Bardo slopped a quarter-bucket-full of the black insects into a bag and handed it to Raiden. Raiden tried not to look into the bag as he lifted it. The delicacy seemed something between a crab and a worm, with green juice oozing from their stiff corpses.
Raiden paid the merchant and then headed out of the marketplace. Despite his considerable effort not to, he peeked down at the bag. It wasn’t plastic, like back home. This planet had no plastic, at least not the kind he recognized. Instead, they used an orange, gooey material called catom, which was, fortunately, more durable than it looked. The only materials he recognized from Earth were wood, glass, and some basic metals. The dirt was white, and the sky shone a bright orange as if the sun were eternally setting.
How could two planets in the same galaxy look so drastically different? Raiden wondered to himself.
The sun moved west to east, opposite to Earth. The ‘water,’ or whatever it was they used as a substitute here, was orange and tasted appalling. What creeped Raiden out the most was the gravity. Its pull was much stronger, and things fell much faster. However, when he’d first arrived, Raiden had been surprised to learn that for some reason, when he wore his amulet, the gravity did not affect him. In fact, the amulet gave him even more strength and speed than he’d ever had on Earth.
Raiden made his way past the lines of market stalls, ignoring the boisterous pestering of merchants, careful not to make eye contact. He’d learned the hard way—the moment they catch your eyes, they reel you in.
As he rushed through the crowd, something grabbed his suspicion. It was a woman, three stalls down. She was tall and broad, dressed in a battle-worn, white suit of armor. Her hair was short, almost shaved, and a long, jagged scar ran down the side of her cheek. She leaned calmly against the wooden wall, watching Raiden with a shady glare. Raiden slowed with caution and curled his hands to fists. The woman stood up from the wall and turned around.
“You’re not getting away,” Raiden thought, pushing his way through the crowd towards the woman. “Not until you tell me what you know and who you are.”
Suddenly, before Raiden could take another step, a pair of hands grabbed him firmly from behind, sending a burning sensation searing through his shoulders. Raiden’s heart jumped as he cried out in surprise. He spun around, grabbed the figure’s arms, and looked his attacker straight in the face.
“Boo!” Kiara exclaimed, her eyes lit with amusement.
Raiden paused for a second in confusion, then breathed out in relief, his muscles relaxed.
“Kiara, you scared the hell out of me,” Raiden panted.
“That’s what you get for leaving me at home,” she taunted.
“Yeah, I’ve learned my lesson,” Raiden replied irritably. “Next time you fall asleep in my bed, you’re waking up in the pygmy den.”
Kiara chuckled and brushed a clump of red hair from her eyes.
“Why were you so jumpy, anyway?”
Raiden turned back around, scanning the crowd anxiously for any sign of the woman. She was gone.
“There was a woman,” Raiden said as he searched one last time.
“Of course there was,” Kiara sighed, rolling her eyes.
“I’m serious, Kiara,” Raiden insisted. “She was watching me.”
“Well, she’s gone now, and we’re late for temple services.”
“Temple?” Raiden asked, his eyebrow rose in confusion. “Since when do we go to temple?”
“Did you seriously forget? I’ve been rambling on about it all week!” Kiara exclaimed in disbelief.
And then, Raiden remembered. Tonight was Ha-Ilia, the Night of Angels. The whole village would be at the temple today, followed by a night of festivities.
Kiara grabbed his hand and dragged him through the crowd.
“Can’t we skip the service and just come for the food?” Raiden whined.
“All the neighbors will be watching,” Kiara said. “Mama would skin me alive.”
“I’m not so sure that’s worse than the alternative,” he groaned.
“Oh, come on,” Kiara chuckled. “It’s not that bad.”
“Priest Jaaro’s had it out for me since the day I got here.”
“Well, you did set his house on fire.”
“A simple misunderstanding-”
“And then there’s the time you called him Father pig-face.”
“I keep telling you guys, where I come from, that’s a compliment! On my planet, pigs are a symbol of beauty.”
