City of gods - Hellenica (21 page)

Kayana materialized into a goblin and then lit her eyes green for good measure. She walked in front of the bar doors and looked at her fellow demons.

“Leave,” she said with a growl. “It’s my turn.”

The goblins squealed and ran off. Kayana looked at the villagers and they cried in horror.

“Keep whimpering,” she said, “but only so those above don’t suspect that I’m not one of these dungeon-goblins. I won’t hurt you.”

Kayana dropped her whip to the ground and materialized back into her normal self. A small grimy-faced boy rushed to prison bars and looked up at Kayana. Though he appeared to only be eight, he had a gravelly whispering voice, like a defeated old man.

“Have you come to free us?” asked the boy.

“I’ll try,” said Kayana, “but even if I eliminate these demons, Rowan’s kind never have free thoughts. Get used to these bars.”

The boy looked down and started to sulk.

“But in the meantime, yes,” said Kayana, “I hope to destroy the goblins who whip you. I hope to once again let you roam freely with Rowan’s thoughts, however limited they may be.”

“What do you need from us?” said a woman in the back. Her voice was quivering and soft.

“I need you to tell me everything,” said Kayana. “Hold nothing back.”

She nodded at two young men, who in turn went into the shadows. They brought out an armored soldier and placed him at Kayana’s feet. The soldier was heavily injured, but Kayana recognized him by his armor.
This is Rowan before the demons came
, she thought,
or at least what’s left of him.
 

“Hello, Rowan,” she said, “I’ve come to save you.”

“I need no saving,” he said, spitting up blood.

“Then I’ve come for your story,” she said. “Tell me everything, even if you find it shameful.”

“There is no shame to what I’ve done,” said Rowan. “I fought honorably at every chance, and I’ll continue to fight these invaders until I draw no more breath.”

I should tread lightly,
thought Kayana,
for if this is Rowan’s last shred of dignity and independent thought, it’s surely small and weak. Bury any disdain for this Berserker; now is not the time to expose his shortcomings.

“Tell me your tale, I beg of you,” said Kayana. “Tell me so that I might follow you in battle to vanquish these trespassers.”

Rowan got up and propped himself up on a chair. He put his head back against the wall, smiled and coughed up some more blood.

“It all started the night before the game,” he said. “I was scouting our lacrosse pitch by myself so that I could best Gunnar. I’d come up with this grand plan to give Alkippe the ball in the trees, when seven snakes surrounded me,
snakes with legs
. I tried to fight them, but my kind is equipped for fighting bears and men, not small snakes.

“The creatures would have jumped on me sooner were it not for the fact that they were fighting me with their eyes
closed
. They were still agile, and my heavy sword and armor were useless against their speed. One of them burst between my legs as I parried, felling me. They jumped on top of me and bared their fangs; I tried to dodge them, but one bit my neck and I could not move.

“I was still conscious and I heard them
talking
to each other in a strange tongue, still with their eyes closed. Though I didn’t understand their meaning, it was clear they were deciding what to do with me.

“They let me alone and disappeared into the forest, and after an hour I was able to move again. I went back to my quarters thinking nothing of it, but that night I had a horrible nightmare, with many of the characters you see in the room above. They took over the castle and kept me hostage down here; they wanted me to surrender and had me beaten. But I refused to succumb to their demands; I’ll never give in.”

Your green-eyed kneeling counterpart upstairs begs to disagree,
thought Kayana.

“Do you remember any of your consciousness though?” asked Kayana. “When you’re awake?”

“Yes,” said Rowan, “but it’s like I’m no longer in control of my body. Though I can see and hear everything, those upstairs decide what I do. The next day they had me
lose to Gunnar
in lacrosse.”

“What else?” asked Kayana. “What else did they make you do?”

“I led him far from his team; if they’d let me run against him in fair play I’d surely have gotten the ball across the goal. But they had me perform an odd strategy to separate him from the pack, and once in the swamp my body wrestled him to the ground. It cracked my femur further, but once again I could have bested him if they had let me! Instead they had me hold Redstone down while these vile legged snakes bit him. They bit him in the leg to hide the wound.”

“Tell me more of these creatures that bit you. Are they here?”

“No,” said Rowan, “they aren’t
here
. Do you see slimy snakes running around biting people’s calves? These creatures merely
opened the door for the invasion.
”

“Not all have been invaded,” said Kayana. “Gunnar fails to act strangely, but instead lies comatose.”

“That is how it lies,” said Rowan. “Some subjects are invaded, some are killed. I guess Gunnar was weak.”

