by Jeremy Dwyer
“Fantine, you are the architect of this city, are you not?” Pasha asked.
“Yes. Who are you?” Fantine asked.
“I am Pasha, a scholar of science, mathematics and logic. I recently came from Emeth when I heard rumors from merchant ships about a new city in eastern Meridianus that you had designed and built. I came to learn more of your work,” Pasha said.
“The city was constructed according to a new design – most notably its three (3) level pier system – and it was built with a modified version of the constructor. We are still recording the city’s layout in these lightkeeper crystals. We need to deliver them to the central bank when the images are complete,” Fantine said, nodding toward Niven who stood next to her. The Chronicler Ximenez stood near Fantine and Niven, observing and recording them.
“If those lightkeeper crystals contain images of the layout of this city, I would gladly purchase a copy, when the record is complete, of course,” Pasha said.
“I can provide additional copies, priced according to the final number of crystals it requires,” Niven said.
“You are not a Chronicler, so this copy would not go to Emeth, of course. Who is interested in learning of the city’s design?” Fantine asked.
“My home is in the Jeshirinko Barrier, and we are investing in modern architecture. I would also like to extend the invitation to you, personally, to share what you can about the constructor. You will be compensated for your time and efforts,” Pasha said.
Nearby, Lady Onora overheard this and approached them.
“What interest do you have in architecture? Yours is a nation with a long tradition of warfare, and those who live nearby do so in fear. Do not think I have not studied the cultures of the world, or that I am unaware of your traditions and belligerence,” Lady Onora said.
Fantine was surprised at this outburst, not expecting to hear that accusation. Though she disliked the source, she didn’t much care to enable military activity.
“Both the Jenaldej Empire and Ihalik Empire consider them a threat. Their culture applies logic to battle, not justice or peace. They may have been peaceful recently, but that will change when they have an advantage,” Lady Onora said.
Ximenez knew that Lady Onora was absolutely correct, but he was bound by the Chronicler’s Oath to record history, and not to disclose it or act to change its course by divulging anything. If Fantine wanted to learn more, she would have to study for herself.
“We can only help build civilian structures. The world has lived through more than enough conflict, poverty and ignorance,” Fantine said.
“I am familiar with many of the scholars and instructors in Emeth. This woman is a priestess, and she preaches her religion as if it were reality. Do not be deceived by her mythology. We build cities for defense,” Pasha said.
“You mean defense against other people’s beliefs you find offensive. You murder members of the religious orders to purge all faith from the world,” Lady Onora said.
“We are the ones who have been under attack – by the sun worshippers in Nataloridivu. Their religion is poisonous and pervasive, contaminating young minds across all continents and oceans. Their influence has even reached the central bank. Our spies have confirmed this, not that it is any secret. Duchess Uliana is chief among them, and she claims title to the bank through her bloodline. Working for them is financing their future wars,” Pasha said.
“The central bank is focused on profit, and there is a great deal of opportunity in the construction of port cities for commerce. If they thought that war were in their best interest, I have little doubt they would finance one. No, Governor Lux and Duchess Uliana are concerned with ordinary business as usual. That’s what I build for,” Fantine said.
“By designing and building cities for the central bank, you’re architecting the next war, along with your own destruction,” Pasha said. She then walked away, furious, heading toward the docks along the eastern coast.
“I don’t want to be involved in any of this. I’m no historian, or religious fanatic, or anything like that. I’m just an architect, and it’s time to get back to work,” Fantine said.
“Agreed. Let’s finish the work of imaging the city, and return to the central bank,” Niven said.
“She was right about one thing,” Lady Onora said.
“What do you mean? I still don’t trust you, you know. You’re wrapped up in that religious nonsense, and you had this city constructed under false pretenses,” Fantine said.
“This city was worth building, and that’s why I turned to you,” Lady Onora said.
“I still haven’t been paid…not until these lightkeepers hold the images of the city’s layout. The central bank won’t pay me until then,” Fantine said.
“You will be paid, if that’s what you are worried about. After all, you’ve expressed your confidence in the central bank,” Lady Onora said.
“So, what’s this ‘one thing’ she was right about?” Fantine asked.
“The sun worshippers cannot be trusted,” Lady Onora said.
“One mythological religion denies another. Typical. If they believe in some ridiculous religion of the suns, shame on them. The central bank is just a business to me,” Fantine said.
~~~
In the continent of Nataloridivu, atop a hill, was in a temple of blue sapphire. The eighteen (18) sided polygon had points extending off of nine (9) of its sides, and inside each of those points was a small religious study room with an altar.
Inside one of these study rooms was a thirty-seven (37) year old woman named Countess Orbella. She wore a blue crown with red stones upon it. Her crown was similar to that of Duchess Uliana, who left her in charge of religious instruction while she was away. The other instructors all reported to Orbella.
Countess Orbella looked at the nine (9) young students – five (5) males and four (4) females, each eighteen (18) years old – standing before her, dressed in robes of blue, yellow and red. Orbella was the mother of twins – one (1) of these boys as well as one (1) of the girls. She took great pride in all of her students equally, but loved her own children the most.
