Vrin: Ten Mortal Gods (19 page)

I snatched a few threads from the hallway and attached them to my leg. If this was a trap, Rath would most likely snip them and block my escape, but it was worth a try. Pulling the strands with me, I rose up into the dusty heights of the massive cavern. The wind felt cool and moist on my face. I rounded the large stone sphere and discovered a bridge crossing from a ledge on the wall, to a small arched opening in the center of the bead.

I touched down lightly on the bridge, examining the entrance to the rocky sphere. It was conspicuously vacant of guards. This put me on edge. I moved cautiously toward the opening, and as I approached, began to hear noises emanating from within-- but couldn’t figure the source of the sound. There was a grunt, and then a faint scraping noise, but it was hard to decipher through the persistent whispering of the cavern wind.

I pressed myself back against the wall and carefully peeked in. It was pitch black inside. A single beam of light cut through the darkness from a hidden source. I listened closer. There was a bump, and more scraping. I leaned in to allow my eyes to adjust to the darkness.

And without warning a figure leaped at me. I jumped back and hit the wall hard. Before I could could piece together a thought, it was on me, grotesque and vicious. At one time it had apparently been an ape, but had been modified in hideous ways. Enraged eyes flashed from underneath a rotted iron helmet. Steel claws bit into my chest plate. The scraping made a frightful noise as I flopped around like a rag doll, stuck between its deadly weight and the lip of the bridge.

In desperation I sent my power into it, but the blood drained from my face as I realized, It had no threads! With no time to contemplate the meaning of this little twist, I pushed my energy into the strand attached to my leg, and in an instant, found myself hovering several feet off the bridge. I picked up the wind weakly with my wings. Blood seeped from my abdomen, accompanied by a burning sensation.

The ape danced about the bridge in a rage, beating its armored chest with clenched fists. There was no way this creature could be here. Yet there it stood. And quite ominously. Moving about the threads of the bridge, a ghost in the machine.

Then it hit me. The Circle of Ghosts! If Kric’ tu could walk about in Vrin, then it made sense he could bring forces from the other side. This ape provided evidence of the realm Arganis had spoken of, the place where the ancient spirits lived. But-- was it a real place?

Maybe this creature was just a glitch in the program? It would take a seriously sophisticated computer to hold a world this enormous, and with all complex things, there were bound to be glitches...

It didn't matter.

Whatever it was, it was between me and my goal. And it was time to remove it.

I touched the edge of the railing and sent my energy into its threads, causing the bridge beneath the beast to become air. As the creature began his exit, his mighty claws dug into the rocky sides, holding him for a moment, but I graciously relieved him of his prize. With a screech of terror, it plummeted into the abyss, and I watched until it was nothing more than a tiny dot in the distance.

Returning to the bridge, I examined my armor. It was badly damaged from the impacts of the foul beast. The metal was split and torn around the mid-section. But this, and the gash in my side, was easily mended with a wave of my hand.

Again I cautiously approached the entrance, and paused to listen intently. All was silent, so I took a step in. There were no more surprises. To my left, where the single light beam filtered in, was the outline of a door. I took a section of the thread that clung to my ankle and made a thick match. As I struck it, the room lit up slightly. A bar stuck out of a circular opening in the center of the rusty iron door. Reaching out, I took hold of it. A loud clank echoed through the dark chamber. The door creaked loudly as it slid out of its stony pocket, and light pushed free from inside.

Again I paused. Everything looked okay. At least nothing was jumping out at me.

I crept in slowly. The interior was nothing like the outside. The walls were a rich tan colored stone, and the floor, black marble with creases of white. Silently I made my way down the hall, frequently glancing behind. I came to a door with a small window. Carefully I scanned around its edges for threads or traps. Finding none, I peeked in. The lighting was dim, but I could make out two figures against the far wall. Judging from their sizes, they were the two I’d come for.

My pulse raced. And the fear of the unknown gripped me for the very first time. Anything imaginable could happen. Death could be waiting for me on the other side of this door. --Funny I should start to fear death
now
.

I’d seen so much in this odd place, heard so much talk of religion and gods, good and evil. But I hadn’t stopped to think about my own place in the universe. People were counting on me, and it was possible I was the only one who held the key to the way home. But was I prepared to face the greatest unknown? --It didn't matter. At this point, there was no turning back. No matter what the cost, it had to be done.

I stepped in and created a wedge from the threads of the hallway floor to hold the door open. “My name is Jason. I’ve come to set you free,” I said, keeping an eye on the open door behind me.

“Oh thank the gods!” She picked the child up in her arms, and in crossing the cell, passed into the light of the torches. She carried herself in a proud, elegant manner, and was quite beautiful. Her pale features were almost perfect, with wide set green eyes, and flawless skin. The girl’s features were much like those of her mother’s. Both were very beautiful, but both looked exhausted. I stretched out my arm. The woman gently placed her hand in mine.

A loud
CRASH
came from behind. I twisted around to see an enormous stone block covering the door. I pushed my energy into the threads attached to my ankle, but they only brought me as far as the barrier. I laid my hands upon the stone and released my energy, but the threads did not light! In frustration I flung myself against it, but it was no use. The stone would not yield.

Turning back in toward the cell, I found the woman kneeling in its middle with her hands raised to an invisible barrier.
”Why
are you doing this?” There were sobs in her words.
“WHY won’t you let us go?”
Her daughter knelt beside her in silence.

A door opened in the rock behind them and someone entered the cell. As soon as he stepped into the light, I knew him.

“
Rath!”

Rath stepped up to the divider and smiled a broad sinister smile. “You have done a fine job, Sam, but it is time you took a break." I glared at him as my mind raced to find an escape. “The war is coming along nicely. You have stoked the fires, and we have accepted the challenge. But the finale is yet to come.” The sarcasm was thick on his tongue.

