Robert Newcomb: Rise of the Blood Royal

Charging his careening chariot into the heart of the carnage, Vespasian offered a silent prayer to the Vagaries flame on behalf of Lucius and Persephone.

AS TRISTAN WATCHED THE GROTESQUE BATTLE RAGE ON, he remained stunned by the wanton loss of life. The death-dealing was extreme and without mercy. Hundreds of thousands were dying on either side, and the green valley floor was becoming littered with corpses, dead horses and Bedevilers, and smashed wagons and chariots. Although the vast gold deposits had been the reason for all this carnage, they had no meaning now. Nothing did, save for staying alive.

More than once it seemed that the Shashidans were about to rule the day, only to have the Rustannican legions regroup and attack again with renewed fury. Even so, Tristan came to realize that the advantage belonged to the katsugai. By and large, Hoshi’s plan had worked, and the legions were surrounded, their valiant soldiers corralled near the valley’s center.

Just then Tristan saw a shadow loom over the valley floor, not far from where their barge hovered. Looking up at the sky, he saw a huge, very dark cloud forming in the sky. It hovered higher than their barge and lay about one hundred meters west of them. It would not have seemed unusual had it not been so much larger and darker than the others. He mentioned the strange-looking cloud to Hoshi. As she lifted her war mask to take a better look, the blood suddenly drained from her face.

Knowing that there was no time to warn her barge pilot, Hoshi immediately called the craft and wrested control from him. At once she caused the barge to lunge forward and heel over hard on her starboard side.

But even Hoshi’s quick actions hadn’t been enough to avoid disaster altogether. As the first of Vespasian’s conjured lightning bolts loosed from the dark cloud that he had created, it streaked toward the tataki fune and struck a thunderous glancing blow to its starboard stern quarter.

The corner of the barge exploded into matchsticks and its bow tilted skyward as the craft careened through the air. Hundreds of katsugai were instantaneously burned to cinders by the lightning bolt and hundreds more tumbled through the partly destroyed wall to fall end over end toward certain death. Holding on to the front wall of the barge for dear life, Tristan and Hoshi struggled to remain standing while Hoshi fought to regain control of the pitching craft.

Finally she righted the barge. After desperately searching the valley floor, she turned back toward Tristan.

“Only Vespasian could have done that!” she shouted. “The emperor lives! Worse, he has found our position, but we do not know his!”

Before Tristan could answer, more terrible lightning ripped free of the ominous black cloud. Hoshi again did her best to maneuver the barge out of its path, this time barely succeeding. Tristan watched in awe as the lightning narrowly missed the leading edge of the barge. It passed so near that everyone aboard felt its heat and heard it crackle with energy as it plummeted earthward.

Using the craft to augment her sight, Hoshi searched desperately for Vespasian’s well-known gilded chariot and white stallions. She knew that she had little time to search him out before another lightning bolt struck. Suddenly she spied the chariot and the tall blond figure commanding it.

“There!” she shouted to Tristan. “Near where the river bends, there are three azure portals lying side by side! Do you see? Vespasian is there!”

Tristan found the bend in the river, and he could just make out the three azure portals. But because he could not call the craft in ways that Hoshi might, he did not see Vespasian.

“I see the portals!” Tristan shouted.

“Send one of your meteors there!” Hoshi shouted. “If you do it quickly, even he will not be able to escape it in time!”

Just as Tristan was about to act, to his horror he saw another dark shadow forming across the valley floor. Much as the first one had done, it too started to move.

Vespasian has called forth another cloud! Tristan realized. If the emperor simultaneously launched two lightning bolts from different directions, even Hoshi’s gifts wouldn’t be able to save them and they would be obliterated. Raising his hands, Tristan quickly launched another azure meteor. But even as he saw the meteor start plummeting earthward, he realized that another of Vespasian’s lightning bolts had been loosed.

Hoshi swung the barge over hard again, but this time the blow was far more direct. Striking the barge amidships, the lightning bolt blasted much of the craft to bits. Blown head over heels, Tristan, Hoshi, and thousands of katsugai tumbled toward the ground.

Because his use of the craft had been affected by the exploding barge, Tristan’s meteor plummeted crazily toward the valley floor. Careening madly, it headed in Vespasian’s general direction, then veered north before it hit the ground. Tens of thousands of legionnaires and katsugai were vaporized instantly. The resulting concussion reached Vespasian, throwing him from his chariot.

As Tristan fell earthward he caught a quick glimpse of Hoshi to see that she had used the craft to stop her descent, but she had apparently been unable to do the same for him. Over and over he went, his lungs gasping for air and his limbs flailing wildly. Hoshi acted again, this time sending down an azure bolt to try to catch him. But she missed widely, the bolt streaking by him.

Suddenly Tristan felt a jolt so great that he thought his back might break. The wind was quickly knocked out of him and he felt his left shoulder dislocate. As he slipped from consciousness, he turned to see Ox’s eyes looking into his.

That’s why there were two lightning bolts coming at us at once, he realized. The second shadow didn’t come from another of Vespasian’s clouds…it came from the Tammerland.

Finally losing consciousness, theJin’Sai dangled limply in Ox’s arms as the faithful Minion warrior reversed direction and soared upward.

LYING PRONE ON THE GROUND, VESPASIAN GASPED AS HEtried to gather his senses. His chariot was wrecked and his stallions had run away. Screaming fighters still hacked viciously at one another all around him, and azure bolts from both sides wildly crisscrossed the battlefield. Coming to his feet, Vespasian called the craft to stem his growing nausea, then tried to assess the situation.

Screaming katsugai were attacking his forces on all sides. While he had been trying to kill theJin’Sai, the Shashidans had closed their circle even more, forcing the legions into a compact group near the valley’s center. Although Vespasian found himself at the center of that group, the end would come soon, he realized.

He turned to see three azure vortices nearby. One gallant tribune had taken charge of them, deciding that the time had come to save as many legionnaires as he could by ordering them home to Ellistium. As legionnaires swarmed into the vortices, the situation was becoming hopeless, chaotic. Soon Vespasian was engulfed by soldiers begging him to issue new orders.

Ignoring them, he turned and ran toward the three vortices. As the raging katsugai continued to press his forces from all sides, Vespasian was forced to make a fateful decision.

He turned to look at the senior tribune who had taken charge of the three portals. Although admitting defeat was abhorrent to the legions, the tribune was following his orders to the letter. Still dazed and wobbly, Vespasian staggered toward him and gripped the man’s forearm with his own.

“You know your orders!” Vespasian shouted as yet another azure bolt tore through the air just above their heads. “Save as many as you can, then close the portals forever, and see to it that the same is done with all the others!”

Standing tall, the tribune gave his emperor a perfect salute.