by Noah Michael
With honor,
Legasus
The Chief read the note again. He could not believe his eyes. “This letter must be centuries old. But it must have been put here by Grith.”
“Maybe that’s why Grith was in prison. Maybe he found this note first, and he’s the one who hid it here. Maybe he wasn’t a Shadow after all. Maybe he was from my tribe. Maybe he was put in the dungeon for trying to reach the Nexus Mirror.”
The pieces all fit together now. This was the great secret Grith could not reveal. He was a Surger.
Yuran turned to Sarah. “You wanted to come down here. Why? Speak the truth, child.”
Sarah sighed, looking at the floor. “I have almost no memories of before the orphanage. But in one small one, I remember outlines of a woman. I can’t see her face, but she is crying for help. She is calling for Grith.”
Yuran let the information sink in. “The mysteries grow deeper every passing moment. But we must focus on the task at hand. I believe Roko seeks the same power that Legasus sought to protect. We cannot allow Roko to obtain it, or he will bring a great curse upon the world.”
“So we are going to search for it?”
“We shall prevent Roko from taking the power. That is all that matters. Where there is great power, there is always great danger.”
“My Chief, the hour of the ceremony is upon us,” Bastion reminded him.
“We must go, Sarah. We shall discuss this further.” Emerging from the cell, they found Tirus with twenty other Shadows armed with hammers and battering rams.
“My Chief, are you alright? We heard noises coming from within, but the door would not open!”
“Everything is fine. Seal off that room. No one is to ever enter that cell again.”
“As you wish, my Chief.” Tirus locked the doors to the cell and turned to the rest of the Shadows. “Seal it!”
The Chief, Sarah, and the guards made their way towards the staircase leading to the exit. Just as they were about to leave, Sarah’s attention was caught by shouting emanating from one of the metal doors. Six men were being pulled forward by Shadow warriors.
“Don’t you know who we work for?”
“Roko will make you pay for this!”
“Let us go!”
“Sarah.” Sarah was startled. The Chief called her from the staircase. “We must go.”
They passed back through the exit and training fields. The Chief closed his eyes, taking a deep breath in the night air. The sky was completely dark now, the stars shining brightly. “Today was long, child, a day filled with memories. Some of them I must walk away from, some have restored their presence within my heart. But we cannot delve in the puddles of memory for eternity. We must rise up and meet our destinies, they are crucial to the world’s balance.”
The arena was ahead. It was crowded with hundreds of villagers, dressed in their finest garments and Shadow warriors wearing full battle gear. There was a grand stadium at the head of the arena, wood painted black, decorated with golden images. The stadium was surrounded by a fence of long, silver swords. In front of each sword was a drummer with his face painted black and gold, wearing red armor. They played a deep, penetrating beat. The Chief stopped before the arena, where new warriors awaited him. “Bastion, you are to accompany Sarah to the back of the stadium. It is not safe for her in the crowd.”
“Can I watch the ceremony?” she asked eagerly.
“You can move to the edge of the front row when the ceremony commences.”
Bastion nodded. “Come, child.”
As they left, the Chief walked over to the new recruits. They were dressed in full warrior armor, which they had just recently received. Before them stood their senior commander, who would lead this team of twenty in battle. The commander chosen for Atara’s platoon, a large man named Suria, was a highly respected warrior, the head commander of the Shadow Valley.
“Suria, you have readied the warriors?”
“They are among the best I have ever trained. I am proud to present them to my Chief and to the service of our people.”
The Chief looked down the line of Shadows. When his eyes met those of Atara, he had to hold himself back from smiling with pride. “Your tribe awaits. Come, let us honor them! Forward formation!” Suria shouted. The warriors lined up into four rows of five followed the Chief and his guard through the roaring crowd. Scanning the crowds as they passed, the Chief noted that Arias hadn’t yet arrived. He must still be searching for the breach. It would deeply pain him if he missed the swearing in ceremony. The Chief ascended the platform and looked out into the crowd as Suria and the new warriors lined up behind him. The drums beat faster and faster. The Chief raised his hands in the air. The crowd grew still, and the drums came to a complete stop.
