Читать книгу Scars of Iron - Ivy G. Shadrick - Страница 9

Humanity as a whole considers itself immortal. We have vanquished all diseases and science has defeated all causes of natural death. This has left us unable to die as we would have in the Mortalis Era.

The humans who lived on the earth in the last days of The Mortalis Era had done nothing to save their planet. They all clawed selfishly for a better life for themselves. And the governments and medias fed their selfish endeavors. Not realizing that the world was collapsing around them. They focused only on their own money and power.

-A.A public entry

[DELETED]

Sitting across from Aegiah in a lecture room, I relaxed my tensed shoulders with a deep breath. Rolling my neck and preparing for my lesson with her.

We had been meeting every day after my training sessions with Elaric. She taught me how to disguise my emotions as well as how to read them. Not only will I be able to hide in plain sight, but I will learn as much as possible while in the palace.

I will be the perfect spy, all-seeing, and completely unassuming. I would be perfectly hidden, and I would gain their trust.

And if all goes according to plan, no one will ever suspect that I had killed the Queen.

Folding her hands in front of her, she began, “Rule number one might as well be the most important. You already know it, but you have to always remember to never show any signs of weakness. And everyone will believe you to be completely emotionless. No matter what they do to you, no matter how much you trust someone, even if you believe that you know them, keep the mask up. You will be a new person, not Aria, and not Lithiah. You will never bring attention to yourself and you will never abandon the plan. And you don’t need to worry about the system figuring it out, we've created a new identity for you.” Aegiah said these words with such power and finality. I knew her instructions would be the difference between life and death for me.

“I will never abandon the plan,” I whispered to myself. Convincing myself to abide by her rules.

“But there may be a slight change in that particular strategy,” Aegiah said, almost too quiet for me to hear.

“What?” I clenched my teeth, my voice ringing loud. I slammed my hands on the desk in front of me. “You just told me to never abandon the plan, what are you talking about, Aegiah?”

“Be quiet,” she said looking around the room as if we were being observed. “You’re telling me that you never wondered about what would happen after you killed the Queen?”

“No, not for more than a brief moment. Do you know why?” I asked. And not waiting for an answer, I began, “I never did because I was too busy worrying about having to kill the Queen. I never wondered because I had finally found meaning in my life, I found a reason to live again. I didn't even care that I've been training to murder the most powerful person in the world,” I admitted. Not only to Aegiah but to myself as well.

“I know how much this means to you, trust me, I do.” Aegiah looked down at her hands elegantly folded in her lap. “And that's why you will still get rid of her. I just don’t want prince Axameum on the throne, he’s also a threat. Therefore,” she paused, “you are going to need to kill him too.”

My mouth fell open, and I didn't bother trying to hide my shock from her. She looked up at me with determination and hatred gleaming in her sharp face. Hatred not for me, but for the Queen and for the prince.

“Why?” I asked, my words nearly inaudible.

“He grew up in the palace, adopted so long ago as the Queen’s sole heir. She raised him, teaching him her ways. Indoctrinating him since birth,” Aegiah explained. “He will be as terrible as his mother, and possibly worse.”

“How will I kill them both?” I asked, still too stunned to think straight. “Won’t people become even more suspicious if both show up dead?”

“You will kill the Queen first, then, when chaos descends upon the castle, and no one is looking you will get rid of him too.”

“Does Elaric know of this?” I curled into myself to try to hide my shaking body. When she paused, my eyes filled with tears as I realized what she was asking me to do. Who she was asking me to betray.

“No, he doesn’t,” Aegiah said with so much conviction in her voice. “He was planning to approach Axameum when he was weakest and overwhelmed with the sudden amount of responsibility. Elaric was going to try to convince the prince to allow him to reign. To govern over the world from behind the prince’s image of power.”

“He was going to pose as a savior for the prince, taking all the power for himself,” I whispered to myself.

Aegiah nodded.

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it. I barely have the mental capacity to go after the Queen.”

