by Brad Carr
Later, Angus entered Cash’s command tent, retelling the lie of a cliff accident. Cash’s expression was of disbelief. Angus wasn’t a good liar, and the cliff near the river wasn’t very steep. But he stuck to his version of the event.
“I can’t prove that you are, or you aren’t telling the truth Angus. But I’ve got too many things to handle right now.” Cash sighed, “You’re becoming bolder, Angus. I don’t know if that is a positive, or negative aspect.” Changing the subject he asked, “Did you leave the rifles near the river?”
“Yessir.”
“I will order Neda to retrieve them. I have an urgent mission for you. I just received a distress beacon signal from the Opal Fort.” Walking over to a floor chest, Cash pulled out a scanner. Pointing it towards Angus’ eyes he stated, “I am sending the coordinates to your neural link. It is only five kilometers away. I’ll have one of the construction crew transport you, on a war pig carriage, to speed up the travel time. Doyle and Grail will accompany you. I have to keep the rest of the recruits here to protect the fort.”
“Yessir,” he obeyed, and began to exit the tent.
“Angus!” Cash called out.
“Yes?”
“Be careful please. I’m already down one soldier.”
Awkwardly nodding because Angus knew it was his responsibility, he replied, “I will. Thank you sir.”
Chapter 20
The wood carriage shook and twisted along the edges of dry land, near the river. It was the quickest and clearest means of travel to Opal Fort; because of the dense forest surrounding the territory. A war pig with brindle hair galloped at top speed. Six metal rimmed wheels, with surface corrosion, rotated rapidly. The solid tires connected to the rims, were fabricated from synthetic rubber. Mud and stones kicked out from behind them.
The driver was fourteen years old. Tom was an orphan boy, with short curly hair of honey. Wearing loosely fit apparel of elk hide, and moccasin boots; the boy’s frame was stickly. Tom was employed by the construction crew. Living on his own since the age of ten, he didn’t receive a full education. But what he knew about survival, and taming war pigs, made him more valuable than any scholar.
In the open carriage, Grail sat on the left bench, Doyle was seated opposite of him. It wasn’t a fancy carriage. The carriage had just enough room for six people, if packed tightly. Angus chose to sit up front with Tom, for the boy’s protection. With a laser pistol holstered to his right hip, Angus’ portable gatling gun and backpack was placed near his feet. Doyle steadied his assault rifle to the bench, holding it down with his left hand. Grail’s sniper rifle sat on his lap, with a side arm pistol attached to his left hip.
Tom handled the reins like a professional rider. He wasn’t a telepath, but he had a knack for training war pigs if he raised them as piglets. Angus couldn’t help but be impressed by the boy’s talent. Gusts of swift wind blew past their ears, making conversation impossible without yelling.
“We’re almost there Mr. Vol! I’m pushing Beatrice as hard as I can!”
“Why did you name your pig Beatrice?”
“I had a sister once! Her name was Beatrice! She died though! The sickness got her when I was eight! I did it as a remembrance of her!”
“That’s a nice honor!”
“Oh, it is! War pigs are noble creatures! Powerful in brains and muscles!”
“Have you been to Opal Fort before?”
“Yessir! The Tyra District is working on a road to connect the forts! They just haven’t finished yet! This is the closest direction I can find! Look!” Tom pointed his finger left towards a small amount of smoke rising in the air.
“Is that the Opal Fort?” Angus asked, although dreading the answer already.
“Yes! Woah Beatrice! Woah!” The war pig’s speed decreased to a crawling halt. “This is as far as I can take you. I can’t get the carriage through those trees. I will stay here and wait for you.”
“Should we leave someone here with you?”
“Nah, I’ll be fine. I won’t leave. I’ll be here for ya when ya get back.”
Angus, Doyle, and Grail, made eye contact, nodding in agreement. “Okay Tom, we’re just going to investigate. If there is any trouble, just leave. We can find our way back.”
“No sir. My job is to wait for ya. I’ll be here.”
“Okay, but you still have our permission to leave if necessary.”
“Nope,” Tom stubbornly asserted.
