Still Falling: Book 1: Solstice 31 Saga (43 page)

“It is a personal matter. I hope he knows where I can find a man named Grady Tolwood.”

CHAPTER FIFTY

Invasion

“Even Em was surprised how this played out.”

--Solstice 31 Incident Investigation Testimony Transcript: Emergency Module Digital Forensics Report. Independent Tech Analysis Team.

<<<>>>

Ronan’s question still hung in the air when Barcus’s HUD flooded with content.

“WARNING: The M79 Troop Transport Shuttle inbound at high speed. On a direct vector for the Lislehill Estate. ETA is 4 minutes. Barcus, its Transponder is off. It's running RF dark. It was detected by BUGs.”

“Are you expecting company, Keeper Ronan?” Barcus asked coldly.

He didn't seem to notice that his question had been ignored.

“Not at all. In fact, after speaking to Ann and Pyke, I specifically had my pilot drop me off several days away so I would not alarm or alert anyone where I was going,” Ronan stated simply.

Barcus noted that he mentioned Ann before Pyke.

“When they were here, they spoke very highly of the Tracker they met. In discussions, I realized it was in fact Grady Tolwood. His wife is worried about him. I will soon be heading back to the Citadel, and I can get word to her as well as his brother.”

“You walked for days to speak to Grady?” Barcus knew his tone carried more than he intended. “You? A High Keeper of the Council?”

“So you really do know who I am?” Ronan seemed amused. “How refreshing.”

“Why is there a troop transport headed this way?” Barcus asked straight out.

“
They have touched down, Barcus. One hundred and six men on horses are already headed this way.”

“Troop transport?” Ronan seemed genuinely confused.

“Yes. There are apparently over a hundred men headed this way on horseback. Are you saying that you know nothing of this?” Barcus was not hiding his anger now.

Ronan surprised him by saying, “This is all my fault. The Lord High Keeper must have discovered I was here and alone. Forgive me. I don't know how. My Plate is off AND shielded.”

“
It's true Barcus. There is no RF from his Plate. I didn't even know he had one. The M79 has departed and is heading south. There are no Plates in possession of these troops. They look like mercs with one High Tracker. They are coming this way fast,
” Em said.

“Ansel! Tell Smith I want to see him right away.” The door barely opened and Ansel poked his head out long enough to say, “Right away.” And he was gone.

“Keeper Ronan, why are you here, really? Why did you send those Trackers here?”

He said nothing.

“Do you know why I didn't kill you on sight? It was something Smith said about you. After Ann and Pyke were gone. He said he met you once in the past, in Langforest Keep. He said you refused to eat any of Volk's food when he saw how Volk treated his people. That you stormed out.” Ronan met his gaze, unafraid.

“Will you tell me why the High Keeper’s men are killing these people?” Barcus was standing now. Both hands were holding the edge of the table.

Ronan was not intimidated or defiant. He sighed and seemed to confess, “The people that live above the gorge cannot be ruled as he wishes. It’s about control.” He looked Barcus in the eyes. “There was an automated census three years ago. It records the size of the planet’s population and their locations. Once again they passed the 'optimum' population size for the environment, his experiments, his domain.” Ronan sighed. “North of the gorge has always been too far out of his control sphere for his experiments. It fixes his problems. Two hammers, one anvil. His breeding program. A control group was once a good idea. But now he has lost focus.”

He sighed and paused.

“He doesn't even care that the mercenaries are dying. He is using the same mercenaries of his potential enemies. The weaker the population, the better it is in his eyes. They are disarmed, easier to control, to dominate. At least he isn't using plague this time.”

“Plague?” Barcus asked.

“At one time long ago, he released a plague above the gorge. It was difficult to control, it did its job too well. But it left the villages intact. He wants them leveled now it seems.” Ronan said. “How soon before they arrive?”

“Soon,” Barcus answered. Smith came in at that point. He heard the last exchange.

“Smith. There will be over a hundred men here in an hour. Gather the people up. Take them below. Tell Ulric and Olias to keep them calm. Bar the gate and the door to the catacombs. You will know when it's time to come out.”

“Barcus. You don't need to do this alone, son,” Smith said, placing his scarred hand on his shoulder.

“I have seen the terrible things these men do. No more,” Barcus growled.

Smith looked at Ronan, in the eyes, without fear. Ronan nodded. Smith moved back into The Abbey. They could hear the call go out.

***

They walked out of the gatehouse. Po was there. Her skirts were gathered again and tucked into her belt in the front. The AR was on a single point sling on her chest. She held it with both hands. Her right hand was on the pistol grip, index finger extended. She had her satchel of spare magazines.

She defiantly looked at Ronan, a look that would have meant the anvil in Exeter.

“I will be on top of the south tower with Ash,” Po said.

“Do not open the gate until it's over.” Barcus looked at Ronan. “He is coming with me.” Barcus tilted his head at the Keeper.

She dropped the newly fabricated bar into place behind them.

“You are going to stay out there?” Ronan asked.

“Yes,” Barcus growled.

“Par is in position,”
Em indicated.

“Can I speak to them before anything happens?” Ronan requested.

“That is up to you. But, say the wrong thing, and I will burn you with the rest of them.”

Ronan nodded as if to accept that fate.

***

Barcus and Ronan were sitting on the bench, watching the sunset when the riders pounded up on the east road to collect just beyond the bridge. All four fires were lit on the corner braziers of the bridge. The air was silent. Even the birds had hushed. The horses’ hard breathing was the loudest sound.

The leader was a High Tracker. He came forward, over the bridge, with five other riders, to stop directly in front of Barcus and Ronan. They stayed in their saddles.

“I might have known you were behind this, August.” He used the High Keeper’s first name with disdain.

