by R. E. Carr
“Yes, he has been manipulating the council. He’s corrupt and wants power, but what does that have to do with the Machidonians?” Eon pressed.
“You don’t understand. Something happened to Farris. I knew he was corrupt, but that changed. He went to Delphi to meet the Oracle of Water. She was supposed to help him.”
“What did she do?”
“It is hard to live up to the expectations of all your ancestors, Aj’Chatan. All you can do is try to please them, but if you don’t want to become just another voice in your own head, if you truly want to live as a Knight, you have to do something spectacular, something extraordinary. It is a constant battle to make your life mean something . . .”
“Dailyn, you are losing focus. Come back to me. What does this have to do with the Machidonians?”
“It’s been so long since I’ve been alone. It is hard . . . hard to think, my friend. What I’m trying to tell you is that, once, my brother was the right hand of my aunt and her corrupt schemes. He never believed in anything or anyone. He wanted to live in the shadows and never curse any of his children to have to live up to his legacy. That was the gift he wanted to give his family. No, no . . .I can hear them echoing in the distance. Aj’Chatan, we must hurry. If they hear what I say, I surely will be punished.”
“Dailyn!” Eon cried. “Please, get to the point.”
“He came to the Oracles and was taken to their high temple, just as your furry friend was. He told us that he had a revelation on the mountain, that he learned the truth. No longer could he hide from his destiny.”
“What destiny?”
“He told me after that visit that he understood that he had to make a difference after all. He had to do something that none of our ancestors had ever been able to do. He wanted to make peace between all the tribes and save them from danger.”
“What danger?” Eon asked.
“He didn’t tell me exactly. He just said that the Beasts had to be stopped at any cost. He went to my aunt and said that he would no longer sow disharmony on her behalf. She took out revenge upon us all, but you know how that story played out. He left for the Machidonian deserts to kill himself honorably, or so I thought . . .” Dailyn’s eyes began to gloss over as he rambled, but Eon jerked him back to attention. “He went straight to the Machidonians to get their help on his crusade. He wants them to bring all the tribes together. What accomplishment could be more glorious? It would let him live forever in the minds of the Knights.”
“But you haven’t explained anything. Why are the Machidonians attacking? It’s not in their nature—”
“Ten thousand years ago, the Machidonians were given their god by the Ancients, but their god is a machine. It can be commanded and changed as time goes on. I remember this from the old stories.”
“But that was so long ago. Only the Ancient ones could possibly—”
“The last Ancient, the one who started the Probability Machine, was frail and old, Aj’Chatan. He kept a guard with him. This guard saw everything. He saw the Ancient codes used to control all the Machidonian cities.”
Eon began to pale. “Dailyn—that guard was a Knight, wasn’t he?” he asked.
“My people not only have their ancestors’ voices in their heads, but we can see . . . see what they saw as if it was with our own eyes. The guard, Gilgamesh, has many memories, but none are as clear to me as the day he watched the Ancient leave the Machidonians.”
“Your mind goes back ten thousand years?” Eon asked, still pale.
“Not only my mind. By the gods, they are coming back! Aj’Chatan, Farris must know what I know. Don’t you understand? He has control of all of them. He does, or some group of grunts working with him does. I remember something about the Probability Machine taking years to change the Machidonians completely. They are still in the process of evolution, Aj’Chatan. You might be able to stop them before he gains complete control.”
“One Knight with power over an entire tribe, and he has a vendetta against the Beasts!” Eon gasped.
“Not just the Beasts . . .” Dailyn gasped. “I can’t hold on anymore. If the Oracles find out what I know, what he knows, our family line will be purged. They won’t let us live with that kind of power. Don’t you understand?”
“I understand,” Eon said softly as he pulled the knife from his boot.
Desecration
Jenn knelt before the entire Council of Oracles. At the head of their table, the grand dame of the council, the immovable Oracle of Earth, sat in her jeweled throne. Jenn’s gaze darted from the rolls of flesh overflowing the priestess’s skimpy outfit to the craggy lines around the Oracle’s glowing, amethyst-colored eyes.
