The Great Hearts II: A Game of Gods

by David Oliver

  Even knowing that it was meant to be practically impossible to detect someone under the sway of black seraph I still felt like there had to be something that I could do. I began to have difficulty sleeping, anxious that someone, somewhere within the Academy was a threat. To help settle my nerves, or perhaps to soothe my conscience that I was doing everything possible to identify the enemy within our ranks I began to roam the Academy grounds at night. Often Seya joined me, the pair of us slipping around anyone returning late from the dining hall, moving as shadows in the night, and other times I casually strolled the cobbled paths of the campus, basking in the silence and shimmering starlight. Sometimes the early morning silence was broken by a disturbance, whether it was the muted cries of lovers having a tryst away from the prying eyes of their dorm or more frustratingly the angry shouts and pained grunts as students brawled in scenes reminiscent of our first encounter at the Academy. For these moments I would often stand and watch in the shadows, remembering Kane’s reasoning behind Kirok. The first time I saw someone lift a cobble was when I first stepped in, sweeping his legs out from under him and grabbing the heavy stone as it fell.

  “Cool off,” I barked at the drunken boy’s face. “You’re not here to kill your classmates. Go and sleep it off.”

  As expected he and his friends didn’t take the interruption lightly, swinging and flailing with a complete lack of grace and skill. I sighed. First years. Had I really been so inept once? Diffusing the situation took less than thirty seconds. The hardest part was making sure that they weren’t permanently injured, just bruised and damaged enough that their desire to inflict harm was outweighed by the need to curl up in a ball.

  And that is how my reputation and nickname of the Academy Shadow began.

  Fights between first years were something that could be easily broken up. After the first few interventions it simply became a matter of walking into view and both parties would instantly back down, knowing that it was foolish to try and fight me. The same could not be said of higher-grade students. You would think that fighting throughout the day would leave you too tired to want to fight further but the Academy had nothing if not students who were keen for a fight. Brawls between third years or above were rarer but they did still happen. And when they did they were much more vicious, though usually with less intent to kill. Only twice did I take it upon myself to step in. The first when it was a gang of third years against a group of first years. The overwhelming difference in skill annoyed me and so I stepped in on behalf of the first years. What resulted was an enjoyable fight of eight on one that tested my ability with regards to being able to put someone down with the minimal amount of fuss. The amusing thing was that I knew some of the third years having fought against them as a fourth year in evening sparring sessions. They had known as I stepped into the light that what happened next was going to hurt but the challenge was too much fun for them to back down. When they were all safely on the floor the majority were smiling or laughing, happy to have had a decent fight.

  The second instance was much worse. Some sort of altercation had led to three groups of third and fourth years fighting with weapons. I didn’t know the backstory but they were out for blood and by the time I got there two were already on the floor cradling wounds. This time I couldn’t hold back, the threat of blades made the chance of someone dying too real. As the groups clashed I attacked from behind, knocking people unconscious where possible, disarming or breaking wrists and forearms where needed. Dancing between the blades felt so natural to me at this point that there was no hint of fear, just an overwhelming joy at the action of movement. I understood why Anatha had such a grin on her face when she fought - to be this good at something and not have the opportunity to do it regularly would be extremely frustrating. When I finished four people lay on the floor unmoving, six held limp arms and a further three lay in pools of vomit clutching their crotches.

  As I stepped back from the carnage a familiar voice spoke up, “Can’t sleep Calidan?”

  Kane.

  He was standing at the side of the dining hall with his arms folded, his body half coated in shadow. He nodded at the group of groaning Imps, “Nicely done. I wondered if you would show this evening.”

  “You knew this was going to happen?” I asked, frowning.

  He shrugged. “They’ve been at each other’s throats for the past few days. It was building to something, that’s why we’ve been keeping an eye out. But I was hoping for the... ‘Academy Shadow’ to turn up and save the day instead of us staff having to step in.” He nodded over to the other side of the courtyard and following his gaze I saw Instructor Laniel raise a hand in greeting before vanishing around the corner towards the medical centre, doubtless going to find the medicae. “Your night time habits have become known throughout the Academy. Kudos.”

  I snorted. “Seemed like a better thing to do than lie in bed not sleeping.”

  A grin. “Walk with me.” It was an order, not a request.

  Complying I fell into pace with him and we left the courtyard of injured students behind. No one was damaged severely enough that they wouldn’t recover given enough rest. The Academy medicae were some of the best in the empire at what they did and so I didn’t feel too bad for resorting to breaking limbs.

  “Something weighing on your mind?” Kane asked after a few minutes of silence. “You haven’t been sleeping much lately.”

  “I don’t know if it is anything specific,” I replied after a few moments. “I don’t feel particularly stressed or anxious but when I get into bed I just can’t sleep. Going out and walking the Academy grounds just seemed like the better option. Getting into all that,” I waved my hand behind us, “just kinda happened. I had to step in at times.”

  He nodded. “I know,” he murmured. “You’ve done a good job, no-one seriously injured and only stepping in when things are going to get deadly. I have no problems with your actions. I just wanted to make sure that if there was something that you needed to talk about then you know you can talk to me.” He locked me with a friendly gaze. “So tell me Calidan, is there anything you want to talk about?”

