“Is everyone alright?” asked Khalil.
“Yeah,” Clem answered.
“I’m fine,” said Magdalene.
“A little wet and bruised, but otherwise I’m okay too,” Oren said.
Khalil nodded. “There must be a way out of this room,” he looked around. “Check the walls for an exit.”
Oren walked over to the left wall and began pushing the vines aside, feeling for a door. There didn’t seem to be anything here. He glanced back and saw that Clem had set down the glowing tube and was pulling some kind of black armor onto her forearms.
“I think I’ve got something,” Magdalene called from across the room.
Khalil walked over, and Oren followed. She pushed the vines aside and revealed a fist sized indentation, encircled with intricate symbol engravings, similar to those on the archway. Khalil eyed it for a moment, then made a fist and pressed it into the depression. Oren felt him gather, and the engraved lines around his fist began to glow.
A deep rumbling filled the chamber, and part of the natural stone wall sank down into the floor, revealing a set of stone steps leading up.
“A kai-lock,” whispered Magdalene.
“Kai-lock?” asked Oren.
“It can only be opened by gathering. Their making is unknown to any alive today,” she answered.
Oren glanced back at Clem. She was clipping on a belt that matched the rest of her black body armor.
“What’s th—” Oren was cut short by Clem’s glare.
Khalil eyed her briefly, and then waved them all over.
“Clementine, may I?” he asked, holding a hand toward the light tube. She handed it over to him. Khalil turned and began ascending the stairs. Oren followed behind. The walls were cracked and rough-hewn, as were the stairs. Moisture dripped from them, and patches of moss grew where the stone had split and crumbled.
Eventually the stairs ended, butting up against the top of the corridor. The ceiling here was made of wooden boards. It looked to Oren like some kind of cellar door. Khalil braced himself and pushed up against it. He strained, and it creaked loudly. Trails of dirt and dust fell, but the doors didn’t open.
“Sa’di.” He beckoned, and Oren moved up beside him, bracing his shoulder against the wood.
“On three,” said Khalil. “One, two, three!”
Oren pushed with all his strength. He grunted and shoved with a burst of vigor, and there was a crack from the other side. The doors gave and wheeled open, bathing the corridor in afternoon sunlight. Khalil shielded his eyes with one hand and held up the other, signaling them to wait. He poked his head out and looked around, then ducked back down.
“We appear to be within the outer core,” Khalil reported.
“Finally, a bit of luck,” muttered Clem.
“Most of the surveillance canisters should be operating along the outside perimeter. This will increase our chances of approaching without detection.” He cocked his head. “Do you feel that?”
Oren felt it alright. It was like an invisible sun giving off waves of energy. He turned toward its general direction.
“There is a considerable measure of gathering taking place,” said Khalil.
“The shadowgate?” asked Clem.
He nodded. “Most likely, yes. It will provide cover, but there is still risk. Gather only when absolutely necessary. Does everyone remember their job? If there are any questions, this may be your last chance to ask.”
Clem nodded and said, “Disable the shadowgate as quickly as possible.”
“Distract the wards…gently,” said Oren.
“I will deal with any Breakers that appear,” Magdalene recited impatiently.
Khalil nodded and turned to her. “Magdalene, should Besamael appear, be ready with the portal stone. We may only get one chance.”
She nodded.
Khalil looked each of them over one last time.
“Stay close,” he said, and crept up out of the corridor. Oren followed, with Clem and Magdalene bringing up the rear. They emerged in what looked like a long neglected, small enclosed garden. Above the high garden walls, Oren could see the spires and conical rooftops of a dilapidated mansion.
Most buildings in the outer core were extravagant, and this one was no exception. Weeds and small bushes covered the ground. The doors they’d emerged from appeared to have been grown over and long forgotten. The stone walls ended on either side of a rusted iron gate.
