The Jewel of Nirune (The Sword of Time Book 1)

by William Smart

  Above them, they could see what appeared to be a web of some kind. Hard to tell as the lightning seemed to be coming from higher above that and there was virtually no light here.

  A creature materialized in the air above as lightning flashed above and it pulled a man screaming from the stairs.

  “Wolver magic!” Brother Dog spat “I knew this wasn't over! It has been far too easy, too convenient!”

  “This is your idea of easy?” Zhoulin piped up.

  As they made the final ascent it appeared the upper platform was held to the walls by chains, it hung in the middle of the tower, under the clouds. As they crawled up the last steps the whole apparatus came into full view. It was huge. And in the center of this platform was some kind of altar with chains hanging above it. There were strange golden dragon sconces attached to each end of it like the ones you would see on a castle wall to hold torches.

  They leaned into the center of the altar, where there was a trough cut into the dark material in a strange design. The whole apparatus gave Billy the chills. It all looked way too much like a torture device or worse yet, a sacrificial altar.

  "What is all this?" Uncle said as they were shoved unceremoniously onto the platform.

  Billy for one was just happy to be off that stairway.

  Above them the clouds churned and lightning bolts flew back and forth

  "I think I know." Brother Dog said. "What event is supposed to happen here, Billy?"

  “Well...” he thought for a moment. “This tower is an abomination to God and he will destroy it. And then all the people will speak in different tongues and be scattered throughout the world.”

  “Yes... But you said it earlier. It is an unstoppable thing it must happen, as it is written to do so.”

  “But what has this one thing to do with the other Wolver thing I don't get it,” Billy said.

  "Well my young friend," The Wizard interjected. "A god…a true God is about to perform an amazing miracle. Such a miracle as has never been seen or heard of in all the histories of all the worlds. It will happen at the moment of culmination of the universes. It will take the power only a god could have. And these parasites have thought to use this burst of unbelievable energy to cause a rift in time and space as has never been seen before.”

  “Well, well, well.” a strange and familiar voice said. It was a quiet voice but everyone in the room looked about to see who had spoken. All of a sudden Uncle stood up straight and grabbed the staff from the Wizards hand. They all stood stunned for a moment.

  “How did you get out of your bindings?” The wizard said.

  The carvings on the staff began to twist and writhe on the shaft. The Jade jewel began to glow more brightly. It began to twist in Uncles' hand like a living thing... He cried out and fell to the wood floor.

  It had to be one of the strangest things Billy had ever seen. The snakes flickered up and down the shaft hissing and twisting. It was like the old Magician was fighting with himself. It would have been funny if it hadn’t been so terribly real.

  The face twisted like an ill-used mask. Crumpling in upon itself adjusting the nose, once fat and old then slender and long. The eyes in the head were the strangest thing. Like they were rolling around under the skin of the old man's face it was horrific to watch. Uncle cried out as his mouth twisted around strangely. Then it was Lijiang there for a moment. Struggling with Uncle again. Lijiang like a snake opened his mouth and the very essence of Uncle was sucked away. The man withered as this strange apparition grew from him. The man who stood up again was somehow straighter and taller than uncle had been.

  He laughed as he turned to face them.

  “No!” Zhoulin protested “Where is Uncle? What have you done to him?”

  "Oh, little one." Lijiang laughed "He has not been with you for quite some time. Did you really believe that a foolish old man and a girl such as you could truly defeat me?" He stepped closer to her “do you think it was my head you crushed so willingly in Uncles cottage? I am afraid not little one. But you do have certain power yes indeed, had you not joined the combat your precious Uncle may well have bested me.” He stepped back “but you do have certain powers.”

  “Then why did you bring us here? Why all these charades?” Zhoulin protested.

  "We were in need of a virgin," the man laughed. "As is the case in so many of the more powerful works of magic's' we needed the virgin to come willingly, and be in no way infected by magic, well except one. This virgin had to be wounded by a demon and then miraculously carry that same demon willingly."