“Uh-huh, sure,” Kiara said sarcastically.
“Well, how was I supposed to know you had pigs on this planet!”
Kiara shook her head and laughed. They made their way out of the marketplace and onto the main road. They walked on the side of the road as furry, miniature-mammoths trudged past them in the center, carrying people and supplies on their backs. The pygmies, as the locals called them, could hold two adults with a proper harness. The animal was relatively cheap, and a community’s financial status could be estimated by the amount of pygmy dung lining its streets. Raiden turned his eyes towards the ground, as usual, to avoid stepping on the droppings. However, to his surprise, there was no need. The streets were sparkling clean.
“That’s weird,” Raiden pointed out. “Where’s all the poop?”
Kiara didn’t seem to hear him. She stared intently ahead.
“Don’t you think it’s wei-”
“Raiden,” Kiara hissed, cutting him off. Raiden was taken aback by the sudden sense of urgency in her voice. He followed her stare down the road, and an anxious knot formed in his stomach. White-armored, masked men flooded the streets, going in and out of every house and stopping to question everyone who walked by.
“What are the knights of the White Guard doing in Ankar?” Kiara asked.
“I don’t know,” Raiden whispered, “but we need to get out of here. If they catch me with my defective PDs, they’ll drag me away to the Capital for punishment.”
“I think they’re looking for someone.”
“All the more reason we should get out of here,” Raiden said. He pulled Kiara around in haste and scurried backward, straight into the iron breastplate of a knight.
“Sorry, sir,” Raiden muttered anxiously. He lowered his head and continued walking.
“Wait,” the knight called from behind.
Raiden froze. His heart raced, his muscles tensed. Kiara squeezed his hand.
“You’ve got this,” she whispered.
He took a deep breath, then turned around.
“How can I help you, sir?” he asked, smiling warmly.
The knight glared suspiciously at Raiden from behind his mask.
“What are your names?” the knight asked.
“I am Raoden Tilks, and this is my sister, Kiara.”
Kiara bowed courteously.
“Where were you off to in such a hurry?” the knight asked.
“We were on our way to the village temple,” Raiden explained.
“The temple is that way,” the knight said, pointing in the opposite direction.
“Yes,” Kiara cut in, adding a convincing touch of shame and embarrassment to her tone. “We were on our way when suddenly I realized I’d been careless and forgotten our second bag of scralp in the market. I can be so foolish sometimes.”
The knight glanced at the scralp in Raiden’s hand, then hesitated. His gaze began to sway towards Raiden’s ears, where his fake PDs were fastened.
“May I ask what this is all about?” Kiara interrupted quickly. The Knight looked back at her.
“Every year on the Night of Ilia, the Prince chooses a different village to honor with his presence. This year, Ankar has been chosen. We are only ensuring the safety of the Prince.”
“I understand,” Kiara nodded calmly. “Now, is it alright if we continue on our way? We don’t want to miss the service.”
The knight stole one last glance at Raiden, then nodded.
“May Gavriel guide your path,” he said. He bowed hi
s head, then walked away.
Raiden exhaled in relief as they hurried back in the direction of the market.
“We’ll have to buy another bag of scralp now,” Raiden whined, looking down with disgust at the squirming creatures in his hand.
“Can you believe it?” Kiara exclaimed, her voice brimming with excitement.
“I know, that was a close one,” Raiden said.
“No, not that! The Prince, he’s coming tonight!”
“Am I supposed to be excited? All that means to me is more speeches and more knights…”
“They say he has the carved face of an angel, the arms of a polished swordsman, the thighs of a stallion,” Kiara said dreamily. “And just wait until you hear what they say about his-”
“Alright,” Raiden interrupted, his tone irritated. “I think I’ve heard enough.”
“What’s wrong?” Kiara taunted, leaning in closer. “Are you jealous?”
“There’s nothing to be jealous of,” Raiden insisted. “He’s just an ordinary guy with a fancy title.”
“Well then, I guess we’ll see tonight, won’t we?” Kiara asked, teasing a competitive tone.
