.

  "These'll get rid of the bots," she said.

  Nadia looked pale. "Are you sure this is our best chance?"

  "There is no other way out of this place. The security's too tight. Very few people know about the tunnels. If I weren't a part of the resistance, I wouldn't know about it either. Which reminds me"—she pulled a slip of paper from her pocket—"this contains the location of our headquarters here in New Washington. Protect this information at all costs."

  Nadia took the slip and squinted at it. "I have no idea where that is."

  Karin explained the directions they'd have to take once they left the tunnels, but Markus could barely follow. He didn't know anything about this bizarre city. Nadia's look was doubtful, but she nodded to Karin and shoved the paper into her own pocket.

  "I've also procured some weapons for you," Karin said. She handed them each two strange looking circular devices with red spots in the middle. Each device had straps. "You'll put these on your hands with the red part facing outward."

  As Markus and Nadia strapped the devices onto their hands, Nadia said, "What are these things exactly?"

  "They are how Technomages get around making the Pilgrimage. These work like magical staffs do for channelers, but they work for you even though you're natural sorcerers. They're just one of the ways that we've combined our technology with the world's natural magic."

  Nadia examined hers with a frown. "How do we use them?"

  "It's pretty simple." Karin showed them her own device, then positioned her hand over a glass. Water trickled from her hand, landing in the glass. "All you have to do is think about what kind of ability you want to use. A lot of it will come to you instinctively."

  "What are these things called?" Markus asked.

  "Technomagical Weapons. Or as most of us prefer, TWs."

  "I still don't understand how they work," Nadia asked. "Isn't part of being a sorcerer that you must make the Pilgrimage to use abilities like these?"

  "Not exactly," Karin said. "You are sorcerers. The magic is already within you. When you visit each temple, it is more like somebody has turned a key and unlocked that magic. The TWs, like staffs where you come from, get around that little barrier."

  "I think you should just accept that they work," Markus said to Nadia. "We can shoot fire out of our hands. Shouldn't that be enough for you?"

  Nadia gave him a mock glare. "You know me better than that."

  "I'm sure we'll figure it out as we go."

  "I don't particularly care for that plan," Nadia said.

  "I'd love to take the time to teach you," Karin said, "but I think the authorities might already be suspicious. And I can't risk using too much magic, even in my own quarters. There are ways of detecting it, and they will investigate."

  "All right, then," Markus said. "Let's go to these tunnels." His stomach churned at the thought, but it was preferable to staying here as prisoners for the rest of their lives. Now that he'd seen that video recording, he wanted to stop Krinir. Even more than that, he wanted to find Rik and Kara.

  He didn't care what Karin had said. There had to be a way.

  Karin led them through the immaculate halls of the palace, past dozens of people and countless doors and computers. They carried on an inconsequential conversation, hoping that no one would become suspicious of them.

  After a while, Karin stopped and checked that no one was watching. She placed her hand against a nearby door. The handprint glowed green, and the door swung open.

  Markus and Nadia filed in ahead of Karin, who closed the door behind them. They stood now in a room with more computers and strange machines than Markus had ever seen. Lights of nearly every color glowed all over the large room.

  Karin led them past all these computers and machines, and soon they stood before another door, which did not contain a handprint.

  She pulled out the keyboard of another
computer and began pushing the keys. Text appeared on the screen, but it made no sense to Markus. He and Nadia waited silently while Karin worked on the computer. She cursed under her breath a few times.

  "I'm trying to get into the door codes," she said. "They've made it more difficult."

  As she worked, Markus kept glancing back toward the room's entrance, expecting guards to rush in. Surely, with all this advanced tracking technology, they could monitor a room this important.

  "Almost there," Karin said, tapping the keys furiously. "There! I've got it!"

  The nearby door opened with a hissing sound, revealing a dimly lit corridor beyond. A moment later, an alarm blared, and red lights began flashing.

  "Get inside quickly!" Karin said, and took off toward the door herself.

  Markus and Nadia sprinted through the door mere moments before it slammed shut behind them. To Markus's surprise, Karin had also made it through.

