The Chronicles of Heaven's War: Burning Phoenix (96 page)

Lowenah clasped her hands behind her,
rocking slowly back and forth on her heels. “My child’s kingdom is
new in so many ways, and to no other person shall her rulership be
given. It is a holy and pure kingship, her own sacrificial blood
cleansing it so long ago. Like the son of her adoptive forefather
who built a holy temple to me with cleansed hands, the hands of my
royal king-priest shall, with cleanliness, keep the throne of her
kingdom.”

A curious silence filled the room, the
thought weighing upon everyone’s minds at how such a thing could be
done if war loomed on the horizon. How could their new king remain
free of bloodstains of the upcoming cataclysm that in vision they
earlier observed? Lowenah did not keep them waiting long.

“At one time, I journeyed into the Worlds
Below, spreading my spirit over a woman of simple means so that the
son she bore became divinely handsome and comely in appearance.
This son I peered out at through a burning tree, my heart aflame
over his beauty. So it was that I sent my beautiful child away to
change times and seasons, he stretching his hands wide across the
waters, parting seas to set my servants free. But it was by Aaron’s
mouth and rod that I delivered devastation upon my child’s
enemies.”

“So much did I love this child that, upon my
own daughter, Michael, I bestowed the name ‘Greater Moses’. This
darling child of mine will also change times and seasons by
spreading her arms wide in coming days and clutching hold of the
throat of the Evil Worm, thus bringing all his works to nothing.
Yet as with the former, so it is with the latter. The ‘Greater
Aaron’ shall wield the rod of destruction in coming days, your
king’s mouth being silent except for declaring when those days
shall begin.”

She waved a hand about in gesture. “It was
Aaron’s rod that ate the enemy’s serpents, turned the waters to
blood, that brought Pharaoh’s house down to the dust, and it was
Aaron’s rod that budded, proving that
my
spirit was on him.
You!”
She swept her arms wide.
“
You
are the rod of Aaron, the budded fruitage of my
belly. My spirit is with you, proof that my spirit is upon my
Greater Aaron!”

The room remained quiet. This was not a
riddle Mother was weaving, but something far more profound. Never
had she referred to her children as ‘weapons of destruction’…
obedient tools to be wielded at the discretion of another. It is
the chill wind that is often the harbinger of a violent maelstrom
approaching. That chill swept up the backs of many a veteran
pondering the meaning of those words.

Lowenah rested hands on hips as she bowed
her head and began to slowly pace. “My Aaron is not a person, an
individual, like my darling Michael. Aaron is become the power and
might of this holy nation that will drive from these Realms our
wicked foe. It is to this power and might… those who stand the
bridge directing it… that all of you must bow in obedience without
question or revolt. Not to my chosen king, but to this power will
you, my weapons of destruction, be given, for that power to do with
you as it chooses, for you to do its bidding without question.”

She stopped, looking toward the ceiling. “In
those hands will the fortunes of war be weighed. These agents I
have personally forged to do my bidding. Only to me are they called
to account, they declaring no other man their king, god, or master.
They invent the destiny of nations, of worlds. No laws bind them,
no ruler commands them, and no council holds them accountable.
Indeed! The day of the councils is finished!”

There was an audible gasp from the crowd.
The time of the councils was ancient, existing before the end of
the First Age. The councils had defined the life and customs of
Lowenah’s children down to this very day. Why, even Asotos claimed
to hold the councils sacred, professing to follow their direction
in his decision making - a lie, of course. With no councils, there
would be no negotiators to sue for peace, other than… No, their new
king would be powerless to stop the warring once it began. So it
would fall upon the other powers – Aaron - to decide the fate of
all.

Lowenah clenched her fists, leaning toward
the crowd. “So it is to my
Aaron
that all knees should bend
in regards to war.
To follow them is to follow me!
Do not
question what they command, or look with disgust at what they may
demand of you. Remember this: in your obedience to their orders,
should you even strike down one innocent and pure in heart and
thought, even a favored child of mine, to you there will not be
held an accounting, for you are but a willing tool in Aaron’s
hands.”

