《Hexarchy: Tainted Earth》


 Prologue: Spirit– Creation and Division

    "In the beginning there was only the Spirit.


    The Spirit created the Ether from the Void, and the Spirit saw, that the Ether was good.


    It had potential, yet it had no real existence.


    And so, the Spirit divided it into four parts.


    He shaped from the Ether the Fire, and He created the lesser spirits from the light of the Fire, and gave them Thought and Will, the first two aspects of the Fire.


    He saw that the Fire was good.


    But the first and greatest of the lesser spirits turned from the Spirit to the Void, and many followed him.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    And so the Fire became tainted with the Void.


    Then, the Spirit shaped the Water from the Ether, to give a material reflection to the light of the Fire. The Spirit was above the Water, seeing all it''s depths, both Time and Space, the first two aspects of the Water.


    He saw that the Water was good.


    But from the Fire, the light of which the Water reflected, the Taint also touched the Water.


    And so the Water became tainted with the Void.


    The Spirit shaped the Air from the Ether, to give Motion and Stasis to the reflection in the Water, the first two aspects of the Air.


    He saw that the Air was good.


    But from the Water the Taint touched the Air.


    And so the Air became tainted with the Void.


    The Spirit shaped the Earth from the Ether, to contain all the unshaped possibilities left in it, after the creation of the other Elements, giving Life and Death to the material world, the first two aspects of the Earth.


    He saw that the Earth was good.


    But as He used the Air to further shape the Earth, the Taint touched it from the Air.


    And so the Earth became tainted with the Void."


    /White Canon I. Canons of Origin 1,1-20/

 1: Water– Saved by the Mist

    Zehno Ronos was sixteen, so he was old enough to be a part of a scavenging group. This was his first time, since he only turned sixteen recently. And it seemed it was also his last one.


    Galthra City, the capital of the once mighty Galthran Republic was in ruins, just as the Republic itself. Still, even thirty years after the Apocalypse, it hid many treasures for a determined - or desperate - scavenger. Not food, of course, but weapons, tools, techs and scrap metals. And there were zombies too.


    His group was relatively well equipped, even had some high-tech stuff with them, and ultimately that was their undoing.


    Unlike his cousin, Kaleg, Zehno was never wanted to be a soldier. But it was not a question of choice. Humanity was on the brink of extinction, so they needed every able body in the military. He knew and accepted it, but it didn''t help his anxiety, nor did the fact, that he wasn''t exactly as brave as his cousin, to say the least.


    He felt his fear grow with every second, they''ve spent in the dark warehouse which was located deep in the Cursed Ruins, though at a less populated part of it. It was morning outside, so they didn''t have to worry about zombies on their way to the warehouse. Inside the building, however, it was an entirely different tale.


    The first thing to go wrong was Zehno''s radio. It started to produce strange noises, and loud ones at that. It got them into trouble immediately, because the old warehouse had it''s fill of hibernated zombies. A fight soon erupted as the undead charged at them¨C the zombies could awake from their slumber in no time¨C and Zehno''s laser pistol¨C they didn''t trusted him with a conventional firearm, because of the noise they produced¨C was the next piece of tech which decided that siding with the zombies was the winning strategy. So it not only refused to work and burn a nice little hole in the nearest undead''s head, but it also started to throw sparks around, catching the attention of some former humans.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    That was the moment, when Zehno started to run.


    It was a stupid idea, of course. The rest of his group made short work of the zombies, but he got too far away from them and ran straight into another group of the undead.


    Zehno stopped short and felt his fear growing even worse if it was possible at all. Then, abruptly he felt that the fear was gone. Or, rather replaced by a different feeling. A cold, moist but somehow calming feeling. Like jumping into a pleasantly cool pond during an especially warm summer afternoon.


    But he didn''t just felt it outside of his body, but inside too. Instinctively he embraced it. The zombies finally took notice of him, they howled and started to run into his direction. Then everything went grey.


    Different shades of grey to be precise. Even his normally chocolate brown hands turned to grey, along with his khaki uniforms. There was also a strange fog or mist, which hid everything farther away then about ten meters.


    It was strange, but it was even stranger and far more important, that the charging zombies simply ran through him like thin air. He only felt some unpleasant coldness when it happened. He didn''t know what this all was, but, thanks to the strange calmness, he could think finally straight and decided it would be wise to return to the well armed group of his people and try to make sense all of this once he was in safety.


    So he run through some zombies and boxes to get back to the others. The undead did not follow him, fortunately, but the mist did. It was everywhere so he only could see things close to him, which meant that he only noticed the two members of his group when he ran through them. But they didn''t seem to notice him, only the coldness when he passed through their body.


    "What was that?" Asked one of them, Kaleg, Zehno''s cousin. He wasn''t much older than Zehno himself, but he was much better at the whole military stuff.


    "I don''t know," answered Zarin. She was the commander not only of their group, but of their base too.


    Their voice was strange, like a loud whisper. Zehno started to answer, but then he noticed he was out of air. He had been holding his breath since everything went grey. So he took a deep breath to speak, which proved to be another bad idea.

 2: Fire– Thoughts about the Elements

    Not much after Zarin felt the strange coldness, the lost boy simply appeared near them, coughing violently.


    "What the...?" Asked Kaleg. The kid was clever enough not to be too loud about it, but still, Zarin looked around nervously. No signs of zombies, the Spirit be praised¨C she thought¨C But the boy... Is it possible?


    "Zehno?" Asked Kaleg.


    That''s right, that was the kids name. She should really put more effort in remembering the names of her subordinates.


    Zehno finally stopped coughing. Zarin hesitated for a moment, but at last she decided it would be a greater risk not to read the boy''s mind, before he could open his mouth.


    So she focused on the Fire inside her, and touched Zehno''s mind, as gently as she could, so the boy wouldn''t notice it, taking just a quick peek into his thoughts. When she saw the telltale monochrome of the Mist, she knew she was right. No time digging for more right now, anyway.


    "I..." started Zehno.


    "You will be quiet, young man," told him Zarin. "You are in serious trouble. Running away like that! Kaleg tell the others on the radio that we found Zehno, and that we are all heading back to the base. Assembly point at the entrance of the warehouse."


    "Yes, ma''am!"


    "And you, Zehno, not a single word out of you until I questioned you personally about your unacceptable behavior. Is that understood?"


    "Ye..."


    "I said not a word!" Hissed angrily Zarin. She really was angry because the boy really was a fool, but potentially a valuable fool. Unless he gets himself and the whole squad killed before they get back to H.Q... or blurt out something about his abilities before the others.


    Luckily, the kid wasn''t an utter fool just a simple one, and he simply nodded his understanding this time.


    So they got back forty minutes later to Jukava without further incident.


    ***


    Jukava was once just one of the many suburbs of Galthra City. Now it was a border town of the Galthran Protectorate, which was created by the remains of the Galthran Armed Forces and the survivors whom swear fealty to Water Admiral Seidon, the leader of the GAF. He later took the title of the Lord Protector, and created a military dictatorship. Normally Zarin would have been against something like that, but while the former admiral was a stern man, he was also fair and, most importantly, not a fool. Democracy was all well and good, but during and after an apocalypse a strong and smart leader meant the difference between survival and extinction. The Lord Protector was both strong and smart, so Zarin supported him with everything she had, including her elemental ability. When she told him about her powers, Seidon immediately saw how useful it can be, and made her a member of his inner circle. Which was just as well, since she needed all the support she could get, if she wanted her plan to work.


    Zehno was part of that plan now, so she needed to find out what to do with him. The kid was a coward and clearly no soldier material anyway. But one soldier more or less didn''t make much difference in their situation. But one water elemental could, especially if the boy had the right power. He only exhibited ability in one aspect of his element, so far, but it was said some elementals had access to two aspects or even more. So, who knows?


    They were in her office, just Zehno and her. She gave the order not to be disturbed, which meant she wouldn''t be. As the ranking military officer in Jukava, her power was absolute.


    And Zehno knew that. She could sense his fear even without her power. But, of course, she used her power too.


    "So, Zehno. Care to explain what was that all about?"


    The kid said something under his nose, but Zarin didn''t know what. She couldn''t read others'' mouth, just their thoughts, and she needed to be careful with that, if she wished not to be noticed. So she told him to speak louder.


    "I said, ma''am, that I am terribly sorry... It''s just... Well my laser didn''t work and the zombies..."


    "You had your knife, son. And five good men whose guns did work. Yet you ran... Cowardice I could forgive, maybe. But stupidity? You need to convince me of your usefulness, or I fear there will be consequences of your mistakes today."Stolen story; please report.


    "B-but..."


    Oh, boy, you are not making this easy...


    "I don''t care about your excuses! Give me one good reason, why I should keep you around here, or I''ll send you to hauling rocks and debris from the Purged Ruins! You won''t have to worry about the zombies there!"


    Surprisingly, the boy seemed to like the idea. Oh, he was smart enough to feign horror, but his thoughts told a different tale. Well the kid really is a coward but at least has some cunning and brains. But that also meant, that she needed a different strategy to make him reveal his abilities for her. Though, perhaps there is another way...


    "Alright, kid. Tell me what happened after you ran away. I am especially curious, how did you just appeared between me and Kaleg out of nowhere."


    "I... Well, I ran into a group of zombies, and so I ran back. It was dark, so I guess..."


    "We had flashlights," said Zarin. "You didn''t. Yet you not only found us, you also managed to sneak near to us, while you were running away from the zombies. Zombies whom didn''t follow you, though they can run pretty quickly when they want. And they have excellent noses. And they can see in the darkness far better than humans. Should I go on? Or do you have a plausible explanation about how you managed to get away from those creatures?"


    Zehno was terrified. The kid had time to think on their way back, and likely came to the same conclusion as Zarin. That''s not necessarily a bad thing, since it also meant he knew how much trouble he could get in, if he spoke about his power.


    And he was right: not everyone was as practical about the reemergence of the elemental abilities as the lord protector.


    "You don''t have anything to say?" Pushed further Zarin. "Very well, but I do have a theory. Now, your grades at school wasn''t exactly the best, though they weren''t so bad either, right?"


    The boy was clever enough not to ask how she knew all this, and just answered with a "yes, ma''am". Perhaps she underestimated him. If only...


    "But you had a good sense for History. Your teacher was quite satisfied with you. So, I guess you heard about the elementals."


    Silence.


    Then:


    "Yes, I did."


    "Then, pray tell me what do you know about them. Perhaps you really are better at History than at scavenging."


    "Well, they were humans with extraordinary abilities. They actually ruled over humanity, until the discovery of the electricity. Then the golems, the normal humans with no special powers, rose up against them, and... Well..."


    "Massacred them," said Zarin.


    "Yes. It took decades, but in the end, no elemental left."


    Zarin noded.


    "Yes, that''s what they say, anyway. But what''s your opinion? Do they really slayed all the elementals?"


    "Well, I am not a historian."


    ?But you do have an opinion."


    "Well, yes. Yes, I do. I find it unlikely, that they could have killed all of the elementals. I mean, according to the legends some of them was shapeshifters, others could program other people''s brain like computers. And there were those who could fly or teleport or..."


    "Become invisible?" Zarin finished for him. "Or, even better, enter the fifth dimension, the Mist?"


    "Y-yes... So the legends say."


    "I have to agree with you. I believe the golems failed with the Great Purge, and some, if not most elementals did survive. They were just clever enough to hide." She paused there, then... "But I don''t think you are a descendant of one of those elementals."


    "W-what? W-why would I be a descendant of an elemental?"


    "I said that I don''t think you are. I think you are a neophyte."


    "A neo..."


    "A neophyte. An elemental born to a pure golem family."


    "But I am not an elemental, neophyte or otherwise."


    "Alright, let''s see, it''s just a theory after all: we know elemental powers don''t mix well with electronic devices, and your radio malfunctioned, then your laser pistol. And then, all of a sudden, you appeared out of nowhere after you''ve got away from a group of zombies, and even managed to cover your tracks while did so. And there is one more thing."


    Zarin let the silence stretch, but the boy made no move to break it. In fact, he used the time to gather his wits and try to come up with an explanation. She indeed underestimated the boy.


    "The coldtouch," said finally Zarin.


    "Coldwhat?" Asked the kid.


    "Coldtouch. A sign of a mistling. You see, each of the four elements feels differently. Both the user and those affected by him can feel it, unless the user tries to hide it. Air, for example feels moist and warm, like the air in a jungle. While Earth is the opposite, dry and cold, like a cold stone or metal. Coldtouch occurs when you touch someone or something in the Mist, and it is felt both by you and the one whom you touch, given that it is not an object. It feels moist and cold, just like Water. Unlike the normal usage of the element, it cannot be hidden. If you touch someone in the Mist, they will know it."


    Zehno didn''t say anything to that, he was thinking furiously, and his fear grew even further. Zarin started to feel sorry for him, when suddenly, she felt a change in the boy''s feelings...


    "So Air is warm and moist, and Earth is cold and dry, while Water is cold and moist, right?" Asked Zehno, and Zarin nodded, curious. "Then I guess, Fire is warm and dry, isn''t it?"


    Damn, I was sloppy... I read his thoughts for too long, so he noticed me¨C Zarin thought.


    "Which is strange, because that''s what I felt, when I was coughing for my life. And I can feel it, right now, too!"


    "Alright, kid, nice work," she said. A wise leader knew when she was defeated. "Let''s lay all our cards on the table, shall we? We are both elementals. If anyone just suspects what we are, they will show us as much mercy as the zombies. Got it?"


    "Yes, ma''am."


    "Good. But make no mistake: I am still a commander, while you are just a private who got his whole squad into danger on a simple scavenging mission. If you blurt anything out you could hurt me, but that only means I need to get rid of you, if I couldn''t trust you. Is that understood?"


    "Yes, ma''am."


    "Good. Luckily for you I am, as you already know, a fire elemental, which means I have telepathic powers. So I don''t need to get you killed based solely on suspicions. Now get out, we will speak later.


    "Oh, and before I forget, as a punishment for your behavior in that warehouse, you are going to clean the old gym for a year. It will give us excellent opportunities to train your abilities there. So that you can be useful after all."

