Issue 23: Phase 2
The Arcane Order has been waiting for 1000s of years. We can
wait a bit longer. Now that the turning points have arrived I find a certain
level of focused energy will be required.—Proctor Gansys
The Highest made the Pantheon of
“Gods” to hide the battle plan within each Apocrypha. No single one of us had
the whole map. Wheels within wheels. Legends and Myths. Purpose made
manifest.—The Arcane Hand Revealed
I
was never one for poker. No, that was left to Dexter. The Highest knew our strengths.
Our weaknesses. Just as he knew Abbadon’s. The trick? When all was said and
done. Make him believe he had a chance. The trouble with that? He nearly
succeeded.—Sleeping in Starlight: Vol 20
The Golden City
Earth (Edenverse)
Principality of Egypt
Meathook
tested the air.
There
was no way into the Golden City through the Veil. That was controlled by the
Highest. It padded softly against the cobbled streets of the famous Egyptian
city. The old ones had known of its coming. It took joy from the frightened
mutterings of Sheol. The cursed place. Those claimed by Unity suffered within
that realm. But that was merely the outer layer. Abbadon controlled the rest.
The Highest had his hooks within that realm. Those of a certain faith called
that sliver of “chance” Purgatory.
Meathook
cooed.
It
knew better. It would learn much within the physical realm.
One
only had to be cautious. A notion lost on those like Karvax.
Meathook
snorted. Or Thoth.
Its
black tongue tested the air.
*****
Micheal Brookes smelled it.
The mixture of brimstone and that
amber honeycombed suspension fluid. His son paused. The Golden City was
bustling with activity but Father Brookes knew that intense stillness. He
gripped his rosary and muttered a few light incantations. Catherine Bel’s
ghostly form rose from his mother. Each woman had been wronged by the puppets
of Abbadon. It had been easy to find the
souls and anchor them.
Alice’s body had to go through a purification
process. As one of the Unseen.
Father Brookes crossed himself in
remembrance.
Dexter
Murphy. The Arbiter of Death. Thronebearer of Entropy. For the cycle to
continue one had to bear that burden. The broken covenant must be repaired. Bel
would never regain her body but as a spirit? Her eyes could detect frequencies
they could not. She followed willingly. Bel pointed. Her voice was a faint
shadow to the ears of the living.
Little bit of red. It pools about. Run
rabbit run.
Alice
Brookes took her husband’s hand, “The rot cannot enter the Veil.”
Micheal’s voice tightened.
“But it can spy.”
They owed Murphy everything. They
would serve the Arbiters until their last breath.
*****
Meathook stuck to the shadows of the
buildings. It could not be found. Meathook hummed silently. Three heartbeats
here. A few more 5 miles in. The shockwave boom shook the pebbles. Civilians exclaimed
as the Banner landed. The scent of green foliage wafted through the air. Its
lips pulled back.
Revealed
three rows of dagger-shaped teeth. “Do you see it, Protector? I know the taste
of her tears. O’thia’us.” That mix of
red, white, and blue mattered not to the one protected by the Red King.
*****
That line.
I
always thought it meant Nyx’s treatment during my birth. It did. But that was hardly
the only event. Abbadon’s purpose frightened me. Where Unity was loud and
obnoxious with its evil? The Red King coiled gently. A thief in the night. I
focused. First the heartbeats of humanity. The sounds of animals. Until I canceled
out everything rippling across my ears and skin.
O’thia’us.
The Typherian word for Deathwalker.
A
special class of Hell Spawn.
I
dove deeper into the Ur-Flow.
*****
Micheal skirted to a stop. In the
courtyard the Star-Spangled Banner stood floating 3 feet in the air. Arms
crossed. Boot tips pointed to the ground. Eyes closed. Alice noted quietly on
their private coms net, <<Her wings are half-formed within the Veil. It
is here.>>
Miles took out his flask. Plunged it
into the fountain near Star.
“O Lord on High. Bless this water
for it is of your blood.”
A golden and black blur arrived.
Bulleteer knelt as Brookes poured the waters of the flask over the taller demi.
The Father pressed his rosary to Bulleteer’s forehead, “I grant you the
sacrament of protection.”
He added silently, Highest preserve his soul.
*****
Meathook winced.
The
aura of the wings stung at the eyestalks quivering upon its head. It giggled.
The sound made the former slave body whip about. Those crystalline blue eyes.
Filled with hate. Meathook sank its talons into a side of a building. The
falling material directed the gaze of the enemy. Good. Testing was so
important. The one thing it appreciated from its mother. Dear Nyx. The Black
Scrawl could not form here. Pity. He’d toy with them the old-fashioned way. Its
fingers tensed. It left shallowed marks upon the cobbled streets and rooftops
as it jumped.
*****
Micheal forced himself to aim his
handgun at the crumbling wall.
The yellowed creature maneuvered up
the side of the wall. Then leaped gracefully to another rooftop. Micheal
advanced carefully. So that’s what Dexter wanted to know. Who could see the
damnable servant of Abbadon? He noted by the tense set of shoulders that his
wife and son could see a glimmer of the creature.
Micheal got the full picture.
Hideous.
They
advanced to the damaged wall.
Couldn’t let it know. Sweat poured
down his face. It was behind them now. Its claws scrapped upon the cobblestones.
Laughing in that high-pitched giggle that sounded like a 6-year-old girl child.
Micheal bent down to touch the cobbled stones. Blood filled his mouth. He
nearly blacked out from the pressure of Abbadon’s favored sigils.
He could hear clearly.
“Which little bit of red to take? I
know. What new lovelies would come from a drop of Thronebearer blood.”