“You can’t win!”

“We’ve already
won.”
He laughed. “This world will dissolve, and things will continue on as if it had never existed.”

He sighed. "
I
will be a true god.
I
will sit at the right hand of the ancient one."

"You're
mad."

He laughed. "Your limited intellect cannot comprehend the magnitude of what is going on here! We will use Vrin to change the outcome."

"What? By destroying it?"

"Not by destroying it, by
transforming
it! You do not understand now, but..."

"ENOUGH!" hissed the figure in the shadow. Then it stepped forward.

My heart constricted with terror. My eyes darted back and forth looking for a weakness in the trap. But found none. Through the transparent barrier, I saw the woman and child begin to tremble. The young girl huddled in closer to her mother as they both cowered over with expressions of horror painted on their faces. I had let them down. I had let everyone down.

Dusky light fell across the grotesque disfigurement of the dark, slightly bent body of Kric’ tu. More specter than man, its form was tall and thin, with dark eyes sinking into a fleshless face. Patches of dark flesh, which looked sewn on, hung from its sickly gray skin. My stomach wretched to look at it.

He moved closer, expelling an airy laugh. “Look at you, Thomas. You are so angry, yet, you don't even know what you are fighting against."

The voice was familiar, but I couldn’t place it. And-- why did he call me
Thomas?

"I am truly horrible to look at, am I not? How clever of God to represent me as such. Do you know that in Ethral I am the most beautiful of all angels?” He turned away slightly. "But things are not always as they appear."

"You are strong like him, Thomas. And your power must be added to my own.” He took another step. “But first you must endure the darkness. On the other side, things will be clearer. After you have made the decision."

"What
decision?"

He hissed a laugh. “You must decide to follow your own heart, and cease being a puppet of God. Man will grow beyond the box God has put him in.”

I was trying desperately to follow his riddles. If I could not properly respond, he might lose interest in the conversation, and I was not done formulating my plan. “And this world represents a threat to that process?”

“Yes,” he hissed.

“So-- you would like to keep the scales balanced toward evil.”

He sighed in annoyance. “We are not
evil.
We are chaos. You do not understand, but you will.” He turned sharply, and with a withered hand, effortlessly pulled the child from her mother’s arms. The girl let out a desperate scream and I flinched as he struck her across the face.

I felt so
helpless!
What could I
do?

Kric’ tu’s gnarled fingers twisted into the girl’s hair as she began sobbing uncontrollably. “These two pose a threat to us.”

“A threat! They’re
harmless.
They've done
nothing
to you!”

Kric’ tu produced a knife from his long dark sleeve.

“Take
me
instead!”

Rath laughed. “We already have you!” he said, stepping forward and putting his hands on the woman’s shoulders to keep her from rising.

“If they live,” hissed Kric’ tu, “Gaza will find the hope he searches for.” He adjusted his grip on the struggling girl. “That is simply unacceptable.”

“Your army has been crushed. And now it is time to extinguish the last flame of hope for you and your so called
cause.”
The knife moved quickly to the young girl’s throat.

“
MOMMY!”

Pulling my pistol from the holster on the small of my back, I gripped it tightly, and began moving toward the veil. Both Rath and Kric’ tu leaped back in surprise as I began firing rounds directly at Kric’ tu’s head. Only one bullet needed to get through.
Just one!
My anger increased. Kric' tu flinched as bullet after bullet smashed into the barrier. Round after round chewed into the shield. And my fury continued to elevate. --But then the weapon began to click.

And the power left me.

The gun was empty. Not one bullet had pierced through. I hurled the pistol at the glass. It cracked, but instantly the tiny fragments began fusing back together. Rath was fortifying it!

I slammed full force into it with the metal of my shoulder. But it was no use. Rath laughed, and as I glared at him with a growing hatred, a new resolve began to build within me...

But what happened next will haunt my dreams forever. Kric’ tu’s blade slid smoothly across the young girl’s throat, and I watched in
horror
as her life’s blood drained from her. The expression on her tiny face was more surprise than fear, as though she did not understand what was happening to her. He opened his gnarled fingers and her lifeless body slumped to the floor.

I beat my fists against the barrier with fevered aggression.
“Noooo! I’ll kill you! I'll KILL you!”

“Not likely,” he said, with a twisted smile.

Rath dragged the woman to the girl’s bloody form. She wailed and clawed at him, but he held her tight with ease. His eyes held no remorse. No guilt.
How could such a monster have been chosen for this experiment!

Kric’ tu grabbed the woman’s hair and pulled her close. No! Things were moving too fast! I needed more time! There
had
to be a way to stop him! The woman’s face was wet, and her pleading eyes dug deep into my soul as she mouthed the words, “
Help-me.”

I was completely powerless.
No. WAIT!
I could not manipulate the threads around me, but I still had
my
threads! I got up and turned my back to the scene. “I do not care to watch any more,” I said, desperately hoping to allow myself the few short seconds I needed.

Kric’ tu’s voice floated in from behind me. “No stomach for reality, Thomas?” he taunted. “Perhaps you are not the man we thought you were. You’re allowing your spirit to get in the way.” He paused. “You know, you were not always a puppet of God. This place has done something to you. --No matter.” There was finality in his voice.

I was ready. “There is one last thing I would like to say,” I stated loudly.

“Yeah.
What?”
said Rath.

“This!” I turned, and falling away from the veil, rolled until I hit the far wall with a clank. What had once been my hand skittered across the floor and came to rest next to the barrier. The deafening explosion created a shock wave that pinned me against the wall. The pressure pushed in on my sealed ear passages. My armored body shook as the walls quivered.