It seemed that the best way to get back to the encampment was going uphill around the lake. Duncan had barely begun climbing the hill when he noticed some definite structures off to his left, in the desert, some two or three hundred yards away.
Walking down a trail of marble sand, Duncan suddenly realized he was in the midst of an old city. Large stones following definite patterns, pillars, worn-out monuments, silvery spikes jutting out of the ground: the constructions were all over the area.
As he walked through the ancient structures, Duncan saw an object gleaming in the twilight. He reached for the flashlight on his belt, but he could not find it: he had lost it in the subterranean pond.
He headed towards the object. He was soon standing in front of what appeared to be a large polished stone. It was colorless, translucent, about twelve feet across, and its top was like a hollow, circular basin carved in the rock. But the most remarkable feature was the crystalline sphere that was hovering above it. The object was about six feet in diameter. However simple in shape, to Duncan the sphere looked utterly different from anything he had ever seen. It seemed as if it was made out of energy, but its glowing surface looked solid. He gazed at it for a couple of minutes, and then approached it, very carefully.
It was exactly when his fingers made contact with the pristine surface that a burst of blue light erupted in all directions. Duncan fell to the ground, covering his eyes. It was an intense, even painful, flash, which rapidly subsided into a mild blue glow.
“What . . . what is this?” Duncan uttered nervously, getting back on his feet.
“Who is what I am.”
Disturbed, Duncan stepped back. He looked at the sphere again and noticed that it was actually spinning at an incredible rate. When he had touched it, he had felt a slight magnetic-like pull on his fingers, although he had not felt any current of air or any friction.
“So, who are you?” Duncan asked.
“I’m not a someone you can call who, as you call yourself who.”
“Are you matter, energy . . .”
“I exhaust the potentiality of my substance. But my substance is of a different nature than yours.”
“Do you have a name?”
“There is no point in naming my name.”
“How so?”
“You would not understand it.”
“I see. Incidentally, my name is Dahncion.”
There was a pause in the exchange. “Yes, I have seen you within me, wherefore I do know your name,” the sphere explained.
Duncan did not feel impressed by the statement. “Are you the being the natives call Essray?”
“I’m not he who they also call Am.”
“You talk in riddles.”
“It is you who understands in riddles.”
Duncan stared at the entity as he sat on a short pillar, about five yards from it. “Since it seems that I understand you in riddles, let me talk about myself.”
The sphere remained unchanged.
“As I’ve mentioned—and as you seem to know—my name is Dahncion, and I don’t belong to this planet, in case you didn’t know that already.”
“Indeed, neither to this universe, since you are Duncan from Earth.”
Duncan stood up, disturbed. “Who are you?”
“It matters not who I am. What matters is that you are here to ensure the continuity and ultimate destiny of the last civilization of this world.”
Uncomfortable, Duncan nodded. “People keep telling me these sort of things, you know?”
“The device that was given to you . . .” The sphere paused, leaving the sentence unfinished.
“What about it?”
“You must take it to the city that is called Holy. There you will nurture the Yellow Pyramid with its power.”
“So the device is a power source of some kind.”
“It was crafted before the ancient races that inhabited this world were born; later, much later, it was entrusted to the Almiris.”
“Donya Aytana . . .” Duncan muttered. “What happened to the Almiris?” His sullen attitude had turned into a keen interest. “It was a sophisticated and advanced civilization, wasn’t it?”
A full minute passed until the sphere spoke again. “The night of emptiness is de-realizing the Duhn-zaeon. His purpose is drifting away; his life, dissipating.”
Duncan stood up in silence as the sphere quietly began to rise.
Hovering in its position for a few more seconds, the sphere became very bright, radiating a dense blue energy. Under its influence, Duncan began to experience a heavy lethargy. Exhausted, he sat down on the ground, his back resting on a low wall. The sphere was now moving very fast towards the morning twilight, above the horizon. The first lights of a new day were starting to glow.
