by Janean Worth
Mathew was surprised when Kara suddenly developed some manners when speaking to the creature.
“May we call you Otto as well?” Kara asked.
“Yes,” Otto answered. “You may call me Otto.”
“How can you help us, Otto? Because we are in need of assistance and entrance to the city,” Mathew asked the creature.
Chapter Fifteen
Truchen stood in the Sovereign’s throne room and tried to stop his knees from trembling. He dared not look in the corner to the right of the throne that the Sovereign sat upon, because that was where his sister had breathed her last, agonizing breaths, and if he looked to that spot, he felt he might be sick. Who knew what the Sovereign would do to him if he was sick on the throne room floor?
“The Strays used Old Tech against a group of Enforcers to debilitate them, and then stole an Old Tech light and Gabert’s horse? Is this what you are telling me?”
The Sovereign’s voice shook with suppressed rage, and a tiny trail of spittle ran from the corner of his mouth. Although he was both disgusted and terrified, Truchen did not look away from the Sovereign’s angry face.
It was better to face death head-on than die, bleeding, in a corner. Or, at least Truchen thought so.
“Yes, Sir,” Truchen said.
“And Gabert, seeing that he had failed in his mission for me, wandered into the Old Forest and sacrificed himself as a meal to the Fidgets rather than come back and report on this matter?”
The Sovereign stood and looked down upon Truchen from his dais. His whole frame seemed to quake, either from extreme rage or ill health, Truchen couldn’t determine which.
“Yes, Sir,” Truchen agreed again.
“His life sign is still showing,” the Sovereign brought one inhuman hand up to tap the device implanted in his eye. “I see that he is still alive, wandering in the Old Forest. Are you lying to me, Truchen?”
Truchen tried to keep his face impassive. It wouldn’t do to let the Sovereign know that he was happy that Gabert had survived. “No, Sir, I am not lying. It was near dawn when the incident occurred. Perhaps the Fidgets had all gone underground as Gabert wandered away and they did not have a chance to eat him? I am sure that tonight, the Fidgets will find him and feast upon his flesh. They were out in great numbers in the Old Forest. Only the Old Tech light and the trackens kept them from us at first. But it is true that, as we returned through the Old Forest near dawn, I did not see one Fidget as we travelled.”
“I want him brought back. Immediately. You will take his former patrol unit out and bring him back to me.”
“Yes, Sir,” Truchen said a third time, knowing that, no matter how tedious his answers seemed to be, he must agree with the Sovereign at all times.
The Sovereign tapped the device in his eye again, the metal of his finger clicking upon the metal of the device. “I see him even now. He is on the far edge of the Old Forest to the north. He must have run all day to have made it that far. He is entering the Mire. Such a fool! Wait, his life sign is weakening.”
Truchen swallowed hard. The Mire was a dangerous place, even more menacing than the Old Forest. It was a shame that Gabert had escaped the Fidgets in the Old Forest only to meet his death so soon after venturing into the Mire.
“Wait, wait…” the Sovereign mumbled, closing his still human eye as he focused on what his Old Tech eye was seeing. “This cannot be right. His life sign now shows at the edge of the east side of the Old Forest. No… No… Now the west. And now, it is here, in GateWide.”
For a moment the Sovereign looked confused, and then his face darkened, his sickly skin mottling with rancor.
He opened his human eye to stare squarely into Truchen’s face and muttered, “Now his life sign is gone. It is happening again.”
Truchen did not know what to say. What was happening again? Perhaps the Sovereign’s Old Tech was malfunctioning. How could he deflect the Sovereign’s anger, yet still suggest that perhaps the Old Tech was to blame?
The Sovereign surprised him again by coming down from the dais and slowly approaching the spot where Truchen stood.
“Occasionally,” the Sovereign’s voice was now a menacing hiss as he came closer. “Some of my Enforcers leave my service without my permission. And, every once in a while they find a way to hide themselves from my eye. I do not know how they do this, but I do know that there is a group of them that have banded together to thwart my dominion over GateWide.”
