“We have to leave right now,” he said to the others.
“Do you know where our parents are?” Lizella asked her voice full of hope. Elian looked at her. It pained his heart every time he did. How could he tell her that he didn’t know? That they had been manipulated because of him?
“This is a trap, and we have walked straight into it. If we don’t leave right now, we will be surrounded by an Imperium army by morning. Chances are it’s already bearing down on us,” he explained doing his best to keep his emotions in check.
Erin threw her arms up in despair.
“What did I say when you insisted on this foolish plan? I said this is a trap, that we cannot afford such an action yet. But oh no, don’t listen to me,” she moaned before storming off and shouting orders at the tired Liberators to pack up the camp.
Marcian rubbed his eyes in frustration before taking off after her. That left Elian alone with Lizella.
“I’m sorry. It’s because of me this has happened.”
“What do you mean? How were you to know? We all saw those dispatches. It was me who pressured Marcian to march here.”
Elian turned from her and walked to the edge of the clearing.
“The Supreme is hunting me. She wants me alive. For what purpose I do not know, but I do know that as long as I stay at your side, you will never be safe. I have to leave.”
Lizella stepped back at his words. Tears welled in her eyes.
“After everything; you’d leave? You’d leave me? We need you Elian, don’t you see that? Without you, we would never have survived the past few months. Those battles – without you, we would have been defeated many times over. We’ve been through so much together.”
“You have Marcian,” he replied unable to hide the bitterness in his voice. He’d done his best to get over her. He’d accepted her choice, Marcian was a good man, and yet it had still pained him. She had been the source of his power of Joy, but now all he felt was emptiness.
“What does that mean?” the way he’d said those words had taken her by surprise.
Elian took a deep breath. It was now or never to get the truth off his chest. It had been a moment he’d been dreading, but one he knew was inevitable. Before Rea had departed on her mission to seek out her former Gifted companions they had spoken at length about his feelings for Lizella.
‘Love is the most powerful emotion of all, but if it is unrequited and not returned, it can quickly turn into a poison in your veins. Those of us with the Power feel this greater than any other. You must tell her Elian and soon; else it will destroy you.’ Rea had said.
“I think you know. I think you’ve always known. I was too afraid to say anything, too afraid to risk losing your friendship,” he said his voice barely louder than a whisper.
Lizella stepped back and shook her head.
“No. This isn’t fair. After everything, you say this to me now? I do love you Elian. But -as a friend.”
Elian looked at the ground unable to meet her gaze. Despite the pain, her words elicited he could feel something else. It was as though a pressure had been relieved from his chest. Rea had been right. Knowing for certain that the love he felt for Lizella wouldn’t be returned in the way he’d wanted it to be was like a boil being lanced. He couldn’t stop the smile that touched his lips. He looked up at her, and the smile broadened.
“Thank you, Lizella,” he said.
“Thank me for what?” she asked in confusion.
He stepped forward and took her hand into his.
“For freeing me from the false hope I’ve been carrying like a millstone about my neck for years. I knew what you’d say, but I had to hear you say it.” He squeezed her hand reassuringly. “I’m happy you’ve found Marcian. Despite him coming across as an arrogant arse at times he is a good man.”
Lizella wiped a tear from her eye.
“I’m sorry you’ve felt that way for so long. I never meant to hurt you Elian. Our lives have changed so much, so quickly. I miss the days when we would run through the woods and play those silly games.”
They laughed at the memories, breaking the earlier awkwardness.
“I still chuckle at the look on Ruy’s face when he fell into that hole.”
“You didn’t dig it deep enough,” Lizella added with a chuckle. As quickly as the laughter had come, it was replaced with sadness.
“We will find them Lizella. I promise you that.”
“We can find them together,” she said, hope in her voice.
Elian released his grip on her hand and turned away.
“If I stay with you, I will be putting you all in terrible danger. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened. I have to leave.”
“But where will you go?”
He looked out over the ravine. The campfires of the Liberators were quickly being extinguished as Erin’s orders spread through the camp.
“To Olandis, to find Rea. She won’t be able to stop Vavius without me, and I’ll hopefully lure the Supremes’ gaze away from you.”
Lizella was about to try and stop him, but before she could, he turned and walked into the night.
*
Marcian shouted at his men to hurry up. Wagons were hastily loaded with equipment, and the freed slaves that could walk were being led to safety by small groups of Liberators. The decision to scatter the army had not been an easy one, but he saw no other way to preserve what he had. If caught in the open by General Rickon they would be torn to pieces, but if split into dozens of smaller groups all taking different routes, he hoped that many would make it to the rendezvous in the heart of the vast Sojourn Forest. The sun was beginning to rise in the west casting Hestra in an orange light. All through the night, the army had departed until now only his small band remained. Lizella was already on the back of one of the wagons and Erin joined her. He did his best to try and block out the piteous cries of all the slaves they’d had to leave behind. He’d promised that they would return, but the lie made him sick to his stomach. He hated the Imperium for what they were forcing him to do. Hundreds of them shambled after the wagons begging to be taken away from the hellish mines and an uncertain future. With a reluctant sigh, he walked over to the wagon and climbed on. He took a seat next to Lizella and banged on its side to signal the driver to get underway. With a lurch the wagon set off, leaving the battle-scarred landscape of Hestra behind them. He looked forward, unable to watch the growing crowd of desperate people trying to follow. No, he had to see this. He turned and wished he hadn’t. Lizella sat with head bowed a look of misery on her dirt-streaked face. He leant over and squeezed her hand gently.