“My fellow Shadows!” He addressed his people. “In this fateful hour, we witness a transformation of heart and soul. From the mortal heart of man, to the eternal soul of a warrior. This transformation is a tradition as old as our legends. Each generation, an exemplary group of Shadows serve as our tribal warriors. Each generation, these warriors must answer a simple question: What does it mean to be a warrior?” As the Chief spoke, Arias entered from the left side of the crowd. The Chief breathed a breath of relief. “And so, I turn to that very group of Shadows and I ask them, what does it mean to be a warrior? Suria! Let your apprentices show us the way of the warrior!”
The Chief moved to the side and Suria stepped forward “Tell me,” Suria shouted at his platoon, “what does it mean to be a warrior?”
The platoon drew their swords, as each warrior turned to face a partner. They swung their blades, clashing in midair. Each pair jumped into the air, pushing off from the other’s sword, flipping, and plunged their swords into the wooden stadium. The crowd roared with approval.
“This is what our warriors are made of! The enemy trembles at the mere thought of them! They show the true nature of strength!”
The Chief turned towards the platoon. He raised his arms. “On behalf of all those who stood here before me, I name those who stand before me as warriors! May your spirit never dim, may your courage never die! Through whatever trials lie ahead, you shall forever carry within yourselves the honor and dignity of a warrior! Today, the weight of our people is placed upon your heads! I call upon you to carry it with passion and pride!”
The drumming commenced, and the crowd began to break into circles of dance, song, and cheer. The Chief turned towards the new warriors before him. He walked down the line, shaking the hand of each one. When he got to Atara, he could not help but smile. Her face beamed with pride and accomplishment.
“You did it.”
“Did you expect less, my Chief?”
“From you, never.” Her face lit up as her eyes looked beyond Yuran to her brother.
“You came! I was worried you would miss it!” She ran forward, into Arias’s embrace.
“Not for the world, Atara. Mother and Father would be proud.” Atara’s eyes shone. She gave her brother a hug.
As the Chief descended the platform, he was confronted by a group of Shadow warriors.
“You speak of strength, courage, and honor! Yet today, you allowed Roko to march into our land, kill six of our people, and march right back out! Do you call that honor?” The rest of the group shouted as well, drawing the attention of the larger crowd.
“I agree with you.” Yuran said calmly. “That is why tonight, you shall witness firsthand what happens to those who threaten the honor of the tribe of Shadows.” The Chief motioned to the East of the field. At the edge of the forest, stood a series of six nooses upon the trees.
“I am sorry for doubting you, my Chief.”
“Don’t let it happen again. Now go and enjoy the festivities. Tonight is a joyous night.”
Bonfires had been lit all around, and Shadows were dancing around them to the beat of drums. There was an abundance of food, drink, laugher, and song. Many of the higher-ranking warriors invited the Chief to dance or share
a drink, but he refused. There was too much on his mind. He leaned back against the stadium platform, looking up at the stars. The entire past twelve years had been in preparation for what was to come. In two days’ time, he would pass through the mirror. He would chase the one final chance he had left to see his sister. She was the only person who ever truly knew him. The only person who ever truly understood him. And before the week was out, he would find her.
Chapter Seventeen
Betrayal
July 19
1:30 p.m.
The Silver Tower
The military helicopter landed on the roof of the Silver Tower. The passenger door opened and Roko stepped out, accompanied by two drones. Alia followed, keeping her distance. A man greeted Roko. “Sir, the drones have been successfully returned to their stations.”
“At last, someone does their work around here!” Roko stormed past towards his office.
“Things went badly?” the man asked, turning to Alia.
