by Orren Merton
He tossed me into one of the punching bags like I was a bag of grapes. My back wrapped around the bag so hard I thought I heard it crack. I dropped to the ground and landed on my hip and elbow.
“Stop! Please stop!” I cried. “Why are you doing this? Are you trying to kill me? Are you even my brother?”
I backed myself against the wall and just held my chest as I wept, my whole body wracked with spasms of pain. My back slid down the wall until I was sitting.
Garz stopped and sighed. He lowered his head. He didn’t look angry anymore. More…confused.
Garz changed into his human form and slowly walked over to me. He slid down the wall until he was sitting next to me. He slowly held his open hand over the thigh that he kicked hard. I flinched away from his hand, afraid of his next move.
“May I?” he asked.
I nodded, still crying.
He gently lowered his hand against my thigh. I felt a warmth come over where he touched, like the way I did when Dad grabbed me in the alley.
“Better?” he asked.
I wiped my sniffling nose. “A little.”
“You know I’m your brother because we can heal each other. We are of the same spirit. If we weren’t, I couldn’t do this.”
“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” I snapped.
“Just try it with Vetis,” Garz said. “Or walk out the door and see how you feel when you’re out of the House. It won’t be hard to verify.”
“Then how can you hurt me so badly?” I sobbed.
“Because I know that you’ll heal fully in this House. You know, you could cut my head clean off and it would just grow back,” he grinned and poked me in the ribs.
“I’ll take your word for it,” I answered.
“I’m being serious,” Garz said, hovering his open hand close to my stomach. He looked at me, and I nodded. He carefully placed his hand over where he had punched me, and the pain started diminishing. “When we train, never be afraid to hurt me. Do as much damage as you can. Even kill me if you’re able. I accept all that as part of training you. I don’t want you holding back at all, ever.”
“But Garz…I don’t want to hurt you,” I said, my tears slowing. “And I don’t want to kill anyone. Ever. That’s not who I am.”
Garz nodded. “And I don’t want to turn you into someone you’re not. But I will train you to kill, and you can choose not to for yourself. And in training, you will have to hurt me. But I willingly accept this pain. And I am afraid to say, this is not the last time that training will hurt you. But you’ll never be permanently damaged, however painful it feels at that time.”
“I’m…I’m so not used to this,” I muttered.
“I…” Garz sighed again. “I apologize for my lack of experience with the human world. I know my manner is gruff. I’ve only trained other Sedim or Mazzikim. I need to teach you to fight like them. I need you to fight like a Sedu, not like a ballet dancer.”
I turned to him. “Garz, I get that. Okay, maybe I shot my mouth off and shouldn’t have. I thought I had a clue, but I didn’t. But you…you attacked me, when I thought you were on my side. That we were a team.”
Garz lifted his hand from my stomach and touched my cheek. My face felt better almost immediately.
“We are,” he said. “It’s my fault for not communicating that. But please understand, everything I said was true. And our team has to be ready for anything.”
He removed his hand from my face.
“Thanks,” I mumbled. My hair and eyes stopped flaming.
“You know Alex, every few centuries—every few years, on Earth—I used to cross the portal to watch you.”
“That’s not creepy at all…”
Garz grinned. “It wasn’t like that. Not looking in windows or anything. But sitting across from you and your mother when you were a child and she’d read poetry to you at the park, when she’d call you her little firebird. Seeing you by yourself in the school playground, knowing you were feeling so much less than everyone around you, when in truth you were so much more…”
I thought back to those moments, trying to whether I could remember him. “I do remember men sitting on park benches when I was a little girl, but can’t remember faces,” I shrugged.
“Of course not. It was a long time ago, your mother didn’t know me, and you were very young. I’d never stay long, just a short while to see how you were doing. But my point is that for a very long time, I wished that I could meet you. The sister that I knew I had, that I saw becoming a smart, compassionate young woman, and whom I knew had so many questions that Father and I could answer.”
