D'mok Revival 4: New Eden

by Michael Zummo

  “We’ll take it from here,” Minea said with a grabbing gesture. The projected cubes divided into two sets, before floating over to her and Bob. In a blur, the pair opened and extruded the boxes, reviewing their digital contents.

  Toriko took a deep breath, allowing her body to relax and float down. “All done,” she said, satiated.

  “Nice one sis,” Maro said. She watched the larger sentry continue on its way, seemingly ignorant of the hack that just took place.

  “Oh!” Minea said. “Here. Here! HERE!” She gestured to pull a number of virtual documents from one of the projected boxes. With a snap of her wrist, they flew at Maro and Toriko.

  Instinct told Maro to recoil into a protective ball. A reflex she fought as her intellect reminded her they were nothing more than holograms that couldn’t physically hurt her.

  The documents stopped above Toriko, vibrating gently in the dirty air. As she reached out and touched one, it expanded into a display filled with diagrams and lists of information. Her eyes grew wide; her body jittered. “Eudora! Building schematics, shift rotations, schematics—and where Whemel is!”

  * * * * * *

  “Well done!” Blupp cried when Mencari, Maro, Toriko, and Spark revealed their victory.

  Safe within the innermost areas of the B.P. Hovel, Mencari packed away his paranoia of being discovered, and enjoyed a moment of revelry.

  “Rhysus,” Cogeni said, tapping his shoulder.

  Mencari expected to see a more festive expression; instead he saw defeat in Cogeni’s eyes.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “Can I talk to you privately a moment?”

  Mencari nodded, and followed Cogeni out into the hall, then into a secluded room.

  “I feel … embarrassed to even tell to you about this. But I wanted to let you know what was going on.”

  “Don’t feel embarrassed. What is it?”

  Cogeni shook his head. His mouth opened, but he struggled to find the words. “I … Um.”

  He fell quiet. Mencari waited in an awkward silence. “I’m so sorry about your mother, Cogi,” he said, trying to anticipate what Cogeni might say.

  Cogeni’s head bobbed, a half smile portending appreciation. “That’s not all.”

  Not all?

  “While you were out I contacted Nikko. I wanted to tell her what was happening … and …”

  Oh no.

  “And, uh …”

  He swallowed hard.

  “She said that she and I … are done.”

  A chill ran through Mencari. Right before they were going to take back her own world, and knowing he just found out about his mother’s death, she did this? What was she thinking?

  “I …” Mencari searched for the right words, failed. “I wish I knew what to say here.”

  Cogeni’s body shook moments before his eyes flooded. He took a sharp breath and held it. “I know you need me right now.…”

  “If you need to sit this one out—do it. You’re dealing with a lot.”

  “No,” Cogeni’s head shook, defiant. Gleams of tears taking flight. “I have to do this. I’m going to take back my world. For my people … and for my mom.”

  Mencari grasped his shoulder. “If you need anything, or if you change your mind, just let me know.”

  “I will. Maybe … Maybe just a few moments alone. If I could …”

  “Of course.”

  As he walked back into the hall, Mencari’s mind raged. Right now he hated Nikko. Even if things were over between those two, her timing couldn’t be worse. Further, the demise of a relationship was always messy. He dreaded the more far-reaching impacts. How would the team respond? Would they take sides? How would the two work together moving forward? He needed to consult Osuto, and maybe Eyani, on what to do. As if they needed things to get more complicated.

  A sudden calm wrapped around him like a blanket. The anxiety building just a moment earlier evaporated. In the peace, he felt a presence. He looked at the armband Seigie charged with her energy. But it didn’t look active. The sensation seemed to be coming from down the hall. Nikko? Her dancing could induce this effect? But no, it couldn’t be her. She was off looking for Tal.

  He dashed down the hall and rushed into the empty bar. Empty, with one exception. On the edge of the stage sat a glowing figure, hands clasped as if praying. Ornamental armor covered every inch of her body, sullied by a layer of the toxic Smog Sea silt. The armor’s elegant curves and exotic tribal patterns captivated him, while the horned helmet, ghoulish faceplate, clawed gauntlets, and barbed leggings put him on edge. She looked fierce. The scripted symbol on her chest, along with a meditative posture, served as another juxtaposition to her beast-like armor.

