Keeper's Knowledge (Balancer's Soul cycle)

by Lee Morgan

  Impulsive and Patient

  Connor woke up from another vivid dream again to see Sarah already sitting up and peering down at him, wearing only her black bra and panties. Her green eyes were studying him intently, searching for something he didn’t understand. He rubbed the crust from the corners of his eyes and sat up, feeling her worry and uncertainty over the link. He cupped his hand to her cheek and she closed her eyes to nuzzle into it. “Sarah, why are you awake? Are you still having those morning sickness heaves?”

  Her eyes reopened up slowly and she shook her head gently. “Connor, I’m worried about you.” She admitted quietly. Now it made sense to what her look meant. He took his hand away as she pulled her hair behind her shoulders. “I can tell something’s wrong with you. I don’t know what it is, but I suspect it’s because of your odd dreams.”

  He smiled absently and shook his head. “It’s not my dreams, Princess.” She turned to look at him with a confused expression. “I miss the outside freedom, it’s too cramped down here. I want to see plants and animals all around me. This is only the second time in my life that I haven’t gone outside within a twenty four hour period. The first time was when I received this.” He pointed to the center of his scarred chest. “I was in the hospital for weeks and wasn’t allowed to even feel the wind in my hair or the sounds of morning bird calls. I’m not claustrophobic by any means, but I just miss nature. I can see that you miss our quiet cottage as much as I miss the wild. Once we leave here, I’ll get better, I promise.”

  “Just promise me one thing.” Her features began to flush and she couldn’t look him in the eyes. “Can you please be a little more gentle with me in bed? Like you usually were… If I were anyone else I’d sport bruises from our time as one flesh. I’m alright now, but it still hurts afterwards…”

  He lifted her chin for her to look at him schooling his anxious features. He lowered his voice to be as gentle as possible though the agitation to leave the mountain remained. “I’m sorry if I hurt you, Princess. I promise to be much more gentle. Let me show you.” He leaned forward and gently pressed his lips to hers.

  Connor pulled away and she giggled. “Not that gently, my Knight. Let me show you what I meant.” She lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck. She walked on her knees and then straddled his thighs. She sat down and wrapped her legs around his waist before grasping his hair with her fingers and drew him down to her awaiting lips. They were soft, wet and passionate. In response, he wrapped his hands around her lower back which greatly intensified her kiss. It was like her lips were made to perfectly fit his and his rapidly racing heart agreed.

  The mood was instantly shot when they both felt an intrusion enter their minds. They both drew back as the voice began to speak. “The meeting of the Elders will begin in two hours. Please make any preparations you need and make your way down to level four with your tickets. I repeat, two hours until the meeting begins.” The intruder left their minds and left Sarah and Connor staring at each other in disappointment.

  “Just when things were just getting good,” Sarah sighed and her arms fell in her lap.

  “You’re telling me.” He said and his heart rate began to slow. He rubbed her silky smooth thigh and said “Looks like we need to get ready.”

  She agreed and quickly kissed him before she unwrapped her legs and walked over to the dresser to start sliding on all her armor and clothes. Connor slid out of bed and pulled his boxers on first and then everything else.

  About ten minutes later they were ready to depart. Sarah had her hair pulled back into a single ponytail that reached her lower back. Her petite and fair complexion hid just how immensely strong she truly is. She adjusted her armguards until they fit and moved comfortably under her sleeves. They each hooked their personal weapons to their hips. Before they left he found the large, folded tickets and stuffed them into their pockets.

  They walked out of their room to be greeted by both Mark and his sister in the hallway. They were both in their wolf forms and leaning against the wall. Connor asked “Why are you two looking like that?”

  “Brother, Mark said it is our law to be transformed in the presence of the Elder Changers.” Mark nodded with his big bulky head, still keeping his clawed and furry arms crossed over his barreled chest. “Supposedly it is to represent us as no longer being human, but something more.” She scratched the top of her head with her claws and turned to look at Mark for reassurance. “Did I say that right, Honey?”

  “I couldn’t have said it better myself.” He smiled with piercing teeth.

  The four of them waited together until Jillian and Jack left their room about ten minutes later. Jillian and Jack both brought their weapons and waved once they saw them. Jillian looked at Kara and Connor and asked “Are you kids ready to see all the Elders for the first time?”

  “I am!” His sister chirped and he nodded sternly in confirmation.

  They made their way outside and didn’t see Liz behind her desk. She must have to go as well. He guessed. Once outside, several people and giants were heading their way to the central staircase and disappearing below. Connor looked at his companions and kept walking to the central stairwell.

  A line formed and they had to wait a minute until there was a break from people coming down from level one. They saw a slow Keeper making his descent and took the opportunity to jump in and make their way down. Very few people were coming up the steps and those that were, was in a hurry. They most likely forgot their tickets when they were in the dining hall. The opening to level three revealed very few people eating. They continued past level three and descended promptly into level four like all others before and behind them.

