‘Please, Dragon. There is a way to erase the knowledge from my memory if you’d just accompany me to Gibal’s lab.’ She made her final appeal: ‘I can mentally block anyone we meet along the way, and if you don’t trust me then give me your thought wave neutraliser.’
‘Then what shall stop your kind reading my thoughts?’ Maelgwn posed. Aquilla was openly sobbing now and having seen the concern on her face when she thought him poisoned, he could hardly take her life for trying to save his.
‘I am very good at mind control,’ she blubbered through her tears, ‘please, please, believe me.’
‘Damn it!’ He let her go, startling his captive with his outburst. Maelgwn knew in his soul that to leave her alive would be a fatal error on his part. It boiled down to a question of Tory and his children, or Aquilla? What kind of a ludicrous scenario is this? Maelgwn began to pace in an attempt to ignore his own better judgment.
‘Dragon.’ Aquilla timidly called for his attention, and he stopped still to hear what she had to say. ‘Although you are not Durak, I know that somehow his soul is kindred to yours. I loved my husband above all others and still do! There is nothing I would not have done for him. If you can believe that, then surely you realise I won’t betray you.’
Dragon, this is Gibal. The lord’s voice came through the communicator pinned to the chest of Maelgwn’s suit jacket. My lab, immediately.
‘Perfect!’ He grabbed hold of Aquilla’s arm and made for the teleporter plate. ‘I’m taking one hell of a risk.’ He held her firm as he waited to be transferred to the outer exit doors of Gibal’s lab.
‘I know it.’ She looked at him, appearing most grateful for his trust.
There was a great gaggle of guards outside the outer entrance and down the long corridor that led to the inner door to Gibal’s lab.
As Zerrah was not amongst the men present, Maelgwn charged straight through the armed forces to the lab entrance, dragging Aquilla along behind him.
Inside, as expected, Maelgwn found Gibal alone. ‘What has happened?’ He demanded to know the Lord’s grievances at once.
The NERGUZ prototype has been stolen, Gibal informed, frowning when he noted the tight grip the Dragon had on Aquilla. Would you kindly unhand my assistant.
The Lord seemed more annoyed by Aquilla’s predicament than the theft. ‘No, I will not … she has learned of my true nature and until that information has been erased from her memory, she stays with me. I could use a thought wave neutraliser, however, if you have one handy.’
How did that happen? The Lord became infuriated.
‘I think how the NERGUZ was stolen is a more pressing concern at present,’ Maelgwn snapped, annoyed by his own neglect of duty.
As the device had been developed and stored inside a force field that only Gibal knew the code to, this theft was most perplexing indeed.
Maelgwn moved closer to the hovering platform on which Gibal resided. ‘I want every launch bay pad in the city shut down.’
That has already been seen to. The Lord conjured a thought wave neutraliser from the ethers and tossed it to the Dragon. And I regret to advise that Cornelin has been murdered. Gibal looked to Aquilla, sorry to be the one to tell her, then looked back to Maelgwn. The stolen item was not on him.
‘No!’ Aquilla cried and pulled herself free from Maelgwn’s grasp as soon as the thought band was secured to her wrist. ‘Who could do such a thing?’
‘Who indeed?’ Maelgwn pondered the possibilities, which were few.
Aquilla looked to the Dragon, horrified by his intonation. ‘Surely you don’t think he was involved in the theft of this … whatever it is that’s been stolen? If I do not know what this —’ she paused to recall what Gibal had called it, ‘NERGUZ is … then I assure you that Cornelin could not have known about it.’
Maelgwn cocked an eye, considering this was not entirely true, for if Cornelin had removed his thought wave neutraliser during their flight to Lura, then he could have acquired the information then.
Aquilla decided not to waste her breath trying to convince him, and curbed her annoyance as she turned to address her Lord. ‘Where is Cornelin’s body now?’
Where we found him, in the inner launch bay area. Zerrah is at the scene and will answer any questions you may have, advised Gibal.
Aquilla looked to Maelgwn, and he agreed with a nod. ‘Let’s go.’
The scene of the crime was being guarded by Zerrah’s men. Only their captain and Uriah had been permitted anywhere near the murder site.