“I really wished I’d had those answers back then,” I said.
“You can ask us anything now,” Garz said.
“How did you feel about Dad falling for a human woman?” I asked.
Garz inhaled. “My mother—his wife—had been dead for millennia, so I wasn’t jealous, but honestly I thought it was a terrible development. Nothing against human women, although as you said during your meal, it is a complicated attraction. I was upset because ultimately relationships between Sedu and humans are doomed.”
That’s what I would have thought too. I appreciated that Garz was being honest.
“Were you mad when you found out about me?”
“Livid,” Garz admitted. “I thought Father was an idiot. He had callously sentenced a human woman to either an abortion she should never have had to have, or to a pregnancy that would sooner or later be her death. And I felt that way until I spent time watching you. Alex, believe me…as hard as I am on you…I will never forgive myself if this Seduman murderer kills you because you return home without the skills to protect yourself. I want you to live.”
“Well, that makes two of us,” I cracked.
“You can do this, Alex. I’ll always be a harsh taskmaster; that will never change. It’s how I get results. And we will get results. Even without skills you already have some smart instincts, and that’s a very strong place to start.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“Let me know when it’s too much, and I’ll listen. But this is going to be a lot of hard work. Maybe the hardest work you’ve ever done.”
I inhaled deeply. “Okay,” I exhaled. “I can do this. I’m ready.”
Without warning, Zaebos sprang up from what looked like a dead sleep and galloped toward a three foot tall catfish-headed Ruhin with rabbit-like feet who appeared to be gossiping with another two-legged-lizard-with-a-featherless-birdhead looking Ruhin. The gossiping Ruhin had just enough time to let out a panicked scream before Zaebos snapped his jaws around its head.
I jumped, startled, but didn’t make a sound.
Zaebos thrashed his muzzle from side to side until the Ruhin’s body fell lifeless to the ground. Zaebos then spit the head at the trembling bird-headed Ruhin.
“No malicious gossip about my lady,” Zaebos growled. “There is no weakness in the House of Keroz.”
The bird-headed Ruhin bowed low, crying and begging for mercy. Zaebos snarled at it once for good measure, then ambled back across the room to his sleeping spot by the entry way, turning to Garz and me on the way with a single nod of his muzzle.
Garz offered Zaebos an approving nod of his own as he stood up. “There is no weakness in the House of Keroz,” he said.
Garz held out his hand to help me up. “Let’s begin.”
18
I know that Garz went easy on me for the rest of our first training session, but holy hell! Sure, breathing techniques weren’t too tough, although I did feel kind of light-headed afterwards, but the stretches and bounces and calisthenics left me an exhausted fountain of sweat, with every muscle burning me up. When Garz finally said that it was time for my training with Dad, I could barely stand. It felt like hours and hours had gone by, but I’m not sure how much time had actually passed. Garz told me I took to it well and he was proud of me. I don’t know if he really was or if he was still just trying to be nice after beating m
e up so badly. But I thanked him, either way.
Zogo ran up to me with the towel and water. I was so thirsty I drank the entire pitcher of water. Of course, that made me feel woozy, so I leaned against the wall as I toweled myself off. Garz said he had to leave but that I should come down to the workout room whenever I felt able and practice everything I’d learned. As he left the room, I saw Vetis patiently standing in the entryway next to Zaebos. I still found it extremely odd to see what looked like a huge dragonfly head with a tiny lipless human mouth grinning at me from atop a praying mantis body, but I was getting more used to it.
“Shall we, my lady?” Vetis held out his arm to invite me to follow him. I nodded, and we walked together back toward the stairs. Zaebos accompanied the two of us, but Zogo begged his leave and went off in another direction.
“Your father asked me to take you to the roof, where he will meet you shortly,” Vetis said.
“Okay,” I said, my breath coming back to me. I still felt exhausted, but nearly all my muscle pain was gone. As uncomfortable as I felt with this place, I could really get used to this super-fast healing action.
