I

by Jake Bible

  As Alexis slashed and hacked, stabbed and thrust, his conscious mind let go to the Teirmont beast that always dwelled on the edge. He had heard his whole life about his grandfather and great grandfathers before, who had ripped entire decks apart with nothing but their bare hands. He’d believed the stories to be fancies his father told him to boost his ego and self-importance, something Henry III was well known for.

  Alexis knew the stories were not fancies of a troubled imagination as his short blade was knocked from his grip and he instinctively grabbed the attacker by the crotch and tore with all his might. The man before him would have wailed in agony if his throat had not been torn open by Alexis’s teeth. The body fell to the ground, blood pouring from its neck and from between its legs, as Alexis stood there and roared.

  It was a sound that stunned all who heard it. Lowdeckers and royal guards, all paused to gaze at the gore smeared monarch that held a pair of bloody testicles in one hand and pulled a hunk of flesh from his mouth with the other. The passageway was still for a split second that moved into an eternity until a battle cry from far down the passageway brought everyone out of their shock.

  Alexis tossed the testicles aside, smirking at the loud splat they made against the wall, then fetched his blades from the viscera piled at his feet.

  “We have been betrayed!” a lowdecker screamed just before his head was sent tumbling through the air by Diggory’s heavy blade.

  “Such harsh words from a dead man,” Diggory snarled as he swung again, taking a man’s arm off at the shoulder.

  Heavy blades met heavy blades as the two lowdecker factions collided. Alexis watched with predatory detachment as men that had once been friends, many even extended family, tore into each other with viscous abandon.

  Two men pulled away from the fray and came at Alexis, but even their weighty metal couldn’t withstand the might of the man called Longshanks. Sparks flew as Alexis’s weapons collided with the heavy blades. He towered over the squat lowdeckers, his powerful arms coming down again and again, bashing at the men’s blades as if they were braids of scrim grass.

  One of the men collapsed under the assault and Alexis pressed forward, sending his long blade through the man’s heart. The second man took that opportunity to lunge, not with his heavy blade, but with a short knife he pulled from his boot.

  Alexis looked down at the handle that stuck out from his side and frowned in disbelief. He dropped his short blade, yanked the knife free and returned it to its owner, blade first through the man’s left eye. Without missing a beat, Alexis retrieved his short blade and looked for more men to kill. But the wound in his side wouldn’t let him take more than a step or two.

  “His highness has been wounded!” a guard yelled as Alexis dropped to a knee, one hand clutching the wound that leaked blood at an alarming rate.

  “I’m fine!” Alexis shouted. “Continue the fight!”

  “Sire, we must get you back,” a guard said as he helped Alexis to his feet. “We have taken the day. There is no need for you to be here.”

  Alexis shoved the man away, staggered against the wall, regained his balance, and pointed at the lowdeckers ripping each other apart.

  “We do not know how the day goes until the last man has fallen!” Alexis yelled. “Continue on and kill the rebels! Helios knows they deserve every cut of the blade we give them!”

  The guard looked to three others that stood in a ring of protection around the master. “Sire, I cannot leave—”

  “You will do as I say!” Alexis roared and the guards stumbled away from his fury, their eyes going to the blades he still held. “I want nothing but pure victory!”

  The guards nodded and bowed then reentered the fight. Alexis watched them dive in with renewed drive and smiled. Then frowned as the pain in his side nearly sent him to the ground again.

  A lowdecker slipped through the ranks and came at him, but hesitated, a rare thing for lowdeckers, as he saw the animalistic look in Alexis’s eyes. That pause was the man’s undoing as Alexis collapsed to the ground, but also lashed out, taking the man’s legs off below the knees with one swipe of his long blade. The lowdecker’s screams were cut short as Alexis pounced on him and buried his short blade up under the man’s chin and into his brain.

  A cry from behind him tore the master from his homicidal blindness, and Alexis whipped his head about to see Corbin being impaled upon Langley’s heavy blade.

