A False New Dawn
The Prophecy #12
By John Stevenson
Copyright 2010 John Stevenson
Even though Nicholas knew it was impossible to fight the Drakken no one else knew the power the craft could unleash, and it seemed in the excitement of victory that pure determination would prevail against it. Nicholas said nothing more; if they were to die then they should relish what they could, while they could
The others would have nothing of Nicholas’s warning. Yes it was indeed a fantastic machine, but it was only a machine and only one, and the tables had turned, so the morning was taken in consolidating their hold on the keep and cleaning up the last pockets of resistance in the city. The guards were good to their word and many; foolishly to Nicks mind, came over to the rebel cause, some even volunteered for the watch posted at the outer gate to warn of any attempt from outside forces to retake the keep. As news spread of the rebels taking the fortress, most of the other soldiers disbanded. A few had barricaded themselves in various guard posts; where they were now under siege by crowds of city folk.
Before midday stories came back of rough justice and retributions being taken by mobs in the outlaying countryside. It worried Nicholas of how the Marshal would react to these acts, once he regained power. The thought of the pits that people were unwittingly digging themselves into, made him shudder.
For him the midday meal was a somber affair, not at all the celebration it should have been; even after receiving news from further out in the district of successful uprisings against depleted and weakened local garrisons his spirits remained low.
The reversal of rule seemed complete, what they had not taken by attack they had achieved by right of possession of the main prize. Of course not all had gone their way, they knew now that the Marshal had, had knowledge of their plans for some time, and because of it many had died needlessly.
Nicholas wondered if word of the Drakken was spreading outside the keep. It remained below the wall so would not be seen from the city. He doubted any who had not actually seen for themselves would believe such a thing existed.
As for those in the fortress, no one ventured out into the courtyard. The threatening presence hovering over it, was more than the most confident could take easily; even without benefit of seeing its power.
During the day smoke could be seen rising over the city and word circulated that some official buildings had been set ablaze. To some the loss of records would be a bonus, but anarchy would benefit no one, so Nicholas sent Simeon to tour the city and discourage further destruction; besides offer escort to the keeps dungeons for any guard who wished to avoid the mobs vengeance.
While they were gone Nicholas visited the wounded in the dormitory; which had become a makeshift hospital. Next he visited the stables; part of these had been cleaned up and was being used as a mortuary, where the bodies of guard lay next to rebel; in death, as they had never been in life.
Passing the horses he heard a whinny and turning he saw Prince. He walked quickly across and clasped the animal’s cheek to him. “How glad I am to see you,” he said on the one and only moment he forgot about the future.
It was late in the afternoon when the messenger found Nicholas; telling him a visitor waited in the Marshal's apartments; but dusk was falling by the time he stepped over the remains of the smashed door.
The room was almost in darkness, and empty of life; the window to the garden was still wide open. He began to question his understanding of the message, as he wandered out onto the terrace. Still seeing no one he was beginning to think that his visitor had gone, when he saw a movement in the shadow under one of the fruit trees. “I’m sorry, “, he called. “I didn’t see you there.” There was no answer. “I have kept you waiting; but there were things that had to be done.”
At last there was a reply. “Too often we do not see, what is there to be seen,” said the shadow moving into the light.
“Reigel?” Nicholas suddenly felt as relieved as he had all day. “It is good to see you, though you put yourself in danger being here.”
“That is precisely why I came.” He wore the red and black tunic that Nicholas remembered from the dream. “There is unfinished business between us.”
“There is?” said Nicholas in curiosity.
“More so, now that you have shown you are capable of responsibility.”
Looking down into the courtyard Nicholas didn’t see it the same way. “I neither sought, nor wanted this responsibility.”
“No.” Reigel said softly. “None of this should have come to pass, but it has, and there is no going back, only forwards, and you must travel that way.”
“That way?” said Nicholas harshly, looking towards the Drakken again. “You talk as if there is a future.”
“There is, and a bright one if given the chance.”
The reply was slightly hostile. “You expect me to fight that with a bow or sword?”
Reigel did not respond to the remark. “Circumstances dictate events, and in turn those events dictate the actions taken.”
Nicholas’s severity eased. “You talk in riddles again dear friend. All that I… we have done, I could not have without your help, but to prove my fitness against such a thing I need more than your council.”
“It seems a long time ago now, but when I first came to your world I doubted you were a fitter man than any other, but the last days have shown you to be the one that this time needs.”
“I am not so sure that your first impression was not the correct one,” Nicholas said. “I don’t believe myself any different; other than what you have done to me.”
Reigel looked at him curiously.
Nicholas tapped the side of his head. “In how this thing that you... put in my head has changed me?”
Reigel smiled knowingly. “In what way?”
“Several ways; but by controlling my fear mostly. You said it would help me, but I did not think that it would control my brain in such a way.”
Reigel was still smiling. “Control your brain… You must enlighten me in what you think it does?”
“You don’t know?”
“I would like to hear your opinion.”
Nicholas shrugged in acceptance. “I used to play a game with my friend, by the river. We would blindfold each other and turn about three times. The challenge was to step forward, but…” He quickly spoke on. “The game was to know if we were at the rivers bank. A step forward at that time, and we got a dunking.”
Reigel was puzzled. “That sounds like a cruel game.”
“But you don’t know all of the game. It was about trust… or deception. We would ask a question, and the need was to understand the true meaning of the reply. The inflection of a voice; determine the direction of the sound of a ripple; sense the coolness of the water on a hot summer day, even feel the nature of the soil beneath our feet. But that’s not what I meant to say. When we were blindfolded, standing at the edge held no fear; but if we guessed wrong, and we removed the blindfold, the fear immediately consumed us.”
Reigel nodded in understanding, though he still did not see the relevance.
“It made me wonder what happens in our heads, and then one day I found a book in the Alderman’s library, it claimed our body produces chemicals that control our emotions.”
Reigel had stopped smiling and just looked perplexed. “And you think the implant produces the same chemicals?”
“Soaks them up; or maybe just control’s them?”
Reigel nodded in understanding. “Well you’re correct in a way; our bodies respond to hormonal changes, and these can produce a physical effect, but to implant something that controls the chemicals that we need to live would be reckless or even dangerous. Emotions are responses to events, a
nd they need a reaction; but like as not a machine could misunderstand the incident, and give the wrong response.”
Now it was Nicholas’s turn to be confused. “Please do not tell me that this implant is dangerous… though I suppose it has brought me to this point?”
“Not at all, its sum purpose is to replace the processing capabilities of the part of your brain that was damaged.”
“It doesn’t produce those chemicals?”
“No.”
“You said it would release… over time.”
“It did, do you not have ideas and understanding that you may not have before?”
“But my responses; it enhanced them?”
“I said there were things you needed to know, and to that end the machine became a reserve memory.”
Nicholas was dumfounded. “Then it is a memory… That is all?”
“Yes: more or less.”
“But I had no fear: I could think when I should have been confused: I could hear things that… No; that cannot be all there is?”
“Maybe it enhanced your hearing a little,
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