Eternal Horizon: The Chronicle of Vincent Saturn (Eternal Horizon: A Star Saga Book 1) (41 page)

“Death to Galadan!” Damien rallied his men. “Death to Urtan! Death to enemies of Cosmos!”

Then there was a sound of a loud gong, and the entire Horde dropped to their knees and folded their arms across their chests, continuing their dismal chant.

Damien got down on one knee, lowered his head and stretched his arms towards his ship.

“What’s happening?” Exander asked.

Galadan quivered. “He’s coming…” He looked over at Duell, unable to control his tremor and repeated, “He’s coming…”

Tadoom
!
Tadoom
!
There were series of thumps that ringed through the air.
Tadoom
!
Tadoom
!

A gigantic creature filled the doorway of the vessel, easily soaring over fifty feet in height. He was a humanoid with rugged golden skin, had a squared lower jaw with two horns extending from the chin, and deep-set sullen eyes peeking through dark pits under a protruding brow ridge. Long black hair was shaped into a huge crest atop his bald head with more small horns on either side of it. A cuirass with a glowing crystal in its middle extended down to his knees, and mechanical boots with round feet, resembling thick tree trunks, enclosed his lower legs. In his gauntlet-covered hands, he carried a trident the size of an electrical pole.

Tadoom
!
Tadoom
!
The courtyard shattered with each step the giant took.
Tadoom
!
Tadoom
!

“Jesus…” Vincent broke the silence. “What the heck is that?”

“Cosmos…” Galadan mumbled.

“
That’s
Cosmos?” Vincent gasped. He blanched with dread. His chances of surviving began to plummet. He looked over at Duell.
Now
he knew why everyone thought the Xenian was crazy.

“No fear, Vincent,” Duell said, noticing his reaction. “We will do this. Remember—no hesitation. Once we go out there, just attack and trust your instinct.”

Vincent nodded. If he was going to die—which now looked like an assurance—might as well die fighting. He looked up at the cavernous ceiling and, for some reason, out of all things, his mind traveled to the woman he recently got to know…
Gaia,
I wonder if you’re okay… I’ll probably never see you again. There’s so much… so much I wanted to say…

“Back up,” Duell said, and everyone moved away from the bomb, continuing to observe the remaining screen.

Cosmos reached the steps. He glanced about, his small eyes sparkling beneath that angry frown. “RISE,” his voice exploded like a thunderbolt.

The army arose, but still held their heads down, not daring to look directly at their deity.

“
My God!
” Damien shouted, raising his arms. “The forces of the heathens have fallen! Our brethren are rounding up their remains around the city! Galadan and his court are hiding in the castle!”

“BRING HIM BEFORE ME,” the giant commanded.

“Yes, father.” Damien bowed and turned around. The priests lined up behind him, and they started marching up.

“
Now!
” Galadan screamed out, and Duell hit the switch.

There was a loud click, but nothing happened.

Everyone froze.

Galadan looked over at Duell in panic.

“That idiot,” Exander fussed. “
Spaide!
” he shouted into the transmitter.

Outside, Damien came to a halt, sensing danger. He glanced back at Cosmos.

“YOU NARROW-MINDED FOOL—” Cosmos managed to gripe out as an explosion ripped through the courtyard, destroying the lower portion of the stairs, killing half of the priests and separating him from Damien.

“
Attack!
” Duell pulled out his sword, split it in two, and rushed into the dust with the twins, Vincent, Thanatos, Galadan and the Urtans.

Duell moved too fast for normal eyes to see. He ran through a group of enemy monks, slashing them in half within milliseconds. He then stabbed through two more, kicked one in the head, flipped in the air, threw a dagger at another and landed, slicing two more off their feet. He then jumped up on the back of one of the monks and came down twirling like a helicopter, killing a dozen more at once.

Exander threw several daggers, jumped over the bodies of the dead and came hacking down at a spider machine, cutting it in half. He then dodged an array of blasts and started lacerating through the enemy alongside his master.

Damocles was behind his brother, taking out half a dozen of the dark troops with one slice of his sword.

The three Xenians were impossible to hit. They cut through the confused mob, gradually making their way to the giant.

The Urtans went in battle with fury in their eyes caused by the grief of their fallen brothers. They pushed the enemy back, buying enough time for the Xenians to make their attack.

Thanatos rushed ahead at a speed that would match the Tel Kasar. His strength was mind-boggling. With one hit he could take out an entire group of troops. He smashed through them with ease, taking off their heads and throwing them at the nearby buildings and at Cosmos.

As Vincent ran out, he was greeted by a dozen soldiers. He dodged a few shots and let his hands do the work.
No doubt
. He moved like an animal, circling around them, through them, stabbing behind, to the side, over his shoulder, while throwing daggers at the same time. Not once did he miss a target—it was as if he knew where they were coming from.
No hesitation
. He didn’t pause for a second; the doubt that he might accidentally strike one of the good guys left his head. Suddenly, a paratrooper in a jetpack appeared to his right, aiming down. Vincent jumped up, sliced the pilot and the machine in half, sending its upper portion with the gunner into the nearby building, and then continued to tear through the enemy troops like a mindless machine.

