An Aftershock of Hope and Fear: Chapter Four

              Interitus 3: Short Story #1: An Aftershock of Hope and Fear

Chapter Four

 

“It looks like your suspicion was justified. It was no ocean storm that forced the oldest port to close. It was a monster from the sea itself,” said Ophelia over the splash of seawater.

“What do you mean?” asked Abraham as he rowed the boat with his flexing arms.

“Stop rowing. Stand up and see for yourself,” she answered with a lurid sigh.

With a deep breath of exertion, Abraham set down the oars and lifted his aching body off the wooden seat. As soon as he stood upright, he was overcome by a powerful stretch which caused several pops in his back. He winced as his eyes adjusted to the bright light of the setting sun, and then he glanced down at the ocean. Their wooden boat was a modest barrier between their bodies and the ocean itself, and though it safely fought through the waves, he realized the precariousness of their position.

In between weak ocean waves, Abraham saw wooden shambles in the depths far below the surface. With every passing wave, he saw the remains of another underwater shipwreck. It was a cemetery of sunken ships buried beneath the sea. However, when he turned to face Ophelia, he saw that she stared at the horizon. Fiery light from the sinking sun set the sea ablaze with color, but the silhouette of a sailboat summoned a shadow which shot across the splashing sea.

“They are either the culprit or the next victim. It may be best to keep our distance,” Abraham whispered, even though the sea breeze carried his words in the opposite direction.

“I can sense their impulse from a distance. On that ship, there is a Taenarius more powerful than either of us. Your theory was right all along. The oldest port on Gavara closed because the ships were struck into the sea by a monster; it was never a series of storms. It was decades ago when they built the new port. How long has this been happening…?” Ophelia asked.

Abraham pondered and answered, “The alchemist said that we were scattered like seeds into our world by the dark sorcerer. It was sometime after he split the continents, or so she said. There is no telling how long the Taenarii have tormented the innocent.”

“I see. At the very least, I am grateful that the same power which torments them can also be used to protect them. Speaking of which… Abraham, have you accessed your Taenarius form yet?” she questioned without moving her gaze from the sailboat’s silhouette.

But at that moment, the silhouette of a person emerged from the cabin on the sailboat. Both Abraham and Ophelia dropped to the floor of their small wooden boat, hoping that their ship camouflaged as flotsam junk from a distance. She peered just over the edge of the bow, watching the man lower the sails which hung limply in the weak sea breeze. He then wandered to the starboard side of his sailboat and tossed an anchor overboard. Abraham crouched in the small confines of his boat, but he inched his way closer to his friend. Even as small waves sent tiny droplets of saltwater into the air, a stream of sparks spiraled along Ophelia’s left arm. The incendiary serpent illuminated the shadows cast by the setting sun.

“I felt nothing of the sort. Ever since we defeated the ice Taenarius, I do feel that my impulse is stronger. My power is stronger. But perhaps only a human victim can unlock the true form of the monster locked inside my soul. For years now, I felt an inkling like a quiet whisper begging to taste blood, and I don’t believe I can quench that thirst with the blood of another monster,” said Abraham.

Lowering her head from the edge of the ship, Ophelia set her hand upon his and asked, “Is that still your plan? When we first met, you told me that your curse will be carried out in the end. It is a foregone conclusion. You will succumb to the bloodlust as I once did, as we all eventually do. You said that you wish to take down other monsters until you yourself become one.”

“I truly believed that it was inevitable. After I saw the fearsome power you possessed in your Taenarius form, I relinquished the little hope I had left. The alchemist was right. Men are built with an intrinsic defect which drives them toward power, and I never dared deny this. You were an engine of destruction. You were both the catalyst and the cure, Ophelia. You tempted me to succumb to my bloodlust, and then just a matter of minutes later, you gave me reason to never surrender! You became a reason to keep holding on. In some twisted way, you became the lost innocent soul for which I’ve been fighting all along. Even if your innocence is buried beneath layers of dried blood,” Abraham explained.

“You gave me a shot at redemption, and I will never forget that. Even if we are killed in this campaign, then at least I can say that I used my powers to protect people in the end. Do you know what that means, Abraham? It is not just that I am better off because we met in the shambles of that long-lost town; the world itself is better off because you found me,” Ophelia said with a small smile.

