A Warrior's Redemption (The Warrior Kind) (22 page)

“This my boy is what it’s all about.” Thaddeus said gesturing around us.

The walls were lined with books elegantly enclosed behind glass doors. There was one shelf that had only five books displayed on it. There must be something special about those books. I looked at Thaddeus only to see that he was studying me intently.

“What are all these books about, especially those?” I said pointing at the five books displayed by themselves.

Thaddeus went to a chair and sat. He gestured towards the only other chair in the room. I sat in the chair and waited for Thaddeus to explain.

“Now for a history lesson, which doesn’t leave this room! Do I make myself clear?”

I nodded.

“It all began a very long time ago Roric. Before the first settlers arrived here on this world that we call home they came from another world and before that they came from the first world called Earth. They as a people advanced extremely in all areas of science and technology. The people of the first world, who the Holy Scriptures of the Creator were first given to
began to rebel against God exceedingly. Our ancestors left the first world, Earth, to escape the growing corruption of the people around them. They left and settled on other worlds that the Creator had made. Eventually after much time had passed they returned to Earth fleeing from a war going on where they had settled on the other worlds. They found the
Earth greatly changed. Sometime after they had left the Creator had destroyed the planet with a worldwide flood and only one family was saved to repopulate the planet. That family had advanced considerably in both numbers of people and technology since the great flood that had decimated the earth, and it was these people our ancestors found when they returned. The Earth was much different from when they had left it and our ancestors decided that it was for the best not to remain on Earth, but instead they left and came here and this is where they stayed. Before they left the Earth the second time they took with them the one thing of value that they found there, the Holy Scriptures that were inspired by the Spirit of our Creator. Sadly the integrity of the Holy Scriptures was lost to us in the conflict that arose among our people after they settled on this world, which is why we are left with just the tattered fragments that managed to survive the civil war that befell our people. As I said our ancestors were extremely advanced far and above what we are today, but they came to look at their proficiencies in technology as their greatest downfall. I’m not sure why they came to believe that, but some felt it very strongly while others did not, which is what caused the conflict among our peoples after settling on this world. In the conflict that arose our forefathers later to be known as the Val
ley Landers were able to seize all the forms of higher technology and subsequently destroyed all traces of the technology. Or so it was said at the time. While it is true that most of the technology was destroyed some was kept in case there was some need of it in the future. This place is the last repository of our ancestors advanced knowledge and it has been our family’s greatest secret and responsibility
ever since then. The responsibility of keeping the secret is now passed on to you as well as the paradox of our ancestors as to what to do with it. All of these books contain the knowledge of the greatness of our ancestors. These books hold many wondrous things Roric, cures to diseases, sciences that would make our lives easier and would allow us to live lives of luxury, advancements to give us victory in battle and so on. The weakness of any great concept of thought or science though Roric isn’t the knowledge itself, but it is the way it is used by the individual in control of it. The result can be either good or evil, but it can affect many, if not everyone on that world or even farther out to other worlds. This is why I think our ancestors abandoned their technology. In hopes that forsaking it would lead to a society where a single person’s error of spirit would not lead to the downfall of many by the selfish use of knowledge by one individual or by a few. Like I said it is a paradox. The one thing that we could really use and that would advance our society is also potentially the worst pit fall of all, if used wrongly. What do you think of all this Roric?”

“I don’t understand it? We are about to be potentially overrun by a stronger enemy and your telling me that we have the power to stop that invasion, but we can’t use it be
cause it could lead to a greater evil! What could be worse than the defeat and enslavement of our own people? These books over here have written on them that they are Holy Scripture. Why
is this desperately sought for knowledge
being withheld from the people? Are these not holy works of the Creator’s Scripture?”

Thaddeus paused for a moment before answering, “Partially yes, but they originated after the original body of scripture was irreparably damaged. They contain many fanciful stories and questionable doctrines that do not line up with the original Holy Scriptural fragments that we do still have. Those five books are compilations’ of what their authors thought the original authors should have written, but didn’t. What truths, if any, that are in them are hopelessly scrambled and beyond usefulness other than to succeed in leading one astray from the truth, even if meant well. Trust me Roric I have read them, they appear legitimate and believable, but there is something that disturbs my soul and steals my peace as I read them. Is there wisdom to be found within them I would say yes, but I do not trust the wisdom that they contain, as I do not know the source of it or where it will lead.”

“If all these books pose our society such a moral risk of belief as you suggest, why are they still in existence?” I asked.

“Those five books were all seized from the Zoarinians. It was the basis for their argument to legitimatize there right to power in the early days. It gave them a persuasive argument to inspire their followers, which our faction couldn’t afford at the time. Without the technologies in the other books or the ideologies contained in those five books they were unable to sway the people of our faction over into their belief structure and so we persevered in our beliefs even though we had but fragments left of it to inspire faith by. We believe that these books are one of the primary objectives that the Zoarinians wish to capture in their invasion and thus the books offer us a bargaining tool of sorts at least that
is the view of the high council. It is not mine, because if the Zoarinians were to regain any of these works it would give them untold access to redefine this world’s belief structure however they pleased to. If it were up to me I would have destroyed them long ago, but my hands have been tied by the high council. Now the decision rests with you as the next heir of the Ta’lont line. Either
use the technology to benefit our society and gain us victory in battle at the risk of recreat
ing the mistakes of our past. Or do nothing with the knowledge and risk it falling into the hands of the enemy, which would
most
certainly lead to a bad outcome all around and perhaps even cause implications beyond our world as well. The choice is yours, and need I say choose wisely!”

