Deke Brolin Rhol

by Doug Backus

  Deke could see glimpses of Pegapires and Lealians fighting the Phits in the stormy dark skies. Every once in a while a glint of steel appeared as the blades of their swords reflected the glare from the lightning. The Phits were attacking by the hundreds. Two Pegapires with their Lealian partners lay dead, sprawled out on the ground among several Phits. Deke felt devastated as he watched the rain wash the blood away from their lifeless bodies. It was a tragic day on Rhol.

  “I’ve never seen anything like it!” Deo screamed through the wind. “They look like tornados or worse. They will destroy Rhol!”

  “It must be the work of Solharn. Who else would be responsible for such utter mayhem and disaster?” responded Deke.

  “I don’t see Palto, Deke! Where is he? Where is Jayden?”

  “Perhaps Palto was forced to flee with Jayden. Let’s get back to Elissa and let her know what is happening out here!”

  Deke was taking his first step back down the stairs when a voice boomed through his head.

  “What is it, Deke?” Deo yelled.

  “It’s Palto. He’s using telepathy. He’s directing us into the trees to the east of the cavern. It’s where he hides Jayden. He said that time is of the essence. His warriors need him and Jayden if they are to be successful against the Phits!” Deke screamed through the wind.

  They found Palto in no time standing just beyond the first line of trees. Trickles of blood fell from several wounds that marked his body. Jayden was strapped to his back. His black eyes appeared lifeless, frozen in time as a result of the Pegapire trance Palto had placed upon him.

  “Are you alright, Palto?” Deke asked.

  “I am fine. These wounds are merely souvenirs left by the Phits. I was in no position to defend myself with Jayden on my back. Can you help him, Deke?”

  “Yes, but first we must get him down and remove the trance he is under,” Deke screamed through the howling wind.

  “Very well.”

  Deke and Deo loosened the straps that bound Jayden to Palto and laid him on the ground. “I’m ready when you are Palto. We must act quickly. Solharn will see us through his eyes.”

  Palto nodded and walked over to Jayden. In seconds, Jayden was on his feet. He was laughing like a man crazed with lunacy.

  “You will not break her bonds boy, even if you know her whereabouts. You are too late. The darkness will become what little hope at life you have. You...”

  Deke had heard enough from the voice he had become all too familiar with, the voice of Solharn. He struck Jayden with the current of energy that streamed through his hand from the amulet.

  Ω

  Deke instantly felt the power. He had missed the intensity of it coursing through his veins. He saw Solharn as he had never seen him before, hovering in the air over the Blackpool. Twisters and tornados formed all around him and disappeared just as quickly as he waved them away, unleashing them on Rhol.

  “You have failed boy. You have failed to find Elissa. Otherwise, you would not be the one saving Jayden. It is over for Rhol, but it is not too late to join me, to be at my side. Together we will control the balance.”

  It seemed to Deke, that he had been here before, perhaps in a dream. He thought about the power that Solharn commanded. Was it really a bad thing to have such power? He had never had much of anything. What would it hurt to have a little bit of what Solharn had? Solharn began to move toward him lowering himself slowly from his perch in the sky. Deke did not move. He waited for him. Finally, he would have what he deserved.

  Deo had retrieved Jayden’s shield from Palto. He knew that soon Deke would be consumed with darkness, just as he had the previous times. He waited until he felt the darkness building up in Deke, until he felt his pain, and then he used the shield to slice through the stream of light thereby breaking the connection between the two. Palto was not prepared for what happened next. Deke was enraged and grabbed a sword from the Pegapire’s, side all the while running toward Deo in a fury. Deo would not have escaped the wrath of his anger had Jayden not tackled him and removed the weapon.

  Deke looked into Jayden’s eyes. It must not have worked. Jayden was on top of him holding him down. Why weren’t the others helping him?

  “Are you okay now Deke?” Deo asked.

