Mighty Hammer Down (38 page)

"These are different times. When my
father was younger, things were different. War was common. Death
was hiding in every corner. People of different cultures could not
be trusted because they were out to do us harm. These days things
are more complicated, and simply refusing to accept an entire group
of people is just not proper. Although his intentions were good, my
father’s view of the world was simply too narrow.

"It is true that we are now at war. My
father and General Tirinius have committed us to this struggle, and
I do not intend to reverse this current agenda. If our friends need
help, we will help them, but in the coming years, after all the
bloodshed, we will be working towards peace with the Bhoors. A
person’s heritage or culture does not make them good or evil. It is
the heart of the individual that the gods must judge. The gods want
us to be peacefully involved with people of all lands.

"The Medoran people want change. The
Medoran people want a new way to see the world. This change has
been coming for a long time, and I want you all to know that while
I am Emperor, I will do the things that are in the best interest of
the people. I will not stand before you and preach hatred like the
rulers before me. Instead I bring a message of peace. We are all
equals in the eyes of the gods. No man stands taller than the rest.
No man is more important than the man or woman standing next to
him; not even your Emperor.

"It is a major flaw in society that
there are so many successful people and so many unfortunate
suffering beneath them. Just because a man has hit hard times in
the past does not mean that he does not deserve the same wealth and
respect that his successful neighbor enjoys. It is my dream that
all Medorans will become successful, and I will use my power to
ensure that that dream will come true. This dream is shared by all
decent Medorans, and all fair and clear-headed thinkers everywhere.
Generosity and fairness is the only legitimate way. As my first
order of business, I will take all of the tax money used to light
the temples at night, and donate it to needy people.

"Another fear my father has tried to
instill in you is that the Mages that walk the streets cannot be
trusted. He believed, as many of you do, that they are an evil
order of men bent on destroying the Empire. He offered you no
proof, but again attempted to enforce his hatred as law. You are
all smarter than that. You know that the Mages are calm and
peaceful. You know that behind the scenes they have helped to keep
this Empire free and safe.

"Although I look out among you and see
no black cloaks, I know that hundreds of you are members of this
noble order. I want you to know that your Emperor supports you, and
you are safe walking the streets of this great Empire. Continue
your important work carrying out tasks for the gods. Even if you
are secretive, you are all still Medorans and I know you are good
people.

"Now I offer you some personal news.
My recent brush with death has clarified my vision of life. I see
things in a different light now, and I know that there are
important things missing in my life. One of them is a wife. I have
chosen a wife, and it brings me great joy that she has agreed to
marry me. Many of you know the Odera family. I asked Mirra to marry
me three days ago. I hope that I can bring her the same level of
happiness that she brings me.

"I must apologize for how short this
speech is, but I must go now and rest. I hope that I have helped
you all understand the current situation. We will have hard times
ahead, but in the end we will be more prosperous than ever. Long
live Medora!" he said as he raised his fists in the air.

The crowd cheered for their Emperor,
but it felt forced and dry. They would soon come to understand that
his way was better than the ways of old, but he knew it would take
time. A member of the Elite Guard came to his side and helped him
off the balcony and back into the building.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Mirra Odera? Mirra Odera?" Pirius
kept saying. "How could you do this?"

"Whatever do you mean
brother?"

"You know exactly what I mean Uritus.
Mirra Odera is with Rommus."

"No she isn’t Pirius. You just don’t
understand what has been going on. She is not with Rommus anymore,
no matter what he tells you."

Pirius could not control the look of
frustration and anger on his face. "He was your friend! We all
played together as children. We all chased the pretty girls
together when we got to be too old to run through these halls. He
has helped you with your problems. He would do anything for you,
and this is how you repay him?"

Uritus sat down in a chair and
threaded his fingers together. "Pirius, you just don’t understand.
A man cannot control who he loves. She has stolen my heart. I
thought that surely you of all people could understand
that."

"I admit that I focus a little too
much on women, but I would never have done this. I have enough
control not to disrespect my friends."

"Is that what you think this is? You
think that it’s all about respect and disrespect? You see things as
narrowly as our father did."

Pirius slumped at the mention of their
father. He was clearly shaken by the assassination, but he did his
best to avoid thinking about it so that he would not be seen crying
in public. If Uritus knew his brother, he knew that he spent his
nights wetting his pillow with tears. Uritus grinned a little as he
thought about how weak his brother was.

Pirius turned around to hide his face.
He moved some things around on a nearby table in an effort to
justify avoiding the conversation. Uritus knew he was probably
sobbing quietly as he rearranged some vases. He finally turned
around, holding one of the delicate glass vases.

"How can you be so callous? How can
you hurt me with talk like that? You know I am not coping with this
very well, and yet you hurt me on purpose to make your points. In
reality you are doing nothing but proving that you are indeed as
heartless as you appear to be."

"A heartless man following his heart?
A heartless man who just admitted to you that he cannot help but
love a woman who loves him too?"

"What about Rommus’s heart!" Pirius
yelled as he raised the vase and made ready to shatter it on the
marble floor. He stopped himself, but his dimpled cheeks were red
with anger.

"Pirius, Rommus is nowhere to be
found. He has been missing for weeks. In all likelihood, he is
probably part of this whole uproar in Medora. You don’t find it
suspicious that he disappeared when he did?"

