by Ross Buzzell
“Konner, you are to stay here. I will alert the High Council to our presence.”
Sal’Der then turns and disappears into the gradually thinning crowd. Just as the final bureaucrat disappears, a hand drops onto Konner’s shoulder. The contact startles him and he rotates to see who was behind him, his fists up prepared for a fight. The familiar face of his older sister, Lei, greets the defensive prince; she holds up her hands and takes a step back.
“Whoa there Konner. They got you wound up pretty tightly huh?”
she jests, Lei is adorned in a white robe with the blue family crest on her chest. She is holding a clear pad in her hand which is used for her to take notes on. Konner immediately relaxes and stands straight up. Although he is three years younger than his sister and considered short for the average Boronian male, Konner had finally caught up to his sister in height.
“I’m sorry, nerves; I am here to meet with the High Council today. Wait, why are you here?”
Lei drops her hands down in front of her. She overlaps one hand onto her wrist and gently holds it. A smile forms on her lips as she breaks the news to her little brother.
“I took my exit exams today; if I pass, I will be allowed to join parliament as a mediator and hopefully one day as a senator.”
A big smile forms on his lips as joy for his sister swells up within him; he takes a step forward and gives her a big hug.
“Congratulations!”
Visibly uncomfortable with the level of affection her brother shows her, Lei wiggles out of Konner’s congratulatory hug and takes a step back.
“Thank you but I have not passed yet and even if I do there are a number of interviews I must get through first. Mom says that you have been nominated to join the Cryptea. That is a big achievement for someone your age. When will you find out?”
Konner shrugs; they stand alone, dwarfed by the enormity of the sheer empty space within the building. He looks over at the teleporter that goes to the High Council chambers. It is closed. Konner brings his vision back to his sister.
“Who knows? It could be tonight, it could be tomorrow. I am a little nervous about it though. Dad is on the council.”
A warm smile forms on Lei’s face. She places a reassuring hand on Konner’s shoulder. Her voice is filled with confidence for her younger brother.
“Konner, you are the first born son. You were born to be a soldier. At the age of nine you passed the exiting test meant for the seniors. Even the students at the Sco’lor Academy know about your skills. Some even say you are Anmort Lorian reborn.”
That statement makes Konner laugh. He shakes his head. In the higher grades Anmort Lorian is taught in both the military and academic worlds as the shining example of Boronian proficiency; the perfect soldier and scholar wrapped into one. Graciously Konner nods toward his sister. It was a kind gesture of her but it did not help quell the angst growing in his gut.
“I would not say I should be compared to that high a standard, but thank you.”
The unmistakable steps of combat boots begin to echo throughout the main lobby of the Council Building. Both Konner and Lei look to see who may be approaching. After a moment of slight anticipation, Jil’Thorin rounds the corner adorned in her military robes with small patches of training armor showing. Lei looks back at Konner, eyebrows raised. Jil’Thorin’s gaze searches as if hunting for her prey.
“I believe that is my cue to leave.”
Lei states with an air of amusement in her voice. She turns and begins to walk toward the exit. She calls over her shoulder allowing her words to echo around the chamber.
“I’ll see you at home and good luck; you’ll need it!”
Lei passes Jil, Konner tilts his head quizzically to the side as they seemed to get along quite well and this causes worry to grow within him. He observes the pair of females’ part ways. Jil’s gaze locks onto Konner’s and she begins to march toward him. Yes he is the best soldier and yes he was far faster than his approaching counterpart but there is an intangible intensity about her that terrifies not only Konner but all of the other cadets as well.
As she approaches and her cold gaze falls upon Konner’s face, a running joke echoes through his mind that is often used by the other cadets, “If she were alive for the Titan Wars Jil’Thorin would have been able to slay them all with her gaze.” That gaze is currently being directed right at Konner. Konner takes a few steps forward to meet Jil who winds up her hand to slap Konner. With a quick motion Konner throws up his hand and catches her slap by the wrist before it could meet its mark.
“Jil, I’m sorry about the hair. I will not help Disa prank you again; I thought the chemicals were going to give you that blue hue you had been talking about wanting.”
The fact that Konner had stopped her slap infuriated her even more; Jil yanks her hand away from Konner and drops it to her side.
“He was only able to use the compounds because you retrieved them for him!”
Her rage had been following Konner for weeks now. Time and time again, unlike his friend Disa’ani, he had apologized. Time and time again she refused to accept. At this point her behavior had begun to get under Konner’s skin but instead of meeting her yelling anger with that of his own, Konner’s voice is soft and firm emanating from the depths of his gut.
“Jil’Thorin, I have apologized hundreds of times for my part in your hair. I like you, so I will give you two choices. You will forgive me and we can move past this; I will even help restore your natural color.”
“Or?”
Her intimidating demeanor washes away like footprints in the sand as Konner’s voice bears the weight of the severity of his tone.
“Or you can keep this up and our friendship will fall apart and when I become a Cryptea you will not be joining me or my squad on any off world missions.”
