The Last Heroes Before Judgement (17 page)

“Something’s off, but I can’t place it.”

“Nothing’s off, he got what he deserved.”

“Don’t stop searching my king. There’s something in there for you.”

I tried to pull myself out of their spell with no success. Though Priest Sloan could not see as they saw, he was thoroughly enjoying watching me squirm from having to relive everything.

“That is enough.”

“Mind your place, Swift-black.”

“Father please, we have what we want.”

“Ah, I see how the chain broke. This is the first instance of the blood rage.”

“Powerful forces lurking in the blood sire. Prinn’s got his sample, I say we finish him off before the Emperor gains control. The Lexicon calls to him, won’t be long before he learns to do its bidding.”

“What did the Lexicon of Potentiality tell you of my coming?”

“The gods said it- if we let you live, Ulfbar will burn. It was true.”

“You made me this way! We were north of the road.”

“Shut it. My king,-”

“You wanted this! You wanted the red shadow! You did this to me! You are the reason she left us. You took her from me!”

The blood drenched shadow spilled over from my memories to consume everything I saw. The room took on a glow that persisted with my eyes closed. Whatever the Lantos were looking for, they had taken long enough. Though it seemed impossible to resist them, I refused to let Sloan enjoy the show any longer. They tried to ignore me but I shook, and I stood, and I roared out to them in a rage like no other. I felt the whip tear across my back one final time, then I tore their precious radial from its post and was free to fall to my knees. The whole council shouted out in pain and fell off their chairs as if that last strike had landed on them as well. There I was, bare from above the pants, shaking on the floor, allowing them to see what they had missed. The notaries were on their feet to get a proper account of the incident. Out of instinct, Priest Sloan showed them all firsthand why we were convinced he worshipped the king of the underworld.

“Destruction of UNF property. You’ll pay boy.”

“No don’t-”

After a few steps, Sloan stopped mid-stride. His face turned truly evil and he turned to stare at the princess. The center-seated elder leaned around the king to yell at her.

“You dare to exert control over an ally?”

She looked down at her hands and then quickly looked away to hide her tears. Sloan was released from the strange sorcery and threw open his robe. He had barely unrolled his favorite whip when Major Swiftblade ripped it from his hand and punched him right in the teeth. Bratley ran in between them and then dove to the floor. We were all so confused that he managed to gain the full attentions of everyone in the room.

“This is a Niner, with talon hooks.”

“Their plenty legal in Slorrick. Now,-”

“But, it’s still tainted with the boy’s blood. Sire, this must be the source of the contagion. All those women, you gave them the pox. This whole time, it was you.”

Sloan smacked the whip from Bratley’s hand but immediately stopped moving. Caliya was rising to her feet and trembling with anger. I could see the red shadow was taking control of her.

“You bring arms into my domain. You commit great evils in the name of the crown- my crown. And you would bring a pox on my house to feed your own lust for power.”

“Release me girl.”

“I will release you…from this world!”

Her high pitched scream filled the dome and shook the very ground beneath our feet. Sloan’s hands betrayed him then, and they clamped down around his own throat. She choked the life out of him until she was the one out of breath. The king stood and put a hand over the forward hilt of her crown. As if the Soul Glass were the source of her power, she immediately fell silent and sat down. Sloan gasped and gulped in air while moaning in fear and pain. He was scrambling to his feet when Bratley opened the side door.

“Daaron, can you please remove the underpriest before he so foolishly insults the princess any further.”

The man who followed Bratley out of the side room was Sloan’s worst nightmare. His skin was blacker than Major Swiftblade’s and, at a whole head taller, was nearly the size of Major Bloodaxe. He was a Nubian Tall Black, one of the last. He walked over to the gasping priest and snatched him up by the back of the neck. Just like the pup being carried by the scruff, Sloan went limp in Daaron’s grasp.

“Sire, if he truly worships the underKing, should I not simply brake him?”