  Beside her lay a short metal staff ending in a large, spiked ball. It looked like a medieval morning star. Even from a distance, he saw the meticulous images carved into the hilt.

  “Who are you?”

  She sat in silence. Was she Nukari? No. He didn’t have one of those warning headaches, and she didn’t feel threatening. Despite the questions running through his head, he unnaturally felt no fear or tension.

  The glow about the woman began to throb, and a chord from a deep baritone choir resonated in the air. The spectacle entranced him. With every burst of light, the dinge appeared to burn off her armor.

  Rapid footfalls echoed down the corridor. “What is that?” Allia yell moments before entering the room, Cogeni and Ichini right behind her. A brilliant flash lit up the room, and his hand lifted in instinct to shield his eyes. As they adjusted, he saw that the formerly sullied metal armor gleamed like fresh snow.

  “Stay back!” Mencari called to the others.

  “No, know I who she is—or rather who she represents,” Cogeni said.

  The ghoulish faceplate retracted, revealing soft, mint-tinted cheeks and braided locks of honey-colored hair. A gentle yet firm voice spoke. “I am here to help.” Bright hazel eyes looked at Cogeni with curiosity. “Could it be?” She gently slid off the stage, her armored feet barely making a sound as she landed. “Cogeni? Cogeni Omura—Patriarch of Demas?”

  How could she possibly know that information? Panic exploded within Mencari as she reached for her weapon. His golden aura radiated angrily around him. With unnatural speed, before Mencari could even react, she was beside Cogeni. Except, she was kneeling in a submissive and reverent posture, her spiked mace held above her as if in offering to him.

  “I am Niya, Arbiter of …”

  “Lord Anthies. Your relic armor is unmistakable,” Cogeni said. “I’ve only seen it in the archives, but there isn’t a god in the Argosan Pantheon I don’t know. But, how could it be? Contact with Anthiessen was lost generations ago.”

  “Swallowed by the smog, but not destroyed,” she said. “Though we are few, we still maintain what’s left of the city, and Lord Anthies’s temple.”

  “But why appear now? How did you know to come here?” Cogeni said.

  “Lord Anthies, the brother of Lord Demas, told me to come. He said you would be here. Though, honestly, the last thing I heard was you had left our world.” She smiled. “Yet, as he said, here you are. So, how may I be of assistance?”

  * * * * * *

  Just need a little regrouping time, Cogeni thought, donning his protective gear and stepping outside. Niya was an unexpected but welcomed surprise. Mencari and the others were updating her with their plans. It gave him just enough time to process everything else going on.

  He gazed into the thick fog at the edge of the slums. Lost in his thoughts, images of his mother washed over him. So many moments frozen in time: her smiles, their laughter, celebrations where she proudly stood beside him. The pleasant thoughts were marred only by the mocking words that squawked like a sinister soundtrack against the happy images.

  Among them, her scathing disapprovals, constant nagging, judgments about his life choices, and endless torments that he wasn’t trying hard enough, or wasn’t good enough, all these plagued him. They
served as cold reminders of why he’d learned to doubt himself, and how he learned he could never satisfy her. Yet, her loss burned like acid on his soul. His mother was dead. The wounds between them would last into eternity now. All the time they had to mend their ways, wasted.

  Maybe Demas would be merciful, and his prayers begging for forgiveness would reach her. Would her immortal soul grant mercy to him? Was he even worthy?

  A gentle hand on his shoulder jarred him from his thoughts. He turned to find Niya. Instead of the helmet’s ghoulish facemask, a gentle glow covered her face.

  “Are you all right?” she asked.

  He simply nodded.

  “They told me you just found out about your mother.…”

  Again he gave a slight nod, fighting the stinging in his eyes.

  “She was an amazing woman, known all over.”

  “Thank you, but I wasn’t the best son.”

