Colton Cyness and the Gunslingers (Children of the Empire Book 1) Page 16

  "Toran, take him upstairs and fill him in," ordered Colt. "We need to get some sleep. Everyone rack out, this is enough for today."

  Colt waited until his Merits went upstairs and then picked up the stick. "Austin didn't pick this up on his own," said Colt to himself, remembering the metal rod with a light the priests waved in front of his eyes to wake him from the brainwashing sessions. "Someone is helping us, but why should we find Jon Black? He’s on Carina, and the current Jon Black doesn't have anything to do with the Gunslingers." Colt looked up at the loft where the Merits were.

  "Hey, Toran," shouted Colt. "What does the current Jon Black do?"

  "He's an engineer," Toran shouted back.

  That doesn't make any sense, thought Colt, what does he have to do with anything?

  Colt climbed the stairs to the loft. He couldn't think anymore today. His head was starting to hurt again. Tomorrow he would figure something out.

  Sleep didn't come even though he was exhausted. He was just too tired to sleep, and the deepening mystery plagued his mind. He gave up on sleep and went back downstairs. His Merits were sound asleep and weren't even snoring as they usually did.

  The fire was burning low, and he pushed a few more logs on and shoved the embers around a bit before even that couldn't quell his restlessness. He got up and put his coat on, and slipped out the door.

  The sun hadn't reached noon yet. He could hear the voices of other students in the woods going about their day. Colt moved away from the voices. He didn't want to talk to anyone, or take the chance of running into a teacher and having to explain himself.

  Colt wandered aimlessly through the woods, and eventually found himself at his favorite picnic table he had used for study time before the snows came. He hadn't been here since the first snows, and winter was half over. He was looking forward to springtime and the finish of the school year.

  The sound of boots crunching in the snow caused Colt to turn. The Gunslinger that liked to wear the antique clothes was here. Colt hadn't seen this Gunslinger since late autumn.

  "I was looking for you," said Colt. "Why can't I find you in any of the classrooms?"

  "I've always been here," said the Gunslinger. "You just have to call my name."

  "I don't know your name," said Colt.

  "Don't you?" asked the Gunslinger. "Then I'll come back when you do."

  The Gunslinger turned away, and Colt panicked. He wanted to talk with the Gunslinger and realized it was the Gunslinger he had come out here in the woods looking for.

  "Jon Black!" Colt blurted out.

  The Gunslinger stopped and turned back around.

  "There now, that wasn't so hard," said the Gunslinger, tipping his hat at Colt.

  "How?" asked Colt. "You aren't the current Jon Black, are you?"

  "No, I'm not."

  "But how? You died two-hundred years ago."

  "Your species has a long way to go to understand time and space."

  "Are you the Carinian Ocean God?"

  "No, he's my father."

  "Doesn't that make you a god?"

  "No, I am not a god."

  Colt thought for a moment and asked, "Are any of the other Jon Blacks in history still alive?"

  "They are all still alive," said the Gunslinger. "When we die, as you understand death, we are released from our burden and allowed to watch over those we love most."

  "Why me, I'm not Carinian?" asked Colt.

  "What am I?" asked Jon Black.

  "I don't know," said Colt, and realized as he said it he did know. "Oh, you're a Gunslinger. You founded the Gunslingers, so you're not just watching over me, you're watching over all of us."

  "See now, that was easy," said Jon Black.

  "You haven't let anyone else see you, have you?" asked Colt. "What do you want of me?"

  Jon Black sighed. "I suppose it's time to find out."

  "Find out what?" asked Colt.

  "This..." said Jon Black and touched Colt's shoulder.

  Colt was driven to his knees, a weight slamming down on him and threatening to crush him into the ground. For the briefest moment, he saw every world and on each a Jon Black.

  "Is this the one?" they all asked together, their voices driving into his brain until he thought his head would explode.

  "It hurts!" screamed Colt.

  One of the other Jon Blacks stepped across the empty reaches of space and stood beside Jon Black the Gunslinger.

  "This is not the one, brother," said the other Jon Black.

  "I was so certain he was the one," replied Jon Black the Gunslinger.

