Seeker's Light

by N. I. Snow

  Emma shivered as she remembered the wild look in the High Elder's violet eyes. The Ancient was right. No doubt Salianos would not spare her from being tortured had she known the Gaia's location. By keeping that knowledge from her, the Ancient was buying Emma some time. Time she hoped she would use to find a way off of Tazal.

  The song slowly began to fade from her mind. All around her the darkness shifted, and a gray light began to shine through it. The Ancient's hazy shape faded away leaving Emma alone with thea growing light. Just as it threatened to blind her, her eyes snapped open. At first she thought she was still in the gray realm as her eyes adjusted to the light; but when she sat up, the gray haze slid away revealing the half-lit cell. She was alive and she was still aboard the Valkyrie.

  Emma's chest threatened to burst as she stretched her spine. That was when she noticed the odd shape on her right arm. Looking down she stared at the box attached to her arm with a mixture of horror and interest. Tazalian symbols, which she quickly translated, flowed along the box’s holoscreen; the device was recording her vitals. Her gray eyes shifted to the long, white scar that had formed on her left arm. The wound from Zaharak's knife had barely scabbed over before she had lost consciousness. Now it was a scar!

  “That was a foolish move.” Emma's head snapped upwards, her gray eyes encountering the cold, golden eyes of Zaharak. The Seeker stepped into the light of the plasma barriers. “You have been unconscious for nearly a week. You are fortunate to be alive.”

  Emma's eyes widened with surprise. A week? In the dark realm, it had only seemed like minutes. Zaharak examined her for sometime before speaking once more, “In nine days we will arrive outside Tazal's atmosphere. Should you try and look for non-existing weaknesses in the barrier, I will stop you. There will be no repeating of your little accident.”

  “Trust me, I'm not about to do that again,” Emma said through gritted teeth.

  Zaharak stepped through the barrier. Kneeling down he swiftly grabbed Emma's right arm. “Good, then you will not be needing this.”

  Emma winced as Zaharak removed the small monitor from her arm. The Seeker stood with the device clutched between his claws. He turned and in a single fluid motion sank back into the shadows. Emma called after him, “Hey! You can't expect me to sit here and do nothing for a week!”

  “Indeed I can.”

  Emma leaned back, arms folded across her chest, “Then you can explain to your Elders when we reach Tazal why I had gone mad from boredom.”

  In a flash of light, a round golden object sailed towards her. The girl hardly had time to catch the object to keep it from hitting her in the face. Turning the orb in her hand, Emma examined the all too familiar patterns etched in its surface. It was one of the Ancients' relics!

  “Aren't you supposed to give these to the Elders? Why do you have it?” She asked the invisible Seeker, her eyes still glued to the golden orb.

  “The Elders are given what they have paid me for. I keep relics such as that one as bargaining devices should the Elders forget who they are reliant upon.”

  Emma scoffed and looked up towards the shadows in front of her where she imagined Zaharak was. “How is it Salianos hasn't tried to get rid of you? He can't be too pleased with your lack of respect.”

  A low chuckle escaped from Zaharak's snout, catching Emma of guard. “He has tried on several occasions. After seven Seekers' heads were returned to him, he ended his attempts.”

  “You killed your fellow Seekers?” Emma raised a brow. From the bits of information she gathered from Kahluna and Zaharak, Emma was almost certain there was a bond of comradeship among Seekers.

  Zaharak had proved her wrong again. “There are no alliances between Seekers. We will kill one another if needed. We only respect one another due to our superiority to common Tazalians.”

  “Stars! You are an arrogant fiend!” Emma rolled her gray eyes, “What makes you so much better than another Tazalian?”

  Zaharak placed a four-clawed hand over the scar on his bare chest, “We survived.”

  The Seeker left before Emma could question him further. The girl frowned and gazed back down at the orb. At least Zaharak had given her something to do. Only problem was, she had no idea how to open the relic. She traced the etchings with her thumbs. The relic she and Jonah had, had opened on its own. However, Emma could find no seam to suggest an opening on this orb in her hands.

