Here Shines the Sun Page 7

  Although it was true that he and Karin were secretly given their Sanguinastrums by Erygion the Standard Bearer, the keeper of all Sanguinastrums back at Sanctuary, it did not mean they were completely free. Keeping up the charade of being loyal to Sanctuary and King Gatima was wearing on Hadraniel as of late, and he had seen just how powerful some of Gatima’s Exalteds were. Having their own Sanguinastrums did not protect them from the likes of Leviathan Hydra or Titan Mammoth.

  Hadraniel spoke softly, “Let’s just go. Me and you could find a place together and get away from all of this. Just me and you.”

  “Erygion needs us.” said Karinael. “These people need us. If we’re truly loyal to the Sleeping Goddess, we have to stay the course with Erygion. There’s only one star left in the sky now. Time is short, and Erygion needs us now more than ever. We can’t abandon hope.”

  Hadraniel sighed. He knew she was right. A couple nights ago another star had fallen from the heavens. It was said that if the Sleeping Goddess was not awakened before the final star fell from the sky, that a new age of destruction would be visited upon the world. Hadraniel did not have the courage to admit to Karinael that, in his heart, he felt they had already failed the Goddess. Part of him so badly wanted to just be with Karinael; to live a happy life that few, if any, Saints Caliber ever got. With their Sanguinastrums, he and Karin had that chance. He looked her in the eyes. “I don’t think you understand. I love you, Karin. If something ever happened to you, I don’t know what I’d do. And I’ve seen what they do to Saints they lose trust in. I might not be able to protect you. And Nuriel…”

  “It’s fine, Hadi. Trust me.”

  “Do you remember that day we first met?” asked Hadraniel.

  Karinael smiled brightly. “Of course.”

  “I want to ask you something about that day that I’ve never asked you before.” he said as she peered into his silver eyes. He loved the way she did that. Her eyes were always so warm; so caring. They were eyes he often lost himself in, just as he found himself getting lost in them now.

  In his mind’s eye the consuming shadows of the towers and wall beside him became the broken tower that had stood before the city of Caer Jerusa eight years ago. He was part of a small constellation of four Saints with Adonael of the Rivers Edge at the lead. They had come to assist Saint Nuriel and her apprentice who had run into some major problems while visiting Caer Jerusa at Gatima’s request. Even before they had seen the city’s dilapidated stone wall Hadraniel could hear the hammering of bolt-throwers. Hadraniel saw the golden trails of Caliber light as his companions bounded over the crumbling wall and into the city. Hadraniel himself leapt into the air and over the wall. He had hardly landed when the wall behind him began to explode into chunks of sundered stone.

  JINK-JINK-JINK-JINK! came the hammering bolt-throwers. Hadraniel went down to his knees and raised his forearms to his face, shielding himself as best he could against the exploding stone fragments around him.

  The bolt-thrower fire paused for a moment and Hadraniel took the opportunity to dive and roll back to his feet just as the wall behind him toppled. He saw Saint Sacriel upon a nearby dirt road in a defensive stance with his star-metal saber at the ready. There was another short burst of fire from down the road and Hadraniel watched as Sacriel flourished his weapon. One of the powerful, iron bolts exploded off his sword. But then another impacted his star-metal breastplate and knocked him back a step just as a third and final bolt ripped through his unarmored abdomen.

  As if in slow motion Hadraniel watched Sacriel’s white leather bodysuit explode in a burst of terrible crimson, just below his breastplate. The Saint fell backwards, screaming and clutching at the ghastly wound. Without thinking, Hadraniel dashed to the side of his fallen comrade and a ghastly, septic odor hit him. There was nothing left of Sacriel’s belly. Pieces of flesh, bone and intestine lay everywhere. Sacriel screamed the way a man only can when he knows he has met his doom, but Hadraniel grabbed him around the collar of his breastplate anyway. He was about to drag him to safety when something caught his eye.

  Down the road, in the shadows of two rotten buildings whose roofs had more holes than clay shingles, Hadraniel saw a pair of gleaming, emerald lenses staring at him. The figure wore a black robe and its hood concealed all but those two, large, owl-like lenses. Hadraniel felt his heart-rate quicken. What that being was, was unmistakable. With gloved hands the Jinn raised its heavy, iron rifle known as a bolt-thrower and now Hadraniel found himself staring down its long barrel.

