Thraysdee, the 3rd of Falling, 768 A.E

  Genero steeled his heart to not give way as he raised a fist to knock on Corydon’s door. His mind was awash with dozens of thoughts. He’d just returned to Cenalium, and he’d not had a chance to see his wife yet. Now he had to admit failure to the man who might hold his fate and the fate of his family in his hands.

  His fist came down heavily on the door, partly because of the anger he felt at feeling so much helplessness because he was tied up in this mess to begin with, and because Illias’ temper might have cost him everything he valued in this world.

  Corydon’s door swung open slowly, revealing the same grey traced with amethyst desk as before, and the same silver-haired figure behind the desk. The door clicked shut behind him when he entered. Genero frowned. This time, the room was darker than before. There were only three crystal pods giving off light in the whole room, and they were near the ceiling that was almost five Mayters overhead.

  Corydon caught Genero’s gaze as it lowered down from the ceiling. The smile on his face was strictly predatorial. There was no warmth in his expression. He knew perfectly well what Genero was thinking – that there was something indecent and alien about such a dimly lit room.

  “I understand you lost Anthea. Illias told me all about it.”

  Genero gritted his teeth. This man might hold his fate in his hands, but he wasn’t about to let himself be misunderstood. His sins and mistakes were his, and he didn’t need someone else trying to add theirs to his. “I trust he also told you how he disobeyed my orders, threatened to kill me, and proceeded to run her ship into the rocks after setting it ablaze?”

  “I am aware of what happened. I was watching some of it from a Farsight Outlook station, but the clouds and smoke obscured much of what happened. I was disappointed to say the least, that it took you so long to get back here after the fact.”

  “Well, your men went a bit overboard burning the town. So much so, that we didn’t have the batteries left to make it back here. We had to recharge for a Dee and a half in the ruins of Harsbrukke.”

  “Again, you blame my men for your failings.” Corydon said with a shake of his head.

  “Nelius damn Illias and all his abominable kind that you sent with me!” Genero shouted, spitting the curse at Corydon with venom he hadn’t known he could muster. “Your men committed unconscionable acts under your orders, and they followed your secret agendas. Why was I even there? Do you think I appreciate risking my life when my orders are ignored and my experience cast aside so that an ill-tempered pet of yours can run rampant?”

  Corydon clicked his tongue and steepled his hands. “I’ll warn you only once to check yourself, Captain. You forget yourself, and if you do it again, I will have you killed.”

  Genero’s mouth went dry as he bit back a retort.

  “That’s better. Now why don’t you sit down and shut your mouth while I explain things in a way that even you can understand?” Corydon suggested, waiting until Genero had done as he asked before continuing.

  Genero slumped tiredly into one of the two uncomfortable chairs on the opposite side of the desk from Corydon. Sitting only reminded him of how tired he was, and how he hadn’t dared to sleep after the attack on Norsjalde for fear of what Illias might do to him. It also gave him a moment to look at Corydon, basking in the pale light of the room. It was quite evident that whatever had been done to Illias and his men, it had also been done to Corydon – if in a lesser extent.

  “You were sent to give the errand a sense of legitimacy.” Corydon said slowly, letting his admission sink in before continuing. “The Greater Helion wouldn’t have allowed my untried captains out there on such a rare sortie into the lowlands without a trusted officer at the lead.”

  “So the Greater Helion knew what you planned? He knew we would burn and kill whatever stood before us?” Genero asked in surprise.

  “Fool, do you really think such a high-ranked official of our people would care about the minutiae of a simple mission like yours? He has the business of running our great city to attend to. Even if he bothered to care enough to see in his wisdom to delegate the authority to someone like me to make sure that every effort was made to recover the girl, that doesn’t mean he will actually take the time to watch how it is done.”

  The way he referred to the Greater Helion and spoke of him seemed less than deferential. It made Genero wonder what exactly the relationship between Corydon and the Greater Helion was, and what the Voice of the Firmament knew of this. Surely the High Priest of Maletos and Haestos wouldn’t have backed this bloodbath. “I guess not. I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

  “But as I was saying before you interrupted, we needed someone with a reputation to lead the mission, even if it was only in symbol. Illias had his own objectives and ambitions that I had not foreseen, and I fear I might have made a mistake in choosing him. The death of his brother and his subsequent wounding at the hands of one of Anthea’s allies pushed him too far. There was probably nothing you could have done to stop his attack on the boat.”

