“You’re sick!”
The king cackled,
“Oh! Indeed, boy, I am sick, yes. Would you like the opportunity to fight me?”
“I’d kill you!”
The king’s laughs grew louder,
“Oh, I really do doubt that very much somehow. But I will allow you the opportunity to try.” The king turned to one of his guards, “you, bring the boy his sworsha, he’s going to need it.”
As the guard threw James’ sworsha down on the floor beside his feet, the king continued on with his words,
“I’ve watched you use that weapon. A mubble would have far better use of that weapon than you. I am, however, giving you the opportunity to fight for your life. I am a fair man, after all. I’m giving you a chance, which was far more than Crystie ever had. Guard, release the boy!”
With a rough scaly hand, one of the brutish guards untied James’ blood drained hands from the pole. Instead of lunging straight at the king, the young space warrior found his eyes following Crystaline as she rejoined Crystanaphy and her entourage at the sidelines. What was going on? What was going on inside the princess’ head, inside her heart? What was going on inside his own heavily beating heart?
James had little time to focus on these questions, for the king wasted no time in activating his own sworsha, setting the thing to its sharpest blade, and surrounding it with its deadly blue voltage.
Instead of doing the sensible thing, instead of grabbing his own weapon, James turned back towards the human cage, his eyes meeting Lottie’s. His best friend, she looked so different...so upset, so frantic, so scared! As if in slow motion, James could see Lottie’s eyes widening, he could see her mouth opening wider and wider, until eventually, the young space warrior heard the cries of his best friend.
“Look out!” She screeched.
With his instincts to survive pouring into him at last, James dived towards the floor, just about managing to avoid having his head chopped off by the king. When he scrambled back up onto his feet, the young space warrior made a beeline straight for his weapon. Without having to give it much thought, James managed to replicate the king’s dangerous sworsha.
“At last!” The king hissed, “your sense has reached you. You realise that you must fight for your life. I promised you a chance, boy, but your efforts will be proved futile. Your death shall be today.”
With his sworsha raised, the king ran at James, his weapon colliding into the young space warrior’s with a heavy thunderous crackle. For a short while, the two men appeared to match each other in skill and heavy blows. James was even pulling out moves he never even knew he had. The young space warrior was fighting, his adrenaline and his need to survive giving him powers he never even knew he had.
Unfortunately, however, James’ survival instincts were to soon be forced to succumb to the king’s superior skill, for the king dealt to James, a very powerful blow, which had him immediately floored.
Not wanting to give in, James clawed at the sandy ground to grab his weapon, then he rolled up onto his feet, just about managing to shield his body from the king’s lethal sworsha.
Suddenly realising that, he could use his body as a weapon, as well as the electrical sworsha, James kicked at the king, flooring the Urashan master for the first time.
Instead of plunging straight after Cryston, James took a moment to recapture his breath, listening as the loud crowds distorted his thoughts. Were they cheering? Were they shrieking? Were they shouting? James had no more time to lose, for the king was back up on his feet, running at him liked a frenzied bull.
Once again, the two sworshas collided, and as James’ eyes found the king’s face between the luminous blue sizzles, he realised for the first time that Cryston was no longer that conceited smug man. No, the king’s eyes were desperate, fearful, in need to ensure his own survival. The king wasn’t so comfortable now. The two men were equals now, both of them in with an equal chance of surviving this fight.
Feeling spurred on by this, James felt his body sending more and more surges of adrenaline into his blood. He could feel himself starting to gain the upper hand over the king. Cryston was skilful, yes. But he was old, slower, and not as powerful.
With the most powerful thrust that his arm could muster, James whacked the king’s sworsha with his, sending the feeble old man back down to the ground where he belonged.
No longer needing to collect his breath, James ran full pelt at the king this time, aiming to finish him off.
THUNK!
James collapsed to his knees, just as his sworsha fell down beside him. The king had kicked him straight in the stomach, and the young space warrior could not move, for he was too heavily winded.
As he tried to desperately summon the strength back into his body, James could hear the king creeping up behind him, reactivating both of the sworshas.
With a sudden burst of energy, James jumped up from the ground, turning around to face the king, only to be kicked straight in the chest. James’ body swivelled back around, just as he fell to his knees once again.
Feeling the warmth of the electricity surrounding his neck, James’ eyes found the human cage once again. He could see his friends, all shrieking, begging for him to get up and fight. But how could he? When his head was only moments away from being sliced off?
“Well, well, well, boy!” The king victoriously began, “Your fight proved a little more interesting than I thought it would be. Nevertheless, your efforts were still in vain. The time for your death has reached you. You will not die by my sworsha, you will die by your own blade.”
Still at the sidelines with her relative, Crystaline watched as her father threw away his own sworsha, setting James’ onto just its blade. In that moment, everything around the Urashan princess went silent, almost completely silent, for she could only hear one thing. Her heart, frantically beating, beating out a name. James’ name! Not able to watch her father destroy the one man she loved, Crystaline found her brother’s eyes. With her anguished expression, Crystaline bid a silent farewell to her brother, and then she ran, she ran straight towards James and her father.