  “Is Jayden okay?” Deke responded still wary of why he was being held down. He had no recollection of what had just happened.

  Jayden stood up and held his hand out to Deke to help him up. Deke accepted the offer. It was the first time Jayden had the chance to take in his surroundings. “What happened? What has become of Rhol, and why am I back in the swamps?”

  “Never mind Jayden, it is good to have you back. I will explain what you have gone through after we have defeated the Phits. Come! Our warriors need us,” Palto yelled through the howling wind.

  Jayden did not argue as he jumped onto Palto’s back. “My thanks to you Deke. Now find a way to free Elissa. She is our only hope,” Palto yelled as he flew into battle.

  Deke nodded, a little confused. He had assumed that Palto knew she had been freed of her bonds.

  “Come on, Deke. Let’s get out of here!”

  Ω

  Mary breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Deo and Deke descend the last few stairs. They looked wet and cold but were fine otherwise.

  “Were you successful Deke?” Elissa asked.

  “Yes. But...”

  Deke was unable to tell her what was happening outside because she simply continued on. “I am sorry for being so abrupt earlier, but time was of the essence if I was to save the Chiling and you were to save Jayden. I could not let the Chiling fall into the hands of Solharn and there was no time for explanations. They are safe now, so please allow me to explain myself,” said Elissa.

  “There’s no need to apologize, Queen Elissa. We are just glad to find you alive and well, but please, I must tell you what Deo and I have witnessed and what has become of Rhol,” responded Deke.

  Elissa merely smiled.

  “Please call me Elissa. I am told that you four have gone through many tribulations to come to my aid. Your passion has inspired the people of Rhol and it inspires me. Even as I speak, the battle of Solace has been met with victory. Thanks to you, Jayden has been restored to his former self. I am quite sure that Palto and his small army will be successful in keeping the Phits at bay so as not to allow Solharn to learn of my resurrection.”

  “But isn’t that what we want Elissa? Isn’t that his greatest fear?” Deo asked.

  “Solharn has no fear, child. He is obsessed with power, with revenge. His heart turned black long ago and it has poisoned his very soul. He cares about nothing except his quest to become the all mighty, the new Creator, and he will stop at nothing to obtain that goal. We have come a long way in fighting against Solharn’s depravity, but our biggest challenge is yet to come. That is why Solharn must not know about me yet, not before you understand what we are up against and how we can defeat him.”

  Deke was becoming a little stressed. Elissa had to be told what was happening to her world.

  “Elissa, outside it is….”

  “It is alright, Deke. I am aware of what you saw, but before we can act, you must understand more about what is happening. You must understand more about Solharn.”

  “I’m confused, Elissa. How do you know what’s happening? How do you know about the war in Solace or for that matter, that Palto fights with the Phits outside this cavern?” Deke asked.

  The look of sadness once again returned to Elissa’s face.

  “Because I was told Deke, I was told by Kiran.”

  Deke paused once again reflecting on the reason Kiran was dead. He wondered how it was possible that she could have told Elissa anything “...Elissa, Kiran, she is...”

  “I know, Deke. She told me before she left us. She wished to remain in this world. Her journey was not completed yet. She was not ready to pass through the amulet. Selfishly, I am saddened to know that she no longer exists in our form. She was a true fr
iend and confidant, but you must stop struggling with her death. Kiran knew more about this world than anyone, and more about spirituality than most. When the Chiling came to the Realm of Solace to find refuge, Kiran spent every waking day trying to communicate with them. She knew that the energy contained within a soul was well beyond mere mortals. She quite correctly assumed that the curse Solharn had over me would be the most powerful one he had ever concocted. If it was to be broken, it would have to be done through the energy of the spirits, the souls, the Chiling. But Chiling can only communicate through a higher spiritual being, an angel for instance. She tried everything she knew, but it seemed that nothing worked. She would never be able to tell them what her belief was, the belief that they were my only hope should I be found. In the end, she did find a way. She became one of them and in doing so, she saved you Deke. For Kiran, she fulfilled what she believed was her life purpose. She protected me. She saved me and she died for me. It is I alone who will carry that burden, and it is mine alone to carry, not yours child.”