 3: Ether– Promotion and Punishment

    Kaleg was furious.


    Zehno, you idiot!¨C He thought.


    He never much liked his foolish little cousin, but still, he was family.


    "Don''t worry Kal," said Darem, his best friend and his squad leader, under normal circumstances.


    But, occasionally, the commander liked to lead a scavenging squad personally, as it happened that very day, the day of Zehno''s first mission. It was a great honor, but his idiot cousin managed to ruin it all, of course.


    "I''m not so sure, Dar... The commander was very angry. She idolizes the Lord Protector, and he would execute anyone for something like this... And perhaps he would be right."


    "Now hold on a sec, you don''t mean that."


    "I don''t know, man. He screwed up big time. Would you like to have him on your squad again?"


    ?Hell, no. But that doesn''t mean he should be killed. Scavenging is not the only thing one can do."


    Kaleg shrugged. For him life outside of the military was worse than death. Civilians were little better than slaves, except for the scientists and the monks, and he doesn''t want to be either.


    "You know what, dude?" Asked Darem. "I put in a good word for him. After all, I am his squad leader. Maybe I can get a cleaning job for him."


    "Yeah, thanks Dar. That''s really kind of you. I owe you a favor, if you can save his neck."


    "You owe me nothing," said Darem as he finished his beer.


    Kaleg followed his example, and they left the canteen after that.


    ***


    Jukava was quite nice during the early spring. There was still some snow on the nearby Fairam Mountains, which was a ski paradise before the Apocalypse. The air had been chilly that morning, but it was quite pleasant when they left the canteen, which was located, like most of the local military buildings, in the former campus of the Rainar Military University. It was a nice place and an important one.


    The Purged Ruins of the capital was nearby, and it was a good source of building materials. That area was free of the zombies thanks to the Salt Wall. Perhaps it would be better to call it just salt wall, with no capitals, since there were a lot of salt walls, every human settlements and bases had their own one in the Protectorate, but it was, by far, the biggest. Salt walls were made from simple but durable salt bags. Zombies hated salt, among other things, like garlic, silver and sunlight. So when they started to claw at the salt wall, and the outpouring salt started to burn their skin, they usually gave up any attempts of getting through the wall, and started to look for easier prey, and didn''t return for a couple of days. Of course, the walls required constant maintenance, but luckily the Protectorate had quite a few salt mines and salterns near the Warm Sea. The most important bases were all located nearby a salt mine or a saltern. With the exception of Jukava which oversaw the Capital Ruins. Purging the Ruins was a long process. The undead seemed to be extraordinarily intelligent here, at least a few of them did, even putting up a semblance of organized resistance here and there. They immediately took back every occupied territories, unless they were protected by salt walls. But there was only so much salt the Protectorate could waste on purging the Capital Ruins. So the purged area only grew slowly during the last decade, and then finally it stopped to grow.


    They went back to their barracks¨C former dormitories¨C to wait for Zehno''s return. It was customary to give a little hazing for the newest recruits after their first mission, and Marem just received his. Hazing was illegal, but the commander tolerated it to a certain degree. And she was very consistent with that rule, turning a blind eye over minor hazings, and severely punishing the major ones. So Zehno would have had a better time here, running around the barracks in girls'' clothes with Marem, than sweating in the commander''s office.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    They joined a few lesser officer smoking and watching Marem''s run. They seemed more interested in the smoking and their conversation, then in the hazing.


    "Yo, Private Kaleg!" One of them called out to him. He was in his twenties, a big, muscular guy, but still not as big, as Kaleg. "Where is your cousin? Don''t tell me a zombie ate him already." He laughed at his own joke, but when Kaleg and Darem didn''t join him, he turned serious. "Damn, don''t tell me he was really..."


    "No, Corporal Gavun. He is at the commander''s office," said Kaleg.


    Gavun swore.


    "Would have preferred the zombies, personally," he said.


    "Yeah," Kaleg agreed.


    There was some chit-chatting about Zehno and the events of the morning, and then about the news from the other bases. Nothing really interesting, aside from the usual tales of superintelligent zombies or those who possessed elemental abilities, never mind that the elementals themselves were extinct long before the Apocalypse.


    "But what if they weren''t?" Asked Sergeant Fenton. He was over thirty, old for a squad leader. "What if some of them survived? The Plague must have gotten them too. If they became zombies, then..."


    "Please, Fen," said to him Darem. He was the only other sergeant in their group, the others were all corporals or would-be corporals, like Kaleg himself.


    "Why not, Dar? They could probably retain their abilities after death and that would explain how some zombies have elemental powers! In fact, it may even explain their unusual intelligence!"


    "With all due respect, Sarge," said Gavun, who was a team leader in Fenton''s squad, "But there''s no evidence, that the elementals were more intelligent than the... What was their name?"


    "Golems, Gavun. They called our kind golems."


    "That''s right, Sarge. And we golems invented electricity, and defeated them elementals without the help of any fancy powers. If you ask me, the golem-zombies should be more intelligent then the elemental-zombies, if there were any."


    It went on like that for a while, when they finally saw Zehno heading back to the dormitory. It was late, and most of their little group went back to the barracks building by then, only Darem, Tarik¨C Kaleg''s and Zehno''s team leader¨C two other privates and Kaleg himself remained.


    Tarik became team leader after Darem''s promotion, right after Kaleg was added to the team, after his graduation. If Zehno would have been added to their team permanently, it would have been very likely, that Tarik would have been made squad leader at another squad, and Kaleg himself would have been promoted to team leader. But of course that was an unlikely scenario anymore. So, Tarik was at least as angry at Zehno as Kaleg.


    "Hey, stop right there, Private!" Commanded Tarik. "Care to explain what the hell..."


    "It''s okay, Corporal," said Darem. "I take it from here."


    Tarik was visibly displeased by Darem''s intervention, but he conceded with an "Of course, sir!".


    "Could you give us some space?" Asked Darem the other privates. They did of course. He could have commanded them, even though they weren''t part of his squad, but he preferred to be polite, when it was possible.


    "So, Zehno... First of all, tell us what was the commander''s decision."


    "She sentenced me to cleaning duty, sir." Zehno said.


    Darem seemed to be as surprised as Kaleg. Cleaning duty? For endangering the whole squad?


    "Care to elaborate, Private?"


    "Yes, sir. I am to clean the gym every weekday for a year, additionally to my normal duties. My new team leader, Corporal Kaleg, will be given an exact time table, so he can see when I am needed at the gym. Also, I am forbidden to take part in any scavenging missions for a year. The commander wishes to speak with Corporal Kaleg tomorrow morning at 0800."


    Darem seemed thoughtful for a moment, then nodded.


    "Thank you, Private. You are dismissed."


    Zehno saluted, then left. He seemed to be in a hurry.


    "Cleaning duty...," said Tarik. "The commander''s gone soft..."


    "Yeah, or the sarge is a fire elemental in secret, right Sarge?" Asked Kaleg, jokingly. "You wanted to get him a cleaning job."


    "That''s right," said Darem. "But as a civilian... He''s no soldier."


    "Well, at least we don''t have to worry about him for a year."


    "A year is not a long time though... But you are right. Also, you got a promotion! You know what that means? Party night tomorrow!"


    "Yeah, but what about my promotion?" Asked Tarik. "You heard him. He didn''t say anything about Sergeant Tarik. I think he blamed me before the commander."


    "Come on, Tarik! You can''t be serious!" Said Kaleg.


    "Don''t lecture me, Kaleg! I am still officially your team leader."


    "Sir, yes, sir!" Said Kaleg with a mock salute.


    Tarik''s face went dark, but he didn''t say anything, just left them there.


    Perhaps that was a bit much - Kaleg thought, still amused.

 4: Void– Brothers

    Haden Seidon was a monster.


    There was no point in denying it, and he made it a principle of his life that he would never lie to himself. He lied to everybody else, even to his brother, the Lord Protector himself, though not about his monstrous nature: Tunem knew about that since the beginning, of course. Even before Haden.


    That was his first memory after his awakening...


    "You are a monster!" Tunem had screamed at him, back then.


    Of course, Haden didn''t even remember his brother''s name at the time. He couldn''t even remember his own name, let alone this screaming boy''s, a few years older than him, armed with a baseball bat. And he couldn''t remember the name of the man, who''s flesh he was eating.


    The other boy continued to scream, shouting curses and swear words at him. Then he started to cry, his tear dropping to the ground.


    "I can''t do it..." he said, letting the baseball bat''s handle slip from his grab. ?Spirit, I can''t..."


    "I... I am... so... hungry..."


    The other boy looked at him with a shocked expression.


    "Ha-Haden?" He asked. ?That''s impossible! You are gone!"


    So, the boy knew him. Well, that was good, because he could get some answers from him at least, but first the hunger. He started to turn back to the corpse, to continue to eat it.


    "Haden, what the hell are you doing! Stop it at once!"


    "I am hungry," said Haden, matter-of-factly. It was getting easier to speak.


    The other boy grabbed the bat again, and raised it.


    "I said. Stop. It. At. Once."


    With each word, he hit the floor closer and closer to Haden. He felt furious, hungry, but also wary. He backed away as the strikes of the bat came closer.


    "Okay," he said finally.


    Then there was a long silence. Since he couldn''t eat, he figured it was time for questions.


    "Who am I?"


    ***


    Thirty years passed since then, and he didn''t age a day, while his brother turned to fifty. Officially he was his son, from his former marriage. The title of the Lord Protector was not hereditary, according to the Constitution, but Tunem made it clear, that he wanted Haden to succeed him, once the time came, even though he had six actual sons and two daughters, though only one of his son was legitimate.


    Haden was a soldier, of course, at least in name: he was the captain of the Lord Protector''s body guard, known simply as the Galthran Guard. In reality that meant he saw no real fight: attempts on the Lord Protector''s life were rare, and Tunem preferred to lead his men from the safety of the Saltblade, the last carrier of the once formidable Galthran Fleet. Tunem left the ship only in dire need.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    Haden himself, like all zombies, hated the sea, so he took every opportunity to leave for the Mainland. But those opportunities were few and rare, so he was really happy and eager when Tunem asked him to visit Jukava.


    "It''s an official visitation, First Guard Haden. You will examine the status of the base and the town. I also want reports about the Purged Ruins. But not the other parts of the Capital Ruins. Do you understand, First Guard? You are not to enter the Cursed Ruins under any circumstances."


    "I understand, my lord."


    "Good," said Tunem, then, with a wave of his hand he dismissed everyone from the Council Room, with the exception of Haden.


    "I need you to enter the Cursed Ruins," said Tunem, after everyone has had left.


    Haden nodded. He expected that it was the real reason of his mission, but of course it had to be kept secret. Sending a seemingly seventeen-years-old boy into the Cursed Ruins to investigate the strange news about these intelligent zombies seemed not only cruel but insane too. Especially if he was the heir of the Lord Protector.


    Never mind, that said heir was officially twenty, and in reality forty-seven. Or the fact, that he could pass through the zombies unmolested. These things were secret only the Seidon brothers knew.


    "Do you think the tales are true? That there are others like me?" He asked Tunem.


    "Now, Haden let''s not play the idiot teenage boy you look like," said the Lord Protector. ?I do not send you there so you can find some zombie friends. It took a great deal of effort on both of us to keep your cannibalistic urges in check the first few years after your transformation, and you were a really kind person in life. Most people are not. Do you understand, what I am trying to say?"


    "Yeah, I think."


    "That''s not enough. Look, Haden. I have had contacts with a few other survivor groups. I say groups, because none of the others managed to create a semblance of a real country aside from us."


    "I already knew that."


    "Yes, well, what you didn''t know, that they are being run down one by one. The undead are eliminating them systematically. So, yeah, there are other zombies like you, and they are nothing like you. Which means you have to be extra careful. And that''s why you are not going alone this time."


    "You know, that I am not a team player," Haden protested.


    "Yes, I do. What I also know is, that I am your superior officer. Not to mention your annoying big brother, so you have no choice in this matter."


    It was a rare sight to see Tunem smile, so Haden refrained from arguing further.


    "Your team will only consist of three members. The leader will be Commander Zarin. Will that be a problem for you?"


    Haden shrugged. He really preferred to work alone, which also meant he wasn''t interested in leading a team. Perhaps not a good trait for a future leader of a nation, but he couldn''t really care about that either.


    "I would have preferred some arguments from you, but this time it really is important, that you follow the commander''s orders as if they were mine."


    "Because they will be yours," said Haden.


    "Yes, exactly."


    "Who is the third member?"


    "Private Zehno Ronos. A mistling."


    "Mistling? You mean that we have another elemental?"


    Tunem only nodded, absently. He didn''t dismiss his brother, he seldom did, but he was deep in thought walking up-and-down before his desk, which basically meant, that he was finished with their talk.


    Haden didn''t mind, since he was preoccupied with his thoughts too.


    He knew about Zarin''s telepathic powers, he actually used them a few times after he drank her blood. Even commanders had to donate blood twice each year. His ability to steal elemental powers was the result of his transformation, just as his immortality. They had other elementals, each high ranking officers, whom didn''t know about each other. But a private... More importantly a mistling! The Mist was one of the more interesting aspects. He couldn''t wait to have a taste of this new power.

 5: Water– A possible solution

    While the cleaning duty was supposed to be an excuse for Zehno to use the former gym for training, that didn''t mean he was not required to actually clean the facility. Commander Zarin made it quite clear on their first training session, that she expects Zehno to keep the place in a pristine condition.


    "Is that understood, Private?"


    "Yes, ma''am!"


    "Good. Now about your training. Though we are both elementals, you are a water elemental, while I am a fire elemental. This means that I can teach you only the most basic things about elementalism. The rest, you need to figure out by yourself, just like I did."


    "So, you''re a neophyte too, ma''am?"


    "Of course I am. I''ve never met another elemental before you. Or at least I don''t think I did."


