Gudrik fluttered his eyes open as the warm kiss of morning sun gently stirred him. The pain was gone. He held his left hand in front of his face and wiggled his fingers in the light. A relieved sigh escaped his lips as he climbed to his feet, his torn jeans sagged and struggled to stay up. The test tube rack lay on the ground to his right, two samples still intact. He was in a narrow alley which was scattered with debris and mess. One of the brick walls still wore stains of the incident and streaks of blue gore ended abruptly where he stood.
He wandered down the alley and examined the street running off it. It was a quiet street, just a few cars and the odd couple of morning exercise nuts. Gudrik wandered back into the privacy of the alley and sliced his arm with Scurt’s wand. He was relieved to see blue trickle down his forearm. He grunted his command. His fists clenched tight as majestic, white wings once again burst from his back and fluttered, flicking the blood from their feathers. With a few powerful beats he was airborne.
Gudrik gathered his bearings from the juvenile morning sun and rocketed north. At first he soared high, as was his natural instinct, he would appear no more than a bird to the people on the ground. But it wasn’t long before Kahn’s warning echoed, cold in his memory. He twitched his wings and plunged downward, losing altitude quickly and altering his course eastward over the ocean. Luckily by that stage he was already clear of the city.
Gudrik followed the coast line, skimming only inches above the water. From time to time a wave would reach higher than its brethren and he would lower his hand and drag it through the crest. Fine salt spray misted up, cooling his bare torso. It was a refreshingly uneventfully trip and before long Gudrik swooped up and over the weather worn roof of home.
He landed hard, with a thud in the front yard of the beach house. A flood of people spilled out, sporting red, swollen eyes. The Warlock sat on the verandah steps. George ran over and wrapped herself around him, nestling into his neck. After a few warm seconds she drew her head back and her haunting ice-blue eyes locked his lovingly. A smile cracked across Gudrik’s stoney face. George’s eyebrows dropped, the corner of her mouth curled into a sneer and she slammed her forehead into his nose. Gudrik’s head flew back and smacked against the wooden railing.
“DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW WORRIED I HAVE BEEN!” George screamed. Gudrik casually shook the fuzz away and wiped the trickle of blood from his nose.
A giggle rose from the group and after a moment Gudrik joined in. He filled the group in on the laboratory, the soldiers and the attackers. It took some coaxing from Kahn to get all of the details, but eventually Gudrik shared everything. “I am not certain if you can take any meaning from these or not. I cannot read it. It’s strange, the blood in those vials seems protected from me or something.”
Kahn took the specimen rack from him. “They’re crystal. We aren’t sure why, but it seems to mess with our abilities.....and yours too it seems.” He began to turn one of the samples, examining the labels from every angle before passing it on to Dorian. “If nothing else Gudrik, it tells us that they are experimenting with your blood. I have no idea what he is up to, but frankly whatever it is, it can’t be good.”
“I don’t know what you guys are getting all freaked out about,” interrupted George, “It’s magic, it’s not like he is going to get anywhere.” Kahn turned to her, his brow laden with concern.
“You have to realise George that there is not really any separation. What we do, what Gudrik does, there is some explanation for it. It is science; we just don’t understand it yet.”
Gudrik leant his voice, “I have glimpsed the incredible advances made by man since my time, things we would have considered magic. Do know that a man has walked on the moon?” he asked glancing at Kahn for support in case they didn’t believe such an outlandish claim. George looked confused, missing his connection. “I fear that in this age Kyran may actually have the tools needed to unlock our craft.”
“Okay fine, but why? He hates what you are, why copy it?” The Inscribed and the Warlock all shared blank looks.
“Look, he’s a whole other level of bat shit crazy, let’s not get caught up trying to understand why,” snarled Malaki.
The room fell under a mist of silent contemplation as all parties grappled with the gravity of the situation. Until now the Inscribed had only ever conducted discreet, surgical attacks on Kyran, ensuring their struggle remained from public view. They lived in a secret world, a world of shadows, a world which only the Inscribed and Kyran’s forces were privy to. The direction they were moving would change the face of their war for good. With the authorities and Gudrik involved this would become a much more public battle. It could be the end of the war, but at the very least it would be a major escalation which would certainly expose their existence to the world.
