June 14th Fantasy & Sci-Fi Deals

Weekly Deals & Stories from Joshua Landeros

Preview: The Demon Seed

Chapter 3

Namu slowly got a sense of his bearings. His clothing was soaked through. His face and chest felt like Vah Himself had pummeled them. However, his pain fell by the wayside due to the baffling display. Another stranger had stepped in on his behalf. She was his age, maybe a cycle or two older. Her long staff spun around her on alternating sides, a blur even when his vision fully cleared. The young Sebelian girl wore a reptile skin tunic, a long loincloth, and rabbit skin shoes. What looked like kaichin steel gauntlets shined on her wrists. Most spectacular of all, she was a mutation. Unlike in Namu’s case, it did not stop at her eyes.

The girl had lavender-toned skin, cream-colored hair that appeared to flow like a river down her shoulders and back, and striking orange eyes. She was the shortest person there, but her eyes showed no fear. She swept her staff in a long arc in front of her, causing the four men to leap backward.

“You’ve done enough. Leave him be.”

The quartet exchanged befuddled glances. They were just as astonished as Namu to see another mutant Sebelian in their midst. It was a remarkable event to witness even one in one’s lifetime—an omen or a curse in many eyes. The man with the scab-laden skin was the first to find his tongue.

“What’s the odds of running into another one of these freaks!”

The teenager with the missing fingers eyed her warily. “You see? Naaman is plagued with their kind! No wonder the Pale Tide has befallen us!”

The other two kept their heads. The faceless man paid no mind to the girl. He raised his spear above his shoulder, aiming it straight at Namu from across the water. Namu thought about running but knew the spear would follow. He’d be skewered like a jackrabbit before he could clear ten meters. The leader looked over and saw the panic in his eyes. He uttered another infuriatingly arrogant chortle. Fists on his hips, gut hanging over his waist sash, he stepped close to the mutant girl.

“Tell ya what, little missy.” The leader looked her over. “I’ll let the boys have fun with the lad while you and I have some alone time. Then they can fight for whatever’s left of you.”

He reached out for her staff, but the girl shoved it forward at his chest in a flash, then dropped low and swept his legs out from under him. The air was already knocked from his lungs as he hit the ground. He lay there gasping for breath. Dead leaves scattered as she stared down the other three.

“Your luck has run out, missy!” The scabby Sebelian roared, a stream of blood leaking down his cheek from one of his sores. He drew his dagger, and the teenager followed suit, nearly fumbling it with his missing fingers. Their blades were of kymir gem.

“Then come test your luck. Any one of you. After all, I’m inferior to the likes of you, right?” The lavender-skinned girl glanced at Namu for a brief moment. Her brows drew down in concern—or perhaps pity. She shot him a reassuring smile. She had a maternal tone when she called out to him despite being maybe sixteen at best.

“It’s going to be okay.”

For a moment, Namu believed her. The other two hadn’t budged, though the silent one kept his spear leveled on him. The leader finally caught his breath and got to his feet. He brushed mud and leaves from his trousers—the new stains hardly distinguishable from the old.

“Ya hear that tripe, comrades? I say playtime is over.” His words took hold of his gang. Just like that, they moved to his left and right. The leader smirked as he finally drew his dagger. “Hold her down proper this time, boys. It don’t matter if her face gets smashed up. As long as her cunt works just fine.”

“Your mother taught you better.”

The girl struck him hard in the jaw. Teeth went flying, and the leader was down yet again. The other two lunged at her, daggers slashing. She sidestepped the first swing from the older man and swatted him on the rear. The thwack echoed through the forest, and he hobbled off, clutching his cheeks. The youngest swung at her face, but she raised her staff to catch the blade. Still, the blade made a deep groove in the staff, nearly halfway through the thick wood. Refined kymir gem was the sharpest material in the whole of Avah. Had it been a sword, it would have easily sliced through the thick wood like moving through water. The girl appreciated this and maintained her distance even though her staff had superior reach. The dagger swipes came hard and fast as the young thug rushed her. The girl twisted her body in a descending spiral and struck back at her assailant’s knees. He hit the creek bank with a thud and was struck hard in the middle of his back.

Namu was astounded. He’d never seen such a display. It looked like a deadly dance. She reacted with lightning speed to each attack, flowing from defense to counter with ostensibly effortless fluidity. He had no reference, but that had to be the skill of a finely trained warrior. Such training didn’t come cheap. Has Vah blessed her in this fight? Namu’s wild theory was put to rest as the silent comrade finally turned away.

The leader was busy checking his molars. Sure enough, he fished another tooth out of the bloody mess that was his mouth. The boy had thought the tenacious braggart was out of the fight, but he saw now that this had been a foolish assumption. Worse still, their mute comrade was closing in with his kymir-tipped spear. Even seeing this, Namu couldn’t will his legs to move. The sickly teen had dropped his dagger, sending it just short of the water. Namu eyed it but remained rooted to the ground. He was ashamed that fear still clung to his bones.

