“I found him the day I got here,” Raiden explained. “My first friend, I guess you can say. I was transported somewhere in the Peakshire Mountains about two-hundred kilometers west of Ankar. With my luck, I found myself right smack in the middle of a raider camp. They were trapping animals and enhancing them with cybernetic implants. They wanted to use them as weapons to raid the villages in the mountain valleys. When I saw what they were doing, I freed a few of the animals, Skarai included, before getting caught. While the other animals took off for the mountains, Skarai came back for me and helped me escape. He’s been following me ever since.”
“You have a good heart,” Sable smiled. “I can see why Kiara wants it.”
Raiden returned the smile.
As they headed deeper into town, the destruction was more and more apparent. They had to zig-zag up and down the road to avoid fallen trees and houses. Raiden noticed splotches of blood-stained dirt every so often. Mara was careful not to step on them, following the Shadow custom of respecting the dead, and Raiden adopted her practice, feeling like it was the right thing to do. Occasionally, they passed by a panicked pygmy wandering aimlessly through the streets, but Raiden didn’t stop, as he didn’t want to lose Skarai’s trail.
Finally, Skarai stopped at the entrance to an old barn, swooping in circles in front of the door.
“Is this the place, Skarai?” Raiden puffed, struggling to speak as he caught his breath. He looked awkwardly at his companions who, thanks to Shadow discipline and physiology, cybernetic limbs, and cheetah DNA, hardly broke a sweat.
Skarai cawed in response, calling back Raiden’s attention.
“He found something in here,” Raiden told the others. “We should check it out.”
“It could be an undead,” Ferrus grimaced. “Or a Decrepit.”
“Or an answer,” Mara responded. She turned the handle of the crooked, wooden door, but it fell to the floor. So Mara kicked it, and the door collapsed inwards, hitting the floor with a bang. She looked back at her companions.
“Let’s go.”
They entered the dark, rundown farmhouse, comprised of only a ground level. The sun had set by now, and moonlight poked through holes in the walls and ceiling. The room was tall and wide, and it seemed to have hosted a violent battle. The kitchen was situated on the right side of the room, with chairs and shattered dishes sprawled throughout the floor. The round, wooden dining table was cracked and overturned. A single, thin cot sat on the left side of the room, its sheets stained red with blood. A shredded pillow lay beside it, its feathers littering the surrounding surface.
“This place gives me the creeps,” Raiden muttered as his footsteps creaked across the floor. Mara flipped a light switch on the wall of the kitchen, and a dangling, buzzing light flickered on and off from the ceiling.
Skarai flew through the entrance and fluttered over to the bed, landing on the metal bedpost. Raiden walked over to the eagle and examined the surrounding area. He bent down to investigate under the bed, and Skarai uttered a satisfied caw.
“I think I found something,” Raiden called as his hand struck a cold, iron latch jutting from the floor. “Someone move the bed.”
The group gathered around Raiden, and Ferrus pushed the bed to the edge of the room, revealing a hidden hatch underneath. Raiden put his ear to the entrance and listened. A faint, wheezing hiss originated from the other side, like the sound of strenuous breathing.
“I think someone’s down there,” he said, a nervous lump forming in his stomach.
“Maybe it’s a survivor,” Sable proposed hopefully.
“More likely a demon,” Ferrus frowned, gritting her teeth. The cyborg drew her tremendous, razor-sharp blade, holding it still between her strength-enhanced, robotic arms. Her eyes narrowed as she prepared herself for confrontation.
Well, no matter what’s waiting under this hatch, at least it can’t be scarier than her, Raiden thought sardonically.
“Time to find out,” Raiden said, and he opened the hatch.
Instantly, the breathing stopped. The room fell quiet and still.
Raiden peered cautiously down the hole, his heart racing with fearful anticipation.
“GO AWAY!”
The frantic, screeching voice caught him by surprise, and he jolted away from the hatch, crawling backward on all fours. The sound was more animalistic than human, demonic even, like the piercing cry of a horde of bats.
