The Keystone Staff Read online

  "You wouldn't survive a fall like that, lass!"

  Vessa smiled. "Fall, no. Glide -- yes. Yominai, how hard is it to pilot one of those Aramkeen ornithopters?"

  "Fairly simple to learn but extremely hard to master," the witch said.

  "That will have to do. We have twelve of them in the cargo hold and not much time to be brought up to speed."

  Vessa hand-picked ten of their best warriors and rounded up as many arms as they could carry. Just as they were about to head down into the cargo hold, Rogo walked up to her.

  "What about the Wardens?" he asked.

  "This whole wreck of an expedition is their fault," said Vessa. "We leave them to their fate."

  Vessa, Yominai and their group of warriors disappeared below deck.

  Chapter Ten: Kera

  Kera had no idea where she was. She opened her eyes and found herself surrounded by pillows on an immense mattress. The four-poster bed was covered in the finest Shintah silks she had ever seen.

  Her head throbbed. Suddenly, she realized that she had been recaptured and knocked out by a Warden of Aeon. She suspected the green-eyed woman was working with Jorthen. Looking out between the bed's posts she saw him, sitting at a large table eating his supper, his staff leaning against the chair.

  "You're awake," he said. "Please, have a seat and eat something."

  The room, made of dark wood, looked rather like a log cabin filled with fine tapestries, sculptures and other opulent possessions. A towering bookcase adorned the far wall. Leather-bound tomes filled its shelves as a golden-handled sword in an ivory sheath perched on top of the shelving unit. The head of a stag mounted over a window with eyes that looked as lost as she felt. Kera slid out of the bed and walked over to the table but remained standing.

  "Where is Captain Fitch?" she asked.

  "Locked away in a cell. Don't worry, I have not forgotten our deal. He will not be harmed. I've known him longer than you have and I'm quite fond of him and his crew."

  Kera crossed her arms. "You were willing to let him and his crew be executed."

  "Which you were able negotiate them from." Jorthen cut into his steak and smiled. For as long as she had ever known him, she couldn't recall any time he had smiled in her presence. "Are you sure you won't sit?" he asked.

  "No. What I want is to leave this place."

  "That was not part of our deal. The captain and his crew will be free to set sail once I've completed my mission."

  "And what mission is that? The one the Warden High Council entrusted you with? Or whatever betrayal the Elderlands asked of you?"

  He slammed his cutlery on the table. "It is the Wardens that betrayed us! What you believe is a lie, Kera. They aren't here to help the world, they're only concerned with more power and control."

  Jorthen stood, grabbed his staff and walked towards a window on the far side of the room. He gazed out the window. "There are things you haven't been told. About the Wardens. About me." He turned to face Kera. "Years ago, I was inducted into a secret Order of the Divine Trial. Its goal was to breed more powerful Wardens until they could produce one that resonated perfectly with the Aeonlith. The High Council brought women I've never seen before into my bed chambers. They were eerily silent and their eyes... by the stones, there was no life behind their eyes."

  "And yet you continued to...?"

  "It was my duty. This continued for several months until the High Council informed me I had completed my service. I tried to forget about it but their eyes haunted me. Eventually I looked into the practice, and bibliothecary Luindre gained my trust, helping me research the Order. After five years of research, we were able to find enough fragments of information about a secret chamber hidden below the Citadel in Valtan City. That's where we found them. Women and babes being held in cells."

  Jorthen walked back to the table. "Have you ever wondered why members of the High Council go on missions to find new acolytes? They never leave the Citadel. The promising children they find are the babies sitting in those cells. After a year of being breast-fed they're brought to the Citadel. Like all acolytes, once they reach adolescence their gift blossoms and the Council can gauge the power of their gift. If a boy's gift from the Aeon at his Induction Ceremony is shown to be unusually powerful, he would be inducted into the Order of the Divine Trials as an adult. The girls would face a more horrible fate as they would be brought down into the secret chamber where their minds were destroyed by a Psychestone. They became soulless creatures used only for procreation. Mindless, without the ability to learn and all but basic motor functions stripped away. They give birth, nurse the newborns and the cycle repeats."

  "That means you were created from this process. But why would they allow the children into the Citadel in the first place? Why not keep their breeding experiment locked beneath the Citadel?"

  "Because the more people who know a secret, the more likely it is to get out. Only the High Council knows about it and so they pass off the children as new initiates. Just because you breed two high level Wardens, it doesn't mean their child will be even more powerful than its parents. The only exception Luindre and I discovered was a boy named Corren, locked away under the Citadel. Born with his gift active, he was able to manipulate his gift without a gemstone. But he drew his power from any Warden around him and not the Aeonlith directly. The council wondered if his ability to draw from the Aeonlith would be unlocked when he reached puberty. Luindre and I agreed that we needed to end the practice and covertly set the boy, babies, and all the women who had not yet undergone the Psychestone free. I destroyed the stone myself and smuggled the children to the Elderlands as Luindre suggested. We believe the council has never learned of our involvement."

  "The boy, he was your son, wasn't he?"