Never one to give up, James stood on his feet as soon as he felt Cryston turn to swing his weapon one final time. Before James could even move a further muscle, he felt a push on his back, just as he heard the horrific sound of metal slicing through flesh.
Realising that he was not in pain, James felt an impulse to turn around.
What he saw was far worse than death.
There Crystaline was, stood between himself and the king, the sworsha embedded deep inside her chest.
The shellshocked king impulsively released his sworsha from his daughter’s chest, allowing her body to gush with bright red blood.
The Urashan princess fell straight to the ground, defeated by her own father’s strike.
Chapter 29
James fell to his knees. His body could no longer take the pain. The young space warrior’s heart had shattered into tiny little pieces.
As he crawled only inches to be by the princess‘ side, James could hear the distraught cries of Crystos. He could hear the crowds falling deadly silent all around him. The worst thing? James could hear the last dying breaths of the Urashan princess.
As he took her cold lifeless hand in his, James’ eyes met with Crystaline’s. He watched how her golden irises allowed one final tear to escape from her tear ducts. As the two last tears rolled down her cheeks, Crystaline sucked in the air all around her one last time, then that was it. She was gone. Her life had left her body.
“No, Crystaline!” James croaked, feeling completely and utterly overcome by pain, anger, hurt. With his hands violently shaking, James gently closed the princess’ eyelids. Was this it? Was this really it? Crystos? His shouts? The man, the Urashan prince, he would not stop shouting.
With a sudden blare of sound, Crystos yelled at the very top of his lungs.
“YOU MONSTER!!!” He roared, using all his anger, all his agony to free himself fr
om the pole. The Urashan prince lunged straight towards his father, only to be seized by six guards before he could kill the man who had just murdered his sister.
James found his eyes first focusing on the anguished prince, and then he found them shifting to the equally anguished king. Both men, looked no more alive than Crystaline. The king and prince looked like ghosts, trapped in the most negative time of their lives. James wondered if he looked the same? It was certainly how he felt.
“Please!” The prince began to cry, all anger gone from his voice. “I just want to be by her side. I need to be by her side!”
The king took a bewildered step backwards, searching Crystanaphy’s eyes for an answer. What should he do?
“Let him be with her,” she choked, her voice strained by her own tears.
The king slowly turned his head to the guards who held his son.
“Release him,” his barely audible voice sounded.
After a moment’s hesitation, the guards released Crystos, allowing the heartbroken man to be by his deceased sister’s side.
“Crystaline!” The prince’s teary voice began, as he knelt down beside her, stroking her cold pale cheeks. “Crystaline, it’s going to be okay, you just need to wake up for one moment.”
“Crystos...” James whispered, no longer able to prevent his own eyes from streaming. “Crystos, I think...I think she’s...”
“No!” The agonised prince intervened, “she can’t be! Crystaline can’t be gone! She can’t...you should have heard...you should have heard the last thing I said to her. I told her, I told her that she wasn’t my sister. How could I? How could I say such an awful thing? She can’t, Crystaline can’t just go thinking that I don’t love her. Don’t you see that, James? She can’t be...Crystaline, my sister, she can’t be dead!”
With his body shuddering violently under the torture of his pain, James found his eyes looking towards the display, with Crystos’ words ringing in his ears. Was that really it? Could it really all just end like this? After everything? Or was there a way? A way to turn things around? Because Crystaline, she more than anyone deserved a second chance at life, and James, he would give his life for that woman. He would make it happen if he held such powers. The young space warrior’s eyes found the warm beacon of blue from the healing stone. It was lucky that, he did hold such powers, and the king, James could tell by the man’s anguished face, Cryston would jump at this opportunity to save his daughter.
With determination and relief in his heart, James stood on his feet, turning to the king.
“The stone, it can save her? It can give Crystaline her life back?”
The king took a startled step backwards.
“Why....I don’t know. The stone gives immortality to one person. But that...that would mean?”
“I know.” James croaked. It would mean that he would die. It would mean that he wouldn’t have to live in this Universe without Crystaline. Or at least, if he were alive, in some realm somewhere after this life, James knew that he would at least be able to watch over the Urashan princess, as well as all his other loved ones! His loved ones! James could hear them, Lottie especially in that cage, protesting and shrieking. The young space warrior loved Lottie, he loved his mother. He loved his friends, but no matter how much they begged him, James would not change his mind on this one. This was just something that he had to do.
“I know I’ll die,” the brave young space warrior continued on, “but I’d rather die than live this life without her.”
“NO!” Lottie screeched from inside the cage, “James!”
Feeling the gut wrenching pull in his heart, James walked over to the human cage, wrapping his trembling fingers around Lottie’s through the cage bars.
“I’m sorry!” James cried, tears rolling down his cheeks, “but I have to do this! I love her, Lottie! I love her!”
“No!” Lottie shrieked, with Phil joining in beside her, “you can’t! You can’t do this to me. To us. To everyone who loves you, James!”
Unable to continue watching Lottie’s agony, James unwrapped his fingers from Lottie’s, turning to face the king once again.