Khalil pushed the gate gently. It squealed as it swung outwards. “We continue from here in stealth. Place a hand on the shoulder of the person before you. This will help us stay together once we are no longer visible.”
Oren reached up and put a hand on Khalil’s shoulder. He felt Clementine’s hand on his. Khalil turned and nodded to Magdalene, who was last in line. He felt her gather, and his arm lensed out of sight before him, as did Khalil. He looked back and saw only the walls of the garden. Unreal, he thought.
They crept out of the enclosed garden and made their way across levi-tracks and through vacant palatial courtyards, until they eventually reached the central core. The opulent homes were replaced with tall functional office buildings. A surveillance canister whizzed by overhead and they froze. It continued along its cable, unaware of their presence.
Oren breathed a sigh of relief. His nerves were firing on all cylinders. He felt like a vast well of potential energy, ready to explode in every direction. He could sense that they were getting closer to the power source. They crossed a dual lane levi-track and snaked between two office buildings.
The Pillars of Ascension dominated the sky overhead. Their golden domed spires, crested with marble embellishments, glistened in the late-day sun. Oren peered forward through the alley and saw the courtyard preceding the Praeconis Amphitheater. It was a broad open space, paved in marbled stone. Flat benches of the same material lined the sides. Everything here was extravagant. Even the small security building at the far side of the courtyard up ahead was made from marble bricks, embossed with acanthus leaves.
Just past the security building, elaborate iron palisades encircled the amphitheater. Their silver and gold bars wove between marble Corinthian pillars. The entire thing was a work of art, adorned with emeralds and other jewels throughout. The ornate beauty of the palisades made it easy to overlook the sharp golden spikes lining the top.
They halted at the mouth of the alley, which butted against another set of levi-tracks. The sound of marching boots came from around the corner, and Oren froze as a troop of wards marched synchronously down the tracks.
When the troop was far enough away, Khalil led them across. They crept through the courtyard and approached the guard building, which was now only a few feet away. A ward appeared from around the corner.
They froze. He was walking directly toward them, but no one dared take a step for fear of being heard. He approached to within inches of Oren, but stopped when a voice crackled on his radio. He pulled it from his waist belt, sighed and gripped it.
“Go ahead.”
Oren could smell the garlic on his breath.
A voice crackled through the static, “We have an unconfirmed report of trespassers spotted in the outer core.”
Clem’s hand tightened on his on his shoulder.
“Huh,” said the ward. “I thought the outer core was evacuated. Civilian report? Over.”
“Affirmative. You know civvies, probably just some raccoons, but keep an eye out just in case. Over.”
“Roger that mark-two, over and out.”
The ward holstered his radio and scanned the courtyard before pulling a toothpick from his mouth. He held up his hand and flicked. The toothpick flipped end over end before hitting Oren in the shoulder and bouncing to the ground. The guard furrowed his brow. He looked directly at Oren, then down at the toothpick. He took a step forward and picked it up.
Khalil’s shoulder slipped out from under Oren’s hand and the ward grunted, grabbing at something invisible around his neck. He lensed out
of sight, but Oren could still hear his boot heels scuffing the ground several times before they slowed and eventually stopped.
Another ward rounded the corner. “Hey Jacks—”
He stopped, staring at where he thought his friend would be, scanned the courtyard, then turned and walked back inside.
Khalil whispered, “Sa’di, help me carry him. The rest of you, stay close!”
Oren felt around for the ward’s legs, then wrapped his arms around them and lifted. Clem’s hand remained on his shoulder as they slowly walked around to the other side of the building.
“Clementine, the door,” Khalil whispered.
Clem released Oren’s shoulder. A moment later, the knob moved a quarter inch.
Locked, Oren thought.
It jiggled a few times, and after a moment there was a click, and the door drifted in a half inch.
Nice one, Clem.
There were no sounds from inside the building.
“Wait here,” Khalil whispered.