"No I don’t. I was there when General
Tirinius was informed about why Rommus left Brinn. He is not part
of any upheaval. He was simply running for his life. He encountered
Mages before he left and he felt the need to leave the
city."

"Is that right?" Uritus asked as he
leaned forward in his chair. "Where did he go then?"

"The soldier didn’t say where he was
going, but he was heading east through Taburdum. There aren’t that
many towns or cities directly to the east, so he probably turned
north somewhere after Taburdum."

"Or went into Vindyrion," Uritus said
more to himself than to his brother. "When did you discover
this?"

"On the morning the army left for
Vindyrion. Some soldier came and told the General about how his
brother was supposed to arrive with the message days earlier but he
fell or something and he died."

Uritus thought back to when he met the
Vindyri named Alana. As hard as he tried, he could not make sense
of the situation. If she really was the woman who tried to kill
Tannis, then why would she help Rommus? Why did they escape
together? It just didn’t make any sense at all. It was possible
that she had lied about being the assassin, but what good would
that have done her? He rested his chin on his fist as he thought
about what part this Vindyri had to play in all of this. If he was
going to get to Rommus, he needed all the information he could get
about the girl he was with. They were probably escaping into
Vindyrion where there were fewer Black Mages to worry about. The
Black Mages there were even more secretive than the Silver ones,
and never made public appearances. Certainly though, the Black
Mages in Vindyrion had the same agenda that he had.

Uritus realized his brother was
staring at him as he was lost in his thoughts. "Pirius, I need my
rest. Go find something to do."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I can’t see your face at all, Red
Master. It’s as if you are standing in shadow."

"Is it just because of the large hood,
or is it something else?" Uritus asked.

"No, it’s not the hood. I can’t see
anything at all. It’s hard to explain. It’s not exactly darkness I
see, it’s just that your face is obscured; even when light falls
upon it. It reminds me of looking into a dark pond."

"Interesting. When I come across a
mirror I shall have to look in it," Uritus said as he looked down
at the sacred robes of his god. In all the commotion over the past
few days, he was unable to even try them on. Finally he found time
to return to the room where they were found and wear them. It was
odd clothing to say the least; the inside did not seem to be made
of fabric at all, but rather some sort of strange blackness. It was
almost as if the inside of the robes was made of shadow, his
fingers unable to feel it. The sight was very disorienting, so he
did not examine it for very long. Instead he had pulled the strange
robes over his head and finally completed the task that his god had
given him. At last he wore the robes of Inshae.

After a short time, he realized why
the insides of the robe were so strange. As he wore them, he could
feel the gentle hum of power from the world between worlds against
his skin. Obviously the inky blackness hidden beneath the fabric
was somehow connected to that world, and he could feel the power
waiting there for his command. He also realized that he was aware
of that world in a new way; he could feel where all the souls
resided, not just the few souls he was able to pick out before. It
was like he had a vast knowledge of an intricate map of some
foreign land, but a land he had never been to.

Suddenly he felt an odd tingle. It was
the same feeling he had on the day that Inshae had come to him. He
searched the room but saw nothing. Immediately he yelled to the
Mage in the room, thinking he was the reason for Inshae not
revealing himself. "Leave me at once!"

The Mage did as he was told, and an
instant later the form of Inshae hovered above the statue in the
center of the room. The purple light from the magical floor tiles
lit the god in such an eerie way that even Uritus was a little
frightened of the sight. He pulled the hood off his head and gently
laid it back over his shoulders before bowing his head.

I see that you have found
the robes. Have you found any other artifacts?

"Yes Inshae, we have also found the
armor of Arius. We found only the arm guards, but I believe that
there are no other pieces to the armor."

You are correct, Medoran.
There is more to the armor, but not in this world. You have done
well so far. I did not expect you to find these things so
quickly.

"I do my best to serve you, Inshae.
Why have you come to me?"

I could feel that you wore
my robes. I came to see that it was true. I also come to tell you
that the gods are now fully aware that Arius is dead, and Oderion
has been using the god of life to contact Rommus Tirinius through
dreams.

"You mean that the gods know what I
have done? They know that Rommus is now the god of war and they are
communicating with him?"

No, not exactly. The gods
can speak to humans through dreams, but it is very difficult when
they do not know who they are trying to speak to. The gods are not
as aware of events in this world as you might think. It is typical
for a human to believe that a god knows every thought in his tiny
little mind, but such things are impossible. I am the only god who
is aware of the name of the human who is now the god of war, and
the name of the human who killed Arius.

Uritus stared up at the massive robed
being above him; almost a mirror image of his own smaller form. "I
understand, master. What is your next command? What do you want me
to do?"

It is important that we
eliminate the threat of the god of war. The other gods will soon
realize that there are only two men left in the world with the
proper bloodline. When they do, they will panic and probably
destroy this world before allowing the scales to be tipped in my
direction. There is no telling what Oderion will do, but we must
kill Rommus Tirinius before he realizes the full weight of this
threat.

"But master, how can we find him? And
when we find him, how can we be sure that we can actually kill him?
He is a god, at least in some respects."

Yes that is true, but as I
said before he is also a man. Find your most trusted follower, but
one who is strong and experienced in killing. Tell him to put on
the armor of Arius. The armor will be dormant most of the time, but
he will be able to summon the armor when he needs it. This will
allow him to find Rommus without drawing attention to himself by
wearing the armor in the open.