  “What are you talking about?” she protested. “I will not help you. And how do you know I am a virgin? You are not so wise and all knowing. I was taken by a foul man in my youth. I am not a virgin. And the only demon I know is you.”

  Lijiang laughed very loudly. “Oh my dear, dear, girl! I know you are not a virgin.” He turned and pointed to Billy. “But he is.”

  "What?" Billy said. "What? What are you talking about? It has to be a girl, a real girl, a virgin! I am a guy! See? A guy! You can't use me. You're nuts! I don't know a lot about magic but it has to be a girl, not a boy I know that." He said desperately "Everybody knows that right? It’s always the girl they feed to the dragon.”

  “You know I am not insane,” Lijiang laughed. “And we both know you carry a demon.”

  He ripped open Billy’s robe and the brown scar on his skin was beginning to change shape. Something was moving under his skin visibly and the Lijiang touched the glowing staff to the wound. Billy felt a shock from his head to his feet. It was like ice and fire were running through his veins. He fell to the ground curled up into a ball holding himself. He cried out! Slowly his shirt opened a small head poked out. Geezer pulled himself away from Billy and climbed onto the staff looking around cautiously.

  “And here is your demon,” Lijiang laughed.

  Billy was grabbed roughly and dragged to the altar. He was shoved into the harness made of chains and leather. Just then the wizard, who had been watching said “Not so fast evil one. You are the demon I have been looking for. You are the one we were warned about to bring an end to the world. I have spent my whole life searching for you I even tortured this boy and these people. But here you are and I swear as my life's work you shall not do this evil thing!”

  Everyone stopped moving for a moment as the two wizards stared each other down.

  “Well, well,” Lijiang said quietly. “You have no idea what I have been through to accomplish this task little wizard. I know who you are and your simple magic’s cannot stop me. But I will grant you one thing I will let you watch.”

  The battle that followed was far more, brief than Billy would have liked. Even though this wizard had tortured him, or maybe because of it, he felt a strange bond, and he just did not like Lijiang one bit. Lightning flew through the air smashing into Lijiang he countered it with some kind of shield spell pushing the powerful charge back at the wizard. For a moment the wizard overpowered him then just as quickly Lijiang was standing behind the man. He smiled reached out the staff and touched the wizard's back and the man turned to stone.

  "Damn it!" Billy said.

  “Continue!” Lijiang snapped at the guards who had been watching the battle. Now Billy found himself being synched into the very apparatus he had seen on the pedestal.

  "See!" he said to no one in particular, "I said it was a damn torture device!" Once the chains tightened he felt himself being lifted off the ground. In moments he was hanging in the air above the altar.

  There was a clanging sound and the sound of chain running through blocks. He felt a pressure on his back and turning as much as he could saw what looked like some kind of huge electrode pushing against his back.

  “What are you doing to him?” Zhoulin yelled.

  "Worry not little one," Lijiang laughed jovially. "We have no idea whether he will survive or not. After all, he is merely a conduit through one plane and another. A key if you will. Just think of it, he is a god key perhaps
. The only boy in all the universes that could carry a demon in his body and remain untouched. The only boy through whom a universe can be opened. Not too long to wait, for the alignment is almost accomplished,"

  Lightning crashed above. He turned to Billy mocking him. “And all those times your daddy told you, you were useless! Wouldn’t he be surprised now?”

  He took the green staff and stuck it in one of the sconces Billy had been wondering about. Obviously made for this purpose and the king brought the other staff and placed it at the other end of the altar.

  Billy found himself hung there in the middle of the whole apparatus. Making a giant X over the 2 staffs. Under him, the electrodes above all that lightning above "Oh my God." He said "You mean I brought the jewel to you? All this has been about getting a stick with a glass ball on the end here? You gotta be kidding me!"

