Chronicle of Ages (25 page)

Aquilla decided not to waste her breath trying to convince him, and curbed her annoyance as she turned to address her Lord. ‘Where is Cornelin's body now?'

Where we found him, in the inner launch bay area. Zerrah is at the scene and will answer any questions you may have,
advised Gibal.

Aquilla looked to Maelgwn, and he agreed with a nod. ‘Let's go.'

 

The scene of the crime was being guarded by Zerrah's men. Only their captain and Uriah had been permitted anywhere near the murder site.

‘Let them through,' Zerrah instructed, noticing the Dragon and his sister being detained by his guards.

Aquilla ran straight to where her uncle lay sprawled on the ground and crouched to look over his body for the cause of death. This information was not readily discernible, although the look on the man's face was one of great agony. ‘Dear Cornelin. What could you have done to deserve this?' As Aquilla mumbled the question, something twigged in her mind and she turned back to view the Dragon with a look of accusation on her face.

Maelgwn knew what Aquilla was thinking despite the thought wave neutraliser she wore. If he'd been prepared to kill her for what she'd discovered about his breeding, then he would certainly not hesitate to kill Cornelin. This led him to wonder how much Aquilla knew about her uncle's deception of him during their trip from the
Aten
to Lura?

‘Do we know the cause of death?' Maelgwn ignored Aquilla's cool glare and addressed her brother.

Zerrah shook his head. ‘The inner lining of his throat appears to be inflamed, so some kind of poison is looking most likely. We'll know more after the autopsy.'

Aquilla looked back to her murdered kinsman and placed a hand gently on his chest as she leaned close to him. ‘I regret that my last words to you were spent in anger. Forgive me, Cornelin, I should have listened to your advice, I fear.'

She turned her icy glare back to the Dragon as she rose, and Zerrah noted an irregularity with his sister. ‘Why are you wearing a thought wave neutraliser?' he asked with a suspicious tone in his voice.

‘Dragon's orders,' she explained simply, referring the question to Maelgwn to answer.

Zerrah looked to Maelgwn for an explanation.

‘My reasons have no bearing on this case, and that's all I am permitted to tell you,' he informed matter of factly.

‘Or he could tell you,' Aquilla added in a smug, annoyed fashion. ‘But then he'd have to kill you.'

Zerrah caught Aquilla's drift and raised his firearm to defend his sister's life. ‘Well, I don't really care about your mission, Dragon, but I am quite fond of my sister.'

Aquilla walked around behind her brother, thankful for his concern.

‘To defy the Dragon is to defy the Lord Gibal himself,' Uriah pointed out. ‘Lower that weapon or I shall have you arrested, Zerrah.'

‘Do we really have time for this?' Maelgwn intervened. ‘Our murderous thief is escaping whilst we argue.'

‘Unless we already have him,' Aquilla added, to keep her brother from lowering his defences.

‘I have been with you all evening,' Maelgwn pointed out.

‘How long has Cornelin been dead?' Aquilla queried her brother sideways.

‘It would have happened about three hours before low tide,' informed Zerrah.

‘That's before I sought you out.' Aquilla folded her arms, even more convinced of the Dragon's guilt. ‘So where were you then?'

‘After I left Gibal I went to my quarters and was alone until you found me,' Maelgwn explained.

‘In other words, you have no alibi.' Zerrah was sounding more convinced of the Dragon's involvement.

‘That is correct.' Maelgwn decided to cut through all the speculation. ‘But I suspect your uncle's death is connected to another crime that I have no motive for committing. Can you say the same?' He looked to Aquilla, raising both brows to await her response.

Obviously Aquilla had no alibi either and was enraged by his implication. ‘I did not murder my uncle,' she stated indignantly.

‘Neither did I,' Maelgwn advised. ‘And as none of us are going to be able to trust one another until we find the guilty party, I suggest we get on with it. If we can take this inquisition to the Lord Gibal, I feel sure he will vouch for my innocence in this affair.'

‘I feel sure he will too,' Aquilla scoffed.

Maelgwn ignored her spiteful mood and got back to finding out the facts. ‘Have any vessels left Mazua since the time of Cornelin's death?'

‘No,' Zerrah replied, still unsure as to whether to trust the Dragon or not.

‘Therefore, the perpetrator is still amongst us.' Maelgwn's thoughts turned to who it might be. ‘Do Inanna or Shamash have any officials in the city at present?'

‘More than likely,' Zerrah granted. ‘And Cornelin would have had dealings with them.' He saw the Dragon's reasoning and, disposed towards it, he lowered his weapon.

‘There are a couple of Leonine dignitaries enjoying our hospitality whilst they await word on a commission Inanna has with the Lord Gibal,' Uriah advised.

