Izikiel (14 page)

The weather had deteriorated steadily as they moved away from the star port. Vorn and Cassandra remained with the ship to ensure
that its systems recharged properly and in case they needed to be picked up. Izikiel had also insisted that the little girl remain with them. It had been difficult but eventually she seemed to understand what he wanted from her. The remaining four of them had set off at dawn the following day, heading for the mountain range. According to the ship’s instruments it was about thirty kilometres.

They sh
ould have made it by nightfall. Then the weather changed. At first it was only a few clouds. Then the wind picked up and it started snowing. Fairly soon they were caught in a mild blizzard as visibility dropped to almost nothing. The temperature also dropped. Izikiel was shivering inside his snow suit. A variation on the polyformic clothing he had worn on
Vesta
, it was a lot bulkier with a hood and face shield for extreme cold. He stared at the wall of snow billowing in front of him. There was no way they were going any further. Activating his suit’s com channel, he yelled over the howling wind.

‘
We’re not getting anywhere in this weather. We should turn back.’

A faint electronic crackle was followed
by Te’Anne’s voice next to his ear.

‘
I agree. It doesn’t look like this is going to blow over before morning. We should make camp and wait it out.’

‘
Sounds good to me,’ Jonas’ voice said over the com. ‘This
is
getting a bit ridiculous given I can barely see my own extremities.’

‘
Your
what
?’ Xavier asked.

‘
My arms and legs. Don’t you know what it means?’ Jonas asked.

‘
I do. Didn’t think you did.’

Despite the poor visibility
, there was no mistaking the gesture which Jonas gave Xavier. Izikiel smiled inside his protective hood. Having Jonas along was proving very useful. Not only was he well trained in combat and survival but he was also rather entertaining. It was good to see Xavier more relaxed as well. Clearly they had been good friends and the fact that Jonas had never even asked about Xavier’s unique eye showed his true character.

Izikiel tried to think back to what friends he used to have. Somehow
, he knew he had experienced similar comradeship with others. But as with most things, he simply couldn’t remember any details. Just a general feeling, a sense of what it had been like.

Shaking his head
, he saw that Xavier and Jonas where already setting up two tents. Small and portable, they folded down into a backpack, yet expanded out into a one metre high dome with a three metre diameter. White in colour, they blended perfectly with the snow around them. Izikiel waited until the second tent was up before he asked the obvious question.

‘
So, who’s with whom?’

For a moment no one said anything. Xavier even managed to look slightly uncomfortable in his bulky snow suit.

‘Oh, for the love of Serafine. Izikiel, you’re with me,’ Te’Anne said. Her voice had a distinctly irritated tone. Turning towards her brother and Jonas, she added, ‘I’m sure you two won’t mind sharing. After all, you’re probably used to Xavier’s snoring.’

‘
Sure, no problem,’ Jonas replied.

Even though Izikiel couldn’t see his face
, he was sure that the man was smiling. Shrugging his bulky suit arms, he followed Te’Anne to their tent as Jonas and Xavier moved towards theirs. Kneeling, Izikiel moved inside on all fours, his head touching the fabric of the roof. Once he was inside, Te’Anne closed the tent flap behind him.

S
he activated a control on the floor. Several red lights flashed and then turned into a number. It read twenty two. Realising it had to be some form of temperature control, Izikiel watched as Te’Anne removed her bulky suit. Shivering for a moment, she adjusted the temperature up another two degrees. Following her lead, Izikiel removed his hood and face shield. The air inside the tent was warm. He marvelled at the technology that allowed the tent to maintain a temperature difference of over fifty degrees to the exterior. Then all thoughts of technology vanished as he looked at Te’Anne.

Her hair was untied and framed her face. The heat within the tent was making her skin shine with the faintest hint of perspiration.
As he looked into Te’Anne’s eyes, he saw that she was staring at him intently.

‘
I hope your brother and Jonas don’t mind sharing the other tent,’ Izikiel.

‘
They’re fine,’ she replied as she sat up on her legs.

