James Somers - Heir to the King

"Now concentrate, Emil. Remember to let go of your physical senses to some extent and allow them to be heightened and helped by the kinesis."

"Sometimes if I concentrate too hard I lose it altogether."

"Just try to let it flow naturally. You'll get that feeling of being inside and part of an energy field, as though it were an extension of your own body and mind; transmitting information to you and obeying your commands. Don't fight it. Embrace it. After all, you have the ability; you just need to hone it."

"My father will be so excited when we surprise everybody; I can't wait until we get back from the outing!"

"Well let's get to work so you can really show him something."

Kale brought up a handful of spicors and began to hurl them at Emil. He dodged the first which was meant to bring him into the path of the second. He brought his bow to bear as the disc embedded into the wood in front of his face. The remaining discs came quickly as he dodged about, allowing some to pass into the wall behind him and deflecting others away as he brought the bow spinning elegantly around himself.

"Very good."

Kale pulled his sticks from their magnetic clips and extended the emitter posts. He flew into an attack against the youth, who brought the bow staff into play to counter the strikes. Emil quickly moved to the offensive and spun down low with his body underneath Kale's strikes, swinging the whirling bow at his friend's lower legs. He very nearly caught him with the effort, but Kale flipped forward over him instead and returned an extended kemstick back at Emil as he landed.

The boy was already there with his staff to block the strike and moved again to try and push back at Kale. In mid-swing Kale ignited the kemsticks and one of them cut right through the middle of Emil's wooden bow staff. He quickly threw the pieces at Kale as he searched with his senses for another weapon.

He found them on his attacker's legs. As Kale deflected the bow staff pieces thrown at him he felt his other pair of kemsticks leaping to Emil's waiting hands. They ignited and he traded blows with Kale.

They had made the discovery of his power two years before while Kale was training under Wynn. While practicing various exercises in his bedroom training room with Emil, the young Horva had followed him through one of the mental exercises and actually produced some result. With more experimentation, they had discovered his power and Kale had taken it upon himself to pass on everything Wynn was teaching him; but secretly.

They had no idea how he could have come to have the kinesis in the first place, until the two had heard from Tiet, whilst he was in a reminiscing mood, about how Grod had once been his enemy and captured him for the purpose of using his DNA for an experiment to rejuvenate his own chromosomes with the Barudii power. But the experiment had failed to produce any such power in Grod, and was never dwelt on further by either of them. The boys assumed that what had not manifested in Grod was now showing up in his son.

The boys traded further blows playfully as Emil used the kinesis to carry his body elegantly through dodges and flips as the two fought. The power was a wonderful feeling. So much freedom and his mind and senses had never felt so alive. He thought of how proud his father would be when he learned what he had unknowingly passed on to his son.

Suddenly Kale felt something else; something besides their sparring. He stopped his attack and dodged away leaving Emil looking puzzled by his friend's sudden withdrawal.

"What is it?"

"Something's wrong. Something is approaching."

LUCIN'S intercom link beeped to life. "Yes?"

"Sir, the squads are positioned outside the king's residence and Commander Gareth's."

"Very good, Lieutenant. I will contact you momentarily with an order to secure the premises and capture everyone on the grounds at the king's residence. Wynn Gareth, I want killed on sight; understood?"

"Understood, Sir. We're standing by."

Lucin watched as the containment field charged up around Tiet inside the special chamber that was prepared to hold him. The last of the guards left the chamber as Lucin entered in the form of Estall and faced Tiet.

"Estall, you know I couldn't have done this, don't you?"

"I am very confident you did not."

"But can you help me to prove it?"

At that, Lucin began to pace around the bubble of the containment field.

"I don't think that would be possible."

"I don't want you to break the law, just see that I receive a fair trial," said Tiet

Lucin stopped his pacing and chuckled at the comment. "I don't think a trial is in your future."

"What do you mean?" asked Tiet with a puzzled look on his face.

Lucin faced him and stared into his eyes. "It is no longer necessary to prolong this charade. You have walked into a trap and you will die here in this room before long."

"Estall, what are you talking about!? What's going on?" Tiet asked as he noticed a look on Estall's face he had never seen on him before. "Who are you?"

"Did you really think you could destroy me by wiping out the Baruk?"

Realization washed over Tiet like a wave of doom. Estall was dead; the same creature that had held control of the Baruk was inside him now. "Why imprison me, if you're so powerful why not face me openly?!"

"Do you think revenge on you is my plan? You are vain. It is complete control I will soon have; and a new young body to rule with." He laughed, "God may have cursed me to these physical forms and favored man, but I'm not through fighting yet."

Tiet was trying to take in what he was hearing, but it wasn't all registering.

Lucin spoke into his intercom link. "Lieutenant…"

"Yes, Sir."

"Sweep the residence and be sure the boy is kept alive. Kill Commander Gareth."

"Yes, Sir. It will be done."

"Kale?!"

"Oh, yes, old friend. Your son will make a fitting body for me to rule this planet and those that will follow."

"I'll kill you!"

"That would be a neat trick. This bubble was engineered by your own scientists to hold even a Barudii."

Tiet was fuming with rage, but the containment field prevented him from using his power to break free or affect anything beyond it.

"Enjoy your stay Tiet; I have a meeting with your son."

"Take me instead…wait!!"

But the possessed body of Estall did not wait. He turned with a devilish grin on his face and left the chamber. Tiet pounded a fist into the containment field which repelled him, but his rage kept him from collapsing. He felt like exploding, but he knew it would be useless. He needed to get out of here and quickly. That creature would kill everyone he cared about if he didn't do something; but he had no idea what.

The containment field kept his powers nullified and the chamber looked extremely dense and capable of keeping him from breaking out even with the use of his kinesis. What could he do, but wait. Wait for them to come to kill him; wait while his family was taken the way that thing had taken Estall and possessed his body. He wanted to scream, to cry out but he could only sit on the ground and pray as Orin had taught him to do in times of seeming helplessness; just to sit and think and pray God would give him an answer to the dilemma. It was all he could do.

WYNN sat at his table eating dinner. He was still feeling tired from the trials. He finished the plate of food, and felt…a disturbance, as he got up. Someone was here. It was not the same as Vorn or human. Something else vaguely familiar but he couldn't place it. They were coming now, he could sense it. He moved toward the main room where he kept his weapons mounted on the walls.

The entire side wall exploded inward, covering him with rubble. He thought he might have lost consciousness for a moment. When he opened his eyes he could see and sense soldiers all around walking across the wreckage they had made of his house. They were looking for him.