A long moment passed as I thought about what needed to be done because something had to be done, “I think its faulty thinking to keep secrets such as these around that could end up destroying our own people, if we were to simply use them for our own benefit, and if the intention is to never use them, why keep them around so that they could be potentially used against us?”

Thaddeus was looking at me intently, as if his next breath hung on my unspoken words, “So what would your course of action be Roric?”

“I would destroy this room and all its contents and stop playing this game of hide and seek.”

Thaddeus’s scrutiny of me did not waver in the slightest, “And what of the council’s demands for the preservation of these works and the possibility of needing some of these secrets to defeat the Zoarinian invasion of our land?”

“My first duty is to the people and not the well being of the council’s political motivations. Second I will live and fall in this life according to my own merits and the strength that the Creator endows me with and not rely on dusty secrets of questionable origin to deliver me the victory.”

Thaddeus smiled and I saw him relax visibly, “Good that is what I hoped you would say. It relieves me to hear you say what you just did.”

“What did my father say?” I asked softly.

A dark look came over Thaddeus’ face for a moment and he didn’t answer right away.

“Your father agreed with you about the council’s political motivations, as do I but he thought that the knowledge should be left to the people to decide what they wanted to do with it. I could not condone that. I saw the release of such dark tainted material to my own people as a recant of my sworn duty to protect them from something I could prevent so I persisted in hiding the secrets of our past from them. I fear that was also the wrong strategy. I have come to believe in my old age and by the experiences gained over a lifetime that if something is of a dark nature don’t shake hands with it and don’t keep it in the closet. Instead take it out and burn it and let the ashes fall where they may.”

Thaddeus rose from his chair as did I.

“Congratulations for arriving at the decision that you have, which I believe is the right one. It is regrettable that I did not arrive a lot faster at the conclusion that you have or this whole crisis could have been averted long ago. Roric it is not going to be easy to get rid of all of this.” Thaddeus said gesturing to the room around us.

“Why?” I asked.

“None of this you see is real. This room is a technological façade of the original. I used the technology to put the images that you see in this room. The originals are hidden at another location unknown to the council.”

I looked at Thaddeus and we both said at the same time, “The Attorgron Forest trip during the last war.”

Chapter Twelve

Upheaval Begun

Krista watched the minnows congregating around the piece of bread she had thrown into the brook. She hadn’t done much of anything today, but laze around in the coolness of the forest. Being out here alone in the forest almost made her think she was as free as the songbirds fluttering around in the branches overhead. Until she remembered that in everybody’s eyes, except maybe Sansa’s, she was nothing but a slave. She was something to be used, sold and discard
ed at an owner’s whim.

Oh well life was what you made of it and at least hers for right now was the best it had ever been. She was living in the moment as tomorrow was no guarantee in her world. She ambled back towards the cottage regretting her laziness. Sansa had probably needed her for something hours ago.

Her route back brought her within site of the village and she gave it but a passing glance. Her eyes flew back to it in surprise at what she had seen. There were columns of smoke billowing into the sky from many of the town’s buildings which were wreathed in flames. She could see people running around in the town, but mostly they were fleeing from it! Instead of fighting the fires their only purpose seemed to be escaping the town. Other figures in the scene seemed more purposeful.

Attorgron Slavers!

The thought occurred to her and she was immediately sure of it. Rarely did the slavers venture so far into the west for fear of angering the Zoarinian controlled interests to much, but apparently they had thought it worth the risk for the prize of the loot the town offered them.

“Oh no! Sansa!”

Krista tore off through the forest towards the cottage. She leaped over fallen logs and dodged tree trunks. Her feet were steady and sure in the dense littered undergrowth of the forest even in her haste. She could see smoke ahead of her in the clearing where the cottage was, which made her pace quicken even more. She burst into the clearing and she saw Sansa weakly protesting as several men carried the medicinal wares of their healing trade from the cottage. One of the men, a big swarthy skinned brute back handed Sansa so hard that she was thrown backward several feet and fell across the doorway of the cottage.

Krista screamed in heartfelt pain at the sight and ran to Sansa’s side. Sansa was still conscious, but barely. She recognized Krista and smiled softly and reached up to brush some of the fiery curls from off of her forehead.

Weakly she said, “Remember what I told you dear, the Creator is going to keep you! Remember?”

Tears streaming down her face and with her lips quivering from unspoken cries of sorrow Krista nodded her head yes.

“Good. You have been the joy of my later days child, God bless you! I have to leave you now. He’s waiting for me.”

With a look of peace wreathed across her face her eyes closed and the breath left her body, as she was held clutched in Krista’s arms. Krista started shaking uncontrollably tears streaming from her eyes as short strangled gasps for air forced her lungs to open and close.

“Hey look at this one mates! She’s a ripe one for the picking! I saw her first!”

The lurid meaning of the slaver’s slurred out statement broke the solitude of Krista’s grief over her kind hearted care taker.

Krista listened to the voices of the slaver, as he approached from behind her. Something crystallized and snapped within Krista and suddenly with a scream of rage she turned from Sansa’s lifeless body to face the big slaver who had killed Sansa. He approached her now with nothing but evil intent in his small beady eyes. She grabbed the small paring knife from her pocket and fairly sprang upon the surprised slaver.

He tried to protect himself, but to no avail. The small blade of the paring knife flashed again and again in the fiery light of the burning cottage that couldn’t compare in intensity to the rage that had befallen Krista. The slaver crumbled to his knees and then pitched over onto his face already dead from a dozen or more stab wounds. Lost in her hate filled rage Krista continued to stab the inert form of the man, until a terrific blow from behind hit the back of her head, and knocked her over onto her face. Not wanting to succumb to the enshrouding darkness Krista fought to keep her eyes open, but failed more than she succeeded.