“You are the beloved of the suns. Their warmth and light shine down now, having overcome all darkness, as they always do. Soon, you must shine like little suns on the land, now that you are on the road to becoming adults,” Countess Orbella said.
“How must we shine, Countess? What shall we do?” one of the young female students asked.
“You are to preach the message of the suns – that they rule all people; that their warmth is the source of all love and life; that their light is the source of all knowledge,” Countess Orbella said.
“To whom shall we preach the message?” one of the young male students asked.
“To the disbelievers. They must come to know the truth. The nine (9) blue suns are the Sky’s Nine (9) Kings – they are the masters of everything. When we die, our souls are judged by them, and our eternal destiny will be determined by how we lived according to their laws. Do you know their laws?” Countess Orbella asked.
“That we must believe in their blazing fires, which are clearer than any crystal, brighter than the ocean of light, stronger than any stone, and to them we must give our praise,” one of the young female students said.
“That’s right. Yet, there is more,” Countess Orbella said.
“That there are no powers equal or greater – all other faith is myth,” one of the young male students said.
“Yes. Many people place their faiths in other beings – oceans, stones, spirits, light or darkness, trees and plants, animals or even logic. Those are the worst, because they believe in no religion at all. Some of them even wish to purge all faith from our society. They persecute us, yet we endure, because our message is true,” Countess Orbella said.
“Why do they persecute us? Why do they believe anything else?” one of the young female students asked.
“Because they seek power for themselves. To admit a king or a god sickens
them, because then they cannot live as they please. They make war, and steal the land of others, because logic guides them in their ruthless exploits, with no mercy for others or respect for their rights. Our land here, in Nataloridivu, has been protected since the beginning, since the first age, by the suns we worship. Yet, our enemies never rest, seeking to steal our truth, and our faith. If we allow that, then they can steal our freedom and our lives,” Countess Orbella said.
“Then we should kill them,” one of the young male students said.
“We will not make war, but peace. We must speak the truth, even if we must die for it,” Countess Orbella said.
“I don’t want to die. Let the disbelievers die,” that same young male student said.
“Felix, you need to let go of your fears. If you die to preach the true message of the Sky’s Nine (9) Kings, your loyalty will be rewarded with the greatest pleasures for eternity,” Countess Orbella said.
“That isn’t fair to us. If disbelief is wrong, then the disbelievers need to pay for their sins,” Felix said.
“This life ends for all of us, Felix. It’s the eternal life after this one that matters. How we live in this temporary material life, according to our faith in the suns, will determine whether that eternal spiritual life will be joy or suffering – joy for the believers, suffering for the doubters,” Countess Orbella said.
“How do you know? What if you’re wrong?” Felix asked.
“Do not become one of the doubters, Felix. Your own eternal punishment will be guaranteed. The wrath of the Sky’s Nine (9) Kings will burn you severely and without end. There will be no joy, or hope, if you do not serve them now,” Countess Orbella said.
“That’s not fair either. It sounds like we’re just meant to suffer – here or there, now or later – for other people’s beliefs,” one of the young female students said.
“Lalla, you must not let doubt over come you. If you deny the glory of the suns of the sky, they will deny you eternal joy,” Countess Orbella said.
Lalla looked to Felix, whom she admired for speaking up. He gave her courage, and she suddenly loved him for it, although she never loved anyone, because they were both young.
“You will kneel before this altar and pray to the suns! Drink your waters and listen their commands! I will not have you turn away from the true faith. The Sky’s Nine (9) Kings will judge you before you know it. Disbelievers will burn forever! Kneel!” Countess Orbella yelled.
The five (5) male students and four (4) female students all knelt down before an altar of blue sapphire, red ruby and yellow citrine crystals. They each drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from their vials to become energized. They had been waterbound since birth, never having been given a choice in the matter.
Countess Orbella walked out of the religious study room and closed the door behind her. She was furious, and planned on converting these youth before they all rebelled. She drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from her own vial and was energized. She then knelt down at a larger altar closer to the center of the temple.
~~~
In the Jeshirinko Barrier, General Tiglath oversaw a new squad of ninety (90) special operations troops. Lieutenant Skender stood beside the general to his left, and Lieutenant Delfina stood to his right.
“Your waterbinding is Medathero, so you are logical. Your training is by me, so it is superb. Your performance is…promising, so far. Yet, you must be tested further. To that end, I have decided to subject you to a different regiment, and measure your ability to adapt to your environment. What determines victory is your ability to make the correct decision, and to execute on that correctly. The execution is a matter of training, which you have. The decision making is key, because it is a complex skill and you must account for many variables,” General Tiglath said.
Lieutenant Skender drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from his vial and was energized. He probed the thoughts of General Tiglath to learn what was to happen next, and found a bizarre plan that he did not quite understand. He then probed the thoughts of Lieutenant Delfina, and found the fear that he expected: she had no idea what the general was planning, but she was worried that he would again subject her to danger.
