The Maven Knight (The Maven Knight Trilogy Book 1)

by Matthew Romeo

  As fast as I can, I break through another crowd and enter an alleyway across the street. Despite the cloak, I’m able to leap over piles of trash and containers. At one point, I manage to use my motion to bounce off of a large refuse container. Flying a meter through the air, I land and roll to keep my momentum. Back on two feet, I sprint into another section of the outskirts.

  I glance back and see the guards are still on me. I hear bowrifles fire. I swerve to my left and hear the bolts whizz past and hit another metal shack. Sparks shower me.

  Anxiety begins to well up within me. My heart is racing even as I push through crowds of onlookers. My breaths are shallow. I attempt to lose the guards again by leaping over a merchant’s table, but my cloak snags on its corner.

  The metal table is yanked forward and spills all of its contents as I practically flip backwards. No, no, no! Despite the merchant’s cries of confusion, I slip out of my cloak and reorient myself. The two guards are mere yards away. Ditching the cloak, I choose to worry about escaping rather than my recognition.

  Pushing myself from the mess, I retreat from the guards even as they paused briefly. I think they saw my face. It doesn’t matter, for they still pursue a second later.

  The stress is starting to get to me. Not just from the physical activity. My chest feels compressed, my head feels light, and legs ache. I’m barely breathing through the anxiety. But I press on into the street, dodging and weaving through crowds. More bolts whizz by and hit the ground near my feet.

  I can see an alley ahead, one that only one person at a time could fit through. This is my escape! I can lose them in there! My legs sear in pain as I run towards the alley. Almost there.

  Five Imperials on patrol push through the crowd ahead. Noticing the commotion and my flight from the militia, they halt and fan out. They move in front of the alley as the militia behind me cover my flank. Oh shit! The bowrifles ahead fire their blue energy even as the Imperials faintly realize whom they’ve shot at.

  Two bolts hit me directly in the chest and a numbing sensation erupts from the impact spots. Electric energy flows through my body and I go rigid. My already racing heart feels like it’s going to explode. Air catches in my lungs, and I can’t even scream. My limbs jerk uncontrollably, my mouth is left agape, and I feel myself slipping into the cold embrace of unconsciousness.

  Before I do, the pain stops and I hazily see the Imperials standing over me. They see my face and I hear one’s muffled voice say, “Is that who I think it is? Oh shit! Get a stretcherpod and get her to the suite! She’ll want to see her!”

  With a groan, I black out.

  Chapter 25: Tálir

  Catacombs

  A PERSISTENT ECHO is present in the darkness.

  It springs from the whistling of a breeze, the sporadic drops of leaking water, and the scurrying of rodents. The perpetual reverberations echo through the narrow tunnels of the sewer systems. The horrid stench of excrement and rotten food hangs in the air. Our boots hit the flooded floors of the hollowed metal tunnel, and the only illumination is the emerald glow of a fiery orb in Abrax’s palm. Even the pulsating energy creates a distinctive hum throughout the tunnel. And within those echoes rests the most primal fear a man can feel: the fear of the dark.

  We had ventured into the lowest levels of the city through a sewer passage outside the marketplace. Thanks to Abrax’s uncanny knowledge of the city, we managed to remain undetected as we ventured forth. I know that his wisdom as a Suzerain provides him with unfathomable insight, but I’m still a bit surprised.

  We’ve both activated our helmets, but we possess no night vision capabilities. So the kryos help illuminate the way. The last we’ve heard from the others is that Sarina has gone missing. Fear grips me. I know what she’s doing.

  It took us an hour to find the entrance to this series of sewer lines, then another hour gingerly traversing the tunnels. Occasionally I can hear muffled voices from the surface through the ceiling of the tunnel. It’s an eerie feeling. A sensation creeps into my spine telling me that we’re not the only ones down here. While the tunnel is compact and narrow, I can still envision possible ambush scenarios. I remain on guard.

  We pass by another metal ladder that ascends into the districts above. The emerald light glistens off of the curved walls of the tunnel. The metal is stained and smeared with grime. Reflections can be seen in the water below as well. Our boots sink into the water, causing it to slosh all around. Directly behind me, Devin gives an audible shudder as he pivots to watch our flank.

  “Why in all the Hells did we chose this way to get to the catacombs?” he asks in an irritated tone. “Isn’t there a better lit, less grimy route we could’ve taken?”

  “The common routes caved in more than five Cycles ago.” Abrax sighs, barely looking over his shoulder. “The Order has since believed the catacombs inaccessible, so they no longer bury their dead here. Even the Tome was forgotten over the Cycles. But, all it took was time and research for me to find this route.”

  A thought enters my mind. “So your old Order knows about this place?” I ask with unease.

  Abrax snorts with amusement. “Not in the slightest,” he grunts. “I reported my finds to no one. This place has long been forgotten to them.”

  “If you say so,” Devin sighs with a tinge of skepticism. I can see the misgiving on his face. “How much further then?”

  “Twenty meters,” the old man replies.