But as a larger-than-average wave swept across the ocean’s surface, their wooden ship traveled a short distance and slammed against something else. The impact was not enough to damage their boat, but it was enough to knock them both against the wall of their boat. Abraham nervously poked his head over the edge of his ship, but his heart sank when he saw that they had bumped directly into the sailboat. He instinctively jumped into the back and retrieved his sword, but there was no one else in sight. Although they had earlier seen the silhouette of a man, the sailboat appeared to be abandoned. Tiny droplets of saltwater clung to the mast and shimmered in the blazing light of sunset.

“Good evening, fledgling Taenarii. I hate to throw my weight around, but it is in your best interest to board my ship. Please meet me in the cabin,” said a voice from the ocean.

Abraham jolted upright and glanced around for the source of the voice, but the ocean waves concealed the depths. He bared his teeth with a groan as he quickly contemplated his next move, but Ophelia was less argumentative. She could sense the danger they were in, and so she quickly reached her arms onto the port side of the sailboat. Her arms flexed as she struggled to hoist herself onto the deck, but Abraham still looked undecided. After a discontented sigh, he passed her his sword by the handle and then hoisted himself onto the deck beside her. From their higher vantage point, they each searched the ocean for a sign of the Taenarius, but they could not find him. The setting sunlight struck the sailboat and summoned a shadow which shrouded the sea, concealing any sign of the creature in the depths. Nevertheless, Ophelia returned Abraham’s sword then stepped inside the small cabin on the sailboat.

Before taking a seat at the small table, Abraham noticed that this Taenarius owned a large map of the nearby ocean, identical to the one he had seen in the alchemist’s lair. There were scribblings across both the ocean and the islands, all adorned with unrecognizable runes and symbols. An icebox sat in the corner of the cabin with berries and small fruits placed atop it. Beside the icebox was a sealed container filled with a familiar liquid. After narrowing his eyes, Abraham hypothesized that this same liquid was used by the alchemist to catalyze his powers.

“Welcome, Taenarius of tremors and Taenarius of the flaming serpent. Please take a seat! As I’m sure you can imagine, I don’t exactly see much company out here on the open ocean; I apologize if the place is a mess. What brings you to my home?” asked a deep voice.

Abraham swerved and saw a middle-aged man step into the doorway, blocking their only exit to the ocean. Saltwater dripped from his skin and his clothes. His hair was gray and white, and wrinkled scattered his tan skin. There was a bloodshot touch to his deep blue eyes, likely a consequence of his exposure to the ocean water. He dropped a harpoon at the entrance behind himself, but he remained in the doorway until Abraham and Ophelia each took a seat. Once they did, the Taenarius ambled over to the other side of the table, but he crossed his arms and leaned against the back wall instead of sitting down.

“In our human forms, no one can even tell that we are monsters in disguise. How do you know of the powers we possess?” asked Ophelia.

But the middle-aged man of the sea chuckled and answered, “It’s simpler than you think! With the impulse I sense from you, I am sure that you can probably detect another Taenarius from a distance. Surely you can sense our impulse at the very least! I suspect the same cannot be said for your friend. When you have devoured as many human hearts as me, and stolen their tiny shreds of impulse over time, your powers transcend all possibilities! I could tell you were coming since the second you set sail. I could sense your powers before I even saw your ship in the shining sea.”

“Does that mean you also know our intentions? We lament the curse we were condemned to carry, so we have set out to kill the monsters while we can. This was never a social call, Taenarius of water. This is just a step to save the innocent,” Abraham retorted.

With a booming laugh, the middle-aged man smiled and said, “Please don’t call me the Taenarius of water; that is simply just not true! We already established that you cannot detect my powers, so there isn’t any point in pretending now. You may call me Zorander Kalani. As for the two of you, the quest you’re on is pointless. Not only would you both die quickly in a fight against true power, but you can serve this world in a revolutionary way instead! Nothing would ever be the same again. It’s your chance to make an impact! You could do so much more than just die out here at sea. Please tell me, young brothers of mine. Does the name Sirius Andromeda mean anything to you?”

“Of course. He was the dark sorcerer who changed this world’s course by cursing us to become his vassals. Monsters meant to devour men,” explained Abraham.

Zorander unleashed a hearty laugh at this explanation, and though he nodded, he turned his back to Abraham and Ophelia. Abraham lifted his sword and motioned toward the Taenarius once his back was turned, but Ophelia shook her head and silenced this idea. Her eyes watched with a profound curiosity as Zorander detached the large map from the back wall and then flipped it to face the other way. Instead of showcasing a segment of the ocean with islands and archipelagos, the new map showed enormous continents scattered across the ocean. A few of the continents were loosely connected to each other, and the same was true for another two. Various islands still scattered the seas between the continents.