  "I thought you weren't coming with us," he said.

  "I would've been trapped there otherwise," she said. "Then I would've faced execution for exposing government secrets and helping you escape. In here, I might die, but at least I'll have a chance." She shook her head. "I should've known they'd improve security. I must not have been careful enough in covering my tracks."

  "We'll be glad to have your help," Nadia said.

  Karin looked pale in the dim light. "I'll do the best I can, but I'm not that talented a Technomage. Even untrained, you're probably better than I am."

  "But you have some idea of what we might face," Nadia said.

  "I hope that's enough."

  They started along the corridor with the alarms blaring behind them. The president would surely send guards into these tunnels, especially once he found out who'd escaped.

  "Now let's eliminate your tracking bots," Karin said. "I'm gonna stick one of these syringes in each of you." She held up the device ending in a long needle. "The chemicals in the syringe will destroy the tracking bots."

  She plunged the needle into Nadia's arm. Nadia winced but didn't say anything. When Karin repeated the process with Markus, he felt a hot stinging sensation in his arm, but it was nothing he couldn't handle.

  "In a few minutes," Karin said, "all your tracking bots should be destroyed." She peered down the corridor. "In the meantime, we should get moving."

  They rounded a few corners, following the dim and empty corridor. Markus felt so tense he could barely breathe. He thought of all the dangerous machines Karin had mentioned. Something could be lurking around any corner.

  Soon they entered a larger chamber with crisscrossing walkways. Strange clanking and whirring noises filled the chamber. Markus glanced down and saw something indistinct moving far below.

  Karin took the lead, keeping an eye out for any traps or machines. Every few seconds, she stopped as if she sensed danger, but then she shook her head and started walking again. Following her, Markus felt sick.

  They reached the far wall of the chamber, where the walkway made a sharp right turn. The wall next to them contained the unmoving forms of six robots plated in dull, gold-colored metal. Their eyes glowed a terrifying red.

  "You think they'll attack us?" Markus asked softly.

  "We'll see." Karin reached the first robot, and it came to life with a low hiss, moving out of its alcove with jerky motions and turning its red eyes upon them.

  "You do not belong here," it said in a voice almost as jerky as its movements. "If you do not leave immediately, we will be forced to destroy you."

  Markus looked for an escape route, but he could see no definite path among the countless crisscrossing walkways. "What should we do?"

  Karin pointed her palm toward the robot, and a surge of lightning burst from her TW. The lightning struck the robot, and the robot made strange garbled noises before collapsing. Smoke poured from some of its joints.

  "Lightning is our best bet against anything mechanical," Karin said. "The electricity these things run on is a lot like lightning. But they can't handle an excess of it."

  Markus didn't understand everything she'd said, but he'd heard the important part.

  A moment later, all the robots stepped out from their alcoves, facing the party. At the ends of the robots' arms were plasma rifles. They all fired at once, and Karin raised a shield around the party just in time. The blasts from the rifles fizzled out against the shield.

  "Can we use magic through the shield?" Markus asked as the robots took aim again. He ducked instinctively as more blasts came at them, striking the shield.

  "Yes, it only keeps magic from coming in," Karin said. "It can still go out."

  Markus and Nadia both pointed their palms at the robots while Karin kept the shield steady. Lightning burst from Nadia's TW, and Markus focused on the idea of lightning himself. A moment later, he sent a burst of lightning at one of the robots. As soon as their spells collided with the robots, the robots made those garbled noises again before collapsing.

  Soon Markus and Nadia destroyed all the robots. It was surprisingly easy.

  "Good," Karin said. "I was worried you'd have trouble with your TWs."

  "It felt natural to me," Nadia said, and Markus nodded his agreement. They continued along the walkway, stepping over the fallen robots. Soon the three of them encountered stairs leading them downward, but there was still a long way to go before they'd reach the ground.

  Along the way, they encountered a few more robots and handled them just as easily. They also chose the wrong direction on the walkways a few times and found themselves facing dead ends. By the time they reached the bottom, they'd backtracked at least a dozen times. Now they stood on the ground, where the whirring and clanking noises were louder than ever.