The girl turned and saw the crimson spear tip heading toward her. She bounded around, going left, right, and back, whirling her staff in defense only. Anything to avoid a confrontation. Her attacker came in with graceful swings of the spear, spinning on his toes to deliver powerful, sweeping attacks. She narrowly avoided having her belly split open. She slid backward in the mud before swinging low with her staff, but the man leaped over her weapon and nearly grazed her shoulder.

Namu’s heart skipped a beat. This couldn’t go on much longer. The silent one shoved her back with the haft of his spear, then brought the tip down on her like an ax. She pulled back, but not in time to stop her staff from being severed in two. She had a dagger on her waist, but there was no time to draw it.

The lesion-skinned Sebelian came up behind her and drove his dagger into her shoulder. She cried out and buckled under the searing pain. Her clenched teeth rattled as she swatted the man with one-half of her staff. The jagged wood scratched his skin nodes, drawing more blood and puss. At that moment, Namu felt something take over his body. He scooped up the dagger and sprinted hard, splashing through the creek. Before anyone realized it, even himself, Namu had driven the kymir dagger into the man’s ribs.

Contrary to what Namu thought would happen, the man did not instantly keel over dead. He spun around with an elbow to the side of Namu’s head, sending him sprawling to the forest floor. His vision blurred as he tried to right himself. He saw the lesion-skinned man yank the dagger out, blood blossoming on his tattered shirt. He staggered from the pain, but he held the weapon steady. He advanced upon Namu with a predatory gaze.

“Ya slick son of a bitch.”

It went no further. The girl drew her dagger and dragged it across the man’s throat. He choked as blood shot from the wound like a geyser. Namu felt droplets hit his face. He could only stare in shock. As the man fell and writhed around with his hands at his throat, he couldn’t look away. A Sebelian was dying right in front of him for the first time in his life. Not from a disease. Not from a predator. But by another Sebelian’s hand.

The girl wasn’t so distraught. She spat on the dying man with vicious contempt in her fiery orange eyes. Namu noticed her kymir dagger had a polished bone hilt complementing the shining crimson blade. She exhaled calmly.

“I didn’t want it to come to this. You all chose this path; now you’ll reap the consequences.”

The leader rushed at her, and the two fought under the shade of a pine tree, exchanging swipes with their daggers. The girl had lost the use of her most proficient arm, but her left still handled the blade remarkably well. Each clash of the kymir edges unleashed a dazzle of sparks. A kick knocked the girl backward, nearly sending her into the mud. The leader smiled. Several of his front teeth were gone, and those that remained were stained red.

A blinding light cut short his attack. He panicked and swung wide, and in that brief opening, the lavender-skinned girl jammed her dagger under his jaw. His undoing had been a split-second glint of the sun off her gauntlet.

The remaining two rushed her, but it quickly became apparent they didn’t stand a chance. The spearman swung high, and she ducked. Before he regained balance, she launched upward and cut the side of his head. Bloodied bandages came loose, and a large section of skin fell away. Blood poured from the wound. Even now, he didn’t make a sound.

The teenage thug hesitated but rushed toward her anyway, pride drowning his moment of judiciousness. As he prepared to strike, she hurled her dagger into his foot. He cursed as the girl kicked him in the chest. Down he went. Before he could get off his back, she grabbed the dead man’s dagger and used both hands to drive it into the teenager’s heart. He hacked up blood as the blade was yanked free, only to plunge into his chest again.

Alas, in the heat of the moment, she’d gotten sloppy. The silent spearman once again rushed her. His bandages were held onto his face only by sweat and blood, both old and fresh. Calloused skin was visible at the edge of the bandage, much of it soaked in blood. His spear ran right through her stomach and pinned her to a pine tree.

“No!” Namu hollered.

He picked up a massive rock and bashed the silent man in the back of the head. He tumbled to the dirt in a heap. His weapon stayed where it was.

The spearman was dazed. Spittle dribbled from his mouth as blood trickled from his crown, adding to the flow from his temple. He rolled onto his back in a stupor and looked up at Namu. He opened his mouth to speak, but only a hoarse rattle escaped his lips.

Namu took a look at the lavender-skinned girl pinned to the tree. As he watched her slip away, something inside him snapped like a twig. He picked up the stone and raised it high over his head. The subdued thug made no move to stop or avoid the blow. He only stared dumbly as his blood pooled on the ground around his head, one eye twitching rapidly. Namu felt no sympathy as he brought the stone down on the nose and then the chin. Bits of teeth went flying, and blood splattered the boy's face. He screamed out and brought the rock down again and again. By the time he was done, there was no face to look at, only a wide swathe of red and pulpy matter.

