The Gilded Empire

by Ryan W. Mueller

  She could not.

  Lost in thought, she almost didn't notice the monster. She caught motion out of the corner of her eye and turned to see a scaled beast standing on two legs. It was about six feet tall and surrounded by fire.

  "Wake up!" Kara shouted to the others. Rik and Eliza hopped to their feet, turning to face Kara with wide eyes.

  "What is it?" Rik asked.

  Kara pointed to the beast. "There's a monster."

  The fire-shrouded creature shambled toward them. That fire danced around it, giving them no openings. Kara didn't know how she could fight it. But then Rik launched a massive jet of water at it. As soon as the water struck the beast, it began to extinguish the fire. The force of the spell also knocked the monster on its back.

  Once the fire was gone, Kara raced toward the beast and plunged her sword through its chest. It took a swipe at her with its claws, but she ducked back, narrowly dodging the attack. A few moments later, it let out a low groan, and then it fell still.

  Rik wiped sweat from his brow. "Don't think I'll get back to sleep now."

  "Me neither," Eliza said.

  They started traveling again, though they were all tired. Kara hadn't found a chance to rest at all, but she agreed with Rik and Eliza. She'd have trouble sleeping now that she knew monsters could still attack them. That monster had been easy to handle, but she'd seen far worse in the Shadowed Land.

  The mist was thick at first, but then it thinned to almost nothing, revealing a terrifying sight. Ahead of them was a massive structure of black spikes, surrounded by a wall covered in the same spikes. The wall and the structure, including a couple of high towers, looked as if they'd been made from the bones of some evil creature.

  "Don't think there's any doubt about it," Eliza said. "This is Krinir's fortress."

  Chapter 48: Rebellion in the Sands

  Markus, Nadia, Berig, and Lara moved through the countryside at wondrous speeds. The landscape flashed by beside them, looking more like a blur than anything. As Markus stared out the window, he couldn't believe anything could move so fast.

  Yes, they'd been on the flying vehicle, but it hadn't been this fast. Their current vehicle was navigating on its own, though Daniel sat in the front seat, ready to take control should anything threaten. That was unlikely, he'd told them, but Markus still felt on edge.

  "Do you ever feel like you aren't controlling anything?" Nadia asked, leaning against Markus. It had been a long time since they'd been able to relax and enjoy each other's company.

  Markus thought for a moment. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

  "Somebody else always seems to be in control," she said. "Back home, it was Warrick. Out here, it's been the president, then Karin and Daniel, then this Yasmin woman. When do we get to make our own decisions and control our own destiny?"

  "The Webs are not set in stone," Lara said. "You can always make your own decisions."

  Nadia shook her head, staring out the window. "Well, it doesn't feel like it."

  Berig chuckled, leaning casually against the arm of his seat. "I can't really believe we've met up again. Maybe Nadia's right, and we really don't have any control. I mean, what're the chances that we'd see each other again?"

  "Not that low," Nadia said. "People have been guiding us together."

  "Or it's because we're all Weavers," Berig said. "Whatever the hell that really means."

  Lara leaned forward in her seat. "Perhaps that's the best way to look at it. The Webs are not guiding us. We're guiding them."

  "But how can we know that?" Nadia asked. "None of us have ever read the Webs ourselves. We have to take the word of other people, and what proof do we have that they're truly on our side? Their word?" She barked a laugh. "Promises aren't exactly sacred these days."

  "Can't argue with that," Berig said. "But it feels like the right thing, don't it?"

  "I don't know," Markus said. He tried not to think about what it would mean for the people of the New Earth Empire when his party destroyed the technology that had built the empire. What had happened to the time when things were simple, when Warrick was their enemy and nothing else mattered?

  "We saw what Krinir did," Nadia said. "What he taught Warrick to do."

  "Don't worry," Markus said. "I remember."

