Timothy absorbed his lessons on how to inflict violence with glee. He had not asked why, or who he was to target, he merely just did.
A few months later, Timothy made his move.
“I’m going to need you to get more Godspark users, ” Timothy explained, to the now 16-year-old Tyler.
“Why?” Tyler had been waiting for this, the catch in all of this.
“To train them, to make them like you. Karn County needs a change, and you people are the only ones who can save them and bring them to god.”
“God?” Tyler drew his Godspark. “I knew you were crazy from the first time I met you.”
“I serve them. The Nephilim.”
Tyler froze in place. He had gotten involved with someone who was really dangerous. He cursed his idiocy, he should have been more aware of himself, and of Timothy, who was too good to be true.
“So you’re a Nephilim’s servant? That means you’re evil,” Tyler gripped his sword even harder.
“Am I?” Timothy asked. “Has any harm come to you? I have helped you over the past year, have I not?”
Seeing doubt flicker in his face, Timothy seized on his opening.
“The ones who tell you the Nephilim are evil, are they not the same ones who tell you your powers are evil? Sure, they don’t do it to your face, but you can feel them judging you. Isn’t that why you’re in the forest alone by yourself?”
“I—” Tyler found himself unable to rebut Timothy’s words.
“The Nephilim are chosen by god, Tyler.” Timothy said, “If you serve us, you will be saved, and we will build a new Karn County from the flames. If you oppose us, you and all of Karn County will be destroyed. That’s your fate.”
The two stared at each other. The younger man remained speechless. The silence hung in the air, thickening like a well made porridge of unasked questions and unspoken implications.
“I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Timothy turned to leave, he didn’t wait for the boy’s response.
“You can give me your answer then.”
Timothy returned the next day, so did Tyler. This time, he wasn’t alone.
Timothy smiled, his little army was coming together.
* * *
This time, as Timothy trained them over the next two years, he sprinkled in some of his ideologies as well.
The Orisha were god. The Nephilim were good. Serve them, and you will be rewarded.
The kids were too drunk with power to do anything but passively accept his teachings uncritically. They would spend more time with each other, pulling away from their family and friends. For some, it was noticed, for others, less so.
They needed to be different to protect Karn County. As he spoke, they slowly came along to his point of view.
Then he made his final pitch. Karn County would be destroyed unless they took it over. Tyler had already been brought around to his side and took no time in convincing his friends.
Timothy could already summon an army to burn the town to the ground, but he was giving them a chance. They could rebuild Karn so that it served the Nephilim and was pleasing to them, with Timothy as their boss.
There were enough poor and disenfranchised in Karn, that a small army could be raised if the bribes were plentiful.
Slowly but surely, the others joined Tyler, and the plan to remake Karn County had been put into motion.
* * *
Then Timothy made his final request to Tyler, one that he would have to relate to his friends.
Training was over, and everyone else had headed home. Tyler was preparing to leave to when Timothy called him over.
“Good work Tyler,” He praised him, “You’ve made progress over the years. I can’t imagine how you must feel now.”
“Thank you, sir,” Tyler responded, “It’s all thanks to your teaching.”
“There is one more thing I need from you, from all of you.”
“What is it?”
“On the day we remake Karn, I’m going to need every one of you to give me a small sacrifice.”
Again, Tyler asked.
“What is it?”
“Nothing much really, a small pittance.” He said.” I want you to discard the most useless thing you would ever have, that you would never need, as soon as you stepped into the kingdom of the Nephilim.”
Tyler waited for him to finish.
“I want you to kill your family.”
Chapter 22 - Tyler and Zeke
“Kill our own families?” Julian repeated in disbelief. “What kind of sick joke is that, Tyler?”
Tyler had been told this, but now he had to break the news to his friends, who he had signed up. Georgina, Annabelle, so sweet then. Julian, so hard headed, and Richard, the little fascist.
“We’re going to have to kill our families for Timothy?” Richard said, “I don’t see how that’s necessary.”
“Yes,” said Tyler, “It’s Timothy’s way of making sure we are committed to this. We’re discarding old and useless things like familial relationships. If you think about it, it’s not like we have them anymore in any meaningful sense.”
They huddled among themselves as they began to discuss it seriously. Annabelle looked distraught at the prospect.
“Look,” Georgina began, “Our families have done a lot for us, there’s no denying that. But, this thing we’re doing. This is how we save Karn County for the future, by getting on the right side of the world, siding with the winners.”
“Or- ” Annabelle started, “-We could fight him? We know his plan, we know what he wants to do, and we now outnumber him. So why not kill him and become heroes for our families instead?”
“Because I’ll kill you if you act against him,” Tyler replied grimly. Annabelle shrank back at this, “I have made my choice already. I’m giving you the chance to make yours.”
It was then Julian noticed that Tyler had positioned himself so that he was in the middle of all of them, he could easily kill them all with his Godspark from where he was standing. He was thinking tactically, as always.
“Good grief.” Richard interjected, “I never took you to be such a psycho. I like it. How about you, Daddy’s boy?”