  “You’re too hard on yourself,” Niya said, looking deeply into his eyes. “You’re well known too.”

  “Me?” He scoffed.

  “You don’t think the son of the most powerful matriarch could disappear unnoticed do you?” she said. “You were the heir.”

  He listened with a deepening sense of mortification.

  “Everyone knew of her search for you. But too many saw it as a chance to end her reign rather than secure the next in line.”

  “You knew all of this way back in Anthiessen?”

  Now she nodded, noticeably hesitating.

  “But …” Again she paused before continuing confidently. “Think about how this story turns.”

  How? It already had.

  “Your return—the retaking of our world. Reclaiming it for our people. They couldn’t find you because Demas willed it, and Lord Anthies deemed it just. You have returned in our time of need, Cogeni.”

  Maybe there was something to be said for that. He had been protected—blessed—by Nikko and her family when he retreated into the slums. Had he been there when the Nukari turned on his mother, he too might have fallen with her.

  “And you’re not alone,” she said gently.

  Perhaps Demas in her mercy brought Niya to him? So many things were wrong—his mother’s death, the break with Nikko, the Nukari control of his world. Niya was like a beacon of light while lost in an overwhelming sea of darkness.

  “Thank you,” he said.

  She smiled warmly and gestured. “Come, the others are waiting. Let us dispense justice on these invaders.”

  * * * * * *

  Mencari studied the projected schematics of Demassen and Selsamed, along with their adjoining platforms to other platforms in the sky city.

  “Readings indicate the storm is in full effect,” Maro reported, reviewing the holographic display before her. “Looks like everything is shut down tight up above.”

  “Then we’re nearly ready,” he said, not breaking his gaze on the projection. Without Kiyanna, he felt a strange anxiety about this mission. She truly had become a trusted strategist for the team. For this mission, all that pressure fell back on his shoulders.

  Are we missing anything? Is everyone ready to proceed? He didn’t want to make a mistake. Seigie’s stony face moved to the forefront of his mind. War is war, and there are casualties. But the burden of loss fell to those who remained alive. The guilt ate at him. There were fleeting moments when his mistakes didn’t haunt him. But he knew he’d never be free. “Let’s review the plans a final time.”

  “We already know what Kiyanna wanted,” Naijen said. “What’s to review? Rush, bash, repeat.”

  Simple minds are so adorable. That’s what Seigie would say, Mencari thought.

  “We have a few new options, so it’s been modified,” he said. “Toriko starts things out by hacking the sentries to ignore us and stay out of our way. Next, we get small teams up to Demassen, using the old maintenance lift. We know Whemel is inside the Demas temple there. Maro, you and Ujaku will unleash the nanites on the bridges, connecting the other city platforms to the main one with the temple.”

  The pair nodded.

  “Toriko, you, Spark, Allia, and Ichini will plant the dome generators and signal boosters in the five strategic areas of the main Demassen platform. After that, you wait at the maintenance lift for Maro and Ujaku.”

  “Got it!” Toriko said.

  “Niya and Cogeni, use the back entrance to get inside the temple. Wait there for my signal to proceed.” His gaze traveled over the group. “The six of you should travel up together, then fan out. Once all teams are in their final positions, we’ll move to secondary attack assignments. The goal is to capture Whemel alive.”

  He joined the others in a final review of the projections. Colored marks denoted the key targets and locations they’d attack. “If there’s any questions or final clarifications, ask now.”

  Looking over the group, Mencari noticed Cogeni’s expression. Stoic and devoid of emotion, it spooked him. He’s not ready for this.

  It wasn’t that long ago that Mencari himself felt the unbearable pain of his family’s death, and the loneliness after. Getting the news of his mother, and the loss of his life partner, along with the Nukari occupying his homeworld, couldn’t be anything less than crushing.

  He fought the urge to contact Osuto for guidance. If by chance his signal was traced, it could blow their cover. The reality of Osuto’s health also weighed on his mind. Sometime soon Osuto might not be around to consult. He needed to take more responsibility for decisions. An idea came to him.