    Zehno was disappointed. At first, he was terrified when he realized he is an elemental, knowing full well, that even though the Purge¨C now known as the First Purge, since the war against the zombies is called the Second Purge¨C was centuries ago, his life would still be in danger if anyone found out.


    But then it turned out, that the commander herself was an elemental too, and it all started to seem more like an adventure, to discover his powers and other elementals, forming a team of superheroes and saving the world from the Taint. Foolish fantasies, of course, especially now, that it seemed, that maybe they are the only elementals left.


    "But, ma''am, you said that you don''t believe that all the elementals were killed during the Purge."


    Zarin didn''t answer immediately, seemed to consider him.


    "Before I tell you anything more, I have to be sure, that I can trust you. Do you know what that means?"


    Zehno knew. So he nodded.


    "You can read my mind, ma''am. I am not going to resist."


    Zarin smiled at that. "Actually, I don''t think you could resist me, even if you wanted. I already read some of your thoughts without much problem. Of course if you are aware that I am using my power on you, you could try to fake your thoughts. But even then, I spent decades to train my abilities, so I doubt you could fool me. It is possible to learn to resist mental intrusions, and it will be part of our training. Just because I didn''t meet with any other fire elemental, that doesn''t mean there aren''t any.


    "But first, back to earning my trust. I am going to read your thoughts, while you will answer some questions I ask to be absolutely sure that you are trustworthy. It will take time, so that will be all what we will do today. Well, for me anyway. You''ll still have to clean the gym. Are you ready, Private?"


    "Yes, ma''am."


    ***


    Zarin seemed thoughtful, after she was finished with the reading of his mind.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    "You think, I am being unfair with you," said the commander, at last.


    "N-no, ma''am, of c..."


    "Don''t lie to me, Private, I just read your mind."


    "Erm, yes... sorry, ma''am."


    "Apology accepted, Private. Especially, since you are right. I am being unfair."


    Zehno was shocked that the commander just admitted that. He hoped they are getting closer, as one elemental to another in a world filled with golems and zombies, but...


    "I am being unfair," repeated the commander. "Because if it were anyone else I just would have sent them to work at the Purged Ruins or the salterns. Not because I am cruel, mind you, but because I am practical. Because I have to be practical. We are fighting a war for humanity''s survival, and we are losing it. You heard me right. We are losing."


    "But the Second Purge..."


    "We are being purged. Elementals and golems alike. Don''t believe everything the Protectorate''s propaganda tells you. I don''t believe it. More importantly, the lord protector himself doesn''t believe it. There is a small circle of us, led by Lord Protector Seidon himself, who knows the truth. There are sentient zombies, known as vampires, and these vampires lead a Purge against us. And they have elementals of their own. As I said I never met a single one of them, but the stories about them getting more numerous and more believable."


    "But how is that possible?"


    "We don''t know. There are theories, but that''s all we have."


    "I see... But even then, we have the technological advantage. It was enough against the elementals in the past. Should be enough against the zombies."


    "Well, it wasn''t enough during the Apocalypse, and it sure as Void isn''t enough now. They have the numbers. In the end, war is about the numbers.


    "Because of that, I don''t think we can win this war, unless we can deny the enemy their most important resource and increase our own numbers at the same time. And that''s why you are not in a saltern. That''s why I am unfairly giving you a second chance, when we normally don''t have that luxury. Because of your potential."


    "Because I can enter the Mist?"


    "No. That''s a useful ability. But I said potential, meaning a potential aspect. You only have one power so far, and while having more than one aspect is rare, according some historians it''s possible.


    "The aspect, that I am actually interested in is the Axis. There is no guarantee that you have it, but still, that''s the best chance we''ve got."


    "I see..."


    "Have you ever heard about the Axis and the confluxes?"


    "Yes, ma''am. They are some fifth dimension stuff."


    "Yes, well. The fifth dimension is the stratum, or rather are the strata. The strata are different layers of reality, ours is called the Materia. One of the other layers is called the Veil, which separates our material stratum from the shadow stratum, the Umbra. Your aspect, allows you to travel in the Mist, a layer which surrounds the Veil. Now the confluxes are actually creases on the Veil which are connected to each other by the Axis, another stratum. Water elementals with the right aspect can enter the Axis at will and can leave it through one of the confluxes. Actually, they leave it as soon as they enter, since there are no space or time in the Axis. Bottom line, traveling in the Axis is a fifth dimensional relocation, just as traveling in the Mist. That''s why I hope, you might be able to do it."


    Zarim gave a little time to Zehno to think it through. He needed it, and felt that his head hurt. Thinking in five dimensions sure wasn''t easy.


    "So, you think, the elementals ran away, using the Axis?" Zehno finally asked.


    "Yes. Maybe even to a different planet, or planets."


    "And you want to follow them?"


    "Well, not necessarily, I just want to leave this planet with as much refugees and resources as possible, and colonize another world. Then, once our number is great enough, while the number of the zombies thinned we can take our world back."


    Zehno didn''t know what to say about that. It was a lot to swallow.


    "Alright, that''s enough for today," said Zarin. "Tomorrow we start with the real training. We won''t use zombies for a while, only after you''ve got the hang of your ability."


    "Zombies?! You want me to train with zombies?!"


    "But of course! Why do you think we need the gym? Or your cleaning service?"

 6: Earth– Old and Young

    Petrim Arnij had a busy day: he immunized four humans that day, all around the age of fourteen years old.


    From now on, these kids could have been fed upon by any vampire without the risk of infecting them with the Taint. Even if they died they will not return as zombies.


    "This means, that we can leave the subcity, and go to the surface?" Asked one of the children, a girl.


    "Yes, child. You will live on the surface from now on, and are actually forbidden to visit down here without explicit permission."


    "I... I see. So, can I see my mom?"


    "I am sorry, but I don''t know who your mother is. Nobody does."


    "But... you are the only healer here. You helped my mom at my birth."


    "Yes, child. But we make no notes on which child belongs to which mother," he lied. "And it was fourteen years ago... I am really sorry, but I can''t help you."


    She didn''t answer, just nodded sadly, then left.


    After Petrim was finished, he was about to left for the surface. Being a healer granted him certain privileges, but even he needed permission to stay in the subcity, and he usually needed to leave once his work was done there.


    Savarin was once a big city, it''s population had been more than three million humans, all golems with the occasional elementals, like Petrim. Now it was mostly zombies.


    He was old, very old, more than three hundred years old, a survivor of the Purge. He aged far more slowly than others, thanks to the Life aspect of the Earth. His father had been a powerful earthlord, reigning over Savarin and the nearby villages, a loyal and favored subject of Earthprince Fargohm. His mother was a water elemental from a minor noble house, which made Petrim a halfling. As all halflings he was illegitimate too, since marriage was forbidden not only between elementals and golems, but between different kind of elementals too. Still, thanks to his healing abilities he was more than welcome in his father''s court, and had the easy life of the nobility for a while. Then, the Purge came. The First Purge, anyway.


    He shook his head. It does no good to dwell on the past.


    "Excuse me, Healer," said one of the boys whom he immunized. He was waiting for him at the entrance of the subcity, near the guards, all lesser vampires.


    Some vampire lords used human guards, but Voidlord Hargvan was not one of them. He despised humans. But he was also practical and knew full well how useful an immunized human stock could be for feeding purposes. What the so called voidlord didn''t know, that even humans were generally more trustworthy than vampires, and that was saying a lot about the nature of the sentient undead.


    "Yes? What can I do for you, kid?"


    "The guard says that I am an elemental, and that you will be my teacher."


    At first he didn''t know what to say. The kid must be joking. While it was possible for full golem parents to have elemental children, it was rare, and usually it only meant, that an elemental great-grandparent''s ability skipped a few generations before it was inherited by one of their descendants. True neophytes, with no elemental ancestry along their family tree was extremely rare.


    Also, he didn''t want to believe the boy said the truth.


    Humanity''s chance to ever defeat the undead was slim, at best. But giving the vampires access to the power of the elements only made things worse, especially vampires like Hargvan. Then again, the undead already got quite a few of them. Petrim himself was a fine example of that.


    "What''s your name, boy?"


    "Felim."


    "Alright, Felim, wait here for a minute."


    He went to the guards, and politely greeted them. In answer they scoffed at him.


    "Yeah, what ya want?"


    At some vampire cities healers were held in high esteem, sometimes they were the most trusted advisors of the ruling vampire. Again, Hargvan had different views and his "children" mostly shared them.


    "Forgive me, sir," Petrim said. "But are you sure, that the testing device was working properly? Was the boy tested again with a different device? Or did you run a... erm, blood test? I do not mean to make a fuss about it, but..."


    "But you''ll do it anyway," said one of the guards. Petrim never bothered to learn their name. "Look, human. We checked the brat three times, with three different devices, two calculators and a flashlight. They all gone crazy when he tried to use them. As for the blood test, you know Lord Hargvan''s orders regarding that. He has the Right of First Taste. So take that elemental bastard away, and start to teach him, and make sure he is able to breed as soon as possible. Also, you better hope he is not your son. Our lord needs no more healer, got it?"You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    "I took care not to sire a child, sir, rest assured. He is a neophyte, but he can still be a healer."


    "Well, hope he isn''t. Or you''ll have an early retirement, since we have your replacement, then."


    Petrim didn''t answer him. They both knew that wasn''t true. Having a healing ability wasn''t enough to cure the Taint. It required a powerful and skilled healer to do that, so he was safe, even if the boy was indeed a healer. The kid on the other hand... Petrim was old, but he could still last a century or two, so Felim wouldn''t be needed for a good while, and many a vampire found healer''s blood disgusting and dangerous, since it granted them access to the Life aspect of the Earth. If a vampire used that aspect, even accidentally, it caused them great pain and injury. The Taint was a disease, after all.


    "Thank you for your time, sir."


    "Just get out."


    Petrim went back to the kid. He needed to find out what kind of elemental he was, and quickly. It wouldn''t be good, if he was a healer, but there were worse possibilities.


    Many elementals fled the planet using confluxes. It was a risky move. While, for some reason, there were confluxes only where there was life, so one didn''t need to worry about landing on the surface of star, for example, but that also meant the possibility to meating with sentient¨C and possibly dangerous¨C aliens. That never happened, so far as Petrim knew, explorers only found ruins of alien origin, but still, the practice of traveling to unknown confluxes became forbidden during the days of the Tetrarchy. Until the Purge, of course, when survival instinct proved stronger than caution.


    To think, that the undead could travel to these worlds to follow and capture the elementals who fled there, was a terrifying thought indeed. Of course there was no guarantee they hadn''t already, but even then, giving access to Hargvan to a drifter was a bad idea. It would increase his influence in the Empire a great deal, and he was one of the more cruel vampire lords.


    Petrim decided, that he would kill the boy, if he had too. Or escape with him, preferably. That would be a death sentence to the unimmunized kids in the subcity, or at least to many of them in the long run, of course. That was the only reason, he didn''t left the city already. Still, he had his escape plans and preparations ready just in case. One didn''t survive for three centuries, and through an apocalypse just because he was a powerful healer. The Life aspect made it a possibility, caution made it a reality.


    "Alright, kid, come with me," he told the boy finally.


    "So, first we should see, if you really are an elemental. I have a friend who has some electronic devices."


    "The guards already checked it."


    "Yeah, I know. But machines can get faulty on their own, without an elemental, who''s ability is just awakening."


    "Three different devices? Does that ever happened?"


    "No," Petrim admitted. "But there is a first time for everything. Also, there aren''t that many neophytes to begin with."


    "What is an elemental, anyway? And why did those calculators stopped working?"


    That''s right. They didn''t teach future food that kind of stuff... Or much of anything.


    "Elementals are humans, who possess special abilities. Like my healing."


    "Oh, like superheroes?"


    Petrim shook his head, amused at the irony of it all: The golems did their best to exterminate elementals, only to some two hundred years later start to write comics and make movies about them as superheroes and supervillains. Of course, those heroes were always really golems who acquired their powers with the help of science from actual elementals, or some other sources. Only the villains were true elementals themselves.


    More importantly, their powers were vastly over exaggerated in those comics. Still, he has had to start somewhere.


    "Yes, like superheroes. I am glad that at least they have comics down there."


    "Yeah, though not much."


    Petrim nodded, then he said: "As for the calculators, you see, elementalism and electricity are like fire and water. Using elemental powers nearby an electronic device causes said device to malfunction for a short time, while it weakens the elemental''s power temporarily. Since your powers are just awakening, and you have no control over them, machines are go crazy around you. It will pass, and later you only have to worry about it, when you use your aspect, your ability."


    The boy nodded thoughtfully.


    "How do you like the surface so far?" Petrim asked the boy after awhile.


    It was night, so Felim didn''t need to squint to see. In fact, he likely saw better in the dark than Petrim.


    He shrugged.


    "I expected it to be brighter."


    "Well, it will be, come morning. It will take some time till you get used to the sun. But don''t worry, I have some sunglasses."


    "I also thought it would be... I don''t know... prettier?"


    "Yeah, vampires are not much better in that regard, than zombies. At least Hargvan''s vampires. They love ruins and doesn''t care much about filth. This city was in ruins since the Apocalypse. Some of the human residents tried to repair some part of it, but eventually they got tired of it. Vampires drink their blood too often, and they are always tired and unmotivated. And usually high on some drug or the other. Or drunk. You would do well to stay away from stuffs like that. It can be especially dangerous for an elemental."


    "Oh, I see..." Felim hesitated for a moment. "Well, actually, yesterday night we had a small celebration with some of the others, and Gerul and a few other kid bought some wine from one of the guards with blood, and... Well I drank a little. Not much, but after that, I felt a strange feeling."


    "I bet you did. That''s kind of the point of alcohol."


    "No, I didn''t mean, that I got drunk, though I did feel... well, happy, I guess. But I also felt a... warmness... And then, it was like the bottle started to levitate, for a moment. I thought I was just hallucinating, but if I am truly an elemental as the guards said..."


    Petrim looked at the boy thoughtfully, then nodded slowly.


    "The thing, you did with the bottle is called telekinesis. It is done by the Motion aspect of the Air. It means, that you really are an elemental, kid, a levitator, to be precise."