She lowered her head, hands clasped in
relaxed pose. “It has not been without counsel that I have come to
these decisions. True, the day of the Law Councils has passed, but
always will a multitude of counselors be appropriate, for many are
the beams of light a spectrum reveals, bringing clarity to a
colorless world. So now, please, allow me voice to explain so that
I may reveal to you secrets, so that Aaron you will
understand.”

Lowenah stared into the shadows as if
searching for someone. “No longer do we find a pontifex maximus,
one sole agent who rules over our military force. My daughter-king
stands as the
only
one
in my kingdom, and that in her
glory and majesty. The power of the military will be - is too great
for but one to any longer command it, so into several branches has
it been split. The central branch is that of the Army. There you
will find the field marshal. The Army is the core - the trunk, so
to speak - thus all other branches are born to lend support, first,
to it. This field marshal shall wield the greatest authority when
decisions are made regarding coming warfare, yet may be overruled
if the will of the others is greater.”

“I have already chosen this field marshal.
You witnessed her ferocity at the Prisoner Exchange. Trust me on
this... Searched the hearts of all my children living and dead I
have, and no greater candidate did I find other than this woman to
lead my children through the coming darkness.” She extended a hand
of invitation. “My daughter, ElaiaKallos - better known to you as
‘Trisha Qa·Shaib·Jal’ - please come here and stand by my side.”

Trisha slowly stood and made her way over to
Lowenah. Turning to the crowd in recognition, one could not help
but see tears running down the woman’s face. She had been called
‘
daughter’
by the Maker of Worlds, her precious childhood
name announced to all present!

Lowenah continued, “Your admiral of the
fleet is none other than our most deserving leader, Gabrielle.
‘Daughter of the Jade’, and ‘Child of the Mist’, my most precious
of children returned to us from the shadow-darkness when this
Rebellion was young, her sword not resting through this long and
tiring contest.” Gabrielle joined Lowenah and Trisha under the
lights in the middle of the room.

There was more. “The role of our new Army is
to hammer our enemy into destruction, driving him from our worlds.
It must then be allowed to concentrate itself in a fist wherever
the need for such power is demonstrated. For this reason, changes
within certain branches of the military were deemed necessary. So
it is with the Marines. As is currently the responsibility of this
department, the Marines will continue to support the soldiering of
the Navy’s ships and garrisoning of distant outposts. Some
squadrons of Marine sky fighters will continue to fight alongside
Navy and Army commands.”

“It has been decided that all Marine
officers having captain’s rank or higher must also be qualified
naval officers, their various ranks being somewhat equal to their
Navy brethren. I need not bore you with any details. They will be
forthcoming directly. The Marines will also be responsible for our
lightning campaigns, where quick mobility and rapid response are
required. Clandestine activities will often be placed in their
hands.”

She pointed toward someone hidden in the
crowd. “The one known as the ‘Wandering Warrior’, the ‘Scalp
Hunter’, Planetee has offered her services to be the Marines’
commodore general.”

Planetee wiggled from her seat, squeezing
Jebbson’s hand as she stood. As she made her way forward, Jonathan
stared in disbelief. Surely this was the same woman who sat with
them but the other night, repudiating her own sanity while
recommending the bottle’s cure. He marveled aloud at this woman’s
tenacity and inner resolve. “Into the fire...” he murmured as she
approached the others.

Lowenah went on to explain. “The Marines
will act co-dependently with the Navy, its commodore general
accountable to the admiral of the fleet. As I have said, its
primary mission is to protect the fleet and its many outposts, but
will also, when possible, become the point of the spear when
forcing new attacks on the enemy.”

Lowenah now revealed an entirely new aspect
of the military. “Clandestine activities are not new to you, but up
‘til this day have been inventions of the moment, when deemed
necessary, and orchestrated by local command. We also have oft
depended on any friendly Wildcatters to act as commerce raiders,
carrying on our deep space warring while our navies sallied forth
in mighty fleets to confront the enemy. Well, all that is about to
change! After studying the recent history in the Lower Realms, and
hearing persuasive dissertations by a certain Richard Finhardt, it
has been concluded that a new branch of military must be instituted
to meet upcoming needs.”

She pointed into the shadows again. “Allow
me please, to introduce you to the commander over the Beowulf, our
Special Forces - Centurion General Sarah Cnidus.”