  Sacriel choked and blood flew from his mouth as Hadraniel held him by his collar. He shined his Caliber a bright white and in a single leap had himself and Sacriel away from the road just as the thunderous pounding of bolt-thrower fire erupted.

  Hadraniel’s star-metal boots bit deep into the dirt road as he landed. He spun down to his knee to attend Sacriel, but the Saint was gasping his last. His eyes, as silver and chrome as Hadraniel’s own, looked to the subdued light of the dawn sky above but didn’t seem to see anything. His breaths were shallow and frantic, blood spattering from his lips with every gasp. Hadraniel brushed away Sacriel’s chrome hair and placed his hand upon his forehead. He closed his eyes and said, “Aeoria be with you.”

  Hadraniel heard the pop of bone dislocating and felt Sacriel’s body spasm in his hands. He looked away from the gruesome sight as Sacriel’s body was consumed into his armor.

  Hadraniel focused on the Ev that flowed through his body. The drug numbed him to his work, and to sights such as this. It numbed him even to the loss of a friend. Sacriel was one of the good ones, like Hadraniel himself, who took no pleasure in the work that had to be done. Hadraniel did not look back as he shined his Caliber and dashed down the street, as quick as the wind, toward the sound of more bolt-thrower fire. The empty shell of Sacriel’s breastplate, and the loose pieces of his Star-Armor where he had lain, were the only sad and lonesome reminders that a Saint had once inhabited them.

  Ahead, Hadraniel saw the skeleton of an old house whose roof had long ago fallen. The cobblestone walls were cracked and missing entire sections, but at one corner a good portion of the two adjoining walls still stood in something of a lopsided shelter. There, random bolts blasted at the walls as a group of Saints huddled behind them.

  Hadraniel could clearly see Adonael and Saint Cirial who he had come here with. Adonael had hair and eyes like rubies and Cirial had hair and eyes like polished sapphires that shown in the blazing, early-morning sun. They both crouched against the wall, their star-metal swords gleaming in their hands. Beside them were two other Saints, one of which Hadraniel knew well. Saint Nuriel was lithe and beautiful in her bodysuit and Star-Armor. Her hair was like spun gold and her eyes the same metal, but molten. He had always known her to have a tired, sleepless look about her, but never so much as now. Her eyes had dark circles beneath them and she just looked worn-out to him. In her hand she held the same giant, star-metal claymore he had seen her defeat Behemoth Kraken with a couple years ago. She peered out from a gap in the debris wall she was ducked behind and then quickly recoiled as the stone exploded in a burst of bolt-thrower fire. Tucked away into the corner behind Nuriel was her apprentice, Saint Karinael.

  Hadraniel had never met her, but he assumed it must be her. Karinael filled all the gossip among the Saints Caliber in the field and it was no secret that her and Nuriel had been good friends back at Sanctuary. The buzz was that Karinael was weak; that she never even really trained as a Saints Templar before being granted her Call to Guard and becoming one of the Saints Caliber. It was whispered that Nuriel pulled some strings back at Sanctuary to get her friend into the field. It had been something of a surprise that Karinael even had the strength of Caliber to be bound to the impossibly heavy Star-Armor they all wore. Few believed she would survive long without Nuriel as her constant companion. Already Karinael had been apprenticing with her for two years, which was quite long, but none of the other Saints o
ut in the field really wanted her in their constellation. Many wondered just how much longer Nuriel would be ‘apprenticing’ her.

  Hadraniel frowned. Among the bright Caliber glow of the other Saints he could scarcely detect Karinael’s. It encompassed her in an abnormal shimmer of whites and golds, but it was anything but bright. It seemed the rumors of her being weak weren’t unfounded.

  Karinael was slender but not as lithe as Nuriel. Her hair was like crystalline honey that poured in spiraling curtains from her head. Even from here Hadraniel could see her eyes sparkle in the sun, like polished amber. In her hand she held a star-metal broadsword but flinched as bolt-throwers pummeled the wall they all ducked behind.

  Hadraniel dashed forward and dove behind the wall with the others, rolling back up to his feet and slamming the back of his breastplate against the wall. It shook from the tremendous impact.