    Which was good news, Petrim supposed. Motion was a useful aspect, but it was a relatively common power, so it would not increase Hargvan''s influence much.


    He sighed and murmured a silent prayer to the Spirit.

 7: Ether– Friends lost

    Kaleg greatly respected the commander, but he always felt she is being overly cautious.


    Of course it felt good to have top grade equipment even for simple scavenging missions, but it also felt a bit much. They could have moved faster without the body armor and all the other high-tech stuff.


    But they were soldiers and they followed orders. And because of that, when the zombie horde unexpectedly hit them hard out of nowhere they actually had a chance for survival.


    ***


    It was late afternoon, but the sun was still up. So the zombies should have been hiding in the ruined buildings.


    Only they didn''t, they charged at the soldiers, and they were everywhere, there was no chance for a retreat, so the humans made their last stand in an old restaurant. They had laser weapons, a flamethrower, grenades and machetes, so they put up a good fight, while they were calling for a reinforcement through the radio.


    Their squad had three teams, each four man strong, so their sergeant, Darem, had twelve men to command, but not for long, since he was the first to die. He always preferred bravery over caution.


    Kaleg wanted to cry as the zombies started to eat his friend alive. Instead he shot him in the head, and then incinerated the zombies with his flamethrower. Perhaps he shouldn''t have wasted time for the mercy kill, but he imagined, that being burned alive wasn''t much better than being eaten alive.


    Darem is dead¨C he thought¨C He is no more. He is dead!!!


    And so the command fell to Corporal Tarik, the most senior of the three corporals, Kaleg''s former team leader. Kaleg never liked the guy, but he had to admit, he was a good leader, better than either Darem or he himself.


    But fine leadership here, high-tech equipment there, there was just too many zombies. Only five of the soldiers were alive when the helicopter arrived.


    It had two machine guns, which made short work of the remaining zombies.


    The survivors left the burning and now mostly crumbled fast food restaurant. The helicopter started it''s descent to pick them up, when the rotors of the copter suddenly stopped working. They watched in horror as the machine crushed into the ruins of a skyscraper not too far from them.


    Then, the zombies came again.


    They ran, but they knew they had no chance.


    Kaleg dropped the now empty flamethrower, and since he was physically the most fit in the squad he could have outran the other survivors, and maybe even the zombies, but he was the last surviving corporal, which made them their leader, even though none of the other members of his team survived.


    He slowed down, waiting for the others. It was foolish, since it only meant, that all five of them will die instead of just four. It would have been wiser to run back to the base and warn them about the strange behavior of the zombies¨C their radio was lost through their escape¨C but there was a reason why Kaleg was such a good friend with Darem: like his sergeant, he was also more courageous than wise.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    So, in the end the zombies surrounded them. But then, a strange thing happened. It seemed that the undead finally started to remember that they''re not supposed to be outside during daytime¨C sure enough they all had bad sunburns now, and howled because of the pain¨C and so they started to run away.


    "What the..." one of the survivors¨C Igmol¨C started to ask, when they noticed three robed figures walking in their direction.


    Strangely the fleeing zombies seemed to gave them a wide berth.


    They looked like monks of the Black Order. Members of that order revered the Black Canon foremost of the Four Canons, which was the Canon of the Martyrs originally, later the Canon of the Saints.


    Black monks of the old were primarily warriors - knights. Many of them were elementals, so after the Purge they were disbanded, and then the order was recreated as a charity organization of the Dome. Until the Apocalypse. Now they were warriors once again, albeit without the powers of the elements, but zealous and brave nevertheless. Kaleg, like many other soldiers, respected them greatly, and read frequently the Black Canon¨C considered the most controversial among the Canons, because many of the saints of the old were elementals themselves.


    But these monks were somehow strange, and not just because of how the zombies avoided them.


    At first he didn''t know why, but then he saw that the crucirco, the holy symbol of the Dome¨C a golden circle, divided to four differently colored parts by a golden cross¨C was missing from all of their robes.


    He couldn''t see their faces, because of their hoods, which made him anxious too.


    "Stop right there!" He told them, pointing his laser pistol at them. "Identify yourselves!"


    They stopped.


    "Shoot, fool." One of them - the one in the middle - said. "For all the good it will do to you."


    With that, he started to walk again.


    "I warn you!" Kaleg shouted at him. He felt something strange, some weird, damp coldness.


    The robed figure did not stop.


    So Kaleg fired... Or at least tried. The laser didn''t work.


    The others tried to fire too, with similar results.


    "Can''t you feel it? This strange cold?" Asked Morik, the squad''s know-it-all. "He must be using elementalism on our weapons!"


    The robed figure stopped at that.


    "Well, well. It''s good that at least some of you got some brain in your skulls. We still do love brains after all."


    Kaleg pulled out his machete, and the others followed suit.


    If these strangers really were elementals they likely didn''t stand a chance. So he tried diplomacy one last time.


    "Look, I don''t care about that you are an elemental. We could use your help, actually."


    The stranger laughed.


    "Elemental, you say? Oh, kid. We are so much more."


    With that, the monk¨C or whatever the Void he was¨C slowly pulled something out from one of the pockets of his robes: a plastic vial, filed with some red liquid, which looked like blood. Whatever it was, the stranger drank it.


    "Ah, yes... So much better than warder''s blood. But back to business, shall we?"


    Kaleg seen enough already. He charged at the robed man before he even finished speaking.


    Then he felt something warm, a dry warmness, and he stopped. It was like his blood was on fire as it ran through his veins, and his brain.


    He felt a strange presence too, and he knew it was the stranger''s presence. The robed figure wanted him to order his men to surrender. He tried to resist his will, but it was stronger than his own. So he heard himself giving the order.


    "What? Are you out of your mind?" Asked Igmol, incredulous.


    His resistance completely gone, Kaleg turned at Igmol''y direction, then he shot him with his laser pistol¨C it was working again¨C right in the head.


    "Oh, dear," said the robed figure in the middle. "I forgot that aiming for the head is so ingrained into you. Next time aim for the neck or the heart, will you? I am really hungry.


    Kaleg nodded, while the others screamed around him.


    "He is possessed!" Shouted Morik. "One of the other two is using Fire on him!"


    Kaleg¨C following the stranger''s will¨C gave the order to surrender once more. They had no choice left but to do as they were told to, since only he had a working laser pistol.


    The other two robed figure took away their weapons and handcuffed them all. They only had four handcuffs with them, but it was enough, since Kaleg killed Igmol.


    Then, the stranger released his mind. It only dawned on Kaleg what happened¨C what he did¨C now, after the burning sensation left him.


    He screamed.

 8: Air– The flying knife

    The very next day they took Felim to Lord Hargvan''s residence.


    The vampire lord lived in the former City Hall of Savarin. The building was in a better state than any other part of the city, but still it was in a dire need of maintenance. Still it was surprisingly clean, and the office rooms were actually used for their original purposes by dedicated human slaves. Petrim told him that the clerks were actually an upper caste among the golems. The vampires didn''t like to use electronic devices, including computers, which made it difficult to effectively manage the day-to-day issues of the district without the clerks.


    "District?" Asked Felim.


    "Yes. Hargvan only controls a single district of Savarin. There are four other districts ruled by different vampire lords. The other parts of the city are in ruins and belong to the zombies."


    "I see."


    Their escort has consisted of two vampires. One of them cleared his throat and said: "You meant to say Lord Hargvan, right, healer? More importantly you know very well, that it is forbidden to tell the slaves information about the city or the Empire."


    Petrim seemed annoyed, but when he answered his voice was polite, without a hint of any sarcasm: "You''re right of course, sir. I meant no disrespect for our lord. As for the information I provided for the boy, I assumed that since he is an elemental like myself¡­"


    "Oh no, not like yourself," said the vampire in an amused tone. "You are a healer. The Empire provides healers and warders for any lord, no questions asked. The boy is a levitator. Only the most powerful princes have access to levitators. Do you understand what I am saying, earthling?"


    "Yes, sir."


    "I don''t think so. You see, you are allowed to have such knowledge which is useful for escape attempts, because you are relatively easy to replace, and your blood is worthless on the market anyway. Which means that you''re worthless too. So, if I were you, I would be more careful about what I say to whom."


    Petrim stopped suddenly and turned to the vampire.


    "Well, in that case why don''t you just kill me, Siriem?" He asked in a conversational tone. And then, he slowly raised his hand to touch the vampire. Both of the undead hurriedly took a step backward and they looked at Petrim''s hand in horror.


    "You¡­ you wouldn''t dare¡­" said the other vampire.


    "What would I not dare, my friend?" Asked Petrim. "To touch you? Or to heal you?" When he said ''heal'' both of the vampires reached for their guns. "Relax. You are right anyway. I wouldn''t dare to waste my healing on the likes of you. Shall we continue? Your lord is waiting."


    "You will¡­" Siriem started to say.


    "... Pay for this? I don''t think so. You know the law. I might be just a healer, but if Hargvan needs to ask for a replacement there will be an investigation. I am willing to bet that your lord wouldn''t want the attention of the Inquisition, now that he is hiding an air elemental in his domain."


    There was a long silence after that.


    "I could still break your spine. You can heal that, so there''s no need for replacement." Siriem said finally.


    "Yes, more importantly I can heal the pain in an instant, so what would be the point? But seriously Siriem. This whole conflict is ridiculous, and Lord Hargvan would punish both of us, if we kept him waiting any longer."


    Siriem was still angry, but he only nodded.


    ***


    Lord Hargvan was a handsome young man in his early twenties. On the surface at least.


    Petrim told Felim, that nearly every vampire was turned at around the age of twenty. Children and those above twenty-five nearly always became zombies if they catched the Taint. Of course, usually even the young people became zombies, vampires were very rare.


    Hargvan''s clothes were elegant and expensive looking, but the image of the successful young politician was ruined by the numerous tattoos on his hands, neck and even his face and the way he picked at his nails with a dagger. According to Petrim he was some kind of a minor celebrity before the Apocalypse.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    The vampire lord greeted them with a big smile, he even gave Petrim a hug and shook hands with the vampires using a very complicated handshake. He seemed very friendly. Again, on the surface.


    "Alright, let''s cut to the chase! You''re the air kid, right?" Asked the lord.


    "Yes," answered Felim.


    To his surprise, Petrim slapped him on his neck. "Lord Hargvan, boy. Forgive me, my lord, the boy is a slow learner."


    Siriem snickered at the irony, but the vampire lord only gave Petrim a sad smile. "Yes. But so were you, my friend, and we still managed to teach you. Tell me, how long does it take for you to regrow one of his fingers?"


    "What?!" Asked Felim in horror.


    Hargvan smiled at him again, hunger in his eyes. "You see, your blood gives me your power for a few minutes. Your flesh, on the other hand, for a few hours. But don''t worry, Petrim can make the whole process painless for you."


    He is serious!- Felim thought. He felt a nearly unbearable amount of fear, as the two other vampires moved closer to him. Then, suddenly, the fear was gone, and instead he felt the same moist warmness he had felt the day before, when he made the stone levitate. The Air, Petrim called it, and he made sure that Felim spent most of the morning practicing his ability, so he could impress Hargvan. Perhaps it was time to just do that¡­


    "I won''t do it, Hargvan," Petrim said suddenly.


    All three vampires looked at him incredulously.


    "What did you say?" Asked the lord.


    "If you eat any part of the boy, I won''t regrow it."


    Hargvan wanted to say something, probably some nonsense about how Petrim dared to defy him, but Felim had enough of him already. He wasn''t powerful enough to use his Motion on the vampire lord, but the dagger he left on his desk was an entirely different matter. He took a deep breath and grabbed it with the Air. The weapon started to levitate almost immediately, but no one else noticed, all of the undead was focused on Petrim. Then he throwed the dagger at Hargvan''s head, point first. The blade pierced the vampire''s skull, and Hargvan was dead, before he could even get out the first word of what he was going to say.


    For a while no one moved, everyone stared at the vampire lord''s corpse, and to the dagger in his head. Petrim was the first to react, and he grabbed one of the vampires'' throat. The undead started to scream as tendrils of smoke drifted away from where Petrim grabbed his throat, and his flesh simply melted under the healer''s touch.


    Both Felim and the other vampire, Siriem, watched in horror what happened. But this time Siriem was the first to act, and he took out his pistol, and shot Petrim in the back. The earth elemental seemed merely annoyed at the shot, and let go of the ruined remains of the other vampire''s throat, and turned in his assailant''s direction. Siriem wasn''t a fool, and knew that killing a healer at Petrim''s level of power was at least as difficult as killing an undead. So he took the time to target his next shot at Petrim''s head. But before he could shoot, Felim grabbed a chair with the Air, and threw it at him. The chair hit Sierem, who missed Petrim and even fell to the ground, losing his pistol. Before he could regain it, Felim took it using Motion. He turned the gun at the last remaining vampire.


    "You don''t even know how to use it!"


    He was right, when Felim pulled the trigger nothing happened.


    "But I do," said Petrim, with the other vampire''s pistol in his hand. When he pulled the trigger, the gun did fire, though his shot missed the vampire''s head, just as his second shot. The third, on the other hand, hit it''s mark and killed Siriem. Then Petrim finished the other vampire, whose throat he melted before.


    Then, there was silence. They heard noises from downstairs, from the offices, but the human clerks were too afraid of their lord and too used to the various strange and terrifying noises which came from upstairs, to go to check if anything was amiss.


    "We need to leave, and quickly," said Petrim.


    "Where do we go?"


    "To the nearest slave pen. We let free as many slaves as we can."


    Felim smiled. He felt like a real superhero. He just killed a vampire lord, and now, he is going to save a lot of innocent lives!


    "What are you smiling at?" Asked Petrim. "We just sentenced a lot of good people to an early death."


    "What do you mean? We are going to save them!"


    "They are going to save us. We need the distraction, else we wouldn''t have any chance to escape."


    Felim was confused.


    "I don''t understand," he said.