“Who are you?” Mara asked, stepping forward to take Raiden’s place. She peered down into the hatch. It led directly down to a small, square room, hardly big enough to fit a single person. Through the darkness, Mara could barely make out the figure of an old man. His skin was black and shriveled, his body bony and frail. His joints were severely disfigured, bulging disturbingly from their sockets. Murky drops of blood streamed down from his swollen, yellow eyes. Mara fought the urge to turn away as her stomach churned in disgust.
“GO!” the man screamed, tugging violently at a pair of handcuffs that chained him to the surface of his tiny prison.
Ferrus stepped beside Mara to grab a look. “It seems like he confined himself,” she observed. “I’ve never seen this behavior in an undead before.”
“Maybe he was trying to protect the rest of the town from himself,” Sable suggested, standing a safe distance back. She had no interest in seeing another undead.
Mara and Ferrus stepped back as the man began to shriek hysterically, pulling madly at his chains.
“GO, GO, GO, GO, GO!!!”
“We should just leave him alone and get out of here!” Raiden shouted urgently over the man’s shrieks, scrambling to his feet. “From my experience, there’s nothing we can do to help.”
As Raiden and Sable hurried towards the exit, Mara pulled out her bow and aimed it down at the crazed man, stringing an arrow. The stranger’s cries grew louder and louder. The wood holding his chains in place began to crack.
“What are you doing!?” Raiden yelled at her.
“Putting him out of his misery,” Mara replied solemnly, her gaze focused and resolute.
Just as she released the string, the man-creature tore himself from his restraints. The hideous, black figure darted through the air in a flash as the flickering lightbulb on the ceiling sparked, then went out.
Mara’s scream echoed through the darkness. Her bow clattered to the wooden floor.
Suddenly, brilliant light poured into the room as Ferrus lifted her mighty sword, her eyes glowing vibrantly. Energy surged through her arms into the blade, charging it with heat and electricity. With a battle cry on her lips, she swung the heavy weapon at the man just as he crouched upon Mara, his long, bony fingers digging into her chest. Ferrus handled the hefty sword as if it were a twig, moving with deadly speed as she struck the man from the side. The blade burned straight through his left arm and leg. Before the man could scream, or even fall to the ground, she kicked him powerfully in the stomach, sending him crashing through the opposite wall.
Raiden and Sable watched Ferrus in awe, their jaws dropped. Standing tall with her titanic, shining weapon and energy pulsing through her body, she didn’t look only daunting. She looked beautiful.
Ferrus returned her sword to its sheath and bent down, gazing into Mara’s eyes with a concerned and caring expression.
“Mara, you’re hurt,” she said, her voice uncharacteristically soft. She took Mara’s hand in her own as she inspected her wounds.
Mara looked up at Ferrus and smiled affectionately, stroking her fingers across the woman’s bald head. “I’m alright,” she assured her. “Thanks to you.”
“I told you we should not have come here,” Ferrus rambled anxiously. “I told you! This is my fault. I should have protected you, I should have-”
“You did protect me, Ferrus, I’m completely fine,” Mara insisted. “I should listen to you more often.” Mara moved Ferrus’s large, scarred hand towards her face and kissed it. “I am so lucky to have you.”
Ferrus relaxed wit
h Mara’s kiss and the tone of her voice, finally calming down.
“That was amazing, the way you fought,” Raiden said, still in awe.
“No thanks to you,” Ferrus grumbled, turning towards him. “You’ve been nothing but a danger to Mara ever since we found you.”
“Ferrus, relax,” Mara said, sitting up. “We should go find that undead and end its pain.”
Raiden nodded. Ferrus helped Mara to her feet, and the four of them hurried out the door and around the house to where the man had fallen. They found him lying on the grass in the backyard, screeching and shivering uncontrollably. Sable turned around with tears in her eyes, unable to look as the other three approached him. Mara readied another arrow.
The man rolled onto his side, staring at the group. When his gaze fell upon Raiden’s amulet, his shrieking suddenly stopped.
“T-h-e m-a-p,” the man croaked.
“Wait,” Raiden said, stopping Mara with his hand before she could fire. “What did you say?” Raiden asked, walking closer.