Duncan would not wake up until well into the morning.151
85.
Today: Hope and rejoice.
“Simply beautiful,” Erina said, and smiled. Though erected in remote times and uninhabited for millennia, the city appeared as new.
“Just like the Zureedaii described it,” Duncan added, putting an arm around her shoulders.
The city, which went beyond the horizon, glimmered gracefully with the last rays of the setting sun. Its buildings, some of which rose through the clouds, sparkled rainbows from their crystalline walls.
The streets, the squares, everything was covered by a gleaming, seemingly metallic bluish sheath.
“That construction, over there.” Erina pointed at a yellow pyramid, as she leaned forward, standing close to the edge of the cliff. The shiny hue of her snug suit—gleaming in the twilight of a new evening—emphasized her female features. None of that passed unnoticed to Duncan. His growing physical desire for Erina was sufficiently evident to her. And though she had not directly returned his feelings yet, she was not making any effort to conceal her beauty either.
“I suppose this is the target of the Zureedaii,” Erina added.
Duncan nodded. “It is consistent with what the sphere said we would find, last week.”
Erina’s silence was telling.
“Hey, I saw that thing,” Duncan complained.
“I know you did.”
“So you do.” Duncan turned his eyes back to the city. It had no link with the ruins he had found a few days before, which were about eighty miles to the north.
“You do realize you had just gone through a very traumatic experience,” Erina said, making reference to the drop down the subterranean river and the waterfalls. “The experience may have existed largely in your mind.”
“Maybe,” Duncan stated quietly. “But I kind of find it hard to believe that my mind could come up with something like that. I am not that sophisticated.”
Erina put a thumb through her belt. “If there is any possibility that the pyramid is some type of communication station, as you think it is, the least we can do is check it out.
“I wouldn’t dismiss any chance that could lead to our rescue.”
Duncan stroked Erina’s hair gently. “But not today, not now.”
Erina looked into his eyes as he moved closer. Rather sharply, however, she pushed him away. Duncan scowled with frustration.
“The sky . . .” Erina gasped as she moved aside.
In the growing dusk of the evening, first a few, soon hundreds, finally thousands of white specks started springing up and spreading over the quiet evening heavens.
86.
Today: Faith and strength.
Having reached its final destination, Xanada’s army was resting on a plateau, about one mile above the Holy City of the Zureedaii. The ancient buildings looked quiet and peaceful, but the heavens had been disturbed by an unexpected presence, though this was not surprising to Duncan.
“Those evil stars are nothing but Establishment battleships in geosynchronous quasi-orbits152 ready to wipe us out in a fraction of a second with plasma vectors—if that makes any sense to you,” he explained.
The War Council had been
gathered for three hours already, and the course of action that it was leaning towards had an unsettling resemblance to a suicide mission from Duncan’s perspective.
“The Prophecy is clear. It cannot fail, like no other prophecy has ever failed,” was Xanada’s stolid reply. “And Colonel Azatu’s plan seems wise and in consonance with the Prophecy.”
Duncan frowned disapprovingly.
“May I, General?” Foxso’l asked.
“Please, Captain.”
“I’m afraid what Ashury Dahncion has just said is one hundred percent true. But as long as those troops down there stay where they are,” Foxso’l explained, referring to the Establishment forces that had occupied the city the previous night, “the evil stars up in the sky won’t do nothing to us. I’m pretty positive Colonel Azatu’s plan will surely work fine.”
To Duncan, that had been an absurd comment, and he was not about to let it stand. However, to Xanada, the debate was exhausted. “When do you suggest to attack, Colonel?”
“The sooner the better, my General. If the enemy is as powerful as the Ashuraii say, we ought to attack by surprise.”
“We will attack at dawn,” Xanada confirmed. “Captain Mushido.”
“My General?”
“You will lead the east wing.” Mushido bowed.