‘Let them through,’ Zerrah instructed, noticing the Dragon and his sister being detained by his guards.
Aquilla ran straight to where her uncle lay sprawled on the ground and crouched to look over his body for the cause of death. This information was not readily discernible, although the look on the man’s face was one of great agony. ‘Dear Cornelin. What could you have done to deserve this?’ As Aquilla mumbled the question, something twigged in her mind and she turned back to view the Dragon with a look of accusation on her face.
Maelgwn knew what Aquilla was thinking despite the thought wave neutraliser she wore. If he’d been prepared to kill her for what she’d discovered about his breeding, then he would certainly not hesitate to kill Cornelin. This led him to wonder how much Aquilla knew about her uncle’s deception of him during their trip from the Aten to Lura?
‘Do we know the cause of death?’ Maelgwn ignored Aquilla’s cool glare and addressed her brother.
Zerrah shook his head. ‘The inner lining of his throat appears to be inflamed, so some kind of poison is looking most likely. We’ll know more after the autopsy.’
Aquilla looked back to her murdered kinsman and placed a hand gently on his chest as she leaned close to him. ‘I regret that my last words to you were spent in anger. Forgive me, Cornelin, I should have listened to your advice, I fear.’
She turned her icy glare back to the Dragon as she rose, and Zerrah noted an irregularity with his sister. ‘Why are you wearing a thought wave neutraliser?’ he asked with a suspicious tone in his voice.
‘Dragon’s orders,’ she explained simply, referring the question to Maelgwn to answer.
Zerrah looked to Maelgwn for an explanation.
‘My reasons have no bearing on this case, and that’s all I am permitted to tell you,’ he informed matter of factly.
‘Or he could tell you,’ Aquilla added in a smug, annoyed fashion. ‘But then he’d have to kill you.’
Zerrah caught Aquilla’s drift and raised his firearm to defend his sister’s life. ‘Well, I don’t really care about your mission, Dragon, but I am quite fond of my sister.’
Aquilla walked around behind her brother, thankful for his concern.
‘To defy the Dragon is to defy the Lord Gibal himself,’ Uriah pointed out. ‘Lower that weapon or I shall have you arrested, Zerrah.’
‘Do we really have time for this?’ Maelgwn intervened. ‘Our murderous thief is escaping whilst we argue.’
‘Unless we already have him,’ Aquilla added, to keep her brother from lowering his defences.
‘I have been with you all evening,’ Maelgwn pointed out.
‘How long has Cornelin been dead?’ Aquilla queried her brother sideways.
‘It would have happened about three hours before low tide,’ informed Zerrah.
‘That’s before I sought you out.’ Aquilla folded her arms, even more convinced of the Dragon’s guilt. ‘So where were you then?’
‘After I left Gibal I went to my quarters and was alone until you found me,’ Maelgwn explained.
‘In other words, you have no alibi.’ Zerrah was sounding more convinced of the Dragon’s involvement.
‘That is correct.’ Maelgwn decided to cut through all the speculation. ‘But I suspect your uncle’s death is connected to another crime that I have no motive for committing. Can you say the same?’ He looked to Aquilla, raising both brows to await her response.
Obviously Aquilla had no alibi either and
was enraged by his implication. ‘I did not murder my uncle,’ she stated indignantly.
‘Neither did I,’ Maelgwn advised. ‘And as none of us are going to be able to trust one another until we find the guilty party, I suggest we get on with it. If we can take this inquisition to the Lord Gibal, I feel sure he will vouch for my innocence in this affair.’
‘I feel sure he will too,’ Aquilla scoffed.
Maelgwn ignored her spiteful mood and got back to finding out the facts. ‘Have any vessels left Mazua since the time of Cornelin’s death?’
‘No,’ Zerrah replied, still unsure as to whether to trust the Dragon or not.
‘Therefore, the perpetrator is still amongst us.’ Maelgwn’s thoughts turned to who it might be. ‘Do Inanna or Shamash have any officials in the city at present?’
‘More than likely,’ Zerrah granted. ‘And Cornelin would have had dealings with them.’ He saw the Dragon’s reasoning and, disposed towards it, he lowered his weapon.