  Up ahead was a robot that looked like a giant spider. It fixed its gaze on them, and red beams of light shot from its eyes. Markus and Nadia rolled out of the line of fire while Karin raised a shield. But the red beams went right through her shield.

  As the spider bot prepared to fire another beam of light at them, Markus and Nadia both sent bursts of lightning at it. But the lightning fizzled out as if the robot had cast a shield.

  Markus ducked beneath another red beam of light. "What're we supposed to do now?"

  "I don't know," Karin said. "We can't get through its shield with magic."

  More of the spider bots scuttled toward them from the distance. Their eyes glowed red, and they launched more beams of light. Markus, Nadia, and Karin ducked under some beams and sidestepped away from others. The beams came from every direction as more and more of the spider bots emerged.

  Markus sent a wave of fire at some of the spider bots, but it dissipated against the shields as well. He couldn't keep the spell going long either, for he had to leap out of the way of another beam of light. Those rays of light now crisscrossed the chamber, bathing it in eerie red light.

  One beam of light skimmed across Markus's arm. It burned as hot as fire, but he ignored the pain, dodging more and more of the spider bots' attacks. There had to be some way to stop them. He recalled some of the magic Rik could do with his staff and sent shards of ice flying at the spider bots. The ice penetrated the shields but simply bounced off the robots' bodies.

  He ducked as a beam flew inches above his head. "It was worth a try."

  From his right, he heard a grunt.

  "Don't worry." Karin jumped to the side to avoid another attack. "It hurt, but I’m fine."

  Then, as if things weren't already bad enough, an alarm began blaring in the chamber, and red lights flashed, making it almost impossible to see the spider bots' attacks. Markus barely saw one in time, and it would have struck him right in the eyes if he hadn't ducked

  There was a door up ahead, but six spider bots had blocked it. Their eyes all glowed red at once, and there was no way Markus, Nadia, and Karin could avoid that many attacks at once.

  "Shields!" Karin shouted. "It's our only chance!"

  All three of them raised shields at once. One shield hadn'
t been enough to stop the beams of light, but with three shields, the beams of light reflected, striking the spider bots instead. The spider bots' legs collapsed, and smoke swirled from their bodies. Markus, Nadia, and Karin rushed forward, leaping over the spider bots and racing through the open door. On the other side, Karin pulled a lever, and the door slammed shut behind them.

  "Is everyone all right?" Nadia asked. "I've got a couple of burns."

  Markus chuckled. "Yeah, I think we all do."

  Sweat poured down his face, and his heart was pounding so fiercely he felt it in his head. He leaned against a nearby wall, trying to catch his breath. "Anyone need me to heal them?"

  Nadia shook her head. "You need to save your strength in case we get hurt worse."

  Once they recovered, they started through the corridor they'd entered. It twisted along for what felt like an eternity, and they didn't see any threats. At the moment, though, that was hardly comforting. Markus felt so tense he thought he might explode from the force of it.

  At last, they reached the end of the corridor, where they had two choices of paths. One led through an open doorway to a room full of red beams of light so tightly packed there was no way through.

  Markus peered carefully into the room. "Could we try using three shields again?"

  Karin considered a moment. "No. We shouldn't risk it. Let's check the other path first."

  The other path was a ladder that led upward to a small door. Karin climbed the ladder first and pulled the door open, revealing a much smaller tunnel. If Markus had been anxious before, it was nothing compared to how he felt about entering such a tight space.

  He remembered the tunnel in the Fire Mountains, and his heart began racing again. "You sure the other way wouldn't be a better option?"

  "I know it's a small space," Nadia said, "but you can do it."

  "I'll do it, but only if I get to be at the back."

  "That's all right," Nadia said. "Karin will take the lead, and I'll be in the middle."

  Karin crawled into the opening first, followed by Nadia, and then Markus. As soon as he entered the tight space, he felt as if the world were pressing down on him. He kept taking deep breaths, refusing to give in to panic. It would not control him. Not this time.