  “Probably? Even had I killed him, his men would have killed me and then carried out his orders.” Genero insisted.

  Corydon shrugged dismissively. “Perhaps, but I’m not going to worry about what cannot be undone. Illias has been punished, and he won’t present a problem to you on the next stage of your mission.”

  “Next stage?” Genero echoed, disliking the taste of the words in his mouth. “Anthea is dead. The Kerathi are likely howling for revenge. What more can we do?”

  Corydon leaned forward, resting his elbows on his desk. “Do you think that Illias was the end of what I have at my disposal? Do you think I would only have twenty of his kind to do what I wanted, and that Anthea was the extent of my desires?”

  “I don’t understand. I was supposed to capture her and then I would be able to see my wife again.”

  “Ah yes, your wife. Cerelia and I have spoken at length about you and your potential future under my tutelage. We both see that you might have great promise. Might.”

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  “Cerelia? You have spoken to her? What have you done?” Genero demanded, rising from his chair.

  “Easy, Captain.” Corydon laughed disarmingly. “You wouldn’t want to make me think you don’t care much for me – bad things might happen. Your wife is safe. In fact, she and I have an understanding.”

  “Understanding?” Genero echoed again lamely.

  “Yes. She and I have spoken about your future in Cenalium and how it is intertwined with your success or failures on my behalf. In fact, as a token of my appreciation to your services rendered so far, I have moved your wife and child into a luxury apartment that I have gifted unto you. It’s near mine, and it is well watched. That way, nothing unfortunate could befall them.” Corydon explained, his eyes demanding that Genero acknowledge that he was cornered. “Right?”

  Genero nodded slowly, settling dejectedly back down into his chair. “That’s right. Nothing will happen to them.”

  “Exactly. One might even say I’ve made it my personal goal to see to their safety. The family of my important associate is practically my family. We rise and fall together, you see.”

  “Yes. I see.”

  “Now let me explain the way of things. Your survival thus far has shown you’re capable enough, and levelheaded where Illias was not.”

  “I am listening.” Genero said quietly.

  “Good.” Corydon sipped from a glass of water, pausing dramatically to make sure he had the captain’s full attention. He smiled briefly, knowing that he’d just cowed the man into submission. “The Aurean people have a disease of the mind that I call The Fear. We’ve grown so willing to believe that darkness will kill us that our bodies have adapted into making our beliefs true. This is our greatest weakness, but at the same time it gives us the keys to our greatest strength.”

  “We can adapt to our world at will, Captain. We can model our bodies to suit our needs. Illias and his men are but one example of this. They have been trained to resist darkness, to have greater strength, endurance, and speed. They are just one step in the adaptation of our people for lowland life.”

  “You’re saying they wanted to be different, and they were? That’s it?”

  “The mind is very powerful, Genero, especially when assisted by outside means. The Aurean people have untapped resources in their nature. We can be what we want to be. Witness this room. It has your skin crawling, and your body begs for greater light. It bothers me not at all. I can sleep in complete darkness and feel no ill effects.”

  Genero listened in disbelief, unable to tune out Corydon’s words. The man’s voice was hypnotic… convincing. Just hearing his words made Genero question everything he had believed since he was a child.

  “I know about you, Genero. There are many like you. Did you know that fully a third of all Aureans sleep with their eyes open because they are so terrified of darkness that they cannot bring themselves to close their eyes for any length of time? These people are slaves to their fears and their bodies. They do not control their minds.”

  Genero’s hands tightened on the armrests of the chair he sat on. He knew he was one of the members of the third who slept with their eyes open. How this man knew that he did not know, unless it was Cerelia who had told him.

  “Many hundreds of Yarres ago, Hectoyarres, we were poised to own the world, Genero. Todee, we can have it if we reach out for it. You’re going to be my instrument for change. You are going to lead the forces that take Maethlin. Maethlin will be the proof that the other Aureans need to see that my beliefs are right. You will show the world the power of Aurean will and our strength of resolve when you make this island our own.”