  "You simplify too much my young friend. For you are not carrying the Jewel you are the jewel. Ha-ha, The Jewel of Nirune, the vessel, the carrier of precious things. Is you!" He reached into his robe and drew out a sword in a scabbard. "This should look familiar to you. You chose it in the shop. Fortuitous that choice. It was the one missing piece of the puzzle."

  Billy recognized it immediately. It's just a stupid cheap sword," he protested. "Although I wouldn't mind splitting your skull open with it!"

  “Oh now, now, young William, such language for someone so pure. Heheh! It is more than just a simple sword. It has a long history in the universe. This sword in some places it is called The Sword of Time. It was lost many years ago! Cast away by the gods never to be seen again. And here it is, sold in a bazaar, to a boy who knew not even what it was. Isn’t it all so wonderful! The sword will take your life and your blood will fuel the bringing in of a new age.” As he spoke he pulled the blade from the scabbard the runes glowed like blue fire, light emanating from the blade.

  "Oh, it is all coming together even as the prophets said. A virgin from a foreign world, carrying the demon spawn, shall deliver all willingly, even his own life! And here you are."

  He waved the sword and Geezer stood up and followed the motion with his eyes. “Look!” the wizard said, “He’s like a little puppet, he will do what I bid.”

  "I wish you would stop calling me a virgin," Billy said.

  Which made Lijiang laugh.

  “What could the wolver have promised you, to give up your own people, your own world?” Brother Dog said through clenched teeth.

  Who? Lijiang laughed what are you speaking of? I work for my own ends ha-ha! Wolver? What is this? Wolver you speak of I am Lijiang soon to be the ruler of time you will all serve me.”

  “How can you not know who they are?” Brother Dog said “they travel the universe they Usurp the power of all they destroy worlds and you are their servant, they have been using you all this time! You are the fool and you will not survive!”

  “Are you insane?” Lijiang laughed “I am in charge here I am the usurper of power you will all bow to me!”

  He stomped on the floor and of a sudden, the entire thing began to rise. It rose shakily taking them all up deeper into the tower. Closer to the flashing clouds above. But no one was looking up. Something was going wrong with Lijiang his face had become somewhat distorted lightning hit him and he laughed, he was beginning a transformation. His body twisted and turned for a minute. Then split like a banana, A snake shedding its skin.

  The mantle of the Lijiang’s body sloughed away, a giant Wolver stood there sniffing the air.

  The creature stood there a moment a part of Lijiang's face still stuck to the side of the monsters huge face. He stepped close to Brother Dog and the horrible mask fell off.

  "You underestimate us. You seek to stop us! It shall not be! With every move you make, we precede you. We will propagate and we will rule all worlds all timelines it is our destiny and these puny humans are but pawns that we use as we see fit."

  There was a terrible rumbling from above.

  "IT BEGINS!" he shouted. And taking alast look he tossed Lijiang remains over the side. "Humph," Billy said to no one in particular. "Lijiang is one tough cookie, let's see him recover from that."

  The pressure in the room felt like an invisible fist pressing down on them now as the floor slowly ground its way up inside the tower and into the amassing clouds. Thunder and lightning grew closer and closer. Flashing all around them now, thunder claps almost coinciding with the lightning strikes, it was both deafening and terrifying. And Billy knew enough about physics to know there was no way the lighting wouldn't hit him eventually. He cringed with every thunderclap. He almost felt like he was spinning as he hung in the strange apparatus. It was dizzying.

  Then a flash, and power hit him like an electric shock. All the universe seemed to combine in this one small spot. There was a tearing sound that ran through him, like nothing he had imagined! Power coursed through him. He could see the universe, he could smell life and death.

  And he knew, HE WAS A GOD!! All powerful spanning universes. He felt his muscles bulging and he pulled at the chains that tried to bind him.

  He could feel creation in his hands. Life and death were in his very grasp and he saw worlds form, die, collide and be reborn. It was all so glorious, life and death newness and ancient all swirling around in one life, to death and back again and all working in unison one with the other. Glorious!

