Excelsior (24 page)

“This would be a good time to say thank you, Lokris.”

“Enough, Hodera!” The bellowing voice of Nocterar filled the chamber as he slowly walked inside. Hodera turned to face her master and was immediately taken by the increased mass and definition in his scaly arms. He motioned to his general to lower her blade, ignoring the teal flush that rose up her neck and onto her face.

“So this is the gifted Denarian, yes?” Lokris looked ahead, refusing to respond to Nocterar’s questioning. He allowed the moment of time for her, then continued. “With your help, my dear, we will be shown the location of Danaak. And we will even be shown the possible location of your beloved Excelsior.”

Hearing his name caused Lokris to flinch ever so slightly. She took in a long slow breath, then nodded her head in acknowledgment.

“Then we shall begin.” Nocterar lowered his massive form onto the chair in front of the Leap of Faith console. Lokris moved into place behind him, then slowly placed her papery hands on either side of his head.

Before she could begin to concentrate, Hodera walked up beside her and pointed at her with the tip of her blade. “Make sure you succeed in your mission. It will not take a special type of blade to pierce your skin.”

“Patience, my dear Hodera. Patience.” Nocterar calmly said as he remained still in the chair. “Begin the procedure,” he instructed. Lokris shut her eyes and cast her mind into the vastness of space. She could detect a fierce tremor of energy and was irresistibly drawn to it, like a moth to a flame.

*   *   *

Two scientists hid behind a shelf of binders as Danaak slowly made his way into the supply closet. The stench of the humans closed in around him, so potent in the small space that it made him feel nauseated. He considered waiting for his prey to break for the door, but he could not endure their smell. He pressed his hand against his chest and felt the power of the jewel entering his body, giving him the most wonderful rush. The closet filled with a hum as the jewel transferred its power.

Vijay Patel and Nigel Armbruster threw their arms around each other and buried their heads in one another’s shoulders, awaiting the end. There was the screaming whine of the gem reaching full charge then there was – nothing. Danaak had frozen in his tracks. He could sense a presence.

“You again,” he murmured.

The scientists cautiously peeked at Danaak.

“We have a one in 10 to the 10th power of a chance,” said Patel.

“Almost imperceptible,” agreed Armbruster, shaking.

“Now?”

“Now!” Taking advantage of the distraction, Patel and Armbruster crept out of the closet like deranged crabs. Danaak took no notice of them. He stood motionless, his eyes shut tight as his mind raced past Earth's atmosphere, the inner planets and out of the solar system.

*   *   *

A crystalline humming sound emitted from Lokris as Nocterar concentrated. Hodera watched with wonder, lowering the blade aimed at Lokris as Nocterar began to move his arm toward the metallic sphere attached to the Leap of Faith console. As though the Krunation Emperor were in a trance, he placed his hand on the sphere and felt Lokris‘ connection pulling him closer to the energy of the jewel. The room shimmered as Nocterar and Lokris felt a bridge forming between Earth and Denab IV. Planets appeared in an iridescent haze before them. The Milky Way galaxy emerged as Nocterar's relaxed state shifted and he clenched his teeth. “He's resisting me,” he forced out. The room rippled blood red.

*   *   *

“Enough of this game,” Danaak growled as he felt the sinuous tendrils of Nocterar's mind probing for him. He tried to close his mind to the encroacher. “Stay where you are, Nocterar. You are a relic. I am the new order, and I will restore the Krunation Empire!”

*   *   *

“Traitor!”

Lokris’ eyes flew open, then rolled back in their sockets as Nocterar split the room with a roar of frustration.

“Master!” Hodera gasped. The room had become a swirl of black with clots of red, spattering through the air. It was clear that Lokris was in terrible danger as the conduit of a titanic struggle between the minds of Nocterar and Danaak.

Hodera jumped as Nocterar’s voice erupted. “You traitor! You have what is mine!” he bellowed as the elderly Denarian’s humming became a low, wordless chant.