“Is that how Garz always gets during training?” I asked Vetis. “I wasn’t sure I’d survive it.”
“I’m very sorry if he seemed harsh,” Vetis said, with a sympathetic tone of voice.
“Yeah I know, it’s his way, any sign of weakness can be exploited, blah blah blah…”
Vetis stopped walking. If it was possible for huge insect-shaped red eyes to look sympathetic, his did. “It’s more than that, Alex,” he said softly. He looked around, then at Zaebos. Zaebos nodded and ran ahead and up the stairs. “Come,” Vetis said and kept walking toward the stairs.
I heard a heavy door open and Zaebos growl. As we walked up the stairs, I saw the backs of a few Ruhin running away from an open doorway right by the stairs where Zaebos was standing. Vetis ushered me in the room and Zaebos remained outside, on guard. Vetis pushed the huge door shut.
“Sedim, Mazzikim and Ruhin aren’t evil beings, but they are horribly selfish. They were spirits who coveted bodies, and now they covet status and power, just as humans do. So any emotion, any bond that can be exploited, will be. Finding ones with true nobility—well, they are few and far between, I’m afraid. Those who show compassion, concern, or love, do so not only at their own peril, but also at the peril of those they hold dear.”
“That sounds really awful,” I said. “Are you happy this way?”
“Like Garz, I was not one of the original Sedu who created themselves out of spirit and will. I am from a Sedu mating. Just as my birth was different, so am I different. I am…softer. Weaker…”
“Vetis, I don’t care what the ‘Sedu way’ is, I don’t believe that compassion is a weakness,” I insisted.
“How I wish more Sedu thought like you,” Vetis said, his tone almost mournful. “But alas, I came from a brutal, cruel House, bent on power. I was an aberration to them. My emotions were something to be beaten out of me, purged until I was as ruthless as they.”
“That sounds horrible!”
“It was…” Vetis said, a slight tremble across his lipless mouth. “So I tried to escape. I spent every moment I could on Earth—in Chicago, to be exact.”
“I’ve been there once,” I said. “For a family wedding. Cold but beautiful. And the people were—”
“Kind,” Vetis finished. He sounded distant, like he remembered something beautiful he lost. “Loving. Yes. And when my brothers found out about the life I lived in Chicago, they imprisoned me, torturing me and killing me daily, for sport.”
“Your brothers did that?” My eyes bulged out of my head. “Seriously?”
“Yes. And they tracked down and murdered all of my friends in Chicago that they could find. Thankfully, I was able to reach the woman I…I loved…”
“You can say that to me,” I comforted Vetis patting him on his upper-right shoulder. “The woman you loved. I think it’s great that you admit you loved her. Even though the whole Sedu-human relationship thing is still squicky to me.”
He smiled at me with a thin but kind, lipless smile. “She, along with our daughter, was able to leave Chicago and avoid being hunted. As punishment for thwarting them, my family took one of my hands.” He held up his silver claw.
I felt nothing but sympathy for Vetis. As much as his shape was still kinda repulsive to me, his heart was not.
“Oh Vetis, I’m so sorry! But I thought you could always grow it back. How did they make it so that it wouldn’t heal?”
“Water from your world, poured on the lifeless body of a Sedu, Mazzik, or Ruhin, will dissolve whatever it touches. So they brought water back from Chicago, and after they tortured me to death, they poured the water on my lower left hand. When I reformed, I reformed with only three hands. And this lost limb follows me no matter what form I choose.”
“That’s terrible,” I tucked my arms around my waist. “How long did they treat you this way?”
“Centuries,” he said. “Right up until the end.”
“The end?” I repeated. “Did you escape?”
“No. The House of Keroz and its allies went to war against the House of Es, the House into which I was born. They tore down nearly every brick of the House, and destroyed utterly and permanently every being in the House, save two: Zogo and myself.”
“Oh my God,” I gasped. I knew that my family could be brutal…but this…
“Why did they do that?”