“Hey look at this label,” Malaki said suddenly, flicking one of the vials to Teefa. “It’s got a long number on it.”
“Yeah so?” Dorian replied, shrugging his shoulders and flicking his fringe.
“Look at the letters which start it off.”
“R-S-C?” Teefa read out.
“Recognise those initials?”
“Raven Skull Creek,” Kahn interjected, his eyes igniting as he said it. It went right over Gudrik’s head, which must have shown, because Malaki explained.
“It’s one of the Drake mining leases, one we have had our suspicions about for some time. The parasite holds lots of mining leases around the world which have facilities on them. Most are completely above board, just regular mining operations. But a couple have raised all sorts of flags for us. Raven’s Skull Creek is one of them.”
“It could be just a coincidence,” said Neasa.
“RSC could stand for Random Sample Collection, or Ravenswood Surf Club,” added Teefa sarcastically.
“It’s a long shot, but it’s all we really have to go on. It would be asking for trouble going after the city facility again,” said Dorian glancing at his father.
“Yeah, a dead soldier would have the military on high alert,” agreed Teefa.
“Plus it sounds like Gudrik killed the Spear. That would have pissed Kyran right off. She only took over from the Spear with the eye patch a few months ago, plus another one died in that chopper crash a couple of years back. No potentials yet I’m guessing. He may have ended the blood line,” suggested Brood.
“Shame, I would have loved to see the look on that bitch’s face as she died,” Teefa said looking into space, as if imagining it.
“She was kind of hot,” smirked Brood. Teefa looked at him, disgusted. “In a vicious ice-bitch kind of way.” He gave her a wink.
“You will have to explain the significance of this woman during the journey tomorrow,” grumbled Gudrik.
“Where are we going?” asked Dorian.
“Tomorrow, we will look at this Raven Skull Creek site from a distance, weigh our options. Kyran is many things, but foolish is not one of them. If this place is what you believe it to be, then it will be well defended. Do you have any more troops you can call on?”
“Ami will break her cover, she is already in that facility,” replied Kahn. Malaki gave him a disapproving glare.
“I’ve heard Half Man and his pack are in the country at the moment,” muttered Brood.
“That’s just a bloody rumour,” snapped Malaki.
“His men would be good to have at our side, and he holds no love for Kyran,” Brood added.
“True, but we are on a limited time frame here and even if the rumour is true we still have to find him,” Kahn said squashing the idea.
“What about Crave?” piped in Teefa.
“For fuck’s sake, what about him?” grunted Malaki furiously.
“He may be a drug addled nutter, but he is handy in a fight and despite everything, he is one of us,” she replied.
“Do we even know where he is?” asked Kahn.
In the silence of the verandah, they could almost hear Brood’s guilt. Kahn rolled his eyes.
“Yeah I know where he is staying. A little beach town just north of Sydney. I was drinking with him the night Gudrik joined us.” There was a lot of sighing and head shaking amongst the group.
“You go get him,” Kahn said to Brood. “Teefa go with him, make sure this doesn’t turn into a bender.” He thought for a second. “Neasa you go too, make sure Teefa doesn’t kill either of them on the trip home. We can check it out without you, but be fast, we’ll need you the following day.”
“We’ll be here,” replied Neasa as they left.
“Tomorrow night we will plan our campaign,” Gudrik said.
At dawn Gudrik, Kahn, Dorian and Malaki loaded into the black sedan which had sparked the new chapter of their saga. The back seats were still stained with patches of dry blood soaked into the fabric. They began the four and a half hour journey inland to the Raven’s Skull Creek mine. George and Paw waved them off in the fledgling rays of the new day’s sun, Pup stood loyally at their side. Tabitha was still asleep. Ironically this was the first sunrise she had missed in weeks. “Probably best,” thought George. She would not be happy about her Googy going.