  Katen, I know you’re listening to my thoughts. What is Cogeni’s mental state? Is his mind coherent?

  A moment passed without response. Certainly Katen wouldn’t pretend he wasn’t—

  His mind is conflicted, but clear. I would consider his mind … uncompromised.

  Mencari looked over to Katen, who stared knowingly in return. It’s decided then, Mencari thought.

  There would be a time and place to allow Cogeni to feel his loss, and start to heal. But now wasn’t that time. They had a job to do, and more importantly, Cogeni’s own people needed him now. Sometimes being the leader meant you had to sacrifice yourself for a greater good. This seemed like Cogeni’s time. “We attack on the next rotation change,” Mencari said.

  Minea reported, “The Nukari have gone into light rotation due to the nebula storm. They appear to be confident nothing much will happen. The number of patrolling soldiers is greatly down.”

  “So where do we come in?” one of the unseated religious council said.

  Mencari said, “When the final push is done, and it’s safe for you to return to Demassen, we’ll send the lifts down for you.”

  “We’re not afraid of them,” the maister snapped.

  “It’s not about being afraid,” Mencari said. “It’s about only putting those we have to in harm’s way. Our goal is to restore the rightful government, not create more martyrs.”

  At this, the maister leaned back, and no more objections were presented.

  CHAPTER 14

  Godly Intervention

  His mind pensive, Mencari looked over the team. Everyone appeared in their smog gear, ready for battle. “Report,” he barked.

  “Be’Inaxi and Argosan support teams report ready,” Minea said.

  “The defense pods are ready to go.” Allia pointed to the five spherical devices on the table beside her. “If we each take one to the lift, Toriko and I can handle it once we’re up top.”

  He looked to Toriko and said, “Do it.”

  She beamed at him. “Woo-woo! Activating ‘happy mode’!” Spark jumped around playfully. “No, Spark. I mean my hacking code.”

  With an unhappy yowl, the robo-dog slumped down.

  “Happy mode? What makes’um happy?” Naijen jeered.

  “I don’t know. Those big droids just seemed kind of ornery, trudging along the same paths.”

  Mencari imagined another phrase Seigie would have said, referencing Naijen: Like someone else I know.
<
br />   The city map of Salsemed appeared in the air above Toriko. Tiny blue dots patrolled slowly in the streets. One by one, the dots turned orange and froze.

  “Nearly done—this will bring down their Nukari bots and sentries, along with stopping any transmissions up to the main control cloud.”

  So far so good, he thought. As long as Toriko’s technology doesn’t have any glitches we’ll be fine. He pushed from his mind the plethora of times mishaps took place. At least Maro had helped review their tech. Between the two of them, hopefully everything was bug free. “Inform the teams when the Nukari robots are down.”

  “Ano … they’re kinda already,” Toriko said.

  He looked back up at the projection. All the blue dots were now orange and not one of them moved.

  “Let’s move out,” he said, scooping up one of Toriko’s devices off the table.

  As he ran out the door, anticipation filled him. If they could capture Whemel, perhaps a whole new floodgate of options would open to them from what intel they could extract. And just maybe, he’d find a lead about his beloved Anaka and Rhyiel? The hope mixed with a tingle of anxiety. Sometime soon there had to be a breakthrough.

  * * * * * *

  “This collapse must be recent,” Toriko said. “I swear it wasn’t like this when we reviewed the plan.”

  Cogeni eyed up the pile. It looked as if an entire structure had toppled, leaving a tower of debris blocking the way to the maintenance lift. “Maybe there’s a way through the pile?”

  “Would be faster than backtracking,” Niya said.

  “I could send my probes up,” Toriko offered.

  “What about flying over?” Allia said. “Though I don’t know if I could carry one of these things and still get over.”

  Niya gripped her mace and said, “Stand back.” It glowed as she lifted it into the air. The handle extended into a staff, and the spiked ball became a long, hooked blade. “Lord Anthies, Great Judicator of Argosy, lend me your mercy and power. Help me to defend our world against those that claim it unjustly.”