Making a move

Gerik synchs his mind with the black gemstone, and Jathedor makes his move towards the king's council

Jathedor sat within his office, staring outside his window. His office occupied the top three floors of the massive sized temple. The man sized clear glass windows let the sun shine inside, illuminating the room. A huge oak desk took up the center of the room, papers lay stacked in a pile on both sides of it. Three closets, all of which were different colors lay on the walls. Pictures of celebrities with their autographs hung on the walls. Ornamental weapons hung on displays. “I want expand this room” Jathedor thought, not for the first time.  Flowers hung from the ceiling in colorful vases. Each of the flowers was given to him by worshippers. His office was filled with gifts by the people. The huge oak desk, and comfortable leather chair was given to him by a carpenter who thanked Jathedor for saving his life. Jathedor laughed as he thought of that man because ironically he took his life. Jathedor smiled when he heard the knock on his door. The king last night called up a meeting of the council, and Jathedor didn’t want to disappoint.” Come in” Jathedor said. A monk opened the door and scooted out of the way fast. Two large heavily cloaked figures strode into the room. Jathedor turned around and stood to meet them. Both of the figures gave off an aura of confidence. Jathedor’s let his eyes inspect the two men standing before him. Both of the figures were taller than six feet. The man to the right wore a black and golden cloak. He was leaner than the other figure. Where he stood wiry and muscular, his counterpart was a purely hulk sized man. The giant’s red and golden cloak hid him within the folds. Jathedor grabbed his walking stick. The staff was made from the same wood that the giant doors of the capital were created from. The white oak of the Mad Lands was as strong as any steel. What most people didn’t know is that it was the white oak that made the walls of their city flicker with power, and not the meteorites the walls were made from. Many meteorites were ingrained within the staff. Each of them flickered with power as the white oak augmented them, and Jathedor concentrated on them to make sure that no psychic ability was being used by his visitors. He wasn’t worried of an attack from the bigger guy, but he knew the slimmer one was dangerous.

“Good morning Kyros” the man clad in black and gold said.

“You know Brother Drifter” Jathedor sighed, “that most monks refer to me as Jathedor right?”

“I’m not a monk remember” Drifter replied.

“Why did you call us here?” the bigger guy asked Jathedor.

“The king has called a meeting, and I want you both to guard me.” the old man told them. He turned back around, and faced the window with a smile growing upon his face.

“It’s time to strike already?” the giant of a man asked with excitement.

“No you two must not be revealed to the king yet”

“Then why risk our discovery?” the giant asked angrily.

“We might have to show how powerful the church is.” Jathedor finished.

“Fine Kyros, I will protect you then” Drifter told him as he walked out of the room.

“Thank you Drifter, and what about you Brother Samson?” Jathedor asked.

“I will also, though I can’t promise not to kill the king” he replied.

“You must exhibit self control, or she will forever be out of your reach” Jathedor warned.

“Very well I will stay my sword” Samson said. He turned around and exited the room.

Jathedor watched them leave with a smile. The old man walked towards one of his closets. A keypad sat beside it. Jathedor punched the numbers; the door flickered to another color, and opened. A male sat naked, bound, and gagged inside the closet. He weakly opened his eyes and screamed out of fear when he saw the old man. The naked male’s hair hung limply from his head, his eyes bore bags of extreme exhaustion, his wrists and ankles bore the marks of wearing his bondage for a long period of time, and his body stank from being unwashed. “This is for the greater good my son, and thanks you for the chair.” Jathedor told him. He reached out his hand, and the man screamed with the last of his strength.

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Gerik fell deeply into the meteorite again. His mind was reflected within the multi faceted gem. With his mind clear, the black stone and his mind melded more easily than before. He could feel its power, and reached deeply inside, letting its power wash over him. Nzingha watched as the stone began to levitate. It began to glow with power and bore itself into his chest. Gerik screamed in anguish as the stone dug in deeper to the right side of his chest. “Gerik” Nzingha said, but he didn’t answer. She ran towards her brother, and was sent flying into the door by a psychic whiplash. She stood shakily, and tried to connect her mind with her brother’s. His mind was a place of chaos. Lightning ran through the sky of his mind, darkness had swallowed half his mind, leaving it as a dark reflection of what it used to be. Nzingha called out mentally for Gerik, hoping that she could help him retain himself, but he didn’t seem aware. She ran through his mind calling for him. No one person’s mind is the same. The different aspects and virtues of a person affect how their mind looks. She knew her brother to be a freedom loving person, who is kind, and full of passion. That’s why the landscape of his mind was an open sky, warmed by his heart, and comfortable to all whom visited. Hawks, eagles, falcons, and other birds flew the stormy sky. Blood rained down as they fought in sky against dark twisted versions of themselves. Giant birds with blood red or dark purple wings, and beaked filled viciously with fangs dove at the predators of the sky. Nzingha guessed that the stubborn, ruthless warrior that her brother was fighting these alien creatures. As Nzingha thought about who her brother was, she figured out where to find him. Her mind searched his memories and found him. She appeared before a cave. She walked inside, its tunnels were well lit, but cold emanated from inside. As she continued inside, the sound of music reached her ears. The music sounded sad, and to Nzingha’s surprise, tears fell down her face. Nzingha wiped away the tears and continued forward. The sounds of a violin and flute mixed together sweetly. She could almost see the notes flowing and dancing around her. She continued until she reached a door. She opened it, and walked inside. Nzingha saw that Gerik was the source of the music. Images flitted across the walls of the room Gerik stood in, as he played music that told the story. Nzingha couldn’t believe that Gerik was playing a violin and a flute at the same time. He held the violin with the left side of his jaw rested on the chinrest of the violin, supported by his left shoulder, his right hand guided the bow gracefully across the strings. A flute floated before his face, and as he blew into it, the flute seemed to play itself. Nzingha fought the hold of the music, but couldn’t wretch herself free of its hold on her. “Brother, stop playing the music” she yelled. Gerik continued as if she wasn’t there. Nzingha fell to her knees, she couldn’t move any further into his mind. It was as if the music shackled her to the spot. Nzingha looked around the room. Bookshelves filled the room of her brother’s memories, and weapons lay against the wall. Nzingha knew her brother’s mind as well as she knew her own. They had always been together. She had trained beside him when they were young, and trained beside him now. She reached out with her mind, to throw the instruments away from him, but she couldn’t mentally grasp them. Nzingha guessed that they must not be of his mind. She found a pair of kukris hanging on the wall. She reached for them mentally. The images changed to ones of battle, and Gerik’s music changed as well. The music picked up from slow, to a much faster rhythm. Nzingha lost her hold on the kukris as the music started to control her. Her sadness instantly gave way to battle lust. An involuntary growl escaped her lips, and she fought back for control. She grabbed the daggers mentally again, and threw them. One of them cut the flute in half, and the other dug deeply into the violin, severing some strings.

