Rise of the Alphae: From Death unto Life (Wastelands Saga Book 1)

by James Huff

  At last the cannon fired and our avatars were all activated simultaneously. My opponent’s avatar was a very tall, slender male figure with long flowing blonde hair. He wielded a large broad sword and some type of hammer or mace; it was difficult to tell which. His avatar was a good 12 inches taller than my own and his stance was rather intimidating. I decided to hold back and take a defensive stance, preparing myself to read my opponent well. He did the same, remaining some distance away, but inching in closer and closer. I held my ground but I did not advance. I held my spear straight out in front of me and crossed my sword over my chest, protecting it from a potential attack. As the Lead boy got closer I noticed that he increased the pace of his advance so I decided to take a few large strides in his direction, keeping my stance as consistent as possible.

  Suddenly, without warning, the Lead combatant charged forward at full speed, holding his sword in a defensive position and swinging wildy with his hammer toward my head. I was able to dodge the attack, but just barely and in my quick evasion I lost my balance and fell to the right. I could hear him laughing at me, but I barely registered it as I was on my feet almost immediately, drawing my sword and making a rapid slash towards his arm. He was able to parry and I decided to back away a bit and regain a better stance and foothold. He came at me with another charge and this time I side-stepped him, spun around quickly and slashed again towards his chest with my sword. He parried once more and so I pushed myself in closer and thrust my spear deep into his leg. He winced with pain but he did not cry out. I ripped the spear from his thigh with primal fury and watched him fall to the floor. Then I went in with a volley of slashes with my sword and he was able to parry every one of them. I wanted to wear him down because I knew he was on his last leg, literally.

  But I made an almost fatal flaw and completely forgot about the hammer which he still wielded. He remained on the ground and smiled with cruelty as he lifted his hammer high into the air and brought it down hard upon my shoulder. The force and surprise of the blow knocked me backward and as soon as I felt my head hit the floor I could already see him limping up on top of me. He brought his long sword down over me and shattered my spear. With my other hand I held my sword, desperately fighting off his blade. His strength was greater than my own and I could feel him pushing deeper into me, bringing my own sword close to my throat. But in a sudden spurt of rage I was able to summon great strength and push him upwards, eventually pushing myself into standing postion and knocking him down as I now threw all my weight on top of him as we hit the floor. Now the tables were turned and I used the leverage of my sword to turn his blade against him. I remembered the wound of his leg and with malice I pushed my fingers into it and heard him scream aloud in pain for the first time. I took advantage of his momentary weakness and pushed my sword into his until I could see it cut the tender flesh of his throat, blood spraying into the face of my avatar.

  I could hear my rival’s body hit the floor and never had I so badly wanted to leave him there. But I knew that the cost of disqualification was too great so, with reluctance, I immediately went up to him and revived him. Finally the Alphae rose above us, glistening with pride. The entire audience was chanting “Silver Falcon” and the whole stadium began to quake with excitement. The high priest rose my hand in victory and I smiled with pride. At last I had faced my foe and rival. And I had defeated him. But I knew that it was not over. The fight between Mercury and Copper actually ended before mine but I could tell that the audience was really focused on the greater rivalry between the Silver and Lead castes. Mercury was able to achieve victory once more using her same strategy, and I was not surprised. When the audience finally calmed down the Alphae gave a brief speech and then dismissed us to the locker rooms to prepare for the next round.

  I entered the locker room and went through the cleansing chamber before quickly getting dressed into fresh SBU’s. The Lead boy then confronted me. “I must say Mr. Crawling that you have proven a worthy opponent. Unlike some of these fools.” He motioned toward the other combatants. “Remember what I said. You may leave here with victory tonight, but the true test will be tomorrow. You fight well; it comes so naturally to you. But the real test for you will be the initiation. The mind has its way of betraying you. Either way, I am grateful to have an opponent to challange me for once. I leave any and all negative emotions in the arc. There they have their uses. But here,” he motioned around the general area, “here they can break you. Remember that.”

