The Dark Kingdom (Sage Trilogy, Book 2)

by St. Clair, Julius

  “WHAT ARE YOU?!” Dominic yelled as James looked to the new eidolon. The blade was pitch black and fashioned in a scimitar style, only about three feet long in size. A single white dot lay in the middle of the black, and a blue rose keychain hang from the hilt. He found it strangely beautiful to look at, but what scared him was not the fact that a different eidolon had emerged, but what it was saying to him.

  It wasn’t mysterious like his first one, whispering so low that James struggled to find its meaning. This one was plain in its feelings. And before he could ask it an internal question, it dumped a boat of memories onto his head.

  His Infantry exam. The basement underneath the shrine. The Langorans. Alexander. Keel. The crushing of his leg. His body growing and expanding. His hair slicking back. His leg healing. Alexander’s fear. The scythes growing from his forearms. His teeth turning into fangs. Fighting the Langorans. Killing them. The Hunger. The Superiority. His transformation.

  James eyes widened as he remembered it all. Especially what his Langoran roommate and Alexander had called him upon his escape…

  A Monster.

  A Quietus.

  James looked at the eidolon and turned it over in his hand, examining it carefully. The eidolon’s black surface rippled as it spoke.

  “YeS”. It said. “I aM oF yOuR QuIeTuS sIDe.”

  James stared at it in horror. How could that be? How could he be of Quietus and Allay simultaneously? Wasn’t that impossible? If he could pull out an eidolon that mean he was from Allay, but then what was this new sword declaring he was from Quietus? What was going on? The blade rippled again.

  “yOuR MOTHER!” It screamed and then fell silent. James pleaded with it for more information, but it refused to speak, dening all of his cries for more. It only declared feelings now. Hungry feelings. The same hunger he had experience earlier creeping back.

  “WHAT ARE YOU?!” Dominic screamed again as James looked up at him with listless eyes.

  “I’m ready,” he said. Dominic stared at him with a maniacal look in his eyes. “Ready? Ready for what?”

  “To kill you, of course,” James said in a matter-of-fact tone. With his right hand gripping the Quietus eidolon, he took his left and placed it on his ribs. He smiled as Dominic followed his hand’s movement carefully.

  “Just curious to see what happens,” James said casually.

  And then the white eidolon emerged.

  * * * * *

  “That was a long conversation,” Chloe commented as Kyran entered their guest room. She motioned to remove his coat when he put up a hand for her to stop. She ceased and looked into his eyes. Still veiled by his hair, she reached up and brushed his long hair aside. He refused to look her way.

  “You’re scared,” she said as he turned completely around, his back to her.

  “I’m never scared,” he declared. Chloe hugged him from behind and nuzzled her cheek into his spine. She wished she could just lean her head on his shoulders, but he was so tall, and she so short by comparison. At least she could wrap her arms around him. He was so lanky, and she so stocky. Chloe couldn’t help but think how mismatched of a pair they were. Yet she wouldn’t have it any other way. She kissed the back of his coat tenderly.

  “Are you heading out?”

  “I am. So are you. You have to find the boys.”

  “What did Arimus ask you to do?”

  Kyran hesitated as Chloe spun him around so that he could face her. Kyran still avoided her gaze.

  “I don’t ask what you do,” Chloe said carefully. “I understand your need for secrecy. But as I’ve said from the beginning, if you need to ever share the burden, I’m here for you.”

  “I know,” Kyran muffled through his coat.

  “I’m just as strong on the inside as I am on the out.”

  His eyes shifted to hers.

  “And I’ve never seen you this…nervous,” she said, choosing her words. “You can tell me what Arimus is asking of you.”

  “You would not approve,” he said flatly.

  “Try me, and let me be the judge.”

  “He wants me to kill the Queen of Languor.”

  “What?” Chloe scoffed, the laugh escaping her lips as his words hit her with shocking reality. “I don’t understand.”

  “She carries the stone,” Kyran explained in a blasé tone. “By killing her, I’ll be able to reach in and retrieve it. I will be able to sneak in their chamber and steal it without the King’s notice, and then we will leave Languor. This also frees Catherine from her obligation.”