Maelgwn's calm demeanour turned stormy. ‘Why was I not informed of this before?' As Uriah opened his
mouth to retort, Maelgwn forewarned him, ‘And do not tell me it was because I never asked.'

Uriah closed his mouth with a look of desperation on his face.

Maelgwn took a deep breath to regain his patience. ‘Do you know anything about this commission?'

Uriah shook his head, his sights drifting towards Aquilla.

‘The commission was referred to me.' Aquilla offered up the information, horrified to think that her work might have had anything to do with her uncle's death.

Maelgwn immediately turned to Zerrah to instruct. ‘Arrange a meeting with the Lord Gibal at once. We shall meet you in his audience chamber presently.' Maelgwn grabbed hold of Aquilla's arm. ‘Show me the commission.'

 

The project was being stored in one of the lower security labs, so that Inanna and her dignitaries could keep an eye on its progress.

Aquilla led him into the work space and Maelgwn experienced an all-consuming past-life deja vu again as he observed the strange, silver, disc-shaped ship that Aquilla had constructed.

In his vision, Tory stood admiring the same futuristic chariot. ‘Oh my God!' she slapped her hands together, delighted. ‘You're building the chariot of Arianrod! That's what they called it back where I come from.' She circled the chariot, smiling broadly. ‘It takes one quickly to the place of one's desire.' Tory looked at him as her image began to fade. ‘Don't you get it! I've used this to
move through time already … hence, I know you make it work.'

‘Dragon?' Aquilla clicked her fingers in front of his eyes, as he'd obviously drifted off somewhere else.

‘This is what the quasi-crystal was for,' he stated surely, moving to inspect the chariot more closely. He wondered about the purpose of his vision, as he already recognised the time shifting chariot as one of Taliesin and Myrddin's favorite toys. How he knew it was powered by the quasi-crystal was a bit of a mystery, but he strongly suspected he'd find the answer back in his past life in Atlantis.

Aquilla frowned at the Dragon's certainty, for he seemed familiar with this type of transport. ‘You couldn't possibly have seen this before. I only just completed it!'

‘It's working?' Maelgwn's sights darted back in Aquilla's direction.

‘Well, I haven't tested it, as I was specifically instructed not to,' Aquilla advised. ‘But I have followed the blueprints to the letter, and by all appearances, it's in perfect working order,' she announced, seeming rather pleased with herself.

‘Then under no circumstances is this transport to be handed over to Inanna.'

‘But the design blueprints came from her, therefore the chariot is not mine to withhold,' Aquilla reasoned. ‘That's how wars get started.'

‘I don't know how Inanna got her hands on the chariot's design blueprints, but I am fairly certain that the credit for its invention is not hers.' When Maelgwn found five spare minutes he would do some past-life
regression and confirm this hunch. He squatted beside the chariot and opening up a panel at the front he exposed the drive system, which was ignited by the strange chaotic crystal. Maelgwn reached inside and retrieved the stone, whereby the drive system ceased to function and fell into darkness.

‘Hey, you can't do that!' Aquilla tried to prevent him from concealing the precious crystal in one of his belt compartments. ‘Give that back!' she demanded, when she failed to retrieve the stone.

‘Give me any more grief and I shall smash it,' Maelgwn warned.

‘Me give you grief!' Aquilla didn't know whether to laugh or scream. ‘All I wanted was to show you a good time and this is the thanks I get!' She shoved him away as hard as she was able. When he didn't budge in his stance, Aquilla was only frustrated all the more. ‘I was wrong about you and Durak. You are nothing like him!' She backed up to create a bit of distance between them.

‘No,' Maelgwn confessed to calm her down, ‘you were right about us.'

‘Explain.' Aquilla challenged him to convince her.

Maelgwn frowned with regret. ‘Alas, I am not permitted.'

Aquilla rolled her eyes, having predicted this response. She held her head in her hands to contain the wild assortment of negative emotions that were fighting for precedence in her. In the end, her sorrow won out and she collapsed into a chair to weep. ‘I hate this,' she mumbled, raising her teary sights to look Maelgwn in
the face. ‘Do you have any idea what the paradox of you is doing to me? What I am supposed to think, Dragon? How am I supposed to feel? Act?'

Maelgwn suddenly realised that he was being a bit harsher on Aquilla than he might have been were she not the very image of his lover. He figured this was his way of guarding against getting too close to her; this method may have been effective, but it certainly wasn't fair. ‘Ever since I met you, I have been asking myself the same questions,' he quietly confessed. ‘For my beloved's soul is akin to yours … as you see Durak in me, so do I see my wife in you.'