  Connor came to an abrupt stop, in amazement once their group made it for the first time to level four. The diameter of the central support had doubled in size from level three to level four and he saw why. The room was by far the largest yet and had remained both the grandest and surprisingly subtle at the same time. They all walked down the spiraled steps until they reached the bottom of this floor. The staircase was off to the far side of the room instead of being in the center like on the first three levels.

  The line slowed considerably and they came to a clear understanding. There were four Immortal Guard Keeper’s looking at tickets and explaining where everyone were going to sit. They all walked up to a Guard and one that he’d never had the pleasure of meeting. Connor pulled the ticket out and opened it. He lifted it for her to see and she said “You will sit in the middle section, row four.” She said the same things to Sarah, Kara, Jillian, Mark and Jack. At least the tickets were sequential. Together they made their way to their designated seats.

  Along the way Connor received a good look at everything. This room had been shaped more like a giant crescent axe. The front section was somewhat squared and narrow. The back end of this room seemed to have been seamlessly grown into stone bleachers for everyone to rest upon. Six large ventilation shafts in the walls showed they were all blowing in fresh outside air. The seating for the crowd was actually made of black granite. There were four ascending rows of stone steps going along the outside and inside portions of the ancient seats. Three large sections emerged from the four rows of stairs and their group had to take the middle. The flat ceiling of this room was at least ninety to a hundred feet straight up. Connor knew they were well below sea level, even inside this mountain. Fifteen large pillars supported the flat ceiling and each one were slightly thicker than the ones from the other upper floors. On each pillar held five lights for this room. This room was well lit, even for a person with mild cataracts. Each pillar was placed at key points of the room, which alleviated Connor’s growing worry for a cave in.

  He now understood why Mark wanted to hurry before being stuck in the nosebleed section.

  Sarah and Connor started up the steps and turned off on the fourth row, in the middle section. The six of them walked to the end where about three Changers, that all looked like actual angels with two pairs of white wi
ngs and one wore a brown set, sat beside two Keepers and beyond the giants sat six Balancers, shoulder to shoulder on the stone row. Connor sat down next to a man with a deadly looking battleaxe, laying beside his left hip. Connor sat down next to the weapon and the other person didn’t even acknowledge him as he took a seat. Connor’s feet dangled about three feet from the ground of the filled third row. Sarah sat thigh to thigh with him and he put an arm around her shoulders and she rested her head against his ribs. Kara sat next to her with Mark and Jack and Jillian to his left.

  Connor then studied the impressive architecture of the stage before him.

  A singular of small marble staircase in the center that led up to a solid white marble stage that stood over ten feet off the ground. It was the perfect contrast to the stone everyone sat on. In the very center of the stage laid a darker shade of marble which was also slightly elevated like an ancient podium. There were two sides and a back wall made in a very peculiar fashion. About twenty feet in the air were three large stone platforms, one upon each wall and they too were made of marble. Connor knew that is where the thirty Elders would sit and look upon them all. Each platform had been crafted from pure marble as were all the individual seats. The solid seats were different for each section. The right wall held ten individual seats and were smaller for a single individual, the left held five wider seats for pairs to sit upon and the back wall’s ten seats were much larger to accommodate for the size and bulk of the Elder Keepers. The central seats were different for each platform because they were larger and much more elegant. Connor deducted that it would be for the Elder Leaders, eldest of each group. The Balancers central seat remained made for two people to sit, just like the others, but this seat had been inlaid with veins of gold. Even the central chairs for the Changers and Keepers were also lined in pure gold. The front of the seats held an open walkway with a single railing to keep the Elders from falling over.

  Behind the central seats were huge, arched Mahogany red doors that split open in the center. The doors were all jeweled with huge stones which would make Rhoda and many women faint if they ever laid eyes on it. Elegant and ostentatious made everything feel beyond wealthy, but as one gets older wealth doesn’t much value whereas its beauty will remain forever ideal. The linings for each door had also been made of pure gold and held the same carvings they saw when they first entered the mountain. He couldn’t believe the complexity of each door either, he guesses that one door alone would sell somewhere in the billions for its jewels alone. The amount of history seen and lived within the room far exceeded any amount of precious metals or gems.

  About thirty feet above each of the Elders platform held a banner. Each of the three had solid black backgrounds, but each banner held a different symbol threaded from spun gold. It reminded him of Elder Adela and Alexander’s robe.

  Off to the left wall held a five pointed star inside of a circle and he knew that to be the symbol for the Balancers. It was a golden pentagram. Each point stood for the five elements; Metal, Terra, Pressure, Liquid and Fire. Connor suddenly felt conscious of the armlet on his left arm.

  To the right wall draped a banner with a slit like Mark’s eyes; when his body had been altered to a certain extent and he knew that the symbol just had to be the side for Changers.

  The Banner of the Keepers was actually shaped like an hourglass. The top and bottom were each half full and a few trickles of gold gave the illusion that the sand was constantly falling out of the narrowed center. Connor knew why the Keepers chose that symbol. They were the keepers of time which held knowledge that he might not ever fully comprehend, even if he lived millions of years.