You’re the weak one, Rowan,
thought Kayana.
Gunnar was too strong to be controlled, so they sent him to a coma and used you as a puppet.

“If we’re to defeat these creatures and take back what’s rightfully yours
,
” said Kayana, “you must tell me more. What are these legged snakes? What have you seen
here
? What have you—”

Kayana was interrupted by a clashing of armor and rumblings from upstairs. Two more goblin prison guards
came down with more weapons of torment. Kayana transformed back into a goblin just in time.

“We shall pick up where you left off,” said the larger goblin, grabbing a metal scabbard. “You’re relieved, soldier.”

The larger goblin was about to slash Rowan with the scabbard, but Kayana stopped him.

“Leave him be,” she said, flashing her eyes green.

“Why is that?”

“Because I’ve already beaten him mercilessly, and then I gnawed his liver.”

Kayana visualized Rowan with the appearance of more bruises and a disemboweled midsection, but made sure it was just an artifice and that Rowan was in no pain.

“He needs time to heal before he can be questioned again,” said Kayana.

“You’ve strange methods, soldier,” said the goblin with a laugh. “I shall let him heal, then begin my beatings again. But I don’t know if I can eat his liver.”

I’ll poison it beforehand in case you do,
thought Kayana.
No man deserves this prison, not even Rowan.

Kayana left up the stairs and then disappeared back into the shadows. She floated through the hall and saw the nobility laughing gaily as Rowan’s green-eyed dopplegänger beat a poor peasant senseless.
Rowan was ignoble before he was bitten,
thought Kayana,
but he has only a few days before he becomes irreparably worse.

She flew out of the hall and across the moat. Before she flew upwards and out of Rowan’s dream, she took one more look at the dark clouds on the horizon. She flew closer and saw that there were no clouds at all. It was just an array of countless creatures: demons, goblins, ghosts and flying trolls. They surrounded the castle completely, but seemed eager to fly outwards to new lands and new dreams.

I know not what they are
, thought Kayana,
but they own their subjects’ thoughts completely. There may be no cure, and if there is none I must visit every infected subject in the real world and give them a quick, peaceful death. Every mercenary and every god who has been touched by these demons must die in his or her sleep. I must even deliver death to Gunnar if fate necessitates it; there is no other way. 

THE CURE

Tommy nodded in recognition when Saoirse put the small creature on the table in their common room; it was definitely the thing that had bitten his neck. It was the size of a small dog, but was scaled and slippery, and had legs like a centipede. It had the jaws of a snake but held a mouthful of sharp teeth behind two prominent fangs. Its two red eyes pointed forward and its face was like that of a bat’s, pug-nosed and slimy. It had the most terrifying appearance Tommy had ever seen, but he felt an odd sort of kinship with it.
Now you will also be a friend to the terrifying, the reviled,
he remembered Verminus saying,
the creatures with eight dull eyes, foul odors, caustic breath and rough scales.

“It’s still poisonous,” said Tommy.

Tommy took off his gloves and grabbed the creature with his bare hands. He held it up to his eyes and examined it thoroughly. He smelled it and looked into its glaring, dead eyes.
It’s a dangerous creature when alive,
he thought,
and mean too. But it knows not what it does; it only kills when told to.

“It’s not harmful anymore, just handle it with gloves and don’t touch its mouth,” he said. “But yes, this is the same type of creature that attacked me. We should tell Heracles.”

“No,” said Kayana, “we shouldn’t.”

“Why not?” he asked. “He’s trustworthy.”

“That’s yet to be seen,” said Kayana, “but still, let’s assume he is. This creature bites, and then people become possessed, controlled. What if Heracles has been bitten?”

“His skin is like adamantine,” said Tommy, “stronger even. He’s just as immune to their bite as I am.”

“Perhaps,” said Kayana, “but he’s part of the Academy, and intelligence isn’t his strong suit. He’ll inevitably show this creature to an infected colleague who’ll most likely kill us before morning.”

Tommy examined the creature once more; it was fearsome to be sure, but small.
This creature’s not fighting a war against us
, he thought.
Even if a hundred lurk in the forest, creatures like this don’t fight wars.

“I don’t sense anything from it,” said Saoirse, “not even when it was alive. I can always sense something from an animal, but not this.”

“We need some help,” said Kayana. “A leader, perhaps.”

“Agreed,” said Tommy, “but our leader is currently lying comatose in the infirmary.”

“I have someone else in mind,” said Kayana. “One of our teachers.”

“Our teachers?” asked Tommy, with surprise. “I thought you distrusted them all.”