As he turned away from the map, Zorander Kalani grinned widely and said, “This was the world before the Cataclysm. Sirius Andromeda was a sorcerer so powerful that he shattered the continents and scattered all land. He amassed an empire so great that he locked the world beneath his thumb! His enemies decried him and screamed that he changed the course of history; he changed the shape of the Earth and its lands to suit his needs. But he was never an ordinary man, condemned to play by the morals of hopeless humans. He transcended them entirely! We Taenarii are his children, his vassals, all striving to serve as a conduit to our creator. After all, we do all owe him our second life!”

But with a haunted stare, Ophelia asked, “What do you mean when you say we should serve as his conduit…?”

“It’s funny you should ask, my dear. You see, Sirius Andromeda possessed every evolved entity; his sorcery accessed every Taenarius power over time. But due to certain preferences, availability, and even physical limitations, there were only two weapons he wielded primarily! The others were just occasionally invoked as needed. His first primary weapon was the spirit of the seismic flux—a weapon so powerful that he used it to shatter this world and quake continents apart. The other weapon was the incendiary serpent, and even Sirius himself had to carry a cross as a conduit for the flame… or else it would burn him to cinders. Every invoker of the incendiary serpent must follow in his footsteps, holding a physical conduit for the flame. But you, dear girl, command the incendiary serpent without any instrument at all! This is a feat I’ve never seen until now. This means that you are not just the perfect vessel in which to rebuild the dark sorcerer. It means that when we complete the great invocation, he will be stronger now than ever before!” explained Zorander.

Ophelia was shocked into silence, but Abraham intervened and said, “She will not play any role in your sick game. You may worship the dark sorcerer, but we detest him for our curse. Her power is hers alone.”

With an arrogant smirk, Zorander Kalani uncrossed his arms and answered, “That’s a shame, I must admit. It would be simpler if she were onboard with my plan, but her permission is unnecessary. On an island not far from here, there exists a Taenarius hellbent on the great invocation! He has gathered the ingredients to summon Sirius Andromeda back into our world. Once I bring her to him, the greatest sorcerer in humanity’s history can return to glorious life.”

Ophelia glared at him and shouted, “I will never let that happen!”

But at that moment, Zorander disappeared altogether. Less than a second later, the wooden table tipped over and flew into the air; Abraham grabbed Ophelia’s arm and bolted backward, nearly tripping over the chair as he rushed toward the cabin door. They both narrowly escaped the flinging table, but an invisible force struck Abraham in the head. The impact threw him out of the cabin and onto the sailboat’s deck with a forceful roll, but Ophelia jumped to defend him with her fists raised. The slither of sparks strengthened at that moment, illuminating the twilight as it transformed into a spiraling serpent of scarlet fire.

Ophelia then launched a forceful stream of fire back into the cabin, even though she could not see her enemy. The burgeoning flames flew across the room, but the invisible Taenarius summoned a shimmering sphere of purple electricity. It barely withstood the fiery serpent, but Ophelia could see the shape of Zorander by the way the flames danced past his body. It was enough to prove that his Taenarius form simply rendered his body invisible.

In a boom of thunder which echoed across the twilight sky, Zorander unleashed the sphere of purple lightning as a tremendous bolt. It struck Ophelia almost instantly, throwing her backward so quickly that she slammed against the metal rail and nearly broke through. Her body shuddered violently with electrical paralysis; her teeth clenched her tongue so forcefully that blood dripped onto the deck. Enraged by this, Abraham shot toward his enemy while swinging his silver sword. But before he could attack, a javelin flew into the air and blocked his sword, sending off a small spark which illuminated Zorander’s fist. Abraham then realized that his enemy had held the javelin all along; he had simply rendered it invisible.

“You could have killed her! How the hell could she serve your purpose then?!” Abraham demanded, furiously clashing blades with his enemy again.

But as he made his face visible, Zorander chuckled and answered, “It’s all so much simpler than you think. If a single thunderbolt is enough to kill her, then she is too weak to even call herself a Taenarius… let alone a conduit for the dark sorcerer. Think of it as a trial by fire, if you must. If I am to kill her in the course of our quarrel, then that alone is proof that she was worthless in the first place.”

Zorander then fired a thunderbolt from his right fist, but Abraham ducked beneath it and unleashed a forceful slash of his own. His enemy deflected the sword by crashing his javelin against it, but Abraham pushed forward and struck with a high-speed jump-kick. This threw the invisible enemy back onto the fallen table, but Zorander retaliated instantly with another rbolt. The lightning shot across the space between them and struck Abraham with a booming impact. Deafening crashes of thunder tore across the sky as he slammed against the bent rail beside Ophelia, and he fell to the deck at her side. She stumbled as she tried to struggle her way upright, but the fire which spiraled along her arms was unfazed by her paralysis. When Ophelia clenched her fist, the incendiary serpent forged a sphere of fire in the space before her. As waves splashed by in the background, every drop of saltwater glistened in the fiery light.