“Because I begged them to,” Vetis said. “Zogo braved The Nothingness to reach the House of Keroz to deliver my message. I gave them the numbers of Mazzikim warriors and where they were stationed. I revealed all the weaknesses of the House. And I begged them to take the House apart and to end my suffering. Out of sympathy and compassion for my suffering, they did what I could not—end my family’s reign of murder.”
“But Zaebos said he’d never attack women or children. What about your mom?” I asked. “Or sisters?”
“My father had centuries before murdered my mother,” Vetis said.
Oh my God…this just got worse and worse. I put my hand up to my mouth to cover my shock.
Vetis nodded. “My father found her sending messages to her original House and had her destroyed for her disloyalty. And sisters…I’m afraid there are almost no females of any kind in Sediin—in truth, I don’t know of any still living. I was the youngest Sedu in the House, and I was millennia old. Trust me—Keroz and the Mazzikim of this House did Sediin a favor.”
“Why did Dad agree?”
“Garz and I were close friends,” Vetis explained. “But it was more than that. I knew from Garz that Keroz and I shared a secret—we both had Seduman daughters. When mine became known, she became hunted. Keroz’s daughter was still unknown, but in destroying the house of Es he sent a message—hunting a Seduman shall result in your entire House being completely, utterly destroyed. It is a message that I completely endorse.”
I was still repulsed by how over the top all this was, but I couldn’t help but feel slightly touched, too. I nodded.
“Did my dad ask anything of you in return for being rescued?” I asked.
“I didn’t ask to be rescued,” Vetis admitted. “I wanted to be destroyed, along with my House. It was your father’s offer to take me in, to adopt me if you will. He even kept a few bricks of the spirit of Es for me, which I keep in my chambers, so that I and Zogo may heal.”
“Well, I’m glad you didn’t go down with your House,” I said. “And even though it’s…I guess I am moved that my family will go to war to protect me….That’s…that’s love, right?”
Vetis nodded. “There is love in this House, Alex. And Keroz and Garz have suffered dearly for it.”
Oh no…
“How?” I asked, afraid of the answer.
“Millennia ago, when both had mates, they made the mistake of being openly affectionate to their wives. Their mates were true partners, from what I’m told. And so many millennia ago
, when Keroz was away their enemies captured Garz, his pregnant wife, and his mother. They tortured and obliterated both of them right in front of Garz…”
Vetis turned away, tears dripping from his huge insect eyes. He didn’t give me details, but I imagined the cruelest, most vicious deeds that could be done to women, and assumed they must have suffered a million times worse. Just the thought made me shudder and go cold. And then I imagined the half-niece or nephew I would never know, all right in front of my brother. I started crying too.
“And my father—”
“Rescued Garz and obliterated the House of Brakor which had captured them. And then he systematically destroyed each House that allied itself with the House of Brakor. It made him perhaps the most feared Sedu in Sediin.”
I nodded, a tear running down my cheek. The brutality still made me reel…but I certainly could imagine the pain and loss that drove his rage.
“So you see,” Vetis concluded, “Garz has experienced the worst Sedu brutality, has seen the women in his family, those dearest to him, taken from him in the most horrible way. You can be sure, the memory of their fate is never far from his thoughts when he thinks of you being the target of a Sedu House.”
“I understand better now…thanks Vetis,” I said, wiping my eyes.
Vetis nodded. “Come then,” he said and opened the door. Zaebos still stood guard. He turned around as we started leaving the room and positioned himself to walk at my side.
“So…how do you do it?” I asked Vetis. “I mean, I know you’d rather love than fight, right? How do you handle all this brutality?”
Vetis nodded as we walked toward the stairs at the opposite end of the hallway that led to the roof. “I remind myself that I fight for those that I love. And then the rest is easy.”
I nodded. “Did you ever find your girlfriend and daughter?”
“After I joined the House of Keroz, I did search for them with no luck. Recently, however…I believe that my partner has died. And my daughter, I…I have not seen her…”