  “Kyran…Catherine will never forgive you…or Arimus.”

  “I don’t act based on her perception of me. I do my duty.”

  “But what about my perception? What if I told you that I don’t want you to do this?”

  “Then I would say that I should have kept my mission a secret all along.”

  “Fair enough,” Chloe sighed, looking to the floor. “Then what about you?”

  “What about me?”

  “Don’t you care what this kind of action does to you? Your personality? Your soul?”

  “I’ll worry about that when death comes.”

  “Kyran, you can’t do something like this and be okay. This, and whatever other horrors you’re committing must take its toll. At some point it will overwhelm you.”

  “If I don’t do this, then someone else must. And no one else will. I can handle the burden, which makes me the best suited for the job.”

  “Arimus is wrong to do this to you. I’m going to talk to him.”

  “You will do no such thing.”

  “You’re my husband!” Chloe yelled in his face. “And I love you! I’m not going to let you commit murder!”

  “I’ve already done it countless times. Why does this time matter?” Kyran muttered as he turned to head out the door. Chloe reached out to grab him but he had already gone invisible and her hand swiped nothing but air. Chloe began breathing heavily as she shouted throughout the room.

  “You know I can still sense you! You may be invisible, but I’ll find you within seconds! Come back, Kyran!”

  Chloe watched the door open and she followed after it, reaching out to catch Kyran’s invisible coat. But she was so focused on grabbing him that she didn’t see Scarlet waiting outside the door. As soon as Chloe stuck out her face, Scarlet slammed a fist into it as hard as she could. Chloe fell unconsciously instantly as Kyran shimmered into view. He glared at Scarlet with intense eyes as Arimus stepped out his room to see what the noise was about. Seeing Chloe unconscious on the floor, he looked up to Kyran, who simply nodded.

  “You’ll have to get them alone,” he stated. Arimus said nothing more, figuring out the situation, and left promptly. Kyran picked up his wife from off the floor and carried her limp body to their queen sized bed. Laying her gently onto it, Scarlet watched as he tucked her into the blankets and caressed her cheek with the back of his hand. With her sound asleep, he admired her for a second, her beautiful, innocent face pressed against the pillow as the silver streaks in her blonde hair played against her lips. Kyran brushed it to the side and then noticed just how black his fingernails were. Pulling his hand away suddenly, he turned to Scarlet.

  “Touch her, and I will kill your entire family,” Kyran said coldly.

  “My, my,” Scarlet said with arms folded. “And is Catherine included on that list?”

  “I’ll do my best to spare her,” he said as he began walking away. Scarlet followed, closing the door behind her.

  “Kyran, wait,” Scarlet called out, stopping him in his tracks. “I promise I won’t do anything tonight. The mission needs her. I’m not too proud to admit that. But one day, I will get my revenge for what she did. I will have her head. I just want you to know.”

  Kyran considered her words as he looked at the dingy, flowered wallpaper.

  “And I won’t yet touch you,” he said. “For we also need you for the mission. But I will also make a promise. The second your services are rendere
d in full, you will suddenly find yourself waking up in Oblivion.”

  “Deal,” Scarlet laughed. “I’ll prepare a place for you while I wait for your arrival. Enjoy your kill, Kyran. Good night.”

  Kyran continued walking down the hall, keeping his eyes straight ahead and clearing his mind as he went invisible. Since he had fallen in love with the sunshine girl, as she was so called in Allay, he had one, and only one fear.

  The fear that she would someday manage to take a peek through his invisibility, and see him for who he really was…

  * * * * *

  James could not believe what he was feeling. It was like the world had opened up, and he could sense everything on levels that even as a Sage he had never imagined. The entire Kingdom of Languor was exposed, and he found comfort when he eventually sensed that Catherine was sound asleep in the castle. With her safety secured, he then concentrated on the task at hand.