Holding their weapons; Angus, Doyle, and Grail hopped off the carriage and onto the mud, splashing into puddles of water. Stepping away from the wheels, Tom drove forward to circle the carriage around in case of a quick getaway.
Marching side by side, the soldiers traveled into the forest. Roughly ninety meters away in a clearing, the exterior walls of Opal Fort smoldered unto the afternoon sky. Nearly half of its original height remained.
“You’re in charge Angus. That’s what Cash told us. What’s your instruction?” Grail inquired.
Doyle chimed in, “No pressure or anything.”
Giving himself a second to process the next move he commanded, “Let’s split up, we don’t know what caused this or what we could face in there. Grail you go around to the North side. Don’t enter yet, hang back a little, just in case we need your sniper skills. Doyle, there looks like an opening on the East wall. I’ll carefully go through the open gates. Whatever you do Doyle, don’t walk straight in. Peek inside first, make sure the coast is clear.”
“Got it,” Doyle confirmed.
The men separated towards their destinations. Angus turned the switch on to his gatling gun pack, to warm up the lasers. Marching slowly near the gate, holding the large weapon with both hands, he leaned his back near the wall of the entrance.
Shifting his head inside the opening, he witnessed a catastrophic scene. Most of the cabins were missing, tents were scattered about. Many bodies of the Opal Team lay blackened, stiff as cindered wood. Angus entered the remains of the fort. He observed, carefully scanning the perimeter of the fort until he called out to Doyle to meet him. Grail remained hidden, as instructed.
“Angus, what the hell happened here? This isn’t a normal fire.”
“I agree. There’s large patches of accelerated fire patterns. It’s almost like someone shot a flammable liquid and torched it.”
“But they must have fought back?”
“I think they did Doyle. Most of the bodies are positioned facing the North. The laser scorched marks are predominantly located on the North wall also.”
“Damn Angus, you a detective?” he laughed.
“Not a time to laugh Doyle,” Angus said in a serious tone.
“Sorry, it helps me cope,” Doyle admitted.
Changing to the matter at hand, Angus had an assumption. “I think it was a vulture dragon.”
“Vulture dragons don’t breathe fire.”
“No, but their venom spit is highly flammable. A simple laser shot or,” pausing his sentence he picked up an arrow burned on the end, sticking out of the ground. “This would do it.” Doyle followed Angus over to another body. It was a woman’s unburned body. Her torso was bursted open. Her organs were dislodged onto the ground. Circling her body was a huge splatter pattern. Bone fragments were broken off, penetrating her skin. “This woman fell from a high altitude. She was probably grabbed by the vulture dragon, flown into the sky, then dropped down to the earth. Vulture dragons do this to hulk tortoises to break their protective shells.”
“That means this isn’t a random beast attack. How can someone command a vulture dragon? They’re not exactly friendly to humans.”
“I honestly don’t know. It doesn’t seem plausible, but it’s the only remaining explanation.”
“Wait Angus. This beacon was turned on recently. This looks like it was an attack from last night. It would have taken some time for all this to burn down.”
“Good point, we’ll have to inform Cash what we found. Let’s sweep the area for any survivors.”
“No need!” a woman’s voice interrupted them.
She and five others entered the fort, in the same opening that Doyle entered through. They wore tightly fit, army green uniforms covering their arms, legs, torso, and gloved hands. Only the neck and head were exposed. A dark gray metal chest armor strapped against them. Gray boots matched, reaching up to their thighs. Florescent green tubes, close to a centimeter thick ran all the way up to their finger tips, originating from a small book sized box strapped to their backs.
The woman seemed to be in charge of the group. Angus realized he had met this woman before. When he met her on the Milt Docks of Satellite Island, her body was thicker and soft. Now she was lean, and much younger. Hair tied back into a pony tail, it was darkened from hair dye.
“Hello. I think we met before. You’re a Vol aren’t you? Andy? Albert?”
“Who is this chick Angus?” asked Doyle.
Ignoring Doyle, he kept his eyes on her and answered her question. “Angus is my name. I remember you.”
“On that faithful day, of course, my name is Rose Papier.”