“I guess so.”
Raiden grew silent and quickened his pace, unsure about which part of the conversation had made him so upset. They bought a second bag of scralp and headed back to the main road. When they passed the knight from before, Kiara smiled at him and lifted the second bag of scralp.
By the time they made it back home, the morning had passed. Their cottage was surrounded by acres of crops, swaying gently in the eastern, early evening breeze. They marched through the family fields, careful not to step on any potatoes. As they walked, Raiden noticed movement coming from a nearby, half-eaten batch of potato plants.
“Looks like the aquilops are at it again,” Kiara said.
“Shoo!” Raiden yelled, stomping towards the plants. They heard a series of high-pitched shrieks as a group of five or six of the tiny, bearded dinosaurs scurried quickly away, disappearing beneath a new set of plants.
“We should spray the crops with some zangara seed powder,” Raiden said. “Aquilops can’t stand the smell.”
As they neared the pygmy stable, they were greeted by an acrid stench.
“I can see Maxie is home,” Raiden choked.
“I still think we should’ve named him Pooper,” Kiara coughed, covering her nose.
The nearest stable wall was patched and enforced with layers of nails and planks, having been fixed many times over. As they drew closer, the pygmy blew its hairy trunk like a trumpet, thrilled to see them. Then it charged in their direction, heading straight for the stable wall.
“Maxie, wai-!”
Raiden flinched painfully as the pygmy smashed head-first into the wall. The wood collapsed in a cloud of dust, and the pygmy tumbled backward into a pile of dung and hay. Kiara shook her head hopelessly.
“Nope, Maximus—I mean, Maxie, is the perfect name for him,” Raiden smirked.
“I don’t get it,” Kiara said. “It’s pathetic. He does the same thing every single time.”
“And I’m the one who has to fix the wall every day,” Raiden sighed as they continued walking. “I keep telling Mama we should add a layer of metal.”
Kiara chuckled.
Finally, they reached the door and walked inside. The house was silent and still.
“Mama, we’re back,” she called out.
A series of footsteps sounded from the second floor, and a short, stout woman scurried down the stairs. A stern expression sat between her curled, bushy eyebrows and her flushed, plump cheeks.
“Where in Gavriel’s name have you two been?” she scolded. “Kiara, you should’ve been home! The town’s going mad, what with all those knights running out and about. Who knows what could have happened!”
Kiara was speechless. She looked desperately at Raiden.
“Sorry, Mama, it’s my fault,” Raiden apologized. “I asked her to come along. You know how I hate touching that scralp.”
The woman looked suspiciously at Kiara, who responded with an innocent smile and shrug.
“Hmph,” her mother huffed, growing calm. “Raiden, you should have told me,” she said disappointedly.
“I know, I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”
“And make good sure of it,” she said. “Now go and fix the stable before that bird-brained buffoon wakes up.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Raiden complied, and he scampered back out of the door.
“I’ll go get dressed for the temple ceremony,” Kiara said quickly, hurrying up the stairs.
“Just one moment, young lady,” her mother called out. Kiara turned around slowly, bracing herself for a scolding.
“Do you take me for a fool, Kiara?” she demanded.
“Of course not, Mama.”
“I may be old, but I’m not blind. I know what’s really going on,” Mama said, raising a menacing eyebrow.
“You do?” Kiara asked cautiously, unsure what she was referring to.
“Of course I do,” her mother said, her stern expression melting into a warm and caring smile. “You’re in love.”
“What?” Kiara chuckled nervously, blushing deeply.
“Oh, come now,” her mother insisted. “It’s no use hiding from your mama.”
Kiara opened her mouth to protest but then gave in with a deep sigh.
“There it is,” her mother said. “Have you spoken to him about it?”
“Of course I did, Mama, but you know how it is,” Kiara sighed sadly. “He wants to go back home. He can’t stay here. He won’t.”
“I wouldn’t give up so easily, my dear,” her mother said. “It may take some time, but eventually, he will come to realize that a true home isn’t built in the place one lives, but in the hearts of those he loves.”