“Wha-oh. Just a slip of the tongue. Very catchy boy, you are good at those.”

“Very well.”

Bratley snatched up the whip and ran it to the next room while Daaron carried the underpriest out of the dome, holding him out like a piece of rotting garbage.

“A vote; I move to drop one count of grand theft, and one count of spreading plague.”

“Second.”

“This proves nothing.”

“Agreed.”

“He does not deserve the chance to prove us wrong.”

“I already have, you tired old traitor. You knew what the underpriest was up to and only your authority could have convinced a guard to silence a witness.”

“How dare you?”

I spoke out of turn, which was my way. When the little red haired man shouted a non-answer, Major Swiftblade finished the line of accusation.

“Under whose authority were the guards ordered to kill spotted children on sight? And, for which crime? Having been born, or, having borne witness to your crimes?”

The old one stood and shook his fist at me. My tired body was unaffected by his weak mind, which only angered him further. He slammed his fist down and grabbed his cane, stomping off as best he could for a man of such age.

“Good show child. Very good.”

The lady on the far right nodded and left the room with much more grace. I crawled back to the crystal’s beam of light and soaked it in. After a few breaths, someone closed the dome’s opening. Without even looking back I knew it to be the other old man with a red-tipped beard. I stared at the wall while I got dressed and flexed my horribly scarred back muscles at him. While I still had the attention of the king, I raised my hand to ask him a question.

“Yes I noticed this pattern. It’s very ancient, very primal. Even the Opa do this. Once the pain is over, he seeks to heal his mind the power learning something new. Am I correct?”

“Exactly right sir. May I?”

“Ask away.”

“Highness, he’s not one of us. The Lexicon seeks to learn as well.”

“Unfortunately for the Magi and their precious Lexicon, I do not believe in ghosts.”

“Rather the Lexicon than chaos. I’ll focus on what I can see coming, you can fish for the golden hydra.”

Kane motioned for me to continue with the whole room listening.

“Sir, I understand the ‘why.’ Your enemies are older than your inventions, so I understand why the Drakkah are not powered by Swillian flash powder. My question is, how?”

“Whale oil boy, nothing more. Now go.”

I was not satisfied by the rude Lantos interjecting, so I turned and shut him down.

“Whale oil is not corrosive, nor explosive. The static lighters only ignite the fumes, thus allowing the globes to burn for an hour’s worth of air. I am no fool, sir.”

“Very good son, He-olt taught you well. Allow me to explain, the way a commoner would. There is an extinct sea monster once known as ‘The Shimmering Creeper.’ Have you heard of such a thing?”

“No sir. Is it like a shark that breathes fire?”

“Ha! Close enough. Though, much more frightening. They shock the water in a swarm and leave men paralyzed. Rather than drowning, they slowly sink into the darkness, still holding in their last breath, whilst being eaten alive.”

“Nasty. And you, harvest fire from this beast?”

“Precisely, we harvest their spines for processing. Makes an unstoppable gel called Nitrosus. You understand how the cartridge works?”

“Of course, contents under pressure and all that. But sir, if they’re extinct…”

“We are in possession of the last creepers in the world. But do keep an eye out for us.”

“Yes sir. Thank you sir. Thought I was going crazy trying to smell for flash powder, but it wasn’t even there to begin with.”

“And there goes that smile. You see, his mind is all healed up, just like that. A natural knack for resisting sessions of torture.”

I turned red in the face but found it impossible to hide my smile. The princess blushed when I nodded goodbye and, once again, only the king returned my salute. Bratley led us out of the dome shaking his head.

“Don’t know how you broke the radial, or how we’ll fix it. Good show Matthius. You left us without a shadow of doubt. You are not guilty at all, just lacking in any and all forms of luck. I truly am sorry about your girl.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence, sir Bratley. Am I still your favorite tall?”

“Oh- by far, by far! Do be safe out there. Take care of yourself as well, Monster Hunter.”