“Captain Kamoto, you will command the west wing.”
“My General!”
“Captain Ziku, you will lead the front wing with the Ashuraii in your ranks. I want your best warriors fighting alongside.”
Ziku bowed respectfully. “My General honors my warriors and myself.”
Xanada looked around. “The council is dismissed. I’ll be in my tent making further preparations.” He saluted his staff and left.
Breaking ranks, everybody hurried to get everything ready for battle. Soon only the three Realitians remained.
It was dark already, and the night dome was dangerously populated by many extra stars that did not belong to that sky.
“I hope you’re satisfied,” Duncan growled through clenched teeth.
Foxso’l turned his head to one side. “I ain’t glad with what is goin’ on here, son, but it is what it is.”
“Even if they succeeded in reaching some secret spot they may know,” Erina speculated, referring to the Zureedaii, “most of them will surely die.”
“If they succeeded?” Duncan asked. “Make it we, since we’re part of them, already.”
“So, you’d rather have this people be equalized with the Establishment?” Foxso’l asked.
“No, but I think this is a foolish attempt. Nobody will remain alive one minute after our romantic attack starts tomorrow.”
“Maybe it’s gonna be so,” Foxso’l said calmly. “But I don’t think this is any more foolishly romantic than the Realdom’s attempt to win a war over an overpowering enemy just for the sake of freedom. Maybe all of us are gonna die tomorrow, yeah, maybe so; but let me tell you somethin’: this army is the last and only chance these guys have. Nobody will help them here. The Realdom is too busy already just struggling to survive. And it may well have no clue of what is going on down here. It’s all up to this army—and to ourselves.”
Duncan sighed. “The odds of taking the city are, are . . . one in a billion!”
“And even if we did succeed,” added Erina, “what then? An entire enemy fleet would be right above our heads all the time.”
“You forget something, sweetheart: that fancy gizmo we found at the cottage. I don’t know how many breps153 the soldier-boy had had last week when he saw that hovering sphere of his. But we don’t need no fancy laboratory to tell us that this little baby of ours has a heck of an energy supply inside it. All the tests we’ve run on it tell us that. Besides, the kid’s story about the sphere . . .” Foxso’l shrugged. “It makes some sense to me.
“What if there is some long-range communication system somewhere over there?” Foxso’l waved towards the city. “What if we find a spaceship, a weapon, or something? Who knows, maybe all this prophecy-stuff is not make-believe nonsense; there may be some truth in it.”
Erina smiled with a touch of cynicism.
“What’s so funny?” Foxso’l grunted.
“Nothing, it’s that you just sounded a little bit like a good sooggee.” That was the term the Zureedaii used for those with a strong commitment to the Prophecy.
“Well, why not, sister? I’d rather be a good sooggee tomorrow who happily happens to be in the right. Because if this prophecy buzz is just a myth, we may all be goners already. But if it happens to be true—just a little bit true—whatever is gonna happen down there might well save our skins.”
87.
Behold the sign in the sky. The heavens shine with radiant colors, as in the days of Kaleb, as when the light was born to its glory. The day arrays itself in gold, and the moon gleams with glamourous joy. From midday to the Main Sea, from sunset to sunrise, all the heavens explode in mighty splendor. For the days of salvation are now at a close, the time of bliss is finally at hand.
[ . . . ] And on that day, the forces of darkness will grind their teeth and groan with horror, since what is to come grows insufferable in their eyes, a bitter gall too harsh to swallow.
But lo, from the gates of Abyss a terrible army awakes. The wrath of the Evil One commissions its hosts girding their loins for a new battle. From the blackness of the heavens they are gathered together, from the depths of the netherworld they heed the trumpets of war. On that night, the dome of the skies will pour forth the evil stars of oppression. The firmament will retch, and the moon will wail. Like furious wasps, the evil stars buzz over the entire land until at last they send forth their envoys. The lurking vultures hold their breath as they stalk in silent assault. The commissioners of darkness break forth against the beloved city, the city of emerald, of turquoise, of chrysolite, and of pearl. They spread over her holy palaces, like the locusts of summer, they plunder and prey, like the black ashes of the Mountain of Fire, they defile the white abodes of her beauty.
