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Everything Begins Chapter 75
They were close to the ruins by midday. Frank could feel the evil pouring into and over him, and he knew that he would be tested soon. He only hoped he was up to the challenge. He could feel the slimy sensation of Daitya, the itch and prickling of Azazil, and every other indication of evil he had felt up to that point plus some he had not encountered yet. He knew that the ruins were where Sayatan had gathered his minions, and he also knew he had to keep the others out. Somehow, he had to keep them out.When they stopped for midmeal, he stood silently, staring east as the others ate just as silently. Then he spoke quietly. "You will all stay here. I will enter the ruins alone.""Not a chance, Ga'briyel," Dinton said instantly. "We are coming with you.""No you are not, Captain. None of you will follow me.""Ga'briyel," Tero said, "we cannot let you go in there alone. You need us."The Anmah spun toward his friends. "No, I do not! If you go with me, you will die, Tero! Anyone who goes w
Everything Begins Chapter 76
"I will not. Do not worry about that. I just want to stop the evil that is going to be released at last light tomorrow, and I will do whatever is necessary to do so.""As will we, my friend," Telantes said softly, and then Frank stopped and closed his eyes briefly before heading east into the ruins. They passed hundreds of buildings, most of them more than four stories tall. Some looked to be twenty or thirty stories high, and Frank wondered who had built such things. All of them had glassless windows that looked like empty eye sockets and gaping doorways with no doors, and most had walls that had collapsed in several places. Frank did not even glance toward them as he walked. He just strode down the wide street, carefully stepping around fallen stones and bricks and skirting deep holes that appeared at random in front of him. His eyes were blazing brightly, and he held his sword ready.More than two hours passed, and then darkness fell rapidly. Part of the reason was that darkness al
Everything Begins Chapter 77
"Impossible!" the black Dirack said, and both creatures opened their mouths to try again, but Frank whipped his hand forward and threw one dagger into each of their mouths. He could only hope they hit their targets, and when the Diracks roared and fell to the ground, he knew they had."Thank you, Yisu," he said quietly."Use the sword, Ga'briyel," he heard Telantes say. "Use it while it still bears the fire."Gritting his teeth against the pain of his wounds, the Anmah jumped into the mass of bodies that had not seemed to diminish despite the hundreds of bodies lying in the square. He swung it precisely, making contact with a creature with every pass. When he did, that creature burst into flames with a nightmarish shriek. Little by little, the red coloring disappeared until the sword was back to it's white glow, but by then, charred bodies lay all around Ga'briyel, some small ones that could have been Luten or Idajo and some large enough to be Takosa. He had even managed to kill two m
Everything Begins Chapter 78
Sobbing met his ears as he looked around the cell. It was different than the one he had been in. This cell had a table and chair and bed instead of a stone table. It also had an occupant. A man was seated on the bed, his knees pulled to his chest, and it was he who was sobbing. His hair was white, but when Frank took a step into the cell and the man's head snapped up at the sound of the door closing, Frank barely kept himself from cursing. This man was Anmah. What was an Anmah doing here? When the man saw him, he scrambled backward until he hit the wall. "You are Anmah! Who are you?" he gasped. "My name is Frank Mistri. Who are you, and what are you doing here?" "I am Debhida. I am here to provide sport for the Takosa and Dirack. Why are you here?" "Sport? How do you do that?"The man had relaxed slightly, and he shrugged. "I am set free every night at last light for the hunt, and every night they try to kill me. I cannot die anymore, though. I can only suffer. They will do the sa
Everything Begins Chapter 79
"I am sorry, Ga'briyel," Debhida said, softly laying his hand on the other's arm. "I did not mean anything by it." Frank shrugged him off. "Just leave me alone." Instead, Debhida sat next to him. "Where would I go?" he asked quietly. "When we get back to Mirstone, you can go home," Frank answered. "I cannot. I have to fight, Debhida. For Yisu knows how long, I have to fight and die and hurt and kill." He laid down on the ground and sighed. "I need to sleep, Debhida. I have not had a full night's sleep in at least four days." "I will let you sleep then, Frank Mistri. Hopefully we are far enough away from that place that nothing will find us." "I truly hope so, Debhida."The next morning, Frank watched as the sun rose to his left over the mountains. He shifted his sword into position at his hip, glanced at Debhida, and turned west. He knew that Dinton and the others would have left their camp days before, but he hoped to catch them at Mirstone before they set off for home. He did n
Everything Begins Chapter 80
“Wise or not, it is what I have to do.” He glanced at the other. “It is bad enough when I die, but if Dinton or Tero or, Yisu forbid, Sophyra dies, I will go insane. If I have to continue with this fight, I will do it alone.” He caught his breath. “I do not know any other way, Debaduta.”“I understand, Captain, I do, but I still think you are being foolish.”“You are probably right, but I have no choice. I must do this.”The Debaduta walked beside him for a few paces and then said softly, “How will you survive, Sainika? I do not mean that you will die between here and there, but you will starve, and you will be thirsty, and if you try to walk through these mountains, you will freeze. You have no horse, no coin, and no supplies. How do you plan on making it to Neyagin with nothing?”Frank stopped and glared at the spirit. “How far is the volcano from here?”“As the raven flies? About three hundred leagues, but there are many obstacles in the way. These mountains for one, and the Anupa