  After listening to Elissa’s eloquent words, Deke felt better. His guilt subsided knowing that Kiran, in the form of a Chiling, had found peace through death and then ultimately through Elissa.

  “How does it all work, Elissa? The other Chiling, they seemed to evaporate within the amulet. Where did they go and what do they have waiting for them? What is the meaning of it all?” Deke asked.

  “Those are questions that have been asked by many, and they are questions that you are destined to find the answer to. You must find those answers, if you are to succeed, but it will take many years and many experiences before you have such wisdom. I can enlighten you somewhat. In fact, that is why we are here, hidden while Palto fights the Phits outside. You will need some answers if you are to understand the source of Solharn’s power. Only then will we stand a chance of defeating him.”

  “The source you talk about, the source of his power, could we not destroy it so he can no longer obtain it?” Deke asked.

  Elissa smiled. “To destroy the source of his power would be to destroy ourselves, along with the Balance of Five. It is not easy to combat something that you cannot destroy and that is why Solharn has come as far as he has. You see, he uses us to gain his power. We are his never ending supply. His power is gained through the energy of our souls.”

  Deke hung onto every word that Elissa spoke. Mary, Delca and Deo were also completely fascinated, but they needed more information to comprehend the magnitude of what she was saying. Elissa did not disappoint them.

  “Let me explain. The meaning of life has perturbed mankind for centuries when really it is quite simple. It is one’s existence in its purest form. If a person exists in the way they were meant to, then their life paths create positive energy and that energy not only sustains life but creates it.

  The worlds that we know, or at least which we know of now, they sustain themselves through energy. Not energy in the most common sense, but the energy that surrounds each individual, each living creature, the energy that is contained within the soul. It is that energy which lives on and which sustains life. The body itself is just a temporary vessel that is disposed of over time.”

  Elissa looked over at Deke momentarily. She could see his mind working to understand what she was saying.

  “Yes, Deke. I can sense that it is becoming clearer to you. You are slowly beginning to understand what I speak of. The inhabitants of every planet are in fact the ones who maintain it and sustain it. The Creator merely conceived the venue, the planet on which we exist. After that, it was up to us to evolve into what we are today, and we did that by building positive energy around ourselves, through our very souls. It is the outer soul that is comprised of energy. You may have heard of someone having a good aura or good energy surrounding them? That is simply their souls, more specifically their outer soul growing much like your body grows. It is the inner soul that controls emotion or one’s nature. If one chooses an evil path then it will create bad energy and vice versa. Your outer soul absorbs that energy. In simple terms, it becomes the outer soul’s food or nourishment. If your outer soul absorbs too much bad energy, that energy will become all consuming. It cannot be reversed making that person evil.

  “The Balance of Five, the sustenance of life, the survival of each planet, really depends on the balance of positive or good energy versus negative or bad energy. Both types of energy are created by us, by our souls. It is a balance, one that is a struggle for many of our worlds. If the negative energy becomes the primary energy of any given world, then that world will eventually cease to exist. Slowly but surely, the planet will be unable to sustain itself. Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis and tornados will make way for total annihilation. You may have already observed these things becoming more frequent on Earth.

