The Acolytes of Crane "Updated Edition" (37 page)

‘So,
you have it in you to come to me,’ he said, spitting on me as I lay there at
his feet, ‘This must be a joke. Look at you all dressed up, what do you think
was going to happen here? A teenager is going to defeat us with his inherited
army of idiots?’

‘No,’
I said, because I learned that day, lengthy speeches were not meant for war. I
rolled on to my belly and took a brief look toward the battle on the ground. My
Elons were lost in the confrontation of their conflicting equals, the Dark
Elons. I could only slightly tell the good guys from the bad guys.

I
clenched Wrath, and with sleight of hand and ferociousness of anger, I lashed
my weapon toward Travis’s dainty armor. My blade’s scorching rage rippled the
hide of his armor, nearly penetrating to the skin itself.

To
my consternation, Travis didn’t flinch once at his close call. This warned me
that the worse was yet to come. Travis no longer cared about his own safety; he
had only one immediate goal: my utter and total destruction. Hatred swelled
within his eyes.

Snarling,
Travis withdrew his sword and aimed it menacingly at me.

The
sword consisted of a wire projecting upward from the handle, with a saucer
about an inch in diameter pinnacled at the top. It looked like a 1950’s do-it
yourself handyman project; a car’s radio telescoping antenna with a miniature
satellite dish atop its tip. At first glimpse, I snickered at the sight of it.

‘And
you plan to defeat me with that; I have seen better weapons in my grandparents’
shed!’ I shouted.

‘You
mean, the shed that I burnt to the ground when I ventured back to your
home—along with your precious house?’ he asked. I could feel the darkness
closing in. My tunneled vision zeroed in on that son of a devil’s ass, ‘You
have nothing to go back to. You are nothing!’ he shouted as he gripped his
sword tight, and from the handle flowing to the top of the saucer at its
peak—gleamed sparkling yellow flow of energy.

It
looked electric, like a bolt of lightning, pinned between handle and saucer,
and flames somersaulted off its edge. His sword took form, and was much more
intimidating after it charged. He zapped up a flaming ball of blue lightning on
the ground, and flames encircled it.

Sending
commands by telepathy to my lifters, I propelled, airborne, to a clearing among
the trees. Travis, also being equipped with rocket propulsion gear, matched me
movement for movement and joined me in battle, several feet above ground.
Hovering, we both braced for the decisive strike, weightless. Our nimble
silhouettes were framed by the rising sun.

There
was a slim moment, a second of strained focus, and then we lunged into our war.
Powerfully, we thrust back our sword-bearing arms for the ultimate first blow.
With a sonic smash of energy, our weapons collided. I then realized that
despite its tiny diameter, the shaft of Travis’ sword was just as
indestructible as the hardest metal ever—titanium. It failed to bend or melt
once upon the massive force by Wrath. The clash of swords conjured up a huge
ball of light, projecting a teal blue aura upon our surroundings. The main wall
of the Jaakruid fortress shone for that brief second, as if bursts of blue
floodlights were trained upon it.

I
could feel his anger personified. His unfathomable rage rattled my bones with
every meeting of our enchanted weapons.

Bending
my wrist, I brought Wrath crashing down to strike at Travis’ left leg, but he
parried the maneuver easily. He let out a whoop and he countered with a mighty
swing that knocked Wrath clean out of my sword hand. I froze helplessly for a
second as Wrath tumbled down to the ground several feet below.

Time
to use Sandolphin’s bracers. I recalled from Nezatron, when I first enlisted
for duty aboard the Uriel in the Chamber of Rafal, that their function was to
generate instant chain mail armor to protect my wrists and arms. 

Faster
that you could utter a battle cry, my wrists and hands were covered with a
sheath of mail armor.

I
was now ready. I unleashed my finest fighting form: head kick, heel kick on the
tail end, with a one-two and an over-hand right. I jumped in for the Superman
punch, then a flying knee with the aid of my lifters. ‘Yee-arghh!’ I hollered
at my foe.

Pow!
Wham!

