It Rained Red Upon the Arena (18 page)

“A bit skinnier than I imagined,” said the Reza man sitting at the end of the table. “My name is King Dedan Hudson. It is great to finally meet you. Welcome to my home.”

The man had a long white braided beard and a longer set of hair pulled back into a ponytail. He had blue skin as every Reza does but he also had blue eyes, which was unique.

“Thank you, my lord. It is amazing to meet you as well,” said Nick.

Jeffrey walked over to an empty chair and sat down. There was now one chair that was available at the opposite end of the table from the king.

“Take a seat, Nick,” said the king as he held out his hand.

Nick sat down and waited. There were a few moments of silence before the king spoke again.

“Nick, I’m sure you have an idea of why you are here and no longer rotting away in the arena.”

“You want me to become a supreme Reza,” said Nick.

“No, that is not correct, Nick. I do not want you to become a supreme Reza. Hentrio needs you to become a supreme Reza. Every land north, south, east, and west of Hentrio needs you to become a supreme Reza.”

Nick leaned forward in his chair, looked the king dead in the eyes and said, “You have to tell me why the world needs me to become a supreme Reza. Tell me what is going on, sire.”

The king stood up from his lavish chair. He paced back and forth for a bit at the end of the room until he finally stopped and looked down at Nick.

“They call themselves the six. They are six supreme Rezas with an appetite for Hentrio. I understand you encountered one of them while at the Vincot Arena.”

“I did. Yes, my lord,” replied Nick.

“We have had the best spies trying to track them down to see what they are planning. However, we have had no luck with that. Only dead spies. I’ll ask you later about your encounter but for now we can stick with the importance of why you must become a supreme Reza.”

Nick sat in silence as he awaited the next words to come from King Dedan Hudson.

“We fear the worst. That they are planning something devastating. We just don’t know what it is. We have supreme Rezas in Genold City. But what we don’t have and what the six don’t have is a Hetha that is also a supreme Reza. What you have within you will save lives. How many lives? I am unsure about that. But I can guarantee that you will save lives and that you were born to protect Hentrio. You were born to protect it more so than anyone sitting in this room. You just don’t know it yet.”

“So you don’t know what the threat is but you feel that an attack by the six is imminent?” asked Nick.

“The six will make a move soon. We just don’t know what it is or when it will be,” said the king.

Nick nodded his head several times up and down as he digested the information. “So what is it exactly that I have to do to become a supreme Reza? Should I choose to accept.”

“That is the fun part,” said Reed.

“Don’t listen to him,” said the king. “It is anything but the fun part. You will be introduced to a psychedelic plant that enables a Reza to find the supreme Reza that is within them. You will be in a new world in your own mind for a period of time. The only problem is that if the user can not handle the plant they will die.”

Nick sat in silence once again. A few minutes passed before Nick resumed the conversation.

“I know that you are the reason I am a free man, my lord. A few days ago I was in a cell pondering if I would die in the arena or live to see life outside of imprisonment again. With that being said, I would like to make a deal with you.”

“What is it that you have on your mind, Nick?”

“I want you to release a prisoner from the Vincot Arena,” said Nick.

The whole table that had sat quietly the entire meeting began to chatter an uproar.

“Outrageous!”

“We can’t trust him.”

“What an idiotic request.”

“Disrespectful!”

The king pounded his hand onto the table and said, “Silence!”

“Now why would I go and release another inmate, Nick?”

“I would not be here if it wasn’t for him. I would be dead and no one would know that I was a Hetha. He was a teacher to a good man and me. He made one wrong choice that landed him in the arena. But that one choice does not define that man. Just as my one wrong choice does not define me. Have him here in handcuffs until you get to know him if you must. But he is a great warrior and an even better man that I need by my side if I go through with this. I would be risking my life to become a supreme Reza. This is not an outrageous request.”

The council all took turns looking at the king and giving a slight nod of approval.

“You are quite the wise young man, Nick Bint,” said the king. “I will release your friend and have him stay at the castle. However, he will be in handcuffs and he will be deemed to go back to the arena for any given reason. If he so much as talks to someone the wrong way he will be fighting on the sands again.”

“That is a deal,” said Nick. “His name is Phillip Denize.”