One seat away a skinny, red-haired Oracle of Fire wore only a chainmail bikini as she perched on her copper throne. Ever-watchful retainers stood at the ready around her with jugs of water and bags of sand. The Oracle of Water, a kindly looking, curvaceous woman in sea-blue silk, lounged in her driftwood seat. Every once in a while, she would squirt a jet of water to extinguish the flames pooling around Fire’s feet.
The white-haired Oracle of Air sat in the window, a perpetual breeze toying with her linen dress. She kept her eyes locked on the bruised and broken Oracle of Steam, who required two acolytes to hold her down comfortably in her riveted-steel throne. At the opposite corner of the room, the raven-haired Oracle of Shadow smiled playfully from her obsidian perch. Only a careful array of shadows kept her modest amid her sisters. The two youngest Oracles—the Oracle of Thunder with her static-filled, streaky hair, and the ice queen Licia—sat on the steps leading up to their sisters. Each of the Oracles had a glittering gem on her forehead.
“What is your purpose here, Ji-ann the Serif-fan of Beasts? Our sister of ice tells us that the gods reacted to your presence inside the shrine. We wish to know what sort of treachery the animals are plotting!” the Earth Oracle demanded, her stomach jiggling with her thunderous voice.
“I’m supposed to open a seal—” Jenn started.
“Open a seal to what? Our sacred mountain at Delphi is meant for our use only. We are the chosen!” Earth cried.
Fire stepped forward and added, “You blaspheme the sacred fire with that ridiculous rock in your skull. You may be sacred to the Beasts, but here you are little more than an insect.”
“What our fiery sister means to say is that you have no right accessing our array without our permission, my dear,” Water sighed.
“Oh shut up, Aubergine,” Fire retorted.
“I’m sorry. I swear . . . I meant nothing . . . ,” Jenn stammered.
This time Air answered. “Nothing? The wind is screaming in terror. Something is coming. What have you done to us?”
“Nothing! I was just in the room because I was waiting for my husband to be healed. The Construct Assistant in my head was the one who accessed the array. I swear!”
Earth sneered and raised her plump hand. The women fell silent. Their leader then asked, “What you mean by ‘Construct Assistant’?”
“She’s a voice in my head who tells me how to open the seals—”
“Seals to what?” Earth asked.
“The seals to the Lost God of the Beast Tribe. If I bring him back, I get to go home to the planet I came from,” Jenn said.
She smacked her forehead when she saw their horrified reactions.
“Perhaps we should not have been so forthcoming, Jenn.”
“I didn’t hear any suggestions from you, CALA!”
“You come from the stars?” Water asked. “That part was omitted from our texts on Beast Traditions.”
“It’s obvious she seeks to bring some Ancient terror into the world!” Fire cried. “This Serif-fan will be our deaths.”
“No!” Jenn cried. “Listen. The Beasts’ god, Rheak, just wants to go home too. It doesn’t mean to hurt anyone—”
“Rheak? Is there any mention of a Rheak in the records, Licia?
” Earth asked.
“Not that I have seen. Lady Aubergine may have some mention of it in her library, however,” Licia said.
“I warn you, Licia. As the Oracle who allowed this Serif-fan into our shrine, you and you alone will be held responsible for her actions,” Earth said.
Licia gave Jenn a look that could have frozen lava. “My old friend Dailyn Adair placed his honor on the line in her defense—”
“And this is the woman who saved my life after the Machidonians captured me,” the Oracle of Steam added.
The other Oracles whispered among themselves.
“But where is the champion of this woman’s honor? No one has seen Sir Dailyn all day,” Earth asked with a raised brow.
Licia jumped to her feet. “What do you mean?” she asked.
The Oracle of Water smiled sadly. “I sent the Knight on a mission late last night. I wanted word of what the Machidonian army is doing,” she said.
“You sent him away and did not tell me, Aubergine? How dare you!” Licia spat.
“How dare you question the word of an elder Oracle, Licia?” Water snapped.