 “May your malevolence now perish in the firestorm,” whispered Ophelia as she shot the first fireball from her fist.

The fiery sphere flew toward the cabin and struck Zorander with a fearsome burst. Blue and orange streams of fire engulfed him as he slammed backward, but then he erupted forward at a terrifying speed. The fireball left embers and cinders on his invisible skin, revealing his position as he tried to rush her. Ophelia used this to her advantage as she launched a second fireball. Zorander barreled his way through the fiery blast for a second time, but it stopped him in his tracks. Despite the successive punishment he suffered, he took the time to slam the door to his cabin shut behind him. He then pushed off of the door so that he could lunge at Ophelia before she attacked again, but he was too slow. This time, Abraham jolted upright and slashed his silver sword. His blade struck the lightning Taenarius with enough force to stop him entirely, but it did not pierce him or even knock him down. Zorander stood his ground, almost as if he were unaffected by the sword strike and his smoldering skin.

Abraham stammered, “How the hell is this possible? I have never known a person to deflect a sword with their own arms! Besides, she hit you perfectly with two fireballs.”

But with a booming voice, Zorander retorted, “Why did you even try to go down this path? You seek to destroy an enemy you do not understand! Just because my form is the size of a human, do not dare to believe that I am still fragile. This is my Taenarius form, enhanced and fueled by the hearts and stomachs of countless lost sailors. I believe you will find that I am practically impenetrable!”

Despite his smoldering injuries, Abraham pushed off the metal rail and charged at his enemy, but Zorander flexed his invisible muscles and swung his javelin. Abraham did the same, and so their weapons crashed together with a clamorous clash. However, Zorander seized the opportunity to shoot his lightning through his javelin. In the form of crackling streams, purple electricity surged across the metal and struck Abraham with a shower of sparks. He shuddered and stumbled backward with a pained shout, but then his enemy followed up with another bolt of blinding lightning. The electrical explosion blew him back against the rail with a forceful slam, but more importantly, the lightning paralyzed his body.

With a secondary bolt which stopped Ophelia from interfering, Zorander rushed Abraham and knocked him unconscious with a full-force forehead strike. He dropped upon the wooden deck, and Zorander stepped upon his back with one foot as he scoffed.

“I hope you know that you are merely justifying our actions. We set out to strike down monsters just like you, and who could blame us? Your human body is a disguise for the demon you truly are,” said Ophelia as she struggled upright.

“Who cares about your actions? There’s no justifying any of that, hear me out! You fought to protect the innocent with your life, but instead, you’ve become the key ingredient for the greatest darkness this world has known! We never had a perfect vessel for the dark sorcerer until you sought us out! You should have just stayed in the shadows where he found you. At least then you wouldn’t become the vessel for Sirius Andromeda. The innocent will pay the price in blood because you truly believed you could have done good for this world,” said Zorander Kalani with a sinister sneer.

“That is not true. Abraham was right to offer me redemption! The world will not miss the monster I once was,” Ophelia argued.

“And just how long has it been since he placed you on this path?” he asked.

Glancing toward the scarlet sliver of the setting sun, Ophelia narrowed her eyes and answered, “A month at most. It sounds like a short time, but after the years I spent in misery, this campaign has become my new life. Everything with him is like a shockingly good dream, and I am afraid to fall asleep because I might just wake up and realize it was not real. That has been my biggest fear since all of this began—that the life we built together is imaginary. That it was all just wishful thinking.”

But as streams of purple lightning spiraled along his invisible arm, Zorander said, “That’s so cute; it’s almost a shame to use it against you. But the fact of the matter is that the two of you combined are the perfect vessel for the dark sorcerer—not just because of your powers, but also because of the profound bond you so clearly share. I’m afraid this won’t be over until you’re forced to devour your friend. It’s the only way to stream your impulse together. I figure it’s only fair to warn you of the ending before we actually reach its venue.”

A sudden bolt of lightning descended from the sky at a speed far faster than sound. The flash of light was her only warning; the lightning struck Ophelia as the deafening thunder echoed across the ocean. The powerful impact threw her to the deck with a painful slam. She was knocked instantly unconscious, and Zorander stomped out the smolders of fire in her hair.