by N E Riggs
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
1 The Road to Jigok
2 A Record of Visions
3 The Core
4 A Glimmer of Hope
5 A Forced Prophecy
6 The Gateway to Law
7 Side Story: Brigid
8 Side Story: Anur
9 Side Story: Met
Glossary
Afterward
Only The Inevitable
Book 3:
Lost Souls
N E Riggs
Copyright © 2017 N E Riggs
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
N E Riggs
[email protected]
NERiggs.com
Illustrator: Seth Pargin
[email protected]
SethPargin.com
1
The Road to Jigok
David cracked open gritty eyes to see a dark sky above him. He blinked, rubbing the gum from his eyes. He must have fallen asleep at some point – it’d been around noon when he left the bar. His head pounded, and his chest felt tight. “I want to go home,” he whispered, though he didn’t know if he meant Earth or his room on Valal. It didn’t matter which. Both were beyond his reach.
What was he supposed to do now? He wanted to give up. He wanted to curl into a little ball, go to sleep, and never wake up. And why shouldn’t he? His life was over. He’d never get back to Earth, he no longer had a life on Bantong, and no one would mourn his passing. He had no friends here, no family, and no one who had been born on his Earth. Without his com pad, he couldn’t even contact anyone or look anything up.
Why didn’t you just find other travelers from your world and ruin their lives? Bellon’s words rang through his head. It’s too bad you couldn’t contact someone. He’s from your Earth too, and he’d have made your first few days easier, Brigid said, though she’d mentioned a name he’d forgotten.
David sat up quickly as his tired mind finally put the pieces together. There was someone else here on Bantong from Earth, someone Brigid had known about. For some reason, she’d never let him meet the other person from his Earth. Sudden fury ripped through him. Everyone on Bantong hated him and blamed him for being ignorant, but how could he be anything else when no one told him anything? “Fucking Bantonans and their fucking secrets!”
He’d let them have their secrets before, not wanting to be punished or ridiculed for asking stupid questions. Well, he was done with that. He had only himself to depend on, and he was going to do what he should have done months ago.
He got up, ignoring his headache, pulled his bag onto his back, and walked into the Inda Administration Building on Valal. He wasn’t supposed to be in Pardis anymore, but he didn’t care. This was the fastest way to Kumarkan. He walked through a gateway to reach the Hagen Building in Kumarkan then took an elevator to Brigid’s office. This late at night, he passed only a handful of people along the way, and the corridor to Brigid’s office lay deserted. The door wasn’t locked. He locked it behind him and dumped his bag on the floor, and picked up the com pad left there.
Com pads were wonderfully user-friendly with clearly labeled icons, and David soon found a way to search for travelers. He paused, trying to remember the name of the man from Earth. He couldn’t recall, but he found a place to search by home world. He typed in 5297. Moments later, two records popped up. He glanced at his record long enough to see it had already been updated to reflect his lost priesthood. Scowling, he brought up the other record. Seth Walker, it said, from Los Angeles. There was a picture too, which David stared at for a long time.
He could guess now why Brigid hadn’t introduced him to Seth. The kid in the picture looked seventeen at best, with blond hair and blue eyes. He’d been on Bantong for almost six years, and he had an address in Jigok. The record stated he’d lived for a while in Tandi, going to school and working part time on evenings and weekends, but he’d run away over a year ago.
I can guess why he ran away, David thought as he copied down Seth’s address and com number. He hoped the Jigok address was correct. It seemed strange that someone had gone to the trouble of finding where Seth had run away to but hadn’t brought him back. He’s a traveler, so they probably didn’t care.
After a few more minutes of searching, he found directions from Kumarkan to Jigok. He knew Jigok lay just outside Pardis, on the south side, not far from Kumarkan. He’d never been there, and, from the map he found, Jigok was a maze of twisting roads and small alleyways. He drew out the map as best he could, noting the route he needed to take.
In less than an hour, he had everything he needed. He stuffed his notes in his pocket and left Brigid’s office. He passed no one on his way out of the building. Once outside, he oriented himself in the right direction and started walking to Jigok. A few other people were out this time of the night, but none of them paid any particular attention to David. It took him nearly three hours before he reached the edge of Kumarkan – he’d barely been able to figure out the route for walking. He hadn’t tried to work out which gateways to take.
He stopped at the end of the street, suddenly wondering if going to Jigok was really a good idea. Before him rose ratty skyscrapers, the paint chipped away, panes missing from the windows, and clothes lines hanging dense between the buildings. Few street lamps dotted the roads of Jigok, just enough for David to see young men and women in scanty clothing standing on corners. Dirty bars and casinos lined the street, and a group of teenagers smoked and laughed together a few blocks in.
David had seen slums before, and he’d walked through them before. The idea of living in one filled him with dread. But what choice did he have? Pardis was no longer his home, and he had no friends on Bantong. Seth might not be his friend either, but David had to try. He had no one else to turn to.