“Enough, all of you! Let us get back to the matter at hand. We would never doubt the honor of so esteemed a champion as Sir Dailyn, and the weight of your service to our sister of steam is irrefutable, but we must detain you and your companions here until we can thoroughly investigate your infiltration of our array,” Earth said.
“No. I can’t stay here. Look, I’ve been to the heart of a forest and nearly fried, faced myself, literally, for the Seal of Water, faced myself, figuratively, for the Seal of the Soul, and I just needed a moment to poke in your array to open the Seal of the Mountain. I’m apparently a seal by my very existance, so there are only two damn seals left, and the Machidonians may—”
“My will is law upon this council!” Earth bellowed. “Licia, you will be their jailer. Ensure that they cause no further trouble.”
“Yes, my lady,” the ice oracle said. “I’ll put her in a cage of ice if you like.”
“Please!” Jenn cried. “If we don’t—”
“Silence!” the Oracle of Earth cried. Her voice shook the ground beneath Jenn, forcing her to drop to the floor.
Licia wasted no time in jerking Jenn up by her hair. “Make no mistake, little girl. You have no power here. If you fail to obey the council, we will kill you and your companions one by one, slowly. Now follow me to your rooms.”
Jenn stumbled out of the chamber and straight into the arms of a waiting Kei. With a flick of the wrist, Licia commanded the hall guards to seize Winowa and Eon. “You are all prisoners here. Your Serif-fan has violated our laws and will be punished.”
Kei bared his fangs. “You have no right—”
Licia whipped her fist behind her head. When it snapped back around, the blade of ice it held slashed a deep gash across Kei’s cheek and tore a chunk out of his ear as well.
“I didn’t like the look on your face, animal,” Licia spat.
“Bitch!” Jenn cried.
Kei growled as the claws snapped out of his paw. Before either Kei or Licia could take another swipe at each other, though, both suddenly clutched their stomachs in agony. Licia stared helplessly at her retainers as the ice blade vaporized in her hands.
Winowa seized the opportunity to rack her guard. Only Eon remained strangely still. The color drained from his eyes.
“What is going on?” a guard asked.
Eon let out his breath. “Let us go, or your Oracle will be permanently stripped of her powers.”
The guards drew back in horror. “Phantom!” one finally screamed. Eon struck swiftly and surely, wrapping his arms around the ice Oracle. As he focused on her, Kei slowly managed to stagger to his feet.
“Eon, are you mad?” Winowa cried. “We can’t hold the Oracle prisoner!”
Jenn could hear boots clinking in the hall. “Someone’s coming!” Before the group could run, the door burst open with a blast of flames. Kei jumped in front of Jenn, pushing her against the wall.
The Oracle of Fire glared at the group, flames dancing in her hands. “We shouldn’t have trusted any of you!” she cried.
“Stop this!” an acolyte cried as she ran into the room, sloshing the water in her jug as she panted and struggled for breath. She finally choked out, “The port scouts report an invasion, my lady. They also found the body of Sir Dailyn!”
Everyone stopped cold. “What?” Jenn asked first.
“Machidonian skiffs. A fleet is on a direct heading for Delphi,” the acolyte said, dropping to her knees. “The Machidonians killed the Knight as well. He was found with a pike in his chest—”
“What have you brought upon us?” Fire asked.
“Dailyn!” Licia gasped. “It can’t be. It’s not possible—”
“If we leave, the Machidonians won’t attack you,” Jenn said, stepping out from behind the bleeding Kei.
“What if we turn you over to them first, girl?” Fire asked.
Jenn narrowed her eyes. “Then my Phantom, Eon, will kill your Oracle of Ice. And then he will kill you,” she said flatly.
Everyone in the hall, including Eon, stared at her with jaws dropped. Despite the bruises on Jenn’s face and the dirt on her robe, the Oracle of Fire took a step back.
“That is Eon?” Fire asked.
Licia looked up in horror. “I . . . I gave myself to the legendary Eon, the murderer, the only Phantom ever able to kill an Oracle?”
Both Kei and Winowa blanched. “You really killed an Oracle?” Kei asked.
