by Nyk Nova
“Who are you?”
“After that gunfire, there are probably more on the way. Help me,” the figure said.
Kade cautiously made his way to the dead hunters. “You’re Oscerian?”
“What gave it away?”
“Where’s the talisman? You must be exhausted after that kind of divide.”
“But I’m still alive. And not for long if we don’t hurry.”
“How is there anyone alive on Razen?”
The newcomer stopped, his arms full of weapons. “Kade’Tor Lorenth. Do you always ask this many questions when your life is on the line?”
Kade took in the man’s mention of his name. “I’ve never seen you before. How do you know me?”
The newcomer had no time to answer before another series of shrieks broke through the air.
“The Rekoul are gone,” the stranger said. “Gather what you can. We have to move before the Giths return. Hurry.”
Kade looked back for any sign of more four legged beasts before grabbing up weapons from the dead Rekoul.
12
A faint light flickered and glowed on the shrubs ahead. Kade kept a vigilant watch for any threats but none appeared. He looked at the stranger who appeared as though he’d walked this path many times as he seemed far too calm for walking in the open on Razen. As if unfazed by anything. Kade did his best to follow suit. At this point he was relieved to simply still be alive.
“You’re probably wondering why we’re so in the open,” the stranger said. “There aren’t a lot of threats in this area. Not when you have the means to fight back.” He held two of the newly acquired guns up. “The natives have mostly learned not to tread too close.”
“That makes sense,” Kade said. It was several more steps till he spoke again. “So, you have me at a disadvantage. You know my name. But I still don’t know yours.”
“I’m not the only one who knows who you are,” the man said.
Kade slowed down. “There are others here? Others from Osceria?”
The man smiled sarcastically. “Unless the Oscerian law banishes others to Razen, yes. There are six—Well, seven of us now.”
“There are six of you?” Kade asked.
“One thing at a time. But you’re right, that was rude of me. I’m Tuk. Banished here, ten years ago.”
“I was a cadet ten years ago.”
“You ranked up fast. I was sent here for murder.”
“Were you innocent?”
“Of course not. No innocents are sent to Razen.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” Kade muttered.
“But don’t worry. I learned my lesson. It didn’t take long here for me to change my ways. If we’re to survive, we have to stick together, right?”
Kade nodded his head. Something in Tuk’s words left him uneasy but he dropped the matter in light of how he’d already settled in with criminals. Now it looked as though he was doing it again. But Tuk was right, Razen was not a place one tried to make a go of when alone. And as he’d just found out, it was hard enough to survive when he wasn’t alone.
The light on the bushes grew brighter as the two of them got closer to the source. Kade had expected a cave or some natural formation of the land. He wasn’t counting on an old weapons depot. Nor was he counting on the laughter coming from inside.
“You’ve all been here for ten years?” Kade asked.
“We came in at different times. You’re the most recent. The last one was Hel’len.” Tuk became sullen. “She didn’t make it. That was two years ago. I guess Emperor Argus didn’t like the banishing practice. Otherwise there would be a lot more of us. How is Dom Argus, anyway? Or did Pan get the Mantle? Something about that kid never sat well with me.”
Kade held his tongue, not ready or even wanting to get into conversation about the events leading to his arrival on Razen. He figured if there were others, the question would be asked enough. If he was going to have to relive it, he only wanted to do so once.
“Tuk?” a woman’s voice called from inside.
“It’s me and I’ve got a surprise.”
“If it’s more Gith meat, I’m good,” said a different voice.
The two walked inside, Tuk was eager to get by the fire. Kade slowed at the entrance. There were two women and two men plus Tuk and an older man, covered in scars.
“I don’t believe it,” the younger looking of the men said.
“Just keep your eyes open,” Tuk told him.
“Kade’Tor Lorenth?” one of the women asked in disbelief.
The older man’s head perked up at mention of Kade’s name. All but the older man, Tuk and a long haired man rushed at Kade to get a better look at him. There were so many questions they were asking. And all at once. The greatest of all seemed to be why he was even there.
“Give our newest resident some space,” Tuk said. “I’m sure he’s still trying to wrap his head around the answers as well.”
“Sorry,” a red headed women said. She held out her hand. “I’m Jal.”
Kade struggled to shake her hand under the weight of so many guns.
“Lyra,” the other woman said, as she helped Kade with a couple of weapons. “That’s Payce.” She pointed at the man with long hair.
“Don’t get too comfortable. I doubt you’ll last that long.”
Kade narrowed his eyes at Payce. The attitude was unexpected and did little to make Kade feel welcome. He reasoned they were all Oscerian. The addition of another meant little more than having to share whatever spoils and rations came about.
“Don’t worry about him,” Jal went on. “The other one, there, is Coy’t.”
“Who should be on watch duty,” Tuk scolded.
“I was just waiting for you to get back with some firepower,” Coy’t said. He was younger than the others. There didn’t seem to be anything about him that was deserving of banishment. Lyra tossed him a gun and he was out the door.
“And this is—”
“I can introduce myself,” the older man interrupted Tuk. “So, news down the Silver Wire was true. General Kade’Tor Lorenth has been banished to Razen.”