  My rival then walked off, leaving me there to ponder his words. I realized that I had been repeatedly avoiding the wandering of my mind when it came to all of these warnings. Ironically, the warning from my rival did not hurt quite as badly as that from Amy. Because I knew Amy really cared. And I knew she could see things within me that even I was blind to. I knew she was by far the best friend I had ever had and that I could trust her with my life. Yet her own warnings now felt like a knife to my heart. They were forboding…ominous. I suppose my rival was right, though. Tomorrow really would be the true test.

  The high priest came this time and delivered a brief speech. “In the next round there will again be two fights. Silver will be facing Mercury again and Lead will fight Copper. After this next round I will remind you of the rules of elimination and immunity since we are getting closer to the close of this tournament. Now go and remember, that all things done be unto the glory of the Alphae.” The bell then tolled and I made my way back into the arena. The crowd was less enthusiastic this time and I could tell that they were growing restless. I wondered how my Mercury opponent would adapt her strategy now. Of if she would. I would think since I had overcome her tactics before that she would be forced to alter them. Time would tell I supposed.

  I entered the arc to face her and awaited the Alphae’s speech. He said nothing of any real significance but I could feel his eyes on me…even if he was not actually looking at me. The cannon fired and we all activated our avatars. I was right; the Mercury girl was changing her strategy. She stood still as ice, immobile in her powerful stance. I hesitated for a few moments, trying to read her. I decided that I would take the offensive, despite my uneasy feeling. I approached her swiftly holding my spear upright and slashed toward her chest with my sword. She parried instantly and then returned to her unwavering stance. I slashed at her again and again until I realized that I was growing fatigued. I backed off and held my spear out and awaited her next move. She stood still for a long time and so I waited. Finally she began her dance again, and with each subtle step of her sway she inched closer and closer to me.

  Fed up with this strange game, I charged at her full speed with my spear and thrusted violently towards her chest. But before the spear could reach her she made an extrodinary move, jumping up and flipping sideways and coming down with her swords, shattering my spear in a single move of grace, then returning to her stillness once more. I was really beginning to feel that my spear was worthless. Frustrated I charged towards her again, hitting her with every move I could think of, but none of my attacks went through. Finally I tried something bold and cut a front flip in front of her, then immediately slashed her across the back. She fell over in pain, but I knew she would not give up. I came around her front side and prepared myself for the killing blow, but was surprised when she gracefully slashed towards me, slicing a wound across my chest. At this point we were both fatally wounded and I was beginning to think that the match may have become a draw. But her wound had bled longer than mine and eventually she collapsed flat on the ground. I noticed that the Mercury girl had yet to actually fall unconscious, so I went up to her avatar and thrust my sword into the back of her neck. Then I went and immediately revived her and we stood up and hugged briefly out of respect once more.

  The high priest announced my victory and shortly therafter my Lead rival had successfully beaten his Copper opponent. We were escorted back to the locker rooms and Mr. Merck came up to me to have a little chat. “That was a very close match John. I would advise you to av
oid such a fatal injury in your next match with your Lead rival. He will be much more aggressive in taking advantage of such powerful wounds inflicted…much like you did with him in your last match. Be careful.” I smiled weakly and thanked him for his advice. The high priest then spoke up. “Now we will be moving into the third and final round of this session of the tournament finals. You will all need to have at least three victories in order to move on into the next session of the tournament; otherwise you will be eliminated. This means that the Copper combatant must win this upcoming fight in order to advance. Silver will be fighting Copper and Mercury will be fighting Lead again. Also remember that five wins will give the combatant immunity and a guaranteed fight in the last finals, which will be best two out of three and will determine the Champion. This means that if Silver wins this next match, the combatant of the Silver caste will go on to the last round. Good luck and remember that the Alphae is always watching.”