Gerik looked at his sister “Nzingha, where did you come from?”

“There is no time for that, just take back control before we both become berserkers.” Nzingha said.

Gerik closed his eyes and disappeared. Nzingha felt the turmoil of his mind dying away. Soon peace and calmness was restored. Nzingha pulled herself out of his mind, and found she was lying on the floor back in his room.

“Are you ok sister?” Gerik asked. The look of concern scared her.

“I’m fine” she answered. Nzingha looked at the mark the meteorite left on her brother. A circle the size of the meteorite lay on the right side of his chest. Lines like clawed fingers gripping the earth ran up his shoulder, and down his wrist. The lines twisted like vines on the lower half of his arm, but higher up the lines appeared like tribal markings. The meteorite fell out of his skin and bounced on the floor. The purplish fire of the meteorite was no longer inside it.

“What happened to it?” Gerik asked.

“It’s because mom is from the Mad Lands. We are more in tune with psychic energy that the meteors give away.” Nzingha said. She stood as she continued, “instead of just synching your mind with it, and gaining the ability to use the power trapped within the stone. You have just gained the power of the stone completely” Nzingha said. “Well I think that’s what happened” Nzingha finished. Gerik and Nzingha walked out of the room, and saw the rest of the group staring at them.

“Are you both ok?” Izyan asked. “We were going to go see what happened, but Landon over there stopped us.”

“Yea we are fine” Nzingha said.

“I’ve connected with the stone, so I guess I’m a psychic now” Gerik told them.

“Well congrats for you, but what about Felicity and Ceri?” Fletcher yelled. Fletcher rose from the couch, and walked toward Gerik.

Everyone in the room watched them with anticipation. It seemed to Nzingha that Fletcher always felt like he had something to prove, which made Nzingha wince when Gerik said, “Fletcher every fight we have had with the church ends with you being carried off the battlefield.”

Fletcher eyes threw daggers as he stood with clenched fists. “So are you trying to humiliate me?” Fletcher asked.

“No, I said that because I know how much you want to rescue them with your own hands. You are to full of pride to beg others for help” Gerik told him. Gerik smiled as he continued, “so it is time for you to be trained in the art of war.”

Fletcher unclenched his fists. His face became unreadable as he asked, “are you going to train me?”

“Everyone in this room is a warrior in their own right. We will all train together, and fight the church together.” Gerik told Fletcher.

“So what will one more fighter do? It will only add one more person against the countless resources of the church” Fletcher said.

“Then we unite the other psychics that are against the church, recruit psychics who are being captured, and get the other rebels to join under our banner” Nzingha told him as if it was simple.

“There is no way it can be that easy” Fletcher replied. He shook his head in frustration.

Duncan listened intently and chuckled, “it won’t be easy, but let’s think about what we have. I’m a blacksmith and a warrior of no small skill. We have a former Jaecar who is knowledgeable about the church and their abilities. Izyan is a noble with connections, and is a psychic. Oh and we cannot forget the two siblings over there who are probably more dangerous than we are. I think we can pull something off.”

Fletcher stared at Nzingha and Gerik unsure of what to say, but his thoughts were filled with Ceri and Felicity. With determination he grimly nodded his head.

 

Author's Note

Sorry for taking so long for coming back to the cafe. Tell me what you think

Reviews

[Zeitgeist Manifesto]

You have a strength of taking a scene and making the most of it. This big picture really makes it easy for a reader to just jump in and get a good idea of what you want them to see. I find your work easy to understand and that helps me enjoy it. I like the way the future and the past are merged in this work.

[karmic]

A nice read as always, you surprise me all the time with your talent of description. The storyline is also very interesting. Great chapter

[Tina Kline]

Really exciting stuff. I'm still really enjoying reading this.
Just one thing, that big huge paragraph would be must easier to read if you broke it up into smaller paragraphs.