With a gasp of astonishment, Aquilla's tears ceased to flow. She raised herself and slowly neared Maelgwn, her expression reflecting her intrigue. ‘So … it would not really be any great threat to your marriage vow if I were to —'

Her kiss did not take Maelgwn by surprise and he allowed it to happen, savouring every second that the indulgence lasted. Her kiss was Tory's kiss and the temptation of having her in his arms was too all-consuming for his senses to reject.

When the rush of passion was over, they stood staring at each other, their faces acknowledging how much trouble they were in.

‘I never imagined I would feel this way again,' she broke the deathly silence.

‘Your feelings are wasted on me, Aquilla,' Maelgwn was sad to concede. ‘I can never fulfil your expectations. I am not permitted.'

Aquilla backed up abruptly, clearly hurt by his words. ‘I have never met a creature so cruel as you. Why did you submit just now?'

‘Because I am weak,' he snapped, unsure if it was the situation or his own lack of discipline that frustrated him more. ‘But, because I love you, I must keep my distance. If the situation were otherwise I would have —' He broke off mid-sentence, thinking there was little point going into ‘maybes' and ‘what ifs'.

‘You would have what, Dragon?' Aquilla hounded.

Maelgwn moved to walk away, but stopped when he realised he was defending himself by giving her the cold shoulder again. He turned back to the distraught female and held out his palm to rest against her cheek. ‘I would have fallen in love with you all over again.' His words were so welcome that Aquilla's tears began to flow once more and he pulled her close and held her, until her burst of anxiety waned. ‘I never meant to cause you any pain, for you have only ever brought me joy.'

‘You have not,' she sniffled as she let him go. ‘I can accept that we cannot be together. But I couldn't stand the thought that you didn't see me … that you didn't feel as I do.'

‘I see only you,' he assured.

‘Well … that's alright then.' Aquilla attempted to make light of their tragedy, forcing a smile to assure him all was well with her.

Dragon
. Gibal's voice resounded out from the communicator Maelgwn wore.
I trust you have a good reason for keeping me waiting.

H
ave you completed your assessment of the situation?
Gibal questioned as soon as Maelgwn entered the audience chamber where they had first been introduced.

Aquilla's highly emotional state upon arrival passed unnoticed, as all assumed her uncle's death was the cause of her dismay.

‘I have,' Maelgwn confirmed. ‘And it is my recommendation that we dock this ship at the
Aten
and allow my Lord to conduct a full investigation.'

This suggestion met with a mixed reaction from those present. Uriah's face lit up at the very suggestion of space travel. Aquilla appeared somewhere between stunned and horrified. Gibal seemed to be contemplating the idea. It was only Zerrah who verbally opposed it.

‘Do you not feel me capable of handling a simple investigation, Dragon?'

‘How can you find that which you are not permitted to know about, Zerrah?' Maelgwn outlined the snag. ‘Investigate Cornelin's death by all means, but there is much more at stake here and your Lord well knows it.'

Gibal had been putting off the move for some time now, but the situation was volatile. If he left it too long to take a side in this dispute between Inanna and his brother, he would lose Marduk's protection and could well find Inanna's wrath unleashed upon himself. None of the other Nefilim knew of Marduk's cause. Only Gibal could, or would, aid his brother in fulfilling the development of his race of Chosen Ones and establishing Marduk's innocence in the Dumuzi affair.

Agreed,
Gibal conceded finally.

‘Good.' Maelgwn was most relieved by his resolve. ‘We can start questioning people on the way to the
Aten
, starting with Inanna's officials.'

‘But everyone in the city shall have to be put into stasis for the journey.' Zerrah's mind boggled at the task, as they had not had cause to uproot Mazua in his lifetime.

‘Even better,' Maelgwn granted. ‘Get on it at once, starting with —'

‘Inanna's officials,' Zerrah concluded with him.

 

Zerrah left with Uriah to see the city occupants through the evacuation procedure, which had only ever been a drill before this day.

Maelgwn stayed in the audience chamber to question the Lord Gibal about his commission for
Inanna and his failure to mention it to him earlier.

I have many confidences, Dragon. The reason I have managed to stay out of the family feud is only because I keep my word to all and share my expertise.

‘If you are developing hardware for both sides of your kindred's war, then you are the one fuelling the dispute!' Maelgwn was appalled. ‘I must therefore ask you to choose a side as I cannot allow that chariot to be given over to Inanna. I know of its capabilities and will use all means at my disposal to prevent her taking possession.'