  Even as he says it, I can see a faint light at the end of the tunnel—and a large chamber beyond. Relief tugs at my stomach. The claustrophobia fades and the air almost feels lighter, despite the stink. As water sloshes against our boots, we trudge through the muck and towards the light. The dark metal of the tunnels gives way to foundations of stone, and the ground is no longer flooded with water.

  As we enter the chamber, I notice the source of the pallid light. A shifting orb of golden light hangs in thin air within the domed crest of the room. A holoprojection! I think to myself. A very ancient one seemingly kept active over the course of the Cycles. Symbols and abstract images can be seen swirling within the light. I have yet to find the source of the image, however.

  My gaze shifts to the chamber itself. The room spans a diameter of forty meters and raises about twelve into the arched ceiling. The entire room is carved out of ancient looking tan bedrock, esoteric symbols and numerals are painted in red across the walls. The colors have faded after the passage of time.

  The smooth walls only span a few meters before the massive cubby-like catacombs begin to line the perimeter of the room. Within each open tomb lays the skeletal remains of various men and women. Clearly this chamber is meant for lower class brothers and sisters of the Maven Order. The sight of the dusty, cobweb-covered skeletons causes me to gulp in anxiety. Although they are mere remains, I can still feel as if their presences remain. The black sockets of the skulls stare at various places: the ceiling or walls of their tombs, or outwards to us. Blank smiles are frozen in the skulls.

  At the far end of the chamber is a massive slab of burnished ore nearly ten meters in diameter. The dark material is tinted with bright reflections due to the golden light. Runes have been carved into it, adding to its ancient nature.

  Underneath the runes are two pale crystals constructed within the ore itself. The size of pears, the white gems sparkle in response to the lights. On the stone floor a few meters away from the slab are two square blocks about a meter in diameter. Protruding only by an inch, it looks like the blocks are meant to serve as a contraption. Possibly to open the door itself.

  “This is where I failed last time,” Abrax says as he approaches the circular slab of ore. “Two must be present if the door is to open.”

  I move across the dirt covered floor, my boots crunch against the filaments. I’m still surprised at the spaciousness of the catacombs even though it’s meant for lower castes. I stand next to the old man whom begins to recite the inscriptions on the slab.

  “The knowledge of tw
o passes into the chamber beyond,” Abrax says. Though, it’s more by memory than direct translation.

  He steps upon the protruding block on the right hand side of the room. Looking back at me, he gestures for me to stand upon the left one. I obey, and take a small step unto the square. With my weight fully on it, I feel it slowly slide into the ground as a metallic click emanates from under us. The unlocking mechanism has started to activate.

  Abrax addresses me with determination, “This is the tricky part, Tálir. We have to simultaneously direct a Stream into both crystals imbedded in the ore.”

  My energy will focus to the left while his focuses to the right. And with the requirement of two distributions of weight, I now realize why he failed last time.

  Taking in a deep breath, I nod to Abrax through my helmet before looking directly at the crystal ahead. It’s a near flawless gem as I look at it through the HUD. With a kryo already situated in my right gauntlet, I watch as Abrax reloads his with a fresh source of energy. He places the used on in his ammo pouch.

  Kryo Charge: 100% says the display in the helmet. Devin stands on my left and watches. No distractions, I tell myself. We both point our right-hand fingers at our respective crystals.

  “Three. Two. One!”

  I focus my energy as much as I can, the HUD indicates a 15% output. Bright beams shoot from my fingers and strike the crystal with a light ping. After a few seconds, I start seeing the gems gradually turn a faint emerald. Abrax’s is rapidly turning into a glowing shard of light while mine barely radiates.

  “Come on, lad!” he strains as he focuses his energy. “Give it more juice! It needs to be glowing like mine if the door is to open!”

  I growl in strained frustration as I concentrate harder and harder. I can feel veins in my temples throbbing, and my face is flushed. I fixate on the crystal.

  19%.

  That’s it! I keep my eyes on the gem, my gaze burns into it like the energy. 20%. A haze forms over my field of vision, only the crystal remains. 22%. I feel beads of sweat forming on my forehead. 25%!

  The crystal starts to pulsate and glow with emerald light, and I can almost hear the energy ringing inside of it. A hiss emanates from the slab of ore, and we cease our energy output.

  I relax and let the blood flow out of my head. I feel dizzy. But Abrax’s armored hand pats me on the back in praise. Even Devin smacks me on the left shoulder.

  Mechanical snaps and the hissing of old hydraulics resound within the chamber. The immense ore slab shifts backwards, sinking into the wall. After a moment, the slab rolls to the side and rests inside a massive nook in the wall. There’s darkness in the room beyond.

  “Nothing ventured…” Devin says quietly in astonishment.

  I grin from within my helmet. “Nothing gained.”

  ◆◆◆

  I can barely see the massive chamber lies beyond the great ore gate that had barred entry. Light from our current chamber barely pierces into the darkness. With fresh kryo energy, Abrax generates another fireball in his palm. We enter the chamber.