“Don’t worry. We will be fine,” he said with more belief than he felt. She looked at him with tear streaked eyes.
“They won’t be,’ she replied nodding her head towards the people who were piteously calling for the escaping wagons to take them with them.
He sighed and forced himself to watch as they grew smaller and smaller in the distance.
“We will come back for them. I promise that we will never leave a person behind again,” he vowed to himself as the wagons set off on the long journey north.
*
Elian watched as the last wagon departed Hestra. Columns of smoke from dozens of unquenched fires rose lazily in the early morning breeze. The damage they had inflicted on the mines had been extensive, but he knew that within a matter of weeks the Imperium would round up those slaves left behind and put them back work. Despite his powers, he felt helpless; he dared not imagine what Marcian and Erin would be feeling. He adjusted the straps of his hastily assembled backpack and turned south. He had a long way to trek if he was to reach Olandis. The breeze brushed his face, and a thought came to him. There was no one around, and that feeling of loneliness felt liberating in its own way. He touched his mask and with a grunt pulled it from his face.
The burns were terrible, but the feeling of air across the damaged skin was freeing. He put the mask into the bag. He raised his head and smiled.
It was now just him and the open road. He’d enjoy it while he could.
***
Chapter 4.
The sun was beating down on the world below and the birds were singing. Elian was enjoying his trek. He’d ascended the foothills surrounding Hestra and walked through a small forest that marked the border to the lands of the Southern Imperium. He had put his red cloak into his bag shortly after setting off on his walk; the garment would only make him stand out like a sore thumb against the greenery of the landscape. He took a deep breath and sighed. The air was sweet and clean, a stark contrast from that found in Hestra where hundreds of chimneys had spewed thick, acrid smoke around the clock. Now that the mines had been taken out of action he wondered if the air there would improve.
This part of the Supremes’ Empire was sparsely populated with many of the people preferring to live in the bustling metropolises to the east. Savouring the coolness offered by the trees he emerged onto a flat plain overlooking the lands of Kaspen. His father, Helias, had told him stories of the place and of his own time working in the city that bore the same name as the land. Before the Supreme, Kaspen had been a powerful kingdom and one that had dominated this part of the world. His father had told him of the ancient ruins that dotted the landscape surrounding the city, the marks of a cataclysmic battle from long ago.
His stomach rumbled loudly. He’d been walking for most of the day, and his feet ached. He unshouldered his pack and placed it against a tree, an ancient looking elm by the looks of it. Reaching inside he took out a tin of peaches and a knife and set about prising the tasty fruit from within.
“Do you have enough to share?” came a voice from behind him. He cursed loudly and spun around, immediately dropping into a fighting stance.
The mysterious woman who had aided him at the mines stood before him, her arms held out wide at her sides to show she meant no harm. She still wore her purple cloak, but her hair was now tied up in a bun.
“Depends if you tell me who you are?” Elian replied cautiously. As an Empowered One he should have been able to sense her presence, but both times she had appeared he’d not felt anything at all. It troubled him.
The woman smiled and walked over to him. With a grunt, he pierced the tin and peeled back the lid. He offered it to her.
“My name is Cassia, and I’ve come to protect you,” she answered before popping a peach into her mouth. Elian followed suit savouring the refreshing taste.
“Why have you not healed your face?” Cassia asked suddenly, taking Elian by surprise. His eyes widened, and his face flushed red as he remembered that he wasn’t wearing his mask. He looked away and fumbled through the bag for it. Found it! Quickly he put it on.
“Who sent you? I know you saved my life back there, but you have to understand that the only other Empowered One I’ve ever met was Vavius and he ended up betraying me and leaving me to die at the hands of a monster; oh, and as a result, I ended up like this,’ he added pointing to his face.
She regarded him for a few moments before answering. ‘Is that pity in her eyes?’ he thought.
“Nobody sent me Elian. I felt your Emergence and have been looking for you ever since. I’ve travelled a long way to find you.”
“Why?”
“Because anyone who had an Emergence as strong as yours would be hunted by the Supreme and the Venerable Chamber. There’s so few of us left that I couldn’t just sit by and let her take you. She would do terrible things to you. I only wish I had found you sooner.”
Elian shuddered. He knew all too well what the Supreme did to Empowered Ones she captured.
“I have been in hiding for years; too long. And then the rebellion began, and I saw men and women with no powers daring to fight for their freedom. How could I sit back and do nothing?” she continued earnestly.
Elian regarded the strange woman for a moment. She was powerful, of that, there was no question. Could she be a mentor to him where Vavius had failed him? He knew he still had lots to learn about his abilities.