But behold, the army of the saints surrounds the encampment of the enemy. Blood and fire and brimstone and lightning are spit over the knights of all justice. The Ashuraii are fighting amongst them, wielding the mighty sword of reality and the unbending shield of rectitude. And all the servants of Essray rejoice, yea, they all praise His almighty strength that stands forever. For the armies of the Evil One are wiped out like the sands of Iazyrra, and the sky is cleansed of the foul abomination, and the beloved city is purified of its lice, and the Seeker of Naked Nothingness mourns, and staggers, and cries, for once more the strength of sternessence has conquered in glory.
From the Zureeday “Chronicles of Victory,” The BookofProphecy.
The Establishment fleet was still discernible in the sky, although the clarity of a new day was starting to dim its presence. The night had passed by calmly, with an occasional mild breeze lingering from the south. But the weather was not going to stay quiet for the rest of the morning. A windstorm coming from the desert was closing in on the area.
An Establishment soldier, leaning on a crystal column, turned his gaze towards the approaching storm. It did not bother him very much. His environment-proof battle suit would effectively keep him from experiencing most of the inconveniences of the incoming gales and dust.
The soldier kept his gaze on the northern hills. There was nothing unusual. Although he was aware of the nearby gathering of natives, it was considered an unlikely threat. A thick cloud of sand and leaves now started rising above the forest on the hills beyond the city. As the wind gained strength, swarms of glimmering specks began to shine forth within the clouds with the first lights of the dawning day.
88.
Today: All things with everything!154
“Rig!”
From both sides of every annay, long poles with white sturdy sheets were hoisted. The sails readily caught the impetus of the strong Zonda155 that had started blowing a few minutes before.
“Charge
!”
Unable to withstand the force of the sails, the annays were swept along before Captain Ziku’s command could reach his ranks. The strength of the wind, combined with the steep downhill slope, had put Ziku’s company literally in the air, which, though unusual, was quite possible. Annays were related to flying species, and though they themselves were not endowed with flying abilities, they seemed to possess an excellent instinct for strolling across the air.
“Yeeha!” Foxso’l, along with his Realitian companions, were skimming along towards the target at a fabulous speed. A fluttering blue banner was now deployed from the tip of Ziku’s right pole. All soldiers unhitched their crossbows in response, waiting for the ensuing command.
The army was soon flying over the city. Down on the streets, it was easy to recognize the alien equipment brought by the invading forces: it simply lacked the crystalline texture naturally embedded in the ancient constructions. A red banner replaced Ziku’s blue one, which passed by swiftly, raging, on Erina’s right side. In response, a shower of metallic spears released by the Zureedaii riders began falling upon the city.
The Zureeday army, and the Ashuraii, were skimming along toward the target at a fabulous speed.
Hastily, the alien forces began repelling the incursion with some type of energy beams. However, the counterattack was proving widely ineffective: all shots were simply bouncing off their targets with reddish bursts of light. Zureeday armor was made of an alloy that was effectively shielding all who wore them from the lethal beams. But the enemy soon realized the annays were much more vulnerable156 to their energy beams, so they began shooting the attackers down by targeting the animals.
The wind was not strong enough to hold the flying army in the air any longer, and most of Xanada’s soldiers were already landing. Once on the streets, the Zureedaii began fighting with their swords and zuroobies, a sort of crossbow capable of shooting small nets with sticky cords attached to their edges, which ended in spherical stones. The Establishment troops were neither prepared nor trained for such primitive tactics. Any small rent opened on an environmental suit157 rendered an Establishment soldier out of combat.
Reality: The Struggle for Sternessence Page 28