  Within the sage light, I can see that the room seems to be smaller than the last. I see no ceiling, only blackness. Cautiously, we stride further in.

  “Ey,” Devin says as he wanders a few meters away from us. “There seems to be an activation panel over here. Give me the light.”

  Abrax follows Devin over to the left side of the chamber. Through the barely lit darkness, I can see a small panel with two switches built into it. Caution snakes through me. It could be a trap. But I’m not fast enough to protest.

  Devin immediately activates one of the switches and the area floods with light. Similar to the previous chamber, a holoprojection forms at the top of an arched ceiling. This image is different, however. The blue light forms a symbol that rotates in mid-air: A shield imprinted with a pyramid underneath an eye. Fascinating.

  I turn to see the entire chamber unveiled by the azure light source. Abrax extinguishes his flame and begins to wander about the new catacomb chamber. Smaller than the last, this room is only about twenty-five meters around. The floor is made of smooth marble, and the walls are sandstone. Along the walls, rows of closed crypts jut out slightly from their resting places. The dark granite used for their construction is glossy and smooth. Seemingly divided into sections, I see labels for Centums, Suzerains, and Se’baus over their respective categories.

  At the farthest end of the room is another door. It’s is made of solid gold with esoteric markings swirling around similarly to my armor. Words are engraved into the gold, but their dialect is unknown to me. Two small dials are built into the center of the door, and it looks as if something is to be placed within them. Like locks missing keys. This must be the vault for the Tome.

  Abrax steps forward in the sapphire light and retracts his helmet. Slowly, he begins mouthing the words as he reads.

  “One looks up,” he recites. “One hands down. The heart pumps blood. The key unlocks the door.”

  I pause in confusion, reciting the lines over in my head. “One looks up?” I ask aloud, scratching my head. “It’s a riddle… that much is obvious. But which part are we supposed to answer?”

  Abrax walks forward and moves his hand over one of the dials. Dust falls from the surface. “Whatever the answer is, it probably needs to be a tangible key for us to put in these dials.” The old man looks closer at the contraptions.

  “I thought you said you knew what’s down here!” Devin protests. He looks utterly stumped by the riddle.

  Abrax looks over his shoulder and gives him a frown. “Didn’t I just say that I’d only ever been in the first chamber? I don’t think anyone has been in this room for almost eight Cycles.”

  Devin throws his hands up but says nothing. We pace around for what seems like hours. Each of us considers the riddle, and the possible answers. But we can’t think of anything. Abrax and I try using our energy again to open it, but that strategy doesn’t work a second time. Devin even tries to pick the locking mechanism in the vault’s door. Nothing is working.

  Pacing around, the riddle repeats over and over in my head. One looks up, one hands down. One that looks up could mean anything. However, I consider the riddle more. A person looks up while another hands down. A child and a parent? No that’s too easy. A soldier and a general? No…

  Perhaps a student and teacher? I ponder the thought. One looks up for knowledge might be a novice or student. The teacher hands down knowledge and experience.

  I look around the chamber and see the deliberate separation of the Suzerains and se’baus. Yes, a Suzerain hands down experience and teaching to a se’bau. That part of the riddle makes sense. But the heart and key riddles are still perplexing.

  Kneeling next to a tomb marked Amycus of O’ran: Cycle 3, I run my hand gently over the burnished stone. For some reason, the stone is all I think about—all I focus on. It’s a moment of enchantment as I ponder in thought. My hand feels warm.

  A hiss suddenly emanates from the tomb and I jerk my hand away. The dark granite begins to shift away into a pocket above the tomb—revealing what rests within. The skeletal and armor remains of Amycus lies a meter from my face.

  “What in the Hells are you doing?” Abrax demands, clearly unnerved by what I’ve done.

  “I didn’t do anything!” I protest, my eyes still glued to the corpse. “I just touched the tomb and it magically opened…”

  My voice trails off as I see something clutched in the skeleton’s hands. Folded over his chest with the palms open, Amycus’ hands cup what appears to be a kryo gem. But this one is different. The size of a fingernail, the kryo pulsates with a dark ruby shade.

  I stare at the pulsating kryo for a moment as my thoughts reel. While I’m transfixed at the different color, I start to realize that this might be a clue. Amycus had died as a se’bau, and the riddle states that one looks up while one hands down. So perhaps Amycus and his Suzerain are parts of the riddle.

  I gently take the tiny kryo from Amycus�
� tomb and turn to Abrax. “I think this is one of the clues we’re looking for,” I say.

  The old man’s eyes widen with curiosity. “The heart pumps blood,” he recites as he gestures to the kryo. “The key opens the door.”

  “The heart of the armor,” I deduce with a wide grin. “This is the key.”

  “One of the keys,” Abrax affirms as he examines the kryo in my hand. “The vault requires two of these to open.”

  “If this one was found in the tomb of a se’bau,” I deduce, “perhaps the other lies in a Suzerain’s tomb.”

  I gesture to the tomb of Amycus. “He was a se’bau in Cycle Three,” I look over to the Suzerain tombs. “His Suzerain must also be from that time.”