Namu took ragged breaths. The whole spectacle of what he’d done was before him. His stomach twisted this way and that. He bent over and heaved, the bile of his empty stomach burning his throat. His entire body was trembling when he finally rose to his feet. There were four bodies laid out all around him. Suddenly, he heard a rasping breath from the girl. He stumbled over to her as quickly as he could. His eyes focused on the spear buried deep in her abdomen. He teared up at the sight of it.

“I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I should have done more! I should have done more!”

The lavender-skinned girl took hold of him with surprising strength.

“You can still help me.”

“What! How!”

The girl smiled as blood trickled from her mouth and down her legs. Her eyes were half shut, and she could barely keep her head up.

“If you can get this spear out of me, I'll be…fine…just…need it… out”

“But…” Namu looked at the spear wedged into her guts. “The shock alone could kill you. And your insides will be—”

The girl squeezed down on his arms so powerfully he winced. Her smile remained, even as he felt his arms bruising in her grip. Her eyes were nearly shut.

“Please. I need…grass…leaves… anywhere…I can…lie…my head….”

Namu nodded. He took hold of the spear. He was going to do a countdown, but he settled for a deep exhale. His first yank didn't do the trick. The spear slid a few centimeters, pulling free of the wood behind her, but remained buried deep in her gut. She hollered in agony.

“Vah almighty!” Namu yelled. “I can't do this!”

The girl gritted her teeth and beat her fists on the tree. The blows were strong enough to shake leaves from the branches.

“Don't stop now! Do it!”

Namu let out a wild scream and tugged again. He let go of all rationality, his eyes glazing over as they had when he’d smashed that man’s face into the ground. It didn't matter what happened. He couldn't stop until the job was done. As he pulled more and more of the spear free, he saw entrails tangled around the haft. Namu yelled once again until suddenly, he fell backward.

The spear was in his hands. The bloodied tip dripped onto his face. Namu threw it aside and ran to the girl. As she’d requested, she was laid out among the leaf litter. Her eyes were open but had lost their light. She lay motionless, just another of the lifeless bodies that surrounded him.

Namu fell to his knees at her side. His cowardice had cost the mysterious girl her life. Tears streamed down his cheeks. He had one last task. If anyone was deserving of the warrior’s prayer, it was her.

“Dear Honorable Lord, please guide…” Namu abruptly realized the prayer couldn’t be completed. Not without her name.

As he fumbled for words, he suddenly felt he was not alone; the hairs on his arms and neck stood up. Namu gazed around for another enemy, but none were to be seen. Suddenly, a bright orange light engulfed the girl’s body. It was as bright as fire, but he felt only mild warmth when he stretched out his hand. Leaves scattered in a sudden storm of wind. Namu wiped blood and leaves from his face and squinted into the light. He caught a mere glimpse.

The mysterious lavender-skinned Sebelian was on her feet. Her eyes were open wider, showing only pure white. Steam left her mouth like a serpent slithering through the air. The wounds on her shoulder and stomach still bled. She used her left hand to hold back any more of her insides spilling out.

“Goodbye, Bright Eyes.”

“Wait, I don’t even know your name!”

Namu ran toward her, but the wind surged, sending him flying onto his back again. Dead leaves gently floated down all around him. When he sat up, there was no sign of her.

***

Namu didn’t get back to their campsite until evening. He brought the silent man’s spear, the girl’s dagger, and his wounds. As he stumbled home through the grass, he felt the guilt hit him at once. Guilt for being so careless when he’d heard them approach from behind. Guilt for not stepping into the fight sooner. Guilt for taking a life and guilt for not taking more to save one. The boy fell to his knees before the fire pit. He dropped the spear and collapsed into sobs.

His mother emerged from the yurt and ran to her son. She cradled him and stroked his forehead, just like when he was a small boy.

“I…” Namu couldn’t figure out where to begin. “I did something terrible, Ma. I did the unforgivable. I didn’t want to, it just—”

His mind was a mess. He sobbed into his mother’s shoulder while holding her tight. All fear of the Pale Tide had left him.

“It’s okay, my shining sun. It’s okay. You don’t have to say a thing. What’s important is that you made it back to me.” She held him close even though he was covered in blood, most of it not his own. She eyed the newly acquired weapons but kept silent. None of it mattered now. She couldn’t help but smile as she held her beloved son. “We are blessed, my son. This is a day every Sebelian must face. The Law of Might favored you despite your eyes! Yes, it is a sign from the Almighty, and we won’t waste it.”

His mother hugged him so tightly he could hardly breathe. Namu bore it without complaint, clinging to her with equal fervor. His mother went on.

“I dreamt of this day, my son. The day you took hold of your destiny. I foresaw greatness in your future, Namu, and it all starts here.”