  Was he just being nice or is he searching for something? I scrambled in my brain for a response. “N-no!” I blurted out. Smooth Calidan. I cursed. “I mean, it’s appreciated but no thank you Kane. I don’t know why I can’t sleep but there is nothing that I know of that I need to talk about.”

  He regarded me intently for a few moments before nodding. “Fair enough Calidan, my door is open if you need me. I would suggest you take yourself to bed but as that seems to not be an option try not to get into any trouble for the rest of the morning, okay?”

  “You’ve got it sir,” I replied, relieved.

  He gave me a grin and turned to go. Walking a few paces he stopped and turned as though he had forgotten something. “Oh, and Calidan?”

  “Yes Instructor?”

  “Tell Anatha I said hello.”

  My stomach plummeted. “A-Anatha?” I said, trying to keep the alarm out of my voice. “I’m not sure who you mean.”

  He snorted. “Anatha always likes to think that she is the cleverest one out there and she likely is. However because of her brilliance she often overlooks things, like how a seraph user of Laniel’s talent doesn’t need to physically search through a forest to see where you have been going. She should know that the Academy keeps tabs on its students. Especially now.”

  Balls. I gave in. “I’ll let her know Instructor. Do you want her to meet with you?”

  “No, no. Nothing of the sort. Your training with Seya looks to be paying off well so her visits here are welcome. As of this moment only Laniel, Korthan and myself are aware - that we know of anyway. If she wants to meet with me she can arrange it however she likes. Her rank is such that I couldn’t refuse a meeting even if I wanted to.”

  I gave him a warm smile. “I understand sir, I’ll let her know.” It felt strangely nice to have someone else know my secret, even if it was Kane and not one of m
y friends.

  “Good man,” Kane said. “Don’t let her bully you too much. But you’ve got a friendship with Korthan so you should know how to deal with crotchety old bastards.”

  “Korthan, sir?” I asked, confused. “What’s he got to do with this?”

  He looked momentarily taken aback. “Don’t you know?” he asked a frown furrowing his brow. “No, of course you wouldn’t,” he muttered. “She wouldn’t tell you herself.” His frown disappeared to be replaced by a cheeky grin, “Well Calidan you get this one for free. Korthan is Anatha’s youngest son.” And with that he walked off into the night, leaving me dumbfounded.

  ✽✽✽

  “Kane knows,” I said as I walked into the clearing. “As does Instructor Laniel and Korthan.”

  Anatha fixed me with a steely gaze. “You been talking, boy?”

  “No,” I replied calmly, keeping a close eye on Borza’s meaty fists. “Kane said that you didn’t think that a seraph user of Laniel’s ability wouldn’t be keeping tabs on me.”

  A crevasse of a frown opened up on the old woman’s forehead and then she let fly with the most impressive string of curses that I had ever heard. By the time she was done she was blue in the face and I felt like I needed to wash my ears out with soap. Even Seya looked taken aback.

  “Well,” she finally said when she was done. “I guess it can’t be helped. Time was that the Academy didn’t bother to track its students by seraph so I…” she looked pained as she finished, “overlooked that avenue.”

  “I imagine that with the Rya case they are likely keeping much closer tabs on everyone,” I replied apologetically. “Also, both Kane and Korthan say hello.”

  Her eyes narrowed at me once again and then she let out a heavy sigh. “So you know eh?”

  I nodded. “Kane told me. I went and had a chat with Korthan. He said you and he hadn’t seen each other in some time and usually kept in touch via mail. Why haven’t you gone to see him?”

  For a moment Anatha’s gaze wavered, as though I had touched a nerve, but then it was gone, her steel resolve hardened. “Because if I go there and make contact now then I am not sure that I would be able to do what must be done if he is under the control of the Enemy.”

  “You would kill your own son?” I gasped, horrified.

  “If I must. The Emperor has willed that the tainted here be rooted out and exorcised. The only way that I know to remove the control of black seraph is through either the sheer mental will of the host or death.”

  I thought furiously. “That can’t be true,” I replied after a long moment. “Cassius was hurt a couple of years ago, Rya hit him with a lance made of shadow. It spread through his body like some kind of disease. The Emperor managed to save him, to remove its infection.”

  “The Emperor is probably the one person in the empire who could do such a thing,” Anatha said with a nod. “His control over seraph is astounding and his pool is practically limitless. From what I heard however the assault on your friend’s body was not one of mental control, it was black seraph running rampant, warping and destroying everything it touched. Most seraph will do the same if flooded into a person. It is a horrible way to die.” I could tell by the way she said the last few words that she was speaking from first-hand experience.

  “Someone who has fully succumbed to control of the Enemy may not even know it,” Anatha said softly, her gaze far away. “Someone like my son may have claws in their brain and not be aware. Those claws are directly linked to the black seraph user’s will and that user has complete control. With very little threat to themselves they can manipulate the individual, force them to do things or, perhaps worse, force them to do things and not remember their actions.”

  “How is that worse?” I murmured, aghast.