  It was so strange…it was like everything lit up, but not to the point of blindness. It was like the world had gained some kind of sepia tint, and he could see anything he wanted if he concentrated hard enough, even Allay. He could actually sense Leidy and Jennings, waking up to help in repairing their village. He could hear his father grunting as he chopped away at the rocks beneath their soil. He could hear the villagers still talking excitedly about the Princess’ words the day before they left. And when he brought back his view, he could now see Dominic, exposed for the weakling he was.

  He was so tired, so exhausted that there was almost no point in engaging him in combat. His eidolon…posed no threat. It was flimsy and barely maintaining its density. And upon closer inspection....

  “Unbelievable.” James laughed to himself. “He doesn’t even have an attack or defensive ability on his eidolon. It’s only Lock. There’s nothing else.”

  James examined the eidolon further as Dominic got sick of waiting. He made his move. Running forward as fast as he could, he swung his eidolon downward to slash James across his chest. James moved with little effort.

  With the Quietus eidolon in his right hand, he brought it close to his chest and swung it out, bringing Dominic’s blade down and towards the floor. As soon as it was below his shins, James jumped up lightly and stepped on top of Dominic’s eidolon like it was skateboard and then immediately put the Allayan eidolon in his left hand to Dominic’s throat. It was such a simple, effortless move that as soon as it was completed, James could see the defeat shudder all over his rival’s body. Dominic sheathed his eidolon, letting it disappear and go back into his body as James maintained a steady arm at his foe’s throat.

  “Just kill me,” Dominic said. “I can’t take this anymore.”

  “No,” James said. “You don’t get that luxury. We still have a mission to do.”

  James let both his eidolons vanish as he stared at Dominic intensely, allowing the residue of both eidolons wallow him in a wave of information. Even he was afraid of the power he had felt. Was this what Chloe experienced? This level of euphoria? It was almost too much. And no matter what scenarios he thought of, nothing explained why he had two eidolons, and how he could possibly be of Quietus and Allay.

  “What was that?” Dominic asked. James sensed that he wasn’t going to try anything sneaky…for now.

  “Not sure myself,” he said truthfully. “But don’t ever try that again. For the rest of this mission, you stay out of my way. Unless you want to fail and kill your betrothed in the process.”

  “No, never,” Dominic replied. “And I’ve learned a valuable lesson tonight too. If I want to kill my enemy, no matter who it is, I must be patient. Scarlet was right.”

  “We’ll resume this after the mission is – wait, what? Scarlet?”

  A loud crash interrupted the two as the waiting room literally exploded, sending the two boys crashing into the iron gate at the other end.

  “What now?” Dominic shouted through the smoke and debris. James could still see that Dominic was in bad shape and in no condition to be taking on whatever had caused the damage.

  “Since I’m healed up, I’ll handle this,” James said, climbing to his feet. Dominic didn’t try to stop him. James ran forward through the smoke and then concentrated as hard as he could, attempting to bring the Quietus eidolon forward, but it wasn’t responding. He could only sense his Allayan eidolon, the one he had carried with him since they left the Kingdom.

  “What’s happening? Come out!” James shouted as he strained to bring it forth. But there was no sign it even existed. Frustrated, he was about to call his original eidolon forth when a shadow revealed itself through the smoke.

  And it was big. Taller than the iron gate and any building he seen from the other districts, whatever monster stood before him now had to be practically touching the sky. James suddenly remembered the announcer saying he was calling the Enforcer.

  Whoever this enforcer was, he couldn’t have been hidden in Languor. He had to have been living far away and had walked here. And with everyone sleeping after a long night of play, he wasn’t really disturbing anyone either. The Enforcer was here to do the purpose he was summoned for.

  “We’re just leaving!” James shouted as he heard the giant move. “I’m serious! No need to fight!”

  And then a giant hand smacked him away, sending him past Dominic, through the iron gate, and into the next three buildings behind them…

  * * * * *

  “WAKE UP!!!” Scarlet barked as Achan shot up to attention. He had been having the best dream too. He and Catherine had been having a picnic in the meadow back at Allay, laughing and enjoying each other’s company. He was just about to lean in for a kiss when Scarlet had started screaming her head off.

