Dovetailed (2 page)

King Antyon raised his hands again. “Quiet. Calm down. The species has been tamed…”

As though to prove the king wrong, the Leviathan opened his mouth wide and a forked tongue came out to taste the air. Several in the front fell back against those standing behind him.

King Antyon chuckled. This was the fear he’d hoped to instill in his followers, but most especially in the Kelarians they warred against. “Do not worry. Please. The Leviathans, while they look scary, have been genetically altered. They will do only what they’ve been programmed to do.”

That seemed to relax some of them, but he noticed many were still on edge. He could understand why.

“Are we ready to defeat our enemies?”

A fervent cheer rang through the room.

He smiled wide. Defeat of his enemies was inevitable. He would have the Kelari, take the Leviathan through the portal to Earth, and rule that world as well. Nothing and no one could stop him. For the first time in years his chest swelled with happiness. He was on the cusp of greatness. The war would be over quickly. He knew it, could taste it.

After the rally King Antyon went upstairs to check on his wife. The room was deathly quiet and dark, the curtains shut. He smirked, disgusted that not even the loud assembly below had disturbed her. He waved his hand over the family crest to close the bedroom door and walked down the hall to his library. After locking that door he went to his gold gilded desk, opened the top drawer, and pressed a hidden button. Silently the shelves housing his books slid away, revealing a small room he kept as his secret office.

Once he was inside his secret office, King Antyon pressed another button and waited until the shelves closed. He relaxed his shoulders and sank into the chair behind his desk. On top of the desk was a holographic monitor and nothing else. He touched the screen and pulled up a map. Dozens of blips flashed around Kelari. The dots represented the different world leaders. It was his way of keeping tabs on them. All seemed to be in order, but the map wasn’t why he’d come.

“Tanith, I humbly seek your presence,” he said to the empty room.

The god known as Tanith appeared out of thin air. “What do you want, Antyon?” His long blond hair flowed down his naked chest. It embarrassed him that the god didn’t wear anything more than a pair of trousers. Even his feet were bare.

“I wished to give you an update,” King Antyon said, forcing down the slightest tingle of fear. Why had he called the god? Sometimes his narcissism made him forget that there were those more powerful. He didn’t like the feeling it gave him. He wanted all the power and if he ever found a way to take it from Tanith, he would.

Tanith sneered. “You think I don’t know the thoughts in your soul.” He pressed a single finger to his chest. “You think I can’t know what you’ve planned?”“ He stood straight and crossed his arms. “You forget who you’re dealing with.” Tanith smirked. “No matter. Soon enough you’ll understand my power.” Without a sound Tanith vanished.

King Antyon wiped the sweat from his brow, a mixture of relief and irritation gurgling in his gut. Part of him wanted to sit a while and think of a way to steal Tanith’s power. There had to be a way, but he didn’t have the luxury of that kind of time. After he’d taken control of Kelari and Earth, then he’d ponder more on the next step.

Right now, he wanted to speak with the new leader of A.L.T.. He had a proposition for the measly human.

He pulled open the bottom drawer and tapped the back of it twice. It was programmed to only respond to his touch. The wood vanished, exposing the key used to travel between Kelari and Earth.

The key wasn’t so much a key as a creature. Her name was Hisoka. The name meant secret. It fit the little rodent girl perfectly. She was his little secret. No one knew about her. Not a single person knew how he was able to travel from Kelari to Earth and back again without using a Transport, but his ability to do so was the reason so many kels followed him, because in their minds only the gods could do what he could do. Yet somehow his little Hisoka could do it. She could open and close the passageway between worlds easily.

Finding her had been another stroke of luck. He’d been in the mountains of Yi and fallen into a deep cave. It had been so dark he couldn’t even see his hand in front of him. He’d tried for days to climb out, but the walls were slippery like glass and he hadn’t been successful. She’d appeared before him, her white fur shining like that of a tiny star. Her whiskered nose had wiggled at him.

He’d been frightened at first, and then even more afraid when she spoke to him.

The fear didn’t last long. She was a shy little creature.

They’d talked and talked. She told him she’d been a prisoner in the cave for several decades and he’d freed her with his fall. She’d told him where she came from and her name.

King Antyon loved having a confidante. He’d told her of his plans and she’d agreed to show him how she travelled.

That’d been many years ago.

Hisoka woke and rubbed her ebony eyes with her little clawed hands. “Hello Master. I was worried you’d forgotten me.”

King Antyon picked her up. She fit in the palm of one hand. He stroked her silky white fur and she snuggled against him. “I know. It’s been a while.” He held her against his chest with one hand and tapped the wood panel twice to close her little home. Then he shut the drawer. Bringing her to his eye level, he said, “I need to go to Earth. Will you take me?”

She yawned, her little tongue licking her tiny pink lips. “Of course, Master.” She stood up on two legs, flicked her long furry tail, and wiggled her nose.

