Halcyon The Complete Trilogy (118 page)

The second cut flew up his right arm, racing around his bright seireiken and gashing him from elbow to shoulder. Omar gasped and clutched the wound with his left hand. And for a moment, he looked down at the blood staining his sleeve and streaming down his arm.

In that moment of distraction, the katana’s long steel blade slammed through his chest. Omar gasped, his eyes bulging, his scream stillborn on his dry lips as he struggled to breathe, but he had no breath left. The pain stole the wind from his lungs, stole the strength from his legs, and stole the sight from his eyes, leaving him in a white haze as he toppled over backwards onto the hard stones at the end of the alley.

That was almost as bad as being trampled by a horse. Almost. But a horse has more than one hoof.

A moment later his eyes recovered enough to see the sheer walls of the buildings to his right and left rising up to meet the evening sky where angry clouds burned with shades of violet and crimson. He saw the dark figure of Ito Daisuke walk up beside him and stare down at him through cold, expressionless eyes as he pulled his sword from Omar’s chest.

The samurai inclined his head. “And now we know, Bakhoum-
dono
.”

With painful deliberation, Omar bared his teeth in a smile and whispered, “There was never any doubt, little brother.” And with a flick of his wrist, he swung up his seireiken to cut the Tiger in the ankle.

The samurai’s eyes widened the barest fraction, so little that Omar might have imagined it. But then the man’s eyes dimmed, his jaw went slack, and his body toppled over to the ground.

Omar inhaled slowly, feeling his lungs expanding whole and strong once again. He sat up and looked through the gash in his right sleeve to see his bloody skin already knitting back together just as the wound in his chest closed itself. The cut across his knee was already gone without leaving the slightest scar to mark its passing.

“Well, I may have the secret of eternal life, little brother, but it’s not pretty,” Omar muttered. He fished the little golden pendant from inside his clothes, inspected its wrinkled and veined surface, and then tucked it away again. “Cheating death hurts more than you’d think. But it’s still worth killing for, I suppose.”

No blood stained the samurai’s leg where the seireiken had cut him. Daisuke’s flesh had been seared at the moment it touched the blistering sun-steel, but the brief contact had been enough for the seireiken to draw out the aether in the man’s blood, and his soul along with it. A few pale yellow flames danced on the dead man’s trousers and Omar reached over to smother them with his own sleeve. Sighing, he leaned back again.

“Are you in there, little brother?” Omar gripped his sword tightly, summoning the vast sea of ghostly faces again. He sifted through the voices of the sages and priests, past the thieves and murderers, and through the strange group of newcomers from Daisuke’s sword, until finally he found Daisuke himself. The samurai’s soul felt like a cold void in the dead congregation, but then the shade with the scarred lip whispered:

I understand now, Bakhoum-dono.

“You beat my gladiator, and he was the strongest warrior I had.” Omar smiled briefly and sadly. “So I’ll be wanting your swordsmanship, little brother, sooner or later. I hope you’ll offer your skills freely. The alternative will be… unpleasant. For you.”

Omar stood up with a groan. With great care, he slid his bright white sword back into its clay-lined scabbard on his hip, dousing both its light and its heat. He glanced about, but the alley was just as deserted as before with no indication that anyone had seen or heard what had happened. He shifted Ito Daisuke’s body against the wall and covered it with a few bits of trash lying nearby, and walked away, leaving the beautiful katana under the body to be found by whatever vermin might happen by. He also took up the chipped and now-cold seireiken that the samurai had left on the ground, and he slipped it down through a grate into the shallow sewer below.

Hm. I’ll have to remember to come back for that, one day.

As he returned to the back door of the hotel, he picked up his pipe to find the leaves still smoldering and smoking. Omar smiled, set the pipe between his lips, and went inside to bed.

Continued in OMAR THE IMMORTAL

Appendix

This appendix lists many of the people, places, and things mentioned in the Halcyon Trilogy. Next to each item are the Fiction and the Fact of the matter. The Fiction part says what the item means in the Halcyon story. The Fact part says what significance the item has in the real world.

Acra – Fiction: A city on the western coast of Marrakesh. Fact: This location corresponds with the city of Agadir in modern Morocco.

Adonai – Fiction: One of the names of God in the Middle Sea region. Fact: This is the Hebrew word for
Lord
.

