LW 05: Luck

1025 LC
Lugos:  Tages Military Compound

Just make sure you come back to me.

Haru bolted upright as the sun prismed through the cut glass window of the officer’s chambers.  He clutched his head as it whirled with the sudden movement, coupled with the last vestiges of a dream.  When his spinning thoughts finally stilled, he threw off the white sheets and slung bare feet over the bedside.  He turned, catching his image in the mirror.  He rose, grasping the knife on the nightstand and hurling it, his reflection splintering.

Haru knew his return to Lugos would not be greeted with fanfare, but he did not expect the wave of indifference.  After a short meeting with the Counsel, he was dismissed with little reprimand for what could be viewed as nothing less than a failed mission.  The films would say otherwise: “A Glorious Day for Solaria” they proclaimed.

His solitude was interrupted by a knock on the door. 

Haru had fixed a glare onto his features as he sat across from Er-kishi, the morning sun blazing into his eyes.  He didn’t doubt for a second that the Legatus had purposefully called him to the office at this particular time of day and strategically placed him where he would be most uncomfortable.  He hid his discomfort as best he could, but the shifting gold of his irises told otherwise.

Er-Kishi frowned at Haru’s expression.  “My apologies,” he rose from his seat and moved over to the curtains against the wall, purposefully pulling them somewhat closed.  Beams of light still penetrated the folds of the cloth, and to Haru it was far more irritating, like gnats prickling against his skin.

Er-kishi reseated himself, crossing his hands on the desk.  “I forget that you’ve had trouble controlling your power since the former Legatus turned against us.”

“So you say.”

Er-kishi sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.  “I barely escaped with my life.  It has been almost six years since the day.  If there is a different truth to the matter then the Legatus would have returned by now to set the story right.  She has not, therefore things stand as they are.”

Haru shifted in his seat.  “Yes.  I suppose you could be right.  But it does leave one to wonder how it was that you survived at all.”  Especially since Haru knew that Er-kishi would be the first person she would go after, if given the chance.

“I suppose, Tribuni, that it was luck, skill, or a combination of both.”  Er-kishi rose, moving to stand before the windows.  He reopened the curtains, his back to Haru.  “Now, to the point: your new orders, Tribuni.”  Haru squinted and slid the tablet from the desk, the system coming to life at his touch.  “It seems,” Er-kishi continued, “as if this ‘Harbinger’ character has become quite a nuisance.  The Counsel wishes to have it taken care of.  Quietly.  They’ve chosen you for the job.”

Haru froze, his eyes locked on the few documents contained in the file.  “From the stories, it seems as if this is a formidable opponent,” he stated, trying to keep his voice light.  “Why has the Counsel chosen to send only one individual?”

“Dear Prince, you shouldn’t listen to stories.”  Er-kishi turned away from the window.  “Besides, you will be allowed a small team.  There is an officer on Icaunus that survived an attack orchestrated by the Harbinger some time ago.  Perhaps you know of him?”

“Yes, I had heard.  Centuri Osawa Tando.  He was a classmate of mine at the academy.”

“The very same.  You will have to meet him on Icaunus, and the three of you will be given whatever you deem necessary for the mission.”

“Three of us?”

“Yes.   Centuri Tando has recently been assigned a new anchor.  A young soldier, but a talented one.  Of course, you understand that she must accompany him.  After all, you of all people know what it is like to wander around with no anchor.”

Haru couldn’t help but chuckle.  “As do you.”

“Ah, my case is a bit different.  I have never had an anchor, or the need of one.  A small blessing from Danu, as it seems there would be no bond for me.  After all, you bonded to the only sypher compatible with our abilities.”

A curt nod from Er-kishi signaled his dismissal.  Haru rose, his arm held in an obligatory salute.  When the heavy door eased shut behind Haru, Er-kishi’s gaze drifted from the jutting skyline to the tranquil gardens below where the Academy’s children were taking their recess.  The younger children raced through the paths, tagging each other in turn.  The somewhat older girls lounged in the sun, their bare legs outstretched to catch the warming rays.  The boys gawked and nudged, seeming to dare each other to approach.  Er-kishi could not help but wonder if things had ever been that simple in his life.  He shut his eyes but his memories were overrun with vacant stares.  He tugged the white gloves off of his hands and moved to the bath attached to the office.  He scrubbed the pale skin until it reddened and scratched, trying to wash away the feel of blood.

Back in his quarters, Haru couldn’t help but question Er-kishi’s motives.  Although it was possible that the Consel did not know the identity of the Harbinger, it was improbable that Er-kishi did not.  After all, he was supposedly the last to see her alive.  The tablet screen stared at him from the translucent desk, appearing to hover in the air.  Haru plucked his reading glasses from the surface, sighing deeply and steeling himself for what may come.

23 Kiro. 1021 Lifrasir Common Time.
Reports received: 18.  Re: Uncommon Sypher Activity on Gegenes, spec: Gaoler.  Sypher is of unknown abilities, presumably earth.  Most known activity is at the Arena.  Investigations are being launched re: Harbinger of Death.  Age, gender, height, and other physical attributes are unknown.

33 Kiro.  1021 Lifrasir Common Time.
Cursory investigations have concluded that a powerful sypher, called the “Harbinger of Death,” is fighting in the Arena at Gaoler.  Operatives were unable to properly identify the subject among the other fighters, so no physical description is reported.  However, the unidentified subject seems to be residing in or near the governor’s estate.  It is recommended that troops be deployed immediately to apprehend the subject.