Truchen swallowed hard again as the Sovereign thrust his face closer, breathing fetid breath upon his cheek. He was so close that Truchen could see where the metal of the Old Tech in his eye gouged into the flesh and the decaying bits of ocular matter that oozed from his ruined eyeball. The smell of the putrefaction of dying flesh was almost overwhelming. Truchen’s stomach heaved, and only through force of will was he able to keep the contents of his stomach where they were supposed to be.
“You, Truchen, are going to find this band of men for me.”
“I will, Sir,” Truchen promised, knowing that he was lying as he said it, but he was willing to say anything to get the Sovereign to go back to his throne.
Much to his relief, the Sovereign looked partially mollified by his promise, and backed up a step, then two.
“I know you will, Truchen. After all, you remember how your sister failed me. You do not want to do the same.”
Truchen’s stomach lurched again, but he still managed to mumble, “No Sir, I don’t. I won’t.”
“The key lies with the boy, Mathew. The Old Tech that his father left him is more valuable than all of the other objects that I have ever possessed. Its power is great. I sent the object with Mathew’s father when I sent him into the Mire to find an Enforcer who had deserted his post. I thought that the boy’s father would need the object’s power in order to pass through the Mire without harm. I very much wanted the return of that particular Enforcer, and so I sent my best advisor after him. Much as I will be sending you to find Gabert.”
Truchen was afraid to interrupt the man’s monologue, as the Sovereign seemed to be calming down as he ranted. He had slowly moved back to the dais and was now pacing back and forth in front of his throne. Truchen remained silent.
“Had I known that the boy’s father did not die when I sent him on this assignment into the Mire, and that the object was not lost with him, then I would have had my men check his home after he was gone. He was one of my best advisors. I did not expect deception from him. I only knew that I had been betrayed when the boy activated this object after he fled the walls as a Stray.”
The boy’s father had been an advisor? The reason why the Sovereign wanted the boy and his Old Tech device back so badly was now beginning to make more sense to Truchen. The Sovereign’s advisors studied the Old Tech and advised the Sovereign of how best to use each precious object that was found to be still working after The Fall.
The Sovereign paused in his pacing and his monologue and focused back on Truchen, “The object must be recovered. With it, we can find this group of Enforcers that defies me, and I will kill them all. Slowly.”
Truchen shuddered, then immediately hoped that the Sovereign had not noticed. He nodded quickly in agreement. He wondered again why he stayed in GateWide, and why he served this despicable man, but then he was reminded that there was nowhere else to go. No other settlements were known to exist, and all who had gone in search of other settlements had never returned. No, as repugnant as it was, he had to stay and serve the Sovereign. There was no other choice. There never had been.
“After consideration, I believe that Mathew’s father, one time High Advisor of all of my advisors, must lead the group of the deserters in their efforts against me. That is why you must capture the boy, alive, when you retrieve the Old Tech object. The boy can serve our purposes much better as a living Stray in my House than he ever could as a dead boy who escaped from GateWide.”
Truchen nodded again, but thought of how horrible life would be for the boy after he w
as brought back. The House was hard on the Strays. The Sovereign used them as he saw fit, and if they died on whatever errand he sent them on or doing whatever work he made them do, then it was no matter to him. A Stray’s life was worth nothing at all to the Sovereign.
“The life sign of Gabert’s horse is moving through the ruins of the City of Denthrop. You will most likely find the boy with the horse. “
“Yes, Sir,” Truchen agreed. He had never been to the City of Denthrop, nor did he know the exact location of the place, but he would never admit that to the Sovereign for fear of having his tongue ripped out. “May I have your leave to go after them now?”
“One more thing before you go. Did Gabert give you anything before he left you in the Old Forest? Anything at all?”
Truchen didn’t even flinch as he blatantly lied again, “No, Sir, he did not.”