    "Yes, I can see that. Look, kid, there''s no time to explain it. Suffice it to say that the vampires are big fans of collective punishments, and for a lord''s death they would kill a lot of slaves. If two fugitives try to escape through a zombie infested city, they would catch them in no time. Now, if there are dozens of slaves escaping, in a dozen directions, some might have a chance of survival. With our elemental abilities, we have a better chance than the others. Got it? The other fugitives act as distractions."


    That was unacceptable for Felim.


    "But if we would stick together with them¡­"


    "... Then we would all die. Even if we could give a gun to everyone whom we let free, we would have no chance against the dozens of vampires of this district. They are better trained, see better in the dark, don''t have to worry about the zombies and have better equipment than we."


    "But we have our powers!"


    "And they have access to warder''s blood. And a warder, too. Using the Ward aspect is nearly as unpleasant to them as using the Life aspect, but they can still use it, and with it they can negate our abilities. And there''s only two of us, and dozens of them.


    "What about the sunlight? We could wait until morning."


    "That''s hours away. Next time you kill a vampire lord, try to do it in the morning. And anyway, the vampires have hooded robes to protect them from sunlight. They are weakened during the day, true, but that''s not going to stop them from chasing us. We need the distraction. Now let''s go, time is wasting."

 9: Earth– Freedom and Sacrifice

    While they really didn''t have had much time, Petrim knew very well that Air was the most energy-demanding of the four elements, so he made sure, that Felim ate something before they left the City Hall.


    Vampires had no use for human food, other than meat, but the clerks did, so there was a kitchen at the place. Felim told the clerks, that Hargvan was testing Felim''s ability¨C hence the shooting¨C and that the boy needed food to restore his energy for further testing. He wasn''t even lying, or not much.


    While elementals had a far faster metabolism than golems, they still needed to rest for an hour, so that Felim more or less regained the ability to use his power.


    Because they needed his ability. Freeing even a few of the slaves won''t be an easy task, Petrim knew.


    Oh, not because of the guards. The slave pens weren''t too heavily guarded. The vampires did not expect the slaves to try to escape, thanks to the fact that each attempt was seriously punished and that being constantly fed on weakened the humans not only in body but in spirit too. And that was the real problem. The lack of spirit.


    So, they couldn''t just free any random group of slaves, they needed a very special group if they wanted to have a chance at their escape attempt. Luckily, Petrim just happened to know the right kind of group.


    The chosen slave pen¨C a former high school¨C was only guarded by one vampire and five zombies.


    "Alright," said Petrim, "we don''t have much time, but we still should be careful not to make too much noise. Remember what I taught you about using a gun?"


    Felim nodded. Petrim wasn''t sure if it was a good idea to let the boy keep the gun he took from Siriem, but they needed all the advantages they could get, so he showed him how to use it before they left the City Hall.


    "Good. Now, remember that these things are noisy as the Void, so stick with your power. If you feel a strange coldness then likely you''re in a ward. Your telekinesis won''t work there, so be careful. Also, if you start to feel too tired, hungry or thirsty, stop using the Motion. Got it?"


    "Yes," said Felim.


    Petrim nodded, and led the boy to one of the side entrances, which was only guarded by zombies. The undead were inside the building of course, so they were protected from sunlight during daytime. Luckily, as the only healer, Petrim was responsible for keeping the slaves in relatively good health, so he was quite familiar with the slave pens.


    "Okay, we shouldn''t have much trouble here. Zombies are easily fooled."


    "Zombies?" Asked Felim. "You mean they use zombies as guards? Bot how? I mean, they''re basically animals."


    "They are tamed zombies," said Petrim. "Conditioned by an aspect of the Fire. With the right passwords and command words they''ll do whatever we tell them to do. And I have some of those passwords and commands."


    "But how?"


    Petrim showed him a small notebook. "I took it from Siriem. He was Hargvan''s zombie tamer. Now, follow me, and do nothing. It is possible to turn off a zombie''s survival instinct, but there''s no command word for it in Siriem''s notes, so don''t try to kill them, because they will defend themselves."


    Petrim went to the doors, and opened them, not even trying to be stealthy about it. There were two zombies there, as the earth elemental predicted.They immediately turned in Petrim''s direction.


    They were hideous creatures, barely humanoid, with strange outgrows like small horns, claws and additional but stumped limbs. Their clothes were some kind of a uniform, with numbers on it. Under the numbers there was a logo, which resembled three, horned bulldog''s heads.


    Before the undead could attack them Petrim said the password , and for a wonder it worked¨C it made the zombies stop. They actually returned to their original posts, and stood there like the two elementals weren''t even there.


    Petrim smiled at Felim, then urged him to follow him into the building. The boy did so only reluctantly. The two undead stood there like statues,¨C grotesque and horrifying statues¨C and Petrim could feel, that the kid breathed in the Air. Luckily he didn''t do anything with it, but Petrim still thought he should be more careful about hiding his element. Not to mention that they couldn''t afford to waste his strength, since he could use it only about three times, without needing to eat and rest.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    They met another zombie inside the school building, but when Petrim told him the same password it went on it''s business, like nothing out of the ordinary happened.


    "It was a patrol," he said to Felim. "There is one more inside the school building. The vampire and the last zombie guards the main entrance. The plan is that we let the slaves free and then escort them out on the side entrance we came in. Then we attack the nearest district gate. It is only guarded by four vampires, but they have an alarm system there, so we need to kill them silently. That means it''s only going to be you and me, while the freed slaves will create some diversion."


    While he was talking, they arrived at a locked classroom door. There was a small window on the door, so they could see that there were people sleeping inside the classroom.


    "Most golems are only used for feeding purposes. They are useless to us. However, these slaves here work with construction vehicles, so the vampires mostly leave them alone, but they''re still treated like animals. Hopefully they can be convinced to come with us. Now, open the door, please."


    Felim looked questioningly at Petrim first, but then he understood what he meant. Petrim was pleased that he didn''t need to explain everything to him. He felt as the kid reached out with the Motion to the lock, inside the lock, feeling the intricate mechanism of it. Petrim knew other levitators before the First Purge, and one of them told him that touching something with Air wasn''t so different than touching something with his hands. Anyway, Felim couldn''t open the lock on the first try.


    "I can''t," he said.


    "You can, it''s a simple lock. Just try again."


    Felim nodded and tried again. Sure enough, this time he managed to open the lock. Petrim was relieved, they couldn''t afford another try.


    "Good," he said. "You are getting better at using your aspect. We will need it to survive, but you also need to be careful with it. Use it too often, and you will need much more food and water, not to mention resting time. We won''t have much of either of those. Also, try to hide the Air when you use it."


    Petrim opened the door slowly, but the slaves were deep in slumber. They didn''t have much time, and the main entrance with the vampire was quite far away, so Petrim wasn''t too gentle about waking the slaves: he touched them, letting the cold of the Earth wake them. There would have been a few cries of surprise, but the he was wise enough to shut their mouths with his hand, and only wake them after that.


    While the vampires despised the healer, most of the golems respected, and even liked him, despite being an elemental. In fact, the vampires'' contempt only made them like Petrim even more.


    So, when they recognised him, they immediately stopped struggling against his hold, and remained silent while he raised the others.


    Except for one. He was a robust man well in his middle years, but still heavily muscled with wide shoulders. His head was shaved, but his face wasn''t, however his beard was well kept.


    "Don''t tell me, Petrim," said the golem, though in a hushed voice, "that you plan some kind of an escape."


    He nodded, and started to awaken another slave. "You were always a sharp one, Kiriin. Too clever for your own good."


    Kiriin shook his head. "I mean, why else would you sneak around like that. But you''re insane. Even if you manage to escape, you know what happens."


    Petrim sighed. He could have explained to him, convinced him. He even prepared a speech for that. But then why bother? Kiriin was indeed sharp, so there''s no need for long speeches.


    "Hargvan is dead." He said.


    It only took one second, and Kiriin swore, understanding the implications of it. There will be mass executions, whether anyone escapes or not.


    "Did you do it?" One of the other golems asked. They were all awake now.


    "Does it matter?" Asked Petrim. "They will randomly kill a bunch of us, whether we had anything to do with Hargvan''s death or not.


    "Yes, it does matter" answered the slave. "If we turn you in, then they''ll punish only you."


    Petrim and Kiriin exchanged a look. They both knew the man who was talking, Azakh. He always was a coward and even worse, he was always willing to let others suffer if he could profit from it.


    The big golem nodded and seized the other slave from behind, grabbing his head, and with a quick twist broke his neck. The others, including Felim, looked at him in horror. But not Petrim.


    "He knew, just as well as you do, that if he turned me in, he would have only saved his hide. Or am I wrong?" The earth elemental asked.


    The slaves said nothing, but that was answer enough.


    "If we left him alive" Petrim went on, "and brought with us, he would have likely betrayed us to the vampires to save himself. If we took him as a prisoner that would have slowed us. If we left him here unconscious, he would have given our pursuers valuable information about us. So tell me, what should Kiriin have done?"


    Again, silence.


    "There is a reason, I chose you for this escape. You are strong. You have no family, believe me, as your healer, I know." That last part was a lie, of course. Some of the men here had children still in the undercity, but that knowledge would have helped no one, and could have killed them all, so Petrim lied without blinking an eye. "And, you already survived a few decimations. You know what it''s like, right?"


    They nodded, and there was even some murmur of agreement.


    "So, you know what we need to do. I have a plan. Listen closely, for we do not have much time¡­"

 10: Fire– A return

    "So, you lost a copter."


    "Yes, Tunem," Zarin sent her answer to the lord protector through the telepathic link. The link wasn''t created by her. While she could send her thoughts to another, but only to those who were near her. Long distance telepathic communication required a bond, which could be created by a different aspect of the Fire, however they didn''t have access to a binder. Luckily, there was a natural bond between close blood relatives, which was far more weaker and limited than an elemental bond created by a binder, but it was strong enough to allow a creation of a telepathic link. So it was Haden, the lord protector''s brother, who created it, using her blood. Zarin knew that Haden was a sentient undead, and she also knew he could steal elemental abilities, and she was well aware of the fact that Tunem trusted him. But she didn''t, so she needed to be careful what she said to the lord protector.


    "Do we know how it happened?"


    "No."


    "No? Ulmra, please. I can''t forgive the loss of one of our last working copters, not even for you, without consequences for the stability of my leadership, unless you give me a better answer than that. I am a dictator, not the Spirit. Find the reason or make up one. I would prefer the first, but I do understand it''s not possible in your current situation... Unless..."


    "I don''t think using one of our drones would be a good idea. If they really used elementalism on the copter, as we suspect they did, they could just as..."


    "I am not talking about the drones. And you know that."


    She did know that indeed, of course. They had only three drones at Jukava Base and the Protectorate had only fifteen in total, and only four more copters. However, they also had a mistling, Zehno.


    "With all due respect, my lord..."


    "Oh, dear Ulmra, I just love how you shift to the official tone when you disagree with me. And of course you are usually right. So you don''t think the boy is ready?"


    "No, Tunem" - She deliberately switched back to first-name basis - "He is progressing well. He will never be a true soldier, but has the potential of a good spy."


    "Good. A talented spy could worth a hundred soldiers at least. Now one with the ability to mist..."


    "Yes. But he needs more time."


    "Alright. But then you need to fabricate a story about the lost copter. A good one. Now, I must leave. Please take good care of my ''son'', while he is at your base."


    "Of course, Tunem. Please, don''t take it the wrong way, but how long will he stay? No offense meant, Haden."


    "None taken, Ulmra" answered Haden.


    "Why?" Asked the lord commander. "Don''t tell me you don''t like having a superior officer as a guest on your base? I hope you are only worried about your authority."


    "Actually, I am, if I may be so blunt."


    "By all means. That''s your third most useful attribute."


    "Thank you, I guess... Anyway, it looks bad that a teenage boy..."


    "He is twenty, officially. And in reality not that much younger than you."


    "Yes, well. Anyway, it makes my job really difficult, if a boy, who seems barely old enough to drink anything stronger than a beer..."


    "Yes, I can see that. But it''s a necessary evil. To answer your question, he stays until you deem the water kid ready for reconnaissance missions. You do remember the real reason Haden is there."


    "Yes, but I still don''t see how..."


    "You have your orders, Commander."


    "Yes, my lord."This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    At his request Haden deactivated the telepathic link.


    "Everything is alright, Ulmra?" He asked aloud.


    "Yes, Haden. Now, if you''ll excuse me, I need to go to the gym to practice with Zehno."


    The undead seemed thoughtful. "Perhaps it would be better if I joined you on these training sessions. I can use the boy''s ability, so it makes sense for me to learn more about them."


    "You know as well as I do, that you don''t need the practice. You can use the stolen aspects as well as the elementals you stole from."


    "Well, to a certain limit, anyway. Still¡­"


    Ulmra sighed. What Haden said made sense, but while she didn''t exactly hate the vampire she didn''t particularly like him either.


    "Look, Haden. We both know I couldn''t forbid you to come. But I can ask you, and I do."


    "You still don''t trust me." It wasn''t a question.


    "I don''t trust the virus. The Taint. This virus¡­ It''s almost like I can hear something in the background, when I read your mind. A voice, like a mumbling of a sleeping person. And I know, it''s coming from the Taint."


    "Please Zarin, not this again. I follow the teachings of the prophets too, but this disease is just that: a disease, not some demonic possession. That being said, I respect your wishes. But you know what Tunem wants. Sooner or later you have to introduce me to the boy."


    "I know that. When Zehno is ready."


    This time Haden sighed, then nodded and left Zarin''s room.


    ***


    Zehno was actually quite talented at his elemental ability, which was fortunate, since misting was one of the least well documented powers. The mistlings of the old worked mostly as assassins and spies, so they were a naturally secretive bunch.


    The Mist itself was poorly understood by anyone not belonging to their caste. There were a lot of questions Zehno asked that Zarin had no answer for. Like why could he walk through a person or even a door, but not through walls? Why could he walk on the first place, and not fall through the ground? Breathing in the Mist was also an interesting question.