“You see, I’m not like you.” James croaked, “I cherish those I love. I don’t abuse them. I don’t use them for my own gain. I would die for the people I love. Can you say the same, Cryston? Can you? Can you honestly say that you’ve treated Crystaline and Crystos how they deserve to be treated? How your own two children deserve to be treated? I mean don’t get me wrong, Cryston, I understand your pain, I really do. But I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing it for Crystaline and Crystos. I’m giving them both a second chance at life. A second chance to be happy. And you, you can either remove yourself from their lives forever or you can change. It’s up to you.”
Showing little concern for the king’s stunned reaction to his words, James turned to face the weeping prince.
“I know we’ve only really known each other a short while, Crystos, but you’re like a brother to me, and you’ve gotta promise me, you’ve gotta promise me that you’ll look after her, okay?”
Looking lost for words, Crystos’ mouth gaped open,
“James...” the struggling prince began, “It might be too late, I don’t know if I can let you...”
“It’s not your choice,” James intervened, “I’m doing this. I’m saving her.”
“But you’ll die!”
“I know. But it’s something I’m prepared to do for the one I love.”
“James...” Crystos whispered, unable to argue anymore with the brave young space warrior. “You...you’re like a brother to me, too. And Crystaline...she...she loves you, too. I’ve never seen her smile like she does whenever she’s around you. I’ve never heard her laugh since...since our mother. I’ve never seen her hold another man with such affection. She was willing to give her life for you, too. It was real for her, too.”
“I know.” James croaked, swallowing down the terrified lump in his throat, still ignoring the gut wrenching protests from his friends. “I’m ready.” he said, nodding to the speechless king.
Without a further word, James collapsed down onto his knees, his eyes facing the cage containing his human companions once again. As he stared into the distraught faces of all his friends, James’ glazed blue eyes shifted over to Lottie, and the necklace around her neck. That necklace had belonged to his father, and maybe, maybe his mother was right? Maybe in some other world out there, his father still existed? Maybe he himself would exist side by side with his father? Perhaps Crystaline was already with his number one hero, waiting, just waiting to swap places and return to this world? James closed his eyes, no longer able to watch or even listen to his protesting friends. Any minute now, the king would strike. The man would send James on his path to death.
Hearing the king extending out his sworsha behind him, James sucked in what could be his last breath of oxygen from the Urashan atmosphere all around him.
Thud. Thud. Thud went the young space warrior’s heart. His own heartbeat was all that he could hear now. His ears no longer took in the sounds of his distraught friends. His ears no longer took in the sound of the king’s presence behind him. James could only hear his heart, beating not out of protest, but out of need. The young space warrior needed to do this. He had to save Crystaline, for he could not live in this Universe without her.
Screeeaaatch!
James felt a little scratch on his left bicep, and then he felt the area becoming warm, wet - blood!
As he slowly flickered his bewildered eyes open, James realised that his ears were able to take in their surroundings once again. Yet all was genuinely silent now. Lottie and Phil were no longer wailing. Instead their mouths were gaped wide open, their eyes fired up with something...relief?
Not sure what to make of what was happening, James slowly turned his head to face the king.
The Urashan leader placed the blue healing stone on the bloody abdomen of his daughter, and then he allowed the blood from his sworsha to dri
p onto the blue gem.
Realising that the blood was his own, James placed a comforting palm over the small little wound on his arm, then he crawled over to be by the princess’ and Crystos’ sides.
With an ashen face, the king knelt down beside his daughter.
“I’m sorry.” He said to James. “I lied, I only ever needed one drop. Crystaline, she did not know.”
No longer able to even care about the king’s admission, James turned his eyes back to the lifeless body of Crystaline. This whole thing, it had to work, because James, he could not live without Crystaline!
“C’mon,” a desperate James growled, “work, please just work!”
Why wasn’t anything happening? Why wasn’t the stone working?
“C’MON!” The young space warrior shouted this time, urging the stone to unleash its miraculous powers.
That was when it happened.
The small blue stone began to glow. At first the light was dim. But then it grew brighter and brighter, until eventually, the stone exploded into the most marvellous, the most stunning display of light that James had ever seen.
The awe-stricken young space warrior placed a shielding hand over his eyes. As he peeked through the gaps in his fingers, he could see it, he could see the most amazing, the most beautiful thing! There she was, descending gently through the space in front of him. A regal golden spirit. Crystaline!
James felt his heart suddenly leap back into life. It was as if his heart had been jolted suddenly with the most electrifying jolt of electricity ever. This was it! The stone was working! And Crystaline, she would be immortal. James, he would never ever have to live without her!
As the light began to recede, James unshielded his eyes, watching as the golden, sleeping spirit sunk into Crystaline’s lifeless body.
With his spellbound eyes, James watched as Crystaline’s drying blood began to evaporate away into thin air. He watched as the princess’ wound healed, and her damaged clothing repaired itself. Then the best thing happened when James began to notice the princess’ chest slowly rising and falling. Crystaline was breathing!
Diversion To Urasha (Space Era Book 1) Page 30
