A deep voice answered, bitter cold mist forming as he spoke. “You have done well, Amagesh. With the Astral's Chronopolis sealed off to us, these two will lead us to their home.”
Amagesh shivered, but from extreme pride. “As inevitably as you commanded. They will not escape us.” He bowed in acquiescence.
“Your vigil is over.” Techmoses tilted his head in acknowledgement.
Amagesh bowed again as the dark figure disappeared in another flash of darkness. Amagesh gazed one last time around the compound before following suit, leaving the Surge alone basking in the dying light of the white hot sun.
As they travelled, Alpha Rion wondered about Amagesh and his origins. He was unlike any alien he had met before. But he also wondered if their encounter with a psi-capable being had made Chalant homesick. He decided to broach the subject again.
“So what ever happened to your civilization then? Are there others like you out there?”
Chalant thought about it. Bittersweet memories flashing through her mind. “Well, as I told you before, when I finally returned home, I found it destroyed with everyone dead, and my brothers missing. As far as I knew I was the only one alive, but now we know better. To protect my people and their heritage, I buried the village, sinking it deep under the desert. I used to visit it every few years to make sure it had stayed buried. It’s my place of solace, of inspiration, my hideaway and comfort. It’s my home and I hope to again some day.” She looked sad, not really wanting to say more, but this trip could take months. She knew she had to talk about it sometime. She sighed, continuing her story.
“Years later, I came across the Exmoors and worked with them for a few years until I met you. That's when my life really began.” She caressed his cheek. “Of course then Lightstream took you away to the future. I didn't know what I was going to do, but then the Hunters found me again and they had another mission for me. And that took me further away from you and my home.” Her eyes were so far away.
Alpha Rion wondered what sort of mission it was. She had never spoken of her time with the Hunters. She looked even sadder now.
He decided to leave her history there. She would tell him in her own time, he knew.
“Don’t worry, Chalant, I’ll get you home, I promise,” Alpha Rion assured her.
“I hope so.”
They rode on in the Surgeship in silence thinking of home and new beginnings.
CHAPTER FIVE
Earth. Long ago.
“We won’t tell them,” Millennius whispered harshly.
He, his sister Destina, and Spheron sat on a grassy hill under the edenite sky of what would become northern Iran. Here they had settled after escaping the Helstar, the living pulsar of dark Lore energy. The Traitor Synther had imprisoned the three Celestian Knights during their failed attempt to escape through Alphatronius' vortex following the end of Celestia. Horrific experiments had followed as Synther had tried to turn them into Lore by infecting them with exotic viruses, using their own Celestian energy against them. But they had resisted and escaped. Or so they had thought.
The Helstar was in constant flux spanning multi-dimensions and temporal planes, a defence mechanism against attack. Feigning illness from the exhaustive experiments, Destina had managed to force her captors into a mistake, enabling their escape from the seething star-mass. Between Millennius' light and Spheron's forceshields, the three had fought their way out of the Helstar and into space. But the combined temporal-dimensional spin of the Helstar had flung the trio into the outer reaches of a young galaxy. With his lightvision Millennius had scanned light-years around them through the dusty vacuum and found a planet suitable for life.
As if having survived the torment of the Helstar wasn’t enough, there was more of a shock when they discovered the planet was already inhabited by peoples much like themselves; clearly Fifth, but primitive, making tools and weapons from crude metals. After unobtrusive observations amongst the natives and studies of the Tomes of History on his crystalator, Spheron surmised this to be Adantus’ world Destinia. The three agreed that the universe must have been looking favourably upon them, at least sometimes.
The three refugee Celestian Knights filtered into the Fifth groups, hiring themselves out as warriors, healers, and mystics, at which they more than excelled. They moved in and out of disparate cultural groups, as the peoples dispersed from the snowy mountains and into the lower plains, across seas, and deserts, living through epic sagas which would be etched into the Bible and other myths. Finally they arrived in a land which would be called Greece. Over those centuries the Celestians had travelled back and forth, lest their longevity and powers became known.
They could have lived this way indefinitely. But then the past reached out to wrench their lives apart. The results of Synther's experiments had not taken effect for nearly three hundred years; essentially less than a third of their lifespan, but it was long enough, as they were already middle-aged Celestian Knights.
Destina had become the first to fall ill, her body shifting between states of corporealness and pure energy. It took all of Spheron’s ingenuity and powers to stave off the attacks as much as possible, even when he and Millennius eventually became infected. The Exegete could only assume Synther had infected them with an unknown Lore virus. The virus had the power to transform even a Celestian Knight, literally creating a new, sentient Lore, which would not be able to be reversed. The three knew it would only be a matter of time before their Loreselves took over permanently. But mostly they feared they would join Synther in his quest to spread his evil across the universe.
Even worse, during their time on Earth they had each fallen in love, taking on Fifth lovers and partners. Eventually, they had decided it was time to have children, before it was too late to leave their legacy upon this world.
At the bottom of the hill Xathanius, Helexius, Zasandra, Lazeron, Cal Xarien, and Halydon played. The two eldest, Xathanius and Cal Xarien, were just entering their teens and learning about their Celestian heritage. Their Fifth parents had long since died. The Celestian Knights took it upon themselves to teach their children all they could about their past. But they could not bring themselves to reveal to them the cost of their escape from Synther and that one day it could affect their children in ways they could not foresee.