  “No!” Alexis shouted, bringing Langley’s attention from the stricken Head of the Royal Guard to the very man Corbin was sworn to protect.

  “You,” Langley sneered as he pulled his blade from Corbin’s guts and shoved the man aside. “Now we end this.”

  Alexis stood back up and hobbled forward to meet the leader of the impossible rebellion. That leader strode forward confidently; his body crisscrossed with cuts and gashes, but none of his wounds were nearly as bad as Alexis’s.

  “Where is Helios’s support of the monarchy now?” Langley laughed, pointing his blade at Alexis. “Look at you. You’re just meat like the rest of us.”

  “I’m royal meat,” Alexis replied, matching Langley’s laugh. “There is a difference, believe me.”

  “There won’t be when you’re dead!” Langley shouted as he gripped his heavy blade with both hands and rushed towards the master.

  He made it three steps before his right shoulder exploded into a mess of breen armor, shredded muscle, and spraying blood. Langley spun about and dropped, collapsing across a pile of corpses made up of both royal soldiers and lowdeckers.

  Alexis glanced over his shoulder and saw a young woman standing there with a longsling to her shoulder. He nodded to her and she nodded back. Then her chest burst open as a heavy blade was thrust through her back. The lowdecker on the other end of the heavy blade smirked with malevolence then grunted in pain as he too was impaled upon a blade and cut down.

  The master turned back to Langley, his concern for the rebel leader’s demise more pressing than his concern for the outcome of what was happening behind him.

  But Langley was nowhere to be seen.

  Alexis rushed forward, his wound ignored as he began to shove corpses aside, turning them over with his boot, desperate to find one that would be Langley. Yet none were. The man was gone, a ghost lost from the battle, a specter that had retreated to a more familiar haunt.

  The master swore he would destroy every possible hiding place Langley could have gone. Then he staggered forward and collapsed next to Corbin, his arms taking the man into his lap.

  “Corbin? Speak to me, man,” Alexis grunted. “Now is not your time. I swear to Helios you do not die today.”

  Corbin opened his eyes and coughed blood from between his lips.

  “I failed you, sire,” Corbin whispered. “You deserved more from me than my blood upon your trousers.”

  “You could never fail me, Corbin,” Alexis said. “You have been nothing but loyal and trustworthy since I have known you. And you will remain so for the rest of your long life, I am certain.”

  Corbin smiled weakly and coughed. “You flatter me, your highness, but I am not long for this world. Let me die here and get yourself to safety. The battle is not done, sire. You are still in danger.”

  “No, no,” Alexis said as he leaned back against the wall, his own warm blood mixing with Corbin’s as it leaked from his wound. “I think I will stay and rest with you, if you don’t mind. Just a short rest. I’m suddenly very tired.”

  He looked down and saw Corbin’s eyes were closed. He pressed a palm to the man’s nostrils and smiled as he felt the faint breath that came out. Alexis leaned his head against the wall and closed his eyes as well, thinking it really was a splendid idea to just rest, if at least for a minute or two, before getting back into the fight.

  Chapter Six

  “So much blood, my mistress,” the nurse cried, huge, fat tears tumbling down her cheeks like liquid boulders. “It was everywhere...there was nothing the physician could do for him.”
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  Eliza fell back into the chair, her hands clutched to her breast, stunned by the news.

  “This can’t be,” she whispered. “He was still so young. He had so much of life to look forward to. Helios must be playing a cruel joke to take my beloved from me like this.”

  “I am so sorry, my mistress,” the nurse sobbed. “We tried everything, but this strain of the weeping sickness is the worst seen in four generations. It’s tearing the station apart.”

  “Take me to him,” Eliza said as she tried to stand. Stewardess de Morlan hurried over and helped the mistress to her feet. Eliza looked at her like she’d had no idea the woman had been close at hand for the past five days straight. “Oh, Lesha, there you are. Will you come with me as I say goodbye to my boy?”

  “I will, your highness,” Lehsa said, her voice quavering with grief of her own. “Then I am afraid I must leave the court. I do not want to, but Alasdair’s remains have been released from quarantine and arrangements must be made for his internment.”