“At some point, you’ll have to figure out where your loyalties lie.” She laced her fingers together, placing them on the desk and leaning forward.

“Please don’t make me do this,” my words trembled as much as my hands.

“I’m sorry,” she breathed, “but it’s the only way.”

“Who would rule?” I asked.

Aegiah looked me directly in the eyes. So much pain and so much shame lingered in her face as she said, “Lithiah, my darling,” she hesitated, “you will have to decide that for yourself.”

Elaric was already in the arena when I arrived. I didn’t bother greeting him as I grabbed a bow, strapping a quiver of arrows to my back, and started.

I shot the arrows so rapidly that I began to lose track of where each landed, my eye already focused on the next target. I forced all my fear and anger and hatred out with each shot, never losing my focus, and never stumbling.

“Precision is not the most important element in making each bullseye. You must anticipate where the next target will be, and you must focus on your movements, not just the targets. You have to become all-seeing to everything around you. So don't focus all your attention on the arrow in your hand,” Elaric murmured so close behind me. So near, I could feel each word breathed against the back of my neck.

Then the targets started to move. And with each second their movements became sharper and quicker. I had been talented at archery before The Renewal, and it was all coming back to me. Though it came back much slower than I had wished.

“Never let your guard down. Always be completely aware of your surroundings. Or you'll fail and be ambushed from behind.”

As I released my final arrow as Elaric grabbed my wrist and pulled me around to face him.

He looked me straight in the eyes. And in his face was so much fury and rage that shook me to the core. We stood there for several moments, barely an arms-length apart. So close he could run me through with a dagger.

As I broke eye contact with him, I looked down to see that I had dropped my bow.

“That,” Elaric started, clearing his throat, “that is a large improvement from before.” His words were the calm that only appeared before he was about to explode into a fit of anger.

I stepped back, tearing my eyes from his again, and bent down to pick up the bow lying at my feet. Elaric didn’t move as I smirked and said, “Thank you.”

Then I strode across the arena. I placed my quiver and bow on the table as I picked up a small, silent handgun and a belt of twenty throwing daggers.

Aware of each small movement I made, I held my shoulders back and threw on a mask of confidence. I was the portrait of unbothered determination as I walked toward the targets on the other side of the room.

Elaric stood there gaping at me, his eyes wide and his lips ever so slightly parted.

When I reached the low barrier that separated the moving targets from the shooter, I fired at each one. And this time my focus was on everything around me. I pressed my feet firmly into the floor and I felt the faint breeze coming in from the open window, the cool air a gentle reprieve against my cheeks and sweat-soaked back.

I could sense Elaric’s gaze fixed upon me as I fired each bullet with absolute precision. Focusing on the next target and firing before the previous bullet had reached its intended home.

I dropped the pistol and lifted the first blade from the thick leather belt strapped to my waist. Holding the dagger close to my ear, I loosened my grip, keeping my focus on my movements. Keeping my focus on the weight of the blade. The soft breeze kissing my wet skin, the solidity of the floor beneath my feet, and Elaric’s prowling movements behind me.

Then I let the blade sail, the thin arc of silver gleaming in the sunlight pouring in from the surrounding windows. The blade hit the center of the target, but by the time it did, I had already thrown two more and was aiming another.

Each time my blades hit their bullseye, embedding themselves deep in the centers. The firing targets were further than any I had attempted with throwing knives. But the motions were so familiar that I had to adjust only slightly to the distance.

When the belt was empty I loosened the buckles on my waist and slung the leather over my shoulder. Turning to face Elaric, I folded my hands behind my back and headed to the weapons table again.

His pleasant smile had already disappeared by the time I lifted my eyes to him. And his previous expression was replaced by his usual cruelty and disgust.

“That was,” he paused, lifting a long, glinting sword for the table. “decent. We will need to work on your agility. Your feet didn’t move once, you did well at a distance, but you’re untested when the targets aren’t predictable.”