  “…are you listening?” Connor felt his sister reaching around Sarah’s shoulder to hit the backside of his head. She succeeded. He turned to look at her and she said “Now that I have your undivided attention, I asked you: What do you think the Elders will do first?”

  “Probably come out and introduce themselves to us.”

  Jillian began to laugh. “They do that too, but they usually start this day by telling the tragedy’s that have been reported since the last meeting.”

  “What’s next?” Connor asked.

  “Well that is tricky to say. Every meeting changes from time to time to keep it from getting too stale. The meeting will usually last all month so they might have something new this time. After the meeting there are new things for entertainment that will be open for us…” Jillian continued speaking upon the things they did in the past and he became intrigued with many of the prospects she mentioned.

  They all continued making small talk and the stands had filled to near capacity. Connor looked around the room to see many beings doing exactly what they were; passing the time. Two Immortal Guard’s were currently posted under each Elders platform and two more protected the top dais, looking for any sign of danger to their charges. Each of the twelve guards protected the Elders from any threat that might loom in the mass of immortals. Four Balancers stayed on their side, four Changers kept to theirs and the Keepers remained on the back wall. Two of the female Balancers shared familiar features and Connor knew they were sisters. They had dark skin and straight hair. He then recognized the two on the bottom to be Cassie and Marik, they were the ones he caught following them to the entrance of the mountain. Marik had a broadsword strapped to his back and Connor knew he could use it expertly by the way it moved with him. The bottom two Changers were a gorilla with long and big hairy arms and his partner was a female Cheetah. She had a sleek and lean body and he knew she would undoubtedly be fast. Their upper counterparts were two males in a similar shape of a lion with golden wings. The four female Keeper Guards looked the same except for their vibrant and unique eye colors. One had turquoise, power blue, blood red and pale gray eyes. Each of their golden pendants glinted off the rooms light.

  Connor noticed sudden movement in front of the marble stage as a line of Guards entered the room. He counted ten on each side of the stairs and they were mixed up with no apparent order and no dress code seemed mandatory so long as they wore the golden pendant. He then spotted Firon standing on the left side of the staircase to the stage. Then they all changed their stature and became solidly planted like an oak tree where they stood. They all looked like solders prepared for inspection, but Connor knew they were preparing for the arrival of the Elders.

  Connor squeezed Sarah’s hand and she stopped talking with Mark and Kara to look at him. Before she could speak they felt a foreign mind seeking entrance. “All rise for the thirty Elders.”

  The noise of the room immediately died and then everyone stood. There wasn’t any music or trumpets, but that didn’t make their arrival any less dramatic.

  The first door to open was that of the Elder Changer’s. Connor counted eight men and two women walking in a single line and separating to take their individual seats. Their chins were level and showed that they deserved respect and upheld station. Each one had a black robe with a golden catlike pupil, just like their banner, on their chest and their robes were all sleeveless. The thing that seemed odd is that not a single one of them were transformed. He guessed only everyone else has to manipulate their bodies. The five men all had long black hair which blended in with their robes. They all had comparable, pure silver eyes, but that is where the similarities ended. Each of their heights were different, but all were shorter than Connor, but not by much. Some of them attired wristbands or rings that looked too extravagant, but they were all real. The women on the other hand were identical twins and shared everything except for the cut of their black hair. They both had dark, creamy complexions and looked to be about in their early to mid twenties. The shortest and most muscular of all the men sat in the largest chair. Deep set eyes and a strong jaw gave him a serious appearance. He was clean shaved and high arched eyebrows.

  Next came out the Balancer Elders. They walked out in mated pairs, but in a single line. They all took their seats and they too all had sleeveless robes. The last to enter was Elder Adela and Al
exander and they took their loveseat on the far end; closest to the crowd. Connor’s eyes then drifted to the two sitting in the larger golden seat. The woman was by far the tallest female Balancer he has seen thus far and her mate is just as large. The two of them were as tall as Connor is, but not as thickly built. Both of their eyes were closely the same bright seaweed green color, compared to Sarah’s emerald. Their hair hung at about shoulder length and dark brown. At first he thought they were actually related, but their facial structure were completely different. So those two are our bosses… He thought to himself. He remembered being told that those two had control of the five elements, but unlike them, Sarah and he could use all five alone and independently.

  The silence became crushing until the doors of the Keepers opened and squeaked, making the sound echo in this silent room. He couldn’t see them coming because the central high seat blocked most of the view.

  They each walked upright once he saw the Elders moving into their seats. They all walked as of one mind and had their hands behind their back. Only three males made up the council and seven females began walking to their seats. The robes of these Elders had only a minor change compared to the other Elders, they all wore sleeved robes that came all the way down to their wrists. Each one had a slightly different gait, but not many realized that fact. The way they moved together didn’t seem right for some reason. Mainly the male Keeper to the far right gained Connor’s attention. His eyes remained closed and he seemed to be trying to make himself look smaller. The first one to sit down was the Elder in the center. The moment he sat in the largest ornate chair, the others sat down as one. His eyes were dark brown and his colleagues eyes held a rainbow of colors, but Connor couldn’t see the eyes of the last elder.