“We are meeting Ami out there,” said Dorian, shattering the silence born of nerves and weariness.
“Huh!” protested Malaki abruptly. “You put far too much trust in her. She was in his service then, and she is now.”
“Malaki!” growled Kahn, pulling rank. “Put it aside. We do not speak of other Inscribed in such a way. She passed the trials just as we all did and has proven herself on numerous occasions.”
“He needs to put his feelings for her aside,” replied Malaki, directing his remark at Dorian. Dorian gave him the finger in reply and lit a cigarette.
“This familiar was in Kyran’s service?” Gudrik asked, siding with Malaki.
“Yes one of his paladins, the Sword. But she has been with us for over six hundred years now. In recent years she has infiltrated the Raven’s Skull Creek facility as an employee,” Dorian replied, defending Ami.
“Easily done when you are friends with the frigging boss,” mumbled Malaki under his breath.
“Along with his legion of greys, Kyran also has five elite paladins, which rank just below their Forsaken Guardian, as they call Kyran,” said Kahn ignoring Malaki’s snipe and changing the focus of conversation. “The Hammer, the Spear, the Dagger, the Arrow and the Sword. He trusts them more than any other person on the planet. Yet he has never trusted them enough to share the blood. Instead he has systematically bred descendants of his original five with partners of his choosing to produce his next generation of paladins. Each paladin sires a nest of three potentials. Male or female is no issue; any of the bloodline capable of defeating the current paladin in single combat is promoted.”
“The children are raised and trained in a convent referred to as The Forge,” added Dorian.
“The Spear didn’t put up much of a fight,” scoffed Gudrik.
“The paladins of today are not as tough or as the ones of old, that is true, but do not underestimate them Gudrik. You got lucky with the Spear, sounds like you caught her off guard,” counselled Kahn.
“How much of a fight does that Sword of yours give you Dorian?” snapped Malaki.
“Enough!” scolded Kahn. Both Malaki and Dorian muttered curses at each other, but the matter was left to rest.
The costal scrubland quickly gave way to thick forest as the road wound north-west away from the ocean. They snaked up and over a lush green mountain range. Time rolled past and as the forest began to disappear it was soon replaced by dry, sparse grassland, scattered with grazing cattle. As they grew closer and closer to their destination even the grass vanished, with the exception of the odd, spiky tuft which popped out of the dirt. The earth also changed, it took on a rich, red ochre, hinting that they were reaching the hot, bloody heart of the great, southern land.
The sun shone high in the sky as they reached their meeting point. The air was so hot and dry that it choked and suffocated Gudrik’s lungs with every breath. Their destination turned out to be a lookout on one of the rare hill tops which thrust out of the flat, barren country. From this viewpoint Gudrik was able to see out in every direction. The vastness of the boundless red plains amazed even him. It was in stark contrast to the white land of his youth. To the north of their position sat the Raven’s Skull Creek facility. Despite its name, there was no creek to be seen. The mine was an expansive, heavily fenced section of land, criss-crossed with dirt roads and scattered with pits so large that should they fill with water they would appear as enormous lakes. Imprisoned within the pits were gargantuan, mechanical creatures which gnashed and chewed at the earth, enlarging their subterranean cages. Some kilometres to the east was a city of transportable accommodation and a large airstrip, the camp which housed the mining personnel.
Far off on the western outskirts of the property was a large industrial shed. It was separately fenced and segregated from the rest of the facility. Unlike most of the mining lease, it was not a hive of activity. In fact, it was quite the opposite; there was almost no movement at all. “That’s where I believe our target lies,” said Kahn, noticing Gudrik’s interest in the shed.
The four men waited until the scheduled meeting time, then far beyond it. By three hours past deadline everyone was getting anxious. Kahn and Dorian worried Ami’s true loyalties had been uncovered. Malaki was constantly reminding everyone that he never trusted her anyway and Gudrik was trying to decide which team he was willing to join.