“The last Oracle of Thunder betrayed my people to the Machidonians. Her life was bought to appease Kukulkan. She betrayed those who would have helped her most,” Eon said as sweat rolled down his face.
“You monster!” Fire growled as a ball of flame swirled around her hands. Before she could hurl it at Eon, a minuscule rainstorm coalesced over her hand.
Fire whirled around to see the horrified cluster of Oracles. It was Water who stepped forward. “Licia, take these people to the Mortuary Complex in the desert. The gods tell me that is where they should go. We will not challenge the legendary Eon. It is our duty to repel these Machidonian fools, not worry about Beasts.”
“How can you?” Licia stammered. “Dailyn is dead. There is no way the grunts killed him! I will—”
“You will do as you are told, girl,” Water snapped.
Earth nodded, but she stared right through Jenn. “We will not forget this, Beast Tribe. Your kind will pay for this Serif-fan’s arrogance.”
“We owe you nothing,” Kei growled.
“Come on,” Eon snapped. “We don’t want to be here when the Machidonians arrive.”
Kei grabbed Jenn’s hand and yanked her down the hall. The pair ran as fast as they could for the mountain road. Winowa followed close behind. Eon and their Oracle escort took up the rear. As they looked out over the ocean, Kei’s ears flattened.
“Oh my God!” Jenn gasped.
The entire Bay of Delphi glittered with steel-armored ships. In the sky above, a flight of small dirigibles loomed eerily overhead, silently shadowing the armada. For a second Jenn thought she saw rain streaking down upon the city.
Kei’s wide eyes suddenly filled with inky fluid. “Something feels wrong,” he whispered. “There is something wrong with the Machidonians.”
Jenn squinted. She could see thousands of projectiles bombing the town square. Screams began to rise in the twilight sky.
Kei wasted no time in grabbing both Jenn and Winowa. “We run—now!” he snapped.
Eon jerked Licia’s arm. “Fastest way out of here?” he asked.
“I don’t have to tell you anything, Phantom,” Licia spat. She became more responsive, though, as his eyes glazed over. Her pigtails began to melt. “There is an access shaft through an old mine in the mountain. It leads to an underground complex. Those caverns will take you straight to the heart of the Forbidden Desert and the Mortuary Complex of Yinepw. Let me go!”
&nb
sp; Eon only smiled. “Not until we are far away from this place.”
“The entrance is just behind the main bathhouse. Go right down this pass and then right again at that fence post,” Licia said. “Let me go now!”
Eon dragged her, kicking and screaming, down the path. Kei flattened his ears as the explosions grew louder behind them. Jenn and Winowa stumbled behind him as the path shook.
“My sisters are in danger. I am a warrior. I must defend them!” Licia snapped as Eon reached the small door behind the bath. “If you have any honor—”
“Let her go!” Jenn spoke up. “Let her fight for her home.”
Eon just stared at her.
“Are you mad, Ji-ann? The ice oracle is the only leverage we have . . .” Kei started.
Winowa held Kei back with a simple hand on his shoulder. She shook her head.
“Eon, those Machidonians killed Dailyn. Let her go fight,” Jenn said firmly.
Eon looked away.
Licia eyed the Serif-fan suspiciously. “What’s the trick?”
“We let you go if you let us go,” Jenn said.
Licia broke free of Eon’s grasp. “It’s quite a walk. Get moving before I stop feeling generous,” she said.
“What, no kiss?” Eon asked.
She rewarded him with a slap across the face. “You are an abomination and an affront to the gods. If I had known who or what you were—”
“Don’t worry, Licia. The Beasts have already issued my death sentence,” he whispered. “But, if you and your sisters want to argue over my corpse . . .”
“My only request is that I am there when they kill you. Get out of my sight.”
Kei led the quartet into passageway. He snatched a bundle of torches by the door and sniffed the air cautiously.
“She’s really a charming girl when she’s not posturing,” Eon said as he pulled his knife out of his boot. He quickly wiped the blade against his sleeve.
“I don’t like any of them,” Jenn said. “And with Dailyn—”
“Jenn, I am afraid that we cannot continue on this course of action.”