While her lack of forgiveness for his sincere apologies was like ants under Konner’s skin and the friendship they had shared for years would suffer, he would never prevent her from fulfilling her dream of being part of the Off World Squad. He just hopes that she will not call his bluff and finally drop the issue once and for all. At this point her demeanor completely changes and she backs down from her vendetta. Her shoulders slump slightly. This catches Konner off guard, never before had anyone seen Jil’Thorin at anything less than attention at any point throughout her life.
“You are right Konner; I accept your apology and forgive you. I am sorry that I have been taking my frustrations out on you.”
Jil’Thorin’s voice is now calm, almost broken and while no tears well up in her eyes. Her voice cracks unmistakably holding back tears, not of sorry or of pain, but of stress.
“I felt that with our friendship and the fact that our parents are so close I could take out my aggravation on you instead of Disa. My father is a guard in his mother’s house; I guess I was just afraid that if I did not go easy on him my father’s job would be in jeopardy.”
This bit of information confuses Konner; she had been going easy on Disa’ani? That was quite the surprise. The fear for her father’s job is news to Konner and quite troubling at that. It causes his brow to furrow as he takes a step closer to Jil who looks ashamedly at the ground.
“Why would your father’s post be at stake in the Ani household?”
The look on Konner’s face seems to solidify the level of obliviousness that Konner holds on some topics.
“Because of the generations of bad blood between our families!”
Her words bite Konner as they are brimmed with disbelief in Konner’s unawareness of this most ‘famous’ plight. Puzzle collapses onto Konner’s face as he searches for any response that would work.
“What bad blood? I have never heard of such a thing?”
“Well it is there!”
her voice is stern and stubborn once more.
“Then can you tell me what started it?”
Jil falls silent for a moment, a look of bewilderment forms on her face as she attempts to recall but canno
t. After a few minutes of silence her resolve weakens and she throws her hands up in defeat.
“I can’t remember at the moment!”
her voice permeates with frustration; Konner gently places a hand on her shoulder and looks his friend in her mahogany eyes.
“I guarantee you he does not either so why don’t you allow your family to move past it. The bad blood only lives on if you want it to Jil. Is that something you want or would you rather release that burden as well?”
This was not the first time Konner had demonstrated wisdom beyond his years. It was not a special trait attributed to him like his speed but rather his close observation of his father. For as long as he could remember, Konner looked up to his father. He kept a close eye on him learning all he could. Konner’s father is one of the wisest men in public view and having grown up watching that wisdom being put into day to day use Konner had picked up and learned the very same wisdom. This attribute aggravated Konner’s friends because often they would know that his words were true even if it was against what they wanted to do. This aggravation becomes rapidly apparent on Jil’Thorin’s face as she sees Konner’s point. Playfully she grits her teeth as she speaks with a defeated tone through her clenched jaw.
“You’re right; I hate how you always are! I’ll go talk to him.”
“Now?”
“Yes now!”
she shakes her head and turns to walk away. After a few paces she faces her friend and with raised eyebrows addresses him.
“I hate you Konner Lorian.”
A smile forms on Konner’s face as he puts a gracious hand in the air.”
“I love you too Jil.”
With that Jil begins to walk away from Konner. The young prince turns and begins to walk the opposite direction. The faint echo of Jil’s combat boots grow more and more faint the further they get away from each other. As silence once again befalls the main lobby Konner begins to investigate the intricate carvings depicting stories of the great Boronians throughout time strewn across the corridors of the Council Building
As Konner searches each intricate carving of men and women, soldiers, politicians, explorers, and scientists the true gravity of his culture finally strikes him. There was so much rich history that he had never learned because he was too busy either studying the craft of a soldier or furthering his knowledge on what is outside of his planet’s solar system. One particular mural catches Konner’s eye; a man in extremely rare dragon scale armor hunches over a fallen dragon. He huddles from the sunlight that pours into the cave, two sets of elongated teeth, his canines and the ones behind them are elongated and sharp. No family crest is aglow on his chest but a bat between two dragons is intricately carved into his shoulder armor as a family seal. Konner slowly walks over to the Boronian inscription on the wall; the young prince places his fingers against the cold, carved stone as he reads his native tongue.
“The Tale of Vlad’Drac.”
In silence he reads the rest of the inscription about this wondrous monster of a Boronian who lived in the early years of the planet.
“Vlad’Drac was a great leader in the year of 150 A.C. (After Creation) during the age of the Great Dragon Wars. His tactics far outclassed any before him, resulting in the successful push back of the dragons. This was until the awakening of The Great Beast whose scales were forged in the heat of two suns and whose size was so great it is said he could swallow a city. Knowing he could not win with natural tactics Vlad’Drac sacrificed his soul for the strength to defeat The Great Beast. With his new strength Vlad’Drac was able to defeat the dragon and bring a lasting peace between our two species. After his victory, Vlad’Drac commissioned a ship to be built to send him away so he would not be the same threat to his people that he was to the dragon. This resulted in the Spatial Expansion leaping technology forward thousands of years. Above is a depiction of his great victory.”
