The Corin Chronicles Volume I: The Light and the Dark (29 page)

General Kratz immediately put his weapon away and entered his sleeping chamber to awaken his wife, Kristana. It was customary for all members of a household to welcome a visiting member of the royal family.

Walking into the general’s home via the open door, Prince Ramon could feel the warmth and love in the house.

“Greetings, young prince,” said General Kratz. “What brings you all the way out here at this hour…and without any guards?”

“Thanks to the both of you for your welcome,” replied Ramon smoothly. “I apologize for the hour.”

“That is quite all right, your highness,” said Kristana. She frantically walked around the room as she spoke, putting things in their rightful places. “Would you like something to eat?”

“No, thank you, my lady,” replied Ramon.

“Something to drink, perhaps?”

“Again, that will not be necessary, but I thank you for your warm hospitality.”

“Kristana, could you please leave me and the prince alone for a short while?” asked the general.

“Of course. Lovely to see you, your highness,” said Kristana. She curtsied before taking her leave.

“So, your highness, are you going to tell me what this is about?” Kratz’s tone was serious.

“You know I have the utmost respect for you, General, and I believe you are the only person in my father’s council that I can completely trust.”

“With all due respect, your highness, I do not want to discuss anything without the knowledge of the king. Secrecy was one of the things that destroyed our great planet. I know how hard it is for your father at this moment in time, and I know you have been asked to make the ultimate sacrifice, so please be straight with me, young prince. Tell me why you are really at my home at such a late hour.”

“May I?” The prince gestured toward a chair to his left.

“Please do, your highness.” General Kratz walked over to another chair and took his seat, maintaining his gaze on the prince the entire time.

Ramon cast his eyes around the room at the many fine, wooden sculptures and weaponry, trying to prepare for what he had to do. “If it is honesty we are speaking of here,” he said, “you know that I will never put my life ahead of Corin.”

“Please accept my apology, your highness. I did not mean to imply anything of the kind. I know what this must be doing to your family. By the gods, I would find it very hard to make such a sacrifice. I do not envy your father right now.” The general ran his hand across his forehead.

“That is the thing, General. I am ready to die if it is for the redemption of Corin, but I am not sure this act will achieve that.” Ramon leaned toward Kratz.

The general shrugged. “I am not following you, young prince.”

Ramon relaxed and studied Kratz for a few seconds. “Everyone knows that only Madoron can select a human host that can survive a bond with his hyper lord, Simus. Taking it upon ourselves to force this selection, by sacrificing every firstborn of Corin, could be seen as an abomination and an insult to our gods.”

“Might I remind you, young prince, that we do not have a choice?” Kratz spoke sternly. “It is the gods we are trying to bring back. The very gods that will hopefully bring stability back to our great planet.”

“I do not disagree with the words you speak,” said Ramon. “But what if all fails, and these sacrifices are for nothing? Both my father and Abaros will be held responsible, and it could lead to their deaths.”

“So what will you have me do?” The general raised his hands. “There is not much I can do to convince your father that you cannot do yourself.”

“That is just it,” said Ramon. “I do not want you to talk to my father. I know he will not listen.”

“I fail to understand what you are trying to say, young prince,” said General Kratz.

“There is only one person who can change my father’s mind, and that is Abaros.”

The general’s eyes widened. Standing up and walking around the room, his movements remained uncoordinated. “I am not sure I know what you are suggesting, or if I care to listen any further. Are you suggesting some sort of mutiny?”

“No, General, quite the contrary.” Ramon also rose from his seat and walked up to Kratz. “I only want you to set up a meeting between me, you, and Abaros. I want to talk to him, and if his decision stands, that will be the end of it. You also have my assurance that if this meeting does take place and word gets back to my father, I will tell him that I asked for it.”

“And where would you want this conversation to take place?”

“Within Abaros’s quarters. That way, we will not be breaking any laws. Please understand, General, that my actions right now are solely for Corin.”

The general walked toward the door. “I shall request an audience with him tomorrow,” he said. “I cannot guarantee that he will accept, but I will most certainly reach out to him.”

“That is excellent.” A smile emerged on Ramon’s face. “My family will be in great debt to you if you do this.”

“Make no mistake, young prince.” The general tightened his face. “I cannot guarantee that he will agree to this meeting, and if he does, and I find out that this is some kind of deception, my allegiances will always lie with Corin.”

“I will expect nothing less, General.” Happy with the proposal, Ramon placed his hand on the general’s shoulder before approaching the door. Smoothly, the general placed his right arm out in front of him and bowed.

“Please convey my goodbyes to your wife,” said Prince Ramon, making his exit.

The general stood at the door, watching the prince ride off into the glare of the ever-blazing sun, as Kristana walked toward him. Sensing her presence, he turned around and looked at her blankly.

“What is wrong, my love?” she asked in a worried tone.

Silence filled the house, as the general tried to find the words to describe his emotions. “I feel we are nearing a new chapter in our history,” he said. “We are entering very dangerous times.” He stared into emptiness.

“What do you mean? You scare me when you begin to talk like this.”

Kratz placed his hand on his chin. “We are about to destroy every oath we took in order to preserve our way of life,” he said. “And while we have a chance to possibly recover the beautiful planet that once was Corin, the consequences could mean the end of the world as we know it.”

4.4

T
HE
P
HILOSOPHERS

P
rince Ramon felt uneasy as he approached Abaros’s quarters. It felt wrong, consorting with someone whose motives he did not really know, and without his father’s knowledge. But it seemed a necessary action, one that only he could carry out.