“Silver wire?” Kade asked, setting the rest of the weapons against the wall.
The older man laughed. “Are you going to arrest us for illegal magics? We are on Razen. A man with your law experience knows there are no rules here.”
Kade took in his surroundings. The group had made a decent little home in the old depot. Six hammocks hung from the ceiling along the wall in stacks of three. One cot lay on the floor. Kade guessed it was for the older man with the scars. That left an empty hammock he was sure would be his. Formerly occupied by whoever Hel’len was. Beyond that were a few stacks of dried meat. At least, that’s what they looked like. A few ship parts and broken magic artifacts lay on the floor. The front area of the depot was devoid of any debris. Kade figured out very quickly how this ‘house’ was set up. A worthwhile task if he was to stay there.
“But,” the scarred, older man went on. “While Razen may have no rules, the space between these walls do. Everyone pitches in and everyone watches each other’s backs. You’ll learn what that means as you go. Though, with your military background, I’m sure you will be a quick study.” He stoked the fire but remained staring at Kade. “You look very much like him, you know.”
The others listened intently while Kade crouched by the fire, keeping it between himself and the older man. “Who?”
“A man I knew very well. One I called brother.” The man sat up a little straighter and squared his shoulders with a little more pride. “My name is Roland R’lyne. I fought in the second Lugazian war. Right alongside the very man who, much like yourself recently, brought us victory. Your father was an accomplished strategist.”
“You knew my father?” Kade asked in disbelief.
“Oh yes. And as such, I know you. I was saddened by his passing but fortunate that your mother allowed me to see you as a baby. And even more fortunate to know that yo
u carried his legacy. I always suspected you would follow in his steps. And for a time that seemed to be true.” He paused and his face changed from an expression of pride to one of doubt. “And yet, here you are. A place even your father had never seen. A place reserved for those too corrupt and dangerous to keep in prison but, perhaps, still too useful to execute and thus kept alive. Though, how this is living.” Roland gestured at their surroundings. “I cannot be sure. Any more sure than I can be about how it is you have come to be here.”
Kade looked at all the faces. All of them except Payce looked eager to hear how a decorated Oscerian General was banished from their home world. “You know about the end of the third war, so you’ve been keeping tabs with the Capitol.”
“I have loyal friends who keep us well informed of the more important subjects,” Roland said. And the end of a war is an important subject.”
“Have you heard what they’re calling me through the Silver Wire?”
“I have,” Roland said matter of factly. “The others have not. And while I can certainly fathom the meaning. I am not entirely sure of its warrant.”
“What’s he talking about?” Payce asked.
“His reason for banishment,” Roland continued. “We are not only in the graces of a war hero. But also,”
Kade tensed, knowing what the next words were going to be. It hadn’t taken him long to grow weary of them.
Roland went on. “an Assassin of Emperors.”
13
“You killed Dom Argus?” Jal asked in total disbelief. “How could anyone get that close?”
“A highly decorated General would have had the Emperor’s undivided ear,” Tuk told her. “And I thought my crime was bad.”
“I didn’t do it,” Kade said.
“No doubt you’ve been making that claim ever since you were arrested. Am I right?” Payce asked.
Kade shot a glare at the long haired man. He didn’t need to prove himself to any of them. They were the criminals. “Did you not say the same when they caught you?”
“No need for hostility,” Tuk broke in. “Truth is, we’re all guilty. Not one of us professed innocence. Either caught red handed or had enough evidence against us. Lyra, there, worked for the Administration Guild, Techno Terrorist they called her.”
Kade looked at Lyra who smiled unapologetically. “Who knew setting off a computer virus to bring down the entire Guild was an offense worth being banished over?”
Kade looked around the weapons depot for declarations of everyone else’s crime.
“Theft of Guild funds allocated from the palace,” Jal said.
“The guilds don’t like when magic and science are merged,” Payce told him. “Not without their approval, anyway.”
“The Glifford Ake’s Chimera.” Kade said. “You created that?”
“Nice to meet you.” Payce was indifferent. His lack of care gave Kade a feeling of distrust. If he could make a monster like that, there was no telling what he could do with all of the ordinance they’d just brought back. That and a dead Gith could cause untold problems.
“And our watchman, Coy’t was a bit of a hydrobug,” Tuk said. “Blew up the Raksforn Dam. I was already here when he told me about it but I knew that area well.”
“How was he not executed?” Kade asked.
“Each individual here has been rightfully charged with the crime for which they were accused. Banishment keeps them away from society but execution would rid the Guilds of a potential resource,” Roland explained. “How these crimes were committed with the efficiency that they were. How no one stopped them from occurring. And how such high security targets were infiltrated with such ease.”
Kade glanced at Tuk. “Simple murder?”
“There’s nothing simple about taking out two targets on the ground while remote controlling Spread Rockets to finish off three arial ones.”
“That’s appalling,” Kade told him.
“Says the Assassin of Emperors,” Tuk replied.
“They were Guild targets,” Lyra said. “Everyone here has done something that impacted the Guilds.”