Haru sighed, removing the glasses from his nose.  He knew this story all too well.   Over a hundred soldiers were sent to Gaoler to retrieve the unidentified subject, and not a single one returned.  Not alive, anyway—all of their identifying tags were inexplicably left on the front steps of the Academy.  A young student brought the satchel to the head instructor’s office.  Every “Harbinger” massacre had the same signature—the tags of the fallen, left in the same location each time.  That should have been his first clue.  She had always said that the enemy must be respected, or else you run the risk of underestimating them.  But at the same time, the location of the drop seemed like a taunt.   It was a puzzle that Haru couldn’t resolve

The authorities that were sent to discover what had happened on Gaoler couldn’t, either.  They were greeted with silence, and no amount of torture could part the Gegeniis’ lips.  The more astute authorities sensed dissidence between the governor and the Harbinger, but even this lead failed to produce any useful information.  The people of Gegenes were stupid and barbaric, but loyal to a fault.

Haru skimmed the listing of files.  There were over two hundred similar entries.  He had a feeling this was going to be a long and unproductive night.

Er-kishi ran his gloved hands over the desk, as if to smooth the slick surface as his thoughts drifted.  Having been born as a result of the Lugosian sypher breeding program, he had been ingrained at a young age with the concepts of loyalty, order, and cleanliness.   However, he prioritized these things a bit differently. 

From what he could remember of his mother, she was a strange woman.  She was schizophrenic, disorderly, and if she did not have the genetics of a sypher it was unlikely that she would have lasted long in the confines of Lugosian society.  But her pedigree allowed her to live a life of comfort and opulence, and she burned through the wealth of previous generations at an alarming rate.  She amassed countless collections, and each passing season brought a new obsession. 

The men that came called her An-sphynksa, though the name never dared pass Er-kishi’s lips.  He had no desire to be connected with her in any fashion.   He was not an only child, he had had siblings, though only one managed to survive.  The other three died in infancy—a fractured skull, accidental drowning, crib death.  An-sphynksa was not the most observant of mothers.  Er-kishi remembered the first death most vividly, his brother Er-salem.  The boy was found at the bottom of the staircase, the blood from his split skull pooling onto his mother’s new Attarabian rug.  She had howled like a trapped beast until the medics had to sedate her.  He had a guardian appointed for the following weeks while An-sphynksa was in recovery.  They were weeks of bliss.

The year his surviving half-sister was born was the year Er-kishi had entered the academy.  He remembered this moment with ecstasy.  He wiped the scourge of his mother’s shame from his skin and re-invented himself, becoming the shining star of the Academy.  As his bildungsroman, he taught the political science class at the age of seventeen.  He continued in the position for many years, it was considered his military employ, and used the opportunity to instill in the younger generation the concepts he deemed most valuable:  order, cleanliness, and loyalty.

That was until a brighter star emerged.  Like a supernova, it outshined any that were near.  It bucked order and cleanliness and clung to a bastardized concept of loyalty that confounded Er-kishi.  More likeable, more powerful, it stole what was once his.  But, like all bright stars it faded quickly.  The dust and disorder that was left in its wake begged for someone to set it right.  And again, Er-kishi shined.   A steady beacon.   The one who reaches out and sets what is wrong right again.  The Hand of Light.

Haru finally allowed the tablet to sleep, and it hummed quietly in the warmth that it had created.  The files were a useless stream of unconfirmed facts and random lunatic spottings of The Harbinger.  It was as if it was some elusive woodland creature with fanatic followers intent on catching a glimpse.  He removed his reading glasses, placing them on the desk and pinching the bridge of his nose.  He rose and shrugged off the tailored dress uniform shirt, tossing it in a heap in the corner of the room.  It sat, abandoned, like a lost creature in the rain.  He swapped the slacks for a pair of black sweats.  He finally untangled the long feather from his hair and set it down gently on the night stand.  Finished with this final ritual, he made his way to the single, floor-to-ceiling window in the small quarters and leaned against the sill, allowing his thoughts to drift.

His view was of the East wall, with its adequate space of greenery and single tree.  The wind brushed the tips of the branches and he could almost hear them crackle.  It was one of the only quiet spot on the grounds.  There were no sparring fields, no swing sets, no benches or flowers or walkways.  Nothing that held any interest for Academy residents.  Yet, it was so familiar to him that he could close his eyes and see exactly how the shadows of leaves dappled the ground.  He could hear the hum of the electrified wall and the quiet buzz of commerce on the other side.  It was luck, really, that he had the view.

At least, that is what he would think if he believed in luck. 

Tonight the ghost would come.   It had been many years since the night he had first seen it, brazenly daring the army to awaken and come forth.  He often wondered why no traps had been laid, and then the pieces clicked together like an ill-fitting puzzle.  Er-kishi.  The only person he knew with the sway to keep the Counsel diverted from the incidents.   The one who was sending Haru on this mission.  But the pieces only came together to form a blank sky, the remaining space gaping with more menace than promise.

He turned away from the window.  He allowed sleep to overtake him, knowing that tomorrow would wake with Icaunus.  And he would be one step closer to the truth.