“Hello, Donner. I'm amazed you'd risk yourself by coming north of the gorge these days,” Ronan said.

“You think just because you sit on the Council that you are somehow immune to the simple realities of the Keeper’s law. I would be willing to bet that they have an anvil in there, and a hammer. Your days of ignoring God’s laws are over,” Donner said.

Ronan sighed. “You have no idea what is about to happen to you, do you?”

“
Par standing by. Ash Standing by. Firing solution from the west. Stay close to the wall to avoid crossfire
,” Em reported in his head.

“You will know when it's time to go,” Barcus said out loud, speaking to Em, Par and Po all at once.

“Go? Go where?” Donner asked, beginning to laugh as Barcus and Ronan began to stand.

“Donner, before this gets started, I need to ask you a question. You have spent enough time with the High Keeper, you have seen the subtle horrors he is making in the Citadel, you have seen the evil done to the people.” The answer was already on Donner’s smirking face, “Will you and your men stand with me when the time comes?”

Donner replied loud enough so all his men could hear, “I handpicked each of these men. While they each had blood on their hands and on their lips.” Donner smiled.

“Go to hell,” Barcus growled, drew his gun and shot him in the eye. The back of his head exploded, spraying blood into the faces of the men behind him.

Then it all happened at once.

Ash had jumped from the tower above, at the same time, landing on his feet in front of the gate with what seemed like a clap of thunder, before the echo of the gunshot was through.

Suddenly, while the riders stared at Ash in momentary shock, at the appearance of this rumored demon, ALL the men on horseback were suddenly bristling with arrows and crossbow bolts from their chests. Heads began to explode from suppressed AR gunfire. Ninety of them simply tumbled to the ground beside their horses, dead. Nine of them, not killed outright, tried to gallop off, only to catch a half dozen more shafts in their backs.

Ash ripped them from their saddles as he ran impossibly fast after them down the south road into the forest.

Barcus looked around and up to see the entire population of Whitehall on the wall above. Just as he saw the third volley fly, he was startled by a gunshot directly behind him. He turned to see Ronan pointing a stainless steel, heavy caliber revolver, with both hands, at one of the five lead escorts. He had been about to fire a crossbow at Barcus when Ronan dispatched him.

Men with axes spilled out of the gate then. They quickly ended any that remained moving.

It was over in 60 seconds.

***

Smith walked out of the gate to Barcus.

“I thought I asked you to take them below,” Barcus asked, with an eyebrow raised.

“You also said I'd know when it was time to come up,” Smith said. “It was time.”

Grady had been one of the men with axes. He walked up to Barcus and Ronan, wiping the blood from his ax with a rag. “I understand you wanted to speak to me, my Lord.” Grady was very matter of fact, like cleaning blood from his ax was the same as drying a tea mug.

Ronan regained his composure. “It's good to see you again. Ann and Pyke send their kind regards.”

Two riders that seemed to get clear and outrun Ash were dropped by Par’s 10mm fire ripping them to pieces. The sound, like thunder, rolled over them and was ignored.

People began pouring out the south portal to lead the horses into The Abbey and the paddock. The horses were very well trained and never spooked during the fight. Two large wagons came out of the gate. The soldiers were being stripped of weapons, gear, provisions, pouches, belts and even cloaks if they were not too bloody. All of these items went into one wagon as bodies went into the other.

“Please return my greetings to them as well, if you live.” Ronan saw Grady's muscles in his forearms clench as he awaited word from Barcus. Grady's eyes went to the revolver still in his hand, now pointed to the ground.

“It's your wife, Wex. And your brother. They are very worried. They expected you months ago. I owed your brother, Cyrus, a favor.”

“And what is the favor?” Grady asked.

“I came to tell you that the High Keeper has taken Wex to the Citadel, to play the flute for him...and sing.”

Grady stared at him in shock. Barcus didn't know what this meant. Without a word, he turned and walked into The Abbey.

Ronan studied Barcus’s face in the fading light.

“I never thought I'd find someone that hated the Lord High Keeper as much as I do.” Ronan turned and sat again on the bench, placing the gun in his lap. “You usually have to meet him to hate him so much.”

“He killed everyone I loved. Everyone I knew,” Barcus growled.

“So you ARE the man from Earth,” he stated flatly.

Three of the women retrieving arrows and bolts nearby from the bodies froze for a moment at these words. Looking at one another, they continued working but did not move away.

“Yes. And I swear I will be the demon under their beds. And perhaps yours,” Barcus said through clenched teeth.

Looking into the distance, August said, “Thirty some years ago, something happened to the satellites over the East Isles.” Ronan looked into the sky. “They lost communications, imagery, everything there. Since then, I have been collecting strong, smart and independent people there. In the beginning, it was to quietly revive some simple technology to make people’s lives easier. Like better boat designs. I found the archives full of low-tech innovations that would make my people’s lives more comfortable, safer, without risking the anvil. Simple things like chimney designs, wood stoves, plumbing, better steel, medicines.” He looked back to Barcus. He could tell Barcus was trying to decide what to do with him.

“I am not one of these.” He gestured to the dead men. Ronan turned his revolver around and handed it to Barcus, grip first.

Po stepped up just then, with Ash right behind her as Ash said, “I like this Keeper. I will kill him last.”

Ronan looked up at Ash and then suddenly laughed. It was infectious. Barcus soon followed along with Po.

“And you have a golem. Why am I surprised?” Ronan said.

“Where is Ulric?” Barcus asked out loud.

Po replied at the same time Em brought up a window in his HUD. “He is below with the children. He isn't afraid of the dark at least. He will stay there until this is done. He's telling those stories again. The ones the children beg for and make their parents flinch.”