He reached into his bag and pulled out an agitator. He wasn’t stupid enough to walk unarmed through a slum. As he crossed the road and entered Jigok, he slipped into the flowing, careful movements he learned over many long journeys, hunting terrible monsters. He might not be a Sword Priest anymore, but he’d forgotten none of what he’d learned. He wondered briefly if he’d lost his gift of strength when he’d been stripped of his priesthood. Diket hadn’t said so that he recalled, but he hadn’t been paying that much attention, too caught up in his loss.
Then he pushed everything from his mind and concentrated on his surroundings. The youths stared at him but didn’t approach, eying his agitator warily. The scantily dressed people of both genders called out invitations, but David ignored them. As he went deeper into Jigok, he found dilapidated restaurants, creepy shops closed for the night, and an ill-lit grocery store. Most shops had at least one boarded up window. The architecture didn’t have the variety he expected, considering Jigok was mostly supposed to be populated by travelers. Maybe the people here didn’t have the money or materials to construct buildings in the fashion of their home worlds.
David had to stop often and consult his directions. Many streets lacked signs, so he often had to double back. The sun was starting to rise by the time he found the right building. According to Brigid’s records, Seth lived in apartment 21F. The main door to the apartment wasn’t locked, so David walked right in. The elevator doors were rusted and slightly askew, and David took the stairs instead. C
limbing twenty-one flights of stairs didn’t leave him winded, and he wondered whether that was because he still had his gift or because he was in great shape.
He stared at the door for a long time. Seth might not want anything to do with him. Just because they were both from Earth was no guarantee of friendship or charity. And Seth was just a kid. When David had been seventeen, if some strange man had shown up at his apartment door, no argument in the world would have gotten David to open it. He hated having to rely on a child, but he had no choice. At least it was morning now, so Seth ought to be awake. He sighed and knocked firmly on the door.
Moments later, the door opened, and the boy from the picture stared out at him. Up close he looked even younger. He wore faded pajamas and carried a sharp kitchen knife. He squinted at David, scowling. “Who the hell are you?”
“Ah, I’m David Kemp. Are you Seth Walker?” He hid his agitator behind his back, hoping Seth hadn’t seen it. He didn’t want him to think he was being robbed.
“What of it? This is no place for someone like you.” Seth’s eyes raked up and down David, weighing his appearance.
“Are you from world 5297, called Earth?”
Seth frowned, looking less antagonistic than he’d been moments before. “Do you know about a gateway?” he asked, and the hope in his voice was the same David had heard so many times in his own.
“No. I, ah, need your help. You see, I’m from world 5297 too, and I have nowhere else to go.” He realized that Seth might not believe him, and he cursed himself for not thinking of that earlier.
To his surprise, Seth opened the door all the way and motioned him inside. If he gestured with the kitchen knife, David could overlook that. “Come in, come in. David Kemp, was it? Where on Earth did you live?”
“Boston.” He stared around Seth’s apartment. A bright orange sofa sat across from a television. The coffee table overflowed with papers. A small kitchen stood to the right, and two doors on the left. Though small, it didn’t look nearly as run down as David had feared. A bit shabby, maybe, but nice. Seth waved him to sit on the couch then poured them both a cup of coffee. David covered his grimace at the taste – the coffee was strong and black. “I saw you lived in L.A. And, um, that you’ve been here awhile.”
“Seven years I’ve lived here.” Seth looked very fierce as he took a long sip of coffee. “I stumbled through a gateway when I was ten. Some days I don’t remember what my parents looked like.” He shook his head, the frown vanishing from his face. “Tell me what’s happened on Earth. Who’s president? Are we still fighting terrorists? How are the Dodgers doing?”
David had to laugh. “Well, America elected its first black president, Obama. He’s pretty hip but does nothing. We’re still fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, but it’s a new war in Iraq now, with crazy terrorists instead of the government. I don’t think the Dodgers have won anything major recently, but I’m more of a basketball fan. Yay, Celtics.” He twirled a finger around in a circle.
Seth lazed back in his chair, sprawling as only a teenager could. “You know who the Dodgers are. Oh, God, back home I watched every game, collected cards, the works. No one here even knows what baseball is. You really are from Earth.” He turned away from David for a moment. David stared into his coffee so he could pretend he didn’t see the tears in Seth’s eyes. He’d thought he had it bad. Seth had been lost at ten years old, ripped away from his parents. A fierce rush filled David, taking him by surprise. He’d only just met Seth, but he wanted to help him. A boy his age shouldn’t be alone in the world.
Shaking his head, Seth said, “So when did you come to Bantong?”
“About nine months ago.”
“Shit,” Seth said, standing so fast his coffee nearly spilled everywhere. He put his coffee cup down then paced back and forth. “I never heard about a gateway to Earth opening up. Damn Neb! His promises are useless!” He threw up his hands and paced faster.
David let him walk out his anger, knowing how he felt. When Seth looked calmer, he asked, “Is Neb your Lost Priest?”
Sighing, Seth sank back into his chair. He slumped back, looking very tired. “He is. When I first got here, he was wonderful. I was so scared, but Neb was cool. Those first few days were awesome. He went sightseeing, we went to an amusement park that was a million times better than Disney, and I didn’t have to go to school. But soon I realized it wasn’t just some fun vacation. I missed my parents and my friends and even my sister. Neb thought the easiest way for me to get better was to keep busy. He put me in a Bantonan school in Tandi. It was connected to an orphanage because all the students were travelers and most of the teachers had training from Kumarkan. The teachers looked after us, made sure we were clothed and fed and counseled, and explained stuff to us, but it wasn’t the same as having parents.