“We won’t tell them,” Millennius iterated. “It would be too dangerous . . .”
“For who? Us or them?” mocked Destina, sitting between Millennius and Spheron.
She blamed her brother for all that had happened, all because of his and Alphatronius’ pride. She could only hope the other Celestian Knights had not survived or were not suffering similar fates.
“Our children are old enough to know such things,” she hissed, leaning close to him so their voices couldn't be overheard. “They might need to know for the future. How can we keep it from them, Millennius?” Her face seethed at him, fists clenched.
Her brother sighed, tired of repeating the same arguments. “We already live apart from the Fifths, because of what has happened to us and so they don’t get suspicious about our natures. If our children found out, with all we’ve told them about the Lore, we would scare them away from us and lose them forever. Do you want that, Destina?” he whispered sharply back.
Destina looked earnestly down the hill to where her two sons wrestled each other. Cal Xarien looked up at her, showing off, as he pinned the squirming Lazeron then grinned in his younger brother’s face. Destina stopped her eyes from watering up. The love for her sons was too much to lose. She would never want to see that love die in their eyes when they found out the truth.
Relenting, she asked, “What must we do?” Tears finally broke through her resolve.
“We will leave when the time is right,” Spheron spoke with the resoluteness of his duty. “The different remedies I have used for centuries will soon wear off. But there is no need to fear. As I am the least infected, I can continue to teach the youngsters for several more years. They will want for not
hing and when their powers start to manifest, I will teach them how to use them.” His graying features creased as he gave Destina a reassuring smile.
Destina squeezed Spheron’s hand, breathing with relief. “I wasted so much time hating you for your loyalty to my brother, Spheron. I should be ashamed of myself. When I look at my sons, I know they’ll be safe in your hands. I don’t feel afraid anymore. In fact, I feel even more alive.” Her winsome face lit up with hope, then her hands glowed.
She suddenly stood up and let loose a hail of energy into the sky. She shrieked in delight and so did the children, the unexpected outburst from Mother and theía Destina enough to surprise them all. Destina almost collapsed onto the ground, caught by Millennius, her chest wracked in pain. She coughed wildly.
“Universe! Destina, you could have unleashed more than just a few energy sparks. You have to be careful,” Millennius chastised her, searching her eyes for any more outbursts.
Destina looked down weakly to her sons. They returned her gaze back up the hill, collective brows knitted in concern for their mother who seemed ill. As they began to stride up the winding path, she waved them off, giving a faint smile. They glanced at each other, satisfied mother was fine, before Lazeron playfully leaped on his brother. They tumbled and wrestled down the hill, Zasandra always egging on the young Lazeron.
“Our children will be fine, Destina,” Millennius hugged his sister, which she reluctantly accepted.
Already Millennius could also feel the strange energy coursing up and down inside him fighting to get free. Spheron had used crystalators to counter and absorb some of the energy, which he then dissipated into the sea and mountains, causing quakes and eruptions from time to time. With great difficulty, he had created an advanced enough laboratory in a mountain hut applying medical procedures to infuse some of his own forcefield energies into the siblings to contain any sporadic energy outbursts. However, Spheron was getting weaker from the constant life-sapping infusions. The crystalators weren’t so infinite in capacity no matter how often they were drained, such was the power of the Lore virus.
Millennius sighed inwardly. He knew his son, Xathanius, was capable of leading the others, but secretly he did worry about Cal Xarien and Lazeron, and even his own daughter Zasandra who practically worshipped her cousins rather than her brothers. Millennius knew his dear sister was feeding her sons a diet of Knights Destina heroic tales. They had lived long enough to know that the epic battles of the Greeks, Sumerians, Egyptians, and Hittites, among others had passed into legend and the sons of Destina desired to be a part of their own heroic adventure when they were old enough. And even though her visionary sight was failing, Destina had foreseen that her sons would be part of an epic battle upon this world at the walls of a mighty fortress. But then her sight failed her again. Her sons waited for this time, for upon that day they would come of age.
That day would come at the walls of Troy, but little did anyone know that would be the start of the Astrals and their adventures to the end of time at the walls of another fortress.
Millennius and Destina died.
At the moment they knew their time was coming to the end, Millennius and Destina walked off into the mountain mists, never to be seen again.
The night before, there had been a great family feast of roasted goat, fresh bread, olives, fruits, and wine to celebrate their lives. There was singing of old Celestian battle hymns and re-telling of Celestian and human myths intermixed with the delicious food and strong wine even for the children. The younglings would then be guaranteed to still be asleep when Millennius and Destina departed early.
They exchanged sad farewells with Spheron in the chilly mountain morning. He stood in stoic silence watching as they disappeared around a soaring mountainside.
Over an hour later, Millennius and Destina stopped by a young copse of trees within a shallow valley, a feeble mountain stream bubbling down toward a green plain. They stood not knowing what to say, feigning interest in the scenery.
