Chrysalis

by Kayne Sampson

  Susanoo took a moment to respond. He seems like a good man. I would trust him.

  And that’s why you aren’t in charge of these things. I don’t trust him. Just be ready at any time. Pent didn’t hear anything else, so he took that as her acceptance. The truck slowed to a halt and the jolt knocked Max awake.

  “All right, friends. We are here,” Erisda announced, leaping out. Pent and the others followed and were greeted by a new sight. “I hope you enjoy your stay in Aurora.”

  The other two were looking around amazed, and Pent had to admit it was a pretty city. If Pent recalled, Aurora was the main settlement for the Humans. It was modest, reflecting the nature of the Humans who lived outside the Empire’s reach.

  He had never been past the borders to the Empire, his father had always warned him that Demons who cross those lines never return.

  But Teforia had been a different story. They had welcomed all races, even if none of the Demon clans had accepted the offer. Mistrust was too high for Demons to ever live with Humans.

  Keta claimed they would be able to one day. His little mission as Sanction was flawed. But Pent needed to join because he needed Keta’s strength. An alliance of convenience. Just like I am going to use this Erisda, he noted as he followed the Human.

  Human cities usually were quite different from the Demon villages. Their advancements in civilization was quite impressive, Pent realized begrudgingly. Their paved streets were proof of this, buildings of stone scattered throughout. Could his people ever create such a city?

  Erisda led them to an impressive-looking building that bore the same symbols emblazoned on his uniform. It was guarded by two soldiers. As soon as the man approached, they saluted him and opened the door. The Human turned to Pent and the others. “Come on in.”

  “General!”

  Before they could enter, another soldier came rushing towards him. Erisda looked up at the newcomer and a smile crossed his face. “Hello, Giselle. I have returned from my border scouting. Come, I am about to deliver my report to the Administrator.” And the man turned and continued on his way.

  Pent wondered if Erisda was completely oblivious of the fact that this soldier, a young woman with brown hair and sharp green eyes, clearly wanted to ask about his entourage. But instead, she merely fell in line, eyeing them with suspicion.

  Erisda led them through a long hallway until they finally came to a door at the end. There were words engraved on it, but Pent could not read so they did him no good. He would just have to wait and see what was behind this door.

  And he was disappointed with what he saw. Inside were a few men, talking to another who was sitting behind a desk. When Erisda burst through (Pent felt that the man had done so with overly dramatic flair), they had all turned to him and his party.

  “Clear the room, gentlemen. I must have an audience with the Administrator,” Erisda said, a smile on his face. Pent had no idea what to think of this man. He was clearly respected, but he also acted a fool. But then, he knew plenty who played that role to disguise their true intent.

  Which one was Erisda? Pent wondered to himself.

  The men who had been speaking to the person at the desk frowned, displaying annoyance on their faces. Nonetheless, they left the room, muttering to themselves as they did. In a Demon militia, the leader would have disciplined the soldiers for such a display, but it seemed the Humans did things differently here.

  The man at the desk rose after the door closed behind them. “Well, it seems there have been some unexpected developments. Who have you brought with you? I’m afraid I don’t recognize their footsteps.”

  “Footsteps?” Pent asked. Humans always confused him with their odd rituals.

  The girl standing with them cleared her throat. “The Administrator is blind. He can tell who is with him or approaching through some unconventional methods. Recognizing one’s footsteps is one of those methods.”

  Another blind soldier? What was going on in this place? Pent held his thoughts back as the man began speaking. “I am Raphael Mcpherson. I am the Administrator of the Human cities here in Teforia.”

  Pent let the others introduce themselves first. When it came his turn, he said with pride, “I am Pent Telim, son of Peter Telim of the Frostclaw Clan.” He needed to make sure the Humans knew of his clan.

  The young woman pushed forward. “I am sorry, Administrator. As usual, General Walker has failed to confide in me any of his findings. He just rode into the city with three strangers in tow.”