Chapter Sixteen
“The city holds many attractions for those who wish to visit. Though many were destroyed, and others have turned to dust from age, there is still much to see. I am able to assist visitors in finding those attractions that still remain safe to visit and also offer assistance in any other way that a visitor asks which does not involve harm to another living human or animal and which does not involve breaking the laws of The Book,” Otto answered.
Mathew glanced at Otto as the huge metal creature walked beside him, thinking that now, in the light of the new day, the creature did not look so fearsome as it had in semi-darkness. Instead, it seemed rather sad, like someone’s pet that remains loyal to its master long after the master’s death.
Both he and Kara had dismounted from Gabert’s horse to give the beast a rest. They’d decided to call the horse Gallant for his valiant efforts both in helping them escape the Enforcers and in facing the creature, but also for retaining such a gentle and pleasant disposition even after having been owned by an Enforcer and kept in the House’s stables.
They all walked side-by-side down the hard surface of the wide city road towards the jagged jumble of what must have been once-tall buildings where many, many people had lived. The destroyed city stretched as far as the eye could see in the direction to the north, and Mathew was in awe that something so huge could have existed all of his life, yet he had never heard about it. His tutor had said nothing of a city. Nothing at all.
Mathew had taken the Old Tech from his pocket earlier and wedged it in a groove cut into the side of Gallant’s saddle, so that while they walked, the Old Tech could bask in the rays of the new day’s sun. He was eager for it to work again, so he could ask his father about the city, and also how to find the Narrow Gate.
Otto’s clomping strides mixed with the clippety-clop of Gallant’s hooves upon the road, and Mathew worried briefly that they were making too much noise as they approached the city. Before he could ask Otto if they were in danger from the Enforcers and their tracken, Kara spoke up.
“The Book? You are bound by the laws of The Book?” Kara’s voice held a note of wonder. “Was your creator a Believer, then?”
“My Creator was a Believer, yes,” Otto answered, blissfully unaware of all of the questions that were sparked from his admission. If his creator had been a Believer, then Mathew himself would be forced to reexamine his own thoughts of Believers.
“Are you from the time Before, or after The Fall?” Mathew asked, wondering if there had been Believers from Before, and if there had been, then why had it happened at all? Surely, Believers would have fought against the release of poisonous clouds that were meant to kill every living thing.
“I am from the time Before. I am very old, if my age were to be calculated in human years,” Otto answered. “Long has been the time that I waited to greet and serve as my Creator commanded me to do. The city has not had a visitor by this road in many years.”
“How many years?” Mathew asked.
“Fifty-eight years,” Otto answered.
“And you have not seen one visitor in all that time? No Enforcers? No tracken? No other Strays? No one?” Mathew asked, astounded by the prospect. Perhaps they had found a safe place to hide from the Enforcers for a while.
“I do not know the meaning of the words Enforcers, tracken or Strays, but no other humans have visited by this road. There were many other roads that once led to the city, but most no longer exist. People may, of course, enter the city without using the road, but they would have no guide.”
“And is having a guide important?” Mathew asked.
“Yes, my Creator thought so. He wanted all to have an honest and dependable guide to the city, and a reliable source of assistance if assistance was needed. The times Before were hard, and there were many who only sought nefarious activities. My Creator wanted visitors, especially those who were also Believers as he was himself, to be able to enter the city without fear of those who might seek to do them harm,” Otto explained.
“So, you are a protector and a guide?” Mathew asked, astounded at their good fortune.
“Some might call me a protector of sorts, but I am unable to do harm to any human or animal, so I cannot be a defender as well. I seek only to guide and assist in any way that I can.”
A wealth of possibilities ran through Mathew’s mind at Otto’s response. Otto could help them find food. Otto could help them find shelter. Otto could protect them from the Enforcers, should the Sovereign’s guards ever find them in the city.
“But you are bound by the laws of The Book, Otto?” Kara asked. “How do you keep the laws of The Book? Do you have one of The Books that we can read?”