  “We are happy here. Few of us want to leave. How can you be so sure that things will just fall into place because things are as you say they are?”

  “Are the people here actually happy? Are you certain that they do not want to leave? Can a caged animal ever be truly happy? We know only what freedom our weaknesses allow, while below the savages kill each other, rape, die, and struggle. They are free to live their lives no matter how harsh they may seem. Why should we, superior to them in every way, be jailed on mountaintops? We grow more numerous every Yarre, and all we do is build upward into the skies, or we look to other mountains and wonder if we can make those our home too. How many more places in the Broken Crown do you think there are that we can build a Grancitta? We are out of space, Genero.”

  “Say that what you believe about us is true. What gives us the right to kill and take the lands of the lowlanders?”

  “They are lesser beings. When we came among them from Our Place Before, they were a broken people. They may think of themselves as separate races, but we know that they are all just different flavors of the same flawed recipe. Their lands were rife with disease, famine, death, war, and suffering. We brought order to them, and then, before we could assume our place as their leaders, something happened. Our people were changed and The Fear came among us.”

  “The Fear?” Genero repeated questioningly.

  “Haven’t you listened to anything I’ve said?” Corydon hissed. “Our dependence on light is a weakness of our minds! Our bodies have been so conditioned by our minds that we can make ourselves sick and die from the dark. We have the tools to change the world and make it ours if we only have the virtue and character to use them. Those who don’t agree can stay in their pretty mountaintop cages while the rest of us remake the world below in our image. Those who would stay are weak-minded fools and we don’t need them anyway.”

  “So whatever happens to the lowlanders is of no consequence?” Genero asked, feeling a bit queasy at what this meant if it were truly what this man believed, but then, he wasn’t sure he didn’t believe it himself anymore. His mind was a jumble of thoughts.

  “However, many die before we can realize our destiny is of no importance.” Corydon said, summing up his entire mindset in a few chilling words.

  “Even if we take Maethlin, we cannot hold it. We cannot stand before the combined might of the Clans. If the Sammenkomst meets and they decide to go to war with us, we cannot win. Not all the Fliers and arc-lances in Cenalium can change that.” Genero insisted.

  Corydon smiled. “That is where Anthea comes in. A mixing of her mind and blood with my warriors is all we’ll need. We’ll have an army of enchanters and warriors of the like that no man or God has seen before. If that becomes impossible for one reason or another, I have other options.”

  “Anthea is dead.”

  “Genero, friend and companion in this plot, you must learn to stop doubting me.”

  “But she is dead. Belief alone cannot change that, even if it can somehow make you resistant to darkness.” Genero protested.

  “While Illias and you were playing with that decoy boat, another boat under enchantment slipped away to the West. The Farsight Outlooks saw that it was swept up in a storm that descended through the Kerathi Gap in the North Fringe. They were lost somewhere to the South. Already my lowland contacts in other lands are searching for them. When we locate them, you’ll go after them. Until then you’ll help Illias secure Maethlin. Although, this time I have made it clear to him that he’ll be fully under your command.” Corydon explained.

  “Another boat?”

  Corydon summoned an irritated look. “Yes, do try to keep up. It gets tiresome explaining everything twice.”

  “So that boat was a decoy. It must have been an enchantment. We saw them on it!” Genero insisted.

  “Obviously. Now I think you need to get some rest. Maybe you’d like to see your wife before you’re sent back into the lowlands to seize Maethlin?”

  “Cerelia?” Genero mumbled his wife’s name.

  Corydon chuckled. “That was her name, yes.”

  “That would be good.”

  Corydon smiled amiably as the door swung open behind Genero. Genero looked back. Two of Corydon’s Guardians waited just outside the door.

  “They’ll show you to your wife.” Corydon said reassuringly.

  Genero could think of nothing to say, so he simply said, “Thank you.”

  “Rest up. We have much to do together, you and I. You have two Dees before we must begin.”

  Genero said nothing in reply. His mind was numb with all he’d experienced and heard in the last Wayke, and now he had been told that this had all just begun. He wore a dumb smile as he was led off to meet his wife for what seemed like the first time in Yarres.