“Where will you go?” Millennius finally asked, not able to look Destina in the eye. He couldn't imagine saying goodbye to his sister, no matter their differences. His insides were burning from the Lore virus but he was resolved not to let Destina see his pain.
“I don’t know. The universe will lead me,” his sister replied, coolly.
The three Celestian Knights had talked about what would happen to them once they turned into Lore. They had decided they would leave Earth, never to return, and hope their Loreselves would find a life in the greater cosmos.
“You know, he’s probably waiting for us out there,” Destina's voice shook a little as she tried to pretend the cold was affecting her and not her fears. She looked up to the last of the stars fading away as the sun lazily invaded the sky.
“I don’t think Synther knows where we are. It’s been centuries. He would have brought the Lore horde here by now if he did.” Millennius was sure about that.
“Maybe, but he might be able to sense and track us when we turn.”
Millennius nodded at that. It was more than a possibility. “That’s why we agreed to separate,” the Celestian Knight leader reiterated. The moment he uttered it, Millennius knew he would miss Destina deeply.
Excited with hope in her voice, Destina suddenly reached out and grasped Millennius' hand. “Yes, I know, but I have been thinking, especially after hearing all the old myths again.” She was almost breathless with fervor.
“No, Destina, you can’t . . .” Millennius began to protest.
“I must, brother, hear me! I am not called Destina for nothing. Our foresires fostered at least one believer in every generation and I am of the Knights Destina. I have seen enough of the future to know what I must do.” Her mood had swung acutely as she snapped angrily at Millennius.
Millennius regarded his sister. She had never been counted as one of the most beauteous of the Celestian Knights, not compared to the cold-ethereal looks of Elysius or the ravishing sultriness of Ultra Ari, but Destina had a haughtiness about her which drew admirers in, especially among the primitive Fifths. Her guile and charm had been her main weapons and it drove her visions, convincing others of what she had seen. More oft than not they were only her interpretations, not the literal truth. Millennius had to know which was happening now.
“Destina, we have to be resigned to our fates. Your powers have been fading for centuries and you cannot be certain they are true.”
“They are true,” Destina devoutly protested, arms open wide. “I have seen it; me, you, and the Storm of Stars . . . but it’s all hazy, as if I am witnessing it through Lore eyes.”
“And Spheron? What of him? And our children?” Millennius demanded, not able to resist his sister’s visions.
“I did not see Spheron. I do not know. But there is another, your son.”
“Xathanius?” Millennius was confused.
Destina’s eyes clouded over as she sought the inner images. “No, your first born.” She looked at him with her own green eyes, which threatened to brim with tears. “Your first born,” she repeated with care.
Millennius was speechless. “Hellennius?” he managed to whisper.
He and Phasia had done everything to protect their new-born son from Destina, lest he had come to harm, due to his sister's hatred for Phasia. But then Hellennius had mysteriously disappeared.
“How? Where?” he uttered, weakly, leaning on a tree. He thought briefly Destina was really just humouring a dying Celestian Knight?
But Destina had more to tell him. “He will kill you, Millennius. I have seen it!”
Millennius scoffed, undaunted. “Then I must find him,” he shrugged nonchalantly. “Father and son together again. And then he can do what he wants. I am dead anyway.” He gestured from the direction they had travelled from, bringing a little, twisted smile to Destina’s lips. “And I must find Phasia, too,” Millennius said.
“Really!” Destina burst in anger. “You do not still think of her?” she said with so
me venom. “How can you still trust her?”
A thin smile touched Millennius' lips. “Because I still love her. And we are in no position to judge her now, considering what we will become. She might be able to help us.”
Destina rejected this notion, chopping the air with her hands. “No, she sided with the Traitor Synther. And if you ask me, from what I saw in my vision your son has more of her in him than he does of you, so you would be better off without him, too,” she huffed, dismissively.
“Argh!” Millennius lashed out without thinking catching Destina with a back-handed slap, bloodying her face. She recoiled from the blow and went to retaliate with blows of her own, but she screamed doubling over in pain.
A green spark burst from her forehead, evapourating a few meters above them.
“Oh, no, it’s happening,” she gasped in horror, staring at her hands as they started to phase into energy. “Millennius, help me!” Her eyes were wide with fear. She clutched herself trying to hold onto her physical body for longer.
“I cannot,” was all Millennius could say. He looked at his sister with some sympathy, but there was nothing he could do. His look was not returned in kind. She dropped her arms forlornly.
“You brought this upon us; you and Alphatronius and your all-consuming pride. Wanting to live beyond the prophecy. I blame you,” Destina yelled, even as her body started to convulse and swell from corporealness into energy. “Heretic! The Storm of Stars will judge you when they awake!” she shrieked.
Destina burned green energy. She felt searing pain, but it was accompanied by soaring exhilaration. It felt normal, like a new skin. Then she felt something else. It poured through her veins, her very soul, burst from her hands; a globule of green energy. It expanded to form a portal.
“Hah!” she rejoiced.
Without a farewell, she leaped into the air and disappeared through her opened portal in a showering stream of emerald shards.
The Destinia Apocalypse (The Starguards - Of Humans, Heroes, and Demigods Book 4) Page 10