Don't you think I chose allegiance when I gave the go-ahead to move my city, Dragon?
Gibal was momentarily annoyed at being lectured by a Homo sapiens, yet he swallowed his pride to speak in a more obliging tone of voice.
You may proceed with your mission as you see fit and I shall abide by your judgment. I should not have relieved you of your duty. I have brought this disaster upon myself, but pray that you can aid me in righting it.

Maelgwn derived more than he cared to from the Lord's confession. ‘You didn't ask mission control about me being at leisure when you are, did you?' When Gibal shook his head, Maelgwn wanted to hit something. ‘Blast my diplomacy,' he snarled. ‘I knew it!'

Please maintain your focus, Dragon. I shall explain all to my brother when we arrive at the
Aten
.

Gibal's vow didn't relieve Maelgwn of feeling like an idiot. He turned to Aquilla, who was quietly sitting in a corner nursing her overactive emotions. ‘Did Gibal send you to me, to keep me entertained?'

‘No,' Aquilla vowed, standing to reinforce her claim before the Dragon got himself in more trouble.

What is going on here?
The Lord noted that his bodyguard's relationship with his assistant seemed to have taken on a more personal dimension.
Perhaps it is time you did a little confessing of your own, Dragon. How exactly did Aquilla discover that which she is not supposed to know about you?

‘It was my fault.' Aquilla stepped forward to assume responsibility. ‘I prevailed upon the Dragon to accompany me to the seaside, where he chanced upon a sand python and his wound,' she dropped her voice to a whisper, ‘or lack thereof,' Aquilla resumed her normal tone, ‘gave his secret away.'

Gibal looked to Maelgwn, who was sure he looked as guilty as he felt. ‘The fault was mine, we all know that. But shouldn't we be doing something about correcting this error and that will be one of our worries solved?'

As we have much preparation to get my city space bound, I suggest we see to that problem once we reach the Sirius side of the wormhole.

Maelgwn wasn't too comfortable with the suggestion, so Gibal reasoned further:
You can accompany Aquilla to stasis immediately … she cannot do your mission any harm in that state. As soon as we revive her at the other end, we shall see to erasing the renegade information from her memory.

‘Fair enough.' Maelgwn could see the logic, and the Lord's suggestion gave him an idea that would tidy up their investigation somewhat.

He would leave all the citizens of Mazua in stasis and awake them one by one, once they'd reached the
Aten
. If questioned as soon as they awoke, no one could escape their investigation or be overlooked.

 

As Maelgwn accompanied Aquilla to the stasis chamber in her quarters, he thought to ask her about her last journey through space. ‘How much do you remember about the trip from the
Aten
to here?' Maelgwn came to a standstill. ‘And now that I mention it, what were you doing on the
Aten
in the first place?'

‘Cornelin was sent to fetch you here. I tagged along, having heard I might be able to acquire a quasi-crystal from a black marketeer on the
Aten
… which, of course, I did.' Aquilla frowned. ‘It cost me an arm and a leg too. It's a good thing I wasn't spending my own wealth.'

‘Did you know whose space base you were visiting?' Maelgwn probed further.

Aquilla shook her head. ‘No. But if the scum of the space city are anything to go by, I feel sure the proprietor must be an outlaw.' Then Aquilla made a connection. ‘Is that who you serve?'

Maelgwn only laughed. ‘At least now I know what you really think of me.'

‘I wasn't meaning to say that you are scum.' She was amused by the misunderstanding.

‘Can you remember if Cornelin was acting strangely on the return flight to Lura?'

Aquilla smiled when she thought about that day in retrospect. ‘He was in an awful hurry to get me into stasis, but besides that, no, he seemed fine to me. Mind you, I was so high from acquiring that rock that I probably wouldn't have noticed even if he was acting a little weird.'

Once they reached Aquilla's quarters, she stripped
down to the bodysuit she wore under her everyday attire, and programmed her stasis module. It could only be opened again by the city central control system.

‘Well, I guess I'll see you on the other side.' Aquilla laid back in the module and got herself comfortable. ‘Sure you wouldn't like to join me? Could be a real cosy flight,' She teased.

‘Please, Aquilla,' he smiled, finding the idea far too agreeable. ‘I am trying so hard to stay focused.'

‘Good luck.' She arched her back a little, pretending to reposition herself. ‘Don't give me a second thought.' Aquilla winked as she passed her hand over the activation plate and was concealed in a tube of charichalum.

Maelgwn breathed a sigh of relief, but his reason for restraint angered him. ‘Curse the Nefilim and their enforced monopoly on immortality. What gave them the right to dictate the course of universal order?'

Suddenly it occurred to Maelgwn that Marduk was expecting him to abide by a law that the Lord himself had proven unable to keep.

