The Chamber of Genesis

by N. E. Michael

  Azarai swung his blade again, and Raiden flipped backward in the air, barely managing to dodge.

  “You cannot run from me forever, human!” Azarai raged. Raiden pointed his hand like a gun and fired a barrage of bullets, but Azarai danced around with unbelievable speed, dodging the entire spray, then came in close for another strike.

  Raiden fired an energy pulse at the sword, swaying Azarai’s arm just enough for him to evade the blow.

  “Suriel, help!” Raiden begged desperately. “Fight him! Do it for your people, for Kiara!”

  Azarai faltered for a moment, a torn expression on his face.

  “You need to kill me,” Suriel croaked, fighting intensely against Azarai’s spirit. “I can’t beat him.”

  Raiden formed a sword in his hands and plunged it towards Azarai’s chest. Moments before impact, the darkness returned to Azarai’s eyes, and he knocked the blade to the side with a swift swing. Before Raiden could recover, he pounded the hilt of his blade into Raiden’s chest, sending him crashing facedown onto the ground. Raiden struggled to get back up, pain jolting through every bone in his body, as Azarai plunged from the sky with his sword in front of him, coming in for the finishing blow.

  “Raiden!” Mara screamed. “Now!”

  Just as Azarai reached him, Raiden flipped himself onto his back and held the amulet out in front of his chest. Raiden channeled all the strength he had left to break the gemstone as Azarai’s blade struck down on it with horrendous power.

  Assaulted from both sides with a torrent of blue and red energy, the gemstone tore in half, separating into its previous two segments. An enormous explosion of blue and red energy surged from both the broken sapphires and Suriel’s body. The blast shook the entire planet to its core as it encompassed the world, incinerating everything in its path.

  To Raiden, it all seemed to happen so slowly. He watched the crack creep down the edge of the gemstone, light seeping out from within. He saw Mara in the corner of his vision, running towards him with an arrow flinging from her drawn bow. He saw Suriel standing above him, a violent cry raging from his lips. But he saw something else, something out of place. Another figure seemed to materialize in front of him, a beautiful, winged woman made entirely of light, as if emerging from the blast itself. She wrapped her hand around his neck and grabbed him, pulling him forcefully towards the light. Images flashed before his eyes, the faces of those he’d met on the planet—Kiara, Sable, Mama. The events of the last year played before him like a movie on fast-forward, filling his racing heart with bittersweet memories of excitement and fear, of happiness and grief. He saw the bright orange sky one last time, shimmering brilliantly above his head. And then it vanished, the world along with it, and Raiden closed his eyes, accepting his fate.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Homebound

  In the Nexus

  “Raiden,” a female voice tugged gently at his unaware consciousness.

  Raiden opened his eyes, finding himself back in the empty, white space of the Nexus. A woman stood before him with eyes as blue as Earth’s sky and long, blonde hair flowing smoothly down her shoulders. Four shimmering wings beat majestically from her back, radiating blue light like the sapphire of Raiden’s amulet.

  “Who are you?” Raiden asked in wonder.

  “I am Calisa, firstborn of Azarai, apprentice to the Keeper of Time,” the woman replied with a gentle, serene voice. “But you can call me Bella.”

  “Daughter of Azarai?” Raiden repeated, growing suddenly nervous. He felt for the gemstones on his chest, finding it was still there, split into two.

  “You are still in possession of the Electus Prime,” Bella said. “Or what’s left of it, at least. You released most of its power in the explosion.”

  “The explosion…” Raiden muttered, remembering all that had taken place. “Did it work? Did I kill Azarai?”

  “The explosion fractured the planet,” Bella replied. “All life on the surface was decimated, including my father.”

  “Ruptured the planet?” Raiden asked in shock. “You mean the planet split apart?”

  “When Azarai struck the gemstone, his inner power bonded with the Electus Prime in the gem. When it ruptured, it released not only the energy remaining within the stone, but also the energy within him. The planet’s already weakened structure and core could not withstand the resulting blast.”

  “But I’m still here…” Raiden said slowly.

  “While attempting to tear the gemstone apart, you inadvertently opened a gateway into the Nexus,” Bella explained. “Using my ability to slow time, I managed to pull you inside it, as well as the Shadow woman running towards you.”

  Raiden took a moment to let it sink in.

  I destroyed the planet, killed countless of plants, animals, and Enlai. But those I managed to send through, they are safe on the planet. And Azarai is gone…

  “Actually, he is not entirely gone,” Bella interrupted his thought.

  Raiden looked up in surprise.

  “Sorry,” she said. “I am also a Reader. Rai can take on the form of an Enlai, usually at the cost of their original powers, but when I reached my fifth level of being, I managed to maintain both.”

  “What do you mean, he’s not entirely gone?” Raiden asked, a knot tightening in his stomach as he ignored the rest of her words, hearing only that sentence.

  “Azarai’s spirit was bonded to two things: the gemstone, and my half-sister, Alia. As long as Alia still lives, a part of Azarai does too. Back on Earth, she is currently under his control. That is why, when we get back to Earth, I need you to use what is left of your Electus Prime to lock Azarai’s spirit back within its cage in her mind. I will guide you through it, using my abilities as a Reader.”

  “Even if I wanted to help, we can’t get back to Earth,” Raiden said sadly. “There’s a distortion.”

  “I can guide you through it,” Bella replied. “A part of me, my old body, is still on Earth. I suffered a stroke a while ago, and for a long time, my True Being wandered. After venturing too far, I found myself trapped in the Nexus, until you accessed the Chamber of Genesis. When you tried to reach Earth, I managed to reconnect with my body, and as long as I remain connected to it, I can find the way back. But my body is dying, so we don’t have much time. Try to follow me as closely as you can, and I will guide you back.”