The room darkened and new planets grew visible in the panel covering the Leap of Faith doorway, including a gas giant with spectacular rings. Nocterar’s black tongue flickered over his lips.

Hodera moved closer so she could look into his face. “Master?”

Lokris’ body began to tremble. The shaking grew more intense, then there a sharp intake of breath and the frail old woman collapsed to the ground.

“AAAAAAARRRGHH!” Nocterar immediately stood up from the chair. He focused on Hodera with an intensity that thrilled and terrified her. “I was right there! I had him. Your Denarian failed me. She lost my connection.” Nocterar swung around to see Lokris in a heap on the floor.

“Dead?” asked Hodera.

“If she’s fortunate,” said Nocterar.

Hodera signaled for a guard, then simply pointed to the old woman lying still.

Nocterar then placed his hand back on the Leap of Faith sphere. “Still, she did well enough to get us this far. Now I know on which planet Danaak is hiding,” he said as the image on the doorway was now of a blue-green planet. He closed his eyes and concentrated. “You are close,” he whispered. “Unleash your power so we may be united once more.”

From a distance, Nocterar could hear a faint whisper, “It will be a pleasure, my Lord.”

*   *   *

It took terrible effort for Danaak to wrench himself back into his body. The gem could barely guard him from the onslaught of power that had poured from the mind of Nocterar. Slowly, he opened his eyes to see the semi-automatic weapons of four policemen.

“
Davis
, special forces will be here any minute,” said a tall, lanky officer. “We don’t know what we’re up against.”

“We need to do whatever we can to contain this, Klein,” replied a shorter officer with thick shoulders. “You! Hands up!” he barked at Danaak.

Danaak looked down at his right hand and was delighted to see that it was still glowing. He looked back up at the officers and smiled with twisted glee, then slowly lifted his hands.

“Why is his hand glowing?” asked
Davis
a second before a blast smashed into the heavyset female officer standing to his right. “Rodriguez!” he screamed as he watched her body disintegrate into ash before she could let out a sound.

A volley of gunfire rang out and the room filled with the stench of burning flesh again as a blast caught Corcoran, directly behind Danaak, full in the face. “Damnit,
Davis
, I told you we should have waited for special forces,” yelled Klein as he and Davis fled for their lives.

*   *   *

Klierra pulled up across the street from Tollund Laboratories, making sure that they were hidden from the view of police officers, emergency personnel, the media and fleeing scientists and students. Matthew sat quietly in the car, looking at his armor. He still felt uncomfortable putting on the helmet, but he had to make sure that he at least looked prepared when Jason, Zorribis and Grannik arrived with Excelsior's sword.

He looked around, curious about what was going on and wondering how foolish he’d look and how much attention he would draw in his armor. Would Rachel see him like this? No, there's no chance she could be around here at this moment.

Matthew heard a car door opening and turned around. Klierra stepped out of the car, followed by Karini and Radifen. “Are we going in?” Matthew asked, opening his door. Karini laid a hand on Matthew’s chest.

“Not you,” Karini said, his blue eyes growing dark.

Klierra agreed. “Last thing we need is for you to get hit by a stray projectile before the sword arrives and the transformation is complete.”

Matthew climbed back into the car and watched while Klierra, Karini and Radifen moved in closer to look at what was going on. The thought occurred to him that they looked like a family of bikers with Klierra in her combat gear.

They slipped up the side of the building, taking advantage of the pandemonium that was going on in front, when a door 30 feet away burst open.

“Get back!” yelled Officer Klein as he and
Davis
burst through the door.

