Obsidian Sky (18 page)

“There is a land, not too many miles from here, called Old Black. A reference to the era long gone I figure. It’s a small town, much like Lowsunn, but far less impressive. It’s barely held together but there’s a community there. Being in the middle of a massive valley, it’s mainly a town to pass through in your travels. The people welcome everyone that comes there with open arms and lavish gifts. I think most of the resources that could be spent on fixing their shacks and dusty huts are used for the tourists. The reason is because it’s a town of naturals. Not one resident to my knowledge has a Yen, and knowing that they could be wiped out in a moment’s notice, they decided to practically worship anyone who visits. I guess it works. A few times while I lived there in hiding, the town would be attacked by a psycho who had heard of them, but there was always a stranger with Yen to save the day and protect them all. I never had to get my hands dirty. Despite the humble shelters and plain food, it was a pretty peaceful life.”

“Then why didn’t you stay?”

“Because eventually I did put my hands in the dirt,” Aidan said, giving his friend a look that Isaac had never seen before. It was a glossed-over stare that had seen horrors.

“Many children passed through the town in the six months I was there. Most of them without a guardian. Just confused and wandering around Obsidian, looking for purpose and safety. It was very rare to find a lost child who hadn’t used up all of their Yen already, having defended themselves from others for so long. Anyways, there was a man who took them in named Ionin. Didn’t matter if they had abilities or not, he was like a father to each of them, and being that I had lost family myself, I was drawn to him as well. I decided to become a partner to him, and he was the only one I told my secret to – that I had the Fire Arts at my disposal.”

“Was he killed?”

“No. Worse. All the children were. One by one they began disappearing and Ionin was sure they were running away, but I saw the way they looked up to him. The way they were so eager to hold his hand in public or jump on his back playfully whenever he was engrossed in a book. They loved that man. And so I started keeping a watchful eye, waiting to see what was happening.” Aidan paused over what he was about to say next.

“What was it?”

“Ionin was eating them,” he said, bowing his head. “Being a natural, he thirsted for the power of the seals, of the Yen, but he didn’t come to the acceptance many of his kind did. He believed that he could somehow take the power from another, and so, he would devour the children one by one, like something out of a dark fairy tale, hoping to absorb either their abilities or their Yen. He told me all this when I caught him in the act…”

“That’s horrible,” Isaac said, a hand to his mouth. “What happened to him?”

“I killed him,” Aidan said, brushing his hand across the grass. “And the children came with me to travel across Obsidian. After seeing what he did…I didn’t want to stay in that town a moment longer. But the reason I tell you this story is because I was fooled. As great of a person as he appeared to be and as much as I loved who I thought he was – he was just as evil, if not more so, than anyone else I had met in my travels. I understand his need for power, but surely there had to be another way…”

“And so you think Bailey might be like Ionin?”

“My instincts say no, but then again, who am I to trust them? All I know is that when one pursues power, there is usually more to their cause than honor and nobility. Power and doing the right thing don’t seem to be able to exist together.”

“I would have to agree with you on that,” Isaac muttered. “If you like, I’ll take a closer look at Bailey.”

“And get caught like you did with Morrigan? No. Don’t bother.”

“So what do we do? Just wait until things are too late?”

“I don’t know…perhaps we should just be careful.”

“I don’t get you sometimes,” Isaac laughed. “One moment you’re telling me this story to make my trust in Bailey waver, and the next, you’re saying we should just follow her commands.”

“Perhaps I’ve just realized that I’m tired of people getting hurt.”

“Is that what happened to the children?”

Aidan stood up suddenly and looked down at his friend, who was still waiting for the answer.

“What else happens to everyone around me?”

Chapter 11 – Substitute

“I can’t believe you’re here,” Samantha replied as they walked into the schoolhouse together. Aidan chuckled and walked her to her seat.

“Stranger things have happened.”

“Now that the expulsion rule has been lifted, you’re ready to become tame?”

“Perhaps I believe in what the Elders are doing for once.”

“If that’s true, then the apocalypse is upon us,” she laughed. “Advent II.” She put down her backpack and was about to start rummaging through it for a utensil when a strange sight in the front of the room caught her attention. She nodded towards the man by the teacher’s desk. “Do you recognize him?” Aidan glanced up.

“We will begin class shortly,” the sweaty man with the large paunch said aloud. His voice was airy and full of authority. Aidan didn’t like him already.

“Where is Bailey?” Aidan asked. The large man with the tussled hair smiled with his eyes.

“She’s not here.”

“Yes, I see that. Still doesn’t answer the question.”

“Aidan, sit down,” Samantha urged him. “If she’s out, there’s a good reason. Be patient and wait for the explanation.”

“Fine,” Aidan huffed, walking over to his seat and slamming his posterior into it. The desk slid over a few inches, scraping the floor loudly, and then settled. The large man was not amused and blinked at the class rapidly as the last of Bailey’s regulars took their spots.