“It’s none of your business,” she said and left. She had a meeting scheduled with David to discuss the results of the mission. She was having trouble focusing. She walked down the hall and turned right. David said he’d be waiting for her at the beginning of the second hallway. He stood tall and in uniform. Alia stopped in front of him. She swallowed deeply, trying to relax herself.
“Sergeant.”
“Commander.”
“Why did you choose this floor for our meeting?”
“I come here often, there’s a nice conference room nearby.” He led Alia down the hallway and turned towards a door on the right. It opened with a scan of his thumbprint. “After you, commander.”
The room they entered looked like a massive garage. Its walls were grey and complex pieces of space shuttles, satellites, rovers, and different machinery and weaponry were scattered across the room and being worked upon by robots. Hundreds of shelves lined the room, filled with thousands of metal parts and tools. Metal wasps flew from equipment shelves to construction areas, providing the robots with materials and tools. Alia turned toward David.
“I don’t think this is the best place to speak!”
“Follow me!” David shouted back. He walked towards a large metal door on the other side of the garage. Alia followed, her hands over her ears. David opened this door with his fingerprint as well, leading them into a conference room with thick, soundproof walls and a soft, carpeted floor. There was a long table in the center of the room surrounded by thirty comfortable, cushioned seats.
“Where are we?” Alia asked, looking around.
“This is one of the engineering department’s conference rooms. This entire floor belongs to Discover Inc’s aeronautical and space engineering department. You can sit wherever you’d like.” Alia took a seat towards the middle of the table. David sat across from her. Alia noticed he seemed uncomfortable. He got straight to business, not wanting to drag it out any longer than necessary. “I believe that our most powerful weapon was the division of leadership. The fact that we could split into separate groups was crucial. Gospin showed considerable leadership. Perhaps he can be promoted.”
“I agree. As for weaknesses, our men were given one task, without being told what to do once they had accomplished it. They were left to improvise, which was risky. Gospin could have commanded the Absorbers to direct all their fire towards the stronghold to draw out the enemy quicker. That way we wouldn’t have been surprised like we were.”
Alia and David continued to speak for another hour. The more they spoke, the more Alia was impressed by David’s wisdom. He knew each soldier personally, he spoke to her of previous battle simulations, of problems they’d encountered. When they finished, David stood up from the table. “Thank you for your time, commander. I look forward to seeing you again.”
As he walked towards the door, Alia hesitated, debating whether to bring up something else on her mind. “Wait, David. There’s something else.”
He turned to look at her.
“Yes, Commander?”
She took a step closer to him. “I want you to tell me a bit more about your past and why you joined this movement.”
“I’m sorry, Commander, but I fail to see how my past is relevant to the mission.”
“It’s relevant, Sergeant, if it explains why you can hardly stand to look at me. You’ve disliked me from the moment we met.”
“I apologize if I’ve shown any disrespect.”
“You haven’t though, David, that’s what I don’t get. You’re the perfect soldier, you do everything I ask. But you’re different than the rest of the men. You don’t care about the Following, you don’t care about power. Why are you working for Roko?”
David sighed, meeting Alia’s gaze. “With all due respect, Commander, I don’t think Roko’s most trusted protégé would understand.”
“Try me,” Alia said, crossing her arms.
“Commander. In battle, I will stand by you. I will obey your every command. But please, do not ask me to share my personal feelings with you.”
“Because you don’t trust me?”
“Because I don’t trust what you stand for.”
“You have no idea what I stand for,” Alia grew defensive.
“Roko’s announcement at dinner gives a pretty good idea. Now if you’ll excuse me, Commander, I have training to attend to.”
David turned to leave, leaving Alia angry and flustered. He opened the door.
“He has my sister!” Alia shouted, the words slipping from her tongue. David stopped and turned around. Alia looked up into his eyes.
“Bella,” she said, lowering her voice. “that’s who I stand for. The rest of this tower can go to hell.”
David closed the door. He gazed at Alia’s pained expression with sympathy and guilt.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
“Yeah, well, now you do.”