I lifted a new sword, one I had never practiced with before. It’s hilt foreign in my hand and wrapped in strangling silver vines. The blade’s length was much shorter than I was used to, only the length of my forearm.

I didn’t reply to Elaric, taking his advice and committing it to memory.

Then we reached the sparring mat and began with equal positions.

Our weapons crashed and I swiped low at his thigh, but the blade connected for only a moment before he pushed my sword away. Elaric lunged forward, and if I hadn’t seen the step he always takes before an attack, I would have been impaled.

Deflecting the blow, I spun on my heel and sliced my blade across his back. Red bloomed across his shirt. A warning blow. And he knew it. I could have easily run him through with that move. But I left him with enough of a gash that he dropped his weapon and called for a pause. It would leave a large enough scar to remind him of who I was and what I was capable of.

“That was very well done, but you continue to leave your non-sword hand open. Any skilled swordsman would see it and the match would be over.”

“And how exactly do I fix that?” I asked.

“Focus sixty-percent of your attention on that side of your body. You’re skilled enough in combat and can keep the offensive position well enough.”

I stalked back to the table, wiping Elaric’s blood from my sword before placing it beside its sisters. Grabbing another belt of throwing knives, I buckled it to my waist. “And how should we go about my agility problem?”

Elaric didn’t drop his sword, instead, he lifted it to my chest, “I will be attacking you will you try to throw various shots. And no need to worry about me going easy on you either, I’d never do that.”

I heaved a deep breath and followed him to the target range, he lifted his blade and I lifted mine.

While trying to dodge his attacks, I missed every target. And with only two knives left, I threw one in Elaric’s direction and the other at a target when I had a moment's break from his attacks.

The throwing dagger sailed through the air and sank deep into it.

“Go collect the blades, that last shot is what I want to see more of.”

I strode across the room and gathered the silver blades. Frowning at how many I’d missed, I began again.

I arrived at Aegiah’s study covered in sweat and blood from both my own gashes and Elaric's. Elaric had pushed me harder than ever in recent days. Giving me nearly no rest and coming up with new methods of torture every day.

Sitting across from my friend I let out a deep sigh and waited for her to begin.

“We'll need to make this pretty quick,” I huffed. “Elaric wants to see me again before dinner.”

So we began.

I memorized my new name, my story, and my new personality. For over an hour, I forced myself into the mind of a person that I would need to create. A person that didn’t exist. A person completely real to the system and everyone in the palace.

“You will be asked many questions,” Aegiah stated firmly. “They will not openly try to sabotage you, but they will undermine you. They will find your weaknesses and exploit them, taunting you. How will you avoid them acquiring any knowledge of you?”

“When I go to the palace, I will create a new person. And I will become that person inside and out, I will not let a soul see past the impenetrable wall.”

“Yes,” she breathed, obviously relieved that I understood. And that I would execute our plan of action. “It’s all in the lies, Lithiah. It’s all in the beautifully crafted lies.”

“Should I not weave any truth into my story?” I asked, and I immediately regretted asking the question at her expression. “You know, to make myself a bit more convincing, just so I seem a bit more present and authentic.”

“You will do no such thing,” Aegiah replied, short and powerful. “Unless it is about your beauty routine or favorite color, you will tell no one about Lithiah Everette. And, if you're going to get away with killing the prince too, you're going to have to take even more care in hiding yourself in plain sight.”

I wanted to argue, but something in her voice made me hesitate. She was sure of every decision she made, unwavering and strong. She never backed down when faced with a challenge and that made me nervous.

As I looked at the time I excused myself saying, “I have to meet Elaric for my last hand-to-hand combat session. I’ll see you at dinner.” Nodding my head, I stood from the chair and headed to the closed door.

“Lithiah,” Aegiah's words were quiet now, “let no one know of our new plan. No matter how much you trust them, anyone can be an enemy waiting for an opportunity to strike.”

I nodded again and left.