“My name is Eugene Balthasar,” he said, folding his massive hands. “Usually I work in the Elders’ camp, but with our heightened level of fear in place, they have asked me to take over for Bailey while she is tasked with more important matters. At this moment, she is speaking with the Elders themselves, advising them on what their next steps might be, based on her time with past scouting missions. I will be your teacher while she is away.”

“A substitute,” George scoffed from the corner.

“No, not a substitute,” Eugene corrected, holding up a meaty finger. “A substitute means there is an assumption that the replacement is equal to the original, and I assure you, I am far, far superior.”

“A bold claim,” Samantha replied. Aidan smiled. Eugene had even offended Samantha with his high and mighty talk.

“Don’t ruffle your feathers yet, young miss, we’re just getting started.” Eugene walked in front of the desk and stood before his new class. “Let me ask you all a question about Advent. Which of you believe it was a random event, and which of you believe it was planned?”

“What’s the point?” George asked.

“Just because you’re blind to a point, doesn’t mean it isn’t there,” Eugene said smugly. Aidan shook his head at the response and laughed under his breath. The substitute turned his attention to him. “What do you believe, young sir?”

“That it was planned,” Aidan said. “There is the Judge. It was probably him.”

“Was it now? Any other thoughts?”

“I can’t speak for everyone,” Elias said. “But when I was before the Judge…it didn’t feel like he was in charge. I mean, before him we had the same conversations across Obsidian, didn’t we? Whether there was a Maker or not. No matter what someone believed, no one could provide concrete evidence and we were left to our opinions and personal experiences. But…all of a sudden, Advent happens and this Judge reveals himself when we make a wish? Why? Who is he? I mean, I used to think about what the Maker might look like, and it wasn’t anything like what the Judge looked like. And if the Judge was the Maker, why would he reveal himself now?”

“You pose interesting questions, young sir,” Eugene said, sitting on the desk. It creaked horribly under the weight. “Perhaps the Judge and the Maker are the same but he did something bad. Maybe there’s a world beyond our sight that is full of Makers and they had a war. A war that resulted in half of our world being destroyed and the other half altered significantly.”

“Still, it’s all conjecture,” Elias retorted. “You don’t know that.”

“It’s true,” Eugene said. “I don’t know, and neither do you. And yet we speculate. We assume. We believe. And all of this affects our community in ways we can’t even fathom. What we must remember from here on out is that in Lowsunn, we are to follow orders, not act off of wild notions and imagined scenarios. The Elders are here. They are among us, and they have looked out for our interests since the beginning. No matter what you believe about the outside world: Yen, the Judge, a Maker and everything beyond that…what you can have your faith in – is the judgment of the Elders.”

Aidan snickered and all eyes rested upon him.

“Is there something hilarious, Mr. Serafino?” Eugene asked politely. Aidan fidgeted in his seat.

“I believe the Elders’ actions can speak for themselves on whether or not they have good intentions. I don’t think there’s any need to send new teachers amongst all the classes to prep the village – to get us to fall in line with whatever they decide. I’ve learned that if someone talks long enough, everyone listening begins to start believing their crap.”

“You can’t be seriously bringing up the whole ‘actions over words’ mantra,” Eugene said accusingly, folding his hands as he arched an eyebrow at Aidan.

“Why not? I’ve done nothing wrong.”

“In your simple peanut-sized brain, no, you didn’t. But as your words flow out of your mouth like rapids, you forgot that we were all there last night. We remember the damage you caused. The lives that were lost. The Elders had a plan to execute the intruder without any collateral damage, but you had to speak for him. You had to fight him. You had to fan the flames.”

“You’re lying,” Aidan said boldly. “I acted when the others didn’t. The Elders didn’t have a plan. You’re just trying to twist things. Make it seem like I’m a liability. The Elders were perfectly fine letting me risk my life to save them, but now that the battle is over, they want to make sure it looks like I’m not to be trusted. What better place to start than amongst the few people who respect me?”

“You think too highly of yourself. You act as if you have all the answers, but if so, then Elder Ainsley’s daughter would not be in the infirmary. Duncan wouldn’t have had time to get so angry and play his sick hide-and-seek game. You are a nuisance, Mr. Serafino. A hindrance to the potential of the rest of us. A blight on Lowsunn’s legacy.”

“No, you’re the one that’s wrong,” George spoke up, standing to his feet.

“Young sir, please sit down.”

“No, not until I’ve had my say,” he snapped back. “Aidan may be a lot of things. But we can’t deny that he acted when we were all too scared to lift a finger last night. I don’t believe the Elders had a plan because they wouldn’t have allowed Duncan to enter the grand hall in the first place. We could have all died last night, but you all are too proud to accept it. Aidan did the best he could, and he saved many of our lives. Why are you trying to put him down?”

