Eternal Horizon: The Chronicle of Vincent Saturn (Eternal Horizon: A Star Saga Book 1) (30 page)

“Then we should try to win, don’t you think?”

Exander deeply exhaled. “There are too many of them! Drop this nonsense and realize what you’re suggesting!”

“I do realize, young Krynne, believe me, I do. But I also don’t make promises unless I know they can be accomplished.”

“But, master—”

“Enough of this!” Duell raised his voice. “Wait until you become a Sage before you contradict me!”

Exander bit his lip and became quiet.

“What about Vincent?” Damocles asked.

“I’ll begin teaching him the fundamentals tomorrow,” Duell replied.

“
What?
” Exander barked. He looked over at his brother and at Spaide—both seemed to be agreeing with Duell. “Am I the only one who sees a problem with this?” he asked. “This is asinine!”

“Why is that?”

“Because—”

“Because he’s not Xenian? But he’s obviously
blessed
.”

“You’re breaking the rules!”

“What rules? Think before you say something!” Duell then turned to the others and asked, “Do you have a problem with me tutoring Vincent?”

“Not me,” the big guy said, escaping his brother’s look.

“We need all the muscle we can get,” Spaide said.

“Very well, then. Gather in the dining hall within half an hour.” Duell headed for the door.

“Master,” Exander called out.

Duell continued down the shrine.

“
Master!
” Exander repeated.

“What is it?” Duell asked without turning. “I will not change my mind on teaching the human.”

“No, that part I understand… no matter how absurd I find it to be. This is something different, something I’ve been meaning to ask you ever since we’ve escaped the
Nomad
…” Exander cleared his throat and blurted out, “Why did Na’ar spare me?”

Duell turned around.

Both of the twins stared at him in request. Spaide stopped at the threshold, looking back in confusion.

“Why didn’t he kill me?” Exander rephrased. “He seemed to have no idea who we were.” He then grabbed his necklace. “This pendant… When he saw it, he lowered his arm, stopping the blow that would’ve ended my life.”

Duell stood there with no answers. Like a landslide, the tragedies flooded them, one after another. One thing was obvious: he had to tell them the exact truth.

“I concur,” the big man added. “He had never seen us before. Does he even
know
that we’re his children?”

Duell sighed, looked up for a moment, and then said, “I believe you’re old enough to know… that Na’ar didn’t leave us when you think he did—it was much earlier than that.”

“
What?
” Exander exclaimed, trading glances with the big guy. “What do you mean?”

Duell sat down on one of the shrine’s stone benches and set the blade aside. Spaide sat beside him, but the twins remained standing. Duell leaned forward, rested his elbows on his knees and pressed his hands together.

“Oryon was devastated when Na’ar left us,” he began. “And Isabella was just a child at the time—a child who loved him like a big brother—and was in tears for months. I guess those feelings never really died, because once the time came for her to kill him, she was unable to do so.”

“
What?
” the twins asked in unison.

“What do you mean
kill him
?” Damocles asked.

“I’m getting to that. Your mother was a maverick, a trait that runs in your veins.” Duell gestured at Exander. “She was not just rebelling against the Republic, but against Oryon as well. Unbeknownst to us, she frequently took on solitary missions.” As he told the story, he glanced away, remembering the days of his youth, the final days of the Intergalactic War.

“In one of those missions, she took it upon herself to infiltrate Na’ar’s personal army, the Solizar Squad. They accepted her, unaware that she was gathering information on the Republic’s doomsday weapon, the Mor’amer Citadel.

“I was the only one who knew her whereabouts. She feared that once Oryon would’ve found out, he would’ve pulled the plug on the whole operation. So gullible a man that I was, I didn’t tell him. Unfortunately…” Duell paused, swallowed. “She got too close to Na’ar.”

Exander opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

“Years had passed since she’d been gone. The war was almost over, and there were no signs of her. Finally, she contacted me and told me of her feelings for him and that she’d bring him back. She was young then—so young, just slightly older than you two.” He frowned and continued, “I told Oryon, and we set forth to find her, but by the time we did, she was fatally wounded. Her injuries were so severe that she couldn’t even utter a word…”

“What about us?” Damocles interrupted. “How did…?”

“She fought until the last minute to stay alive. In her hands she clutched the pendants you wear and the key to the cottage where we found you two. Now, I guess, the pendants were a gift from him…”

“No…” Damocles sniveled. He looked at his necklace and then at his brother’s.

Duell clenched his jaw. “It seems that she had the two of you without his knowledge. And on the day she tried to tell him the truth about herself, he… he killed her…

“She died in Oryon’s arms…” He paused and took a deep breath. “Oryon didn’t hide from you the fact that Na’ar was your father, but he didn’t tell you the tragic truth.”

“I’ll be damned,” Spaide mumbled.

“I don’t feel so good.” Damocles clasped his stomach and sat down on the floor.

“
Liar!
” Exander bellowed. “For over twenty years you hid this from us!”

“Patience!” Duell lashed back.