“It’s got some sort of weapon,” screamed
Davis
as they threw their bodies over a parked car and ducked behind it. Attention immediately shifted from the front of the building and news crews ran up the sidewalk. Janet Chu from the local CBS affiliate was pointing out Klein and David even as they motioned for them to get away. Then the door banged open again and Danaak stepped outside. For a moment, he seemed overwhelmed and stared up at the sky, then the surrounding buildings. Slowly, he turned to the stunned camera crews shining lights in his direction, the pointing and gawking spectators behind the barriers, the hiding policemen and the SWAT team creeping up in commando position – and he smiled.

Matthew saw the scaled body of Danaak turning toward where he sat in Klierra’s car. There was a sharp intake of breath, then
New York
disappeared.

*   *   *

Excelsior stood dressed in a simple woven tunic, worn leather pants and scuffed boots of thick hide – the clothes given him by the Elders. He gripped his sword with a tight fist, and stepped out on to the surface of Denab IV. Almost immediately, a squadron of fully armed Krunation soldiers walked up to him, their rifles pointed at their enemy. Danaak, stood in front of them, the jewel half burned into his body.

“Well, well, well,” Danaak said. “Excelsior. At last.”

“Surely you recall having met before, Danaak,” Excelsior answered. “You were so close that you were able to drive a knife into my side.”

Danaak smiled. “Ah, yes. That was so long ago. You'll forgive me if my memory is less than perfect. And how is your memory, Excelsior? Has it been affected by your lifeforce being imprisoned within that husk, unable to heal or gain the sweet release of death?” His face twisted into a malevolent smile.

Excelsior studied his foe, his face calm and unfathomable. Then slowly, he dropped his left leg back and raised his sword into a fighting stance. “It ends here,” Excelsior said.

Danaak laughed and motioned his soldiers back, one hand pressed against the jewel, soaking up energy. Suddenly, he wheeled on his adversary and unleashed an explosion of light and heat. Excelsior dove out of the way. Danaak aimed again and Excelsior felt his sword blasted out of his hand. Overcome with excitement, Danaak leapt after the sword but Excelsior was quicker. He rolled toward the sword, seized it in his left hand then rose to his feet with an explosive roundhouse to Danaak’s jaw. The Krunation commander staggered to one knee.

A laser weapon whined to life. “No! Do not interfere!” Danaak spat, dark blood spilling down his chin. The soldier lowered his weapon and took a step back. Danaak wiped his mouth. “I shall enjoy being rid of you once and for all, Excelsior.”

“I had the same thought about you,” Excelsior responded.

Danaak struggled to his feet and, with a feral scream, launched himself at Excelsior. For a moment they resembled a lovers’ dance as they stood face-to-face, each grasping the other’s wrist, Danaak struggling to control the arm with the sword. The mesmerized soldiers murmured as arcs of energy leapt from their bodies when the jewels drew close. The muscles in Excelsior’s arms swelled as he summoned the strength to throw off Danaak and plunged forward to deliver a killing blow with his sword.

Danaak twisted away at the last moment as a soldier slid a staff across the floor to him. He lifted the weapon and, with a click of a hidden switch, made two fans of tooth-like blades spring from either end. The weapon screamed as it sliced through the air toward Excelsior. He blocked with his blade and as the duel between the reptilian commander and the Denarian savior drove them all the way to the Leap of Faith. Parrying another swing with his blade, Excelsior laid a hand on a low railing then swung himself over and onto the ramp to the Leap of Faith. He ran up to the chamber and placed his hand on the control sphere, closing his eyes as the panel covering the doorway flashed to life.

Excelsior kept his hand pressed onto the metallic sphere, but his concentration was suddenly shattered when the whir of the blades opened a gash in the back of his left shoulder. He felt a warm sensation as his dark blood started to run down his arm and slowly drip to the ground. Danaak seized the opportunity and smashed his fist into the wounded shoulder. Excelsior was driven to his knees in searing pain.

Danaak lifted his blood-smeared hand and studied it. “Did you ever notice how Denarian blood glows so wonderfully when it’s up against a source of light?” He placed his bloody hand on his chest and watched as it emitted a faint orange glow.