“I tried to find you on the ship. I thought you were lost at sea. How did you get here Rose? And, why are you in the wild lands of Mitton?” Angus asked in confusion.
“What are you talking about Angus?” Doyle asked confused.
“Rose, what the hell is going on?”questioned a wide chested man behind her.
“I’ll tell you later Max. Angus this is beyond your understanding.”
“Try me.”
“Very well. Team, stay and watch this guy,” she commanded, pointing at Doyle. “I will have a little talk with my friend here.”
Angus whispered in Doyle’s ear. “I’m going to have a conversation. Do not tell them Grail is out there. I don’t know these people yet.”
“I wasn’t planning to Angus,” Doyle answered in a hush tone.
Fixing his attention to Rose, he gestured, “Let’s walk over to a more private area. After you?”
“Oh, I remember you more now, so polite.”
Angus followed her to a spot nearly twenty meters away. Standing face to face, she spoke,”I’m going to tell you a word and I want you to tell me what you think. If you don’t understand its meaning, then our conversation is done.”
“Fair enough.”
“Does the name ‘Elisha’ have any meaning to you?”
Shocked by the name, he responded quickly, “Amulet.”
“Brakion told you, didn’t he?”
“Yes, although I wasn’t sure I totally believed it.”
“Oh, it’s real Angus, but he didn’t tell you everything.”
“I am listening.”
“I woke up in the pod, on the beach of Prison Island. I was tricked into helping some of the prisoners escape. A man named Kurtis Saint, was their leader. But he shot me. I tasted the void of death. Does this shock you?”
“No Rose, it doesn’t. What you’re telling me is that someone gifted you with an Elisha Amulet. Was it Bittersmith?”
“I never heard of that name before. A god with blank eyes named Meeshu woke me. Did this ‘Bittersmith’ tell you that the Messengers are at war with one another? Two factions of these angels exist. We are their instruments. They destroyed most of us before.”
“What do you mean? The Exodus Coalition attempted to kill our ancestors.”
“No, Angus, the Exodus Coalition was a just a tool. A reset button to the world.”
“They are back?”
“No of course not. They never made it out of orbit. Destroyed after their use. The Exodus Coalition had instructions to remain in stasis. They disobeyed this order on the ship. Meeshu found them unworthy of his love. The Exodus Coalition wandered the Earth, most dying, others evolving into horrible, unspeakable things. From what I was told, their kind traveled South, to warmer weather. The Capital Kingdom, Paatu, and The Scarlet Republic think they can rebuild mankind successfully without Meeshu. They cannot. We need Meeshu. She is our goddess. We must follow her instructions, and not our own. Only then can we attain true peace.”
“Peace? How can you trust a race of aliens that want to control us?”
“We are made in their image Angus. They bring us to glory. We shall inherit the Earth, by the will of Meeshu. Those that don’t obey, will see the fire. They will taste everlasting death. Never to be reincarnated, never to see the universal heavens.”
“You are delusional Rose. This sounds like religious scare tactics to me. We are not puppets. Humanity doesn’t need religion. Religion breeds war, and persecution.”
“No! We must bow to our goddess!”
“Fuck your goddess.”
Rose gasped, raising her voice louder, “How dare you? You are just like the rest of these blasphemers! We tried to warn the people in these forts. Our almighty, Meeshu felt pity for them. Meeshu, our earthly goddess, carrying out the will of the universal creator. We were instructed to preach to them. To convert them, bring them to the truth, for peace. But they didn’t listen, so they were judged!”
“You killed these people? For a fucking deity? Angels, or messengers, or whatever the fuck you wanna call them, are just creatures! They are not special!”
“You reject us Angus? Well, you will share the same fate as Brakion Vol.” Pointing her finger against his chest she promised, “After I destroy the non-believers, Meeshu will be coming to kill your legend. She will remove Brakion’s power. The false prophet, Brakion Vol! But first, I must eliminate you, and your friend,” Rose stated coldly. “Punishment must be…”
Angus interrupted her by punching her in the face. Knocking her to the ground, Rose’s nose flattened and bled like running water.
“Doyle! Run!” he screamed.
