The Icarian Legacy Collected Edition: Brave Souls - First Strike (Volume 3) (117 page)

“Diane?” The shock in his voice was obvious.

“I’m sorry James but I can’t let you interfere.”

“What? What are you doing Diane? That man killed a federal officer his wife and four other people.”

But as he watched her he knew that he didn’t reach her.

The two men that attacked him were up and coming closer. He could notice that they were planning to dispose of him.

Before he could say anything he heard Diane speak again. It was a voice of authority.

“Stop, let him be!!!”

They both stopped and turned towards her with questioning looks.

“Diane you know that we can’t leave him here. He is a danger to all of us, to the organization.”

“What organization…Who the hell are you people? CIA…Diane?”

She looked at him and continued speaking.

“He won’t be after he sees, after he understands.”

“Understand what Diane?”

She turned to him.

“You’ve known me for more than ten years James. In the name of those years am asking you to trust me. This is not what you believe. Those two men are not what you believe.”

“What? What are you saying?”

“Just trust me and watch. I need your word that you will stay here and not interfere. I will tell you the truth when this is over.”

He looked in to her eyes…and as he heard her pleading voice and looked in to those green eyes he knew that she was telling him the truth. He turned and looked at the two men in the distance.

There was something strange happening here. Something he couldn’t understand.

“You have it.”

“And your other gun please.”

He pulled his other weapon from his socket and handed it to one of the two men.

The man nodded as he took the weapon and then looked at Diane.

“Go.”

At those words they both left.

“Diane?”

“Just watch.”

He turned and started watching the two men.

“I don’t suppose you know where he is?”

Pretorius looked at the other immortal. He knew who he was looking for. He wondered if the bastard asked the same question to the other four.

“I don’t know if he still lives Maniakes. But even if he did I wouldn’t tell you, and somehow I doubt you’ll find him.”

“Don’t you like living Pretorius?  You all say the same thing. Do you like to end up like your friends?”

“We are who we are Maniakes. We all fight for the prize. Since the day we are born we know that a day might come when someone will lose.”

“Right words…General Pretorius.”

Pretorius smiled at the title.

“I haven’t been a general for a long time Maniakes.”

“Neither have I but we both commanded armies in the past.”

Pretorius pulled out his sword. It was a weapon that resembled a katana the famous samurai swords but it was older, much older. He embraced the ivory handle and looked at the darkened sky. The stars disappeared under the combined power of the two immortals. The sword felt as an extension of his body. It was a sword he used since the day his last teacher gave it to him. It was a beautiful weapon, a weapon that has served him well during his long life.

He looked at his opponent. He knew that Maniakes was older and stronger. They’ve met several times before, the last time during the French revolution. It was a close thing each time. There were times when he even avoided him. Old immortals like they were rarely engaged in duels, especially among themselves. There were far younger opponents up there. They didn’t advertise their age as well.  But even among them there were immortals like Maniakes, immortals so evil, and so old that couldn’t be avoided. He knew since the day he heard about the deaths of Anara, Mavrikas, Koenig and Zoltan that someone was hunting him as well. They were all students of the same teacher, they were all old, far older than anyone could have imagined. He suspected that the hunter was one of them, one of the old ones. There were occasions when some far younger immortal would manage to take the head of an ancient one but four in a row was something that rarely happened. And deep inside him he knew that his teacher knew it too. There was a connection between a teacher and a student, a strange bond that allowed them to feel when someone died.

He knew that he could have escaped, that he could still leave and run from the fight, that there was a time when he would have left. But those were days when he was younger. He walked this earth for more than forty eons, he had seen civilizations rise and fall, he had seen mankind rise and then plunge in to darkness again and again and deep inside he knew that he had lived a thousand lives. There was no fear from battle, not for a very long time.

And as he felt the evil inside his opponent he knew that this was a fight he can’t leave to someone younger, the evil inside Maniakes would consume them. He had seen it before and he knew that it will happen again.

As he watched Maniakes approaching he said the ancient prayer to the gods of his people and then extended his sword.

Both opponents circled each other. To their observers it looked like a strange dance. They were sizing each other looking for a weakness they could exploit. And then suddenly they lunged. Pretorius was the first one to strike as he faked a movement to the head of Maniakes and then stroke at the waist. Maniakes blocked the strike with his rapier and then continued to defend from the furry of strikes from Pretorius. The strikes came fast and they came from all sides. He blocked with ease and then suddenly launched his own attack. It started with his pushing in to the body of Pretorius using his physical strength to push his opponent. He stroke low trying to disable his opponent or wound him. But Pretorius blocked his strikes just as easy as he did just moments before. They both stepped outside of reach and took a moment to size their opponent.

Then they lunged again Maniakes striking first. He stroke towards the neck of his opponent who blocked his stroke. Sparks flew from the swords and the sound of clashing swords could be heard in the distance. Both launched a furry of blows, exchanging blows at an astonishing speed. Above the sky kept getting darker gathering the power that was waiting to be released. Pretorius was the first to draw blood striking a blow and a deep cut first to the shoulder and then to the stomach of his opponent. But a wound that would be a death sentence to a younger immortal was just a minor nuisance to Maniakes. As he received the wound on his stomach he managed to inflict a stabbing wound on his opponent as well. They both yelped from the pain and jumped away.