“It’s like I said,” Aidan said, still in his seat. “I’m a threat. To the Elders I’m probably another Duncan. They’ll use me as a weapon for a cause and then have me killed first chance they get. I don’t care what anyone says. You can’t fake love. I see that now. You know, when the Elders announced that we were all permanent residents, I couldn’t believe it. No matter how negatively I had thought about them, I couldn’t deny that it was a gesture so insanely positive that even I was willing to see where it went. You almost got me to climb on board. But I see now. That gesture was for everyone that would comply in the future. The rest of us? Who knows what will happen?”

“You’re paranoid and rash,” Eugene said.

“And you’re emotional,” Aidan declared. “You resort to labels when you can’t articulate yourself.”

“Like you’re one to talk.”

“Weren’t you listening? I just did.”

“Class dismissed,” Eugene barked. The class jolted back in shock as Eugene scanned the room. “I said…class dismissed. Get out. All of you. Except him.” He pointed his index finger directly at Aidan’s head, his hand in the shape of a gun. “You stay right there.”

Aidan sighed and turned around just enough to nod to his classmates, signaling for them to leave. He couldn’t help but see the concern in their eyes. As they exited one by one, he tried to stare through the thick fabric of Eugene’s long sleeve shirt. How many seals did this man have? What abilities were at his disposal? He decided to hold himself back as much as he could. Because of the way the teacher had lashed out at him, Aidan knew he had the advantage. As long as he maintained his composure.

“I am your enemy, Mr. Serafino,” Eugene stated, folding his arms. “I hope you realize that.”

“It’s not exactly a secret at this point,” Aidan said. “What do you want?”

“Just kidding!” Eugene guffawed, unfolding his arms and placing both hands on his bouncing belly. “That was quite the show, wasn’t it?”

Aidan raised his eyebrows and looked around the room. What kind of trickery was this?

“Sorry for that,” Eugene said, sitting on the teacher’s desk again. “I had to do it. Bailey’s orders. You know once she tells you to do something, you’d better follow it like you would an order from the Judge himself.”

“Um, okay,” Aidan replied. He didn’t know what to say to this jolly, apologetic man. The change disturbed him.

“I work with Bailey behind the scenes. I understand that she wasn’t revealing to you who was involved in the Movement because she wasn’t sure if you could be trusted. But after last night, there are no doubts. I don’t expect you to believe me at this moment. But my legitimacy will come to light soon.”

Aidan said nothing.

“Bailey has taken a more background approach because she wants to find out what the Elders’ endgame is as soon as possible, and she has asked me to relay some information to you in the meantime.” He reached behind him into his back pocket, and produced a crumpled, stained piece of paper. “On here are a list of names involved in our resistance.”

“And I’m supposed to just carry this around?” Aidan scoffed.

“Silly, you’re supposed to memorize it then burn it before you walk out the door.”

“Mm-hmm,” Aidan muttered as he scanned the list. More than half of them he didn’t recognize, but he easily committed them all to memory.

“It’s vital that you recognize friend or foe,” Eugene replied. “She could be wrong, but Bailey suspects that you, along with any other threats to the Elders’ plans, will be put on scouting missions in the next announcement. Should you be paired with anyone on the list, don’t acknowledge their involvement with us, but just understand that if you’re in a horrible situation, they have your back.”

Aidan listened, but he wasn’t sure if he believed. So he was just supposed to assume that these strangers were going to save his life in a time of need?

“Do you have any questions?”

“Just one. What’s your role in all this again?”

“I don’t see how that’s pertinent.”

“If we’re all allies now, I would like some clarification.”

“I already told you that I work closely with the Elders.”

“Then why didn’t Isaac know what he was getting into at their compound?”

“I don’t get to just peruse around their homes, go inside and make myself a sandwich. I’m more of a secretary if anything. They give me orders, I obey. And occasionally, some interesting information comes across my eyes that I think can be used to further our cause. I gave Bailey everything I knew.”

“Well, for the record, I don’t trust you,” Aidan said flatly, rising from his desk.

“Not surprising,” he laughed. “You don’t trust anyone.”

“Not true. I trust Bailey. I trust Isaac…but not some guy that I’ve just met who says he’s part of a resistance.”

“Why? Because I humiliated you in front of the class?”

“Humiliation would imply that I allowed such a thing to happen, which I didn’t. I’m not embarrassed at all. But you should be.”

“What? Why?”

“Because if Bailey’s told you anything about me, it’s that I’m wary about everything, and your actions didn’t ward off any of my suspicions. Bailey’s my mentor, not you. So if there’s anything else you would like to say to me, give her the message.”

“But I already told you. She’s – ”

“Yeah I know. She’s not here right now. And I’m going to find out the real reason why.”

“Geez, we told her that it was too soon to take you into the fold. You still got a lot of growing up to do.”

“Don’t we all?” Aidan replied, and walked out the doors.