  "No, he was too old to be my child. After we set them free I asked Luindre to investigate whether I had any children. Years later, he discovered just one living in the Citadel: you."

  Me? Kera thought. No, that's not possible. Jorthen took a step forward as Kera backed away from the large table. She circled to the other side of the table looking for anything to keep distance between the two of them.

  "But you've always been inhospitable! You've never cared for me at all!"

  "As far as we know the council hasn't connected our involvement. After the escape, they became paranoid. I had to treat you no differently than anyone else because the High Council knew you were my daughter. To protect you, Luindre sabotaged your Induction Ceremony to make the council believe you were of low power. I don't know how he did it, but he somehow suppressed your power while you were in Valtan. He warned me that the process only extended to the ends of the city. Out here, whatever he had done should not affect you."

  This went far to explain why she needed little concentration to activate the stones in the battle against the Aramkeen on the Silent Star or Jorthen's staff. Before, I could barely make light as bright as a candle, she thought. And now it is powerful enough to be used as a weapon. But what does any of this have to do with the Elderlands?

  "What happened to Corren?" she asked.

  "The council began a systematic hunt through the Elderlands for the runaways. I was chosen to be a part of the hunt and I assume the other members of the Order of the Divine Trials were chosen as well. We burned whole villages to the ground searching for them and the city-states united in outlawing Wardens. I secretly brokered amnesty for Corren and the escapees with the newly created Empire of the Elderlands. In return for their protection, they would help destroy the Wardens. That's why I needed to get you out of Valtan and to safety. The Aramkeen were supposed to get you off of the Silent Star and I would chase after them. Afterwards I could tell you the truth about your lineage and the Wardens. Fitch and his crew would never even reach the city while the Aramkeen would deliver us to Qattan. I had hoped to recover the K
eystone Staff when we arrived to meet with the Night's Keep but it seems that is not to be."

  "And you told the council it was here."

  "Luindre taught me to plant a small truth in a larger lie."

  "So allowing that woman to knock me out is your idea of keeping me safe?"

  "Rhea was protecting herself. I brought you aboard the Night's Keep to tell you the truth."

  "Then tell me, how is this place even possible?"

  "During the War of the Heavens, the Citadel sent an entire legion of Wardens armed with Aerostones. The battle was won somewhere over the Mortira desert but at the cost of most of those warriors. We lost almost all the Aerostones, making them one of the most precious Lenstones. The only known place with a significant amount of the ore is in the Dragonlands so it remained rare. But the Elderlands had long ago unearthed the site of the final battle and hoarded the stones. Corren saw an opportunity when he discovered the cache of gems and had this place built. All of those Aerostones have been embedded into the rock and operated by Rhea's sister Ehra. The entire surface of the Night's Keep works like a staff made entirely of Aerostones."

  "Even with this place, you don't have the manpower to take on the Citadel. Your small group of Wardens, no matter how powerful they are, will not be enough for an all out offensive. The troops in Qattan won't be enough either."

  "Who said anything about an all out offensive? We'll drop the Night's Keep on top of the Citadel."

  Kera backed away from the table. "You're mad! There are children there -- Luindre is still there!"

  "There are always casualties in every war. Don't you see? If they ever found out about your power they would tie you to a bed and have you raped without a second thought! It's the High Council that is insane and corrupt, not I! We need to start over with a more just Order," Jorthen implored as he circled around the table.

  She wanted it to be untrue, she wanted him to be lying about it all. Even Luindre warned her not to trust him. Could this all be a trick to get her to reveal the true location of the Keystone Staff? But that wouldn't explain the floating fortress or the hate he directed towards the Wardens.

  What if everything he says is true? she wondered. Her father wouldn't be some unknown person located halfway across the world. It would be someone who had watched out for her, even if it was in his own twisted way. All she wanted was to go home but if Jorthen was being honest, even that seemed impossible. Only Luindre knew the truth.

  Clang! Clang!

  Bells rang through the Night's Keep and Jorthen turned to the door and looked alert. A Qattanian soldier burst through his chamber door.

  "We're under attack!" he said.

  "We are in the sky, who could be attacking?" Jorthen asked.

  "Aramkeen gliders, sir! They appeared out of the sun and have already taken out one of the guard towers!"

  "I want a guard placed at my door," Jorthen said before turning to Kera. "Please, stay here. You'll be safe."

  With that, Jorthen walked out into the courtyard and locked the door to the chambers behind him. Fortunately, this was not a prison cell and a locked wooden door can easily be broken. Kera retrieved the ornamental sword from the top of the bookcase and strapped the ivory scabbard to her hip. She unsheathed the long, curved blade and took a deep breath. With sword in hand, she kicked down the door. The guard on the other side never saw her coming.

  Chapter Eleven: Fitch

  Fitch had been awake for a few moments before the bells rang, stuck inside of an iron cage with a single guard nearby keeping watch. The room outside of the cage was wood with a stone floor. It didn't remind him of Qattan. Either he was unconscious for a long time, or else he was on the Night's Keep. He sat against the bars with his back to his young and solemn captor.

  "So, we're under attack?" Fitch asked.

