by Chris Fox
“Are we going all the way to the mountain?” I hesitated on the trail, where Ghora had stopped. Making it down the mountain would take hours if we walked. And reaching the tomb probably two or three days of tough hiking through tougher backcountry.
“No.” Ghora shoved the top of her walking stick in her mouth and bit off the end as if she were eating a pretzel. “We have journeyed as far as we need to. Our mother’s brilliance can be observed from a vast distance.”
A mighty spectral form roared up from the mountain, vague and indistinct, and very nearly lost to the brilliance of the sun. Lantern eyes fell on me, and I beheld the ghost of a goddess, one that studied me with a malevolence that suggested she was very much conscious, and not at all like most of the fallen gods you’d encounter at a place like this.
“Yes, I exist.” The dragon spat the words, and they thundered across the valleys and mountains, echoing to all the Kamizas. “I am an echo of my former greatness, but I will live again. My children have empowered me. Once more I can speak and manifest, though I am but a shadow. Visiting you as I do now costs much, but I do it to honor you, Jerek of Kemet, refugee from a world taken by those who support the Confederacy. Robbed of your people by the Inurans, and now sent here to fatten you up, so they may sacrifice you in their new war. Is that not always the way of it?”
How did you respond to that?
Ghora stared pointedly at me when I didn’t answer immediately. “You can speak in a normal volume. She will hear.”
So I spoke. “Yeah, that’s pretty much always the way of it.” Agreeing seemed intelligent. I stepped to the edge of the cliff beside the trail, and offered the spectral goddess my full attention. “I lost my world, and most of my people. There’s only a handful left now. I came here to learn to protect them. I know the Confederacy will try to use me, but as Necrotis will try to kill me it still sounds like the better end of the deal.”
“This new threat is dangerous,” Nebiat allowed as her form loomed over the mountain we stood upon. She seemed to like looming. “And surely you must have more power if you are to resist. I can grant you that power.”
“What’s the price?” I didn’t mince words. I knew there would be one.
“The truth.” Nebiat’s features twisted in sudden rage, but it wasn’t directed at me. “I was murdered in cold blood by my own allies due to a simple misunderstanding. We could have worked together to oppose Nefarius, but instead they betrayed me. Frit I don’t blame. She’d been duped by Voria, and trained by the Confederacy to take their orders like a hunting hound. But Voria I do blame. The Confederacy I do blame. If you would take covenant with me, then I will offer spirit magic. But you will swear to bring the truth of what happened here back to the galaxy. You will create a documentary that I will approve, and you will get Voria to agree to allow its distribution.”
The price was…a documentary? I honestly had no idea how to respond. I didn’t really want any connection to Nebiat. Back at college parties there was always that stage five clinger everyone knew to avoid. Nebiat was that clinger.
I didn’t give a crap about the documentary. I’d make that, and I bet Voria would allow it…but then this lady would be permanently connected to me. Not to mention the fact that this might become my afterlife. I did not want my soul coming to Nebiat when I died.
“Most venerable of Wyrms.” I bowed low. Reaaallllly low. “I cannot accept your covenant, for I have already taken covenant with Xal’Nara, and she is a jealous mistress.” She wasn’t really, but I feel like she’d have had my back in that regard. “I agree that you have suffered a great injustice. If you wish it, I will record a documentary telling your side—I mean telling the truth of what happened here this day.”
“You are refusing the power I offer?” Her spectral eyes narrowed to slits.
“I am, mighty goddess.” I straightened from my bow.
“I see. You have made your choice.” Her form began to shrink, slowly at first, and then with more speed. The spectral body slunk back into the mountain, but the sense of malevolent attention didn’t slacken in the slightest.
I had the feeling I’d just made a fatal mistake.
Interlude IV - A Goddess Scorned
Nebiat’s rage could not be contained. Not in her spectral form. Not in the immensely powerful body she’d constructed. She longed to destroy. To rend. And her thoughts were answered by the primals drawn to her divinity.