  They fell silent for a while. By now, they'd shared all their adventures, including some of the bizarre aspects of Berig's. Markus still had trouble believing that people could travel in time, but he trusted Berig's judgment. Still, there was something Berig hadn't said.

  "You seem upset about something," Markus said to him.

  He bit his lower lip. "I guess I'll have to mention it. Lara already knows." He stopped for a breath. "At some point in the future, I'll travel back in time. You know that much already. But I won't return. Traveling back in time and interacting with yourself . . . well, you end up dying."

  "Then don't do it," Markus said as the car hit a small bump in the road.

  "It ain't that simple. The other me, he explained how it works. Somehow, I'll be forced to do it no matter what I really want. That's how time works, I guess. Don't really understand it. Don't really want to." He gazed down at his knees. "I don't wanna die."

  Lara put an arm around him. "You'll be ready when the time comes."

  Markus could hear the pain in both of their voices and see the affection they felt toward each other. In a way, they reminded him of Nadia and himself. Why couldn't they enjoy a simple life free from these Webs of Fate—a life where they could love each other without so much pain and hardship? Was that so much to ask for?

  "I guess you're gonna go on to do great things," Berig said to Lara. "I mean, why else would I bother going back in time? I'm gonna die. Berig already died. It's just you, I guess."

  Lara smiled nervously. "Well, I hope I can make your sacrifice worth it." Tears glistened in her eyes.

  Markus had to fight against tears himself. Though he hadn't known Berig for long before they'd parted ways, he felt a connection to the man. How could you share a cell with someone, waiting for death's cruel embrace, and not grow closer to them? At first, he'd been overjoyed to see Berig again, but now he felt hollow when he realized they didn't have much time left.

  He had no idea how Berig would muster the courage to sacrifice himself.

  "It all feels overwhelming," Markus said. "How can we hope to stop Krinir? Stopping Warrick was hard enough, and we failed at that, but Warrick's nothing compared to Krinir. Sometimes, I feel like we should just give up. Maybe this isn't our fight."

  "We know the truth," Nadia said. "Can you really turn away when you have the chance to change the world? We'll probably fail. I know that. But we have to try."

  Markus avoided her gaze, worried he might disappoint her. "But it isn't personal anymore. What's Krinir ever done to us?"

  Nadia glared at him. "Oh, it isn't personal? The last time I checked, the destruction of the world affects everybody. Besides, making it too personal—that was the problem when we went after Warrick. However much I said I was doing it for the people, I was doing it more for myself. Now we have the chance to be true heroes."

  Markus still couldn't meet her gaze. "Maybe we aren't meant to be heroes."

  "We're all Weavers," Lara said. "If anyone has a chance to be heroes, it's us."

  "No one asked me if I wanted to be a damned Weaver," Markus said. "Have we lost sight of what really matters? We're not sorcerers, and the path to becoming sorcerers sounds very dangerous. Why can't the sorcerers handle these matters? Surely some of them are Weavers, too. What makes us so damned special? We have some strange talents, but that's it."

  "Maybe those strange talents are what the world needs," Nadia said.

  "But what about Rik?" Markus asked. "And Kara? Do we forget about them? Leave them to their fate in the Shadowed Land?"

  Nadia had tears in her eyes. "I don't like thinking about Kara. Nobody knows of any way we can rescue them. We should focus on things we can actually do."

 
; "Like killing a god?" Markus asked. "Because that doesn't sound very easy to me."

  Berig chuckled. "You know, he's got a point there." He stared down at his knees. "Not that I'll be alive that long anyways."

  "I just think it's time we took back control of our lives," Markus said. "If we're gonna take on Krinir, it needs to be our choice. Not some path in the Webs of Fate. Not something other people say we have to do. If we really have control of our lives, we can turn away from this. I don't know if that's what we should do, but we need to think about it."

  "I have thought about it," Nadia said, "and I've made my decision. Krinir taught Warrick how to kill so many—that much is clear from the recording we saw. When I vowed to kill Warrick, it was about removing evil from the world. Well, Krinir's the greatest evil out there. And if you think I'm going to stand by and let him destroy the world, you don't know me at all."