“I am bound by the law of The Book, yes. I do not have one of The Books that you can read with your eyes. The Words of The Book exist in my memory. I can recite The Book for you, if you wish,” Otto offered.
Kara looked overjoyed, “Oh, yes, please do.”
“Where shall I start?” Otto asked.
Kara glanced at Mathew with a contemplative look, as if weighing what she would most like to hear against what parts she thought that Mathew needed to hear. Finally, she told Otto, “Start at the beginning, Otto.”
Mathew interrupted, “Wait, Otto, not yet. I have more questions before you begin.”
Beside him, Kara sighed loudly. “The Book is more important than any question you may have. The Words in The Book will give us wisdom and tell us how to reach the Narrow Gate. It is the key to getting where we need to go.”
“But,” he protested, “perhaps Otto can help us find food? Have you forgotten that we have eaten the last of what we had? You need food, I need it too. So do Jax and Gallant. Otto may also be able to help us find shelter and perhaps a good place to safely sit and listen while he recites The Book. Wouldn’t being safe and well fed make it easier to concentrate on what he recites?”
“Let us not bicker,” Otto suggested. “I can do both at the same time. Follow me and I will find food and shelter for you. I will also begin my recitation of The Book as we go along our journey.”
Kara smiled at the metal man, “That would work just fine.”
Mathew was a little envious of that smile. Kara rarely smiled at him.
Otto began his recitation, and Mathew listened as aptly as did Kara at first. But then Otto’s emotionless voice began to bore him, and he ceased paying attention. His mind wandered to other things, like what kind of food the metal man could possibly find in a city that had so long ago been destroyed.
After what seemed like an interminable walk, the road led them deep into the belly of the city. The huge piles of rubble from what must once have been unimaginably tall buildings were much larger than they had looked from a distance. Some walls still stood tall, towering over their little party as they ventured along the road, but some had fallen, leaving piles of rubble that they had to navigate carefully around. And all along the road, large rusted metal contraptions huddled at the sides, some crushed by falling rubble, some remaining intact. Mathew could see seats inside behind the broken glass, and wondered at the function of these contraptions, but he did
not want to interrupt Otto’s recitation and ask.
A dusty smell hung in the air, stinking of long disuse. Mathew thought that if abandonment could have a scent, that is exactly what it would smell like.
After much more walking and reciting, Otto turned toward one of the lesser buildings which seemed to have survived the destruction entirely intact. Four enormous stacked-stone walls still towered three stories high above them. A massive set of double doors, both still hung upon their hinges, were closed against them, but Otto opened them both and stepped through.
The doors opened wide enough even for Gallant to step inside, and were tall enough that even Otto, who was at least seven feet tall, had no trouble entering. Inside the building the marble floors, even though covered with many years’ worth of dust and debris, were remarkably undamaged. No yawning cracks appeared in the floor, the walls or the high, arched ceiling. Mathew thought that the building must have been built as strong as a fortress in its time, to have been able to withstand the destruction and so many years of subsequent neglect.
Otto was still busy with his recitation, and his strange metallic-sounding voice echoed eerily inside the building mingling with the muffled clip-clop of Gallant’s hooves upon the dust-shrouded marble. After they’d all entered the building, Otto easily shut the double doors behind them. Mathew knew that the massive doors must have been extremely heavy, but the metal giant made it look to be an easy task. Otto was obviously much stronger than any normal man.
Otto ushered them through a massive open area, then down a corridor that led to a shallow ramp. The ramp was wide and had a gentle slope, so it was easy for Gallant to navigate as Mathew followed Otto and led the horse behind him.
The ramp led to a wide archway that opened up into the courtyard of one of the oddest rooms that Mathew had ever seen. It was made all of glass. Very thick panes of glass lined every wall and even the ceiling. Glass was so precious and rare in GateWide that only the Sovereign was allowed to own the larger pieces that had been found intact. In the House, these glass pieces functioned as window barriers. Mathew was astounded at the wealth of unbroken glass before him. And, wonder of wonders, not a single one bore even the smallest of cracks.