Oren felt him gently lower the ward to the ground. The door creaked as it slowly swung inward. Oren set down the ward’s legs and waited a moment before creeping forward to look inside. Another nervous looking ward held a shockdart-gun pointed at the open doorway, right where Oren was standing.
Khalil’s outline flickered suddenly. He quickly glanced directly at Oren, then struck the ward’s weapon. There was a loud clang as the gun fired and a shockdart smashed into the doorframe beside Oren’s head. The ward’s head jerked from being struck, and he collapsed to the ground.
“Inside, now!” Khalil ordered. “Bring the other ward.”
Oren felt around for the ward lying outside the door and dragged him in. The door closed and they all lensed into view. Khalil gave Oren a look that said they would be having a stern discussion later. He muttered something unintelligible to Magdalene, then turned and gave orders. “Find something to bind their arms and legs.” He gestured to the unconscious wards.
Oren searched for anything that would do the trick. The whole building was a single, open room with a shelf along the perimeter holding various provisions and supplies. He shoved aside a kettle and found a box of zip ties.
“This should do it.” Oren pulled a handful of ties out of the box and rolled the unconscious wards over onto their stomachs. Clem helped him secure their arms and legs. Khalil found a spare undershirt hanging from a coat hook and tore strips of cloth from it to use as gags.
“Over here,” Magdalene called them over to the far corner of the room. The floor beneath her was made of steel, as opposed to the marble found everywhere else. “This may be an entrance to the tunnel system.” She tapped her foot on the metal, producing a hollow clong.
“I don’t see any obvious way to open it, however.” She placed a hand on her chin and looked around.
Oren checked the crease between the marble and steel. Khalil appeared to be flipping through some kind of logbook, while Clem ran a hand along the underside of the shelves.
“Found something,” she announced. “You might want to, uh,” she waved her hand at Magdalene, who looked down and promptly stepped off the steel plate.
There was a click, and the metal plate dropped below the floor and slid open, revealing cement stairs leading down. Clem grinned, obviously pleased with herself.
“Nice job, Clem,” said Oren.
“Hatch had one just like it,” she said with a sad smile.
Khalil set down the log book and nodded. “One more thing.” He searched the ward’s waist belt and produced a pair of keys. They jingled as he opened the door and inserted one into the knob, then bashed off the tab with a paperweight. He pushed the door shut with a click and nodded. “There will likely be Breakers nearby. From here on out, no gathering until we attack.”
Khalil led the way down the cement stairway. Fluorescent bulbs clicked on as they passed, casting sterile light on the cement walls and ceiling. Oren looked back up the stairway and saw the lights ticking back off again once they were further along. Fortunately, it appeared that the stairway hadn’t received much use lately. The air was stale and their boots left footprints in the dust.
After what seemed like hundreds of stairs, they eventually descended to a flat cement corridor. They followed it for several hundred feet before it ended abruptly in a T-intersection, with corridors curving off to the left and right. Khalil paused, stroking his chin.
Voices echoed from the right corridor. Uh oh. Oren scanned the area. There was nowhere to hide. Khalil positioned himself behind the corner, preparing to strike.
Oren felt Magdalene gather briefly, and the nearby light fixture went dark. All four of them pressed flat against the right wall and waited.
The footsteps became more pronounced. “…Sam’s third this weekend. I can’t believe how fast the time goes.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. Enjoy it while it lasts, kid. It won’t be long before he’s out partying all night and gaffin’ your last fifty creds.”
Their voices became hushed as they approached. “Hey…have you ever seen an op like this before?”
They passed through the opening and continued walking. “Once…when I was green, like you.”
“Those…Breakers?…It’s like my skin is going to crawl right off when they look at me.”
“Just keep your head down, collect your hazard pay, and try not to…”
Their voices faded along with their footsteps as they continued on.
Once the patrol was far enough away, Khalil turned and whispered, “I said no gathering. If Breakers detect us down here, we will all be dead!” He muttered something about discipline, but Oren didn’t catch it.