  The guard remained motionless and stern.

  "Don't say much do you, huh? Makes me wonder if you're dead. Me, I can talk for hours. Or until someone comes bursting through that door to stab me, assuming that's what those bells are for." Fitch looked over his shoulder to look at the guard. "Fortunately, you're here and you get to be the first target. Gives me some time before they try to kill me. Looks like you drew the short end of the stick, dying alone with only me for company."

  Fitch rose to his feet. "Or you can just let me out of here and we can defend this place together."

  Now the guard looked at him with skepticism.

  "Worth a shot," Fitch shrugged. "At least I know you're not dead. Not yet, anyway."

  The door to the room opened and in walked Jorthen with his staff at the ready. With a wave, he dismissed the guard. Fitch stood up, looking at his former ally, and walked towards the front of his cell where Jorthen was standing.

  "Your crew is on their way to rescue you, it seems," Jorthen said.

  "Nice to know I still have friends," said Fitch. "So why are you here instead of killing them?"

  "Why go looking if I know where they need to end up? This isn't what I wanted, you know. You were never supposed to reach Qattan or get involved with any of this. I can't let you leave, but if you call off your men and they return to their cells, all of you will be free in a fortnight."

  Fitch tightly gripped the bars to his cell, wishing it was Jorthen's neck.

  "What is wrong with you?" said Fitch as a movement behind Jorthen caught his eye. "We're standing in a fortress that is floating in the sky and I doubt you plan to use it to bring the children of the world any treats. This breaks the Ahrsai treaty, not to mention several natural laws. The Freehold will be up in arms. You've switched allegiances and the Elderlands are hellbent on an invasion. Who knows how the Empire of Shintah will react to all this and you plan to set the world on fire. What part of that will be good for me and my crew when we get out?"

  "The world will be a better place."

  "Oh, if I had a guilden for every time I've heard someone say that," Fitch declared. "Look, we haven't always seen eye-to-eye. But what I've enjoyed most about this discussion is that it distracted you from noticing the green mist."

  Jorthen jumped back and tried to wave the mist away with his staff. There was a click at the cell door and a key hanging from the lock. Fitch sprung from his cell, throwing a punch across Jorthen's jaw in one fluid motion. The staff went flying and fell to the floor as the Warden staggered back.

  Jorthen lunged forward, tackling Fitch to the ground, and swung a left hook. Fitch blocked, grabbed his arm and kicked him off. He staggered to his feet and punched Jorthen several times in the face until his body went limp.

  "You have no idea how much I've wanted to do that to you," Fitch spat as he picked up Jorthen's staff. "Witch, how do we get out of here?"

  "Why ask my name and then not use it?"

  "Just tell me the way!" he said as he raced into the hallway.

  Around the corner a stationed guard drew his sword but before it left the scabbard, Fitch brought the staff crashing upon his head. He picked up the sword and sent Yominai to scout ahead. She reported no more soldiers. They ran down the corridor and out into a courtyard which was littered with four Aramkeen ornithopter. Fitch caught a motion in his peripheral vision. He turned to see Kera fending off a soldier with a golden-handled sword that was longer than her arm. Fitch could see her tiring from parrying the heavy sword. At this rate she wouldn't last long against her opponent.

  Before he could act, a sharp pain moved though his left shoulder. He screamed in agony and looked down to see an arrow lodged just below his collarbone as a second arrow struck the staff. Kera parried a strike from her attacker, pushing him back and ran over to Fitch. She must have seen the staff, he thought as Kera dropped her ornamental sword and took up the Warden's weapon. Its stones glimmered to life.

  An aqua blue stone lit up as Kera raised he
r hands in a V and enveloped both herself and Fitch in a green hemisphere. A third arrow flew towards them but was deflected by the protective hemisphere. The aqua blue stone went dark as a sapphire brightened and a flame erupted from the head of the staff towards the archer, engulfing him in a bright ball of fire. Kera's earlier opponent rushed up swinging his sword. Fitch raised his own blade, blocking the blow.

  The vibration from the parry reverberated through his body and pain shot into his shoulder. More archers appeared on the walls as arrows rained down on them. Kera once again lifted her arms and the aqua stone brought the protective green sphere to life, trapping the swordsman inside.

  "Yominai!" said Fitch.

  There was no answer as he parried a second attack from the swordsman. She has fled or she was struck dead, Fitch thought. Either way she is no help to me now. Fitch swung his sword, but his adversary blocked the attack and ripped the arrow out of Fitch's shoulder with his free hand. In agony, Fitch dropped his sword and fell to his knees.

  He looked up as his adversary brought his sword down. Fitch spun on his knee, grabbing the ornamental sword Kera had discarded. His opponent buried his weapon into the ground where Fitch had been just a moment before. In one motion he jumped up and stabbed the sword into the man's back.

  The swordsman let out a grisly scream before collapsed onto the ground. Fitch fell with his now dead rival. He rolled off the corpse and looked up. Through the green bubble he could see the Silent Star descending as arrows flew from the top deck of his ship and down on the archers along the wall. They were going home.