“Then help me stop Vavius, and whatever it is he’s planning. Help me bring down the Supreme,” he said.
Cassia stepped close and gently removed the mask from his face. Tenderly she placed a gloved hand to his scarred face. He protested, but her hand held him firmly in place.
“Let me prove I want to help,” she replied seriously before closing her eyes. A tingling sensation spread from her hand across Elian’s face causing him to gasp. Pain lanced through his damaged skin as the cells repaired themselves. As quickly as it had begun Cassia lowered her hand and reached into her tunic. She pulled out a small oval shaped pocket mirror that she held up in front of him. His scars were gone! The ravaged skin looked brand new. He gawped at her.
He took the mirror and tentatively touched his face. It looked as if nothing had ever happened to it.
“There’s a lot of things Vavius didn’t tell you I’m sure,” Cassia said with a smile. “He was never one to willingly share knowledge with others.”
“You know him then?” Elian asked, marvelling at his appearance in the mirror.
“You could say that. We met a long time ago, and for a time we worked well together;’ she paused, “And then I discovered his true nature. He betrayed me just as he betrayed you Elian. He will stop at nothing to attain more power for himself,” she said sadly.
“He used to speak of a place called the Temple of Arrival and something called the Oracle. He’s seeking it, but I have no idea why. That’s why I must reach Olandis and Rea. Hopefully, she’s discovered some answers.” Elian handed back the mirror and hefted the pack back over his shoulder.
“The crazy fool,” Cassia muttered under her breath. “If he finds the Temple;’ she looked at Elian with pleading eyes, “We have to stop him. We can’t let him find it,” she said. The fear in her eyes was obvious.
“Why? What is it?”
“As the name suggests it is the place where the Visitors first set foot in our world and where they chose to establish themselves. It is said that the Temple contains the source of the Power, the Oracle and is where the Supreme became what she is. Vavius seeks to claim the Power for himself in order to overthrow her, but all he will do is replace one tyrant with another, or worse. He believes that the Empowered Ones should dominate all life in this world and that we who possess the Power gives us the right to rule everyone else.”
Elian finished eating the peaches and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. In the distance, he could hear the pounding of guns and the ground trembled in the rhythm of a mighty Guardian war machine striding through the countryside. He closed his eyes hoping that his friends had escaped safely.
“We cannot stay here. If you’re truly set on reaching Olandis, we can cut southwards through the Western Vale and avoid Kaspen. The cities will be crawling with Imperium soldiers and Chamber agents,” Cassia said pointing to the horizon. A dense forest lay in the direction and beyond that the landscape altered into a series of valleys and ravines. “It won’t be easy going, but hopefully we will go undetected.”
*
Hestra
General Rickon swore loudly causing some of his men to glance worriedly in his direction. His plan had been foolproof, had someone talked? Only a few of Hestra’s garrison was aware of his ingenious stratagem, and yet his quarry had slipped through his grasp yet again. What was worse was that the mining complex was also in ruins, it would take weeks to round up enough slaves to get it functional again, and with the fire of rebellion showing no signs of diminishing, the Imperium would need all the materials it could get its hands on. Sure, his army had captured a handful of escaped slaves and destroyed a few units of Liberators, but the bulk of their forces had scattered to the winds. One solace was that they too would need time to regather their strength before they could do anything as audacious as another attack on Hestra. For months his armies had clashed with the rebels, to his surprise they were far more organised than he expected. Most of the battles fought had resulted in a st
alemate and even defeat. Sure, he had scored a few victories, but he was nowhere near closer to crushing them completely. Unlike his armies, they were flexible and capable of moving at great speed across difficult terrain. And then, of course, there was the Empowered One fighting in their ranks. The red cloaked man had turned victory into defeat more than once. He’d never believed the old stories of their abilities but after Asta, he knew just how dangerous a foe they could be.
He stood outside the ruins of the fortress that was supposed to have kept the enemy pinned in place, that should have granted him total victory. Where there had once stood an imposing structure of stone and steel, there was only a tower of rubble and smoking wreckage.
From the few survivors he’d spoken with, the Empowered One named Elian had been involved. He recalled the Supremes’ orders and smirked. She’d been right as usual.
A nervous-looking soldier approached him and tossed a salute.
“Forgive me sir, but you might want to take a look at this,” the officer said. Rickon raised an eyebrow and followed the man through a maze of battle-scarred structures. Eventually, they reached a wide-open space that had once been used to house the thousands of slaves who had kept the mines running day and night.
Packed into the middle of the space and surrounded by his soldiers were hundreds of emaciated looking people.
“They told us that the Liberators had abandoned them and left them to die,” the officer explained.
A cruel smile crossed Rickon’s face.
“Did they indeed? This won’t do their reputation much good when news of that gets out now will it? Perhaps this operation hasn’t been a total disaster captain. We can use this to discredit them. Without support from the general populace, their supplies will be greatly diminished.”
He rubbed his bearded chin in thought.
The Temple of Arrival Page 3