  Then he was being pulled back. Clawing at the sky as he fell and in that moment he saw it, just off on the horizon! A beast rising up, coming toward him, slathering with hate more ferocious than any in his wildest dream...for the first time he saw the true enemy!

  His consciousness slammed back into his body and the scene around him had changed. There was screaming all around him. At first, he had no idea what was causing it his head still swirling with the experience he had just had. Then he realized there was a big black rip in space, right before his eyes.

  Something long and slender and black slithered out of the tear in space and time that was forming. It looked right at him except there were no eyes. It hissed and slithered across the….The sky?

  He realized the tear was expanding, as another weird apparitions head peeked through. He watched dumbfounded as another creature came before him sliding out of this rent in the very air.

  He struggled to get free from his bonds but it was no use. He looked down from where he hung and realized waves of some kind of power were going through him into the staffs below. But he felt nothing he tried to shout a warning to his friends below. They all seemed to be frozen in time. All of them below... then he saw something moving. The floor was shifting like some kind of crazy druggy's dream, shifting and rolling, like waves on a crazy wooden sea.

  The Wolver king stood there for a moment and picked up the glowing sword and the listless Geezer. He stepped toward Billy’s still tied friends. “No!” Billy tried to yell. To no avail. Geezer looked up at Billy and hissed.

  “Ok, that I heard,” he said.

  He tried to yell at Zhoulin, but it was no use, everything was in slow motion and she didn’t seem to hear him. He had to do something, but what?

  He twisted in his chains hoping to get lose, nothing. Then he noticed something odd. There was a trickle of something running along his sleeve. At first, he thought it might be water. But it was weird but if he held his head a certain way he could see it pulsating there like a little river of something. He began to realize, he was covered in some kind of power. It was not electric it didn't bite or spark.

  He flicked his fingers experimentally and some of the power settled on his finger like a tear drop almost. He watched as the little sliver of magic slid down his finger to the tip and sat there, just like a drop of water. He flicked his finger and the little drop flew off arching through the air, it hit the floor with a little burst of smoke and fire. He began to shake himself, trying to manipulate the energy and of a sudden, pure power flowed into his hand.

  “Well, well,” he thought, “how can I use this?”

  Th
e Wolver stood there a moment over Brother Dog. He raised the sword in the air but didn't strike. "Perhaps this will be more entertaining if you watch," he laughed and carried Geezer over to the altar. He set him gently in the indentation that reminded Billy of the pictures, of the old blood alters, with a nice little drain for the blood built in. And spread him out like a rag doll then he raised the sword. "What are you doing?" Billy yelled, "It’s supposed to be my blood, the blood of a virgin he's a demon remember?"

  "Truly!" the Wolver chuckled. "But the time nears and this is your blood young William! He is made of your blood. Yours and the demons such a mix of blood could happen in no other way. This little demon was made for no other purpose than this.

  He drew back the sword. Billy pulled himself up into a ball as much as he could. And with a burst, he threw his arms and legs out with all his might... The result was spectacular. Magic flew from him like fireworks. As it left him it went in its own way. Some of it exploded like firecrackers other bits like little magic creatures.

  The Wolver shouted as a small lightning bolt cut through his arm. The sword flew into the air and all of a sudden those who were frozen, moved.

  Geezer seemed to come to life. He looked around the room as if confused then he seemed to take in the situation. He flipped through the air and landed on Zhoulin. He cut through her bonds and jumped to Brother Dog releasing him as well.

  However the guards came to life as well, all it seems had been caught in some trance. They charged at Zhoulin and Brother Dog, who of course had no weapons. Geezer cut down a guard and they pounced on him grabbing his sword and dagger. They stood back to back and started killing anyone within range.

  Billy's eyes, however, were on the spinning sword as it somersaulted through the air. Then he heard a voice in his mind. "You must act in the moment of truth. You must destroy both at one time, only the sword of time can destroy them. You must destroy them both destroy the two. Then the voice was gone.