Everything Begins Chapter 81
“Of course not! We will stop at Torkeln on our way, and she will stay with my parents.”“No, Ga’briyel!” Sophyra said wide-eyed. “I will not leave you!”“You must, my heart. You cannot travel where we are going when you are with child. It will be bad enough getting you back to Torkeln.” He kissed her. “Do not worry. I will be back with you as soon as possible. I promise.” Dropping one hand to her belly, he gently caressed it. “I will not risk your life or the life of our child.”“I can help you with your journey, Captain Mistri,” Manali said as she reached underneath her cloak. She pulled out a scroll and handed it to him. “This is a map that shows the way to Neyagin. The Dirack eggs must be destroyed within the next five moons, and it will take you three to reach the volcano. Perhaps four. You must leave soon if you are to keep this evil from being born.”“I know, Manali, but I also need to rest. At least tonight and quite possibly all day tomorrow. As I said, we will leave the day a
Everything Begins Chapter 82
“Yes, Your Majesty. The other captains went home, but I have sent for them, sire. They should be here soon.”“No matter. You need to go home first, anyway.” Tomas smiled. “I can smell the horses from here, Captain.”“I am sorry about that, sire. I was told to come straight here.”“Who are these others with you, Captain?”Frank looked behind him and gestured for the other three to join him. Sophyra stepped up to his left, and the boys moved to his right. “These boys are Mathi and Zahin, sire. I have been told that Mathi is essential to my quest, sire, and Zahin as well.”“By whom were you told this, Captain?”“A priestess of Yisu named Nikale, sire.”“A priestess? So you are saying Yisu Himself wants these boys with you?”“Yes, Your Majesty. That is exactly what I am saying.”“Hmm.” Tomas’ eyes moved to Sophyra. “And this lady, Captain?”Frank grinned and took Sophyra’s hand. “This is my wife, sire. Sophyra Mistri si’Adama.”“Your wife? When and where did you marry, Captain?”“More tha
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- Everything Begins
Chapter 123
"I am fine, Frank, but I am very hungry." She smiled up at him. "Just like you always are."He frowned and ran his hand over her hair. "Not always, Sophyra. Not after the Dirack." He took her hand and led her out of the room, shutting the door behind them to let his son sleep. They went down to the main room, and Frank eyes went wide when he saw Telantes sitting at the bar talking with Luija."Telantes, my friend. Why are you here?" Frank kept his arm around his wife but walked up to the Debaduta and clasped his forearm."I am here to tell you where you are to go next, Frank."With a skeptical look, Frank eyed his friend and tightened his grip. "Why did Yisu not just tell me Himself like before? Why are you really here?"Grinning sheepishly, Telantes released the Sainika's forearm. "That is one reason, Ga'briyel. I cannot lie; you know this. But there is a second reason. You and your family..." The spirit looked at Sophyra. "I hear congratulations are in order again, Sophyra. Another
- Everything Begins
Chapter 122
"He is dead!" he announced, and the soldiers carried him into the same room as his supposed victim and laid him on the floor. Captain Panakari followed them, shooed them out of the room, and shut the door. "You can get up now, Captain Mistri." Frank opened his eyes, took his sword belt from the other captain, and stretched with a smile before strapping it around his waist. "There is a back way out of this room, Captain, but you must make your way to your inn on your own. Try not to let anyone see you, or they will know I lied, and then I will find myself in the noose."Frank held out his hand, and the other clasped his forearm firmly. "Thank you, Captain. I appreciate everything you have done for me tonight. Please know that everything I did was for the good of your people. They may not understand that, but it was. My family and I will be gone in the morning." He followed Captain Panakari to the door in the back of the room, and after it was unlocked, slipped out into the darkness of
- Everything Begins
Chapter 121
"Benefits of being friends with a Debaduta, daemon!" Then Frank stopped talking, swung his sword, and began the deadliest dance known to man with the daemon in front of him. Dolsaya's eyes went wide, and he tried to flee, but Frank was too quick, and soon the daemon was backed up against his storefront. With a single swipe, Frank removed the daemon's head from his shoulders, and with several others, dismembered it. Then he turned to the daemon behind him and resumed the dance. It seemed as if it only took a few minutes before Kaysaya's head was rolling along the middle of the street, caught in a rut formed by hundreds of carriage wheels, but when Frank had hacked the third daemon to pieces, he realized that it was dark, his muscles ached, and he stank like rubbish that had been sitting in the summer sun for a moon. He looked around and was surprised to see several people standing on the wooden walkways watching him. Most had torches, and he walked to one, grabbed his torch, and applie
- Everything Begins
Chapter 120