Travis
recoiled from my blows. The impact to his face sent a skin-wake reverberation
through his body. His eyes became glossy, and his step swayed.

His
eyes soon snapped back to fury. Halting my assault with his powerful bracelets,
he backed off, and then assumed a dominant stance, his feet firmly askance.

His
face contorted with loathing, Travis unleashed a force to grasp me by the neck.
Rising rapidly through the air above him, I choked and sputtered. I clawed away
frantically at this iron grip, to no avail.

‘Aha!’
Travis snarled, ‘Flyboy!’

‘Let—’
My voice was mercilessly smothered, like a lit candle under a snuffer.

 Hovering,
with a death grip around my neck, I started to feel weak. Summoning the last of
my strength, I quickly ordered my rolesk to rally Dietons around me. These tiny
beings, aroused to anger, swarmed to Travis, as his eyes opened in fear.

Crushing
his bracelets upon my command, the Dietons proved their devastating efficiency
while Travis screamed. Now free, I dropped to the bushy ground, landing upright
with the assistance of my lifters.

Full
of unbridled rage, Travis swooped in on me, and joined me into hand-to-hand
combat on the ground. We rolled about, as Travis incidentally was reunited with
his weapon.

I
barely had time to react as Travis’ sword came crashing down. Instinctively, I
held up my left arm to block his thrust; the chain mail resisted his brute
force.  The electric flow of the sword passed into me, with a violent current
through my heart. My heart pulsed near explosion, and just as the hair on my
head began to cook, my loyal subject, my hero, Ed intervened. Actually, the one
split half of him that was still barely functioning.

With
one last defining moment, the half-Ed revolutionized heroism. With his gun
drawn, he shot at Travis’ shoulder, just beneath the deltoid.

Travis
screamed at the pain, and with one mighty heave, he struck at the half-Ed with
his sword. The last functioning unit of the poor robot met its ultimate demise.
Without a whimper, the metallic creature fell to the ground, all lights faded
forever.

‘Now!’
Travis held his sword up high over my head.

Suddenly,
plasma fire blasted away at the ground next to us, spitting up clumps of dirt
and singed grass.

Travis
looked up, as did I. Like a screaming falcon diving onto its prey, a small
spacecraft hovered into sight against the rose-themed morning sunrise. In black
letters down its side read, “ZF-Targine.” 

I
waited with bated breath. Friend or foe?

I
soon cheered for joy, nearly at tears, for it gave chase to Travis with
incoming fire. I further whooped as Travis darted away for safety, retreating
to the fortress.

The
battle scene had changed dramatically. Looking upward from my back toward a
platform above, I saw an Elon, standing tall and brute, with a golden trident
that shimmered in the light of the passing arrows.

Pike,
who had appeared by my side, was out of breath from catching up. He yelled,
‘That is Quasikeum, the Dark King of the Elons.’ I squinted ahead at the Dark
King who had usurped power from Princess Jezra, the rightful heir to the
throne.

Upon
seeing the spacecraft, the Dark King signaled for Travis to fall back and flee
behind his cape. Grateful for the chance to escape, a grim Travis ducked behind
the Dark King’s voluminous, billowing cape, and vanished. Laughing
malevolently, the king wrapped the cape around himself, and also disappeared.

The
ship began to fire on the structure, and I made a valiant attempt to rise up
and fight on, but my body was too weak. I mustered up whatever bit of strength
I had in my scrawny body. I took Wrath from the ground and left to hunt down my
nightmare, Travis.

It
was time for me to breach the Elon palace again. The Elon army had successfully
streamed in through the palace walls—thanks to the gaping hole previously
carved out by Wrath. While Travis and I had been thrashing it out, my Elon army
had been fighting tooth and nail with their corrupted counterparts in various
scenes of guerilla warfare inside the walls. Hundreds of hand-to-hand battles
raged on in stairwells, ramparts, and halls of splendor.

I
ran up the bridges and stairways leading to the palace, knowing that my lifters
would overcome any barrier. While I was about to take flight, I heard a
familiar voice behind me.

‘Hey,
dude! You’re a sight for sore eyes!’