  “And what about Mara?”

  “She is close. You will find her on the way. Now, let’s hurry, Raiden Williams. It is about time you came home.”

  Home, Raiden thought bittersweetly as he longed for Kiara. Whatever that means anymore…

  Epilogue

  “And that’s how it ended,” Raiden sighed, fighting back tears. He glanced to his right at Mara, and then to his left, where Alia sat on a small, wooden bench with Bella, their hands intertwined. They were situated before a panel of judges in the throne room of the Shadow Kingdom, with Atara sitting resolutely in the seat of power, dressed in the traditional Chief’s garb. To her left stood Maximus, Yuran, Ilenia, and the King of the Molders, and to her right stood the representatives of all the other Enlai tribes. They listened intently to Raiden’s story while eyeing Alia with contempt.

  Maximus caught Raiden’s gaze, sending him a warm, friendly nod of compassion and understanding. Yuran whispered something into Maximus’s ear from beside him. Maximus nodded, and Yuran stepped forward in front of the other leaders. He glanced at Atara.

  “With your permission, my Chief and host, I would like to address the room.”

  “Permission granted,” Atara nodded.

  Yuran looked at Raiden, Alia, and his sister, then turned to face the other leaders.

  “My fellow Guardians of the New Alliance,” he announced. “We have just heard Bella, Raiden, and Alia’s testimonies regarding the events of the past few years. Clearly, there is an underlying threat which must be addressed by the Alliance, that being the continued attempt of the remaining Rai, specifically the Binder and the Keeper, to as
sert control over our galaxy, and the possibility that, because our galaxy does not have a God King, the Rai Council will attempt to shut it down. To that purpose, when we convene now to determine Alia’s judgment, I urge you all to take into consideration the advantage which she, a half Rai, could offer us in the struggles to come. In addition, witnesses from all sides have testified to her having acted under the coercion of Azarai’s influence. With these considerations in mind, I wish us success in determining a proper and just verdict. Thank you, and that is all.”

  Yuran bowed respectfully towards Atara, then moved back to his place.

  “The judges shall now convene,” Atara declared, and she stepped down from her throne to join the other representatives as they huddled together, engrossed in debate.

  Bella squeezed her sister’s hand as Alia waited nervously for her fate to be determined.

  “You think they’ll let her live?” Raiden whispered to Mara.

  “My brother seems to be quite the politician,” Mara replied. “I believe he’ll find a way.”

  After a half-hour of discussion, the judges broke apart, and Atara returned to her throne.

  “Attention,” she called, silencing a few of the representatives still immersed in conversation. “Alia, daughter of Jonathan, your verdict has been decided.”

  Everyone’s hearts froze as they looked up at the Chief, her expression solemn and firm.

  “You were indeed acting under coercion, and this must be taken into consideration. However, you claim to have been aware of your actions at the time, and we cannot ignore the hundreds of lives you stole, nor the constant danger you pose to our world, however unintentional it may be. Therefore, the judges and I have found it proper and just to sentence you to a state of exile. A secluded island shall be chosen as your prison, and if you are ever to step outside it, you shall be put to death.”

  Alia’s face paled as a single, guilt-riddled tear dripped slowly down her cheek.

  “Please,” Bella exclaimed, standing. “Your Greatness, she was only-!”

  “You shall not speak out of turn!” Atara shouted angrily, slamming her fist against her armchair as she stood up. “You may be a Rai, but in this room, under my roof, I am Chief, and you shall respect me as such!”

  Yuran found himself trembling at the unrelenting intensity of Atara’s voice.

  She has changed, he thought. But then again, would I have acted any differently in her place? The Chief of Shadows cannot show signs of weakness.

  “With your permission again, my Chief,” Yuran bowed to her, and Atara nodded, sitting calmly back in her seat.

  “Thank you all for attending today,” he addressed the representatives. “As we work to build the New Alliance, hoping this time to include a Guardian from every tribe, events like today are both unifying and crucial. Many difficult decisions were made today, and even more have yet to be made. It is essential that we continue to treat one another with mutual respect and commitment, even in times of disagreement.”

  Yuran turned towards the witness stand.

  “Each of you has endured perils beyond imagination. You have all struggled, you have all sacrificed, and you have all lost. Each of you carries within yourselves a burden of guilt that comes naturally and inevitably with the decisions one must make in a time of disaster. Although you have no control over our judgment, you maintain the ability to judge yourselves. Those of you upon whom punishment was not decreed, will surely exact punishment upon themselves. But, as a man who is no stranger to disaster, I urge you to be merciful in your judgment and lenient in your decrees. Cherish those you’ve saved, and come to peace with the ones you’ve hurt. On behalf of all the leaders present, I’d like to extend to you my deepest sympathy. And to you,” Yuran finished, turning to Raiden and Mara. “I would like to say two words, finally, and with great enthusiasm.”

  “Welcome home.”

  Note From Author:

  Hey there! Enjoying Chronicles of the Enlai?

  Please take a moment to leave a review on Amazon/Goodreads. Reviews are crucial to a book's success, and your support would truly mean the world to me!

  Also, if you haven't read it yet, check out the series prequel, Origins: Adam, on Amazon today!

  Have a good one,

  -Noah

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  Noah Michael was born in Chicago, IL. Never able to sit still and always the day-dreamer, he wrote his first novel in elementary school, then completed this work at the age of sixteen. In his spare time, he received a degree in biomedical engineering, became a dedicated dungeon master, and is currently writing his way through medical school. His other hobbies include playing the piano, writing music, and singing.