    At the first few times, when Zehno tried to breathe while using his ability, he immediately lost control and returned to the physical world. But after a few more tries, he found more and more easier to breathe in the Mist. The problem was that he shouldn''t have been able to do that at all, if he was incorporeal. Then again, it was an advantage that the boy could breathe in the Mist, so she decided to just accept that as a fact.


    The old gym they used for their training sessions was actually a sports center before the Apocalypse. After that it became a dedicated storage building for captured zombies for training and experimental purposes. The gym equipment had been moved to some smaller buildings where the soldiers could use them.


    As for their training that day they used three zombies. Zehno''s task was simple enough: he needed to get through the training ground, without the zombies noticing him. It was simple, yet not easy: there were some electronic dead man''s switches placed at certain points, which immediately triggered when Zehno got close to them while using his power, thanks to the fact that elemental abilities and electronic devices were mutually disrupting each other, and once they activated, they alarmed the zombies. The undead also sensed him not only if he accidentally touched them, but even when he wasn''t careful enough to hide the Water he used.


    Even when he could hide from the zombies, he couldn''t from Ulmra. She found him nine times out of ten. She didn''t use her ability, it wouldn''t have helped her anyway, since the Mist was just as effective hiding thoughts as bodies. But anyone could sense an elemental using their ability, given that the observer was actively searching for anything unusual and the elemental wasn''t skillful enough to be able to hide their usage of their aspect.


    Zehno wasn''t, not yet. He was talented but not skilled. That''s why she told Tunem that the boy wasn''t ready.


    That and Kaleg''s death.


    The kid took it hard, of course. His whole former squad was dead including his cousin.


    Zehno was an orphan and lived with his uncle, Kaleg''s father. Zonorien Ronos was a simple worker, a kind and gentle soul, not fit for military duty, so he worked at the Purged Ruins. Father and son was nothing alike, yet they loved and respected each other, and he wasn''t exactly happy about that both his son and his nephew were in the army. Zonorien demanded the same day when they lost his son and Kaleg''s whole group that they discharge Zehno from further military service. Ulmra spoke to the man personally but even that didn''t help. They had to lock him up, before he could cause any trouble. She didn''t tell Zehno about it yet.


    As she were contemplating about that, suddenly she felt something cold on her left shoulder. She even yelped in surprise.


    "I won, ma''am," Zehno said but there was no joy in his voice.


    Ulmra was really embarrassed. She was so deep in thoughts, that she let Zehno sneak upon her.


    "Yes," she said. "Congratulations, Private. That concludes today''s training. Please return to your room. I relieve you from your cleaning duties for a week."


    Even that was not enough to make him smile, but he thanked her anyway, and left, leaving her alone with her thoughts and the chained zombies.


    ***


    After the training with Zehno she returned to her quarters to rest a spell. Not ten minutes later someone knocked on her door.


    "Come in!" She said.


    If it''s Haden Seidon...¨C she thought with annoyance.


    But it wasn''t. It was her aide.


    "Sorry to bother you, ma''am," he said. "But one of the gate guards called in. You are not going to believe this."


    "What? You look like someone who just saw a ghost."


    "Well, I might as well, ma''am. The guard said one of our soldiers from Darem''s squad is returned. His name is Corporal Kaleg Ronos, I believe."

 11: Ether– A message

    The room, where Kaleg regained his consciousness was rather nice, tastefully decorated with old weapons, paintings and other relics of the Steam Age. There was even a fireplace.


    To his surprise, he wasn''t bound or handcuffed, and there wasn''t any guard to watch over him. He was alone with a young, elegantly dressed man.


    The man''s clothes was from the Steam Age too, but somehow it looked new and authentic at the same time. He even had a pocket watch, to complete the image.


    They sat around a coffee table, and there was coffee too and tea with biscuits.


    "Ah, you are awake," said the young man. He had a pleasant voice. "Alright, let''s start the recording then. First of all, I apologize for this crude form of communication, Fire Lady Ulmra Zarin. Please..."


    "Erm, sorry," said Kaleg. "But it seems there is some misunderstanding. My name is..."


    "Kaleg Ronos," finished the man impatiently. "Yes, I am perfectly aware who you are. But I wasn''t talking to you."


    "But, then..."


    "Please, golem. I will answer your questions in due time, but until then, just be quiet, and let me do the talking. Is that okay with you?"


    Kaleg nodded. It seemed the wise think to do.


    "I do appreciate it, young one," said the strange man. "Now, where was I? Ah, yes. So, my name is, Void Prince Artsu Nadith. And as I was saying, I am truly sorry about the circumstances of our first contact. I know, you lost some good men, and I also know it doesn''t matter that I also lost more than a hundred of my zombies."


    "Your zombies?! You were the one, who made those corpses to attack us!?"


    Artsu sighed.


    "You see, that''s why we prefer zombies as messengers. Alright, golem, perhaps it will be better if we start with your questions. So go on, let''s get on with it."


    Kaleg did his best to control his rage. Darem and the others are dead because of this clown. He will pay for it. But first he needs more information.


    "Why?"


    "Now, you see, that''s a bloody vague question. Many of my kind consider me a patient man, but even I have my limits. So if it''s all the same to you, please be more specific." Or I will kill you - his tone seemed to say.


    "Okay. I have quite a few ''whys'' to ask."


    "Yes, your kind usually do."


    "Right... So, why did you call my commander a fire lady? That was an elemental title, right?"


    "Yes. And that''s exactly why I called your... commander that. She is a fire elemental, commanding a military base and a town. That makes her a fire lady."


    "But she isn''t a fire elemental."


    "If all of your kind is as dumb as you are, then perhaps Prince Junam is right... Don''t ask! Hamos, the one who controlled you, is one of my more powerful servants. Powerful as in elemental power. He told me about your commander. My kind can steal an elemental''s aspect by drinking their blood, or eating their flesh. We raided one of your blood banks a few years ago, and thus got access to your commander''s blood. That''s how we know about her secret."Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    And then, Kaleg just realised something else.


    "Eating their flesh... Then, you... you are a zombie! A sentient one! And an elemental! It''s all true, what they say!"


    Artsu shook his head slowly.


    "First of all, while you''re technically right, we prefer to call ourselves vampires. But yes, we are undead. And no, we are not elementals. We steal their power, but that doesn''t make us elementals."


    "But, if you have elemental power..."


    "We only have it for a short time. Then it''s gone. Until we steal more power."


    "I see," said Kaleg. That was a useful information to have. "So, Commander Zarin is a fire elemental. That''s a lot to take in..."


    "Well, if you don''t have any more questions..."


    "Oh, I do. Why did you attack us?"


    "Now, that''s a more interesting question. I had numerous reasons. You see, we like to overview the memories of those zombies who survived a fight with humans. Makes it easier to keep you in check. And one of my memory readers found quite an interesting piece of information in one zombie, who had an encounter with your group. Or rather, with one member of your group: your cousin, Zehno."


    Kaleg was genuinely surprised. What does this creature could possibly want with Zehno?


    "How do you know he is my cousin?"


    "We do not read the memories of zombies only," Artsu said. Then he gave Kaleg a moment to understand the implications of what he said. That they read his memories too.


    "I... see."


    "Good. While your cousin could be valuable to us..."


    "But why?"


    Artsu seemed to be annoyed by the interruption, but he answered anyway:


    "He is an elemental too. A water elemental, to be precise."


    "Really? Zehno? Are you serious? Just how many elementals do we have on our base? Aren''t they supposed to be extinct?"


    "Well, obviously someone forgot to tell them that. Anyway, there''s no more elementals on your base than those two. We checked. Nevertheless, I had to inform the Void King about your cousin. Fire elementals are troublesome, but a water elemental... Well, for reasons you don''t need to concern yourself with, we cannot allow your kind to have access to one such creature. So I have been instructed, as the Prince of the Galthran Princedom, to gather information and destroy your base. Oh, and to capture both of your commander and Zehno, alive if it is possible."


    "But... but you can''t! The Salt Wall will stop you!"


    Artsu laughed bitterly.


    "Fool! You have no idea about the extent of the Void Empire! Your pathetic Protectorate exists only, because it would take too much resources to destroy it. Because the Empire is far more democratic than your country, and the Void King considers his own princes a greater threat than you. But if you could make contact with the elementals who fled your world during the First Purge... well, if you could put behind your grudges, and form an alliance, then you would be more than the minor annoyance that you are now. An alliance like that might even could be considered a threat. And that''s why, I want to help you."


    For a long moment Kaleg didn''t know what to say. Perhaps the undead was right, it would be best, if he kept his mouth shut, and let the commander handle the situation. It was well above his pay grade anyway.


    "And so, you see," continued Artsu, when he saw that Kaleg wouldn''t say anything, "I need to be extra careful. The attack against your group was officially meant to gather intelligence, as I was instructed to do. But, in reality, it was a way for me to get a message to your commander, and an offer of alliance."


    "So, you say, that my best friend, my squad mates died just because you needed an errand boy?!"


    "To be blunt about it, that''s exactly right. But make no mistake: they would have died all the same if we would have overrun your fort, along with all the other soldiers. As for the civilians there, they would have died too, or would have been taken as food or slave. Your squad mates gave their life to buy them some time. Isn''t that what soldiers supposed to do?"


    Kaleg didn''t answer. Artsu was right, in a way. But still...


    "There is one more thing to consider. If this alliance doesn''t happen, and soon, I will still need to besiege your base. You do understand that? You can do nothing about the comrades you lost, but you can save those who are still my captive, not to mention that you can save the entire population of Jukava too. You know what? I tell you this: even if your commander refuses my offer, I guarantee the safety of your men. If she accepts I also guarantee their freedom. Do we have a deal?"


    Kaleg sighed. It''s not like he has a choice... not now, at least. But that can change, if he lives.


    So he nodded his assent.


    "Good. Now, back to my message."

 12: Void– Diplomatic mission

    Keeping his secret a secret was never easy for Haden.


    Yes, he could walk in broad daylight for a short time without much trouble and salt and garlic was easy to avoid by merely stating he didn''t like their taste. Silver was not really an issue, since they used the precious metal for military purposes only, so no silver jewelry or utensils to worry about.


    Avoiding the animals was more problematic. Horses and dogs were quite common on every military base since the Apocalypse and the decline of civilization. And they hated the undead. So Haden needed to make extra effort to avoid being close to animals if he didn''t want to arouse suspicion by driving them crazy merely by his presence.


    All these small signs alone wouldn''t have been enough for anyone to find out the truth about him, thanks to the well known ''fact'' that the zombies were all mindless cannibalistic monstrosities. However, the gossip about sentient zombies became more frequent, especially at bases like Jukava, which were close to the undead infested territories.


    So, Haden mostly kept to himself, avoiding the company of others. As such, it was no wonder that he was among the last ones who received the news of Kaleg Ronos'' return, despite the fact that he was a high ranking security officer officially.


    "You should have notified me," he said to Ulmra.


    The commander didn''t answer him. She seemed to be deep in her own thoughts. They were alone in her room, so there was no need for military formalities, but Haden was really annoyed by the fact that everybody treated him like a spoiled child, including Ulmra, who should have really known better.


    "Commander Ulmra Zarin, as your superior officer, I demand an explanation!" He said, not even bothering to hide his anger.


    The commander looked at him thoughtfully, not really bothered by his outburst.


    "You want an explanation, sir? Very well, here is your explanation: we are doomed. Plain and simple, so I couldn''t care less about your hurt ego, Haden."


    He was stunned. The situation must have been really bad, if Zarin reacted that way.


    "Ulmra, please, tell me what happened."


    "I received a message from one of your¡­ kind."


    "A¡­ a zombie? Another sentient zombie?"


    "A vampire, as he calls himself. You heard about vampires, right?"


    Haden nodded. Everybody heard about those mythical creatures, who ruled the Earth, before the first elementals defeated them. They were the creatures of the old religion, before the Dome, when the elementals were worshipped as gods, and the vampires seen as demons, who were jealous of their power and tried to steal it for themselves to enslave humanity. But the gods defeated them in the primordial times, banishing them to the Void for all eternity.


    "But that''s impossible. They''re just a legend."


    "Then, you are a legend. Congratulations," said Ulmra dryly. "According to this Prince Artsu, at least some parts of the old legends are true. There was indeed a war between the vampires and the elementals at the dawn of human history. Well, more than one war. In the end, the elementals won. However, there was no banishing anyone to the Void or anywhere else. They simply killed every vampire they could find. But they couldn''t find them all. Some of them survived for a while. They plotted their revenge throughout the ages, until their time came."


    Haden frowned. Ulmra was obviously talking about the First Purge, the elimination of the elementals. But it was done by the golems, not the vampires. Unless, the undead were truly responsible for it, guiding the events from the shadows.


    "I am not a big fan of conspiracy theories, Ulmra. I mean seriously? Millennia old vampires manipulating human history without anyone noticing? I mean before the Purge there were plenty of mind readers, memory readers, not to mention seers. Someone would have noticed."


    The commander shrugged.


    "I don''t really care about this conspiracy theory, whether it''s true or false. It''s in the past, and the future is what I care about. The bad news? The vampires rule the world. Most of it, anyway. And they finally want to crush us, like the annoying insects we are to them. The good news? Artsu is offering us an alliance. But he wants to discuss it with the Lord Protector, directly. If what he says is true, this is our only chance."Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Haden sighed. He never drank a seer''s blood, but even without a sixth sense, he could tell what it''s meant. It was not realistic either for Tunem to visit this so-called vampire, or that they smuggle Artsu to the Saltblade. And it was quite obvious that their would-be-ally did not trust the normal channels of communication.


    "He wants to speak with Tunem telepathically," he said.


    "Yes. And somehow he is aware that we can provide the opportunity to him. So, you need to visit Artsu personally, to create a telepathic link between him and the lord protector."


    "Very well," he said. "I will go."


    "That''s for your brother, to decide, but likely he will agree."


    "Speaking of Tunem, you know his orders regarding me entering the Cursed Ruins."


    She watched him for a moment, then took a deep breath.


    "I know, but¡­ This is madness," she said. "Sending our only two elementals and you to the enemy¡­ What is Tunem thinking?"