Major Swiftblade nodded down at Bratley and walked back towards the crowd of beggars. My face flushed red again, wondering how many of them had heard what transpired. I did not see the underpriest but kept an eye out for his assassins. No matter how terrible the council had been, I had passed their tests. From then on, my life’s worth would be decided by my own actions. As it stood, they did not yet trust me so much as to let me know where I might be tomorrow.

We followed the catwalk as far north as it lasted and turned left into town where the water pipe shot vertically up the remainder of the mountain. The rock face showed that faded but uniform block pattern. There was another battle tower hiding beneath the surface and if anyone took the city I’m sure the flow of water would have been easily cut off. The winding slope was filled with carts, so we took the foot path. The amount of cargo moving in and out was supported by a walled off dock being worked by hundreds of men wearing the silver swirl implants. Here in the capitol, the people could not afford to risk employing civilian longshoremen, they were all on the official governing body’s payroll- likely the Logistical Operations Division. The UNF side of the lake had an expansive merchant’s dock, both on land and along the boardwalk. The wooden piers stretched out a hundred paces easy, allowing for multiple cargo ships to load or unload on each side.

“Senjay! Over here, Senjay. Hey, I thought I’d never see you again.”

“Right away I know you got into some trouble in there.”

He put his arm around me and spun me to survey the eastern expanse whilst biting his lip and staring sideways around me.

“Mush mouth, mush mouth. Shush. Mush mouth…”

“Don’t worry, they have a separate ramp for armored escorts. Just leave the boy so there’s no more trouble.”

“Matthius.”

“Sir.”

I spun around too quickly and Major Swiftblade looked at me cross for eavesdropping. Senjay looked off in several other directions, pretending to be confused and unawares.

“Stay here. Do not get into any more trouble.”

“What?”

He held up his hand and I gave up on explaining myself. After living in a murder filled hell for a decade, Major Swiftblade just wanted some peace and quiet. Only once we had left did it occur to me that he must have been put through a similar test. I was not the only one whom had been forced to relive the worst moments of their life, and his nightmares were surely much worse.

“Yea, called it mate. What happened? Come on, spill it.”

“Firstly, it weren’t me.”

Senjay was always easy to talk to and he made a joke of everything I said. He even went so far as to claim he was jealous of me for getting all the attention. According to him, the briefing was over so quickly there was only enough time to be yelled at once for engaging the princess with improper conversation. Neither he nor Lazarus had had their minds invaded by the king himself.

“Bit too late now, I’m afraid.”

“No worries brother. They already had a problem with the things that I said to her. I couldn’t imagine granting them access to what I thought about her.”

“Ha!”

Our laughter went unnoticed in all the noise, and pier nine was the loudest area by far. The Lokah of pier ten were a flashy and dangerous looking buffer between us and the holy lands They were also having more fun and moving more cargo than their cousins stationed at pier one. The middle of the docks showed the melting pot of nationalities supporting the merchants. But pier nine was naught but the most giant Cairan men with a mix of accents from all across the union and the world. Once they had finished poking fun at our ridiculous turtle costumes, they left us alone. Lucky for us, considering most of them could have been born of the same House as Daaron.

“Who’s that you nodded to?”

“That was Sergeant Senta, first class and commanding and all that. He recognized the Talon from Ulfbar.”

“Lucky to be out here, must have left Ulfbar just in time. Speaking of which, where do you think you’ll end up? I mean, when it’s all over.”

“I don’t rightly know. Embraun’s just a temporary hub for everyone who aint the first born son of a lord. It’s all royal blood, hard labor, and then get out of town before you can have any fun at all.”

“No fun? You say no fun but you mean no trouble.”

“Yea, and the only way to pass the wall and properly stretch the legs is to apply for a license to mercenary. Look it, here they come now.”

There were three of them, oafs if I had ever seen one. The Lokah guard did not seem too pleased about them taking the stairs, but were more than happy to assist them in getting out of their tower. The biggest pushed a young guard back through the door and slammed it closed on himself from the outside. It was not my first time witnessing a brute do what a brute does. However, their laughter was rooted in more than just a brash sense of humor, they were White Coal.