The banshees and wraiths and spites and angers flooded from her lands, surging into the wilds, and eventually the cities, where unwary citizens would swiftly become prey. The unliving would cease such attacks, when her mood softened, but so long as it soured, her people suffered.
A fitting repayment for the countless slights that had been offered her in life. Nebiat had always done the right thing, always safeguarded her people. In the end she’d given her magic, and her life, to right this place. To bring back her people as a species rather than to allow them to be snuffed out in a final war, as her father would have welcomed.
Nebiat willed a wisp of spectral power to flow from her stone prison. It wormed through the forest and up the trails, slowly and unerringly snaking up the mountain as it sought her closest available servant.
No thicker than a human’s thumb, but kilometers long now, it crept through the darkened trails until it finally reached the Kamiza proper. She slithered over the wall, and then through the opened door and into the barracks where the prideful human slept.
He’d offered to bring the documentary back, but she’d seen through the deception in his words. Once the human left her world he’d be just as treacherous as every other human, and would betray her. He’d refuse to tell the truth, and instead blatantly break his word so he could toady up to Frit and Voria.
She would not have it. She cared nothing for this war, or this Necrotis. The woman might be a threat to Voria, but her magic would find no purchase on this world. Both Nebiat and Frit possessed too many followers, and could draw upon great power to defend this place.
The Earthmother was not so out of reach as the sector believed, and while they could not resurrect their long-departed mother they could most certainly animate her skeleton, and utilize it as a weapon against any would be invader. Amplified by the worship of the world it would be a formidable force, even for a Great Ship.
So she didn’t need Jerek. She didn’t care what became of the Word of Xal, though if the armor really was the key to controlling the ship, her followers could take that and add its might to the Krox arsenal.
This jumped-up relic hunter would pay for his own sins, and the sins of the Confederacy. She would make an example of him, and send a message back to the humans and the Inurans and the Shayans…you had a chance at an alliance, and you rejected it.
Frit did not speak for all their people, and now the Confederacy would know about the growing minority who saw the truth for what it was. They had no place in this alliance, no need to be a part of the pantheon. There could be peace, if they wished, but this alliance? This allowing their enemies to train upon their world?
It ended tonight.
Nebiat’s tendril flowed to the base of the first bed, where a hatchling slumbered. He and his two companions had taken covenant many years past, and were both true believers. Then it split, and reached for their minds as well. All three were pliant. Ready.
“Awaken,” she whispered into their dreams, “awaken and punish the heretic, the nonbeliever. Kill him and bring his armor to my Tomb so that I might honor you properly.”
All three hatchlings rose silently to their scaled feet as they blinked away sleep. They eyed Jerek’s sleeping form across the barracks, and began arming themselves as they prepared to kill him.
Almost Nebiat pitied the young heretic. He could have been an ally if she’d gotten to him before Voria. Such a pity he had to die.
13
Not Fair
I woke up to frantic chiming from my armor, and as my eyes snapped open and began to focus I imm
ediately noted the angry red on the paper doll over the helmet.
Instincts took over and the fear of Ghora made me activate a blink spell. I went straight up and appeared over the roof of the barracks, outside and out of sight.
My helmet sizzled and hissed as acid ate through it, and I scooped off a handful and flung it to the stone in disgust. A glance through the floor with my sight told me that the three hatchlings had finally decided to make their play and put me down. I didn’t know why, but that hardly mattered, did it?
I eased Dez from my shoulder and smiled savagely down through the stone at the first target as they tried to puzzle out where I’d gone. Two of them looked up, but only one seemed to suspect that I’d left the building entirely. The other scanned the shadows as if I might have been hiding inside.
“Man, I love implode.” I gripped Dez in both hands, and she thrummed eagerly as I cast a base magnitude implode. That would get scarier as I got stronger, but even at its lowest level the implode spell can kill most people.