  "You must keep looking," said the other Jon Black.

  "And what should I do with the boy?" asked Jon Black the Gunslinger.

  Colt tried to push the weight away, but it only crushed him deeper, the pain searing his mind to the point he thought death would be preferable. And he knew that was what they were deciding. He would live or die at their decision.

  "He may still have value," said the other Jon Black. "Set him upon the correct path and let him show us if he is worthy to live."

  The weight lifted and Colt looked up at the Gunslinger, his face beaded with sweat. The other Jon Black was gone. His Jon Black knelt and looked into Colt's eyes. He felt as though the Gunslinger was looking into his soul.

  "I see a dark shadow on your heart. Are you a Caelum?" asked Jon Black.

  The blood drained from Colt's face—he felt sick.

  "No, I'm Cettise!" cried Colt.

  "The Cettise were conquerors and bringers of enlightenment to worlds of darkness. The Caelum are also conquerors, but they destroy all they conquer. You will be given a chance to prove which you are," said Jon Black.

  "What do I do?" pleaded Colt.

  "Bring your team, they are to be tested as well," said Jon Black. "Go to the tunnel and step through the entrance."

  Colt got up and ran as fast as he could through the snow to his cabin. The world was a blur, and his mind kept repeating, I'm not a Caelum, I'm not. He slammed open the door, waking his Merits instantly. They were out of their beds and kneeling at the balcony with their weapons pointed at the door before Colt was four steps inside the cabin.

  "Get up!" yelled Colt. "We have to go now!"

  "We are up, what's happening?" shouted Toran.

  "No time," said Colt. "Quick, get your field kits, we have to go now."

  Colt grabbed his field kit sitting near the door. The others dressed quickly and ran downstairs to grab their field gear.

  Colt ran out the door, his Merits sprinting behind to keep up. Colt didn't stop running until he was at the cave in the side of the hill with the tunnels.

  "What are we doing here?" asked Wes.

  "Listen up guys," said Colt. "I don't know what we are going to find in there, but we have to go in."

  "We're with you no matter what," said Toran.

  "Okay, stay together and watch each other’s backs," said Colt.

  Austin and Wes on rear, Garth on point, followed by Colt and me," ordered Toran.

  The Gunslinger team assumed their battle formation.

  "Ready, Chief," said Toran.

  "Garth, move out," ordered Colt.

  Garth entered the tunnel, followed by Colt and Toran. The tunnel was dark, and then Colt was falling, tumbling through the darkness. He fell, aware that Toran was near him, and then he hit the ground and rolled into Garth. Toran landed next to him, and then Wes and Austin rolled into the pile. The first thing he noticed was the unbearable heat, and second, he couldn't breathe.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Sins of the Father

  The boys gasped for air. Colt saw spots appear before his eyes, and then someone grabbed him and shoved a small silver metal ball in his mouth. The silver ball dissolved immediately and Colt experienced the unpleasant sensation of something slithering down into his lungs. A moment later he was able to breathe though the heat was nearly unbearable. A ring of Daemi soldiers surrounded them. The Daemi soldiers took the boys w
eapons and field packs. Colt and Garth attempted a feeble resistance, but the heat had instantly sapped their strength.

  Toran’s eyes closed and he collapsed. Colt grabbed the amphibian and lowered him to the ground. He scanned his surroundings through blurry eyes from the intense heat. They were in a cavern with waves of heat beating against his back. Colt turned to look behind him and had to turn away and cover his face from the searing temperatures. An intersecting tunnel looked like a blast furnace. Flames roared past the opening with a deafening roar. He pulled his hood up, the flex-armor built into his duster barely keeping the heat from searing his skin.

  The aged Daemi woman tapped on a control panel embedded into the wall of the cavern, and a heavy door shut between them and the brutal source of the heat. The temperature in the cavern remained hot but gave enough relief that Colt was able to pull his hood back. He looked up into the ancient and thin face of a Daemi woman.

  "Welcome to Daemia, you may call me Eldest Mother. Come with me."

  “Water,” croaked Colt.