He looked back to the black tube that housed Aquilla's body for the trip. ‘Why did I not have these thoughts before she was encased in the toughest metal known to humankind?'

Was the universe trying to tell him something, or was it just being trying?

 

Zerrah and Uriah were the last to be put into stasis and Maelgwn had personally seen these two residents locked
into suspended animation.

It was on his return route to Gibal that Maelgwn's eyes beheld an event so wondrous that he was compelled to come to a standstill to witness it.

Beyond the windows and skylights of the top floor corridor down which he proceeded, the peripheral city dome began to harden in preparation for its deep-space flight. None of the transparency of the spherical force-field was lost in the process, but the lapping water of the surrounding ocean just ceased to permeate its surface area.

‘The power to create is an amazing thing.' Maelgwn shook his head as he resumed his course; such things were never even conceived of in his time.

The city foundations suddenly began to rumble beneath his feet, compelling Maelgwn to make a dash for the closest transporter. Yet instead of making for Gibal, the Dragon willed himself to the rooftop.

 

Maelgwn stepped off the transporter plate, his eyes upturned to view the centre of the dome. The water level had begun to drop down the sides of the invisible force-field, gurgling with agitation as Mazua arose from the depths of the ocean. A clear dawn prevailed on Lura this day and hence surface conditions were calm and still. In short, perfect for take off. In the distance sheer, jagged landforms rose from the water — the steep, rocky terrain had obviously proven useless for human habitation. The journey off the watery terrain of Lura served to make the city's ascent into space even more spectacular, for, as Mazua rose high into the air,
Maelgwn observed that the treacherous landforms extended far into the distance.

 

As the space vessel reached further out into the atmosphere of the planet, waves of coloured light rushed over the transparent field protecting Mazua. At first the wave was red, then orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, ultra-violet and with a great rush of white light, Maelgwn found himself looking out into deep space toward the illuminated entrance of the wormhole.

We are approaching the wormhole, Dragon,
Gibal advised via Maelgwn's communicator.

So I see.
Maelgwn placed a hand over the device he wore to mentally respond.
Should I come below?

Your location within the city will not change the wormhole's effect on you, for it passes through fourth dimensional space, although sometimes there is etheric leakage into the passage. If we pass through a leakage reality can appear to get rather chaotic, for that is the nature of the fourth dimension. Just observe any strange occurrences and don't react to them as the disturbances will right themselves by the time we reach the Sirius system. This passage may seem instantaneous or seem to take forever, but do not panic as time is an illusion after all.

Thanks for the advice. I shall bear it in mind.
Maelgwn let go of the communicator and collapsed onto a floating outdoor lounge to endure what promised to be a truly cosmic episode.

 

As the huge mouth of the time-space tunnel drew
closer, it proved impossible to maintain a reclined position. The bright swirling matter that lined the tubular passageway was mesmerising and Maelgwn's fixation with the glowing, brightly-coloured substance found him seated forward on the lounge, staring hard at it. The wormhole almost seemed to be drawing them in, accelerating them ever faster into its grasp, until suddenly their transport was shot forth at incredible speed. At this point, everything around Maelgwn became blurred. It appeared that every atom that comprised each individual component of the immense city was racing to keep up with the matter to which it was normally bound.

‘Bizarre,' commented Maelgwn, but his voice came out sounding deep and warped to the ear. This amused him greatly, and his laughter sounded as bent as his speech.

A barrier of blue-white light, the like of which Maelgwn had always associated with etheric world occurrence, passed over Mazua, and an eerie, sweet-smelling mist descended.

‘O … h … n … o …!' Maelgwn braced himself for events unpredictable.

A glistening lightform came floating down through Maelgwn's distorted, misty surrounds, and although it had no definable form, its molecular structure appeared completely intact. Until the glowing mass divided into twelve equal parts that circled down to surround the lone warrior.

Just observe.
Maelgwn refrained from voicing his questions and watched intently as each of the twelve portions of etheric light matter assumed a different image
of himself. The event answered most of Maelgwn's unasked questions, for he realised that around him stood the constituents, or human incarnations, that comprised his higher self.

Greetings, Chosen One.
The thought-form that exhibited all the physical traits of the Delphinus broke formation with the circle and moved forward to address him.

Durak?
wondered Maelgwn.

His Delphinus counterpart nodded.
You recognise us for who we are, but if you were more intimately familiar with us, our combined knowledge would enlighten your current situation much. For, at the point in time and space where you stand, I still dwell amongst the living.

This information came as quite a rude shock to Maelgwn.
If you are not dead then where are you?

Now you are aware of my status, I trust you shall be able to deduce that yourself,
Durak, replied as he floated back to his place within the circular formation.