She was close to him.
Very
close
. Izikiel felt a strange unease. He was pretty sure he knew what she wanted from him. And his feelings for her had only grown stronger from the first moment that he had woken up inside the cave on
Vesta
. But try as hard as he could, he simply couldn’t remember any details of what he was supposed to do next.

‘
Umm...Te’Anne,’ he began, unable to look at her.

‘
Yes, Izikiel?’ she asked in a soft voice as she placed her hand on his forearm.

Izikiel decided it was best if he just
told her. Lifting his head up, he looked at her.

‘
You know how I can’t really remember anything about my past life?’

‘
Yes’

‘
Well...I really can’t remember much about
anything
.’

Te’Anne’s eyes opened wider for a moment as she pulled back slightly. Then a smile spread across her face as she laughed.

‘You mean you can’t remember how to...?’ her voice trailed off as she held a finger playfully up to her lips.

‘
No, I can’t.’

She took his hands in hers and pulled him towards her until his face was centimetres from hers.

‘I think we can figure out what to do,’ she said. Then she kissed him.

Dawn broke over the arctic landscape with a blinding flash. The blizzard had subsided sometime during the night to be replaced by a howling wind. Even that fell away to
a faint gust by morning. The pale light of the previous day returned as
Aurora
rotated to face its distant star. The two small tents had been partially covered by snow but remained intact and warm. Inside, Izikiel was staring up at the white fabric of the tent’s roof. Te’Anne lay next to him, her head resting on his chest. He looked down at her. She looked at peace as she slept.

His thoughts turned to the previous night even as the memory brought a smile to his face. As usual
, she had been right. His memories had returned at the most convenient of times and they had spent much of the night entwined underneath a synthetic blanket.

Now
, as the walls of the tent grew brighter, Izikiel’s attention turned to the task at hand. He had sensed a true believer deep within the mountain. Not only that but whoever it was had power. Almost as much as Da’Amo, he guessed.
And even he could not stand against the Void Lords. What chance do I have?

Te’Anne stirred.
Yawning, she opened her eyes and stretched.

‘
Good morning,’ she said.

‘
It certainly is,’ Izikiel replied, smiling.

He kissed her.
She moved up into a sitting position and pulled out a packet of their supplies. Opening it, she offered him a piece of what looked like some sort of dried fruit. Taking a piece, Izikiel bit into it. It tasted sweet with just a hint of cinnamon.

‘
Come on. We should get going,’ Te’Anne said as she finished her second piece. Standing up, she began to put on her snow suit. Izikiel also picked up his and put it on. Once they were both fully clothed, Te’Anne leaned down and readjusted the controls on the tent. Then she opened the flap. The hot air trapped inside steamed as it came into contact with the outside. Within moments, the inside of the tent was as cold as the outside. Stepping out, Izikiel saw that Xavier and Jonas were already waiting for them. Both wore their snow suits and there was no sign of their tent.

‘
What took you so long?’ Jonas asked.

‘
Oh, grow up,’ Te’Anne said as she finished folding their tent. Izikiel picked it up and placed it inside his backpack. Donning it, he stood up.

‘
Everyone ready?’ he asked.

‘
Lead the way,’ Xavier replied.

They set off across the snow. Izikiel marvelled at the frozen landscape stretching out in front of him as his feet sank into the soft snow underfoot. They made good time and reached the first of the foothills around midday. Stopping to rest, Izikiel was surprised to see a pair of birds circling high overhead. They appeared to be little more than misshaped dots such was their altitude.

As he watched, one of them folded its wings and hurtled towards the ground. Just as it was about to hit, the bird’s wings unfolded halting its momentum. Opening its beak, Izikiel was surprised when a pair of razor sharp teeth was revealed. The gigantic bird of prey snapped something up from the ground. Tossing its head back, it moved its beak up and down and then visibly swallowed. Ruffling its light grey feathers it turned its head towards them. Letting out a loud screeching sound, it pushed off with its powerful legs and soared into the air to rejoin its companion.