“I do, completely,” said Kayana, “but there is one here who might be able to help us. These creatures only attack those that can be controlled, and this teacher rebels against any authority. Furthermore, he wouldn’t be able to tell his friends here of this creature, because he has no friends here.”

“Are you speaking of Praetor Mantus?” asked Tommy.

“Not him, he’s most likely in league with the demons already,” said Kayana. “The god I speak of is our advisor, Bes.”

/***/

“It’s a basilisk,” said Bes, examining the creature with his short arms. “You’re lucky you found it in the dark; they’re so poisonous even their gaze can kill you. Even luckier they found Tommy first; he’s probably the one being on Earth who could survive their attack. They’re dangerous, but not too smart.”

“They’ve brought your Academy to the verge of collapse,” said Kayana. “They sound smart to me.”

“They’re not smart,” said Bes, “they’re great at taking orders; there’s a difference. Someone ordered the basilisks to come down here to wreak havoc, probably starting with you guys.”

Bes walked around the common room with a concerned look on his face, lost in thought. He was less than half Tommy’s height, but still had an intimidating presence. Though he wobbled as he walked, his gait had a subtle grace to it, and his short brown arms flexed with power. Bes went through several scenarios mentally, shaking his head
no
each time.

“It’s brilliant, you know,” he said. “You can’t fight basilisks; not even with gods. You try to root them out and they hide; you find them and they kill you with their stare. Basilisks aren’t smart, but whoever sent them is
really
smart.”

“I don’t understand the connection,” said Tommy. “These creatures bring poison, to be sure, but poison kills. No one’s being killed by these bites; they’re either being brought to coma or insanity.”

Bes smiled, picked up the basilisk, and put it down.

“Truth is, I don’t understand the connection either,” said Bes. “These creatures are so dangerous that anyone who went to study them wound up dead. This is the first time I’ve heard of anyone
surviving
a basilisk bite, let alone having their thoughts flooded with demons afterwards.”

Saoirse looked up at Bes.

“While we debate this, Gunnar’s life flows from him,” said Saoirse, “and if we fail to act, he’ll die. We need answers now, so tell us Bes, what do we do?”

Bes thought for a moment, and then nodded his head.

“All these basilisks live under the purview of a single King Basilisk who lives deep within the ground, deeper than even this Academy. He holds antivenom that can cure your friend Gunnar.”

“Perfect,” said Saoirse. “I’ll talk with him.”

“No,” said Bes. “If you do, you’ll soon be lying comatose next to Gunnar. The king is surrounded by darkness, filth, and a thousand of his children, any one of which would kill you with a bite. Tommy is the only one who can go; he’s immune.”

Tommy smiled. He didn’t mind the idea of descending into darkness and filth; it felt right.

“Tommy,” said Bes, “the King Basilisk didn’t conceive of this attack; it’s not in his nature. But perhaps someone forced his hand; ask him who did it once you get the antivenom. I know of a vehicle that can take you there tonight and have you back by morning.”

“Great,” said Tommy.

“One more thing,” said Bes. “A warning. The King Basilisk is hideous. He has eight dark eyes, a noxious odor and a fanged, hairy mouth. A basilisk’s gaze is poisonous, but the King Basilisk is so terrifying that even a portrait of him can make a man’s heart stop.”

“I’ll be fine,” said Tommy.

“You will,” said Bes, “but don’t shrink from his gaze; he’s sensitive about his appearance.”

Tommy had no problem talking to a hideous creature, though he was scared of leaving for this journey alone.

/***/

Bes took Tommy down, down, down to the lower depths of the Academy, and then down some more. Tommy had heard that there was a crypt down here to house the undead gods, but all he saw now was stairs. Tommy thought he was five levels below the main floor but couldn’t tell for sure.
Some floors have ceilings two hundred meters high
, he thought,
and there are some areas no bigger than crawl spaces.

Bes hurried down, jumping over stairs gracefully and silently.

“I have one question, Bes,” said Tommy.

“Make it quick.”

“Perhaps we should tell Heracles of this basilisk,” said Tommy. “Or someone else? This sneaking about is—”

“You trust everyone,” said Bes, cutting Tommy off. “That’s not necessarily a bad thing; though I don’t care for Heracles, the brute is nothing if not trustworthy. But you cannot trust an institution; institutions take care of themselves, nothing else, and they act
slowly
. If we inform the Academy of this, Gunnar will be dead and cold for a month before they act.”