“Why would you want to do that?” Kade asked. “The Sorcery Guild and Administration Guild does nothing but try to better Oscerian lives.”
“Who runs Osceria?” Roland asked.
Kade was taken back by the question. Especially from one who fought against Lugaz. “What do you mean? The Emperor.”
“The Emperor signs rules and laws into effect. But does he make them?”
The others looked at Kade, already knowing the answer.
“He’s busy with…” Kade was stumped.
“The signing of rules and laws created by the Guilds. The Emperor is nothing more than a puppet.”
“That’s why we attacked them,” Lyra said. “Each in our own way. The Emperor listens to the people. The Guilds do what they want. If they get brought down, then the people have a say.”
“It makes me wonder who you work for, Kade’Tor Lorenth,” Payce accused. “The Emperor or the Guilds.”
“That’s absurd. Dom Argus was like a father to me.”
“And now he’s dead. And by your hand.”
“I told you, I didn’t do it.”
“Ten years on Razen,” Tuk said. “And that’s the first time I’ve heard anyone say that.”
“It’s the truth!”
“I believe you,” Roland said. The words were shocking to everyone, including Kade. The scarred man finally stood and paced for a moment. Judging by their silence, it was obvious to Kade that Roland was respected among the others.
“You do?” Kade asked.
“Most Oscerians love the Emperor. At least they did. The Guilds are accepted as a way of life. Those like ourselves have a disdain for them, hence our current way of life. But no one has ever attacked an Emperor.”
“Certainly not one who was about to pass the Mantle,” Tuk added.
“Indeed,” Roland went on. “That is what is so curious. It was all in your grasp. Why would you risk such thing?”
“I made the same argument.”
“Tell me,” Roland said. “What transpired in the moments before Dom Argus’s demise?”
Kade’s eyes shot to the ground as he tried to recall everything. There had been so much going on with the Guild members going over the rules, to Dom telling him how none of that mattered. There was so much that had happened, much of it had blurred.
“They were readying me for the ceremony and Pan and Arista were there. Then the Emperor went to address the crowd and he was coughing.”
“Coughing?” Jal asked.
“Yes, but not like I’d ever heard before. It was like…I’ve only heard that sound on the battle field.”
“Was this before or after you put the knife in him?” Roland asked.
“No, I told you, I didn’t…” Kade let his words fall away. He’d said them enough and the tone in Roland’s voice hinted at deduction and not accusation. “It was before.”
“Had he consumed anything before addressing the crowd?” Roland went on.
Kade shut his eyes, trying to remember. “A drink. Pan had brought four, one for Dom and three others for he, myself and Arista.”
“And none of you went into coughing fits?”
“No, just the Emperor.”
Roland’s eyes knowingly turned to Tuk who nodded.
“I’m starting to believe in your innocence as well, Kade,” Tuk said. “When I was choosing Guild targets, I infiltrated the palace branch of the Administration Guild. I overheard Sel Valfest discussing something he called Miniaturization. Something about shrinking the molecules in items. I don’t know if they ever got that working but…”
Kade continued to stare at Tuk, waiting for him to elaborate.
“So a miniature knife?” Lyra asked.
“No…Why?” Kade asked, slowly putting the pieces together.
“Who benefits most from Dom Argus’s death?” Roland asked.
“If the Mantle is no
t passed before an Emperor’s death, it goes to his eldest child as Emperor Temporea. But Pan wasn’t near Dom except when—“ Kade looked up at the sudden realization. “Pan was angry about my being chosen. He wanted the Mantle for himself. He brought the drinks to us and if this Miniaturization is real…A locator Talisman. Dropped into Dom Argus’s drink. The knife materialized right in his side.”
“He might have lived if you hadn’t pulled it out,” Tuk said.
“Well done, Kade,” Roland said, clapping slowly. “You have solved the crime and revealed your innocence.”
Kade’s face turned red with rage. “No!” he shouted, rushing to the wall and slamming his fist into it. The false accusation was bad enough but now the discovery of Pan assassinating his own father had him furious.
“The plot may have been decreed by Pan Argus,” Payce said. “But unless he knows a materialization spell to use with the talisman, he didn’t work alone.”
“The Guilds are too big,” Kade said. “There’s no telling who could have done that.”
“Well, it matters little,” Roland replied. “There is no way off this forsaken planet anyway. I see the look for vengeance in your eyes, Kade’Tor Lorenth. You would best forget it and resign yourself to our shared existence. Once you understand how it works here, it’s really not that bad.”
“I have to make it back home. Clear my name and let the Capitol know who did this,” Kade said.
“How?” Lyra asked. “We’ve all had thoughts of going home. It’s never going to happen.”
“There’s the survey ships,” Jal said.
“We’ve gone over this,” Tuk told her. “They’re from Lugaz. They’re not going to let us on board, much less take us to Osceria.”
“Lugaz? A Lugazian survey ship has been on Razen?” Kade asked in shock.
“They show up every now and then,” Tuk elaborated. “It’s completely random.”
“What are they doing?”
“Hard to say. I’ve seen the crews taking measurements and even performing a few weapons tests. But not much else.”
“And the Oscerian law officers allow this?”