“You’ll come to appreciate my training and testing regiment, if you don’t grasp it immediately. We must prepare a vessel for our journey,” General Tiglath said.
“I will contact Admiral Erisinni, to inform him that you are ready, General,” Lieutenant Skender said.
“Please do, Lieutenant,” General Tiglath said.
~~~
The Coherence was a one hundred ten (110) foot long ship with three (3) sets of double-masted pivoting sails. The vessel was sailing northward over the Lujladia Ocean along the eastern coast of Elaja’s Walkway land bridge.
Admiral Erisinni was a fifty-two (52) year old man who drank the waters of the Atrejan Ocean, making him an excellent navigator. He had taken his waterbinding at the age of nineteen (19) and proven himself to be more adept than most others, owing to a higher innate potential for using the water’s power. Only recently he had listened to the sounds of the stars and heard something unusual – something different from the sounds of the red, yellow or blue suns. The source of the strange solar sound was unclear to him, and he did not believe that it had come from this region. However, we was assigned to patrol these waters and made a point of taking the opportunity to listen for a repeat of the anomaly, just in case it was nearby. He adjusted the ship’s course and began heading northeast, toward the southern coast of Nataloridivu.
~~~
Zarren waited in his cabin on board the Coherence, where he drank anew of the waters of the Nabavodel Ocean from his vial and was energized. He was one of several other trained warriors – the Jeshirinko Rationality Enforcers – all sworn to deprogram or destroy the sun worshippers before they spread their mythology. Rather than working as a large military strike force, they operated individually, identifying the weakest links who were more apt to relinquish the faith. These newly enlightened persons could become great allies, filled with resentment for the lies they were told by their cults.
He felt the ship change course, and suspected that his time to act was fast approaching.
~~~
Countess Orbella calmed down after several minutes and went back in to the religious study room where she found the students still kneeling.
“Have you repented of your doubts? You will need your faith for what is coming next. Up until now, you have been treated as children, and little was expected of you. Now, you are becoming adults, and much will be expected of you. It is time to go out into the world and spread the message of the glory of the suns – the blue suns above all others – no matter the cost. You are no longer welcome here as children. You must prove yourselves out there before you can return,” Countess Orbella said.
The five (5) male and four (4) female students – including Felix and Lalla – stood up and followed Countess Orbella out of the religious study room. She then led them out of the temple and down a hill, toward the southern coast. They stood by a long pier, and she led them out onto it.
“You are to work as navigators on passing ships when they arrive. They will be expecting young Atrejan drinkers, and they will pay you with meals. You are to guide them – across the oceans…and across the great divide between disbelief and faith in the suns. This is your opportunity to share our faith,” Countess Orbella said.
~~~
Admiral Erisinni soon steered the Coherent toward the southern coast of the continent of Nataloridivu. He knew what to expect – the sun worshipping cults who lived there forced many of their children to drink the Atrejan waters from birth and trained them as navigators. Usually, they were quite good ones. The only problem was that they preached the mythology of sun worship like it was real. A little bit of real world training disabused them of it fairly quickly, however. They worked only for food, which made the apprenticeship worthwhile, despite the annoying religious sermo
ns. Most of these kids – being eighteen (18) or nineteen (19) years old – didn’t really believe that nonsense anyway. All they seemed to believe in was having fun, traveling the world and making some real money, when they got good enough to end their apprenticeship. Of course, some few turned out to be religious zealots, and he had a way of dealing with them.
~~~
“I see a ship approaching,” Countess Orbella said.
“Shall we all go on this one, Countess?” Lalla asked.
“The ship’s captain will decide how many he needs,” Countess Orbella said.
Minutes later, a ship pulled up alongside the pier and dropped anchor.
Countess Orbella stepped forward, looking to meet with the ship’s captain.
Behind her, Felix and Lalla quickly kissed, loving each other for their shared rejection of the faith.
~~~
Zarren felt the ship come to a full stop and then left his cabin. From where he stood on deck, he looked out onto the pier and saw a woman and nine (9) youths waiting.
Admiral Erisinni saw Zarren and said: “Chief Petty Officer Zarren, you will meet them. Bring one (1) male and one (1) female.”
Zarren walked down the boarding ramp and onto the pier. He saw the woman – who was mildly attractive – wearing a crown. The headpiece had embedded crystals that clearly signified sun worship and made the woman appear utterly foolish. He saw the five (5) young male navigators and four (4) young female navigators, but did not know which to select.
“I am Countess Orbella. These nine (9) young students are each waterbound to Atrejan, and have been trained in navigation since birth,” Orbella said.
“I am Chief Petty Officer Zarren. I will need two (2) young navigators to enlist as trainees,” Zarren said.
All nine (9) of Countess Orbella’s students smiled at Zarren, hoping to leave for one reason or another. Some had faith, others had doubt, and others just wanted to find better opportunities.
“I’ll take this one and…that one. Come with me,” Zarren said, pointing to Felix and Lalla. He chose the young man because he looked physically weak and easier to control. The young woman was attractive and he had designs on her.
