Visitors (4/6)

Left, right, right, left, left right. The amount of movement involved in this exercised perplexed Vagus to no end. His father was a colossal brute, the sort of fighter who would have powered his way through a foe’s meagre defences to literally tear them limb from limb. But the way in which Mycaelis had been trained to move was something else entirely.

The Charmander moved with such grace, precision and speed that he was almost an orange blur before Vagus’ eyes. Vagus’ legs simply couldn’t move him fast enough. The only purpose they seemed to serve was keeping his body upright while Mycaelis pummelled him in an endless stream of bone shaking strikes.

Vagus’ legs finally gave way, allowing Mycaelis to deliver a swift kick to the bottom of his jaw and flipping him falling onto his back. Vagus tasted a hint of copper in his mouth and grunted.  They had been at this for many hours now.

‘See.’ Mycaelis grinned, standing over him. ‘You are Laconian. Dad reckons anyone else wouldn’t be able to move by now.’  

Vagus, despite the pummelling he was getting, he was able to feel Mycaelis’ words stir a sense of pride within him as he rose to his feet. He was groggy and his joints hurt like hell, but he was still standing.

‘Well, at least I’m able live up to part of the legend.’ Vagus grunted, spiting a speck of blood from his mouth.

‘Aye, ya can indeed. But from what Dad says, Laconians can dish out as much damage as they can take.’

“Dad says this, Dad says that”, all he had heard from his brother’s gob were words linked to his father. Just how deeply did Gaius sink his teachings into Mycaelis’ mind? Vagus could be forgiven for thinking that it was his father he was sparring with rather than his brother. But then again, he knew he would be dead several times over if it was truly sparing with the colossus that was his father.

Vagus then asked the question he should have asked several hours ago; when his brother promised him that he would be a son that his father could be proud of.

‘Mycaelis,’ he said panting, recovering his breath.‘How…how exactly do you plan to get Dad to recognise my strength?’

‘Well, duh. By beating the crap outa me, of course. You gotta show that we’re both on equal ground. Even if I am slightly older than ya.’

An inconvincible horror overcame Vagus, one that transcended the fear of being continually beaten into the dirt by his loving brother. Mycaelis was the embodiment of his father’s legacy, his vision of a perfect warrior, his desire to create a legend of his own, he was the embodiment of his pride and ego…an ego that towered above the greatest trees of this jungle, an ego that was so monolithic in size that none could challenge it.

Vagus was being asked to beat the crap out of it.  

He took a deep breath before responding. ‘Mycaelis…I can’t do that.’

‘Well, of course ya can’t. Not yet, but you-’

‘You don’t understand! It’s not that I can’t, it’s that I’m not supposed to be able to beat you!’

Mycaelis regarded his brother with an inquisitive frown. ‘What ya mean?’

‘Don’t you get it? You’re Dad’s golden boy! Do you have any idea what he’ll do to me when I undermine everything he’s done to make you who you are? When…if I ever beat the crap out of ya, he’ll…he’ll…’  He shuddered, the skulls mounted on the walls of their hut flashing before his eyes.

Vagus believed that his father’s ego was so colossal, that it defied reality. He was king of this world, master of this universe, everything went the way he planned it to go, everything occurred as though it were an extension of his will, anything that went against him, simply didn’t occur. He simply didn’t allow it to occur and when it did, he quietly dealt with it and denied the fact that it ever occurred.

Even if Vagus, by some miracle, became stronger than Mycaelis, his father would simply deal with him and deny that Mycaelis’ defeat ever occurred. A whole stream of excuses would cover it up. Mycaelis was ill on the day, the sun was in his eyes, or he was already injured from a training session. It didn’t matter; his father would come up with some reasoning that implied that Vagus had an unfair advantage. The whole thing will be forgotten and life would continue as normal with the exception of Vagus being eternally absent from it.  

Vagus stared at his brother in silence. It was clear from Mycaelis vacant expression that he was at a loss for words, or was searching very hard for some to say. For once, just once, his brother was left without an answer to give. His indoctrinated mind wasn’t built to think of himself as a golden boy.

An answer came eventually, it was on the tip of Mycaelis tongue, before he could respond, Vagus felt something clamp down from behind on his shoulder.

‘Excuse me?’ came a voice.

It was a female’s, a well-spoken female voice. But the most startling thing about it was the fact that Vagus had never heard it before. Throughout his entire life most of the voices he heard were those of his family and the roars of the jungle’s many ferals.

‘Who are you?’ snapped Mycaelis rushing towards Vagus and pulling him away from her touch.

It was then Vagus was able to look up at this new arrival. His eyes widened at the sight of her. She too was towering figure, almost as big as Divina, but still smaller than his father.  No one was bigger than his father.

‘Better yet,’ said Vagus. ‘What are you…?’ He had never seen such a creature before in his life. She was a hunched creature with a giant spike laden shell upon her back from which her head and a pair of thick arms protruded from. A pair of thick legs supported the mass of her upright body.

‘Goodness. You have never seen the likes of a Chestnaught in these parts?’ The creature, the Chestnaught, surveyed both Mycaelis and Vagus with a pair of inquisitive eyes. ‘I am seeking Commander Gaius. I take it that you are his sons.’

‘C-commander?’ Mycaelis scratched the back of his head.

She turned to Mycaelis and seemingly recalled something from the depths of her mind. ‘Ah, yes. Little Mycaelis.’ She beamed brightly. ‘It is good to see you are growing well.’

Vagus had always been told by his mother that he was born with a sharp mind, but never before had it ever felt so blunt and confused as now. He turned to Mycaelis astonished at the Chestnuaght’s recognition of him and saw equal confusion etched on his face. Mycaelis had never seen her before in his life, nor had Vagus.

