Endless Online: Oblivion's Promise

by M. H. Johnson

  Adolf trembled, forcing himself to say the words. "I swear upon my life that I will not seek directly or indirectly to cause harm or discovery to the beings known as Sten, Val, Elise, Halvar, or Gregor. I will not betray their confidences, my suspicions regarding them or their activities, what I know of their ship, or any other details that I suspect might put them in peril. All I may say about them is that the psionicist known as Valor Hunter bested me, and I am under an oath as good as my life to say no more. Only Elise Highblood or Valor Hunter may release me from this oath."

  Val felt a curious elation as Adolf collapsed and shuddered before stilling, the same satisfaction he felt after completing a mission flawlessly, executing sword forms without fail, repairing the Psiblades, or, as a small child, impressing his mother with his drawings which she so adored, never having touched a single brush after her death. That same sense of fulfillment coursed through him upon the forging of that greater oath, knowing it resonated through both of them perfectly.

  "Damn it, Val, try not to kill him. He just might be the bargaining piece that gets us out of here," Halvar grumbled, still in trooper armor, quickly patching up the inquisitor's savaged shoulder and bloody back. Halvar grunted in satisfaction. "Good. He's more than stable. He won't be using that arm without treatment, but he shouldn't die on us, so long as your oathbinding didn't doom him."

  Adolf shook his head, gazing at Val strangely. "How odd. I know the touch of a justiciar's oathbinding, and yet I feel no headache at all. One would almost wonder... and you are just a boy."

  "Underestimate him at your peril," Elise said, turning to Val. "Are you ready for this?"

  Val nodded, gazing at the bound, injured inquisitor, gesturing for his friends to follow him to the far end of the room, keeping a careful eye on the rear of their target, his words as soft as he could make them. "I know you want to come, Elise, but you need to trust me." Val swallowed. "Once I exit this ship, wait for a signal, any kind of signal giving you the okay to leave. The moment you get it? Flee. As if your lives depended upon it. Hit warp speed or whatever it is you do to get as much distance from here as you can."

  Elise paled. "No."

  "Don't even think it!" Val hissed. "Give away nothing." His hot gaze locked upon Sten's own. "They have dozens of my people already trapped as their mindslaves. If there is a chance I can find them... if there is a chance I can free them..." He swallowed, squeezing his eyes shut, saying what needed to be said. "But no matter what, I have to do something. If I can somehow come back alive with a couple dozen kids in tow, I hope you'll give us a lift, Sten."

  His friend's eyes were bright with unshed tears and pride. "You know I will, Val. You know I will."

  Val swallowed and nodded. "Good. But odds are, you will just get an offer to leave. Take it. And for heaven's sake, don't stick around."

  Sten's gaze hardened. "I don't believe in abandoning my friends, Val. Particularly when they just saved the lives of myself and my crew."

  Val grinned. "Don't worry. I left a parting gift. As much Elementium as I could safely squirrel away in Gregor's laboratory before, well, I did what had to be done." His hand squeezed the captain's. "They declared war on my planet, Sten. All bullshit aside, I'm probably not coming back."

  Sten nodded solemnly, clapping Val's shoulder. "Fortune's speed to you, lad, wherever the fates take you."

  Val smiled. "Likewise."

  He turned to Halvar. The giant wrapped him in a gentle bear hug. "Take care, kid. You're mad as the jacks in any deck, and twice as lucky. May that luck continue to hold."

  Val smiled. "Sounds like I'm the Joker in the deck. But I can tell by your frown that you don't have that. Strange, how similar our worlds almost are." His gazed turned serious. "Do you remember when you told me about Lucy?"

  Halvar frowned and nodded.

  "Do you remember what I told you at the end?"

  Halvar blinked.

  Val's gaze hardened. "When you get the signal, get the hell out of here as fast as you can, and you signal Jordia and Phoebe both that solar flares are imminent. Do you understand? Imminent. I'm guessing they have planetary shields?"

  "Of course, but Val..."

