Awakening

by Hayden Pearton

  *

  Their procession through the city was a solemn and silent one, and the only words spoken were to Maloch, when he was asked if they were still on course. The answer was always the same, “We have not veered from our path.” All that changed was that the shadows gradually grew longer, and the buildings slowly moved further apart. They were nearing the westernmost edge of the city when a strange, yet familiar voice called out.

  “So, still the vermin try and defy me. I had thought the beast enough to drive you away, but it looks like I was mistaken. You have exhausted both my generosity and my patience. Your continued existence has become a nuisance that I will no longer permit. Prepare yourselves for death.”

  The speaker was none other than the stranger. He had appeared from out of thin air, though Alza was able to make out a thin halo of sparks from his place of arrival. He wore a smile that conveyed absolutely no warmth, and his eyes spoke of a man whose self-control had just been discarded. His midnight cloak seemed to draw in the light around him, and the crimson lightning bolts that hemmed the cloak danced and became alive in the ruthless wind.

  “Who are you?” Alza asked, a touch of unease muddying her voice.

  The King of Lightning stepped forward, and was greeted with a flourishing of weapons. Kingston had carefully placed Barsch's litter on the ground, and had taken up a defensive position between it and the stranger. His solar staff was out and fully extended, and it hummed with stored energy. Maloch had dropped to one knee, trying to improve the accuracy of his mining laser. Alza, despite being drained of energy, still took up a fighting stance, her diminutive frame offering very little in the way of physical strength.

  Seeing their readiness, the Lightning-King laughed and said, “You are amusing, if nothing else! Truly, the foolish bravery of humanity is without limit, thinking to fight a god with an old man, a pile of scrap and a powerless girl! Still, seeing as I am about to destroy you until the very memory of your existence will be no more, I guess I can tell you my name...”

  The stranger took another step forward, whilst raising his hand poetically to the sky. Immediately, the sky behind him grew darker. The wind momentarily died, before coming back stronger than ever. Countless bolts of lightning split the skies, and thunder roared without end. Somehow audible above the mind-numbing noise, the stranger called out with a voice which made the ferocity of the storm pale in comparison.

  “When you apes first crawled out from your caves and looked upon the infinite night sky, I was there. When you first began to dream of flight, I was there. When the first plume of death rose from your factories, I was there. When the birds began to disappear, and the plants began to wilt, I was there. When the first bomb fell, I was there!”

  Alza watched as two spears of lightning fell from the burning heavens, arcing down until they pointed directly at the screaming stranger. As one, they struck, though they did not burn him. Instead he had grabbed hold of the plasma with his bare hands, holding them like reins. He was the Master, and the Storm his minion. When he moved his right hand the lightning struck the earth, and when he moved his left the gale blew the nearby building down. While holding the reins, he reigned over the skies.

  “I was there when you took your first breath, and I will be there when you take your last! I have watched quietly as your kind destroyed my home, and I watched as you built your stations and escaped from your dying lands. I am eternal. I am unforgiving. I am the Avatar of the Skies. I am Death given form. I am the God who shall cleanse this land of your filth!”

  “I AM RAIGAN, AND I AM THE STORM!”

  The final scream was accompanied by a massive thunder-strike which completely obliterated the surrounding area. Alza watched as an unfortunate lighting rod was struck, again and again, until it was nothing more than a glowing mound of molten metal. With a start she realized that the lighting was also striking another area repeatedly, in the direction they had come from. There shouldn’t have been anything out there to attract it’s wrath, so wh-

  Of course. “The spire is gone,” a part of herself, -which was quite removed from the action- commented, “No one will ever hear the warning again. We were the last…”

  At the same time, Kingston was in two minds. A part of him, the minority, was pondering the so-called Avatar’s words, “The Avatar of the Skies? Does that mean that he knows Ion and Terra?” Another part of him, the majority, was in a state of mad panic. “We’re all going to die…” was it’s only thought, repeated ad infinitum.