  “Where’s Sacriel?” asked Adonael as Hadraniel knelt beside him with his back to the wall.

  Hadraniel pursed his lips into a frown. “A Jinn.” he said. He saw the color leave Saint Cirial’s face. “He took a bolt to his gut.”

  Adonael cursed.

  “What’s going on?” asked Hadraniel.

  “I was here—” began Karinael.

  “Shut-up.” barked Nuriel, casting Karinael a smoldering gaze. “Just shut-up.”

  Karinael turned her eyes down and swallowed hard.

  “What’s up with her Caliber?” asked Cirial, scowling at Karinael. “Why’s it doing that?”

  All eyes turned to Karinael and she shifted on her feet, clearly uncomfortable with the curious looks she was getting. All Saints had a power—a Caliber—that they could shine. It allowed them to move faster than the winds, to fight with deadly accuracy, and even to heal themselves. It could be consciously controlled and shined, but sometimes in the heat of battle it would shine all its own. Some Saints, like those of Aeoria’s Guard, could shine their powerful Calibers to a blinding white. They could use it to manipulate objects from a distance, or tear up earth and stone. Hadraniel had once seen Nuriel encompass herself in a shield of Caliber energy when she brought the church down on Behemoth Kraken. Few Saints were that powerful though. However, even the weakest of the Saints Caliber ought to be able to shine their Caliber bright gold or even white. Karinael’s Caliber struggled and sputtered.

  Nuriel’s eyes flicked to her and then over to Cirial. She sniffed and tucked her golden hair behind her ear. “Believe it or not, that’s bright for her. Brightest I’ve ever seen.” she said with a type of reserved contempt. “Level it out.” snapped Nuriel. “Focus on shining it evenly.”

  “I… I can’t help it.” said Karinael. “I… I feel weird.”

  Cirial huffed. “No wonder you look so tired, Nuriel. Having to drag her around with you everywhere? Shit, I’m feeling tired just being next to her.”

  Nuriel’s eyes flashed like a viper’s before a strike.

  Adonael swatted Cirial over the back of his head. “We’re all in this constellation together right now.”

  “So what’s going on here?” asked Hadraniel again.

  “This city was getting one of those secret shipments of food and supplies that Gatima has us all on the lookout for.” said Nuriel. “We tracked the origins of the shipments to a couple of outlying caers like this one.” She turned to Karinael and her voice took on a sour edge. “Karinael was supposed to watch this city and find out where the shipments were coming from.” Here Nuriel’s eyes narrowed into slits. “But Karinael botched it.”

  Karinael looked up at Nuriel. “I’m… I’m sorry. I just think that—”

  “Shut! Up!” barked Nuriel.

  The wall in front of Nuriel exploded into fragments as bolt-thrower fire pounded it. Nuriel fell backward, shielding her head with the bracers on her forearms. She cursed.

  “We can’t stay here any longer.” said Nuriel. Broken stone powdered her pauldrons and breastplate. “We have to make our move. They have us pinned down and these walls aren’t going to hold up much longer.”

  “How’d they get bolt-throwers?” asked Hadraniel. Nobody in Jerusa was supposed to have so much as a sword or even a bow, let alone expensive bolt-throwers.

  “Jinn.” said Nuriel. “Best I can tell, they escorted whoever brought the shipments of food in. Five wagons full by my count.”

  There was a thunderous explosion upon the wall and Karinael made a little yelp as a piece of it toppled on her, breaking over her pauldrons and breastplate. Hadraniel couldn’t help but look at Karinael. He could see the fear in her eyes. She was still very green. Nuriel had been apprenticing her, but best he could tell, she hadn’t really been showing her friend all the ropes. For having been out in the field for two years, Karinael still looked and acted like one of the sheltered boys and girls back at Sanctuary. She jumped and yelped again as another errant bolt slammed the wall. Rubble was tossed into the air and tinkled off all their Star-Armor.

  “There’s at least two Jinn here.” said Adonael. He pointed down the road. “They’re both down there, hiding in the alleys.”

  “I think maybe more than that.” said Hadraniel. “There was at least one Jinn back there. The one who got Sacriel.”

  “There’s one hiding up there too.” said Nuriel, pointing to one of the few remaining high areas of the town’s wall.