  “Alasdair?” Eliza asked. “What has happened to your husband? Was he stricken as well?”

  “Yes, your highness,” Lesha replied. “He passed just before your Bora was taken.”

  “Oh...yes...that’s right,” Eliza sighed. “I’m sorry, Lesha. Do not bother with me. I can handle this on my own. Go to your estate and put your man with his ancestors.”

  “I will, your highness,” Lesha responded. “Once I have done this task with you. I could not live with myself if I walked away. Alasdair is with Helios now. All that waits for me at the manor is an empty shell of the man I loved.”

  “We are all empty shells now,” Eliza nodded. “Empty like the husks of dead honey wasp hives.”

  “Don’t speak like that,” Lesha said as she brushed a stray hair away from Eliza’s forehead and tucked it behind her ear. “Alasdair and I lived a long, happy life. I have no regrets. You still have the rest of your children. Go to them, love them, hold them tight.”

  “Bora is gone,” Eliza whispered. “My sweet girl. Helios took her and now the Dear Parent has taken my Thomas. Will Haley and James be next? Then my Esther and my Alexis? When does Helios’s thirst for souls stop?”

  “This is not Helios, your highness,” Lesha replied. “This is just a disease. We have seen the weeping sickness before, we will see it again. It is a sad side effect of living in a station. Everything recycled, including illness. One day the physicians will know the cause.”

  “The physicians know nothing!” Eliza roared, slapping at Lesha as she shoved away from her. “They just let it happen! They should be ejected into space, every last one of them!”

  A slight cough was heard from the doorway and Eliza turned to it, her eyes nothing but roiling madness and pain.

  “Your highness,” a man said, dressed in the robes of medicine. “I do not mean to interrupt.”

  “Perhaps now is not a good time,” Lesha said, hurrying over to the physician. “Could you come back later when her highness is in a better state?”

  “No, I am fine,” Eliza insisted. “Tell me what it is you have come to say, physician. More death? More agony for me?”

  “I am sorry, your highness…” the physician responded. “But...yes. The young minor, James, has been taken ill. It is early, and we may be able to stop the progress of the disease in him yet, but it is confirmed he has the weeping sickness.”

  Eliza looked at the physician then to Lesha. The mistress’s face went whiter than it had been, turning almost translucent. A slight twitch at the corner of her mouth began then increased and soon her face was nothing but contractions. Her mouth opened in a silent scream and her whole body started to spasm. She was on the floor in the blink of an eye and Lesha rushed to her.

  “Your highness!” she cried. “Eliza! Eliza!”

  The physician rushed to her as well and gently, but firmly, pushed Lesha out of the way. He touched the back of his hand to Eliza’s forehead then checked the pulse in her wrist while probing the glands under her chin.

  “It has gotten to her as well,” the physician said. “I do not want to be the one to do this, but we must quarantine the entire royal quarters. These floors of Castle Quent are to be sealed at once.”

  “I’ll alert the master,” Lesha said as she got up. “He’ll want to be with his family.”

  “You will do no such thing,” the physician ordered. “This floor will be closed off then the master will be told. His health is of the utmost importance. We cannot risk him falling ill because of sentiment.”

  Lesha’s palm struck the physician’s face across the cheek, leaving a red mark that equaled the sunsets on Aelon Prime. The man stood up, shocked and stared down at the stewardess.

  “My lady,” he said. “I do not think—”

  “Shut your mouth,” Lesha snapped. “And never call the love of a family ‘sentiment.’ Do you understand me? You physicians may be trained as cold, calculating clinicians, but the rest of us are not. Know your place, man, or find yourself stripped of that robe and assigned to the Vape mines on the planet. And not as a physician, but as a miner!”

  “Yes, my lady, I apologize,” the physician bowed. “I forgot myself there.” He looked up and his eyes were fearful, but still determined. “This does not change the fact that the floor must be sealed off from the rest of the castle. As cold and calculating as that must sound, it is for the safety of the others at court as well as the master. This you must understand.”