  Sighing, Emma placed the orb on the ground. Her gray eyes gazed over at the empty hallway, mind wandering over her conversation with Zaharak. The one thing she noticed that was similar between him and Kahluna was their pride of being named Seekers. Though, Kahluna had resented the title as well. No doubt Salianos had his say during her training. Emma gazed again at the golden orb, which glowed slightly in the barrier's light. How could such an insignificant thing drive a mad lizard to destroy his own child. Surely the Gaia, whether it was a living being or a device, couldn't be manipulated by a creature like Salianos. Emma cringed. Then again the Light had destroyed the Ancients; perhaps the Gaia could be influenced by evil.

  Emma picked up the orb, scanning it for any buttons or openings. If there happened to be a clue recorded in it about the Light, it could provide her some peace of mind—or dread.

  The remaining voyage to Tazal remained uneventful. The human girl had kept herself well away from the plasma barriers as she worked over the Ancients' relic. Zaharak was able to go about his routine training without interruptions. His strength building and pain endurance practices were completed with his usual empty mind, for the most part, but not entirely. Despite his unnatural ability in Abilasso's clarity teachings, Zaharak could not keep his mind from Emma's song. Where had he heard it?

  The gray-scaled Seeker was sunk deep into the worn chair in the pilot's compartment with his mind still brooding over the tune, when alarms sounded from the lotarKor-drives. Forgetting the song temporarily, the Seeker sat straight up. Instantly, his claws worked at different images on the screen, his golden eyes gazed at the viewport. The blur of stars faded into pinpoints as the ship slowed. Before the transparent thermal panels was the massive emerald-blue planet of Tazal with its four moons rotating slowly around it. Each moon varied in size and color; Myan was the smallest of the moons and its red glow burned like a ball of fire; Plën and Fälk were even in size. Plën's green surface distinguished it from Fälk, which was gray. Zaharak nodded almost respectfully to the largest of the four moons, the nearly pitch-black Zahar.

  When Zaharak was made Seeker, the Elders offered him the chance to choose his own name. The young Seeker had chosen Zaharak, inspired by the dark moon,Zahar, that bore as its name the Tazalian word for nothing, due to its void-like appearance in the night sky. The meaning felt appropriate for the young Seeker—No One—Zaharak relished the thought of No One recovering a relic from under an advanced security system. No One could be seen or heard. No One ever felt pain. When you looked to the shadows, No One was there.

  Zaharak left the pilot's cabin after setting the A.I.'s navigation system to fly the ship to Tazal's surface. In the main hull he grabbed his leather jacket from the holomap stand and threw it over his muscled shoulders. He picked up the thin, foil-like arm brace sitting on the edge of the stand and placed it on his left arm, not bothering to hide it under the jacket sleeve. There was no need. So light and thin, the brace looked like a gladiator’s protective gauntlet, nothing more. Next he bent down and pulled the heavy, black boots over his three toed feet. Once he finished, he grabbed his hat from the stand and placed it over the silver tuft of hair.

  Turning Zaharak walked towards the hallway leading to the aft. The human girl had to be briefed for their landing. Moving fluidly through the shadows of the hall, he made his way for the holding cell. When he entered the hold he paused at the doorway to watch Emma. The girl was sitting crossed legged in front of a misty, hovering image of runes that shifted and flowed from side to side. Her head rested in the palm of her left hand, her gray eyes gazed boringly at the floating
runes.

  She jumped as his guttural voice cut through the hold, “What have you discovered?”

  Emma touched a finger to the dark blue orb set within the center of the opened golden orb. The floating image faded away as Emma replied without turning towards Zaharak, her voice sounded tired, “Nothing interesting. The Ancients only talk about a race of Eckla that worship a deity similar to what the Gaia could be.”

  Zaharak walked into the glow of the plasma barrier. “How long have you known?”

  Emma shrugged, “Four days. I was hoping I missed something, but I haven't.”

  Zaharak crossed over to the control panel with Emma watching him curiously. The Seeker pressed the release image and entered a pass code. As the barriers died away, he remarked, “The chromina level was low in that relic. What information you found is all that it holds.”