  The man named Raphael laughed. “Isn’t that always his way? At the very least, be at ease knowing that Erisda is the most capable soldier I have ever met. He wouldn’t have brought strangers here without a good reason. At least, I hope so.” With a smiling face, he turned to Erisda to hear the man out.

  Pent frowned. The Human leader had not opened his eyes the entire time since they had arrived. He didn’t look at them at all. He was blind, sure, but that woman from the Xegin clan was blind as well. She had kept her eyes open. What was he missing here?

  In the Demon clans, blindness was a crippling disability. Without the use of their Demon eyes, they were not of much use to the clan. The clan would still care for the individual, but the most prideful Demons would never last long as a dredge on society.

  “Forgive me, friends. This is my lieutenant, Giselle Leclair. As for why they are here, it has to do with the border. I had hoped to convince the Xegin stationed there to surrender, since they were behind enemy lines after we’d captured the Imperial Gate and had no chance for reinforcements. I never had a chance to. They were dead by the time I arrived.” Erisda explained.

  The Human general waved his hand to Pent and his companions. “And that’s when I met these three and things got real complicated.” And he began to recap the story in its entirety. The girl and the Administrator listened until the end.

  “And now we have a bunch of dead Xegin that we are going to get blamed for and the only excuse we can throw at them is ‘it was a Demon!’ Not much of a defense,” Erisda said, wearily.

  The Administrator tapped his fingers on the table. Sitting there, he looked very young. Why was such a young man the leader of this place? “What can be done?” Raphael asked before Pent could dwell on it any longer.

  “I need to try and talk to the Xegin.” All three Humans turned to look at Keta, who had just spoken. Pent already knew that the Kitaan would suggest something like that.

  Keta stepped up to the desk. “I have been pursuing the Brotherhood of Shadows. I heard a rumor that they were headed south. Meeting one of them at your borders has all but confirmed it. The Brotherhood has infiltrated Teforia.”

  Giselle and Erisda exchanged looks. The blind man sat back down and folded his hands on his desk. “I see. And tell me, Keta Night, what should we do about this?”

  Keta placed both hands on the man’s desk. “It is dangerous to continue as you are while the Brotherhood are hidden in your country. It’d be in the best interest if you and the Xegin ceased fighting.”

  Pent barely suppressed a snort. This man was crazy, breaking into a nation and asking two warring sides to stop fighting. He had to give Keta credit for his bravery at the very least.

  “Oh is that all?” Giselle said, thick with sarcasm. “We can just end all the fighting. Go and speak with the Xegin and overcome our differences.”

  “No, he’s right,” Erisda said. He moved up beside the Kitaan in support. “I saw what had happened at the border. At the very least, we should open communications with the Xegin. If something sinister is happening in our nation, we should be concerned.”

  “They won’t agree to it,” Giselle said. “They’ll refuse to the talks. Especially when they hear news of the latest attack.”

  “Precisely why we need to get a jump on this, so they hear it from us,” Erisda explained. “Tensions are running high. We need to stem the tide of aggression.”

  Giselle cleared her throat. “Sir, what I’ve been trying to tell you is that
we have heard reports from our scouts. The Xegin are on the move and we believe they are finally moving against the Imperial Gate to reclaim it.”

  Pent had remembered passing through the Imperial Gate when he had first come to Teforia. During peace times, it merely separated the Xegin and Human parts of the nation. But it was a massive fortification that had once held off the Empire. He had to wonder how the Humans had managed to capture it from the Xegin.

  “Kae has his squad holding it, we should begin preparations for a siege battle,” Giselle pointed out. “What are your orders?”

  Erisda was silent, lost in thought. Then he raised a hand. “I will go to Zelrega. I will travel unarmed.” Pent understood: it was customary to allow an unarmed man into enemy territory to speak in good faith.

  The woman was hesitant. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea, sir. With the way things are now, they might very well decide to not honor those old customs.”