    "The boy can hide, and, thanks for your training, not only himself but another person too¡­ You can sense the zombies before they see us. I can do all those things too, and the undead leave me alone. Well, the zombies at least."


    "It''s still too risky."


    Haden turned away from her and looked outside of the window. They argued about it since his arrival. The funny thing was, that he actually agreed with her. He would have preferred to go alone. Maybe he should. Actually, why not? Tunem always wanted him to be more determined, more initiative. Void, he might even wanted him to act against his wishes once in a while.


    "I will need the boy''s blood, and yours too," he said finally, with as much determination as he could muster. "At least half a liter of both. I''ll go alone. I will have a better chance on my own."


    "What about Tunem''s orders?"


    "I take full responsibility. I''ll leave tonight."


    ***


    He left the base in the Mist. The plan was that he should reach Artsu, let him speak with his brother, and then return to Jukava without anyone noticing. Well, anyone but Tunem, of course. There was no way they could keep it a secret from him.


    Before he left, he read Kaleg''s mind himself for directions, how to get to Artsu. It was too bad, they didn''t have an eidetic''s blood, which he could have used to modify Kaleg''s memories. The kid knew too much, and his plans of vengeance also was a risk factor they didn''t need so they left with no choice but to lock him up, same as his dad. Ulmra wanted them separated, but Haden wouldn''t have it. So he ordered that they should put Kaleg right next to his father''s cell, strictly forbidding him to tell his father about what he learned from Artsu.


    According to Kaleg''s thoughts, he returned through the old subway system. Which was filled with zombies, of course, but the boy''s vampire escort¨C Hamos, his name was¨C was enough protection for him, the zombies left him alone. So, it seemed logical that as an actual vampire¨C it still felt strange to think about himself as such¨C he could just as easily reach Artsu''s domain going the same way backwards.


    So he did just that.


    Walking in the subway brought up memories from his childhood. His family lived in a small town not too far from the capital. His father was a soldier, of course, so they didn''t see him too often. His mom worked in the capital as a lawyer. He and Tunem often spent their free time together in Galtra City. He remembered the first time he traveled by the subway. He thought it really exciting back then. Going through the dark tunnels inside the well lit cars was a pleasant experience indeed.


    Now though¡­ The dark tunnels were there, alright, but as for the well lit cars¡­ Well, there were a few wrecks here and there.


    When he got near the first of such wreckages, he started to think, maybe setting out alone wasn''t such a good idea after all. Anything could hide in the dark, and just because he was an undead it didn''t mean that his night vision was any better than a normal human''s. The reason why most undead saw better in the dark than the living was simply because they lived in the dark, so their eyes adapted to it. Haden''s not.


    He could have used a flashlight, but that would have attracted unwanted attention. So, instead he occasionally drank a plastic vial of Ulmra''s blood, using Thought to sense if there was any mind nearby, sentient or not, living or not.


    Sadly, a single vial, containing a deciliter of blood, granted him Ulmra''s ability for less than ten minutes, and he only had three remaining, and about an hour''s worth of journey through the subway. And he was determined to use mind reading on Artsu himself, or at least one of his servants. It was risky, but they needed more information desperately. So he could only use Ulmra''s blood sparingly.


    Luckily, he also brought some of Zehno''s blood, so after he ran out of a vial of telepath''s blood he switched to mistling''s blood. He planned to drink from Ulmra''s after that again, but before he lost Zehno''s ability, while still in the Mist, he felt a feeling quite similar to that of the Mist itself. It was cold,moist and... hollow. The very same hollowness, which he felt, when he used an elemental''s ability, which meant, that another vampire was using one of the dimensional aspects. He also noticed that he left the Mist, the moment he felt the other vampire''s Void-tainted usage of the Water. What was that?¨C he thought.


    "Well, you''re not whom I expected," said a voice from the darkness before him. "Or, rather, you''re not what I expected."


    He couldn''t see who the speaker was, but he knew he was a vampire which meant that likely he was Artsu''s man.


    So, the diplomatic mission begins, he thought.

 13: Water– Family heritage

    While he wasn''t as big or as strong as his cousin, and not that much smarter than him either, Zehno had really sharp senses, and not just physical ones, as it turned out.


    After they started training his misting ability with Commander Zarin together, the commander tried to read his mind in secret only once. He noticed it immediately, but he didn''t think it proper to tell his superior officer to stop doing that. Of course, since she read his thoughts, she was perfectly aware of the fact that Zehno noticed her, and how uncomfortable he felt about it.


    So, the commander did something she hardly ever did: apologised to Zehno, admitting, it wasn''t right to probe his mind without his consent. More importantly, she promised him not to do it ever again, unless it is absolutely necessary, or if Zehno proves that he cannot be trusted. So far as he could tell, she kept her word.


    To his credit, for a while Zehno did try to do his best not to abuse the commander''s trust.


    But as the days passed on and his requests for a leave had been denied over and over again, he started to use his aspect to leave the fortified campus.


    He wanted to visit his uncle who lived in one of the suburban houses, with five other people, all workers. He learned from Zonorien''s flatmates that the military police took him into custody. They found it strange that Zehno didn''t know about it, but even as a private he outranked any common worker, so they didn''t question him.


    Getting into the holding cells wasn''t really that much difficult for a mistling, he only needed to avoid accidentally bumping into someone. A few of the guards could feel his presence, the strange cold but it was far less intense than a coldtouch, and since they didn''t know what it meant, they simply dismissed it as no more than a sudden drop in temperature.


    The holding cells were located in the former police precinct of Jukava. The cell doors were simple metal bars which offered minimum privacy.


    Zonorien himself was really surprised that they allowed Zehno to visit him. Since the boy did not want to reveal the truth to his uncle, he fabricated a tale about knowing one of the guards, who helped him sneak in.


    "He could get into big trouble, if the other guards learn about this, so please keep it a secret from everyone else, uncle," he asked him.


    After that, he visited him three more times. The third time, there was someone else in the cell next to Zonorien''s: Kaleg.


    Zehno was still in the Mist when he noticed his cousin. He and Zonorien were talking about Darem.


    "He could have gotten a better job for you, you know," Kaleg said. "He offered it, but I refused. I was still too angry at you."


    "I know," came Zonorien''s answer. "You''re always angry. I think you got that from your mother¡­ Or rather from her mother. They both died because of that anger."


    Zehno sighed, despite himself. It was an old argument between father and son, and usually this was the time when Kaleg started to raise his voice. Only this time he didn''t, he only shrugged.


    "It doesn''t matter. Igmol was never angry. They still killed him¡­ I¡­ no. It was not me, it was that son of a¡­"


    "Kaleg? What are you talking about?" Zonorien asked frowning.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    "I told you. It''s classified."


    There was silence after that. Kaleg stood at the bars of his cell, then suddenly something seemed to catch his attention. He smiled, a mirthless smile, and turned into Zehno''s direction.


    "It was about time," he said. "Are you going to just stand there in the Mist, Zehno, all night? Come, we''ve got a lot to talk about."


    Zehno was frozen in place. How did he know he was there? Obviously he sensed the Water, but even then¡­


    "Kaleg, what are you talking about?" Asked him Zonorien. "Zehno is not here yet, as you can see."


    Kaleg waved him to silence.


    "Private Zehno Ronos, as your team leader I order you¡­"


    With a sigh, Zehno let go of the Mist. There was no point denying what his cousin already knew.


    "Fine," he said. "But how did you¡­?"


    "Fine, sir," Kaleg corrected him firmly. "And it''s me who is asking the questions."


    Zehno immediately felt annoyed at his tone, as he always did, when Kaleg went full military mode. On the other hand, he couldn''t help but notice that his cousin was on the wrong side of a prison door.


    "I don''t think so, sir." He said.


    Kaleg lifted his eyebrows incredulously, but before he could say anything, Zonorien quietly coughed, so the boys turned their attention to him.


    "Now, before you two start arguing and alarm all the guards, how about first we make an escape plan? Then, once we are out, you can argue to your heart''s content."


    He didn''t seem to be surprised about Zehno''s entrance the least.


    Zehno looked at Kaleg accusingly.


    "I don''t know how you found out about me, but why did you tell your father? Don''t you understand the more people know, the bigger danger I am in. And the commander¡­" He stopped suddenly.


    "I know about the commander too," Kaleg said thoughtfully, then turned his attention back to his father. "But I didn''t tell him."


    Zonorien smilled.


    "Well, you know that the elemental abilities are hereditary," he said.


    "Are you serious?" Asked Kaleg. "You''re a mistling too? But, the vampire said¡­"


    "Vampire?" Asked Zonorien. "Anyway, it''s not important right now. First we need to escape, then there will be time enough to exchange intel. That''s the word, right?"


    Kaleg seemed to want to argue with him, but in the end he just nodded.


    "Alright," Zehno said, "but if you''re a mistling too¡­"


    "I am a time traveler, just as your mom was, Zehno. So I could have escaped on my own, but that would have required me to go too far into the future, possibly. It was a risk I couldn''t take."


    "A time traveler," Kaleg said. "You know what? Fine, I don''t even care. Zehno, get us out of here. Now."


    Zehno shook his head. "I can''t. The commander will know that I helped you. Also, Kaleg, you are too heavy. I can''t take you to the Mist."


    "Do you remember Darem, Zehno?" Kaleg asked impatiently.


    He nodded. Of course he remembered. He knew him even before he became his sergeant. He was one of Kaleg''s more sympathetic friends. Actually, he truly was a good man, a surprising trait for one of his cousin''s friends.


    "I know who is responsible for his death. And I am going to kill him. And you two are going to help me."


    Zehno and Zonorien looked at each other. Then, Zonorien said: "Bring me to his cell, Zehno, please."


    He nodded. Perhaps his uncle can talk some sense into Kaleg. Luckily his uncle was a slim man, unlike his muscular son, so he could use his ability on him. He focused on the Water, touched Zonorien''s hand through the bars, and together they entered the Mist. The touch was necessary, since Water¨C as Commander Zarin explained to him¨C was a proximal element, unlike Fire. That meant that he could only use it on himself and things he touched. That was also the reason why it felt cold while Fire was warm.


    He also felt weariness creeping up on him, now. Using elementalism was exhausting. His uncle walked through his cell door, then together they entered Kaleg''s cell through its door. Zehno let go of Zonorien''s hand, who, a few seconds later after he lost contact with Zehno, left the Mist.


    "I don''t understand, what do you want?" Kaleg asked, when his father appeared before him."


    "It''s alright Kaleg. I am here to help you."


    With that, he grabbed Kaleg, and Zehno could feel the Water, whirling around his uncle and his cousin for a few seconds, then they were gone. Both of them were just gone.


    They time traveled!¨C Zehno thought.


    And then, to his horror, he remembered something he learned about time travelling back in school. That it was a one-way ticket. You could only go to the future, not the past, never the past, so there was no going back for them.

 14: Ether– Near future

    It was like someone threw him into an especially cold lake. The feeling went away just as quickly as it came, and Kaleg looked at his father, confused.


    "What¡­ What did you do?"


    "Come on son," his father said to him. "You are more clever than that. I told you that I am a time traveller. You felt the Water, right?"


    Kaleg shook his head disbelieving. He time traveled. But, everything looked the same as before.


    "How much time¡­ I mean¡­"


    "Twenty minutes," came his father''s answer as he stepped to the cell door. "Just a small jump, really. Now, we will have time to talk later. Come we''ve got a lot to do."


    "But the door¡­"


    ... disappeared. As Zonorien touched it, the cell door simply became thin air, or so it seemed.


    "Quickly, son."


    Kaleg followed his father out of his cell. He turned back, and soon his suspicion was confirmed as the door reappeared.


    "You sent it into the future," Kaleg said.


    "Indeed. You are taking it quite well."


    "That''s one way to put it, dad. A mythical creature forced me to kill one of my friends, it turns out that my commander and my cousin is an elemental¡­ Void, even my father is one. I wonder if I am human."


    "You''re. I mean, we are both human, but yes, you are a golem. You remember how Zehno''s tracking chip stopped to function when they implanted it under his skin? And the one after that. They needed to give him one inserted into a watch."


    Kaleg nodded.


    "What about it?"


    "Elementalism and electricity do not really work together very well. Didn''t you notice how the lamps flickered when Zehno used his ability? Or when I did? Implanted chips do not work for elementals at all. Your tracking chip on the other hand, had no problems. So, you are a golem."


    To his surprise, Kaleg didn''t feel relief at his father''s words but disappointment. In fact, he feared that his father was disappointed in him too.


    "I see¡­" he said. "Well, now that''s clear, I think we should move on. Zehno might have already informed the commander."


    "That''s unlikely. I like him, but he is far from being as decisive as you¡­ or even me. No, likely he is still in his room, trying to figure out what to do. But yes, in the end, he will tell the commander. Which is just as well. Alright, let''s go."


    Zonorien went to the window, which was barred of course, but he made two of the bars disappear. Then he glanced at Kaleg, sighed, and sent another two bars into the future.


    "You shouldn''t spend so much time growing all those muscles. I was just strong enough to drag you through time."


    He crawled out through the window. Kaleg shrugged and followed him. As for his body frame¡­ well his father and Zehno had their powers, he had his muscles. And his tracking chip¡­


    "Oh, darkness beyond¡­ my chip! We were just discussing how my Void-tainted chip is still working. My tracking chip."


    Zonorien looked at him.


    "That''s a problem," he said finally. "I mean, it most likely didn''t like my little time traveling trick, but I doubt that it was enough to fry it."


    Kaleg was just about to search for a solution, when he realized something.


    "What are we doing, dad, anyway? I mean come on! Escaping? From Jukava? From the Protectorate?"Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    To his surprise his father nodded.


    "That''s exactly what we are doing. I have¡­ friends, who can help us. I will come back for Zehno later, but it is important that the commander read his mind, so she sees that we time jumped. She couldn''t know how much time did we travel into the future. It''s unlikely she will waste her limited resources to chase us, if we could be years away. Of course, I can only travel a few days in a single jump, but she likely doesn''t know that."