  The girl grumbled something under her breath as Zaharak walked towards her. The gray-scaled Seeker lifted the young girl by her shoulders. He set her roughly on her feet. Zaharak pulled a pair of plasma cuffs from the pocket of his leather jacket. He secured the cuffs around the girl's wrists before she was even steady on her feet. Emma looked down at the cuffs as though wondering if there were any weaknesses. However she made no motion to try and break out of them. She had learned a hard lesson about tampering with the Seeker's security devices.

  “We have arrived at Tazal,” Zaharak informed her. “Within moments Valkyrie will land within the borders of the hub city, Xempor. You are to follow my lead. Do not speak unless either the Elders or I have given you permission. Keep your head low and do not look directly into any of the Elders' eyes.”

  “You never told me this when meeting Salianos,” Emma remarked.

  “At the time, it was not needed. You were too exhausted to have caused problems,” Zaharak replied while straightening his back. “Even if you had offended Salianos, he would not have responded, not with me there.”

  The Seeker placed a clawed hand between Emma's shoulder blades and pushed her out of the holding cell. The pale-faced girl nearly stumbled, but she managed to catch her footing as the Seeker led her to the closed ramp way. Despite the presence of sharp claws on her spine Emma couldn't help but reply to Zaharak's words, “Salianos is afraid of you, isn't he?”

  The Seeker's sharp features remained emotionless as his golden eyes looked towards the closed gangway. “The Elders themselves have been debating this for some time. They wonder if indeed I could overpower Salianos, and they debate if the High Elder knows and fears this.”

  “What do you believe?” Emma asked flinching under the sharp claws that tapped gently at her back.

  “I have no interest in fighting Salianos and he knows this. The combination of his fear and this knowledge is what keeps him from refusing to pay me,” Zaharak's voice remained cold despite the hint of pride in his words.

  The girl's back stiffened as Zaharak's claws pressed dangerously into her back. She knew better than to push the subject further. A silence enveloped them, terrifying the prisoner even more. Emma felt as though she would drown in it before they landed on Tazal's surface. Zaharak, however, remained stone-like as he stared at the closed ramp way. The pair remained in silence even when the craft shuddered as it landed. Emma had to close her eyes as the hatch opened allowing bright sunlight to flood the dark hull. As the ramp settled on the ground, Zaharak pushed the girl towards it. Emma's eyes widened in awe at the world around her. On board the Valkyrie she had imagined Tazal to be a lot like Earth. Nothing but cold, metal buildings and hovercraft-filled streets. What Emma saw was nothing short of amazing.

  Zaharak's sharp, jagged nightmare ship seemed horribly out of place within the walls of the great red sandstone canyon, along the walls of the canyon grew large, violet-leafed plants and vines. Small crevices and caves lined the walls, and, some appeared inhabited though Emma never saw any creatures appear from their depths. Above the canyon spread the deep, emerald-blue jewel of a sky with the only blemish on its surface being the large black orb of a moon. As the pair stepped onto the rocky ground, red dust rose from their feet. Emma inhaled a deep breath of the cool air, enjoying the smell of plant life, even a faint scent of water. The air was nearly as heavy as it had been aboard Zaharak's ship, but Emma had grown accustomed to it so it posed her no problem. Her ears caught the sound of what she thought to be a bird, though its screech was more reptilian than birdlike.

  Zaharak pushed the girl into a hurried walk, ignoring her curious gazing around at her new surroundings. Forks in the canyon walls opened out into more sections of the great ravine. Emma imagined what other wonders she could have found along the others had they gone down them. Earth had a similar canyon enclosed in an environmental dome, though it was not nearly as lovely as this one. It was amazing to find wildlife free to roam. Emma's head jerked upward as a shadow flew overhead, and she caught a glimpse of an odd-looking bird before it disappeared over the rim of the canyon. She only managed to get a glance of its feathered covered reptilian snout and long, red tail feathers, but it was enough to take her breath away. The tip of Zaharak's long tail whipped against the back of her legs, reminding her well of her current position.

  The Seeker led her deeper into the canyon. Shadows cast from the high walls made the air colder than the sunny day appeared. Emma had to fold her arms against her body to keep from shivering. After another mile, they came upon signs of civilization. A large hoverbridge spanned across a wide ford. As Zaharak led the girl across the bridge, she looked down into the clear, green water. Fish and other marine life as large as a hovercar swam beneath the water's surface. Each creature was different from the others. Once a long thin-bodied fish with a cone-shaped head surfaced to inhale a breath of air before diving below the surface again. Once they crossed the bridge, Zaharak quickly checked the cuffs around Emma's wrists before moving on. Emma was confused as to why until they rounded a bend in the canyon.