The monks of the Order were taken aback by the surprise attack; they couldn’t grasp the idea of what was going on as tanks, machines, and thousands of Urtan troops came out of hiding.

“
Order!
” Aurora’s shrieking voice pierced through the air as she tried to control the petrified army. The monks screamed, ignoring her commands while desperately trying to get away, nearly knocking down their god.

Cosmos lumbered above their heads. His growl of disappointment would paralyze a regular person, but the fury within Urtans defied it. He raised his mechanical foot and smashed an Urtan tank to bits, at the same time callously killing his own followers.

Thanatos picked up one of the spider machines and tossed it at the giant. Two lightning bolts shot out of Cosmos’ eyes, blowing up the contraption to bits and showering the crowd below with fragments.

Duell took the opportunity and jumped up, slashing at the giant’s abdomen. A shield sparked up, forcing the Xenian to fall back. Damocles then followed his master’s example, but faced the same reaction.

“We have to strike at him together!” Duell cried out to his student, fending off a new batch of troops.

Cosmos looked down at the overconfident Xenians, his eyes lighting up once more, but before he could fire, a rocket from the sky forced him to stagger.

“Spaide,” Duell whispered as a squadron of Urtan ships attacked, led by the Dirsalian.

*

No one was more disappointed when the bomb didn’t detonate as was its maker. Spaide couldn’t even breathe for those several seconds, much less respond to Exander’s complaints.
What did I do wrong
? And just as he was thinking, the bomb went off, and the gates before him opened.

“
Let’s go!
” Spaide screamed out and flew first into the burning sky. “Their shields are down, and most of their ships are grounded!”

The squadron flew over the castle and into the battlefield.

One of the enemy warships floated at the far end of the courtyard.

“Fire at will,” Spaide commanded and sent a few rockets in its direction. An array of missiles struck the ship, and its control tower exploded to bits, forcing it to crash.

“Direct all firepower to the flagship!” Spaide turned towards the quad. “He mustn’t get away!”

The Urtans began bombarding the
Basin
, managing to cause it a great deal of damage before the enemy erected their shields.

“Keep
attackin
’ it!” Spaide screamed. “Wear down its shields before they send their fighters!” He headed for the main battle.

Cosmos was swaying over the mass, roaring in anger. Spaide then saw the giant attempting to exterminate his friends after their unsuccessful effort. “Eat this!” He released one of the rockets. The blast initiated the armor’s force field, and Cosmos wobbled.

“Sir!” one of the Urtans announced. “Enemy fighters approaching!”

“Come on, Duell,” Spaide muttered, circling around the infuriated colossus.

*

Vincent saw Duell fall after the attempt and hurried to his aid. But as he ran, he sensed an attack coming from his right. He managed to raise his sword, but it was swept aside, and a large hammer smashed him in the chest, sending him flying back. It was the monstrosity Galadan called
Tyranno
. He was going wild, trying to defend his god at all costs, swinging his deadly weapon in every direction and bludgeoning the Urtans.

Vincent collapsed over a pile of bodies.

Damocles rushed past him. “I got him!” he assured.

*

Exander and Duell were fighting their way back to Cosmos.

“Where’s Damien?” Exander looked around the battlefield. It seemed as if the Urtan attempt to stall the army was beginning to fail: their forces around the city were rapidly diminishing; the enemy poured into the courtyard from the alleys and the rooftops; and rival fighters filled the sky, taking out Spaide’s squadron. Behind them, Exander noticed some of the monks climbing over the wreckage, up the remains of the stairs.

“He entered the castle after the explosion!” Duell shouted.

“Damn it!” Exander cursed and then called out, “
Vincent!
”

“What is it?” Vincent approached, dodging blasts.

“Help Gaia in the castle!
Hurry!
”

“Right!” Vincent turned around and headed towards the stairs.

“Be wary of their leader Damien!” Exander warned. “Remember, he’s a sorcerer!”

Vincent ignored the warning. Sorcerers, giants, reptiles—compared to what he’d seen, nothing else would surprise him. Gaia was in trouble, and that was all that mattered.

To enter the castle through the tunnels would be hopeless; he had to leap over the gap to the upper part of the staircase. He reached the hole, evading any conflict, and jumped up. As he was in midair, a lightning bolt from Cosmos destroyed one of the Urtan ships, spraying him with the remains. He landed face-first on the intact portion of the stairs as the vessel collapsed behind him. He crawled, got on his feet, and headed forward unremittingly while pulling a chunk of metal out of his shoulder.

*

“Thanatos!” Exander found himself back to back with the Dargonian while fending off a new batch. “I need you to hurl me!”

Thanatos smashed the heads of two monks together and looked over his shoulder. “What?”

“
Throw me
at him!
”