  Markus didn't know how to respond. He felt Nadia's gaze piercing him. "All right," he said. "If you're gonna go through with this insanity, I can't let you do it alone."

  Berig shrugged. "It might be crazy, but I'm gonna die anyways. Might as well see if I can take some evil with me."

  "And I'll go wherever you go," Lara said.

  With that settled, the rest of their journey to the desert proved much more enjoyable. They recounted their stories again, laughed at some of Berig's stupid jokes, and felt almost like normal people for the first time in a while.

  When they reached the edge of the desert, it was not sudden, not as it was back in the Empire. Instead, the landscape gradually grew more barren around them. Eventually, the road they followed cut through a vast sea of orange sand. The dunes here were not as large as they'd climbed back in the Empire, and though there were cacti, none of them were predatory.

  They stopped in a few small cities spread throughout the desert, but their final destination stood deep within the desert. It was said that the power of the Earth Temple affected the region around it, making it into a desert. Daniel told them that the desert was dangerous if you strayed from the roads. The roads, however, were warded.

  The desert's largest city, Sandfall, stood in the area directly surrounding the Earth Temple. Here, a chain of mountains cut across the landscape, jagged and unforgiving. Markus could not see the temple, for the city's buildings stood in the way.

  These desert cities were not what he'd expected. They lacked the electronic billboards, the shiny buildings, and the flying cars. There was still traffic along the paved roads, but the people here appeared to live a slightly simpler and more familiar life.

  The car stopped at a small inn located at the city's edge. Daniel checked them all in under false names. The Resistance had provided them with fabricated identification cards.

  Markus felt tense as the man behind the counter checked their cards in the computer system. After a few moments, though, he nodded and gave them the keys to their rooms.

  Markus and Nadia shared one room, Berig and Lara had another, and Daniel would stay in his own room. Those arrangements didn't bother Markus. After so long in the car, without real beds, Markus was relieved to sink into the comfortable mattress in their room.

  Nadia lay beside him in the bed, her body warm against his. He didn't mind, though, because it wasn't warm in their room. Daniel had told them of a device called air conditioning. Although it was blisteringly hot inside, it felt like a cool fall day in their room.

  Almost too cool.

  "It's strange to think we might destroy all of this," Markus said. "This technology. It's a great thing in some ways."

  "I know, but if that's what we have to do, we'll do it."

  "I thought you were supposed to be the doubtful one."

  "I've considered the options," she said. "It's not going to be easy, but it's the right choice."

  Markus smiled. "That's why I love you. You do all the thinking for me."

  "Oh, you're not that dumb yourself." She gave him a light punch on the shoulder.

  That gesture reminded him too much of Rik, and he pulled away from her, just a little bit.

  She stared at him, frowning in confusion. "Did I do something wrong?"

  "It's nothing. You just reminded me of Rik, that's all."

  "I know how that feels. Every day, something reminds me of Kara. Then I imagine her cold and alone in the Shadowed Land. Or worse, I imagine her dead. And I feel like it's my fault. I got her involved in all this. She could have lived a much different life if she hadn't been my friend."

  "I could say the same about Rik."

  "But we shouldn't spend our time thinking about them," Nadia said. "We should focus on what we can do and hope that, someday, we'll see them again." She brushed her hair out of her face. "I know it isn't easy, but what other choice do we have."

  "You're right." He moved closer to her. "We should take comfort in what we have."

  The next morning, Daniel woke them early. The sun had barely risen when he pounded on their door. Markus had some choice words for him, but Daniel was persistent.

  Once he stepped into the room, he said, "The rebellion begins now."

  Nadia frowned. "So soon?"

  "We've had plans in place for a long time. I think Yasmin was waiting for you."

  "What should we do, then?" Markus asked.

  "We'll make our way to the Earth Temple."