“Well, I have my own plans too,” Julian said, but his hesitation showed, “However, I can’t let myself kill my parents, my little sister. And you, Tyler. Are you really going to kill Zeke?”
“Yes,” Tyler said, “I’ll have to.”
No one saw the pain in Tyler’s eyes. He hadn’t yet killed the part of himself that could see reason, but he was slowly suffocating it.
One doesn’t become a killer with their first kill. One must first take several steps. Several innocuous, little steps. So that by the time they arrive at the door to make their dark choice, they understand instinctively that they had made several others, that it would be impossible to not make this choice.
Tyler had thrown in with Timothy, and he had made his choice. Now he’d have to convince everyone else.
* * *
Three months later, it was that fateful night. The night in the junkyard when they had all assembled. Ready to move on the town, Tyler saw him. Simon was sneaking around. He had most likely followed him, but he would be the first one to die, and that was unfortunate.
As he dismissed them, Tyler now had to deal with Simon.
“Now Simon, what shall we do with you?” He said as he gave chase.
The latter was clad in some form of armour. His Godspark Tyler reasoned. It was a pity, he could have used him if he had known about his abilities earlier.
He grabbed Simon out of the air and slammed him into the ground, slashing him with his Godspark seconds later.
Simon cried and begged as Tyler questioned him.
Good. No one else knew about tonight. He shoved Simon into the ground and raised his sword, ready to decapitate him. He couldn’t do it. Cutting down dummies and wood, that was different from the real thing. Different from cutting down a begging child. He laughed inwardly at h
imself.
Picking Simon up, he carried the boy on his shoulders as he headed home. But first, he would need to build up his courage.
* * *
The explosions and chaos rained down on Karn County, lighting up the skies. Timothy’s militia rampaged through the streets, and people screamed and ran for their lives as the Godspark users rampaged.
The Aarons were terrified. They had seen the explosions, and they were out looking for Simon — in their neighbourhood, of course, they were afraid to wander too far in case he came home and found them gone.
Consequently, when Tyler approached them, with Simon slung over their shoulder, their relief was palpable.
Lifting up his head, Simon began to scream and yell, banging on Tyler’s back, but he was weak, and he looked simply hysterical.
Mr Aaron looked concerned for his son as he reached for Simon, but Tyler’s blade impaled him instead. His first kill.
Mrs Aaron slapped Tyler in the face instinctively, she was too shocked to be scared.
Tyler’s blade swung forth, and she fell to the ground, now headless.
His second.
Simon had passed out again, though his eyes were wide open. His Godspark dissipated as he struggled to take in the sight, then he passed out again.
Tyler didn’t know then, but Simon would never remember that incident, nor would he be able to fully activate his Godspark again, locking it away along with the memories of that night. For all he knew, Simon had passed out shortly after they arrived. That was fine, he’d get to him later.
Tyler had one more mission.
* * *
Killing his parents was easier after he had already killed Simon’s. Zeke raced at him in rage, but he simply gutted him.
They would all die and be burned to death, there was nothing that could be done to save them.
His heart felt heavy, and he stopped to catch his breath as he was on the verge of panic, but he steeled himself. He had done it, he had slain the dragons, and he had killed his parents, and brother who had held him back. There was nothing that could hold him back now.
Nothing.
* * *
The first year after the attack on Karn. It was hell for everyone.
The overwhelming display of power that had been shown had only served to galvanise the populace, who had lost people in the assault. There was a civil war, but it was short and brutal.
They had had to kill several more Karn County citizens who revolted and tried to fight back. Then they killed their families, and they burned their houses down. Tyler, Richard, Julian, Georgina, and Annabelle soon became names to be feared.
Timothy stayed back, preferring to keep a hands-off approach while they built the Shining Towers, a symbol of their power.
The second year was better, Richard had established the Order Squadron. His own personal army, a militia that would patrol the streets, and let them kill anyone they chose.
The Rune Knights came the third year. A small contingent, Karn was too deeply embedded for any high up, competent Rune Knights to challenge, but a reasonably strong number of them had arrived.
“Tyler the Town Taker,” The Rune Captain announced, “We’re here for you, and your accomplices. Surrender this town over to the Rune Knights, or we will be forced to act.”
Tyler grinned. This was a moment that they had been waiting for. A chance to show off their power and strike some more fear into the hearts of Karn.
Julian was first, moving faster than they could see. He attacked the knights with his batons, countering their weapon strikes before they had even begun to swing, and disabling the few that remained.
Richard simply stood as they tried in vain to attack him, dispatching twenty of them with a single shockwave.
Annabelle was next, a barrage of explosions ripped the would-be rescuers apart, and as they fled for the exits, Georgina picked them off one by one.
Their captain had attacked Tyler, but even his Rune Knight enhancements were no match for him. Tyler struck him down but decided not to kill him at the last moment.
As people watched, their hearts sank. The message was sent loud and clear.
No one is coming for you, no one can save you. You belong to us.
For a moment, Tyler wondered why the Rune Knights had come here. They had kept strict control of communication over the past year. Then he recalled that they had never found Zeke’s body.