Miners from birth, and naught but a bright white caveman skin to show for it. Bald heads, bare arms, and enhanced by the same powerful silver rings as everyone else. Just like Tram, they had too much of that power diverted into feeding their own egos.

“Notice they got swords? Not even all the guards got a license to carry in town.”

“We are not going to end up like them.”

“You think so? They haven’t got a single rule…matey.”

“Lazarus wouldn’t allow it. And, they’re not pirates- just fools. We have a purpose. We serve the people in accordance with a higher code of honor. I feel sorry for whomever hired these men on. I would not trust them to have my back.”

Senjay nodded with a sour look on his face. We would not have appeared any friendlier, as we were standing there with our arms folded squinting against the water’s glare of the random rays of sunlight. Sergeant Senta finished his round up the length of the pier and pointed out at us.

“You two look like trouble out here. Who’s the little boy?”

“Matthius sir, newly reformed Commando.”

“Is he going to be alright? Ugh, officers- get younger every year.”

“Got company Sarge.”

Sergeant Senta did not return my salute, and even seemed offended. Senjay led his glance over to the mercenary group. They were wandering closer to the border wall amongst the merchants and their many wares. As the decent folk checked their cargo and payed up for transportation fees, the rowdy bunch was pilfering whatever took their fancy.

“That’s a practiced move their sir-uh, Sergeant. You see the big one causing a scene, number two forms a wall of stupidity, and no one sees the last thief make his move.”

“Alright junior, he can stay. Corporal!”

The corporal sped down the pier to belay his whispered command. Senta led all the men on pier nine in a change of uniform. They downgraded to shirtless and celebrated by shouting hilarious insults at one another. The sudden explosion of noise was impossible to ignore, and the foolhardy mercs fell for the most dangerous trap I had ever seen. Even Sergeant Senta, at my height and with the many decades he must have put in to climbing the union ranks, was at least three feet wide. The silver swirls transformed men into such dangerous things. I understood why the hilts, in particular, were reserved only for officers. Better to have only one Bloodaxe.

“Oh, I see. You thought I wanted you to salute me, but we aren’t even lieutenants yet.”

“No, you are not.”

He spoke short but I was right. Both he and Senjay were rolling their shoulders back. I kept trying to speak calmly. As Major Swiftblade said, provocation is a fool’s errand.

“Yep. Hasn’t been a Commando in the union since the Bloodaxe was locked up. Peace has that effect. Most of the standing armies are just for show as it is. Once we get this alliance down south with the Zonyans, it’ll be all about that navy. Sorry bub. First Commandoes in a long time, and you will likely be the last.”

Sergeant Senta spoke plainly. I found it refreshing. His leadership was clearly hard earned and well respected. Most of the Lokah who were not busy on the final pier downgraded their uniforms as well, gathering closer to us on the boardwalk. At the first hint of a fight, some let down their long manes, and some wrapped their hair up into a top knot. The corporal returned with his shirt off, wearing a head wrap, flexing and calling out for attention. The ruse had already worked, and we backed away to watch it happen. I did not think for one moment that I need be involved. Sergeant Senta took care of his own, and this was likely not the first time some cocky mercs would earn a thorough beating. The implants would quickly heal their bodies, just not their egos.

“Will, put your shirt on and fetch the Lieutenant.”

“Aw, boss man?”

“Don’t talk back. Move dammit. All of you get back to work.”

“That’s right boy, put your shirt on and move it along.”

The smallest of them spoke with a familiar voice. I did not recognize his face, but I did catch the bag of stolen goods he had hidden under his overhanging belly. Corporal Will saw it as well.

“I know you aint talking to my corporal like that. I must have had the sun in my eye. I must have misheard you. Why don’t you just keep moving so there aren’t any more misunderstandings?”