Aegyptus – Fiction: One of the provinces of the Empire of Eran located in the south-east corner of the Middle Sea region. Fact: This location corresponds with the modern nation of Egypt. Aegyptus was the Roman/Latin name for it.

Aeroplane – Fiction: A Mazigh flying machine that can take off from land or sea. Fact: Airplanes are real!

Aether – Fiction: A mysterious vapor most often seen in cold climates that allows the spirits of the dead to become visible. Fact: In the ancient world, philosophers believed there were five elements: air, fire, earth, water, and aether.

Aetherium – Fiction: A rare metal that absorbs aether as well as souls. The addition of souls makes the metal hotter, but does not melt it. It appears red-gold, similar to copper, and is also called sun-steel. Ancient people saw the aetherium fall from the sky and believe that it fell from the sun. Fact: See
Orichalcum
.

Ahaggar – Fiction: A nation in central North Ifrica, home to the Kel Ahaggar people. Fact: There is an Ahaggar mountain range in central North Africa (southern Algeria) where the Kel Ahaggar (also called Tuareg) people live today.

Ahura Mazda – Fiction: One of the names of God in the Middle Sea region, most often used by Eranians and the followers of the Mazdan Temple. Fact: This is the name of God in Zoroastrianism, an ancient religion of Iran that is still practiced today.

Airship – Fiction: Airships are enormous flying machines invented by the Mazighs to explore the world and improve travel and trade. Fact: Airships are real!

Aker El Deeb – Fiction: An Aegyptian member of the Sons of Osiris. An assassin and general contractor for the Temple of Osiris, recently gifted with a seireiken sword. Known associate of Shifrah Dumah and Zahra El Ayat. Fact: None.

Aknin – Fiction: A police captain in Port Chellah, Marrakesh. Fact: Aknin is an Amazigh (Berber) surname in use today.

Alero – Fiction: A small town on the road between Madrid and Zaragoza. Fact: None.

Alexandria – Fiction: A port city on the northern coast of Aegyptus. Fact: A real location in Egypt, named for Alexander the Great.

Algeciras – Fiction: A port city on the southern coast of España. Fact: A real location in Spain.

Algora – Fiction: A small town on the road between Madrid and Zaragoza. Fact: A real location in Spain.

Aloja – Fiction: Part ghost and part flesh, these “water-women” haunt wells and lakes to seduce men. Fact: These creatures come from the folklore of Catalan in eastern Spain.

Alonso Ramos – Fiction: One of the young fencing students at Don Lorenzo’s school. Handsome, charming, and a skilled guitar player, but not a remarkable swordsman. Fact: None.

Alovera – Fiction: A small town on the road between Madrid and Zaragoza. Fact: A real location in Spain.

Amposta – Fiction: A port city on the eastern coast of España. Fact: A real location in Spain.

Ankh – Fiction: An Aegyptian symbol resembling a cross with a round head, symbolizing
eternal life
. Fact: This Egyptian symbol for
eternal life
can be found in numerous artworks, including tombs.

Anubis – Fiction: A young man gifted with an aetherium soul-locket, granting him eternal life and youth, as well as other abilities. A member of a large family of similarly immortal men and women, he lives a generally secluded life in the undercity of Alexandria. Four thousand years ago, he and his family posed as high priests and living gods of the Aegyptian people, presiding over state and religious functions, such as funerals. His appearance is unique within his family, notably his pure black skin and jackal mask. Fact: The Egyptian god Anubis was associated with mummification and the afterlife. He was depicted as having a jackal’s head (jackals were associated with cemeteries) and being black (to represent the fertile black soil of the Nile river valley).

Arafez – Fiction: A wealthy industrial city in central Marrakesh. Fact: This location corresponds with the city of Fes, Morocco.

Argenti Valero – Fiction: The monarch of España, also known as The Silver Prince. Fact: There was a king in the ancient Spanish city of Tartessos named Argantonio, which means
silver
.

Ariella Espinoza – Fiction: An Espani nun who died centuries ago after a lifetime of virtuous service, and now she haunts Lorenzo Quesada. Fact: None.

Ariza – Fiction: A small town on the road between Madrid and Zaragoza. Fact: A real location in Spain.

Arkangel
– Fiction: A steam-powered ironclad warship built by the Espani navy under the command of Lord Admiral Ferdinand Magellan. Fact: Steam-powered ironclad warships were first used in the American Civil War (the
Monitor
versus the
Virginia
in 1862).

Arquebus – Fiction: An early firearm. Fact: Same.