Nothing visible occurred. The hatchling who’d guessed I was outside simply clutched at its chest, and then toppled over. I used a second spell on its heart just to be certain, and the body twitched.
Anu still slumbered in her bunk, or so I thought, but she suddenly jerked to her feet and plucked a spellpistol from under her pillow. She brought the weapon up and peppered the closest hatchling with a pair of fire bolts. One cored a hole in his midsection, but the second only caught a wing and did no real damage.
The hatchling answered with a spellcannon very similar to the one Anu would have been holding had she not been caught unawares, and launched a fat glob of acid that exploded all over her armor and immediately began sizzling through. Had she been wearing scout armor she might have died then, but the thicker metal stood up to the punishment.
The second hatchling brought up his spellrifle and aimed at the back of Anu’s head.
No, Dez roared. Not fair!
“I completely agree.” I raised the pistol and summoned an implode centered on the hatchling’s right hand, and the explosion sent shards of bone and scale, and flesh spinning away just before his other hand stroked the trigger.
A physical spell like acid ball uses a kinetic component, which means it causes recoil. Recoil when you suddenly find yourself deprived of a steadying hand can be a very dangerous thing.
The rifle kicked, and the barrel went straight down. The spell discharged at the hatchling’s feet, and coated its legs with the sizzling green solvent intended for its opponent.
Anu snapped her pistol up, and took the other hatching in the faceplate with another pair of fire bolts. He staggered back, and she vaulted her bed and delivered a wicked roundhouse that sent him sprawling. The hatchling tripped over another bed, and dropped his cannon as he struggled to regain his feet.
Sweat beaded my brow, and my supply of void had run perilously low. Implodes were expensive, and I wasn’t certain I could manage another one. I chose the cheaper option and blinked back inside the room, behind a bed out of the hatchling’s view.
I popped out of cover and aimed for the wounded faceplate with a high-magnitude life bolt. The brilliant bolt zipped from my barrel and slammed into the creature’s face with far more destructive force than I’d been used to. Dez had gotten stronger, and Frit’s power-up really made a difference.
That hatchling wasn’t getting up.
I rose shakily to my feet, and was about to will my helmet to slither into my armor when Ghora’s voice echoed through my mind. Only take it off when I knew I was safe.
“Why did they suddenly turn on me?” I holstered Dez, and turned a slow circle to scan the entire room for additional threats.
“I don’t know.” Anu moved swiftly to retrieve her spellcannon, then set it on a bunk while she ripped the bedding from another and began wiping the remaining acid from her hair. “But we need to get out of here. Ghora is a follower of Nebiat, as they were. I am a follower of the Earthmother. As you might guess, we do not always get along. They tried to kill you, and now I am involved. We are not safe here.”
“No,” growled a low voice from the doorway. Ghora’s voice. “You are not.”
Ghora blurred forward and kicked Anu full in the chest. The blow carried the Ifrit into the wall with bone shattering force, and left a large crack in the basalt as she slumped to the ground.
Then the one-eyed hatchling turned her scowl in my direction.
“Oh, shit,” I muttered as I rose from my crouch. I might have been able to squeeze off one shot before she closed the distance, but I wouldn’t have bet my life on it. She was too fast.
I could have blinked to the roof and try to flee, but I knew she’d run me down or send fighters after me. How could I beat her? How could I pull off the eleventh hour come—.
Ghora flashed forward faster than I could track, and a ball of stone grew around her fist, larger each moment as it came closer and closer to my chest, to the same spot she’d punched Anu.
I kicked backwards, and rolled with the blow, but it still sent me sailing into the wall right next to Anu’s impact point, and I left an identical crater as I slumped to the ground next to her. She hadn’t risen.
A glance at my paper doll said I shouldn’t either. Red had spread nearly everywhere, and a few black spots had begun to appear on the chest where acid and stone had both done their terrible work.