    Kaleg only nodded, he wasn''t really paying much attention to what his father said after the first sentence. Leaving Jukava, Galthra itself! It was just too much, especially after all that happened. And the commander¡­ Wait, what did his father say?


    "How do you know about the commander? Her mind reading ability? I didn''t tell you."


    Zonorien stopped talking. He took a deep breath.


    "Well, I am, kind of a¡­ well, a spy. It''s my job to know."


    "A spy?" He asked incredulously. "Are you serious? Just who the Void are you!?" He was shouting at the end.


    They were still at the back of the precinct, and they heard a dog barking, and shouting in the distance... and footsteps getting closer.


    "Oh, great," Zonorien said. "Come, I still have enough strength for one last jump." He reached for Kaleg''s arm, but he stepped back, out of his reach. He couldn''t take any more of his lies.


    "No," Kaleg said. "I had enough of this. Go back to your vampire masters, traitor!"


    His father was visibly stunned by his words, and couldn''t speak for a moment. And that moment was enough for the military police to arrive.


    "Freeze!" A soldier shouted at them, pointing his rifle at their direction.


    Zonorien sighed and raised his arm, just as Kaleg did.


    "I am not working for the undead," he said quickly, while one of the two soldiers handcuffed Kaleg. "I will explain everything later."


    With that, he disappeared.


    ***


    Kaleg couldn''t help but remember the time when they talked with Darem and some other soldier''s about how they would prefer the company of the zombies over the wrath of the commander. It was only a few days ago, when Zehno mysteriously disappeared at that warehouse. Many of those guys were dead, by the zombies hand. Or, in one case, by his.


    Regardless, Ulmra Zarin''s ire was still an unpleasant thing.


    "This level of incredible stupidity I might have expected from you, Zehno," she said, "but, you, Kaleg¡­ in you I am deeply disappointed."


    Kaleg actually sneered at that. On second thought, who cares about the commander''s mood or opinion? She is just an elemental, who cannot hold any rank or title. A nobody.


    "To answer your question, Corporal Kaleg," she said, "Lord Protector Seidon is the one who cares about my opinion¡­ maybe not my mood, though."


    "Get out of my head, fireling witch!" He said angrily.


    Only he, Zarin and Zehno were present in the commander''s office. Colonel Haden Tunem was missing, though as a security officer, he should have been present.


    "I give you one chance, Corporal. Just one, to apologise or I''ll have you dropped into a solitary cell."


    "Good, I could use some solitude."


    Ulmra Zarin sighed. Zehno wanted to say something, but a single look from the commander was enough to silence him. The idiot! Kaleg thought. Letting an elemental order him around¡­ Oh, but of course he was an elemental too.


    "Look, Corporal, I know it is a lot to take in, but¡­"


    "I don''t have to follow your orders. I know the law."


    "The lord protector''s word is the law, Corporal. He was fully aware of my¡­ talent, when he appointed me as the commander of Jukava."


    "I don''t believe you, Ulmra. If it were true, where''s the lord protector''s son? He should be present, isn''t he?"


    "Yes, and he is aware of my secret too. He is gone, but will be back soon."


    "How very convenient¡­ Well, I am not believing you."


    "So?" Asked Zarin. "I don''t really care what you believe. I don''t need to convince you, merely to silence you. One way or the other. Do you understand me?"


    And he did.


    Silence him... She could have him executed if she wished. No one would believe him, if he told them the truth. And if the lord protector really was privy of her secret¡­


    "I¡­ I do," he said, then added: "Commander."


    The commander nodded.


    "Good. I can see, and I mean that literally, in your mind, that you understood me. But I heard no apology, and it was too late for that anyway, so you will spend a little time in a solitary cell¡­ with an UV lamp above the door."


    "UV lamp? I don''t understand it, ma''am."


    "Private Zehno, explain it to him."


    So Zehno told him that he couldn''t use his ability in sunlight or in an UV lamp''s light. He learned that from the commander. Apparently she was teaching him about elementalism.


    "Sunlight negates elemental abilities?" Kaleg asked, intrigued by the prospect.


    "Only the dimensional aspects," the commander said. "Mental aspects, like my telepathy, are unaffected."


    Well, that was too bad. But maybe there was another weak spot of the commander''s mind reading ability¡­ A problem, to be solved later, when the commander didn''t read his mind.


    "Good luck with that, Corporal," she said. "Now, as for you, Zehno, your situation is even worse, than Kaleg''s. He can be excused, somewhat, by the shock and traumas he suffered, but you, you betrayed my trust. And no, I don''t care that you told me about Zonorien''s escape. It would have been too late, if not for their noisy argument. So, while we still need your ability, we could do without your attitude and untrustworthiness. I will speak with the lord protector about what we should do with you, once Colonel Seidon returns. Until then you will also have time to think about your actions in a solitary cell. And if you try to escape¡­ Don''t forget that I know more about your power and it''s limits than you do. Am I making myself clear?"


    "Y-yes, ma''am, crystal clear," Zehno said.


    With that, the commander dismissed them.

 15: Earth– The Power of Silence

    Their attack on the gate¨C which was located on the eastern section of the high scrap metal wall which surrounded the district¨C was a total disaster. Or would have been, if not for the inquisitor''s help.


    First, the gate guard Felim tried to kill with his flying dagger trick was not only able to sense the Air around the weapon, but was quick enough to dodge the blade.


    As for Petrim himself, while he managed to sneak behind one of the vampire guards without her noticing, another guard did see him, and opened his mouth to raise an alarm. Only, there was no voice coming out from his mouth. In fact, Petrim couldn''t hear a single voice from anyone either. They were surrounded by dead silence.


    The vampires seemed to be as surprised as Petrim''s little company¨C which included only him, Felim and Kiriin, the others left behind to free more slaves¡­ and to serve as distractions. In fact, they all were so surprised, that no one acted even as two guards'' heads simply exploded in quick succession. The remaining two vampires did raise their rifle after that, but Petrim quickly grabbed the one who was standing right before him, with her back to the earth elemental, instinctively covered her mouth with his hands¨C though it was unnecessary, because of the eerie silence¨C and Healed her, until she was dead.


    As for the other, Kiriin threw himself at him, and managed to bring him to the ground. While they wrestled, Petrim heard a noise, he could immediately identify: the cocking of a shotgun. They all heard it, and everyone froze. The silence was gone. When Petrim looked up, he saw a figure in a black, hooded long coat with a shotgun in his hands, pointed in their general direction. The way they stood, the stranger could shoot all three of them¨C Petrim, Kiriin and the last guard¨C with a single shoot. As for Felim, he was still at his hiding place behind the guardhouse, looking like someone who trained heavily all day. The kid clearly had no power left in him to help them.


    "You two," the hooded figure told Kiriin and the guard still on the ground, "get up! And drop your weapons!"


    They had no choice but to obey, so Kiriin left his knife on the ground, just as the vampire his rifle.


    "Inquisitor Simiet," the guard said to the stranger, "I don''t understand it..."


    "No, you don''t, Keriul," Simiet said. Then he turned his head at Kiriin. "Gag the vampire. Now, we don''t have much time."


    Petrim frowned. He met only once or twice with the inquisitor, but he could recognize his voice, and the stranger''s voice was the same as Simiet''s indeed. Even his height and body frame was the same, but why would a vampire help them?


    "Don''t take this the wrong way, Inquisitor," he said to Simiet, "but why are you doing this?"


    "I am more than happy to answer all your questions, Healer, once we''re outside of the district. Better even if we''re outside of Savarin. For now, let''s just say, that a vampire lord''s death warrants a thorough investigation by the Inquisition itself. We both know that Hargvan was breaking a good number of the laws of the Empire. With my knowledge. They would execute you for his death, the same as they would execute me, for turning a blind eye over his¡­ infringements."


    Petrim knew he should be glad for any help, but he spent enough time near vampires¨C too much, actually, by anyone''s standard¨C to instinctively be suspicious of their motive.


    "Then why didn''t you just kill us?"


    The inquisitor actually sighed then threw back his hood, revealing his face. He indeed was Simiet.


    "If only it was so simple. You see, the investigations of the Inquisition always include Fire. You know, mind reading and memory reading. And they start it with the local inquisitor, so once his trustworthiness has been proven, he can help his colleagues with the investigation... I can assure you, that my death would be much more unpleasant than yours. And yours would be a long and painful one indeed."


    "I thought vampires couldn''t feel pain," Kiriin said. He finished gagging the guard, and even handcuffed him, with the vampire''s own cuffs.


    "Oh, the undead can feel certain kinds of pain," Simiet said. "You know, like fire, sunlight, silver¡­ or Healing. Speaking of which¡­ I need to ask you a favor. Well, aside from bringing me with you."


    Petrim took a nervous glance at the shotgun in the inquisitor''s hands, but steeled himself.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    "While I appreciate your help, I think it would be better if each of us went our separate ways. No offense, but I do not trust you, even if our interests align, as you say."


    "Of course you don''t, you''re too old to be so foolish as to trust one of the undead."


    "That''s right. Even if it is your best interest to help us now, if that changes you will likely turn on us."


    Simiet nodded.


    "Without blinking an eye," he said. "But to be fair, you would kill me the first time when it would not be an inconvenience to you."


    Petrim gave him a quick smile.


    "Glad that we understand each other."


    "So am I. But, of course, it also means that you would tolerate my company, at least as long as I am useful to you."


    Petrim nodded, reluctantly. The inquisitor was right of course. They needed all advantage if they wanted to get out of Savarin alive. After that though¡­


    "You will surrender your blood elixirs," he said to the inquisitor. "All of them, the silencer''s blood included. I know you must have a spare one left. I''ll only allow you to use them, if it is absolutely necessary. You also give me your shotgun. You may give advice, but I am the one who calls the shots. Is that understood?"


    Simiet didn''t argue, he handed him his belt with it''s plastic vials and his weapon, even allowing him to search him for any more elixirs he might have hidden on his person.


    "All right," the inquisitor said after that. "Now, about the other favor I wanted to ask¡­" He pointed at the gagged and handcuffed guard. "Heal him. With all your strength."


    At first Petrim thought he misunderstood the inquisitor. But then he realized what he wanted and why. Healing the guard will not only kill him, but it would make his corpse impossible to identify, even on a cellular level. The female guard, whom Petrim already healed, wouldn''t do, but the male one had a similar body frame as Simiet.


    He took a step in the direction of the guard. The vampire actually seemed terrified, and struggled heavily against Kiriin''s hold. Petrim felt a sudden sympathy for him, which made him hesitate.


    "Would it help," asked Simiet impassively, "if I told you how much children he ate? The last month?"


    "Oh, shut up! Like you''re any better!" Petrim said angrily.


    "No, I am not. I didn''t kill or eat any children. Never ate human flesh actually. But I let it happen. So yes, you have every reason to hate me. But I am useful for you, at least for the time being. He is not. He is a liability."


    Petrim cursed and used his sudden rage to smother any sympathy he felt for the bound guard. He Healed him, and he held back nothing. Blessedly, Simiet used the Silence again, so he didn''t hear his muffled screams. As he was done, the silence was gone too.


    "Remember him, Inquisitor," he said pointing at the ruined remains of the guard. "This is what awaits you, if you betray us."


    Simiet seemed unshaken, but he only nodded. Then, removed his long coat with the symbol of the Inquisition¨C two links of chain crossing each other, forming an ''x''¨C and exchanged it with the guards camouflaged coat. It was heavier and kevlar reinforced, but it also had a hood, for vampire soldiers needed protection from sunlight just as the inquisitors. It was also in good condition. Earth was a dry Element, so it only affected living beings. That was also the reason why they couldn''t just kill the guard and Heal his corpse.


    Felim came over him from his hiding spot, while the Inquisitor was busy with dressing the dead vampire.


    "When do we kill him?" He asked softly.


    Petrim was surprised. Not at the kid''s apparent hatred toward the vampire¨C any vampire at all¨C or his bloodlust. But the fact that he seemed to be a hundred percent certain that Petrim meant to kill the Inquisitor. Which he meant, indeed.


    "Soon," he whispered. "Be ready, and use your power sparingly. Not at all until you had a chance to rest. Food restores your strength, but you need sleep too. I might need your help dealing with the vampire."


    Felim nodded.


    "Gladly," he said, still low enough that only he could hear. Then more loudly he asked about food. Petrim gave him some from his backpack, which he acquired at the high school.


    "Alright," Simiet said once he was done. "Now, we should leave. I found the key to the gate in the guard''s pocket. Take their guns¡­ I mean," he corrected himself at Petrim''s frown, "I suggest that you should take their guns."


    "We should wait for the others," Kiriin said.


    Simiet took a deep breath, but before he could say anything, Petrim shook his head.


    "No, Kiriin. They are on their own. A small group, such as ours could hide relatively easily, especially if the vampires busy with hunting a larger group¡­ or, ideally, more small groups like ours."


    Kiriin looked at him incredulously, while Simiet approvingly. He didn''t know which bothered him more: Kiriin should have seen the necessity, and the last thing he wanted was a vampire''s approval.


    "I can see the wisdom of that plan," Kiriin said. "But still, the others expect our help and leadership. Doing otherwise is betrayal, it''s sacrificing them for our survival. It''s as simple as that."


    Petrim felt his anger rising again.


    "Betrayal, you say? Yes, Kiriin. Survival? Maybe, if we do it, and do it fast. A single, large group, even with two elemental¨C three, if you count Simiet¨C and with a handful of guns has no chance against the pursuit the vampires will send after us. We can''t fight but we can hide. That''s our only chance. Two dozen people can''t hide. Four people can. It''s as simple as that."


    Kiriin just stood there for a moment, then nodded.


    "Yes, elemental. Four can. But three can do that even better."


    With that, he took one of the rifles and turned back where the remainder of the fugitives were. Where the shouts and sounds of alarm and gunshots were coming from. Petrim didn''t realize it earlier, but he started to hear it a few seconds ago.


    "We need to leave," he said after Kiriin left. "Come on."


    And so, the three of them left Hargvan''s district.