Khalil led them down the right corridor, which curved around and eventually straightened out again. The powerful energy source was close now, and they were moving toward it. They continued on for another few minutes until the corridor ended in a large, riveted steel door. Khalil pulled on the handle, but it didn’t budge. He stepped aside and waved Clem forward. She moved in and studied the lock, then produced a small black container. She popped it open and went to work.
Why is this taking so long? Oren thought. His skin was beginning to crawl. Clem went back to the container for another tool. Oren heard footsteps coming from behind.
“Hurry!” he whispered.
Oren glanced back and saw a light flicker on around the bend.
Click. The lock turned and Clem pulled the door open. They rushed in and closed it gently behind, cutting off the approaching voices.
Oren looked around. The room appeared to be some kind of holding area, possibly for performers, or maybe security personnel. Either way it was empty at the moment. There was another door in the wall to their right, and a gate of vertical iron bars across from them. Strange light streamed in through it.
Khalil motioned for quiet, and they crept up to the gate and peeked out through the bars. There, sprawled between the Pillars of Ascension, was the massive shadowgate, reaching nearly a third of the way up their height. On the other side, crimson clouds churned around a black star, high above a shattered, bone white plain. Far off in the distance, the cracked white ground gave way to a charred and blackened landscape. Small shapes swooped down and back up again into the red sky.
Clem gripped Oren’s hand and squeezed. He squeezed back, transfixed on the abhorrent vision. I’ve missed something, Oren thought. The blackened landscape…it was moving. His heart nearly pounded out of his chest when it hit him. That’s not the landscape…it’s an army.
Oren wrenched his eyes away. He had a job to do regardless of what lay beyond the shadowgate. He lowered his gaze to the stage. Four Breakers stood facing the massive portal. Their heads were bowed, and it looked from behind like they were holding their arms up and with their fists together. In front of the enormous stage were row upon row of wards. They faced away from the shadowgate, diligently watching the amphitheater exits. Oren swallowed. So many. They looked jittery…nervous even. Some were shifting from one fo
ot to the other. He doubted any had ever experienced something like this.
A single man stood at the front of the stage, looking out over the wards. He wore a uniform similar to theirs, but with far more decoration.
“Marconas,” whispered Magdalene.
“I will deal with him,” Khalil said gravely. “Can you handle four?”
Magdalene nodded, but Khalil didn’t look convinced.
Clem released Oren’s hand. “I think I can see what’s powering the shadowgate,” she said, pointing to a small dome rising from the center of the stage.
“Good, we will clear a path for you. Oren, are you with us?”
“To the last, Sifu.”
“Magdalene, will you provide cover so we may reach the stage unchallenged?”
She nodded, “I will.”
“Keep watch for Besamael. Should he appear before the shadowgate closes, I will need your support.”
“You will have it,” Magdalene said firmly.
“Is everyone ready?” he asked.
This is it. No turning back now.
“Ready,” said Oren, steeling himself.
“Ready,” Clem nodded.
“Ready.” Magdalene reached into her robes and pulled out a blue glass orb.
They lensed out of sight, and the gate burst open. Oren sprinted around the wards to the side of the stage. The two closest Breakers turned their heads, scanning with large, rippling white eyes. Magdalene lensed into view and one of the Breakers began to shimmer and warp. It burst into a sphere of tiny particles, and promptly imploded. Three versions of Khalil suddenly became visible. One flew through the air toward Marconas with weapons drawn, while the other two flanked him. Eagle dives for hare. The thought echoed in the back of Oren’s mind as he leapt up onto the stage. He too had become fully visible as he sprinted toward the front of it. Blades clashed behind him, and the wards were beginning to notice what was happening. One of them shouted, and they all turned and faced the stage. Most were staring wide-eyed at the shadowgate, but some sneered at Oren, preparing to attack.
Recreance (The Aeternum Chronicles Book 1) Page 28