  Val shook his head. "My people. My tribe of apes, as it now stands, don't have a chance in hell. These bastards have broken treaty before and committed genocide. They did all they could to make sure any race that was a threat to them was made extinct. And every tribe of primates inferior to them they put to death as well. You and I both know that my people lack the neural clusters that allow you all to touch the stars, as well as forge psionicists who could effortlessly enslave all the leaders of my world. If my race is to have any hope at all? I have to act. I have to be the tool I was forged to be. You, Halvar, of all people, must understand." He saluted Halvar with his once more inert Psiblade.

  Halvar's expression turned grave, his measured nod one of profound respect. "Challenging the Overlord himself. As is your right, with that blade. Doomed to failure, but for the sake of your tribe, you will take that mad, one in a million gamble." He clapped Val's shoulders, holding him close. "Fortune favor you, my friend."

  Val grinned. Exactly the thoughts he wanted his friends to radiate. "And if I use my new authority to commandeer the hyperion gate, I don't want any power surges to scorch either planet. That is why you must warn them immediately, do you understand?"

  Solemnly Halvar nodded. "All Dominion planets have safety protocols in place. Don't worry. On the off chance that your gambit actually works, we'll give a flare warning as we race away."

  "Thank you, Halvar. Tell Gregor he's not a bad sort. I think I'll miss him, actually."

  "I will, Val. I will."

  Val turned to Elise, careful not to meet her gaze, instead bowing low, student to teacher.

  "Thank you, Elise, for instructing this unworthy student as best you could."

  A soft hand touched his brow. "Be safe, Val. Even as you embrace this madness, even should you actually dare to challenge Overlord Tytus himself, don't forget your own gifts. Perhaps, somehow, they might save you, after all." Even as she said the words, she handed him the second ancient Psiblade they had recovered from the ruins. Val's eyes widened at the gift. "I think I will keep Adolf's blade," she said with an arch smile. "It far better suits my style of fencing, just as these older blades clearly suit your own."

  Val nodded, head still lowered, safely depositing the prize in his rift. Halvar whistled, the weapon seeming to vanish in thin air. "Thank you, Elise. I hope you and Sten can find a place of safety and happiness, and that you never need to draw your blade again."

  Elise whispered into his ear. "Don't think I don't know what you are really planning, Val."

  Val shivered with those words.

  "Some act of madness, I have no doubt. I note how carefully you avoid my gaze." She sighed. "In all likelihood, the micro rift they've been using to steal away children like yourself is still fully operational. If you are smart, you will trade Adolf's freedom for our own, and safe passage home for yourself."

  Soft lips kissed his cheek. "Good luck, you mad, foolish boy. And thank you for saving our lives." She smiled. "Again."

  Val nodded, turning away from his companions and their solemn gazes with a final salute, forcing his mind to icy stillness once more.

  Absolute in intent and purpose, accepting the horror that he knew awaited him, he slipped into Shadowmind as deep as he ever had, a predator about to take down the largest prey imaginable.

  19

  "Get up."

  The inquisitor flinched. "There is no way that you could be a mere earthling. Their minds are weak, porous! They are primitives who can only grasp the most basic concepts, lucky not to be cleansed from our new conquest entirely! There is no way you could resist my will if you weren't one of us. No way you could bind me!"

  His voice turned from outrage to cajoling as Val forced the man to his feet. "Come, now. There need be no secrets between us. I will not move against you. You already have my w
ord on that. You're a member of the Dauda coven, are you not? Hiring out to another of the Overlords? Your masters found out what a rich prize Earth would be, and you seek to... facilitate a generous share of the proceeds to come, yes? There is no need for this, friend. Overlord Tytus could use someone with your skills. Those who have mastered Shadowmind are highly sought after, as I'm sure you know, and my master pays generous wages indeed. You will find that he is not at all above giving rank and status to all those who serve him honorably and well, no matter if born of noble or common stock!

  "Look in your heart. Have you never hungered for rulership, for true power? To own vast tracts of land, your own fiefdom, with thousands of slaves who shake and quiver at your slightest frown? Scores of nubile young woman desperately eager to please your every whim? Such can be yours, I assure you. But serve my master, but strike an accord, and I can all but promise you that such will be the least of your prizes. All that and more!"