  The bell sounded and the four of us made our way to the stadium. This time the crowd, though perhaps a bit anxious, seemed much more enthused. The excitement was progressing since the final matches were coming closer. The Alphae silenced everyone with his scepter and spoke to us once more. “Children of Institution enjoy the following match. For afterward we will all have our time to feast and to worship and you will all be able to spend time together in social hour. I ask only that you avoid being anxious and watch with the same fervent enthusiasm as you would pay in your respect and worship of your only true god and king. As we draw nearer to Victory for one of you, and closer to your first initiation, we must all arise and bask in the radiance of the love that I give to each and every one of you as brothers and sisters under the glorious reign of your father, mother, god, and king.”

  The cannon sounded and all of our avatars were activated. I knew that it was prideful to feel this way, but I had no doubt that I would destroy my Copper opponent and eliminate him from the tournament once and for all. But I did not have the same vigor and desire to kill as I had with my Lead rival. Knowing this I wanted to be sure that I did not grow careless. My opponent began by taking the defensive, raising his broad shield to cover the majority of his huge torso. His held his axe loosely down his side. Feeling hasty, I charged forward and thrust towards my opponent with my spear. As expected, he was able to block my charge with his huge shield. Then he swung his axe down hard and I was barely able to parry with my sword. At this point I backed away and took a defensive stance. Deciding to go on the offensive, my opponent withdrew his shield and charged toward me with axe in hand. I was able to dodge his blow and swing around with my sword, slashing him across his now unprotected chest. He fell over and blood streamed out of his avatar as he dropped his shield. I then ran up to him maniacally and thrust my spear into his throat. Feeling bloodthirsty, I twisted the head of my spear as I pulled it out, nerely severing the head of his avatar completely as blood sprayed upon the face of my own avatar. The entire audience erupted in a thunderous applause as the students chanted the title I had earned as the Silver Falcon.

  I revived my opponent and we shook hands although he had a sinister expression on his face; I could tell that his rapid defeat had taken a huge blow to his pride. I smiled cruely, knowing that I had eliminated him from the tournament and guaranteed my success in the final match. I watched on in anticipation as the other fight raged on. Mercury had come very close to slaughtering the Lead combatant, leaving a fatal wound across his stomach. But I prayed that he would defeat her. She had to be eliminated eventually if I were to finally face him in the end. And that was something I wanted more than anything. In an act of defiance and amazing stamina, the Lead fighter was able to deliver a killing blow, slitting the throat of the Mercury avatar in one clean swipe. After a short speech by the Alphae, we were then released to the locker rooms to cleanse and change into some clothes for lunch, social hour, and brief worship.

  After cleansing and changing I finally headed outside toward the waterfall to see if I could catch up with my friends. I was able to run into Justin and Peter and we hugged and they all congratulated me for my continuing string of victories and for gaining immunity. “It was amazing to watch you out there John. You were so focused. It was all so very intense,” said Peter, a wide smile beaming on his face. The bell sounded for lunch and so we all headed to the dining hall. I ate my food quickly and decided I wanted to go see if I could find Amy. We were given a social hour after lunch before worship and I really wanted the chance to speak to her again. I started on the path toward the mountain in the distance, not sure where I would end up. Finally I did see Amy walking by herself in the same direction. I touched her on her shoulder and she turned around quickly, at first startled but then a smile formed on her face and she gave me a big hug.

  “I just wanted to let you know that I am sorry if I made you worry John. I just really care about you and I don’t want to see you get hurt again. I hope you can understand,” Amy informed me, her worried look turning more into that of compassion. “It’s okay. I completely understand. And I do need to heed your advice and warnings. I guess I just don’t want to think about what could happen. I just want to focus on what is happening right now. And there is no reason for me to be unhappy in this present moment.” She took my hand and we continued walking down the path. The beasts of the air were circling high above us in their usual intricate pattern. It was a beautiful sight to gaze upon. But eventually my eyes were averted downward, to Amy. I watched her long blonde hair dancing with the wind and felt the warmth of her hand in mind and I felt content and so very comfortable. We walked a long time in silence, a silence that was soon broken by the toll of the bell, signaling for the time to begin our worship service. We both turned around and made our way back to the worship area, retaining the same silent state of peace.