  Raigan, having finished his revelation, dropped the lightning reins and raised his right hand to the skies that he called home. In the cusp of his hand, a tiny spark formed from the void. It began to grow, as others like it came into being and began to merge together. His arm acted like a lightning rod, as countless bolts struck his hand in sequence, further enlarging the spark. The spark began to form into a sphere of pure energy, looking like a miniature sun. Soon, the ball was the size of a fist, before rapidly swelling to the size of a small house. Despite several yards being between Raigan and them, Kingston could feel the heat radiate out from the mini-sun. In another few minutes, he would begin to burn, after which his blood would begin to boil as his skin melted off his bones.

  With fear in his voice, but with a courage he did not know he had, Kingston called out, “Maloch, we need to stop this. Do you understand?”

  In response, the re-mech solemnly raised his mining laser and pointed it's tip towards Raigan's heart. “I am ready whenever you are.”

  With an unspoken command, Kingston leapt forward, whilst twirling his solar staff like a bandmaster's baton, before swinging it towards the earth in a great arc. It connected with a resounding thump, before the energy inside was discharged outwards. The light, having finally been granted freedom, raced along the ground as a wave of energy, speeding towards Raigan's unguarded figure. At the same time, Maloch fired his laser, using the last of his energy in the process. As the beam fired, he slumped forward, his eye dimming but his A.I still barely remaining conscious.

  Three feet from the Avatar, the wave of light and the volatile beam connected, before merging and growing larger. The wave of light, now with an unmistakable green tinge, grew from several feet in height to form a massive wall of energy. It crashed into Raigan at full force, engulfing the miniature sun at the same time. The ensuing explosion of light and sound brought everyone to their knees, and Kingston spent several seconds starring at nothing while his vision and hearing slowly returned.

  Shielding his eyes with one hand, Kingston slowly looked up, towards where Raigan had been standing. All that remained was a field of smoke. The hope in his heart grew larger, until a dry voice cut through the moment.

  “Your defiance amuses me, but I am afraid that my patience has now been fully exhausted. I had originally promised my champion that he could kill you at his leisure, but it seems as though he will not receive his reward. Perhaps I will keep the boy alive? If he's missing a few limbs, I doubt my champion would mind.”

  As Kingston had guessed, their surprise attack had been completely ineffective. “So… I guess it's not that easy to kill a god, eh?” However, despite the attack failing, he still stood and moved to stand beside Barsch. The solar staff was clenched tightly in his wrinkled hands, and his burning gaze never left Raigan. Alza, in an unusual showing of interest, slowly walked towards Raigan, Lanista in hand. The violent blade was purring quietly, as it's cutting teeth began to gain speed. It's weight was more than Alza's petite frame could support, so she dragged it behind her, leaving a long furrow in the broken street.

  “I don't care who you are. I don't care what you want. I don't even care if you destroy the world! I just want to know... who am I?”

  For the first time since the battle began, Raigan showed surprise. He quickly hid it with one of his cold smiles, before saying, “You are a puppet, nothing more. A puppet who should never have been made. You are a failure… an abomination!”

  Slowly he drifted forw
ard, pale feet barely touching the broken cobblestones beneath him. His smile had grown as he had spoken, and Kingston could now clearly see the madness in his eyes.

  “I will show you my compassion,” he said, raising his left hand, “I will show you my mercy. I will destroy you now, to save you from your unnecessary existence!”

  With a flick of his wrist, a powerful gust of air blew Alza away. She was caught by Maloch, who had been waiting for it. With another pronounced movement, Raigan summoned a whirlwind which cleared away the wall of smoke, revealing the still intact ball of energy and light. If anything, Kingston and Maloch's attack had only increased its size, a fact that was not lost on the despairing hermit.

  There was a mad gleam in Raigan's eye as he raised his pale arm for the last time. The miniature sun seemed to tremble in excitement as it grew in size, until it became painful to look at it directly. Through lidded eyes, Kingston watched as Raigan slowly brought his hand down, his index finger created a laser-sight which pointed towards Barsch's sleeping figure. Obeying it's masters order, the ball of plasma began to move forward, it's speed exponentially increasing with every second.

  “So, this is it... In the end, we couldn't do a damn thing. I'm sorry, Barsch; Alza; Maloch... please forgive me for dragging all of you into this. Please, forgive this worthless old man...” Kneeling beside Barsch, Kingston closed his eyes for the last time.