Ashanti – Fiction: One of the nations conquered by the Songhai Empire. Fact: The Ashanti live in West Africa around Ghana. Their empire spanned the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Askia – Fiction: The current ruler of the Songhai Empire, a man of peace and faith. Fact: Askia the Great ruled the Songhai Empire in the early sixteenth century and championed the growth of education, trade, religion, culture, and bureaucratic government.

Asr be kheyr – “Good evening” in Farsi (Persian / Eranian).

Athens – Fiction: A city in Hellas. Fact: A real location in Greece.

Atlanteen Ocean – Fiction: An ocean to the west of Ifrica and Europa. Fact: An ocean to the west of Africa and Europe.

Atlantia – Fiction: An ancient lost city where Tartessos now stands in España. Fact: Refers to the legend of the lost city of Atlantis, which some believe might have been located in southern Spain.

Atlas Mountains – Fiction: A mountain range spanning Marrakesh and Numidia. Fact: A mountain range spanning Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.

Atoq – Fiction: The name of Qhora’s saber-toothed hunting cat. Fact: The name Atoq is the Quechua (Incan) word for
fox
.

Aztec – Fiction: The Aztec nation is a northern province of the Incan Empire. Fact: The Aztec nation spanned central Mexico until the Spanish invasion led by Hernan Cortez in 1521.

Bafours – Fiction: A small group of people to the south of Marrakesh who oppose the spread of industrialization. Fact: The Bafours were among the earliest people to live in West Africa.

Bantu – Fiction: A powerful but little-known group of kingdoms in South Ifrica. Fact: The Bantu languages include Zulu, Shona, and Swahili, and there are about 335 million Bantu speakers across the southern half of Africa.

Barcelona – Fiction: A sea port on the eastern coast of España. Fact: A real location in Spain.

Barika Chaou – Fiction: The Mazigh ambassador to España. Fact: The Swahili name Barika means
to bloom
or
to succeed
and the surname Chaou is Amazigh (Berber).

Basajaun – Fiction: A large hairy ape-man that lives in the Pyrenees Mountains and carries a saw-bladed club. Fact: This Bigfoot-like creature comes from Basque mythology and is generally considered wise and peaceful.

Basirat andarun – “To look inside” in Farsi (Persian / Eranian)

Bastet – Fiction: A young girl gifted with an aetherium soul-locket, granting her eternal life and youth, as well as other abilities. A member of a large family of similarly immortal men and women, she lives a generally secluded life in the undercity of Alexandria. Four thousand years ago, she and her family posed as high priests and living gods of the Aegyptian people, presiding over state and religious functions, such as funerals. Today she protects the children of Alexandria, particularly girls, and has a large entourage of stray cats. She appears as a twelve-year-old girl in a black dress and carries a bronze sword and a cat mask. Fact: The Egyptian goddess Bastet was a protector of the royal family. She was depicted as having a cat’s head. Over time, she was replaced by a similar warrior goddess, Sekhmet, a woman with the head of a lioness.

Berkan – Fiction: A Mazigh sergeant who protects Qhora and Lorenzo. Fact: The Amazigh (Berber) name Berkan means
dark
.

Bielsa – Fiction: A mining town in northern España. Fact: A real location in Spain.

Black Guelphs – Fiction: A political faction in Italia who support the Roman Pope and fight the White Guelphs, like chemist Dante Aligeri, who oppose papal power in favor of the king. Fact: Same. The famous poet Dante Alighieri was a White Guelph (and a chemist) who was exiled from Florence when the Black Guelphs took power.

Blunderbuss – Fiction: An early firearm. Fact: Same.

Bou Regreg River – Fiction: A river in Marrakesh that meets the Atlanteen Ocean near Port Chellah. Fact: A river in Morocco that meets the Atlantic Ocean near Rabat.

Brassmoon Gang – Fiction: A criminal syndicate in Lixus broken up by Major Syfax Zidane. Fact: None.

Canaari Islands – Fiction: A group of islands off the western coast of Marrakesh owned by España. Fact: The Canary Islands off the western coast of Morocco are owned by Spain.

Carnivale – Fiction: A festival held in Italia in early spring. Fact: A Catholic festival celebrated before Lent all over the world.

Cartagena – Fiction: The fort town where the Espani made their last stand against the Incas before abandoning their failed invasion of the New World. Fact: A city in Colombia settled by the Spanish during their successful invasion of the New World.