Chương 40: Ch. 37 - The Price of Power

I didn't stop flying. Not until the flaking stopped. Jeromy was burning energy while Luna rested.

"How are you doing, Jeromy?" I asked.

"Honestly, not well. This is all kinds of messed up," he said.

"When we get back, you think Cassandra will give me a hug?"

"No," I said.

"I meant, how are your energy reserves?"

"Oh, that. Its burning faster, but the smaller profile makes it more efficient with thrusters. I'm at about half."

"Wow. I'm sure you know this, you're going to be a celebrity when we get back."

"Can't wait," he groaned.

"I thought you wanted that," said Luna.

"It will be a different kind of fame," said Jeromy.

"The less than desirable kind." I finally turned to the settlement, and my heart sank. The goblinoids on the inside screamed and screamed. A few grabbed whatever could float and placed themselves atop it. Others clung to the rooftops as the settlement was dragged further and further down. The tendrils of the Kraken curled around the homes. It pulled an inch at a time. It kept searching for its prize that sat in the middle of Graxztudum. Like giant snakes, the tendrils slithered and squirmed between buildings.

Over them. Through them. The lucky ones were turned to bio-paste. The unlucky ones were stuck on the Kraken appendages, unable to free themselves. It was a long. Long moment. Then it came. [Settlement of Graxztudum] [Settlement Destroyed] I tapped on the new notification on the screen. [Quest Complete] [The destruction of Graxztudum ensures no follow up attacks can be committed against Et'ium] [Reward: Gold Cache] I rubbed my eyes. The screen was jarring and I just needed to close them.

An entire settlement was the price of power. It had to be hundreds. Were we the first? A solemn silence was about the best I could hope for. Was I turning into a monster? Or did I just tell myself it was for the sake of saving Et'ium.

"Stefano," said Caddie.

"Yes, Caddie," I said, still rubbing my eyes.

"You will get an option of three choices when you open that cache." I took a breath.

"I know," I said.

"I know."

"Do you regret your actions?"

"If we did nothing, Et'ium would've died. Ilonar and Yula. Palina and Lixana. They would've died. If we did nothing, we wouldn't be able to skip floors. They started it all, and we were helping them defend themselves." I leaned back on the seat, feeling the headrest catch the weight of my thoughts.

"That is true," said Caddie.

"But, yet, you mourn. I do not understand. They are not of your species. They were the aggressors and yet you lament their deaths. It is difficult to ascertain a logical quantification to this emotion."

"There isn't one," I said.

"I am just trying to do what I think is right. I got thrust into this situation when I needed direction. I wish Jacob and Eric were still alive. I wish I was still in their squad with Phil. I'm fumbling here, Caddie. I'm doing what I can, but I really wish I had the direction I needed. I'm trying here."

"If I can quote a great work from Earth, 'just keep swimming.'" I looked at the sinking city.

"Um…" I hummed. Jeromy laughed. Luna was losing her mind.

"Caddie! How did you choose the ONE inappropriate one in that entire database?!"

"But it is appropriate in terms of what is happening, no?" asked Caddie in confusion.

"Mate," chortled Jeromy.

"I think you have a screw loose for timing." If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

"I don't understand," said Caddie.

"It is an aquatic quote that lines perfectly with the situation at hand that should equate to comedic timing. I combed that comedy is tragedy plus time. I waited a total of 1 minute and twenty-two seconds. I don't understand how this is not garnering the reaction I had calculated."

"Ooh boy," said Jeromy, catching his breath.

"I feel like my job as the team comedian is safe."

"See!" exclaimed Caddie.

"He just made a joke that penned to the fears of humanity that AI would steal employment. How is that not inappropriate?" I shook my head. It did do one thing. If even for a small, fleeting moment. It made me forget the atrocity I had committed. The weight of it all hung on my shoulders like tons of sand.

"We should get back," I said.

"We need to keep a wide berth again. Half-way back, Luna had been on stand-by long enough for her energy levels to replenish. They weren't full, but it was enough to make it back. Not a moment too soon as Jeromy was down to a quarter energy. We arrived just as the planes were heading back. Back to a settlement that wouldn't be there. I closed my eyes as they left. Not that they didn't deserve it. It was the ones who actually died that were less worthy retribution.

Still, I had to remind myself, there was no other way. There were too many to fight in the sky. A high level squad? Maybe. But even then they wouldn't go unscathed. Plus, there was the problem with repairs. A repair bay could be used once per entry into the Cradle. There were some augmentations floating around that allowed for more than once. Certain tools and equipment allowed for it as well, all options requiring not just credits. But those weren't available to us. So we had to be careful. I had to be careful.

I was still at a third of my integrity.

"They're gone," said Luna.

"I'm not picking up anything else."