  At the same time, Alza having recovered her footing, took in a deep breath and screamed, with all of her might, “ION!!!”

  “You called?”

  It happened in an instant. As the massive ball of plasma raced towards them, Ion appeared from a sudden spout of water, which had burst forth from the cracked ground. Beside her, his face hidden from view, but his body visibly shaking with rage, was Terra. The siblings simultaneously raised their arms, pointing towards the miniature sun which was bearing down on them, and said, “Be gone!”

  At the same time, twin streams of water and earth erupted from the ground, like snakes striking from their holes. They appeared in multitudes, and seemed to have a life of their own. At Terra and Ion's command, they began to merge together and dive towards the ball of burning energy. One by one, they pierced it's outer shell, suffocating it under a moving wall of earth and water. The liquid flashed to steam as it touched the lightning sphere, and the soil spouted flows of lava as it neared the core, but more streams were always there to carry on the attack.

  Within seconds, the mini-sun was completely covered, and was growing dimmer with every breath. Soon, it was gone completely; a mound of ice and solidified magma serving as it's only remaining legacy. Alza looked at the mound, whilst giving due respect to the amount of power needed to destroy a miniature sun. Suddenly, she looked up, and her eyes met Raigan's.

  If he had been angry before, he was beyond rage now. His entire body shook with fury, and his eyes had become crimson slits that moved between Ion and Terra. When he spoke, his voice was a painful monotone, as all of his false cheerfulness instantly disappeared.

  “How dare you. How dare you. How dare you. How dare you. How dare you. How dare you. How dare you. How dare you. How dare you. HOW DARE YOU!”

  “It looks as though we have upset him, don't you think, Terra?”

  “It seems as though we have, sister. This could be bad if we don't act now.”

  “I agree. I have no desire to fight him when he's like this. Besides, You-Know-Who would be furious if he found out that we were fighting each other.”

  “Yeah, no one wants to see Him angry... Okay, let's wrap this up.”

  Whilst the Avatars had been talking, Kingston and Maloch had quietly picked up the litter and had reclaimed Barsch's belongings. Kingston had no desire to witness a fight between Avatars, much less be anywhere near one. Although they tried to make their exit without the gods knowing, they were not so lucky.

  “I will kill them. I will destroy them. I will show them oblivion. I will break their bodies and devour their souls. They will never find peace. They will never be reborn. They will never find salvation. I will end them, and they will never rise again!”

  Raigan began to walk forward, all the while his death threats continued to worsen. His voice had become a soft murmur, which was somehow even more terrifying than when he had been shouting. All traces of his anger had disappeared, and he appeared to have gained the icy calm that exists for those who break the limits of mere rage. His eyes had regained their deadened appearance, but they were half-lidded now, as if he was about to embrace sleep. In his hand, a small ball of lightning swam lazily through the air, its core pulsing with every step. Although she did not know how she knew, Alza could tell that that tiny ball of lighting was far more fearsome than the overgrown sphere from earlier. It was concentrated energy, pure and simple, and if it exploded, there would be nothing, not even ash, left.

  Sensing the power from the miniature orb, Terra yelled out, “Run!” before diving towards Raigan alongside his sister. Kingston had no desire to see the outcome, so, along with Maloch and Alza, he ran for his life. They made their way towards the massive forests that bordered the city, whilst desperately trying to ignore the cataclysmic battle that was taking place nearby.

  They ran without end, not even daring to glance back to see if they were being followed. An hour passed, and then two. Still they ran, until the burning in Kingston's legs overcame his desire to escape. With a tight chest and blurred vision, Kingston finally came to a halt. Alza immediately slumped limply against a nearby moss-covered boulder, and it looked as though it was the only thing holding her up. The glow in Maloch’s eyes was barely visible and every step seemed to take an age. Barsch had still not awoken, and his breathing had become even more ragged.

  When Kingston had pressed his hand to the boy's forehead, he had almost cried out with shock. Barsch was boiling hot, and sweat matted his hair. If anything, he was worse than before, and he had not been well to begin with. With worry in his eyes, Kingston stared in the direction of the destroyed city, wondering which of the Avatars had been victorious...