  Emma's breath caught in her lungs at what she saw. Crowds of Tazalians walked the wide canyon. Some stopped next to vendors, who sat on the dusty ground selling wares; others disappeared through sliding doors built into the walls of the canyon. Smaller Tazalian children ran about the clearing playing games with either a stick and a hoop or tagging one another. Despite all the technology available, despite the emotionless Seekers, and despite a mad High Elder, the Tazalian citizens looked happy with their simple living style. It was an odd contradiction with what Emma was used to.

  As Zaharak led Emma through the clearing, the Tazalians around them parted averting their eyes from the Seeker. Not even the children looked towards Zaharak and his prisoner as they passed through. Those that did would only look curiously at Emma before quickly diverting their gaze. Emma on the other hand looked over at each Tazalian with awe. Most were much smaller in stature than Zaharak. Hardly any of them appeared to be very strong. Their clothing ranged from nothing more than a ragged loincloth to extravagant silk like shirts and trousers. Emma wondered if this was their way of telling a lower class Tazalian from the higher class.

  Zaharak led Emma across the clearing to an open doorway surrounded by armed Tazalian guards, though none looked strong enough to fend off Zaharak if needed. The Seeker stopped Emma only meters from the soldiers. The gray-scaled Tazalian's cold, golden eyes remained on the open doorway.

  His guttural voice echoed in the canyon as he spoke in his native tongue, “The Elders are on their way, I presume.” It was more of a statement than a question.

  “We are here, Zaharak,” came an equally cold female voice from the darkness of the doorway.

  An auburn-scaled Tazalian stepped out into the sun. Her emotionless gray eyes gazed briefly at Emma before turning to Zaharak's just as impassive golden eyes. As she pushed past the guards, another Tazalian appeared. His amber eyes were intense with focus as he gazed at Zaharak, never once did he look over at Emma. Silence fell upon the two Elders, the Seeker, and his prisoner. Emma looked down at the ground as nervously she quietly shuffled her
feet. What were they waiting for? It wasn't long before a third Elder appeared.

  Emma almost took pity on the grizzled, dark-scaled Elder as he slowly shuffled his way through the doorway. His bearded snout bobbed as he made his way towards Zaharak and Emma. His back was stooped beneath his long, dark blue cloak, the cloth seemed almost too heavy for the old creature to bear. As he passed through the guards, his nearly blind eyes looked over at Emma. The girl wondered if the old lizard could really see her.

  A smile appeared on the ancient Tazalian's snout, revealing worn fangs as his almost inaudible voice spoke in Tazalian, “It is about time you arrived. I was beginning to wonder if you had gotten lost.”

  The amber-eyed Elder snorted, “Zaharak become lost, finect. That would be the day.”

  The elderly Tazalian turned his milky eyes to the cold Zaharak, a brief look of interest appeared in their depths before fading away, “Nofinal,” he murmured to himself; then he spoke to the Seeker, “I have transferred your payments. I assume the journey went well.”

  Zaharak pressed a button on his wristpanel causing a holoimage to appear. His golden eyes examined his balances on the holoimage as he replied, “She provided little attendance, save for her attempt to prove that my defenses had weaknesses.” Zaharak pressed another button and the image faded. His golden eyes looked past the Elders and guards to the dark doorway, “Tigret, guard duty seems a step down for a Seeker like yourself.”

  A cloaked shadow detached itself from the doorway. A steely female voice cut through the hood, “Unlike yourself, the other four Seekers and I are loyal to the Elders. We know our place, you should learn yours.”

  “I know it well enough, and the compensations are fair,” Zaharak clicked together two fore claws of his free hand.

  The female Elder raised a claw. “Enough, both of you. We have more pressing matters to attend to.” Her emotionless gray eyes turned to Emma who had been listening intently to the confrontation. “Lutianist has offered to care for the human cub.” She turned her gaze to the aging Tazalian. “Am I correct, brother?”