A heavy silence filled the room.
“You wanna talk about it?”
“I don’t need a psychologist, Sergeant.”
“No, but it sure looks like you can use a friend.”
Alia hesitated, then sighed. “Bella’s smart, beautiful. She’s always been there for me. The only one who ever was…” Alia told David about her childhood, about the day Bella was injured, about her time at the orphanage. For some reason, it was so easy to open up to him. David listened intently to every word. As they talked, Alia felt a sense of comfort she hadn’t felt in a long time.
“So those are my life problems in a nutshell,” Alia finished. “Now it’s your turn, doc. You’re the first Molder I have ever met. Is your tribe a small one?”
“We’re actually quite large. But I’m the only Molder working for Roko.”
“Which brings us back to the question. Why did you join Roko?”
David’s expression saddened as he lowered his voice.
“Four years ago, Roko began demanding an annual quota of fifty soldiers from our tribe. Our King struck a deal. He gave his own son to Roko, to serve him faithfully for his entire life. As his son earned favor in Roko’s eyes, no further soldiers would be taken.”
“You mean you’re stuck in this hellhole for life?”
“Not for my entire life. I agreed to do this. It was for the good of my people. As soon as Roko passes away, I will be free.”
Alia’s anger flared. “That psycho old man has it coming to him.”
“Yeah, I hope…” David sighed.
Alia’s watch rang. “Speaking of the devil,” she rolled her eyes and rejected the call. David chuckled.
“Thank you, David,” Alia said, stopping. “I really enjoyed this meeting.”
David smiled affectionately. “You know, the hardest part of all this has been going through it alone. And right now, for the first time since I left my people, I don’t feel alone.”
Alia squeezed his hand, gazing into his eyes. “Cause you’re not,” she smiled. She held her gaze for another moment, then pulled away.
�
��Goodbye Sergeant.”
David smirked. “Goodbye Commander.”
Alia headed over to her room, taking a quick shower and a much-needed nap. As she closed her eyes, a voice repeated itself in the background. She couldn’t make it go away.
“Help me, Alia.” Alia saw her sister’s face, still, eyes closed. Her breathing was slow and steady. “You’re going to get better, Bella. I promise,” Alia whispered.
“Don’t leave me.” Alia’s eyes filled with tears.
“How could I ever leave you? You’re my sister, the only one in my life that I trust. I love you, Bella!
“Don’t forget me. Don’t leave me alone.”
◆◆◆
Alia’s alarm sounded. Her pillow was wet with tears. She sat up in bed as her watch rang.
Roko. Though it was the last thing she wanted to do, she took the call. Roko still looked stressed out. “I need you at my office immediately.”
“Another job?”
“This one should turn out better than the last. This time, you’re the star, not the drones.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“Dress formally. You’re going to court.” And with that, Roko hung up.
◆◆◆
In a black dress and high heels, Alia felt powerful and important as she approached Roko’s office. Roko sat waiting, an empty glass sitting in front of him. Stone sat in a chair facing Roko. Stone rose and moved towards the exit with a look that sent chills down her spine.
“Alia, please take a seat.” Roko’s desk was a mess of holographic screens. He was clearly working on many plans simultaneously.
“What’s so urgent?”
Roko added a few quick notes to one of his screens before turning back to her. “Well, if there’s one thing I learned from our past venture it is that we must be ready for war. That’s why I called Stone down here. We’ve been discussing the possibilities, which boil down to two main issues. One, the Shadows may break the mirror, which is crucial to our cause. And two, they may unleash their forbidden weaponry against us, which are rumored to be so deadly, they haven’t been touched in over a millennium. Our army is strong. If we waged war right now, we would have the upper hand. However, as a businessman I’ve learned that if we can lower the risk without decreasing the gain, then there’s nothing to lose. This is why we need you. We wish to gather the support of a tribe whose abilities far outmatch the Shadows. We need to be able to instantly destroy any weaponry stationed on the ground.”