  “What’s going on?” Achan groaned, rubbing his eyes. Then realizing that he still had most of his clothes off, he pulled the blanket up high over his body. “And what are you doing in my room?”

  “I tried knocking but that didn’t wake you. So I decided to break down the door.”

  “Geez, how long was I out?”

  “A couple hours,” Scarlet huffed. “And I was going to let you have your beauty sleep but something’s going on. There’s a lot of noise coming from the city below.”

  “Are the Langorans attacking someone?”

  “Don’t know, but we won’t have to worry about being discreet. They sleep like rocks during the day. Get up. We might have work to do. I’ll go get Catherine.”

  “Okay, okay,” Achan muttered as Scarlet left and briskly walked over to Catherine’s door.

  “CATHERINE! RISE AND SHINE!” she shouted, banging on the door hard. “CATHERINE!”

  Not hearing a sound, she started punching the hinges out.

  “As bad as the Langorans,” she muttered under her breath as she bust in the door. As soon as she examined the room, she immediately turned around and nearly crashed into Achan who was busy securing his armor.

  “Ow!” he said. “Is Catherine up?”

  “Look for yourself!” Scarlet yelled as she began running down the hallway in a hurry. Achan peeked into the room and saw a large tunnel carved out the back, just behind the headboard to her bed. Catherine was nowhere to be found.

  “Don’t do this,” Achan whispered as he shook his head. Leaving the room, he followed Scarlet, ready to catch the man he was sure had taken the Princess: his employer…

  * * * * *

  The room was easy enough to sneak into. While the Princess and the other Sages had been enjoying themselves, he had been examining every nook and cranny in Languor, watching elite soldiers and servants open secret passageways and knock in code on hidden doors. Sure, they had felt his presence, looked behind them and waited for him to reveal himself, but he had learned to slow his breathing at an early age, being able to hold his breath for several minutes if necessary. So by following the guards’ routes and keeping a mental map of where all the secrets were located, he knew exactly how to break into the royal bedroom. Particularly, through the escape hatch. It was barely a couple
feet in diameter, and in order to come in from the other end, he had to go through the Langoran sewers, but he had waded through worse.

  Climbing up the mile long pipe, slowly but surely, he squeezed his way upward, using his eidolon as extra support. It was only a dagger, barely a foot long in length, but it did the job, especially since his enemies never saw it coming.

  Kyran grunted as he reached the top and climbed over the hump, becoming level with the floor. There wasn’t a grate or bars to block his entrance because the King would need a quick escape in case of danger. He wouldn’t have time to work his way through a barrier. And besides, there were twenty men always on guard at the bottom, waiting to escort their majesty to safety. So what was there to be worried about?

  Naturally, Kyran had taken them down without a sound. The last guard had almost shouted out, but a quick throw of his invisible dagger to the trachea took care of that.

  Now he was free to really take his time.

  The King and Queen were sleeping soundly in a massive chamber, on top of a bed made of silver and gold. A silk canopy hung from above the four posts and their sheets were the finest in the land. Despite the messy job before him, Kyran really didn’t want to get blood on them. He had learned to appreciate beauty in life.

  He shook his head as he climbed to his feet and tip-toed to the far corner of the room, standing invisibly against the wall, and waiting for any abnormalities in their slumber.

  “Look at me.” He scoffed internally. “Thinking of beauty.”

  Sure, Chloe had caught his eye, but it was because she was so annoying, not because of how beautiful she was. She wore the boldest colors in the village, somehow finding beauty and somehow found happiness in the dirtiest and darkest of situations. They had both grown up in the outskirts, in the poorest section, but either of them couldn’t be further from each other in personality. Kyran preferred to be alone, spending his days free-running on the rooftops or slinking in the shadows, watching the other kids play. He liked pretending he was an assassin, funny enough, blending in with his surroundings in broad daylight, getting closer and closer to his victim before he went in for the kill. He never actually killed anyone back then. He would just take a stick and pretend it was a knife, sticking it into one of the kids’ spine while they were in the middle of a kickball game or working at their family’s store.