Izikiel turned his attention back to
the mountain that was their destination. The snow covered peak had grown steadily larger as they moved towards it. Now, it rose up out of the ground like some ancient monolith. Surrounded on either side by similar albeit lower peaks, it was a formidable natural phenomenon. Izikiel found himself wondering if it truly was a natural occurrence. Perhaps the Eternal Flame had forged the landscape in order to create a stronghold for the true believers on this world as it had on
Vesta
. Dismissing the thought, Izikiel moved to where the others stood waiting.

‘
Do you need to rest?’ Xavier asked.

‘
No, I’m fine,’ Izikiel replied. ‘Can we make it by nightfall?’

Xavier turned his hooded head towards the mountain range. After a moment
, he replied, ‘I’d say so, unless we get hit by another one of those snow storms.’

‘
I’m sure that Izikiel won’t mind that too much,’ Jonas insinuated with a laugh.

‘
Honestly, what is
wrong
with you? Were you dropped on your head as a child?’ Te’Anne asked as she punched him in the arm. Given the heavy padding of the snow suits it was a futile gesture which only made Jonas laugh more.

‘
Alright, that’s enough,’ Xavier said. ‘We’d better get moving if we want to get to the mountain before nightfall.’

They set off once more. After an hour
, Izikiel realised that he was getting tired. His movements became slower as his leg muscles began to throb with a dull ache. Gritting his teeth, he pushed on. They were now travelling through the foothills of the mountains and the hills were getting progressively higher. Soon they were walking up at nearly forty five degree angles. Scaling a particularly steep slope, Izikiel found himself falling behind. Pausing for a moment, he tried to catch his breath. His heart was beating quickly as it pumped blood to his tired muscles. Adjusting his visor, Izikiel looked up. Jonas and Xavier stood at the edge of the hill looking down at something. Jonas turned back towards him and Te’Anne and activated his com channel.

‘
You two better take a look at this.’

Izikiel took a deep breath and continued up the slope. Soon
, he and Te’Anne had reached the top. Straightening up, Izikiel moved towards the edge. Looking down, his mouth opened wide in surprise. The base of the mountain they were trying to reach was only a couple of hundred metres away. Under ordinary circumstances they would have definitely made it by nightfall. Except that these were definitely
not
ordinary circumstances.

Stretching out between them and the mountain was a frozen lake. Large sections of the ice had separated and now floated in
the dark blue waters of the lake. There appeared to be no clear path across to the other side. Gigantic ice blocks crashed against one another, sending up jets of freezing cold water high into the air. Izikiel sank down to his knees as exhaustion overtook him.

‘
How are we ever going to get across that?’ he asked.

The clouds had cleared
by late afternoon allowing the distant sun to shine through. Ice and snow became whiter as the light intensified away from the refracted blue spectrum they had experienced the previous day. The temperature had also risen marginally as they made their way carefully down the slope to the edge of the frozen lake. Reaching the beginning of the ice, Izikiel stopped. The frozen lake seemed even more intimidating up close. Gigantic pieces of ice slammed into each other with considerable force on a regular basis as they floated around in the dark waters. The dull thud from the impacts echoed around the valley formed by the foothills on one side and the mountains on the other.

‘
Any ideas?’ Jonas asked over the com.

‘
We could try to walk across the ice,’ Xavier said.

The ground shook beneath their feet as another sizeable ice floe impacted with the edge of the
lake. The collision sent up a wave of water onto the snow covered edge.

‘
Ok, you go first,’ Jonas replied.

Te’Anne turned to Izikiel as she asked, ‘
Is there anything you can do?’

‘
Not really. I can control the water but not the ice,’ Izikiel replied, shaking his head. ‘If I melt the ice then the valley will be flooded and I don’t think that I can control
that
much water.’

‘
What about the air? The way you used it back on New Babylon?’

Izikiel thought for a moment. Slowly,
he shook his head again.

‘
That won’t work either. I can’t stabilise it enough to form a bridge across the lake.’