  “Four Jinn?” Cirial shook his head. “Fuck.”

  “Adonael, me and you are going to take this head-on.” said Nuriel. “On my mark, me and you push forward. Hadraniel, I want you and Cirial to both go out wide in opposite directions. Try to get behind them. Take them from the back as me and Adonael come at them from the front. Let’s get this over with quickly.”

  “What about me,” asked Karinael.

  “You stay here.” said Nuriel.

  “But I—”

  Nuriel’s eyes flashed as she turned her head to Karinael. “I said you’re staying here.” She looked back at Adonael. “You ready?”

  Adonael nodded.

  Nuriel looked at Hadraniel and then Cirial. They both nodded.

  “Let’s go,” said Nuriel. Her Caliber shined a blinding white around her as she leapt from the wall. Adonael, encompassed by the glow of his own Caliber, came close behind her. The thundering hammer of bolt-thrower fire erupted and Nuriel flourished her star-metal claymore, bolts exploding off of it in showers of sparks and splintered iron.

  Cirial bolted forward and then made a tremendous leap to the right, landing on a rooftop and then bounding off of it and out of sight. At the same time Hadraniel leapt over the wall and, shining his Caliber a brilliant gold, jumped up to the nearest rooftop at his left. As he landed his foot broke the clay shingles and his leg plunged through rotten timbers. He struggled for a moment to get up, but then more of the shingles began falling off and it was all he could do to not fall with them. By the time he got back on his feet Cirial was out of sight. Far down the road he could see the glow of Nuriel’s and Adonael’s Calibers, and he could hear an onslaught of bolt-thrower fire. He glanced back to the wall they had all been hiding behind and saw Karinael making a run down one of the alleys. It was the one that led toward where he and Sacriel had encountered the Jinn.

  Hadraniel looked around. He cursed. Cirial, Adonael and especially Nuriel were all highly capable Saints. He had fought beside Cirial and Adonael numerous times as part of their constellation. They were both strong and could take care of themselves. Nuriel, however, was a beast all her own and didn’t need anybody worrying about her. Hadraniel would never forget that day at Caer Gatima. He, Nuriel, Adonael and Ovid had all put an end to the uprising there together. Only he and Nuriel, however, knew the truth of what happened after that; the truth of what Behemoth Kraken was—and that Nuriel had killed that monstrosity single-handedly. No, Nuriel needed no help from him. In fact, he was fairly certain she could probably handle this whole ordeal on h
er own if it came to it. With a sigh, he leapt to the next roof and chased after Karinael.

  Karinael’s Caliber hardly shown now as Hadraniel shadowed her down the dim alleys lit by the still dreamy sun of the morning sky. She made a hard turn down one of the streets and Hadraniel spotted a pair of figures overtaking her from one of the alleys. He cursed. One of them was a Jinn and the other was a man in travel-worn leather armor, much better than one would ever find in this country of Jerusa. The man was lean and muscular, obviously well-fed. Definitely not a Jerusan. He and the Jinn both carried bolt-throwers.

  Hadraniel shined his Caliber brightly as he made an amazing leap off the rooftop. He landed just behind the Jinn. It turned around, but before it could get its bolt-thrower raised Hadraniel flourished his broadsword and the thing’s head went flying. The man beside him stumbled back and raised his bolt-thrower. Hadraniel moved in but Karinael put herself between them before either of them could strike.

  “No!” she yelled, holding her arms wide.

  The man had a thick beard the color of autumn straw, and his brown eyes shown with fear as he moved behind Karinael.

  “Leave him alone!” shouted Karinael.

  Hadraniel was confused. The man held the heavy gun, but did not point it at Karinael. Didn’t even try to kill her, even though he had the perfect opportunity to shoot her in the back of her head. Hadraniel looked at Karinael and sputtered, trying to find his words.

  “He’s a friend,” said Karinael. She turned to the man. “Go. Hurry. Get back to the others and just stay there. I’ll handle this.”

  The man looked at her skeptically, and then more cautiously, looked at Hadraniel.

  “Go!” said Karinael.

  Hadraniel watched as the man nodded and then ran off down the road. He felt Karinael’s warm hand on his cheek. It was much warmer and soothing than the Ev that flowed through his veins. He found her amber eyes.