  The worship service went on quite normally. The three remaining finalists were all blessed by the Alphae including myself. I was also bestowed a special blessing for gaining immunity. The Alphae did not express his usual stern demeanor with me and this retained the feeling of peace in my own heart. We were given one last social hour before the one round of semi-finals that remained. I was able to be with all of my friends and enjoy some qualiy time with them. I thought of Grandfather and knew that he would be happy now to see me with friends. Peter came up to me and brought me aside as it was approaching the time for the bell to toll. “I just wanted to let you know John that you have really impressed me and inspired me in my own time here behind the walls of Institution. I really miss my family but you remind me that I have a family of my own here. Once we all graduate, don’t be a stranger. Wherever we end up we will always have this sacred bond of friendship. It means a lot to all of us. I just wanted to let you know that.” I smiled with appreciation and gave him a big, brotherly hug. “Thanks man. It really means a lot. Institution would be a lot worse without the presence of great friends. And it is always refreshing to know that I have friends who can appreciate my own successes and victories. It has been an honor.”

  At that, we parted and the bell tolled and so I made my way into the stadium doors and from there, into the locker rooms. Mr. Merck was the one to give the speech this time. “Congratulations to the Silver, Lead, and Mercury casts for making it thus far in the tournament finals. Since the Mercury combatant still needs two more victories to secure immunity, if you are to lose to Lead,” he motioned over toward the Mercury girl, “then I am afraid to say you will be eliminated from the tournament. But I am happy to inform you that the three semi-finalists will all be awarded in the reception service held at the end of the initiation and going on into the next day. Of course the overall Champion will be given even more priveleges, but suffice it to say it is still a great honor to make it to the semi-finals. Now go and remember always to respect your opponent and honor the Alphae.”

  I took my seat in the box with those who had been eliminated and prepared for this last round between Mercury and Lead. The cannon fired and the two combatants activated
their avatars. I could see that my Lead rival was really taking his time and seemed to be relishing in the moment. The Mercury girl retained her graceful dance but her Lead opponent was growing increasingly aware of it. At one point in the fight, however, he grew careless and she was able to slash him in the legs, knocking him onto the floor. I felt for sure that it was the end for him, and knew that this would mean that there would be one more fight between them if she were to be the victor. But as she went in for the killing stroke, he blocked her swords and used his superior strength to turn her own blades against her, pushing himself on top of her and eventually severing the head of her avatar. He revived her immediately and they both hugged out of respect, although the Lead fighter withdrew quickly, practically pushing her off of him.

  After we went into the locker rooms to cleanse and change, I could see the Mercury girl sitting by herself in the corner crying. No one went up to her. So I decided to be the one to try and console her. “Hey there, I never did get your name. I’m John Crawling,” I said, trying my best to be polite. “Hi John, I’m Evarrah. You don’t have to do this you know. I will be fine. You have your own victory to celebrate,” she said through tears. “No, it is fine. I care about my opponents. Even the Lead combatant, despite his ruthlessness. You fought bravely. You almost had me a few times. And you have a unique strategy that I have never seen in any other fighter. Plus you made it all the way to the semi-finals. That is more than most students can say.” She stopped crying for a moment and looked up at me. “You’re right, it’s just…” She trailed off and I waited for her to continue, noticing a slight change in her facial expression. “I promised my sister that I would bring a victory to our caste. It is a rare thing for siblings to be put in the same caste. I wanted to do it for her. She is my twin. We are not identical but we have always been so close. And I just feel like I let her down.” She started crying more again and I took her hand and looked into her eyes once more. “Well I think you should go to her tonight at dinner and I can bet you that she would be very proud of you. Don’t think of it as a loss. Think of it as coming further than anyone else in your caste did.” I smiled and finally she returned the smile, albeit a slight one. I then exited the locker rooms and made my way outside to prepare for dinner and maybe catch up with my friends.