Just as they were ready to give up, Dorian pointed out a dust trail heading towards their location. A tense few minutes passed as they waited to see who it was headed their way. Eventually a large black motorcycle pulled up, its vivid chrome accents shining brightly in the sun, in bold defiance of their red dust coating. The female rider wore a high-viz work shirt, embroidered with the Drake Mineral Resources logo, a pair of cotton drill jeans and heavy, steel capped work boots. She climbed off the bike and removed her helmet. Long golden hair tumbled down over her shoulders. Ami had a sweet and dainty face and her thin neck sported a tattoo of a blue talon on its left side. Dorian’s face lit with excitement and moved forward to embrace her. Kahn suddenly had to fetch something from the car.
“Hi Kahn,” she said, pulling her lips from Dorian’s. “Go fuck yourself Malaki,” she continued, preempting exactly what he was thinking. Malaki simply flipped her the bird and slouched on the car bonnet, a cigarette dangling from his lips.
“Gudrik, this is Ami,” Dorian said, proudly introducing the object of his poorly contained infatuation. Gudrik nodded a welcome to her as he inquisitively circled the motorcycle.
“So have you figured out the target yet?” Ami asked.
“Aye, the segregated section with no sign of life,” replied Gudrik.
“That’s it. Supposedly it’s a sampling and testing facility. I have worked here four years now, and not a single gram of coal has been through it. We truck everything north to one of his other facilities.”
“Really makes you wonder why it’s sitting there deserted,” Dorian butted in.
“Don’t let appearances fool you. I have been on night shift all week, and there have been trucks rolling through under the cover of dark like it was a highway truck stop,” Ami continued.
“The blood?” Kahn inquired.
“No - looked more like troops.”
“The greys from the South African operations?” asked Dorian.
“Most likely. Probably the paladins too.”
“It’s almost as if though they know we are planning to escalate our campaign or something Ami,” spat Malaki accusingly.
“Enough Malaki!” ordered Kahn. He grumbled and grunted, but in the end obeyed.
“Getting in will not be easy, security is tight. Most of his workers fly directly onto site from his plants in Africa and the Philippines. He negotiated special dispensation from the government. His lease basically operates like a huge international airport that has a mine within its limits
. The workers fly in, work and fly home without ever leaving the mine. No passing through immigration or even legally setting foot on Australian soil. The only workers paid under Australian law are the ones like me who pass from facility to facility driving trucks. Because of the dispensation he is also permitted to have armed private security contractors, obviously his greys, patrolling the borders ensuring they are not breached.”
“Well how did you get out then?” snapped Malaki from the car bonnet.
“Have you seen how nice my tits are?” she snapped back opening the top buttons of her shirt and exposing the cleavage of a very ample bosom. “Not sure your hairy man nipples will convince any of the guys to let you in though.” Malaki sneered and looked away.
The group stood around bickering about tactics in seemingly endless circles. Gudrik had understood little of Ami’s information, and was now remembering why he had always fought on his own. He left the huddle, looking down, as if carefully examining the earth around the area. He settled on a patch of exposed stone rather than dirt and bent down, removing Scurt’s wand from his wrist. He ran the blade the length of his palm and painted a collection of blue runes in a wheel shape on the stone.
Gudrik’d had enough. In the afternoon sun and glare, not to mention the dry heat, his mind wandered from task, distracted by thoughts of getting back to George and Tabitha. “Enough,” the Warlock said as he stood up straight. “I have seen all I need to. We can still make it home by sunset.” The others reluctantly agreed.
“Yeah I had better go get some sleep, I am on shift tonight,” said Ami, walking back over to her bike. Dorian followed and they shared a quiet conversation, before exchanging kisses. Kahn was once again busy and quickly climbed into the car.
“Kahn seems uneasy,” Gudrik whispered leaning over to Malaki.
“She is his ex,” he replied. Gudrik looked at him, eyebrow cocked. “His ex lover,” Malaki clarified.
“Ami?” croaked the Warlock.
“Pretty fucked up hey blueberry?” He lit the last of his cigarettes. “Though in Dorian’s defence, her relationship with Kahn was over before he was born. Still weirds Kahn out, but he never says shit about it.”
Blue Words Page 13