  Pent would normally have thought it folly to travel through enemy territory without a weapon. But he could understand their code of honor. No Demon would attack an envoy. They would settle their differences on the field of battle.

  Erisda gave the young woman a smile. “Don’t worry, Giselle. We must have faith that we are still civil enough to not kill each on sight.”

  Giselle’s brow furrowed. “That does not inspire much confidence.”

  “Regardless, it must be done. The Imperial Generals and I have a history together. Though they have refused negotiations thus far, perhaps my gesture of good faith will help us remember that we are at our core a nation of peace. With your permission, of course, Administrator,” Erisda said, nodding at Raphael.

  “I won’t lie; I don’t much care for the idea of sending my best soldier away, when their army could attack at any time. However, I do agree that we must at least try to end this peacefully. If word gets out about the border assault, that chance may die,” Raphael said.

  “And so?”

  Raphael waved a hand. “Bah, go and do what you must, old friend. If anyone can do this, it is you.”

  “Thank you sir. I have other things to report, but they must be done in private. Giselle?” Pent saw that the young woman snapped to attention at the sound of her name. “Would you please escort our friends here to some guest rooms. I am terribly sorry, but until I return, I will be unable to aid you. Pray my peace talks go well and you can simply travel there yourself, yes?”

  Keta and Max followed the lieutenant, who had led them out and Pent followed suit. “Have you heard from Ivaldi and Bakuya?” was the last thing he heard before the door closed.

  Giselle was a model soldier, curt and direct. She found some empty rooms and assigned them to Pent and his companions. She also said that they were free to roam the training grounds, but were otherwise prohibited to leave the headquarters. In short, they were basically prisoners until Erisda returned.

  The soldier cleared her throat. “Is there anything else I can get you?”

  “Yeah, can I get some food? We’ve been living off the land for the last few days. I’m quite curious what you Humans eat here,” Max said.

  The girl glared at him. “First of all, you’d best not address us as ‘you Humans’ while you are a guest in our city. It is quite rude. And secondly, the mess hall is down the hall and to the right. There are signs if you get lost.” And she turned on her heel and walked away.

  Max blinked in surprise. “Hey wait. Wait! I didn’t mean nothing by it!. Oh, damn it all. These Humans are such a sensitive bunch.”

  Keta smiled. “I’m pretty sure that kind of talk is what upset her in the first place.”

  Max laughed, returning Keta’s smile. “Well then, shall we go find this mess hall? What’s the point of telling us about signs if we can’t read anyways?”

  “Wait, you can’t read?” Keta asked.

  “Of course not. Only the scholars in the village learned to read. The rest of us trained to have productive professions or became warriors,” Max pointed out.

  “I never knew that. I must have taken Master Xehemoth’s studies for granted,” Keta said, sounding thoughtful. He turned to Pent. “Can you not read either?”

  Pent shook his head. “As the son of the clan leader, I was encouraged to learn. But I was never one for studies. I took to the sword from an early age and I had left home by the time I was ten to hone my skills.”

  “I see. Is this common amongst Demons?” Keta asked.

  “It is the norm,” Pent said. Demons had few scholars and so they did not share the technological advancements of Humans. It was one of the reasons that the Humans called them savages, and seemed to be able to get the best of the clans, despite their inferior abilities. Pent growled at the thought.

  He didn’t want to fight against the Empire like the Brotherhood did. He just wanted to protect his family and his clan. He glanced at Keta, who was talking about something else with Max. Fighting battles that weren’t your own would only end in tragedy.

  But it was useless thinking about it. The only thing he could do was make sure his skills were sharpened. And with that in mind, he took off to look for the training grounds. Time to look for some fodder to practice against, Pent thought with a grin.

  6

  It was early morning when Erisda ordered the Imperial Gates to be opened, allowing him to step out into the Xegin territory. Occupying the gate had given his army the ability to deny the mechanoid soldiers advancement on their military headquarters.