“Well, actually…”

The leader of the bunch was the only one who had gone bald naturally. He was more confident than the rest and he stepped forward to meet any and all challengers.

“You got it all wrong bub. That’s not what he was saying at all.”

“That’s good news, now move it along.”

“Afraid I can’t do that. Least not ‘til you apologize for misrepresenting my mates, you ugly black Opa.”

“You’re right, I am sorry- for your mother.”

Everyone within earshot called out about the man’s poor mother, and worse, how he had always disappointed her. Senjay and I could not contain our laughter, and the outnumbered party was more than happy to shift their attentions over to the two of us.

“You keep laughing along with them Swillian. Meanwhile, the massacre at Nubia was the one and only thing the empire ever done right. What do you think boys?”

He was not the first man to connect me to the genocide, but it was the first time anyone dared mention it in a positive light. His men cackled and gathered closer behind him to show their support. I saw Corporal Will approaching from the west side of the docks with the Majors Talon and Swiftblade, so I grit my teeth and stayed out of trouble as best I could. However, Senjay did not feel so inclined. I had no choice to back his move.

“The three of you are no more than common thieves. Hand over what you got to the big Sarge in charge before he orders me to break your teeth.”

“There you go again, misrepresenting my mates.”

“Careful boss, that’s the son of Omar Stonefist. I remember him from Ulfbar.”

“Is that right? Well, we’re truly honored then. Aint we boys? To be face to face with the knockout king his self, only to see him reborn as this sweet little twig. Your father would be ashamed of you, working for the UNF, all official like. Just look at your uniform, like a frail little turtle. You wouldn’t make enough soup for the lot of us.”

The more he spoke, the more Senjay trembled with a fury. His left fist instinctively turned outward in preparation for the dangerous uppercut he would soon deliver. Unfortunately for them, their master’s monologue went on for too long. Will was in position behind them, and Major Talon had heard enough to boil her blood.

“You, fat man. Look at me. Shut your mouth. Leave my sight.”

Most of the dock workers had slowed to watch the situation unfold. Then they even egged it on, rooting for Major Talon. They stuck to repeating the most gruesome tale of her once having cut a man in half with a butter knife during the pirate wars, suggesting that they would be next.

“Who gave you permission to speak, girl?”

Senjay was so angry he spit, and it landed right on the fool’s face. Will used the distraction to snatch the bag of stolen goods. The thief cried out in a familiar tone, and was too slow. The bag was tossed to Sergeant Senta, who then tossed it over his shoulder. A Lokah man caught the bag and carried it across the border, daring them chase after him.

“My, my, what has become of you? You’re not even a thug for hire. Nothing but a lowly thief nowadays. What was your silly posh name again? Clarence, wasn’t it?”

The mention of his name flooded the air with laughter and cat-calls, as well as flooding his face with blood. Without the day’s take to keep hidden, they had no more reason to back down than we did. It was customary in Ulfbar to send the smallest out first in a fight, keeping the biggest brawlers in reserve just in case. Out of instinct, I moved in several paces before stopping abruptly, and turning to Major Swiftblade.

“Sir, may I?”

He was tired of fighting for everything, but understood that I was only getting started. He looked at Clarence, and back to me, and then slowly nodded his approval. The guard turned mercenary turned thief was not a natural born fighter. A three-mealer from the House of Tonney, it was likely his first fight. Before he could turn his head back to me I had closed the gap between us.

Just like Lazarus, I led with a heavy right. I followed with another and another until he had no choice but to hide his head and try a tackle. I wrapped my arm around his neck but could not reach around my shells for the full choke. He seized the opportunity to push until I was on my back. He fooled around so much that I laughed at him, and shrugged at Major Swiftblade.

“Hold that arm still. No, leave it on your shoulder, now pull your knee up.”

It was hard to focus on following orders while fighting a man, no matter how eager I was to learn from a true master. Once I had my knee raised as far as it could go, I prompted him for the next bit of instruction.