The steely glare of General Kratz did not make him any more comfortable with the situation. He found it difficult to read the commander of his father’s army. Although he tried to share a gaze with the general during their long walk through the palace corridors, Kratz would not meet his eyes.

“We are here, my lord,” said the general.

Ramon paused to take a few deep breaths as he studied the entrance to Abaros’s chambers. The large engravings on the door, of Baran in his higher physical form, reassured him that his actions up until now were justified. “We must go ahead with this,” he said.

“Very well!” Kratz said. Without hesitation, he knocked on the door, which was soon opened by a servant.

Following a deep curtsy toward the prince, the servant quickly stepped aside to reveal Abaros standing inside the chamber. Dressed in a pale blue robe, he motioned them both to enter. With a half-smile, Abaros folded his hands and approached them. “Well, this is most certainly a surprise,” he said. “General Kratz and Prince Ramon, requesting my sole counsel.”

“If I may, Lord Abaros,” said Ramon. “I asked the general to arrange this meeting, so I could seek your counsel,” interrupted the Prince.

“Oh?” Abaros poured a dark red tonic into a golden goblet. “And what kind of advice can I offer during such trying times?” he asked. “You have not sought my council in a long time. I must say, this all intrigues me.” He took two sips before carefully placing the goblet on the table.

Ramon walked to within a few yards of Abaros, studying him for a few seconds before speaking. “Let me make it clear for you,” he said. “It is no secret that I believe you have no loyalty toward my father anymore, but I do believe that your actions have been solely for the good of Corin. It is with that in mind that I seek your counsel.”

Abaros walked slowly toward the window. “Very well, young prince,” he said. “You have my attention. Tell me what I can do for you.”

Ramon edged closer to Abaros. “I believe my father is making a terrible mistake,” he said. “And I fear it will bring only turmoil to our great planet.”

Sharply, Abaros turned around and met Ramon’s gaze. “I take it you are referring to the sacrifice of the firstborn males of Corin,” he said. “This would not be because he has offered you as the first sacrifice, is it?”

“I resent that implication.” Ramon said, his eyes narrowing. “You have known me my whole life. You have seen me grow, and you know that I will always put Corin’s welfare before my own. I am a son of Corin first and the son of a king second.”

“Then what are we doing here, young prince?” Abaros walked away from the window toward the center of the chamber, where General Kratz stood. “Your father did not make his decision outside of the council’s knowledge. He is doing what he believes is best.”

“I agree, Lord Abaros,” said Ramon. “But I am not talking about the council. I am talking about the gods themselves. This act by itself is an abomination, and both you and my father know this. Only a child of Baran can choose a suitable human host for its hyper lord. No one, not even a king, can assume that responsibility.”

“My young prince,” said Abaros in a harsher tone. “It is that very sentiment that has left our planet powerless and without true leadership. This planet belongs to our gods, but in their absence, we have to lead it gallantly against all enemies, and that includes the great Auphora himself. Because make no mistake, young man—considering the state of our planet, he is an enemy of Corin.”

“I do not dispute any of the words you speak,” said Ramon. “I only believe that there must be another way, perhaps something we have not considered. I know Siroco may be nothing but a myth, but you are all wise, Lord Abaros. I have been hearing tales about your heroics since I was a child. You probably know more about our planet than even my father, so I only ask that you consider another way we can bring back our hyper lords without angering the gods.”

“There may be another way,” Abaros said. “But it is even more dangerous. It will certainly cost the lives of many brave young men.”

“Another way?” cut in General Kratz. “I was under the impression that there was no alternative to King Oncelot’s decree.”

“The general finally speaks,” said Abaros. “I had begun to think that you had lost your tongue. The other way I speak of involves crossing over to the Dark World.” He walked back toward the window.

“The Dark World?” Kratz said. “That sounds more like suicide than a solution. We will simply be sending young men to their deaths at the hands of the scavengers over there, rather than having them make a meaningful sacrifice here.” He turned to Ramon. “If I may say so, young prince, you have made your suggestion, and there does not seem to be another way.”

“If
I
may, General,” interrupted Abaros. “There is a way to find a suitable human host. However, in order to do so, we will need the help of three wise men who once ruled the planet with our great father, Baran.”

“Do you mean the Philosophers?” asked Prince Ramon curiously. “I thought they were just another legend, a bedtime story, like the tales of Siroco. It was said that they were among the immortals and had deep knowledge of magic.”

“On the contrary, young prince,” said Abaros, gazing out the window. “They are very real, and I assure you that they can tell us how to resurrect a hyper lord.” He paced back to the center of the chamber. “With their help, we need not fear the wrath of our gods, since they are first servants of Baran.”

“But how do we know they are still alive?” asked the Prince. “Surely, if they were first servants of Baran, Auphora would have had them put to death.”

“For reasons unknown to me, Auphora decided to spare them. But they are imprisoned within the Dark World. The only way to gain their help is to secure their freedom and bring them here. Once free of Auphora’s confinement, they may again conjure their vast magic, making them capable of great feats, including instantaneous travel across the galaxy.”

“But how could we find them?” asked General Kratz.

“They are within the Caves of Sena, under the guard of two Noboros.”

The chamber suddenly went very quiet at the mention of Noboros. It felt as if all the air was being sucked out of the room.

“My young prince,” General Kratz finally said. “I admire your resolve. You have been gallant in your efforts, but if we must defeat two Noboros to rescue the Philosophers, we need discuss this no longer.” He cleared his throat. “We are speaking of the most feared creatures in the history of the galaxy.”