“T-h-e m-a-p,” the man repeated, tapping his pants pocket with his remaining arm. As he gazed at Raiden, his eyes appeared almost clear again and filled with remorse, if only for a moment.
“I a-m s-o-rr-y,” he managed to say.
His body began to shake again, and the craze returned to his eyes. He growled, glaring hungrily at Raiden. The man began to drag himself closer, digging his hand through the dirt. Raiden looked quickly at Mara and nodded, his heart aching with sorrow.
Mara fired, and the man grew still.
Raiden approached the body, sickened and heart-broken. He bent down and reached his hand into the man’s pocket, pulling out a rolled-up slip of parchment.
“What is it?” Mara asked.
Raiden walked over to her and unrolled the scroll, revealing a detailed geographical depiction of the Kingdom with markings scribbled over in black ink.
“It’s a map,” Ferrus said, peeking over their heads.
“A map to what?” Raiden asked curiously, studying the drawing.
“To the last guardian angel,” Mara said suddenly, her eyes widening. She pointed to a circled spot on the map, deep within the wildlands. A title was scribbled above it in golden ink.
“The Lost Shrine of Gavriel.”
◆◆◆
“By the strength of Gavriel, I shall prevail. By the strength of Gavriel, I shall prevail. By the strength of Gavriel, I shall prevail…”
Jaaro mumbled the prayer over and over again as he sat alone in the middle of his burning temple, shaking back and forth, his eyes tightly shut, his heart pounding with terror. Smoke choked his lungs as the remains of the temple walls toppled, engulfed in flames. The horrified cries of his people echoed from the village beyond as their souls were devoured by the Decrepit.
“By the strength of Gavriel, I shall prevail. By the strength of Gavriel, I shall prevail.”
A horde of dark shadows emerged from the flames, closing in around him. Jaaro felt the chilled, lifeless aura of their presence, striking fear and devastation deep into his heart. Despite the intense heat, he began to shiver uncontrollably.
“Oh, mighty angel, please heed my prayers. Rescue me from the hand of evil, deliver me to the promised land.”
“Your prayers have been heard, Priest,” a deep, daunting voice said suddenly, piercing the deepest confines of his mind. “But not by the angel you seek.”
Jaaro’s eyes shot open in surprise.
There, standing within the fiery inferno, was a colossal, beautiful angel. His vast, majestic wings spanned the entire circumference of the temple, separating Jaaro from the flames. The Decrepit gathered beneath the angel’s wings like children taking shelter with their father. Jaaro trembled as he stared in awe, unable to speak.
“You serve the wrong order,” Mikael said. “But I cannot blame you for your ignorance. I have remained hidden for too long, and the people have forgotten me.”
Mikael began to walk forward, his wings shifting position, causing the entire structure to shake.
“I admire your sense of loyalty. The time has come for my return, and I shall require that kind of dedication.”
Mikael knelt down before Jaaro. The priest stared wide-eyed at the angel, his expression one of utter fear and trepidation. His body shook uncontrollably.
“Will you serve me?” Mikael asked coolly. “Will you serve the order of Azarai?”
Jaaro nodded so hard and desperately, he nearly broke his own neck.
“Good,” Mikael replied. “Then, the blessings of the angels shall be upon you.”
Mikael twirled his wrist, and a bright, white feather appeared in his hand. He blew on the feather, and it shattered into millions of tiny, shimmering orbs, floating into Jaaro’s body. Suddenly, Jaaro felt a newfound sense of strength and vitality surge through his body. The feeling returned to his legs, and before he could even consider how, he was standing on his own. He looked down at his legs in utter shock, then back at the angel.
“Your humble servant thanks His Greatness,” Jaaro stammered, finally managing to speak.
“It was not I who blessed you,” Mikael replied. “It was my younger brother, Rafael. What is left of him, at least. His powers of healing are a gift shared with only the most righteous of men. Will you remain righteous, Jaaro, son of Klotsk?”
“I shall serve you faithfully until the end of days,” Jaaro swore, his eyes burning with resolution.