  The ancient woman didn’t respond and continued to walk away. Colt struggled to his feet and lifted Toran into his arms. He staggered after the woman. Garth picked Austin and Wes up, both already unconscious.

  "We need water," said Colt.

  "First you must decide," replied the Eldest Mother.

  "Decide what?" asked Colt, his vision blurring from the sweat pouring down his brow.

  "You are here because Jon Black has given you a choice that I would not have given," said the Eldest Mother, walking ahead of Colt.

  "What choice?" asked Colt, feeling dizzy now. He wouldn't be able to stand much more of the heat. The tunnel was like being inside an oven.

  "You stole our secrets, and now you must answer for your sins," said the Eldest Mother.

  "I don't know any secrets. Please, we need water," pleaded Colt.

  "You wrote the secret in the notebook, and you are aware of what is happening right now. The conditioning has failed, and it is only a matter of days before your memories return."

  "We're dying," whispered Colt, sinking to his knees with Toran in his arms. “The Tri-Alliance Treaty says you have to give reasonable care to prisoners.”

  The Eldest Mother stopped walking and turned around, but continued to ignore Colt's plea for water. "It is rare for this situation to occur, but when it does, we have no choice."

  "You mean to kill us?” asked Colt. "We would never betray the Gunslinger Order."

  The Eldest Mother leaned down to Colt, and lifted the chain Colt always wore around his neck—the Caelum Youth Medallion."

  "This would say different," the Eldest Mother said softly.

  "My Pa gave me that when I was little to keep me safe from the Caelum priests."

  "The sins of the father passed to the son," said the Eldest Mother. "Do you deny being a member of the Caelum Youth Army of Racial Purity?"

  "All Corvian kids are enrolled, or the Caelum would punish our families," said Colt.

  The Eldest Mother let go of the medallion and Colt weakly tucked it back into his shirt.

  "You are now a Gunslinger and free of the Caelum, yet you still where the medallion," said the Eldest Mother.

  "I don't hate anyone," insisted Colt.

  "You are a Kesune," said the Eldest Mother, frowning, her eyes full of sadness. "Hate is everything you are."

  "No, only the Caelum are like that," said Colt.

  "Enlightenment through racial purity to bring order from chaos," quoted the Eldest Mother. "Is this not your theology?"

  "Not all of us believe that," replied Colt.

  "And what do you believe?" asked the Eldest Mother.

  "I don't know what I believe anymore," said Colt.

  "If you do not know what you believe, how can we believe in you? The Wolf Emperor will stop at nothing but the complete genocide of my species, and all others he considers impure."

  Colt was silent, thinking. He had never thought any of this through before, but he knew she was right. Every war the Kesune fought and every planet they conquered were because they believed themselves a superior species.

  "I believe in these four Merits, and that's all," said Colt.

  "I will accept that, for now," said the Eldest Mother. "Jon Black offers you the choice of life or death. If you choose death, we will ensure it is quick and painless."

  Colt saw movement out of the corner of his eye. The Daemi soldiers had drawn the Dragon Daggers that every Daemi carried and moved to stand next to each of the boys. Garth covered Austin and Wes with his body and lifted a hunting knife from under his coat the soldiers had missed. He pointed the knife at the soldiers and held it in his shaking hand. Even Garth was nearing the end of strength in this heat.

  The Eldest Mother glanced at the large Cormon boy and waived the soldiers back. She turned her attention back to Colt. During the moment she had been distracted, Colt had also produced a hidden hunting knife and was now holding it out to protect the friend he held in his arms.

  "If you choose life, you may wish that you had chosen death,” continued the Eldest Mother, ignoring the knife. “It is likely your minds will shatter here, and you will forfeit your souls."

  "We choose life," said Colt.

  The Eldest Mother gestured to the soldiers, and they sheathed their daggers. The soldiers placed a satchel over each of the boy's shoulders and stepped back. Colt lifted the cover and looked inside. There were small, clear, wet-looking balls about the size of a marble inside.

  "Place one in your mouth now," said the Eldest Mother.

  Colt did as he was told. The moment the clear ball touched his tongue, it dissolved into a flow of water, and he choked and spat out most of it.

  "Try again," said the Eldest Mother.