“I will send someone in the morning to retrieve him,” said the king. “Now then, do we have a deal?”

“Well, I have one more small request,” said Nick. “I want you to put in a transfer for a Refect in Vincot so that he could work in Genold City. You do not have to force him, simply put in the request and ask him yourself if he would like to serve for you in Genold City. His name is Thomas Bell.”

“I can do that for you, no problem,” said the king. “Now I need you to do something for me.”

“Anything, my lord,” replied Nick.

“Get up and prove to us that you are a Hetha. We all look at you and assume you are just another Paplon. Remove those assumptions from our mind and we can move forward with our plan.”

“What shall I do?” asked Nick.

“Stand in that corner to your right,” said the king. “Now, Andrew, get up and stand in the adjacent corner here.”

The eldest looking man in the room rose from his chair and stood directly across Nick. He was a Reza with blue wrinkly skin. His back was hunched over a bit. He had a long thin beard and a balding head.

“Now, Nick, go ahead and shoot a fire attack at Andrew,” said the king.

“Excuse me?” asked Nick. “I will not put this man on fire just to prove I am a Hetha. I can shoot fire at anything. I can shoot it at the wall.”

“Do it, Nick. Trust me,” said the king.

Andrew stood awaiting Nick’s attack with only his two hands in the air.

Nick stood still and didn’t know what to do. He did not want to potentially kill a man in order to prove who he really was.

Andrew smiled at Nick and said, “Go for it, kid. Trust us. Give me the fire if you truly have it in you.”

Nick felt as if he had no choice. He could not defy his king.

He summoned his hands and launched a swift fireball at Andrew.

Andrew flung his hands up as the fire approached him. The fireball followed his hands. The entire attack ended up on the ceiling above.

Andrew sent ice from his hands onto the ceiling to put out the fire.

Everyone in the room started to laugh while Nick stood in shock.

“There are four supreme Rezas in this room, Nick,” said the king. “You will learn to manipulate an oncoming attack just as Andrew did. You truly are the Hetha. Now we all know. So do we have a deal? Will you become a supreme Reza? Or should I say, attempt to become a supreme Reza?”

“Yes, we have a deal,” said Nick.

“Good. We will start the process in the morning,” said the king. “You will need a good night of sleep, Nick.”

The door which Nick had entered popped open and a Refect burst in, out of breath and said, “My lord!”

“What is it?” asked the king.

“It’s the Genold Arena! It has been broken into and the prisoners are being released into the city!”

“I want every Refect in the city to set up a perimeter in the south quarter. I want them stationed from Beth Road all the way across to Felta Road. There are nearly one thousand inmates in that arena and I don’t want a single inmate to get past them. Go now!”

“We already have some fighting at the entrance of the arena,” said the Refect. “I will send word.”

The entire room stood up.

“I want everyone except for Ron and Dani to get on the streets and help my Refect,” said the king. “Do not let a single inmate loose on the streets. Kill them all if you have to.”

Everyone ran out of the room except for Ron, the king’s man with the raspy voice, the female king’s man, and Nick.

“Dani, go to the south tower and sound the alarm,” said the king. “Every civilian needs to get indoors to safety.”

“Yes, sire,” said Dani.

“Nick, we’ve just met, but the city could certainly use your abilities out there,” said the king.

“I’d be glad to serve you, my lord,” said Nick.

“Good, just head south from the castle road and you will find the Refect,” said the king. “Please help my men. Do not help any inmates; kill them as you did in the sands of the arena. Take a sword from the end of the hall on your way out.”

Nick left the room with haste and traveled towards the battle against the Genold Arena.

Chapter 15

The night was young. A full moon was rising in the black sky as Nick ran south as fast as he possibly could in order to help the Refect. He didn’t have a clue where he could get armor or a shield. All he had was one steel long sword and the clothing given to him to impress the king. It wasn’t the ideal or practical set up for any man or woman going into battle.

As Nick ran down the sandy streets he heard the ringing of a loud bell. People were already in a panic, not knowing what was going on. When the bells started to ring, chaos ensued as everyone crowding the streets made a dash to safely get indoors. Nick had to push and shove his way through the chaotic crowd.