Adama grinned and slid out of their bed. He went to the chest of drawers and pulled out a white linen shirt, black breeches, and a red coat. He dressed himself quickly, and then looked at his parents expectantly. "Come, Baba," he said, excitement flowing from him and covering Ga'briyel, as he held out his tiny hand to his father.With a smile, Frank stood, held out his hand to Sophyra, who took it and joined him, and then took his son's hand in his. They went to the main room where Luija already had first meal on the table. The Debaduta was standing by their table, a worried look on his face."Are you sure about this, Ga'briyel? It will be dangerous at the docks. Two of the daemons have shops there, after all.""How did you know?" Sophyra asked him. Luija just looked at her, and she nodded. "Yisu told you, yes?""Of course He did, and I do not think this is a wise move to make, Sainika. The daemons will be waiting for you to bring your family out of the inn. I have a very bad feeling
- Everything Begins
Chapter 119
“Nor should you, my child.” Frank looked at his son, forced his eyes to dim, and smiled. He sat down next to Sophyra on the bench she had chosen, pulled her close, and kissed her softly. “Later, my heart.” He groaned softly when her heat almost smothered him. “Please, Sophyra, stop. Not now.”She rested her hand on his thigh and began to trace small circles on it. “I will try, my love, but it will be difficult knowing what you have planned for later.” She smiled coyly at him as Luija entered the room with a platter full of food. He set it on the table, smiled at Ga’briyel, and spoke softly.“I would love to speak with your son later on, Sainika. I think we could speak together for several hours. You and your wife could retire early to your room, I think, if you would like that.”Grinning and letting his eyes flare once, Frank answered, “I would like that very much, Luija, thank you. I was going to ask you if you would watch him for a while.”“Watch him? There would be no watching, Ga’
- Everything Begins
Chapter 118
“It is, but they know you are here, and they will block your ability to sense them. I will do my best to help you find them, but I am at risk if I leave this building, as well. I do not wish to be banished, and so I generally stay here. They know of me, of course, but there is nothing they can do about it.” Luija came around the bar, gestured over his shoulder, and walked toward the hallway that led off to the right of the main room. “I assume you would prefer a ground-level room, Sainika?”Frank did not move. “Why would you assume that, Debaduta?”The man smiled as he turned to face his newest boarders. “Stairs can slow you down if you need to leave the inn quickly, Sainika.”“Nevertheless, I would prefer a room above ground. Stairs may slow me down a bit, but I do not want anyone to be able to reach our room while we sleep. I will not risk my family like that, Luija. They are my life, and if I lose them, I cannot be responsible for what will happen.”Luija frowned at that last state
- Everything Begins
Chapter 117
There were several villages through which they rode where Frank and Sophyra were given distasteful glares when adults saw the tiny boy riding alone on the large bay, but while Sophyra took each look to heart, Frank ignored them completely. He could not ignore Adama’s innocent question the first time it happened, however.“Baba, why is everyone so angry?”“What do you mean, my son?”“When we enter a town, people stare at me as if they are angry.”Frank smiled. “They are not used to seeing such a small boy riding alone without support. They do not understand that you are not like other boys, Adama, and they disapprove of what they do not understand.”“I could make them understand, Baba. May I try, please?”With a shrug, Frank acquiesced. “You may try, Adama, but I do not believe you will have much success.”They had stopped at the first inn they had come to, having been in the saddle and sleeping on the ground for the past four days and nights, and Frank dropped from his saddle, helped
- Everything Begins
Chapter 116
"A fool am I?" Frank snarled. "And what is it that makes me a fool, Daitya?"The man laughed. "Anyone is a fool who tries to fight Sayatan and his sons."Ga'bryel grinned, but if a human had seen that grin, they would have screamed. "And yet I have killed three of his sons already, Daitya. Dismembered, they are rotting away as we speak, never to come together again. Soon they will be only bones." He shrugged as if it mattered not a bit to him. "I assume their souls are gone as well. That is what Telantes told me."At the name of the Debaduta, every Daitya recoiled. "That interfering spirit!" the spokesman said with a snarl. "He has been far too involved in your life, Sainika. Sayatan will deal with him in time. We may be able to banish him for a year or so, but Sayatan can destroy him as easily as you can destroy us.""Speaking of," Frank said, taking a step closer to the Daitya and readying his sword, "I am going to destroy you all right now.""You would fight unarmed men?""You are
- Everything Begins
Chapter 115
Unknown to the kosmar, Frank was fighting her in his mind. When she stripped him and herself bare, he battled with the vision of her and forced himself not to react. Devina noticed this and growled softly. She tried everything she could to stimulate the Anmah, but he struggled through it all and kept Sophyra in the forefront of his mind. With his wife's face emblazoned on his subconsciousness, he was able to resist everything Devina did to him. She became more and more frustrated as time went on, and then Frank slowly became aware of a voice in his mind.Baba! Wake up! Fight her, Baba!At that, Frank opened his eyes, and Devina jerked away from him. When he slowly stood, she backpedaled until she was against the door of the room. "How?" she asked softly."My family," Frank said quietly. "They protect me. Even from myself sometimes." He walked toward the kosmar until his sword's tip was at her throat, and then he grinned without humor. Devina's eyes went wide, and she raised her hands