Doyle escaped from the open area. Brain matter exploded from one of the cult members of Meeshu. The shots originated from a maple tree, that Grail had climbed onto, overlooking the fort.
“He’s in the trees!” One of the enemy soldiers exclaimed, shooting beams from their gloved fingertips. Angus and Doyle mowed the rest of them down with their guns. Blood sprayed out of gaping laser wounds. The Meeshu Cult armors were no match from the spinning barrels of a laser gatling gun shredding everything in its path.
The situation was over as quickly as it began. Angus aimed his weapon at Rose, still holding her bruised face. “It’s over Rose. You’re coming with me to answer for your crimes.”
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, and her two front teeth, she garbled, “It’s not over Angus. There’s more of us. Go ahead and kill me. I’ll rise again.”
“No, I’ll allow Brakion to figure out what to do with you. Only he can remove your amulet. Maybe he’ll just make your life miserable, sending you to Prison Island. For all your lifetimes!”
“You wasted your time Angus. We pressed the beacon signal. To lure the rest of the soldiers of your fort here. Since they only sent three of you, we’ll have to finish the rest of them off later!” Laughing in a hysterical tone she muttered, “They’re here you bastard. Get ready to die.”
“Angus!” Doyle yelled. “We have a problem!
Angus kicked Rose in the face, rendering her unconscious. Sprinting as quickly as possible to Doyle, who stood at the burned opening of the fort, he noticed trouble heading their way. Numerous enemy soldiers marched toward them, nearly one hundred and eighty meters away.
“We are fucked,” stated Doyle.
“Not yet,” he stated. Calling out he commanded, “Grail! We must retreat!”
Descending down the large maple, Angus and Doyle set off to meet him. Halting for a brief second, a look of concern painted Grail’s face. Frantically, he descended down the tree as fast as he could.
“Angus! Vulture dragon coming this way!” Grail exclaimed.
Gazing up at the mid afternoon sky, a silhouette covered the sun beams hitting their faces through the tree tops. Soaring past them, was a vulture dragon. Although it struck a bird-like appearance, it was far from a simple vultur
e. In fact, the reason ‘vulture’ is contained in the name is the creature’s attraction to the smell of dead bodies.
Landing in the clearing outside the fort, its wing span cleared over nine meters. Lacking colors typically associated with birds, the body and wings contained a pink fleshy hue. Coarse armored platelets covered the dragon’s skin. Occasionally, reflecting a white glare from the sun; the massive animal towered over six meters tall. Bellowing a screech, similar to that of an eagle, its curved beak garnished two sets of razor sharp teeth. A black tar-like substance leaked from the gums. Folding upward, the wings rested towards the tail. Scaly taloned feet clawed slowly through the dark soil stalking closer to them.
“There’s a rider on it!” blurted Doyle.
Indeed, there was a human rider. A blackened cloak hood and cape loosely enveloped the figure. Dropping to the ground from the bird’s neck, the rider landed elegantly on his feet. The person’s face was covered by a stormy gray fabric, leaving the eyes exposed. A large gray bow rested around the figure’s torso. Leather quiver full of arrows, were strapped to his back. Standing wide, the cloaked man’s long bony fingers and arms contorted and formed shapes, resembling some form of ancient martial pose. Complexions on his hands resembled the skin of a cold, deceased body.
The men from Emerald Team Three stared in awe at the figure’s movements. Reaching out, the cloaked man stretched out his right arm towards their direction. The vulture dragon inhaled, holding its breath.
“Back to the carriage!” Angus barked out the order.
Exhaling a forceful blow, the vulture dragon spit gallons of dark liquid towards the group. While the heavy sticky substance was hurling in mid air, Grail and Doyle split away from each other. Sprinting towards the location of the carriage, Angus lagged behind, dodging the flammable venom. Grail wasn’t so fortunate. A small amount hit him in the upper back.
Grail yelped, crashing to the ground. His armor began to sizzle. Hysterically, Grail attempted to remove the armor piece. Removing an arrow from the quiver, the mysterious figure swirled his hands. A flame appeared on the arrow head as if by magic. Nocking the arrow, pulling back and releasing, the expert bowman reached the target.