  She gave a soft snort. “I forget how little you know. The user of the black has to be actively controlling the target. As soon as their attention moves elsewhere the host can act as they will. If they let you remember the actions that you are taking that means that they do not need you once your mission is done. Otherwise they would just blank your memory and that way continually make use of you as a spy or saboteur.”

  “And what would they do once your mission is done?”

  “Remember I said claws in your brain?” she asked. I nodded. “Imagine those claws raking through all that soft tissue. It’s a messy and unpleasant sight. It is also the reason why it is so hard for someone to excise the control of a black user. The Emperor might have the skill, yes, but he would have to attempt to keep those claws from slicing into the individual’s brain whilst forcing the black seraph out, whereas all the user has to do is leave whilst causing as much damage as possible. It is an almost impossible battle.”

  “What about the other method?” I asked.

  She sighed heavily. “The other method is a very rare occurrence. The host has to come to the realisation that they are under someone else’s control and to have the mental fortitude and seraph skill to be able to start picking apart the strands of black seraph within their brain without alerting the user. They may get away with it if the user does not check in with them for some time, but if the user comes back and finds their control fragmented then the host’s usefulness becomes short-lived.”

  “Sounds like a nightmare,” I whispered.

  She nodded in agreement. “It is. It is why fighting against the Enemy is so consuming, both in terms of time and of will. Once you have seen friends become enemies enough times it drains you until you feel hollow.” She looked old and withered as she said this, as though some spark of essential vitality was sputtering within her.

  I moved close and put a hand on her shoulder. I didn’t say anything and just stood there with her for a moment, providing her with what solidarity I could offer. A long second later she stood and wiped something from her eye. When she looked at me again she was once more Anatha, iron willed and steel spined.

  “Tell me,” I asked, “does the citadel have seraph detectors? Ash spoke of them, she said that they could detect different types of seraph.”

  Eyes curious, she tilted her head in thought. “Rumour has it that the doorway to the Emperor’s inner sanctum is a seraph detector but it has not been operational within my lifetime. The doorway is ancient, whatever magic or energy was used to power the device failed long ago.”

  Damn. Though in retrospect it could never have been that easy. Life for me never was.

  “What about if we could find a working version of whatever powers it? Or what about getting the Emperor himself to power it?”

  She mused for a moment, fingers on her chin. “The Emperor is possibly the only person alive who may know what to do with such a device. I will have to ask. Your plan; I’m presuming that you intend for some kind of gathering within the citadel that requires every Imperator to pass through the seraph detector?”

  “Every Imperator who had access to Rya,” I replied. “Though every Imperator and every Imp would be most effective. There could well be more than one person being controlled, especially considering the time that has passed since the incident with Rya. If the Enemy is as insidious as you say then it is unlikely that they stopped with controlling her. Indeed why did they bother to control her at all if there was the option for more powerful Imperators available?”

  “There are ways to prevent control by black seraph,” Anatha answered. “Some basic defences that once taught provide some modicum of security - making it hard to gain control of someone from a distance. Every fully fledged Imperator has this ability. Direct control would have to come from being physically touched. This defence only comes out of power born of seraph and so is unavailable to anyone under fourth year at the Academy.”

  “Leaving the earlier years vulnerable,” I said, brow furrowed.

  “Vulnerable yes, but not as much of a threat,” Anatha replied. “Rya must have had her seraph awakened to be able to use the abilities she did. That suggests the person who corrupted her had close access to her. Either tha
t or the Enemy has a method of using a person as a conduit, as an extension for his own power - but I can only imagine the amount of seraph that would consume.”

  I remembered the coils of black smoke that had wrapped around Rya in the cave. Seraph was largely an internal power; certain side effects were given off when powering large abilities but it usually corresponded in a flood of light. That thick, black smoke had seemed almost alive.

  “I think the latter might be more accurate,” I said slowly. “And my guess is that Merowyn or Simone would say the same. The black smoke that wrapped around Rya, it didn’t seem like it was a benefit for her. I think this Enemy was there, watching and interfering directly.”

  Anatha inclined her head. “We may never know for certain. We can only hypothesise at this point. If it is possible for the Enemy to do this then we may have to take extra precautions at the Academy. Corrupted Imps with advanced combat skills are one thing. Corrupted Imps who can be wielded as a channel for black seraph are another thing entirely.” She gave a long sigh. “This would all be made much easier if we could replicate the seraph detectors. But that knowledge has long slipped from our grasp. More's the pity.”

  “Could the Emperor create a new one?” I asked. “Isn’t creation by seraph a matter of will?”

  “Theoretically yes,” she replied. “Anyone could do it. But as I am sure that you have been learning in your classes, creation of something simple, like a shield, is much easier than something complicated. You have to have an innate understanding of what you are making. That means that in order to create a seraph detector out of seraph you need to fully understand how each part of it works, and believe me Calidan, technologies that came before the Cataclysm? They were on a whole other level. Humanity as it is now is barely a fraction of what it once was. I haven’t the faintest understanding behind most of the technology at the citadel and I have been researching it for decades! If the overriding structure still works and it is the power device that has failed then it would be in our best interest to retrieve a functioning one.”