“I’d like an explanation, please.” Ghora rested her hands on her hips. “Why was I awakened in the dead of night? Why am I surrounded by bodies? I do not appreciate having my sleep disturbed, and unless I very much like your groveling I will have you running laps around this building until the snows come. And in case it’s not clear, pup, the snows never come here.”
She wasn’t on their side. She wasn’t going to kill us. Relief flooded me for all of about two seconds, and then I remembered she’d demanded an explanation.
“Woke up,” I gasped through a cracked rib, “to an acid ball to the face. I don’t know why, but the three hatchlings tried to kill me.”
“Stop being dramatic.” Ghora kicked my right leg out from under me, and I spilled back to the floor. “Use your eyes, pup. Look around. Use Arcana. Inspect their auras.”
I rose shakily to my feet, then focused a heal spell on myself. Golden energy soothed my hurts, though it did nothing for the exhaustion. I took deep steadying breaths as I surveyed the three bodies.
Arcana is an interesting area of study. Many magic items, people, and even most Eldimagi have a layered aura that you can glean details from. Sometimes you just get a feeling, but if you’re skilled and have training you can glean a lot more. Some arcanists bordered on full on divination.
These three hatchlings each had some sort of spiritual residue clinging to them, and I realized I’d seen the specific signature before. Aboard the Inuran trade moon, when I’d been running from the unliving.
“They’re possessed by angers,” I realized aloud. “Someone set them after me. Someone powerful enough to control multiple angers.”
“Gee.” Ghora fixed me with that one eye, and her tone made it clear how smart my deduction wasn’t. “Can you think of any goddesses you might have slighted recently? Are you familiar with the phrase ‘the depths hath no fury like a woman scorned’? Nebiat is the very worst of them.”
“But I thought you were a follower of Nebiat,” Anu protested, finally joining the conversation. Her words were muffled, and sounded like they came through gritted teeth.
“I am.” Ghora flapped her wings behind her and gave an amused chuckle. “I also breed snakes. Venomous snakes. Not poisonous. Learn the difference. That doesn’t mean I put myself in a position to get bitten. A snake follows its nature as a predator. So too does Nebiat follow her nature. Nature can be cruel, and she is indeed that. But she is powerful, and she is our ancestor, and she saved our species from extinction. This world would be an empty barren ball if not for Nebiat, and so I venerate her and have taken covenant.”
> “And if she sends an anger to possess you and make you kill us?” I willed a second heal spell, and the pain in my ribs eased.
“I would not be taken by such a ruse.” Ghora snorted another laugh. “Nebiat knows my mind. She knows I have too much honor to do her dirty work, so she’d never ask. But she will accept my worship, because power is what she loves most. And I love her, in spite of her many flaws. Still, I believe Anu is right. You are not safe here, young pup. Go with her to the people of the Earthmother, and surround yourself in their subterranean halls. Nebiat will not go to the hallowed caves.”
“What about my training?” I’d come so far, and didn’t want to turn back without the skills I needed to fight the war with Necrotis.
“You have trained.” Ghora clapped me suddenly on the shoulder, then dragged me to my feet. “You have fought, and you have killed, and you have made harsh decisions. When you needed stealth, you used it. When you needed guile, you used it. There is much more you can learn, but combat is the best teacher. And you will see plenty of that in the days ahead. Go with my blessing, young pup.”
Ghora wasn’t wrong. I was stronger than when I’d arrived, and I’d proven to myself I could react in life and death situations. I’d gotten damned good at killing.
I nodded gratefully to Ghora, and helped Anu to her feet. Then we got the hell off that mountain and never looked back.
14
Earthmother's Blessing
We flew through the night, and dawn touched the forested valleys as we finally reached a temple at the base of a great mountain. Unlike the others the slopes had been completely undeveloped, and no temples or paths dotted the solitary giant.
The reason became clear as we landed in the temple courtyard. The mountain itself formed one wall, and a spacious entrance to a cave had been hollowed out. I could see hanging plants all around the entrance and hear falling water from within the cave, which held most of the settlement.