‘W…what do you mean…?’ Mycaelis stuttered.

Before a response could be given a call came from the depths of the jungle. A voice that was familiar to him, that of his own mother.  ‘Artemis?’

She came from the brush amongst the jungle’s trees and beheld a sight that made Vagus’ heart skip a beat. She was covered in blood. Lots of it, none of which Vagus assessed to be hers. She appeared almost exhausted and even her voice sounded hoarse. His father, like a bulldozer clearing scrubland, lumbered through the foliage behind her. He too was covered in blood, not his own either.

Both his parents regarded the new arrival with surprise. Shock or horror would have been the more correct words for it, but Vagus never knew his parents were capable of even feeling such an emotion as shock let alone horror. The Chestnaught, named Artemis turned to address their parents, revealing something that made both Mycaelis and Vagus eye’s budge. An armband, black as the night sky and identical to that of their father’s was wrapped tightly around her left arm.

‘A Laconian?’ whispered Vagus to Mycaelis.

Vagus’ head began to spin as his mind attacked everything he was raised to believe. That they were the last. That there were no others. Questions came faster than he could reason with them. He wanted to know. He wanted to know everything.

Artemis regarded Vagus’ parents with a stern gaze. ‘Divina. Gaius.’ She surveyed their blood splattered bodies and smiled. ‘Glad to see you’re making the most of your long term vacation.’

Gaius crossed his arms and growled. He seemed as tired as Divina was. Vagus could tell that he had not anticipated someone to intrude upon his world where he reigned as king. He was writhe with self-contained fury, like a bottle ready to burst its cork. ‘You better start talking, Artemis. We’re not having a good afternoon.’

Gaius seemed as though he was using every effort he could muster to keep his manner as polite as possible, even in his enraged state. Whoever this Laconian was, she seemed to demand a certain degree of respect.

It was then Divina turned to him. ‘Can we at least take this inside?’ She nodded towards Vagus and Mycaelis, trying to subtly indicate to Gaius that his sons were within earshot of the conversation.

Gaius nodded in agreement and silently lumbered into the hovel with Artemis following close.

‘Mum.’ Vagus piped up. A hundred or so questions rushed forward, but the one that reached his tongue first was one that seemed to sum them all up. ‘What the hecks going on?’

‘Things, Vagus.’ She seemed tired. ‘Many things.’

Frustrated, he wanted to yell at her for being so vague, but Mycaelis beat him to it. ‘What fuckin’ things?’

She sighed. ‘I will explain it to you in due course. For now…I need you two to keep an eye on things out here. Keep each other close. Alert us if there’s anyone here.’

Without further word she turned and entered the hovel, pulling the door closed as she went. It didn’t take much for Vagus to realise that something had gone very wrong and that matters were about to only grow worse.  

For a while both he and Mycaelis did as they were instructed. They stood outside the house, both on opposing sides of the door, standing with their arms crossed like a pair of the world’s smallest nightclub bouncers, ready to knock the crap out of anyone who they didn’t like the look of.  

More time passed in complete silence. Night had completely fallen and the jungle was pitch black. Only the warm glow of torches staked into the ground providing any illumination. There was no moon, and the torches themselves did a poor job of illuminating the jungle.

Vagus knew that their hovel was only supposed to be a hidden refuge, not a blazing well lit fortress that challenged all around it test their mettle. But what it was that this refuge was hidden from, he could only guess. Was it the ferals that roamed the jungle, or perhaps groups of miscreants from the outside world? He had seen his father deal with dozens of those.

Now it seemed that there was a threat in this jungle that went beyond those of his reckoning, something that had managed to exhaust both his mother and father and strike hints of uncertainty into their hearts. He wanted answers and he wanted them now.
Fed up with the long and endless wait, he crept closer to the door and placed his head against it, wanting to hear what he could of the conversation inside.

‘The heck are you doing?’ Mycaelis snapped under his breath.

‘What does it look like?’ Vagus responded with a whisper. ‘Shut up.’

Mycaelis crossed his arms and snarled. He turned his attention back to the jungle behind him, obeying his mother’s order. Years of discipline and indoctrination had worked wonders for Mycaelis. His mind had been constructed to obey every last law and rule his parents had lain down without question. How he would respond to anyone else’s laws or rules Vagus could only guess. He knew Mycaelis was already risking a fair bit trying to train him.

Vagus listened to the ensuing conversation on the other side of the door and cursed himself for not listening in sooner. He could make very little sense of what he heard. Nonetheless, he continued to listen and when he listened, he learned.

‘So they are here, then?’ he heard Artemis. Her voice lacked its formality. A hint of fear seemed to have crept into it. ‘You can confirm this?’

‘After what we just survived. Yes.’ Divina’s voice was firm. ‘I’ve documented the rest of the proof in this journal, here.’

‘They’re getting stronger.’ Gaius rumbled. ‘For the past decade or so we’ve been following nothing but crumbs, but now…’

Artemis sighed. ‘Then it is time for you to leave, for both your sakes and those of your sons. Bring this news before the assembly. I’m sure you both will be commended.’

‘The child of the Blossom Garden is still missing,’ Gaius snarled. ‘Our work here isn’t finished.’

‘That objective was secondary and purely a formality. The situation back home is precarious enough as it is. All is about to go to ruin. We need you, Gaius.’

Artemis almost sounded like she was pleading with him, almost begging. It was then she uttered a sentence that sent shivers down Vagus’ spine. She dropped the name of place that he believed was only the stuff of myth and legend.  

She pleaded again. ‘Please, Gaius. Return to Elysium.’