‘There are a couple of Leonine dignitaries enjoying our hospitality whilst they await word on a commission Inanna has with the Lord Gibal,’ Uriah advised.
Maelgwn’s calm demeanour turned stormy. ‘Why was I not informed of this before?’ As Uriah opened his mouth to retort, Maelgwn forewarned him, ‘And do not tell me it was because I never asked.’
Uriah closed his mouth with a look of desperation on his face.
Maelgwn took a deep breath to regain his patience. ‘Do you know anything about this commission?’
Uriah shook his head, his sights drifting towards Aquilla.
‘The commission was referred to me.’ Aquilla offered up the information, horrified to think that her work might have had anything to do with her uncle’s death.
Maelgwn immediately turned to Zerrah to instruct. ‘Arrange a meeting with the Lord Gibal at once. We shall meet you in his audience chamber presently.’ Maelgwn grabbed hold of Aquilla’s arm. ‘Show me the commission.’
The project was being stored in one of the lower security labs, so that Inanna and her dignitaries could keep an eye on its progress.
Aquilla led him into the work space and Maelgwn experienced an all-consuming past-life deja vu again as he observed the strange, silver, disc-shaped ship that Aquilla had constructed.
In his vision, Tory stood admiring the same futuristic chariot. ‘Oh my God!’ she slapped her hands together, delighted. ‘You’re building the chariot of Arianrod! That’s what they called it back where I come from.’ She circled the chariot, smiling broadly. ‘It takes one quickly to the place of one’s desire.’ Tory looked at him as her image began to fade. ‘Don’t you get it! I’ve used this to move through time already … hence, I know you make it work.’
‘Dragon?’ Aquilla clicked her fingers in front of his eyes, as he’d obviously drifted off somewhere else.
‘This is what the quasi-crystal was for,’ he stated surely, moving to inspect the chariot more closely. He wondered about the purpose of his vision, as he already recognised the time shifting chariot as one of Taliesin and Myrddin’s favorite toys. How he knew it was powered by the quasi-crystal was a bit of a mystery, but he strongly suspected he’d find the answer back in his past life in Atlantis.
Aquilla frowned at the Dragon’s certainty, for he seemed familiar with this type of transport. ‘You couldn’t possibly have seen this before. I only just completed it!’
‘It’s working?’ Maelgwn’s sights darted back in Aquilla’s direction.
‘Well, I haven’t tested it, as I was specifically instructed not to,’ Aquilla advised. ‘But I have followed the blueprints to the letter, and by all appearances, it’s in perfect working order,’ she announced, seeming rather pleased with herself.
‘Then under no circumstances is this transport to be handed over to Inanna.’
‘But the design blueprints came from her, therefore the chariot is not mine to withhold,’ Aquilla reasoned. ‘That’s how wars get started.’
‘I don’t know how Inanna got her hands on the chariot’s design blueprints, but I am fairly certain that the credit for its invention is not hers.’ When Maelgwn found five spare minutes he would do some past-life regression and confirm this hunch. He squatted beside the chariot and opening up a panel at the front he exposed the drive system, which was ignited by the strange chaotic crystal. Maelgwn reached inside and retrieved the stone, whereby the drive system ceased to function and fell into darkness.
‘Hey, you can’t do that!’ Aquilla tried to prevent him from concealing the precious crystal in one of his belt compartments. ‘Give that back!’ she demanded, when she failed to retrieve the stone.
‘Give me any more grief and I shall smash it,’ Maelgwn warned.
‘Me give you grief!’ Aquilla didn’t know whether to laugh or scream. ‘All I wanted was to show you a good time and this is the thanks I get!’ She shoved him away as hard as she was able. When he didn’t budge in his stance, Aquilla was only frustrated all the more. ‘I was wrong about you and Durak. You are nothing like him!’ She backed up to create a bit of distance between them.
‘No,’ Maelgwn confessed to calm her down, ‘you were right about us.’
‘Explain.’ Aquilla challenged him to convince her.
Maelgwn frowned with regret. ‘Alas, I am not permitted.’