  Val's response was to tear off the man's cloak, smiling with approval as he inspected it, his Arcane Perception allowing him to sense the curious play of Elementium strands within the fabric that seemed to encourage light to just flow and fade away. He was pleasantly surprised to find it completely undamaged. Sensing no strands of malice or harmful spellwebs in place, he fastened the cloak with a flourish, raising the hood.

  You have found Shadowcloak! +2 to Stealth, +1 to Shadowmind! You will find slipping into the shadows all the easier with this silky garb caressing your frame. Unwanted light just slides away!

  "So tell me, Adolf Mordingi, where did you find this cloak?" The man hissed and swallowed, Val sensing his tells even as he stood behind the man, the crackling hiss of his Psiblade hovering just inches from the inquisitor's ear. So nervous. What possible reason could he have? A ruthless acquisition? Why would he think a member of an obvious clan of assassins would even care? Unless...

  Val decided to play a wild hunch. He chuckled softly. "Did you really think you could get away with it?"

  Adolf swallowed abruptly. "What, what are you talking about? I have done nothing to concern you. I have broken no code or law!"

  "Really," Val hissed. "Did you think my people were stupid? Did you think we would not know that it was you who was responsible for the death of one of our own?"

  Adolf gasped and paled. He abruptly turned, uninjured arm raised in placation. "Please, you must understand! I had no choice, he would not listen to reason!"

  Val flashed his blade and pivoted, the man instantly stilling, Val sliding behind him once more, giving his foe no chance at all to catch his gaze. "Yet his death is still your responsibility. And this cloak... you and I both know how you obtained it, don't we?"

  Adolf's frantic breathing intensified. "It's not, it's not what you think. It was self-defense, I swear it! He tried to entice the location of his target from my lieutenant, who then sought to arrest him. He cut my man in half, just as you did my soldiers this day! I had no choice but to face him. He made no offer for terms or surrender, the same as you!"

  Val remained silent for some moments, letting the tension build, Adolf visibly trembling, crying out every time Val's blade effortlessly sloughed off tufts of his sweat-drenched hair. "I will accept your excuse," Val said at last. "The crucible of battle decides all fates, in the end. I now claim this cloak as my own."

  "Yes, of course!"

  "And your life is forfeit, at the time and place of my choosing."

  Adolf stumbled, trembling with panic. "There is no need to kill me. I have given you my oath! I can serve you, Dauda. You will find my guidance extremely useful! And with my oath given, you can trust me like no one else. Dare I say it, I am the only man you can trust, once you leave the safety of this ship!"

  Val nodded. "It will have to do. Very well. Let us see your master. He and I have much to speak of, I think."

  Inquisition Rank 2 Successfully quantized! You remember all too well the feel of your foe's desperation, and know just the questions to ask! You have successfully coaxed truths Adolf never meant to reveal, besting the man at his own game!

  Intimidation Rank 2 Successfully quantized! Your time in the service honing skills that would sicken even your father are coming to the fore once more! Congratulations! Inquisitor Adolf Mordingi is now Intimidated! He is much more susceptible to domination, and will think carefully before attempting to betray you.

  Val shivered, slipping deeper into the darkness of his mind, refusing to let ancient guilt affect him now. Val turned to his friends, gazing at him so very strangely at that moment. "My clan will not seek retribution for slights suffered. You served my ends perfectly. For that, I thank you. I would recommend, however, that you never share with a single soul the nature of our encounter. Your demise would be... regrettable."

  Elise had stumbled back, Val careful not to meet her gaze, merely nodding as one warrior to another to Halvar before grabbing Adolf's arm and heading towards the exit.

  "But wait," Sten spluttered, even as Elise grabbed his arm so tight Val could sense his flinch. "This whole time? You were just playing us? You set all this up? Why?"

  Val allowed soft laughter to permeate the darkness of his soul. "And it worked brilliantly. I am exactly where I need to be. Don't you understand, yet? I know dear Adolf here understands."