  Colt put another in his mouth, but he knew what to expect this time and swallowed the water. He immediately felt better, and he was cool. The water had done something; it was no longer hot in the tunnel. Colt slipped one into Toran's mouth, then nodded at Garth. Garth pushed one into Wes and Austin’s mouth, then grabbed two for himself, but the Eldest Mother stopped him.

  "Do not drink two in a row," warned the Eldest Mother. "You must only use one when the heat of the tunnels is no longer bearable. Take more than one and you will not like the result."

  Toran coughed and sat up, some of the color returning to his face.

  "Thank you," said Colt to the Eldest Mother.

  "Do not thank me, I have done you no favors." The Eldest Mother stepped to the side of the tunnel and pressed a symbol on the wall, and a door slid open to reveal a shaft descending into the darkness.

  "You must walk through the seven levels of Hell if you wish to live," said the Eldest Mother. "I do not expect to see you again. Goodbye, young Gunslingers."

  The Daemi soldiers tossed the weapons and field packs into the hole, and then pushed the boys into the darkness to follow their gear. Garth resisted, but the Daemi were too strong, and he had not recovered enough to mount a real defense. Colt fell. The walls of the shaft were a blur, and he thought he saw images on the walls, terrible images of unspeakable horrors.

  Colt tumbled through the emptiness for what seemed like an eternity before a wind pushed against him and he landed on one of the packs. Something hard painfully poked into his back. He rolled off the pack he had fallen on just as Toran landed with a painful thud next to him, followed by Wes and Austin tumbling on top of each other. The four boys looked up and saw Garth descending rapidly and scrambled to get out of the way. Garth pulled his legs up, rolled slightly forward, and landed gently on his feet.

  "Show off," said Wes.

  Colt rubbed his back and lifted his foot to kick at Toran’s pack. “What do you have in there?”

  Toran grabbed the pack. “Don’t kick that!”

  Colt shook his head and looked away. He wasn’t sure he wanted to know what was in Toran’s pack.

  The boys looked out at the cavern they had fallen into. They could see fountains o
f lava flowing into rivers across the massive cave, and stalactites hung from the ceiling.

  "Where are we?" asked Wes.

  "I don't know," answered Colt.

  "Look, there are people over there," pointed Toran.

  "Guys, I think we want to avoid those people," said Austin pointing at an arched doorway.

  Colt walked over and looked up at the arch that marked the beginning of a path that led deeper into the cavern. There was writing carved into the stone.

  Hell Prison, Forsake all Hope, You are Dead.

  "Ancestors preserve us," whispered Austin. "We're in Hell."

  “That’s not possible,” said Wes. “Hell Maximum Security Prison is on Daemi.”

  “That woman said this was Daemia,” said Colt.

  “Let’s assume we are on Daemi,” said Toran. “What do we know about the prison?”

  "Nobody has ever escaped from Hell Prison before, I know that," said Garth.

  “It’s where they send the worst criminals,” said Toran.

  “I read a book about Hell Prison once,” said Austin.

  Wes rolled his eyes. “Of course you did.”

  Austin ignored Wes and continued. “Hell Prison is 2.5 miles underground and has an average temperature of 140 degrees. There are seven levels to the prison, and no guards. Only prisoners with life sentences are sent to Hell, and nobody has ever escaped.”

  "There must be a way through," said Colt. "They said we would have a chance to live."

  “Yeah, a chance to live, but did they actually say we had a chance to escape?” asked Wes.

  "Colt," said Toran, looking up at the arch. "Next time I pick where we spend our free day, okay?"

  Colt looked at the path. There was only one-way to go. "Equipment check," ordered Colt.

  Toran quickly inventoried the team's supplies and reported: "Two-hundred twenty long rifle rounds each, sixty revolver rounds each, five containers of those water balls, three days food rations, five flasks of normal water, and two hand-grenades," reported Toran.

  "Seriously?" asked Colt, raising his brow. "Who brought hand grenades?"

  Garth grinned and held his hand up.

  "Oh, I didn't know you wanted to know the other stuff we have," said Wes. "I have two flares and a smoke grenade."