  “It was why the Order was created, the Order that Solharn was a part of. We helped maintain that balance, and helped the inhabitants down the right path creating the positive energy that would maintain the planet and feed their souls. We, the Order, created religion as a way of keeping mankind on the right path. We designed it to provide a simplistic understanding of where we came from and a simple guide on how to live one’s life. Religion worked. It served its purpose as it was meant to, but then to some degree, it took a turn for the worse. We learned far too late that Solharn had been meddling with religion for centuries. He convinced many leaders that religion could be used to manipulate people, to provide a faucet of money that would never run dry. Thus, some people began to use religion to make themselves powerful and rich. Solharn also turned different religions against each other. For many, religion became an excuse, a reason to fight wars and to kill one another. Some used its powerful message to gain great wealth and power by manipulating the people who truly believed. Solharn was instrumental in creating this religious dissension. He knew that if religion was followed worldwide, and if people followed it the way it was meant, then there would be peace and harmony amongst them. That would not work in his favor and so he pitted religions against each other. It created hatred, anger and greed which led to wars and violence, all in the name of religion. By the time the Order learned of his treachery, it was too late. We worked endlessly to instill the true meaning of religion, and were successful to some degree, but the damage was already done. Even today religion is used by many to create wars and to gain wealth and power.

  “Despite Solharn’s efforts to undermine it, the balance remained intact, mainly because most still followed the right path. Positive energy still exceeded negative, but Solharn’s influence is steadily undermining this balance. You see, when a person’s vessel or body gives way to time, their souls become one. Positive energy moves on to form other life forces. Some call this reincarnation. This maintains the balance on each world, recycling the positive energy. Negative energy is cast out, sent to the Black Abyss.

  “As you know, prior to Solharn being cast into the abyss, he managed to create a Blackpool on each world that would allow him to return to the planets. He did return, and by that time he had learned to manipulate the negative energy from the abyss. He was able to control it, using himself as the vessel. It created problems for all the worlds. Wars, unrest, violence and catastrophic storms occurred, but that was not enough for him. He wanted complete control, complete power and to have that he had to learn how to harness the positive energy. I didn’t think it possible, but he did it. He devised a way to steal a person’s very soul by entrapping it. Once he accomplished that he controlled that person’s energy and used it to his advantage. This enabled him to tip the balance. By entrapping the positive energy he could use the elements to destroy the worlds. As we speak, he is slowly creating an imbalance where there will not be enough positive energy to combat the negative.”

  Deke was stunned. Had all of their struggles been for nothing? “Elissa, how are we to fight Solharn if he changes positive energy to negative? If he can steal one’s soul, it’s only a matter of time before he wins. We can’t even destroy him
. He is or was part of the Order, your Order.”

  “This is why you have to know where Solharn’s power comes from Deke. We could not rush into a battle with him unless you all understood this. It is true, he cannot be destroyed. He must be sent back to the abyss, and the Blackpools destroyed. The Blackpools are the very foundation behind his plan to destroy the Balance. Without them he cannot return from the Black Abyss.”

  “But how do we destroy the Blackpools?” asked Deo.

  “By using his own weapon against him,” answered Elissa.

  “The energy?” Deke chimed in.

  “Exactly! You see Solharn has merely entrapped the positive energy, the souls of the unfortunate. He does not realize that he cannot change a person’s soul or change a person’s path. He can enslave it but he cannot change who they are and what they represent. Good energy, positive energy will always be, just that. It cannot be reversed.”

  “So, to defeat Solharn, we have to free the souls he holds hostage,” Deke exclaimed.

  Elissa nodded. “Exactly Deke. Now, we are running out of time. All of you listen carefully. You must do exactly as I say!”

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  While the celebration of victory continued, Kaelyn made her way over to find Oisin. She assumed that he wouldn’t be far from Phanthus. She had heard that the two had just been through a harrowing experience. They were probably celebrating their victory.

  Phanthus was not hard to spot and she hurriedly cut through the crowd in his direction. When she drew near the dragon her heart sank. He did not have to tell her what had become of Oisin. She could see it in his face.

  “Phanthus?” Kaelyn said trying to hold back her tears.

  “I am sorry, Kaelyn. He would not leave. Even when he was the last one standing, he refused to go. He stood there fighting an impossible battle knowing that he would probably not come out alive, but he would not allow me to die alone. In the end, it was me that lived and he who died,” Phanthus sadly responded.