  The man trembled and cried out as Val's still activated crackling blade caressed his ear in a sudden explosion of blood. Adolf collapsed with a shriek. "The Dauda are the true masters of this galaxy. Everyone else, even the Highlords themselves, are but puppets dancing as we direct. Some, it seems, might have forgotten that. Your precious Overlord merely needs a reminder. The Dauda are happy to assist our bold friend in his brilliant campaign of conquest. So long as it is understood that we will share in his spoils!" The last was said with the finality of a dirge.

  Before Elise could catch his cold gaze he pivoted around, yanking the shaking inquisitor to his feet. "Lord Dauda, why? I swore to serve you faithfully!" Adolf cried.

  Val nodded. "And now I know you will do so without hesitation." Gently, he caressed the sweat-soaked curls on the back of the man's head before clenching tight and jerking his head back. Adolf flinched and sobbed. "Shh, it's okay, my puppet. I know you will serve me well. I can all but taste it. Now straighten your spine. Pretend you're a man once more. You will walk boldly and confidently to your master, and none will dare question your injuries when you threaten them with immediate death for interfering with a matter for the Overlord's ears only, no?"

  To his credit, the inquisitor immediately stiffened, tilting his head. "Of course, Lord Dauda. But give me a moment to call for my men."

  "No need," whispered the voice in the darkness. "They have already been taken care of."

  Adolf swallowed, jerking his head once. "Understood. Follow me, sir, I shall lead you to our master at once."

  Deception Level 2 Successfully quantized! Old tricks have come to the fore once more, and Adolf actually thinks you're a member of a deadly clan of assassins, simply by playing off his own worst fears! Deceiving your friends as well, causing them to doubt the very nature of your friendship and loyalty, just to mess with Adolf''s mind. Ruthless!

  Intimidation Level 3 Successfully quantized! You have utterly mastered Adolf. Congratulations! Inquisitor Adolf Mordingi is now your bitch. Remember, even the most battered cubs have teeth. Too long in the company of another master might entice him to turn! And he's an inquisitor. You'd best play this game carefully, Val, or just kill him once you're done.

  Like everyone else you ever broke. No hearings for your squad! After all, corpses tell no tales when you're done with them.

  Within seconds they had left the ship, Val sparing one final glance for his friends. Their expressions would have twisted Val's heart, had he been capable of such, but at that moment he was in so deep his friends' eyes seemed to slide right off of him, frowning and shaking their heads, and Val knew he could never say goodbye.

  Then the main hatch opened, revealing Val's first
glimpse of the massive ship he found himself within, the hanger itself soaring perhaps a hundred feet, a complex meshwork of beams and ribbing to be seen overhead, giving strength to the vast structure. There were dozens of other ships, most much smaller, on either side of Sten's own.

  Val took a deep, shuddering breath, surprise near knocking him out of the icy state that allowed him to walk but a step behind the imperious sounding inquisitor, already snapping orders to a pair of troopers to act as his escort among the scores working in the hanger. For the silver gray ships Val saw all around him looked just like the enemy fighters he had seen in so many movies.

  Exactly the same.

  He swallowed, forcing himself to accept this truth. He wasn't in a movie. Rather, the events of this universe must have infected more than one artist's dreams, which is why it all struck him so hard now.

  "My lord, do you require medical attention?" Asked one of the two soldiers hurriedly marching up to them.

  "Did I request medical attention?" The inquisitor barked. "I have urgent business with the Overlord that must be attended to now! Unless you wish to be personally responsible for my delay?"

  "No sir!" The man quickly assured, a hurried salute given before rapidly stepping forward and himself ordering fellow troopers away as they made their way past the hanger and down massive corridors of chrome. Val noted everything was lit by that same strange sourceless light Halvar had somehow manifested, catching sight as well of occasional panels flickering in incomprehensible patterns, with automatic doors that hissed open with surprising speed.

  Despite the lighting, very few noticed Val but a step directly behind the inquisitor, and even those few looking right at him simply shook their heads and walked on, muttering about faulty illumination crystals.

  Val noted dozens of people hurrying to and fro in addition to armored soldiers, many looking like busy technicians with the same intent expressions as Val had seen on scores of enlisted at half a dozen bases. But remove the incredibly high tech surroundings and the silver gray uniforms, and he would think he was back on base.