“Did you know about this?” Exander turned sharply to Spaide.

“I’m as shocked as you are!” The Dirsalian shrugged.

“He didn’t know we existed,” Damocles muttered. “All this time, he didn’t know. She never had the chance to tell him…”

“
I don’t give a damn!
“ Exander turned to his brother. “He knows now, and I’ll personally kill him!” He then stormed out of the shrine.

“It’s too much, master,” Damocles said, getting up. “You made us believe he left us when we were kids and that mother died in an explosion… but this…”

“I know,” Duell responded. “I’m so sorry.”

“It must’ve been hard.”

“We should go now.” Duell got up and began heading away.

“You loved her, didn’t you?” Damocles asked all of a sudden.

Duell stopped in his tracks. “I…” He looked away. “Forgive me, I could not save her...”

“Wow…” Spaide continued sitting with a dropped jaw long after the Xenians were gone. “This has got to be the craziest day of my life.”

*

The two moons of Urtan lit up the night sky with their silvery light as Vincent continued to browse the Galactic Map. He was so busy in his effort to find home that he didn’t see Spaide show up on his doorstep.

“Any luck?” the Dirsalian asked, approaching with a bundle of clothes.

“Nope.” Vincent exhaled, taking off the glove. “But I’m familiar with the map already.”

“Come on… you can’t expect an outcome on your first try. Let’s go eat, have fun, get your mind off things. Here”—Spaide extended the clothes—“put these on.” It was a pair of riveted jeans and a camouflaged shirt.

“Would these suffice?” Vincent asked, looking at Spaide who was wearing something resembling a
changshan
. “I mean, isn’t everyone going to be dressed formal? And here I’ll be, wearing the attire of a space pirate.”

“Why… who…” Spaide stammered. “Oh, now you got jokes? Just go and change! We’ll fetch you one of these uniforms tomorrow.”

Vincent proceeded to wash himself and swap the attire. He didn’t know what to do with his old clothes, so he threw them on top of the chair in the corner.

“You’ll no longer need those,” Spaide said. “But you might wanna save the jeans. They’re nice, even though cavemen designed them.”

Vincent could see how the manner of his new companions would infuriate others. Spaide, as a matter of fact, was not a Tel Kasar, but their impassive attitude had rubbed off on him. Here he was, trying to have “fun” amidst this time of peril.

“What do they eat here?” Vincent asked as they headed out.

Spaide shrugged. “Don’t know, and I’m really ’
fraid
to ask. But I’m hungry nevertheless. I’d eat a human right ’bout now.”

Vincent shook his head. Indeed, the Dirsalian did have rather coarse jokes.

They made their way to the balcony that overlooked the courtyard which was filled with hundreds of tents housing the Urtan men that gathered from every corner of the planet. Spaide then guided Vincent to one of the castle’s towers where succulent smells of bizarre extraterrestrial food filled the air as they went up the spiral stairs to the top floor.

They entered a large dining hall. A long table was in the middle of the room, spread with all kinds of comestibles. Duell, Thanatos, Galadan, the generals, and several Urtan dignitaries sat at its head discussing further plans; several military personnel sat in the middle; and Damocles sat at the other end, farther from everybody else, distraught, but nevertheless ravenously swallowing the food before him and chasing it down with a decanter. Exander, on the other hand, was nowhere in sight. More Urtan nobles sat in cliques around other smaller tables: men dressed in
yukata
-type robes, and women in kimonos. There was a dais at the back of the hall, atop which several Urtan women played harps. The caterers took turns approaching the tables, making sure they were full of the surreal victuals and beverages.

And then Vincent saw Gaia.

She looked stunning—like bona fide royalty, shimmering in a black satin dress with a high waist. Over the dress she wore a square-cut bodice that exposed the top of her chest. Black evening gloves covered her lower arms, and a huge pendant was around her neck. Her hair was hoisted up with strands flowing down past her shoulders. It was amazing how she could switch her looks—a warrior one minute, a Princess the next. She sat at one of the tables, engaged in a conversation with an Urtan nobleman.

“Let’s sit here.” Spaide sat down next to Damocles. “All this political jargon gets on my nerves.”

Vincent distrustfully stared at the various combinations of food before him. He then looked over at his Dirsalian companion.

“Don’t look at me,” Spaide said. “I’m just as surprised as you are. I’m just
hopin
’ none of this stuff jumps at me.”

“Eat up,” Damocles garbled, his mouth full. “It’s good.”

“Yeah, anythin’s good for you, meathead.” Spaide responded. “Not all of us consume ten thousand calories a day.”

Being hungry as he was, Vincent began eating the weird chow and (much to his surprise) found it to be remarkably delicious. The food tasted like various combinations of vegetables, yet there were no meats of any kind. He didn’t care though—it was the best meal he’d ever had.

“I’d like to make a toast!” Galadan arose. “To our new allies for joining us in this bleak hour and to our loved ones that have recently passed away...”

A mantle of silence sheltered the hall.