  “I do,” Lesha replied. “So go give the order. I will get word to the master once the job has been finished.”

  “Thank you, my lady,” the physician nodded as he slowly backed out of the room. “I am truly sorry.”

  “I do not doubt that,” Lesha said as a nurse hurried into the room and helped her get Eliza up and into the bed she shared with the master. “Just remember what I said and perhaps pass it on to your colleagues. Now is the time for discretion, not naked truths.”

  “Yes, my lady.” The physician bowed just before leaving.

  Lesha tucked the heavy breen comforter up to Eliza’s chin and gently stroked her hair.

  “Sleep, your highness,” Lesha said. “I’ll watch over your little ones.”

  Eliza opened her eyes and Lesha was shocked to already see the whites had turned blood red.

  “Bring me my babies, Delihla,” Eliza said. “Let me hold their tiny bodies in my arms.”

  Her eyes closed once more and Lesha sighed.

  “Who is Delihla?” the nurse asked.

  “It was the name of the nurse that accompanied her from Station Ploerv when she and Alexis were first wed,” Lesha frowned. “She died shortly after from a tragic lift accident. The mistress was to be with her, and the others that perished, but she had missed the lift because she and Alexis were, well, indisposed. Those two were so in love as teens, it was almost laughable to watch.”

  “Are they not in love still?” the nurse asked then blushed. “Oh, I am sorry, my lady. That was rude of me to ask.”

  “They are still in love,” Lesha said. “Deeply. I fear for Alexis’s stability when he is given the news of this.”

  * * *

  He rolled the plush leaves of the willow bush between his fingers as the servant stood there, legs shaking, eyes averted downward. Alexis didn’t say one word, just locked his eyes onto the young man. Seconds went by then minutes and unfortunately for the servant, a large stain began to spread across his crotch. He let out a quiet whimper, but didn’t move from his place in front of the master.

  “Sire,” Stolt said as he leaned close to Alexis’s ear. “Can the poor boy be dismissed? I’m afraid he’s had an accident while trembling before us.”

  “An accident…” Alexis mused. “Yes, I can see that. Do I strike so much fear in my subjects that they wet themselves when bringing me bad news?”

  “It appears so, your highness,” Stolt said. “These are terrifying times and those with weaker constitutions than the royalty and nobility have reve
rted to animalistic behavior.” The steward glared at the still trembling young man. “Like shaows or grendts waiting for slaughter.”

  “My...my...my...apolo...apologies,” the servant stammered. “I...was...I…”

  “Begone,” Alexis said finally. “From my sight and from the castle. Return to your home and be with your family. The Final Feast is upon us and we now wait for Helios to devour the rest of the System.”

  The servant’s eyes went wide with surprise.

  “Just go,” Stolt said. “Be grateful you get to return to your loved ones.”

  The servant turned and sprinted from the two men, hurrying from the royal gardens as fast as his urine slick legs would take him.

  Stolt looked up at the artificial clouds contained within the station’s atmospheric shield. He’d always wondered what real clouds had looked like down on Helios before the Cataclysm changed the planet forever. His grandfather told him stories that had been passed down from generation to generation over the millennia about great puffy formations in the sky that looked like breen boles. Stolt wondered if the condensed moisture above him looked anything like those clouds from ancient times.

  “I would like to see them,” Alexis said. “I would like to talk to them.”

  He pressed his hand to his side and sighed. The wound he had been given during battle had split his body in the exact same spot as the assassination attempt so many years earlier. He had laughed about it causing not just “insult to injury, but injury to injury” and the court had found it very funny. But the jest was a rouse to ward off any suspicion of the true damage it had caused. The physicians had said he may never live without pain again; such was the extent of the wound.

  Alexis turned to his now closest advisor. “Cousin? How do I see them? How do I speak with them?”

  “We can connect you with them through the audio communication system,” Stolt said. “I am unsure how to make that happen since the system is designed to work in the shuttles and environmental suits only, but I am sure a tech can make it work. As for seeing them…?”