  But Erisda would have to be crazy if they thought that meant he could make a move on the Xegin lands. The Xegin army was just too powerful.

  So Erisda left without weapons, carrying neither sword nor side arm. He carried no rifle or knife. He was completely unarmed. It was a gamble, but it was the best chance he had at achieving his task of speaking with the Xegin.

  It occurred to him that it was not the brightest idea in the world. Erisda wasn’t a braggart, but Raphael had not been wrong. He was the best soldier in the army. If any of those Xegin generals wanted to increase their odds of victory in this war, it’d be to take him out of the picture.

  But Erisda had faith in the ideals that Teforia was built on. And so he would believe his insane mission could succeed.

  Kae, one of the unattached lieutenants, had been watching the movements of the enemy. A large force under the command of General Delta had been spotted headed north, towards the waterfront. Erisda figured that would be his best chance.

  Why would they be headed that way? Are they honestly trying to launch an assault by sea? Erisda wondered to himself. It would be the height of folly. The sentries from the gates could easily spot the transport and they would set up an anti warship unit to prevent it.

  “No, that’s not it. They are too smart for that,” Erisda said aloud to himself. He was known for talking to himself. It helped him think.

  But he had run out of things to think about, so he decided to just walk in silence. He did so for about three hours until he started to come across signs of activity. The Imperial Plains were mostly flat, save for a spot overlooking Aurora. He could see the Xegin army off in the distance.

  But if he saw them, that meant that they saw him. And sure enough, a squad rushed out to meet him, with someone at the head.

  This person was garbed in the Imperial General armor, dyed an odd orange color. Who the hell uses orange as their squad colors? Erisda thought judgmentally, before catching himself. He wasn’t here to criticize.

  “Hold and identify yourself, Human,” the person at the front said. Erisda raised an eyebrow. He had spent enough time with the Xegin to know the voice and figure of one of their women soldiers.

  “I am General Erisda Walker of the Teforian Human military. Who am I speaking to?” Erisda asked.

  The woman reacted slightly to his name. “I am General Zeta. We all know your name. Why have you come here alone? You are aware that we are still at war, correct?”

  Erisda put up his hands to show tha
t he had nothing. “I came unarmed, hoping to speak. That is our custom, is it not?”

  Zeta looked at him, face hidden behind her faceplate. Blast those helmets, I can’t get a gauge on what they are thinking if I can’t even see their face, Erisda thought bitterly. But then, they were professional soldiers. How could normal Humans hope to compete against that?

  Zeta called over one of the soldiers that had come with her and whispered something. When she was finished, the soldier rushed back towards the main body of the army. “If you’ve come to speak, speak,” Zeta said, turning back to him.

  “Are you in command here?” Erisda asked.

  The Xegin shifted in her stance. “All Xegin Imperial Generals are of equal standing. General Delta is in command of this operation, but we all command the same authority,” Zeta said.

  A touchy subject...and yet it still meant that General Delta was in command either way, Erisda thought, noting the Xegin woman’s irate mood. Regardless, it would be best to attempt to speak to this one at the moment.

  “I need to speak to General Delta regarding information that is pertinent to this war. It is of the highest importance that we share this information,” Erisda said, hoping this woman would not be offended that he was trying to sidestep his way up the command chain.

  The soldier regarded him carefully. “You are quite brave to come all this way alone. I respect that. I have sent for General Delta, but why don’t you explain exactly what this information you need to say to us.”

  Finally, a lucky break, Erisda thought to himself. And so he found himself relaying everything he knew so far, including what Keta had told him. Zeta interrupted him a few times, she was very inquisitive. How odd for an Imperial General. I kind of like her.

  When he was finished, Zeta tapped her fingers on her arm a few times. “That is quite the story you’ve told me. We’d received reports about the assault on the border. Many good soldiers died that day.”

  “I am aware. I was there,” Erisda pointed out.

  “Why would Demons attack us? We are a neutral nation and their protection against the Empire.”