The room was silent, no one moved. Soon
people were looking about to see who this new centurion general
was. A few had heard Sarah’s name whispered, and a few others had
assumed the person to be an Off-worlder, but only a small handful
knew her. Slowly and silently, as if rising up from the depths of
death itself, Sarah stood, pausing to readjust her uniform, and
then quietly made her way over to Lowenah.

Lowenah beamed with the pride of a new
mother. She hugged Sarah, and then made the woman bend down to
receive a tender kiss on her lips. Still holding Sarah’s hand,
Lowenah explained, “Long have I worked with this child. She is the
‘serpent hiding under the rocks’, the ‘assassin who puts the
hemlock in the wine’, and the ‘thief who searches for treasure in
secreted places’. Long have you heard whispers of her intrigues,
but today you come face to face with the one you have called the
‘Gravemaker’.”

There was an audible gasp followed by
deathly silence as the stunned crowd stared in amazement at this
‘god revealed’. Rumor had long sounded the exploits of this person,
but few believed them really true, or to be the work of but one,
yet Mother was declaring it to be so with proof.

Sarah did little more than bow her head when
introduced. Trisha reached out and squeezed her hand, smiling as
she looked up into the woman’s face. Lowenah grinned. “The Beowulf
will reach out beyond your frontiers, deep into enemy territory to
bring war to them. Their trade routes will burn bright with the
wreckage of flaming transports while their outposts will be laid
waste, forcing the enemy to expend vast amounts of resources
protecting its home front.”

“Although the Beowulf is independent of the
other military branches, it remains part of it and will act in
accordance with the needs of it. General Richard Finhardt…” she
motioned for the man to stand, “and his team will work with Army
and Navy Intelligence to make the Beowulf into an effective
fighting machine. Often you will find Beowulf forces entrenched
with the other military branches when need dictates.”

While the others remained standing with her,
Lowenah went on. “This is not to say that the Children’s Empire
fights the upcoming war alone. No, Indeed! Thanks to the tireless
efforts of certain negotiators, we have acquired the allegiance of
several independent colonies - the major Wildcatter Guilds, and
even the Witches of KordianHasur, Ancients who have sworn eternal
vengeance upon Legion and his hordes!”

Many in the crowd were amazed. True, reports
from the Prisoner Exchange whispered rumors regarding the Witches
of KordianHasur, and since many Wildcatters considered themselves
allies of the Children’s Empire, that came as little surprise. But
to hear they had offered their allegiance? Well, that was something
to celebrate!

Lowenah did not give them time, though. “As
you know, the Stasis Pirates have been a constant threat to our
eastern colonies. They harry our citizens and attack our shipping,
ever waiting with a hungry eye to devour the innocent with their
corvettes and luggers, gifts of our Enemy Worm. Well, this will no
longer be tolerated! See! Now has come the gathering of the
cave
wasps
who will search out the
spiders
of the Trizentine
to bring them to a finish.”

The room went silent in anticipation.
Lowenah excitedly exclaimed,
“Behold! The Cave Wasps! From the
distant ranges of Tarezabar Jeiriea, the Ring-of-Fire, the Crimson
Fleets have come to join us!”

Two men and a woman stood. As they made
their way forward, Lowenah called out, “My wild children, so long
ago forgotten, have returned to us in this late hour of need to
offer up their souls in our behalf. Welcome, please, the admirals
of the Crimson Fleet who join us on our flanks!”

Dressed only in long capes, sandals and
morion-shaped helms, the three admirals gathered themselves to the
others standing around Lowenah. Treston leaned over, whispering in
Sirion’s ear, “If I didn’t know better, I’d say that Apollonius was
one of them...” They both laughed quietly.

Ancient these children were, among the
oldest of those born to Lowenah. Even Chasileah could little recall
these people. Scant, at best, were the stories of these sojourners,
their tales often told as little more than bedtime stories, if ever
told at all. Yet here they were, returned from their self-imposed
exile, a people innocent as regards this Rebellion, to support
their Mother in her desperate hour. Standing before them,
representing all the Tarezabarian people were Admirals TaqaEsem,
Zabinea Tizkertina, and UtechPhorsumai, all come at this critical
juncture.