After a few short minutes, the streets began to clear out. The homeless men and women who Nick saw when he entered the city were nowhere to be found. Nick had a clear path now as he picked up his stride to join the others.

As he grew nearer, he heard the clashing of swords and the screams of men and women. The night sky lit up as blasts of fire flew in every direction.

Nick turned a corner and found a mess of dead inmates and Refect laying on the ground. The sand was no longer visible; all he saw was a river of blood. Up ahead he saw the backs of the white armored Refect fighting the oncoming swarm of bloodthirsty inmates.

Nick quickly joined the fight. There was a wall of inmates fighting with swords and magic. Reza and Paplon alike with one goal in mind, freedom. Nick knew first hand how badly an inmate wanted freedom. The majority would do anything for such of a chance.

Nick clashed steel with his right arm and sent out fire and ice with his left. He dropped inmates left and right. A few Refect turned their heads for a moment in awe of the fury of Nick’s attacks.

More and more inmates came storming towards the defensive line that the Refect were holding. The Refect were doing well and Nick gave them all a boost of encouragement they needed to keep holding the line.

Nick was swinging his sword at a Paplon before him and at the corner of his eye he saw a Refect fly backwards onto a wall ten feet behind him. Nick knew right away what type of being was capable of doing that.

Nick put his blade through the Paplon in front of him and saw a man in a black hood about twenty feet to his right. He was sending out a fury of black wave attacks summoned from his hands that killed Refects left and right.

A member of the six.

“We must go back!”

Nick turned his head to discover the gold plated armor of a king’s man behind him; it was Jeffrey.

“Nick, we must go back for our king. This is a decoy!” said Jeffrey.

“The six, they’ve come for our king,” said Nick softly under his breath.

Jeffrey began running in the same direction Nick came from and Nick followed suit.

They ran as fast as they could along the barren empty streets. The clashing of steel in the distance slowly faded away as the two came closer to the entrance of Castle Teon.

Bells started to ring once again, this time in a different pattern of the alarm bell that Dani had set off a mere fifteen minutes ago. The bells were ringing in the tone letting the city know that everything was okay and that the emergency has been called off.

“This is not good; let’s pick it up!” said Jeffrey.

Crowds of people started to come out onto the streets. The looks on their faces were complex. Some were smiling out of relief, some confused, and some angry.

“Go back inside!” yelled Jeffrey. “The threat is still here. Go back!”

No one seemed to listen. The street got extremely crowded. Nick and Jeffrey had to push and shove their way through the crowd.

“Go back!” yelled Jeffrey. “Go back to safety! Go back!”

Nick and Jeffrey finally made it to the edge of the courtyard to Castle Teon. The giant circular street was filled with people. The two men could barely nudge themselves through at this point. They tried to make their way to the grand staircase that led to Castle Teon when Nick looked up at the left balcony that protruded past the staircase where the king normally made vital announcements.

King Dedan Hudson was on the balcony on his knees with a man in a black hood behind him holding a sword to the king’s throat.

Nick tapped Jeffrey and the two stood frozen as they looked up at their king.

The crowd was making a huge commotion talking amongst one another as they witnessed their king held hostage.

“Ladies and gentlemen. Boys and girls. Come, come…gather around,” said the hooded man. “Silence, please; I’d like it very much if there would be silence.”

The crowd simmered down and the courtyard became silent.

“My name is Vicon. I am campaigning to be your next leader. The one you look up to as a king. But I wish to not be a king. I wish to lead Hentrio into a new age. A new age of freedom and hope. An age of change. Unlike this man you see kneeled before you.”

Jeffrey began pushing his way through the crowd towards the stairs. Nick followed behind, brushing against everybody.

“Reza men and women, you have been lied to,” said Vicon. “You have been lied to by this man kneeling before you and every king who has served before him. You wear those white gloves everyday because the world fears you and does not trust you to understand and handle your powers. The best part about that fact is that your true powers have been hidden from you. I have those true powers and my men have those true powers. In the new world everybody will have the fair chance to become the person they were born to be. Powerful, sophisticated, smart, and truthful. You will not be lied to like Dedan Hudson has lied to you. I am going to change a few laws you have grown accustomed to; the rest will stay in place for the time being.”