King Antyon kissed the top of her head, right between her furry ears. There was no way he could dislike the creature. She was unquestionably the most fascinating creature he’d ever seen, and somehow holding her always made him feel invincible. More than once he’d wondered if it was a power she controlled, but he never bothered to ask her. He liked it.

“Thank you, Hisoka. You are too good to me.” He pulled a piece of meat from his pocket and handed it to her.

Hisoka took it. “I do my best, Master.” She plopped the whole thing in her mouth and chewed quickly. With the back of her clawed hands she wiped her mouth, swallowed and smiled. “Delicious.”

King Antyon smiled. “Ready?”

“Yes.” She licked the back of her hand and then nodded. “Where to?”

“Remember the last place you took me? A.L.T. Headquarters?”

“Yes, Master. I do.”

He scratched her back. “Excellent. Take me there again.”

“Got it.” Hisoka raised her furry arms in front of her and began twirling them in a circle. Directly in front of her and King Antyon appeared a hole. It was tiny at first, just the size of her hands. Hisoka glanced up at King Antyon.

He knew she was seeking his approval and he gave it. “You’re doing so well. Keep it up.”

She smiled and continued to move her hands in a circular motion, making the hole bigger and bigger until it was large enough for King Antyon to walk through.

When she finished she smacked her hands together. “There you go, Master.”

King Antyon gave her another piece of meat and stuck her on his shoulder, then stepped through the hole.  

It’d been months since Dervinias killed someone. He was done with that life, though there was a part of him that didn’t want to be. Killing had become part of who he was but, more than a murderer, he was now a father. He had a baby out there somewhere. And he would get her back.

There were just four obstacles standing in his path.

The first: He was dead. Dervinias had been killed in Helker, but it hadn’t been that long ago. Well, it could’ve been hours or days or months. Time in Helker was much different than time above ground or outside of Helker.

Second: Chev was also dead. She was human, but she was also the mother of his child and he loved her. He’d tried to talk to her several times, but Chev’s soul would quiver like an overfilled cloud and float away. That Chev was so affected by what had transpired worried him. He wasn’t sure what to do for her, but he’d figure that out too.

Third: Venus. She could bring his body and soul back together, but would she?

Yes
, his mind whispered. He somehow had to convince her, whatever it took, because one way or another he would bring his family back together. One way or another he would make Tawny pay for stealing his daughter.

Four: The Order of Eternal Fire. He had been their leader on Earth. His father, King Antyon, expected him to continue to play his part. The Order wanted King Antyon to rule Kelari and remove the gods from their planet. Those within The Order didn’t want to go through the change, become Kelvieri and live forever.

Dervinias thought it was ridiculous, but King Antyon’s followers believed only certain kels should be allowed to possess such power, and everyone else should age, grow old, and die.

Earth had become a part of the plan because his father wanted it to be his Home Away From Home… his Godly Planet. Like Stiel—a planet where the gods were created—King Antyon wanted that for himself. He intended to keep some humans as slaves and make them pay homage to him, build statues and temples to honor him, and write songs and poetry in his name. King Antyon believed it was his divine right because he had found a way to travel from Kelari to Earth without using a Transport. It was like two doors joined by a hallway across the Universe. One opened and closed on Kelari and the other on Earth. He’d never shared how it was done with anyone.

King Antyon and The Order were all fine and good, except Dervinias didn’t care about his father’s plan any longer. He no longer cared that while his father lived on Kelari, he had promised Dervinias he could rule in his stead on Earth. He only cared for his child and Chev. Sadly, Dervinias had a feeling his father wouldn’t care about such things and would expect him to continue with the plan he’d set in motion after killing Michael’s earthly father, Frank, the leader of the government group with the name, Alien Life Tracker or A.L.T. There were those on Earth already in place, still doing as Dervinias instructed. He figured it would be easy enough to make them do as he commanded; he just didn’t want to deal with it.

Dervinias sighed. He’d figure it all out once he had his body back.

He searched the cavernous room filled with floating souls for Venus. She spoke with a soul and it flitted over to the left side of the room. She moved on to the next one. After a few words, it moved to the right. Michael followed behind her, ever watchful. It was obvious he loved Venus.

They had just been married. Dervinias got the feeling Venus hadn’t really comprehended what that meant, but then she’d had a lot to take in.

Besides becoming Michael’s wife she’d also helped him kill Ramien, and had discovered she wasn’t even Kelarian, but a goddess, daughter to Ith and Aetha. He felt sure she was freaking out. He would have been, anyway.

She seemed to be handling the situation well enough.

Her sister Amberlee, on the other hand, was fuming. She sat in a chair, her arms crossed, a ferocious glare on her face. Her eyes followed Venus, a combination of loathing and wonder evident. She’d stormed in and told Venus that Kelari was at war, wanting her pretend sister to come help the people of Alayeah immediately.