Joyfully,
I turned to source of the comforting sound.

‘Dan!’
I cried out. He was grinning from ear to ear, expertly aligned on a hover
board.

‘Ted!
We’re all here for you!’

‘Holy
crap! Am I glad to see you! What, conquering Earth by skateboard isn’t
enough—you had to take a stab at Jaakruid, too?’

‘Is
that what this flipping jungle paradise is called? I would rather buy a ticket
to Antarctica than live in this place. So, we’re at your command now? How can
we fight for you?’ Dan asked.

‘My
guess is if you want to find the Dark King, you storm the castle. I think he is
at the top. Let’s find out.’

I
yelled out for an Elon troop to lead the army up the fortress. He took order
and said, ‘The Morlorian has been defeated sir, it lies dead at the base. Pike
is inside, joining in the battle!’

‘Impressive
gear,’ I said, admiring Dan’s awesome air surfboard and the bulky plasma cannon
upon his back.

‘Wait
till you see what this damn thing can do. It will blow your mind. Are you
ready?’ Dan asked.

Together,
we flew to the ramparts atop the perimeter wall. From the darkness of what
looked to be a hanger, we two charged ahead against an onslaught of Dacturon
elite who had left the safety of their ships to join the battle upon seeing the
Dark Elon falter. They stood like wild wizards, waving their hands about. Like
futuristic mages, they used their telekinesis to control the world around them.

As
if by sorcery, looming, dark and heavy rain clouds crept in above our heads.
The Dacturons cackled as their puffy creations threw down bucketfuls of rain
upon our army.

As
currents of water gushed off our armor and rolesks, we struggled in the
monsoon-like conditions. Everything was slippery. The flame of my blade was
dimming, but still had enough to rip through the Dark Elons that emerged from
the darkness within the palace.

One
of the Dacturons flung debris at us as we hovered on Dan’s surfboard. A log
nearly blasted Dan off his board. The other two Dacturons supported their
fellow troops with gunfire from their rifles. Pandemonium burst out through the
air, as well as flashes of light. The battle was now at its most fierce. It was
the pivotal moment—either side was desperately pushing for its tide of victory
to prevail.

The
remainder of my Elons joined in the fight, and from the blanketed shroud of
rain, two more sights for weary eyes appeared. Lincoln and Mariah rode in on
the nimble backs of my Elons.

My
heart leapt out in joy at the sight of my remaining two colleagues. They were
now truly composed as brave warriors. I could see the determination in their
eyes, hardened by weeks of training.

‘Mariah!
Lincoln!’ I cried out with full heart.

Beaming,
they both gave me a simultaneous thumbs-up.

Mariah
perched her herself slightly silhouetted on the edge of the structure and fired
lasers at the Dacturons. Her expert marksmanship dropped two of the five
Dacturon elite and created an opening for our advance.

Jumping
off Dan’s turbulent air board, I commended my lifters to take me.

‘Ted!’
Dan yelled out, searching my face for clues.

‘Go
help Mariah and Linc!’ I shouted to him. ‘I need to find the Dark King!’

Dan
saluted me, and he was off to do battle with the remaining Dacturon elite
guards.

I
dashed toward the highest rampart, upon which the tactical battle command
center would surely lay, right in the center of the palace. As I swiftly pushed
in the double doors, my heartbeat swallowed the scattered wails emanating from
the morbid choir of Elons dying around me.

Taking
in a deep breath, I walked in, searching for some light. A large heavy door
slammed shut behind me, immediately setting off a rising panic in my throat.

I
had Wrath glowing in response to the instant darkness that enveloped me. I
blinked, and everything changed.

My
surroundings were altered; it looked like I was home. My grandparents were
standing in front of me with arms open at the end of my driveway, and I started
running to them.

What
was this?

I
thought it was all just a dream. Accidentally, as I was running in my dream
state, I kicked something round that skid across the wooden floor. I gasped as
the image vanished and darkness returned, with Wrath still lighting up the
room. I discovered I was in a hangar, of strategic importance for docking
spacecraft.