Aquilla rolled her eyes, having predicted this response. She held her head in her hands to contain the wild assortment of negative emotions that were fighting for precedence in her. In the end, her sorrow won out and she collapsed into a chair to weep. ‘I hate this,’ she mumbled, raising her teary sights to look Maelgwn in the face. ‘Do you have any idea what the paradox of you is doing to me? What I am supposed to think, Dragon? How am I supposed to feel? Act?’
Maelgwn suddenly realised that he was being a bit harsher on Aquilla than he might have been were she not the very image of his lover. He figured this was his way of guarding against getting too close to her; this method may have been effective, but it certainly wasn’t fair. ‘Ever since I met you, I have been asking myself the same questions,’ he quietly confessed. ‘For my beloved’s soul is akin to yours … as you see Durak in me, so do I see my wife in you.’
With a gasp of astonishment, Aquilla’s tears ceased to flow. She raised herself and slowly neared Maelgwn, her expression reflecting her intrigue. ‘So … it would not really be any great threat to your marriage vow if I were to —’
Her kiss did not take Maelgwn by surprise and he allowed it to happen, savouring every second that the indulgence lasted. Her kiss was Tory’s kiss and the temptation of having her in his arms was too all-consuming for his senses to reject.
When the rush of passion was over, they stood staring at each other, their faces acknowledging how much trouble they were in.
‘I never imagined I would feel this way again,’ she broke the deathly silence.
‘Your feelings are wasted on me, Aquilla,’ Maelgwn was sad to concede. ‘I can never fulfil your expectations. I am not permitted.’
Aquilla backed up abruptly, clearly hurt by his words. ‘I have never met a creature so cruel as you. Why did you submit just now?’
‘Because I am weak,’ he snapped, unsure if it was the situation or his own lack of discipline that frustrated him more. ‘But, because I love you, I must keep my distance. If the situation were otherwise I would have —’ He broke off mid-sentence, thinking there was little point going into ‘maybes’ and ‘what ifs’.
‘You would have what, Dragon?’ Aquilla hounded.
Maelgwn moved to walk away, but stopped when he realised he was defending himself by giving her the cold shoulder again. He turned back to the distraught female and held out his palm to rest against her cheek. ‘I would have fallen in love with you all over again.’ His words were so welcome that Aquilla’s tears began to flow once more and he pulled her close and held her, until her burst of anxiety waned. ‘I never meant to cause you any pain, for you have only ever brought me joy.’
&n
bsp; ‘You have not,’ she sniffled as she let him go. ‘I can accept that we cannot be together. But I couldn’t stand the thought that you didn’t see me … that you didn’t feel as I do.’
‘I see only you,’ he assured.
‘Well … that’s alright then.’ Aquilla attempted to make light of their tragedy, forcing a smile to assure him all was well with her.
Dragon. Gibal’s voice resounded out from the communicator Maelgwn wore. I trust you have a good reason for keeping me waiting.
13
The Flight of the City
Have you completed your assessment of the situation? Gibal questioned as soon as Maelgwn entered the audience chamber where they had first been introduced.
Aquilla’s highly emotional state upon arrival passed unnoticed, as all assumed her uncle’s death was the cause of her dismay.
‘I have,’ Maelgwn confirmed. ‘And it is my recommendation that we dock this ship at the Aten and allow my Lord to conduct a full investigation.’
This suggestion met with a mixed reaction from those present. Uriah’s face lit up at the very suggestion of space travel. Aquilla appeared somewhere between stunned and horrified. Gibal seemed to be contemplating the idea. It was only Zerrah who verbally opposed it.
‘Do you not feel me capable of handling a simple investigation, Dragon?’
‘How can you find that which you are not permitted to know about, Zerrah?’ Maelgwn outlined the snag. ‘Investigate Cornelin’s death by all means, but there is much more at stake here and your Lord well knows it.’
Gibal had been putting off the move for some time now, but the situation was volatile. If he left it too long to take a side in this dispute between Inanna and his brother, he would lose Marduk’s protection and could well find Inanna’s wrath unleashed upon himself. None of the other Nefilim knew of Marduk’s cause. Only Gibal could, or would, aid his brother in fulfilling the development of his race of Chosen Ones and establishing Marduk’s innocence in the Dumuzi affair.
Agreed, Gibal conceded finally.
Chronicle of Ages Page 24