The falling sunlight reached every surface of the hallway, painting everything the color of molten gold. The open windows allowed for the sound of chirping birds to fill the corridors. Emblems of owls sat scattered throughout the estate, the sign of the Vargur family. And as I lost myself to the quiet, I stumbled into one hall I had never before dared to enter.

It was as beautiful as the others, with towering pillars and paintings from the Mortalis Era lining the walls. But all sunlight had been blotted out behind the heavy black curtains.

“What are you doing here?” A soft voice behind me implored. “I thought you never allowed yourself to wander to these parts of the estate.”

I stopped in my tracks. And I didn’t dare respond.

“I thought the darkness scared you, beautiful Lithiah.”

As I turned towards the voice, my knees buckled. And I managed to remain upright.

Standing at the other end of the hall was the alluring and terrible face of Vassa Kyrial.

A shudder ran up my spine and I swallowed deeply. Trying to gather my scattered thoughts, and trying to pull myself together.

“I had a moment to myself,” I responded. “So I decided to take a stroll to admire the beauty of the manor. I find the paintings mesmerizing.”

It wasn't a lie.

Vassa's face shifted. It had been pleasant before, but now she was furious as if I had pressed just the right button.

“Why have you not faded yet?” Vassa asked. “You should’ve broken so long ago. How has hopelessness not consumed you?”

She kept shaking her head, not believing that I was still here.

“I prefer to not break, Vassa, and especially not before I get a chance to kill the Queen.”

“But you were pushed past a breaking point,” her voice rose, rage boiling behind each word.

“Trust me, I broke. But that was a long time ago, long before I came to this lovely estate.”

Her face twisted with disgust as she strode closer to me. And elegant movements made her seem as if she hovered above the ground. When Vassa came within two paces of me, she stopped. The woman lifted her chin and pulled back her shoulders, making her at least a head taller than me.

“You are here to push your limit. A limit so deep within you that being pushed there would have ruined any other person on earth,” she barked.

“I told you, I would absolutely hate to fade before I could get rid of the Queen. What part of that do you not understand, Vassa?” I asked, letting out a soft laugh.

“What keeps you going? You have almost no significance in this world. Despair would have overtaken any normal human ages ago,” she whispered the last part, seeming to question herself.

“That's where you're greatly mistaken,” I lifted my eyebrows at her. “I do have significance, and I know it. Plus, I guess I not only yearn for a better world, but I truly know that I can create one.”

“We already live in a perfect world and all of humanity has no need, they have no want to make it better. The only way would be through the Queen's decisions,” Vassa interrupted sharply. But something in her expression, in her eyes, told me that she did not fully believe the words she spoke to me.

“Ah,” I countered, “that’s where I’ll have to disagree with you again. I believe that we have been told that we live in a world of faultlessness. But a life without growth. A life without creativity and true appreciation for that good is not actually a perfect one.”

“But no one is ever in need, and all evil is gone. How could this possibly be a bad thing?” She bellowed, and that hint of knowing, that hint of testing sounded behind her words again.

“You don't understand my reasoning because all you have ever known in your life is excellence. If you can even call it that,” I laughed again, this time almost maniacally. “I was born to a time before yours, and I can assure you that the people of that era were, in fact, living. Even if they were completely consumed by the distraction of their work, or their image, or jealousy. They had much richer lives than ours.” I hesitated, gauging her expression. But I could not read the emotions written on her distressed face.

I watched as her mouth opened and closed.

Then I continued, “I firmly believe that we still have time. But if you will not aid me, then I will need you to leave me alone, and we will be unbothered by one another. But do not try to stop me from accomplishing what I must do. Or you will find yourself,” I paused, placing full importance upon my next words, “dead.” Her eyes went wide and I smiled back at her. “Do you understand me now?”

I didn’t wait for her to reply as I stepped past her, stopping for a single breath, and walked away. Leaving her alone to ponder my words. I wanted her to be on my side, but I doubted her opinions would ever be capable of changing.