Diane watched with stunned eyes as they fought. The technique, the speed was astonishing, and as they both inflicted wounds that should have been critical and deadly to each other she noticed James shiver and jump. But the wounds healed fast almost before the eye could see. She knew that the older an immortal is, the faster his wounds regenerate. Considering the healing speed she knew that she is looking at immortals that were far older than any known before.

“Dear God. A normal man would be dead by a wound like that.”

She looked at James and just nodded. She could notice the surprise in his voice as he watched their wound heal in seconds and the questioning look he gave her.

“It is good to see that you still have the same skills Pretorius.”

Pretorius just nodded and then attacked. He slashed to the left and then quickly followed with a strike to the left at the same time delivering a strong strike with his left hand on the head of Maniakes. The other immortal received the blow and stepped back momentarily dazed. Pretorius used the advantage and managed two slashes on the left hand and leg but found his next strikes blocked. He could notice no fury in the face of his opponent instead he saw a smile. He knew that Maniakes was still testing him. As if to answer him Maniakes launched a counterattack delivering strikes that he barely managed to block. Before he could react he received several cuts on his arms and stomach. None of the wounds were critical but he knew that the injuries will add to each other. He managed so far to deliver several strikes that were more dangerous to his opponent but Maniakes was older and far more powerful and he could take much more damage.

And as he finally noticed the look of his opponent he could feel deep inside that this was the end of his road. In a strange way he welcomed the sensation.

Maniakes stroke to the head and then immediately delivered a stroke to the left leg. Pretorius blocked both strikes but as he tried to block the third one Maniakes dropped below his strike avoiding his sword and delivered fast two strikes to the chest and stomach of Pretorius. Pretorius staggered but managed to block the next strike that came to his neck. He managed to block the next four strikes but before he could regain his balance and strength Maniakes feinted a strike and then delivered a stabbing blow directly in to his chest. Pretorius felt his strength draining as the sword pierced his heart. He knew that the wound could heal but there was no time. Maniakes pulled the sword out of his chest and stroke for his neck. He managed to block the blow with his sword but Maniakes in the next strike masterfully stabbed him again and sent his sword flying out of his hand. He dropped to his knees trying to get his breath. He managed one last look to the surrounding landscape as Maniakes sword sliced through his neck.

Maniakes watched as the decapitated body fell on the ground. He raised his sword in a final salute.

As the body fell he could feel the ancient power of the quickening stored inside getting released.

It appeared like a mist that raised the now lifeless body of Pretorius Enlil in to the air and then the Quickening went to its new master. The Soul, the essence that was Pretorius Enlil poured in him. He saw the young Pretorius, he saw his first love, felt his first death, saw him take his first quickening, in the moments as the energy entered him he became Pretorius, saw the life of the now dead immortal flash before his eyes, the history of forty eons, all the knowledge, all the joy, all the pain, and then as he was lifted by the endless energy that he was receiving he felt the ecstasy, the power.

Lightings stroke the ground and fires exploded from the ground, Diane and James felt the electricity inside their bodies as the ancient power was being transferred. The trees were shaking from side to side and several actually toppled. In the distance they could hear explosions.

Finally the energy from the clouds dropped suddenly in to the living immortal and he dropped to the scorched ground.

The drained body of the dead one dropped beside him.

He slowly stood up and looked at his dead opponent.

“Now it’s you Alexander. I know you felt this where ever you are.”

James watched with opened mouth not believing what he was seeing. He suddenly turned towards Diane and then as all the facts of the case came to him he could finally understand.

“What…what are they? Who are they?”

“All I can tell you is that although they look like us they are different. They are immortal and they fight among themselves and they did that since the beginning of time. We observe them, record them but never interfere. They are the ancient gods, a living, breading, walking history of our past.”

“Who are you? What are you?”

“I’m a watcher James same as David and Nick. It is an organization that exists for thousands of years since we first learned the truth.”

“What about Bob and Jane? They were watchers too?”

“Yes. They came to close and he discovered them. You know the rest.”

She noticed the dark look in James’s eyes.

“And I know how to kill the bastard.”

“James you can’t. We can’t interfere.”

“He is evil.”

“And others are good. You don’t know everything James. And you can’t stop him.”

He knew that she was right. And he knew deep inside that if he tried something he would end up dead. As he turned he watched the strange tall immortal, a man with a face of a thirty years old man rise and walk away. As he watched him go he knew that there is much more that he has to learn.

He looked at Diane.

“I want to know everything.”

She returned his gaze.

“You will, after you pass the initiation.”

He looked at her with a questioning look.

She smiled at him.

“Welcome to the Watchers James.”

As Pretorius took his final breath, as the final essence of what once was a great man disappeared far away on another continent a young men, a boy barely out of his teenage years dropped to his knees. His blue eyes looked to the sky noticing the discharge of the Quickening. It was the fifth death of one of his students in the last year. Others have died during his long life, but this five were the oldest, the most powerful. He knew that the killer must be someone just as old as him. And deep inside him he knew, he could feel that he was the next one on the immortal’s list.

He rose and assured the people around him that he was ok. He could notice the concern on their young faces. He forced a smile on his face even though in his heart he felt nothing but pain and sorrow. He slowly started walking towards his home.

“Are you sure you are ok Alex?”