"Alright, lets head inside," I said. We didn't careen into the hangar, opting instead for slow and methodical. Luna kept scanning the horizon for any sneak attacks. There was none. We docked, and just took a breath. We didn't leave the cockpit. But we stared at the entrance. We waited. We couldn't hear anything from inside the cockpit. Just muffled sounds of fighting. Then it was done. Lixana was the one who crossed the threshold and we all let out a collective sigh of relief.

Not a moment later, the cockpits hissed open and we were entering Et'ium proper. The carnage was evident. Goblinoid bodies littered the thoroughfare. Every other home, smoldered from the aftermath of the fighting. Rubble was as prevalent as the deceased. The chocking smell was awful. It tasted acrid and sour as the air filled our nostrils. Lixana didn't say anything. She had a thousand yard stare that was all too common for the area now. The clunk of our footfalls intrusively filled the space around us.

The groans of the injured goblinoids, too weak to move, was haunting in its echoes. They were sent on a suicide mission. They knew it. Now they'd have to find comfort that those that lived, would have nowhere to land. No home to return to. No place to lick their wounds, rearm and try again. They were flying to die. We stepped over the bodies of the myriad. Yet, not a single Elvian was here. Not a one.

"Lixana," I said.

"Is everyone?"

"Yes," she said, not turning away from the manor.

"We lost 6 more from wounds. We are all injured in one way or another. They were the first ones we reached before coming to get you."

"How? I thought you guys would be behind the shields?"

"No. It is not so simple. The ones that perished, they volunteered to keep the flanks secure. Our barriers are directional. We cannot guard every direction at once." The manor steps greeted us. Exhaustion was clear on everyones face. They had won, though it did not feel like a victory. Ilonar was coordinating with those that could ambulate, ushering them to triage. She noticed us go up the steps. Her gaze was expectant. Hard. I gave a curt nod. Her eyes shut from a millenia's exhaustion.

Her shoulders slacked and her head relaxed. She let herself weep. The crimson tears fell down her face with understanding. Her legs buckled but didn't quit. She opened her eyelids and returned a gaze with what didn't need to be said. She turned into the manor and into her office. A crackle in air cleared like a speaker. Formless but coming from everywhere, Ilonar's voice carried throughout the settlement. She choked back tears as she spoke to her people.

"Friends. Family. We have suffered much. Endured much. You have known me, of me for several cycles, yet you do not remember. And that is okay. I remember you. I remember all of you. And I have loved you all." She paused to clear her throat.

"I am not Eix Former Magistrate. May he rest with his coven in the Nexus… I am Ilonar the shopkeeper. Ilonar the wise to some. Ilonar the mad to others. But to you all, now and in the past, Ilonar the General. You have withstood what I had long thought behind us. What I thought was long past since we moved in here. Since we died here all those cycles ago…

"You deserve to live your new lives without fear of reprisal. Without worry of the next cycle being our last. We have lived long, long lives." She paused again.

"And now no one will endanger our peace again. I did not ask to be the new magistrate. I did not ask for the burden of leadership again. But I will ensure that no harm befalls you! No more death of our loved ones! No more tentative peace from a being that thinks himself a God. No! We will fight when the time is right. We will earn our freedom from here. We will be free again. We may have died here. But we will not stay here!

"I promise you. I swear to you. When the time comes. When everything is on the line. You will live.

"You will live.

"You will love.

"You will bask.

"We shall escape. We shall be free of cycles. Of war. Of death.

"And we needn't suffer much longer. I know not when. But it will be soon. I feel it. A change is coming. And that change will happen. For I alone remember. And when the time comes, you will remember too. This, I swear.

"So heal. Rebuild. I am with you.

"We are not alone. Not anymore." The echoes of her voice went still. Then a whistle, an Elvian still on the ground. Another, harmonizing with the first. A different one, making the third note. Then slowly, every Elvian picked a note and whistled to it. Like a chord of a harp. When the sound was as loud as it could've been, it changed. Like everyone was singing a song. But they were all whistling it. The notes flew in the air. A melody both dark and bright. Each note a flourish and then returned to a chorus.

It crescendoed. Growing brighter. It was a chant. A voice of a people. It grew more beautiful. Each note a solo act, hitting your ears with a sweet orchestra. The chant was louder. It climbed in octaves. It trudged in bass. It was an acapella musical of the sweetest nectar to the ears. The air they blew, glistened with color. The mana in their cells literally showing, sung in the world. It grew. It echoed. It was. Ilonar came to the steps. She snarled a guttural sound. She roared. She stomped her foot.

All sound halted and the tears streamed down her face again.

"I am honored," she whispered.

"Thank you." Jeromy whispered to us.

"Chills. Literal chills right now. Is anyone else cold?