Kiara looked down into her mother’s comforting eyes.
“Besides,” her mother said, taking her hand. “One would have to be a fool to think they could do better than my beautiful, baby girl.”
Kiara smiled affectionately as her mother kissed her hand before letting go.
“I love you, Mama,” she said.
“I love you too, darling. Now go get dressed for the holiday. Maybe if we’re actually on time this year, the angels will bless us with a new pygmy, one with a god-damn brain.”
Kiara laughed happily, then hurried up the stairs to her room.
◆◆◆
Raiden stumbled back into the house exhausted, his body and face covered with dung and hay. He made his way towards his quarters, careful not to touch anything with his dirty hands. As he passed by the stairs, Kiara’s mother came out from her room.
“What in god’s name is that horrible sten-”
When she saw him, she stopped mid-sentence.
“Oh my,” she gasped softly.
Raiden looked up at her, his dirty face strewn with misery.
“Maxie woke up.”
◆◆◆
After taking what must have been the longest bath of his life, Raiden wrapped himself in a drying cloth and walked out of the bathroom. As he started down the stairs to his room, Kiara walked out from hers, dressed in a bathrobe.
“I heard you decided to wrestle with Maxie instead of fixing his pen,” she smirked.
“I scrubbed so hard I can’t even feel my skin,” Raiden said. “And I can still smell the dung.”
“Maybe you have some stuck up your nose.”
Raiden chuckled. “Yeah, maybe.”
“What’re you gonna wear tonight?” Kiara asked.
“I haven’t really thought about it. I don’t even know if I have any clean clothes left. Maybe I’ll just go like this.”
“I wouldn’t mind,” Kiara teased, raising one eyebrow.
“Easy there,” Raiden chuckled. “You’ve got to behave yourself. We’re going to temple tonight.”
“Alright,” Kiara said playfully, moving slowly closer to Raiden. “I’ll behave. But afterwar
d…”
She moved even closer, keeping his eyes locked in her gaze, and pressed her body tightly against his own. Raiden’s heart raced, but he was frozen in place. Chills ran down his arms as she placed her hands on his bare shoulders and leaned forward, her lips just a hair-breadth from his skin as she whispered into his ear.
“Afterwards, Raiden Williams, I’m going to make a fool out of you…like this!”
Suddenly, Kiara grabbed the edge of his towel and, before Raiden had time to think, she yanked it right off and ran back to her room with the towel, bursting with laughter.
“Kiara!” Raiden yelped as his hands flew downwards, his cheeks bright red with embarrassment. “Kiara, this isn’t funny! Give it back!”
“So now you want me to come back out there?” she giggled.
“Yes! I mean, no!” Raiden yelled, flustered. “I’m gonna get you back for this!”
Raiden scurried back down to his room and threw on his undergarments. He shuffled quickly through his narrow wardrobe. None of the clothes were his own. They had belonged to Kiara’s father. He picked out a loose, white shirt with a laced collar and a pair of tight-fitted pants. After getting dressed, he looked at himself in the mirror. The man he saw wasn’t Raiden Williams. Raiden Williams was a tall, skinny boy dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. The man in the mirror was an Ankarian farmer with rough, chapped hands and a lean, muscular build, a result of endless hours working the fields. This was who he was now.
Raiden sat down on his bed and released a deep sigh. There was no point in denying it anymore. The way he’d lost himself in Kiara’s eyes, submitting all control. The thrill he’d felt when she touched him, how desperately he wanted more. He’d made it obvious now, to both of them.
“I don’t know what to do, Maximus,” Raiden whispered, running his hands anxiously over his face. “I said I’d find Mara, that I’d bring back the power to stop Roko and save the world. But I didn’t expect this…I didn’t expect to be happy.”
Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.
“Come in,” Raiden called.
“Raiden,” Kiara’s mother said, opening the door. She opened her mouth to speak, but when she saw him, she froze.
The Chamber of Genesis Page 2