After ten more minutes of stairs, ladders and tubes, Bes brought Tommy into a large, incredibly hot room. It contained several odd-looking vehicles and a few large holes in the floor. Bes rushed over to one vehicle and pulled a latch on its side; it opened to reveal a small cabin and some electronic equipment.

Tommy had never seen vehicles like this before; their dull black armor was almost clumsily thick, and there were neither windows nor wheels. They were each the size of a small tank, but most of their volume was made up of their bulky outer shell. Tommy looked down and saw that they were all attached to rails that led into the holes.
They’re meant to be vehicles, but they only look like slabs,
thought Tommy,
slabs on rails.

“You’re going to the basilisk’s lair through a volcanic tributary,” said Bes, “an underground river of lava. I’ve programmed the coordinates already; it will take you there and back. You’ll survive, but I warn you: it won’t be comfortable.”

“I’ll be fine,” said Tommy, clinking his suit.

“Good,” said Bes. “Now, don’t take too long. If you’re not back by morning call, I’ll have to concoct some strange tale as to your whereabouts, and I don’t lie too well. Still, don’t come back without the antivenom.”

“I won’t fail you,” said Tommy.

“Don’t worry about me,” said Bes. “Worry about your friend Gunnar. He’ll be dead within forty-eight hours if you fail.”

Tommy got in the vehicle and Bes shut the door; it closed with a blunt
thud
, and then he heard several
clicks
and
whirrs
as the door’s seal clamped tighter and tighter. Tommy felt the air click on, but he was already sweating. For the first time in his life he felt
cramped in
and took off his helmet.

He felt the vehicle move forward and the displays showed that it was doing just that: rolling over on the rails. The vehicle tipped down and the dashboard showed the temperature increasing until it was 800 degrees Celsius and climbing. It was getting so hot that he thought about putting his air-conditioned helmet back on, but chose not to. He felt free without it, driving a vehicle for a job, just like a normal person.

He then sensed a strange presence and turned around into the darkness and felt the space behind his seat. Someone was hiding there!

“Relax, Alderon,” said a voice from the darkness. “It’s me.”

It was Kayana. She had disappeared into the shadows and stowed away on board with him. Tommy scrambled to put his helmet back on, but Kayana put her hand out and stopped him.

“It’s okay,” she said. “You can’t make me sick, remember? Besides, I need to come to the front seat; it’s getting too hot back there. I need some more space up front; can you take off your whole suit?”

“I don’t think it’s wise to …” said Tommy.

“Just do it,” said Kayana.

It took a while to take off his suit. The ride was bumpy, the space was cramped, and perhaps most importantly, Tommy was ashamed. He didn’t want to show his bent limbs to Kayana, let alone have her sit next to them. But he finally took off the lower part of his suit and revealed his thin, crippled legs and Kayana jumped into the front seat with him, pushing his armor to the back of the vehicle.

“This is better,” she said. “I’m equipped for shadows, not small spaces.”

Kayana cozied up next to him, and though it was uncomfortably hot, Tommy’s heart started to race. He’d never felt anything like this before in his life; Kayana was so
near
to him.
This is what it’s like to be close to a girl
, he thought.
Kojo had told me of this, but I’m actually doing it.
Her icy skin cooled him off a bit and he stopped sweating, but his heart was still beating incredibly loudly.

Though she stared straight ahead, Kayana’s body seemed to get closer to him with every passing turn.
She can’t be feeling what I’m feeling
, he thought.
She’s beautiful and could never love a crippled thing like me.
But she was with him, closer than anyone had ever been in his entire life.

“Your heart’s beating quickly, Alderon,” she asked. “Is there something you fear down here?”

“No,” he said.

They drove in silence and Tommy’s heart continued to race.

“Perhaps this is the first time you’ve touched someone without your suit,” said Kayana, “and you fear they might die.”

“Yes,” he said, lying once more.

“You’re not the first person
I’ve
touched,” said Kayana, “but everyone I’ve touched
has
died. It’s good to be near someone who’s immune to my skin.”

They cruised through the underground tributaries at a quick clip. They were flowing through lava but were still on rails. Tommy had studied these rails years ago and thought for a few minutes to remember a fact that wouldn’t bore her.

“Hephaestus put these rails here himself,” he said. “He built them of adamantine so they wouldn’t melt.”

“Interesting,” said Kayana. “Tell me more of these rails.”

“Well,” said Tommy, “they’re all over the world; only Hephaestus knows where they all lead. Supposedly you can enter a volcano and come out on the other end of the Earth.”

He dared to look over at Kayana and she was looking back at him, concentrating intensely.
Her eyes are beautiful when they’re black,
he thought,
and even more beautiful when they’re white.