“Good,” Mikael nodded. “Then bring me the man they call Raiden.”
Chapter Ten
A Dance Goodnight
6 days before planet’s destruction
Kiara breathed in a deep, satisfying mouthful of warm, dry air. Suriel closed the door after them, leaving the dark, cold chamber behind. They found themselves in the middle of a long hallway, lit brightly by a multitude of crackling, hot flames. The flames burned endlessly from wide, copper bowls in firepits along the walls. The varnished, golden walls and ceiling were decorated with regal, maroon and silver tapestries, befitting of a royal palace. A line of artistically sculpted columns supported the ceiling, although a couple of them had cracked and tumbled.
“This is the way to the mines,” Rio said as Pete helped him towards a small staircase a few feet to the left. The staircase led ten steps down to another door.
“What’s in the other direction?” Kiara asked, peering down the hall to the right as she warmed her hands and feet by a fire.
“Don’t know,” Pete answered her. “We’ve never been there.”
Rio sat down on the steps, and Pete descended to the wide, tall door at the bottom. This one was made of wood rather than the usual metal. He opened it carefully and peered down into an immense, iron elevator shaft, leading down into empty darkness.
“I think we should try the other way,” he gulped.
“What were you mining for anyway?” Suriel asked, joining Pete at the doorway and looking down.
“Some sort’a shiny rock,” Rio answered for him. He groaned as he held his injured stomach. “He was using ‘em to build somethin’.”
“Who?” Kiara asked.
“The Taskmaster,” Pete answered, shuddering as he said the name.
“We never saw him,” Rio explained, “only heard his voice. Terrifying thing it was. The kind of sound that makes your innards twist and your heart crumble.”
“Even the Decrepit were scared of him,” Pete added with a chilled tone.
Suddenly, Rio’s eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he collapsed backward onto the polished, marble floor. A shirt that Pete had wrapped around his torso earlier was now soaked in blood.
“Rio!” Pete exclaimed, running over to his friend. He sat next to him and placed his head on his lap, checking his neck for vital signs.
“We need’a find him some kind’a medicine,” Pete said, turning to Kiara and Suriel with concern. “He’s lost a lot of fluids.”
“I’ll carry him,” Suriel volunteered, lifting the burly man
over his shoulders. “Let’s keep going.”
They started quickly down the right side of the hallway, the flames swaying as they passed. They stopped in front of the first door they encountered on the left side of the room. Suriel looked at the inscription.
“Sustain the body, for it is the vessel of your true being,” he read out loud.
“This room must contain some kind of sustenance,” Pete said. “Maybe we can find something here to help Rio.”
“You mean like food?” Kiara asked, her stomach grumbling. “I could use a bit myself.”
Suriel opened the door, walking into a spacious, empty circular chamber made completely of smooth, polished crystal. A second doorway stood alone at the opposite end of the circle, this one composed of sapphire gemstone. Three tall steps led to a small, square platform in the center of the room, upon which rested a transparent, cylindrical glass cage, large enough to fit two or three people. The top of the cage was encased by a layer of shimmering emerald. Light shone intensely from the ceiling as if a powerful beam were situated above it. The rays refracted through the crystals and spread sporadically across the room in a brilliant display of color.
“It’s beautiful,” Kiara said slowly, admiring her surroundings. “But I don’t see any food.”
“Perhaps the Rai didn’t consume organic food,” Suriel suggested as he placed Rio down on the steps of the platform. “Maybe they used that chamber somehow to nourish themselves.”
“Interestin’…” Pete said as he scanned the room with his encoder. “This place is heavily stacked with some pretty advanced tech. Even my handy gadget can’t translate these codes.”
Suriel gently poked the glass chamber. The front of the compartment opened outwards, causing him to stagger back in surprise.
“I guess ya’ don’t need’a be a genius to figure how to work it,” Pete said, lifting his eyebrows. He walked past Suriel to the top step and pulled Rio, dragging him into the cage.
“What are you doing!?” Kiara asked anxiously. “You don’t know what that thing even is.”
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