He tortured the surviving Rune Knight captain into using his access to their records department for Tyler’s sake. A month-long excursion outside Karn and a few more dead Rune Knights and found what he was looking for. He thanked the captain, and then he executed him. He looked at the headless corpse with curiosity. Would the Rune Knights be able to trace them? Unlikely. He had killed all loose ends, the only thing left to do was to burn down the small compound and erase his tracks completely.
As he left, only one thought went through his head. Zeke was alive, he knew it. First, there was relief, then there was anger. He was a Rune Knight, he had abandoned Karn. Would he return, or maybe not. It was best not to tell anyone, Tyler would not want to jeopardise their positions. He knew Georgina still had nightmares about her family, and revealing his brother was still alive would be a step too far.
Timothy was informed, but he urged caution for now. He was unconcerned, he had simply needed the mental effect of the sacrifice and willingness to kill. Whether one or two people survived, was neither here nor there.
Reports of Zeke’s death came in a few weeks later, and it became a non-issue.
* * *
The 8th year was the worst. It represented a turning point in Tyler’s life. Timothy had just received the order for the first Purge, and he had passed it down. The framework for a “fair” Purge had not been created, so an ad hoc one was put in place.
The Purge had begun. Tyler had to walk around, supervising the Order Squadron as they were ripping parents from children, crying babies, screaming teenagers, and taking them away to who knows where.
A paltry resistance was mounted, but they were all killed off by Richard. He personally attacked the rebellion, burning his power into the eyes of Karn.
He was enjoying this too much, Tyler had noticed, and had become more bloodthirsty.
Julian was now obsessed with information and learning as much as possible. He worked with Timothy most of the time, while Georgina supervised the population. She was getting better at that. They had opened the borders of Karn with the invention of tourist cards. GPS enabled cards that let Order Squadron track tourists as they explored the now rebuilt Karn.
It was all white towers and marvels everywhere. It was beautiful, right?
They all trained, as they had to keep their skills sharp. Timothy would sometimes send them out on missions to fight and kill targets. He didn’t know who, he didn’t care who, all he wanted to do was swing his sword, and send a head flying.
Tyler sat with his head in his hands.
Oh god. What have I done?
He had simply wanted to create the best version of Karn there was, and now he was ripping kids from their mothers. He shook with rage, and fear, and disappointment.
His hands were stained red with blood. He could no longer do this.
“Damn you. And…I love you, son.”
“Argh!” He let out a scream, and he didn’t stop screaming until his throat was raw.
“Damn you.”
His sword was drawn. All he had to do was move his hand, and his trouble would be over. He couldn’t fight and kill Timothy, he would be killed, but there was one enemy he could kill.
“And…I love you, son.”
Tears streamed down his face. He hadn’t said it back then, but he wished he could now.
Damn him indeed.
He stood over the river. No one was nearby, this was an isolated area. He would do it. It would be quick, and then he’d fall and be washed away in the current. It would be his way of atoning for his sins.
I love you too.<
br />
A footfall interrupted his reverie.
“You look quite pathetic, Tyler.” Julian stared at him. His gaze radiated scorn.
“How did I know?” He verbalised Tyler’s unasked question as he walked towards him. “You’re very predictable, and my Godspark makes it easier.”
“Of course, the power of ‘Prophecy’,” Tyler said. “I thought you didn’t want to use it on us.”
“And I thought you wouldn’t be this weak, yet here we are,” Julian replied.
He stood beside him. A glance at the sword, a glance at the bridge and Julian’s eyes said he knew everything.
“You can do it you know. Just die, and everything’ll be alright. Your parents will come back, your dead little brother will materialise again, and you won’t be the man who sent babies to die. That’s what you’re thinking, right?”
“What do you want, Julian?” Tyler lowered his sword, but he hadn’t put it away just yet.
“I believe what Timothy is selling. Sure it’s a bit rough, but there is no other way. You’re the one who’s letting your doubts slip out and dominate you,” Julian said. “You brought us into this 9 years ago, you can’t just kill yourself just because you feel a little bad. I killed my own mother, my sister died that day in her own way. We’ve all agreed to become the sacrifices for a better world, so what’s the problem now?”
“Why are you asking that? I thought you could predict everything?”
“I want to hear you say it. I want you to hear yourself say it, and then maybe, you’ll realise where you went wrong.”
“I…. I think…” Tyler struggled to reach back into his past to find the one point where it had gone wrong. Where he could hop into a time machine and reverse it. He couldn’t. If it hadn’t been Timothy, it would have been someone else, and he knew it. But he couldn’t say that, so he gave the only answer he could.
“I don’t know.”
“Speechless? You’re the leader Tyler. You’re my friend, my brother, but more importantly, my general. Before Timothy, we’re all loyal to you. And if you waver — who else can we trust? Who else will guide us? A Prophet can only serve if the king is willing to listen to his counsel. Don’t forget that.” Julian’s gentle rebuke woke him up. “We’ll chalk this up to a moment of weakness and forget about it.”
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