‘
Then I guess we’ll need to head back and find a way around the lake,’ Jonas said.

‘
But it’s huge! It could take us days to get around it in this terrain,’ Te’Anne said.

‘
Do you have a better idea?’

‘
No, not really,’ Te’Anne replied. ‘Izikiel?’

‘
I tend to agree with Jonas. There just isn’t any way that we can -’ Izikiel stopped in mid-sentence as the burning touch of the Eternal Flame ignited within him. Someone was approaching. Looking around the base of the cliff they had scaled down, Izikiel was unable to see anything other than rocks and snow.

‘
What is it?’ Xavier asked. He had already drawn his weapon from his backpack. Holding it at the ready, he scanned the rocks from side to side.

‘
Someone’s coming,’ Izikiel replied.

‘
Human?’ Jonas asked.

Izikiel opened his mind to the Eternal Flame. As his body temperature increased, he became aware of his surroundings. He could feel the tremendous force of the ice floes pushing against each other in the lake behind him. Casting around
, he saw a faint shape materialise in his vision. Focusing on it, he saw what appeared to be a part of the snow moving towards them. Only it was shaped like a man with a long hood and a white robe.

‘
There, next to the twin rock formation.’

‘
Where? I don’t see...hang on. There they are,’ Jonas replied as he too brought his weapon to bear on the white robed stranger approaching them.

The stranger’s
clothing mirrored the snow almost perfectly.
Too perfectly,
Izikiel though. He was detecting considerable power emanating from them. It was either the true believer that he had sensed the day before or another void spawn in disguise. Izikiel braced himself as the figure approached.

‘
Hello there!’ Jonas called out.

The figure made no indication
that they had heard him as they continued to approach.

‘
I don’t like this,’ Xavier said.

‘
Me neither,’ Te’Anne replied as she too drew her weapons.

The stranger was now less than a hundred
metres from them. Jonas called out again. Again, the stranger failed to respond. Lifting their weapons to a firing position, the two ex-security officers prepared to fire. Jonas called out a third time, warning the figure to stop. Nothing changed as the white robed stranger was now less than fifty metres from them.

‘
No good, Jonas. Prepare to fire,’ Xavier said. They both hefted their weapons and braced their fingers on the triggers.

‘
Now!’

As Xavier gave the order, the stranger reacted. Moving faster than Izikiel
’s eyes could follow, he stepped aside as two azure bolts of energy shot past him. Lifting his arms up, he called out a single word.

‘
Algor
’

Izikiel was surprised to hear the ancient language. He was not familiar with the word and braced himself for its effect. Nothing could have prepared him for what happened next
. Two streams of liquid ice shot out of the white robed stranger’s outstretched arms. Hitting Xavier and Jonas squarely, they coated them in an icy layer. Within moments they were entombed within a solid block of ice.

‘
No!’ Te’Anne screamed as she moved towards her brother.

Izikiel
held her back as the white robe turned towards them. Having recovered from his initial surprise, Izikiel called upon the power of the Eternal Flame. Just as the white robe unleashed another stream of ice, Izikiel uttered the ancient language.

‘
Aduro
’

Sheets of blue
flame erupted from Izikiel’s hands. Streaking towards the white robed figure, they collided with the ice streams. For a brief instant the two fought each other as ice froze fire and fire melted ice. Then they dissipated as Izikiel felt his connection to the Eternal Flame vanish. Faltering slightly, he managed to remain standing as the heat subsided. The white robe approached them and spoke in a heavily accented voice.

‘
Who are you?’

‘
I am Izikiel. Who are you?’

The white robe lowered his hood revealing an older man’s face. His dark brown eyes looked out over a broad nose framed by a flowing moustache. The numerous lines on his face clearly denoted his age as did the white colour of his hair. He was at least as tall as Izikiel and
of moderate build. Looking at the two of them intently, the man finally answered.

‘
I am Baron Stefan, Guardian of the Eternal Flame,’ the white robed man said. ‘I also have the dubious honour of being the last inhabitant of
Aurora
.’