A smile of amazement forms on Konner’s face as he looks up at Vlad’Drac one last time. Konner turns his attention to the far side of the hall where quite possibly the most legendary Boronian, Anmort Lorian stands. Konner approaches the massive stone mural and looks at his ancestor in awe. The carving of Anmort is of him standing in victory on a hilltop. A massive planet with a swirling red storm is fills the sky and the blade dug into the dirt is Starfall.
Konner need not read the inscription to know this man’s story. Having been born as the second son of the High King, Anmort was destined to be a scholar. Passing the three trials Anmort beat out his older brother for the throne of the High King and as such reigned for many years. The legendary blade, Starfall, chose him as its wielder in his second year of rule and together they grew Boron’s might tenfold. The blade granted Anmort Lorian a longer life than normal and after fifty years on the throne he had barely aged a day. As the eons passed, Anmort continued to lead Boron in an age of success and expansion but Anmort grew empty as he outlived all that he loved. He passed the throne on to his great-grandson and went to pursue more in his elongated life. In his travels Anmort discovered the secret of electron displacement and invented a prototype that would help his people move across space instantly. But the prototype proved fatal to all but him. Anmort Lorian gave his prototype to the lead scientists who would eventually find a way to create an electron displacer that any Boronian could use but not before the Titan Wars. Because these behemoths were older and more powerful the Boronians placed their soldiers on the front lines to quell the tide of the Titans whose mission was to destroy all life and they had the power to do so. Anmort and Starfall both joined in the battles of the Titan Wars and single handedly turned the tide of the war. In the war’s final days Anmort utilized for the first time in recorded history the ‘Crack’ which put an end to both the war and his life. His accomplishments would later save the planet once more when the Plague ravaged the Boronian people; it was only through his invention of the Electron Displacer that Boron survived.
A smile forms on Konner’s face as he looks up to his kin once more. That story was taught to every Boronian as they went through school in either Academy because had it not been for Anmort, it is said that the entire galaxy would have been destroyed or enslaved. Konner takes a few steps backward and looks throughout the massive corridors, all of which are carved with great stories of influential men and women of Boron throughout the ages. He could easily spend all day in the halls and learn the history of his people with more depth but there are more pressing matters to attend to. Konner turns and begins to walk toward the lobby once more as one final carving grabbed his eye; it was of Ja’Sanfur, his teacher. Few in the Sol’lor Academy knew of her life before the military but this mural was not of her outstanding military achievements. This wall was dedicated to her, in bewilderment to Konner as…
“An explorer?”
The question shocks Konner in a pleasant way. He thought he knew Ja’Sanfur better than most but she kept even this side from him. Immediately and with much haste Konner dashes to the far side of the mural coming to a sliding halt. Konner drops his head back as he looks up near the ceiling where her story begins. Konner reads silently but his lips move with only the slightest exhale of breath as excitement unreservedly builds up within him.
‘Ja’Sanfur, now known as a great military leader was once a humble explorer, opting to use deep space transport as opposed to Displacement Pads. Ja’Sanfur made a name for herself by discovering things on her journeys to prospect planets. She is the first Boronian to witness a supernova first hand and survive its blast which greatly furthered Boronian knowledge of our galaxy. Ja’sanfur’s greatest achievement, however, took place on the only mission where she brought a companion with her, by the name of Xero. During their travel they discovered the summoning race of Draronians. She brokered a peace treaty with the species without the aid of a diplomat and even brought a number back to Boron to teach them about our culture and for them to teach us about theirs. This alliance has been the strongest and most influential our people have ever experienced to
this date. Ja’Sanfur is now known for single handedly defending the Draronian Council from the invasion of an entire Malanara army. During this she sustained injuries from three Malanara, all of which were bite injuries. She survived her injuries with no side effects adding even more wonder to the success of her mission. Ja’Sanfur presides as a Triad General and as a result is also a part of the Boronian High Council.
A smile forms on Konner’s face as he concludes his reading of the history of his teacher. Konner turns and begins to walk back toward the main lobby. As his mind dwells on what he had just read, one name in particular stands out, Xero. Konner had heard that name before but he is unable to remember where. Somewhere along the lines in his studies Konner came across a single sentence about Xero which, as the fog of forgetfulness fades, Konner is able to recall almost perfectly.
“Xero, the fallen one, is the bane of Boron kind and as a result he must be banished with the others.”
What others could the text be talking about? If he was bad enough to be banished, why is he not in the hall of examples of the Boronians who had turned against their own people? For the only crime that one could commit to earn being banished was treason. These questions and more swirl in Konner’s mind like a hurricane as he silently comes to a stop inside the building’s main lobby. Konner’s eyes stay fixed, unmoving on the marble floor as he searches for answers in the furthest corners of his mind in the hopes that he would become aware of something he may have suppressed about this Xero. As Konner strains his mind in an attempt to remember anything he had previously read, the unmistakable faint ‘whoosh’ of air attributed to the opening of a portal echoes from behind him. The voice of Sal’Der echoes throughout the empty chamber.