How to save Star?! The idea hit him suddenly.
Her ultimate Achilles heel.
Micheal
commed Lanis, <<Start screaming.
Code Broken Bird.>>
*****
Lanis stretched and secured her running
shoes. It had been a while since she’d been in full civilian mode. It was a
nice change of pace. She clipped her hair back into a ponytail and set out on
the runner’s path from the Bathhouse. She admitted it. The Veil had a stark
compelling beauty. The sky above was a brilliant purple. All manner of birds
called out from every kind of branch imaginable. Didn’t matter what the region
was. Animals could phase into the Veil easier than humans.
This side of the Golden City had
been a quaint paradise—then her HUD blazed with the red and white bars of an
Override Alert.
Lorain
didn’t hesitate. Broken Bird meant that the Order believed Eliza was in
immediate cosmic level danger. She was the only one that could make Eliza
return to base. Within the Veil, they were supposed to be safer. But in this situation?
She’d
make an exception.
She
let it rip. It wasn’t hard.
All
she had to think about was the All-Father’s baleful gaze. Then she screamed for
real as a shape rose from the mystical waters. Lorain dived behind a set of obsidian
blocks. They glowed blue as they absorbed the monster’s ice breath. Note to
self: Go back to Union Hall and add this to the scenario list. Her heart rose
into her throat as metallic beetles crawled up her arms.
*****
That’ singular note of dread filled
my ears.
Shattered
my concentration.
I
phased through the Veil. Doc wasn’t alone. I rammed my fist into the black
snake that had risen from the waters. My hand passed through like it wasn’t there.
I frowned. What in Earth’s name was going on?!
I
didn’t have time to page my father.
That
would have to wait.
*****
Q’vera
flexed her fingers.
She
had been linked into Brookes’ coms as a precaution. To help safeguard his
family since their arrival back into Eden Space. She dragged her fingers across
the sands. The “snake” followed her movements while Tobin Murphy added the “ice”
effects. They both knew that Lorain had to play the part properly. Eliza could
tell if it was a normal scream vs “Terrified! Save Me Captain!” output. Tobin
trusted his aunt. If that code meant his supremely powered sister was in
trouble? He’d play hardball about it later. He’d rather have them upset than
dead. It had been hard enough with her first beyond-the-pale experience.
He
made a note to add another set of Florida’s finest ale to the menu.
From
the shade of pale on Micheal’s face in the feed? They had prevented the
apocalypse. Micheal shouted, “Who put up these wards?! My grandmother could do
a better job!”
Tobin
frowned. His eyes narrowed.
The
outer edges of Brookes’ eyes had gone dark red. The remark had been on a system-wide
alert as well.
Q’vera
hissed, “Keep firing!”
He
shook himself and loaded another ice shot into the “snake.”
*****
Meathook smiled.
One of them could see and hear him. Interesting.
It watched. Memorized the faces
within the courtyard. It would never be able to pierce a Thronebearer. Only the
Knife could do that. Or one of the orginal fallen. Like Lucifier. It chortled to
itself. This had been a valuable play. Thoth would have done the fancy fireball
or his continued failure to invade Eden Earth. Living Stone was almost
limitless. But it was a basic construct. One that could be countered by the
lowest of Light Shamans.
Or a common Priest. It circled the
spot that the Banner had occupied. It squealed and spat. “Pity. Little birdy
flew away.” It would chip away at the Highest’s prized pupils. Not through
brute force. No, that was far too churlish. Meathook rose to its full height.
“Be seeing you.”
It stared at the Golden Bulleteer.
It would start there.
*****
I circled the massive snake. My eyes
widened as I listened to the resonance of the metals.
Typherian Matter Manipulation.
I whirled about. “What the-“
Lorain shrieked. I dived.
Scarabs crawled all over her. I
pulled off her shirt. No blood. Same resonance.
It wasn’t the Urraden side of the
family. The other bugs broke apart. I handed Lorain her shirt back. I butted in
politely along the mental line, >>What in Earth’s name is going on here?!<<
It hadn’t been a prank. Doc’s glassy
eyes told me that. She huddled against me for a moment then pushed off. Glared
off to the other side of the river as she incorporated her own talents. She
drawled out each word. “There. Better. Be. A. Good. Reason. For. That. Code.”
I knew that voice. Tobin responded, “I
swear upon the twin suns there is. Right aunty?!” My aunt appeared in a flash.
The rocks around her faded from view. They had been made of metals that could
block my sight. My conventional enhanced sight that is. As Lorain tapped her
foot, I knew the real reason.
I was a bull with blinders on when
it came to her. I kicked myself mentally. Of course the Order would make a code
like that. If they needed me anywhere at a moment's notice? Push the Lanis
button. I rubbed the back of my neck, “I’m that transparent?”
Q’vera ambled over, “Focused.”
Lorain blushed and stared up at me, “I
promise. They only shot that code out because…”
I
nodded. “I trust you. But why rile Doc up even more?”
I
directed that statement at Q’vera. My aunt’s eyebrows rose, “To help the
Brookes clan. They have a connection with your brother. It’s making everyone on
edge.” I pursed my lips at that. I concentrated. Their heartbeats were
elevated. Father Brookes was chanting within that courtyard I just vacated. The
sounds of the physical world faded as a wave of cold washed over me. Lorain
noticed my distressed expression.
“It
wasn’t meant to drag me away.”
Q’vera
cursed.
Tobin
added, “Anyone in that plaza is on that thing’s hit list then!”
Knives
in the Dark.
I
connected with my twin brother. A pit formed in my stomach.
There
was no answer. Just a hiss of white static where his mental voice should be.
Issue 22: Here
Issue 24: Here
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