  Chapter 49: The Earth Temple

  The rebellion had begun. The streets of Sandfall had grown chaotic. As Nadia made her way through the streets, she felt that danger was around every corner. People were running back and forth, carrying plasma rifles. Some even had TWs.

  The police were everywhere, trying to stop the rebellion. Nadia, Markus, Berig, Lara, and Daniel had to stick to the alleys, avoiding the worst of the conflict.

  "It won't be long before the army makes an appearance," Daniel said. "Once they do, the protection around the Earth Temple will be compromised."

  He made it sound so easy, but Nadia still felt sick as they raced through the streets. Screams and shouts came from all around. Buildings were on fire. Plasma rifle bursts filled the air with their greenish glow.

  "Stop right there!" shouted a police officer, approaching them. "Everybody needs to get inside or face arrest."

  They exchanged a glance with one another, then darted into the closest alley. The officer gave chase but didn't fire upon them. How long that would last, Nadia had no idea.

  "You are under arrest!"

  They ignored him, racing farther into the alley as it branched in all directions behind large buildings. A few cars sat behind the building, unoccupied for the moment. Could they steal one of these cars and get to the temple much more quickly.

  No, the officer was too close behind them, and the streets were too crowded.

  "Stop right now, or I'll shoot!"

  Nadia and Markus both channeled magic through their TWs, erecting a shield that would protect them. Moments later, the officer followed through on his promise. The energy from his plasma rifle dissipated as soon as it struck the shield.

  "I'll take care of him," Daniel said. He waved an arm, and a powerful blast of wind came from his fingertips. When the wind struck the officer, it sent him flying about five feet. He landed hard and struggled to get back to his feet.

  "You could have really hurt him," Lara said.

  "That's the least of my concerns," Daniel said as they reached the street at the other end of the alley network. "That man was prepared to kill us."

  Lara didn't have an argument for that, so they continued running in silence. The streets had grown even more chaotic. Bodies pressed all around. People shouted and chanted. Those who didn't have weapons threw rocks at the police. The police responded with their plasma rifles. Anguished screams came from the crowd, and then they all descended on the officers.

  Using the distraction, Nadia's party continued racing through the streets. At times, the crowd was so thick they could barely make any progress.

  "How much farther?" Nadia
asked, growing short on breath. Somebody's plasma rifle discharge came within a foot of her. She flinched away from the heat, then turned back to see a pair of officers pursuing them. They did look suspicious, after all. Everyone else was rioting in the streets, and they were racing determinedly in the other direction.

  Nadia and Markus both raised shields again. They couldn't hope to hit their pursuers in all this chaos, not without hurting innocent bystanders. So they continued forcing their way through the crowd—a task that grew more difficult by the second.

  Somebody shoved Nadia to the ground. She hit the pavement hard, skinning her knees and elbows. When she tried to get back to her feet, she got shoved down again. The crowd had become much more violent, screaming and shouting and cursing the government.

  "Somebody help me!" she shouted, but her words were lost amidst the din.

  She tried to get to her feet again, then gave up and curled into a ball, holding her hands over her head and praying she wouldn't be trampled to death. When would the others realize she wasn't with them? She looked for them, but the press of bodies blocked her view.

  "Markus!" she shouted. "Berig! Somebody!"

  At last, there was a gap in the crowd. She bolted to her feet, peering through the hundreds of people, hoping she could spot her friends. Either they weren't nearby, or she just couldn't see them. She pressed forward, praying she was going the right direction. As she moved, she held her elbows out, shoving anyone who got too close.

  Sweat drenched her forehead, and her heart pounded in her ears. She peered through the crowd again and again, moving against its flow, trying to ignore the screams and shouts. More and more plasma discharges passed through the crowd, striking people. She conjured a shield, praying it would protect her.

  Where had the others gone?

  She came up against a line of people pressed close together, moving opposite her direction. When she tried to push past them, they resisted. She couldn't appeal to them. In the chaos, they behaved more like animals than people.