“The first few years it wasn’t so bad. I got close to some of the teachers and made friends. I even started thinking about what kind of job I wanted on Bantong when I finished school. But then the desolation started. A lot of teachers quit. They started making us do chores on evenings and weekends. I don’t mind a few chores, but we had to work constantly. We barely had time for homework, let alone hanging out and just being kids, you know?” David nodded, but Seth continued without pause. “Some of my friends talked about running away from school. Sometimes I wanted to run away too, but where would I go? Then I met Met Prous.”
David chuckled. “You met Met?”
Seth beamed. “Oh, I missed this. Finally, someone knows when I tell a pun! Yeah, I met Met about two years ago. Do you know who Met Prous is?”
“Yeah.” He hadn’t recognized the name immediately, but now he recalled. Met Prous was a traveler who had stolen gateway information from Shamla, from the Passion Priests. He then sold the information to other travelers and the whole thing blew up and at least one priest got killed. Met had been captured and sentenced to exile on Jahan. During his first day as a Sword Priest, David played crowd control at Castle Eternal when travelers showed up to protest Met’s sentence. He’d met Malmis that day too, David remembered with a frown. “So how’d you meet a guy like that?”
“There are a number of organizations, mostly in Jigok, that help travelers. They became much more common when the desolation started. Met led one of them. He wandered all across Bantong, looking for travelers who needed his help. I was cleaning the sidewalk outside the school when he walked past. We got to talking. We met again after that, many times. He told me about his organization and what they did to help people. He said he could help me too, even if all I wanted was to stay at school.”
“What made you want to leave?”
Seth took another sip of coffee. “I called Neb and asked him again about gateways home. He said there weren’t any and hadn’t been any since the one I stumbled through. But Met had gateway information, loads and loads of it. And a gateway to Earth was listed.” Seth’s hands tightened around the coffee cup. “So what if the gateway opened in the middle of the Australian outback? I’d be home on Earth. The very next day I packed my things and left school with Met. If I’d known I’d lose Met just a few months later…” His lower lip quivered, and he hid it by taking another drink.
David winced. Seth’s story had so many similarities to his own. He wondered how many other travelers had missed gateways home because their Lost Priests hadn’t told them. “My Lost Priest failed to tell me about a gateway too. She said it went to China and since that wasn’t close to Boston and I’d been busy, she hadn’t bothered to tell me about it. I forgave her. The second time a gateway to Earth opened— Well, I haven’t seen her since then.” He remembered the way Brigid had dragged him back from Norway. He’d been a fool to ever trust her. She wanted him to be stuck here and miserable. If he ever saw her again… He scowled down into his coffee as he thought of all the things he could do to Brigid. The thought of her laying before him, limp and bleeding and begging his forgiveness, brought a smile to his lips.
“Neb never told me about a gateway to
China, or to Boston,” Seth said. “He hasn’t contacted me since I left school. Guess he got bored pretending to help me – it’s not like he couldn’t find me if he wanted to. Well, I’ll show him. We’ll show all the priests.” A cruel smile crossed his face.
“You’re planning something, aren’t you?” David said. “You’re going to attack the Lost Priests?” Jigok bred anger and dissent like nowhere else on Pardis. The protesters David had faced had been travelers, mostly from Jigok. Of course, those protesters had been involved with Malmis. His gut twisted. He’d love to do something to get back at Brigid and the other Lost Priests – and the Law Priests, while he was at it – but he hated Malmis more.
Seth stared at him for a moment. “If I tell you, you’ll have to be one of us,” he said. “We can’t afford to have anyone squealing on us.”
“Do you know a man called Malmis?” David asked. “Dark hair, smiles a lot, very charismatic?”
“I don’t think so,” Seth said after thinking for a moment.
He nodded. “Then I’d love to help you. You’ll find I can be very helpful.” He opened his bag so Seth could see the pile of agitators. “You think you’ve been shat on by the Eternist Priests? You’ve no idea what I’ve been through. I came here for help, and maybe to find a friendly ear. But if you’re planning something against the priesthood, then I want in.”
Seth pulled out an agitator and stared at it in amazement, running his fingers up and down the barrel. He laughed. “You might be exactly what we need.” He held out a hand. David clasped it, and they shook. “Welcome to the Core, David Kemp. I’m sure the others will be happy to have you.”
“I’m very happy to join, Seth Walker.”
Standing, Seth walked to the kitchen and hit some buttons on his cooker. A moment later he handed David a bowl of oatmeal. “You look hungry,” he said. “It’s the only thing I’ve found that tastes just like it does back home.”
David’s stomach growled, and he realized he hadn’t had anything to eat since the faffo in Tandi two days ago. He’d had only a few bites then and little the day before. He forced himself to eat the oatmeal slowly. Normally he hated oatmeal, but this tasted delicious. “The cookers can make curry, if you’re patient with them and describe it,” he said when he finished. “So who are the Core?”
