Ascension: Quest For Revenge

Chapter 9: Conflict (Part 1)

Axel opened the void and summoned all the weapons he had collected in Rayfort for the rebellion army; bombs, swords, shields, everything. Once that was over, all they had to do was to wait for Belle and her team to return with enough weapons to take down the imperials on the Lower Clouds.

And they waited.

Axel was shown to his quarters, where he sat down on his bed and meditated. He recalled all the events that had taken place till now and tried to make sense of it all. The sun was rising, and golden rays entered his room from the window.

He thought about the assassin, and how he had gotten the drop on him. The Royal Assassin turned into a Canet; and Axel knew there were no changelings in Bluegate before the war. Therefore, he had no personal connection to the assassin. The only way he would know to turn into that creature is if someone else described it to him; someone who was close to the Brooks family. He knew for a fact that the only one close to Axel who was still alive was Ender. This meant the assassin turning into a Canet was a test; to see whether Axel was really alive or not, and to kill him if he was. This wasn’t good; by now, Ender must know Axel is alive. He must already be taking measures against him.

Every time he thought of Ender, his memories slowly drifted away to his parents. His nightmares. His memories. The Great War.

He could not get the images of the war out of his head, no matter how hard he would try. The deaths, the losses, the constant chaos, the paranoia…

His parents…

The only way to set everything right was to kill Ender. He assured himself of that. If he could not accomplish that goal, then all of this was for nothing.

He took a deep breath and tried to forget about those memories. He thought of the twins; they were strange, but smart and powerful. Their powers fascinated Axel; it’s one thing for a mage to create force fields or become invisible through magic, but to have those skills as natural abilities, inherited from their parents – not to mention that they could share their powers with each other – was astounding. They also didn’t seem to know much about how magic works, or else Jack would know why Axel doesn’t sleep. He thought of what could be the reason that the two were fighting against Ender. It didn’t appear to be hatred or revenge; Axel could tell if that were the case. It seemed as if they considered it their duty, to the people of the empire, to make things better. How could they have no personal connection, no urge for vengeance against the king, and yet be so driven towards taking him down? For the people?

He continued to wait for Belle to return. It was starting to take a little too long.

After a few more minutes, his meditation was interrupted by an explosion somewhere far in the city. Axel quickly got up from the bed and looked through the window. Far away, behind a large building he could see a large cloud of smoke rising. That had to be somewhere near the bridge between the Lower and Middle Clouds.

Axel got out of his room and saw the twins getting ready for a fight; they were in their armour and suit and were grabbing weapons. Luna took a dagger and throwing knives while Jack took a long knife and a sword.

“What’s going on?” Axel asked. “Is Belle back?”

“She’s not,” Luna said. “That’s precisely the problem. She was supposed to be back an hour ago but she’s not. We’ve tried contacting her but she isn’t responding.”

“And then there’s the explosion,” Jack said. “We fear she might be in danger. We’re going to investigate and assist.” He sheathed his sword on his side. “I’m assuming you’re coming with.”

“I am,” Axel replied, and used magic to transform his clothes into his robes. He summoned the staff.

“That is cool,” Jack said, pointing at the robes. “If we weren’t so stressed, I would love to learn how to do that.”

“Jack, focus,” Luna said, then turned to Axel. “It’s only gonna be the three of us. Some rebels are stationed at nearby safehouses for backup, and the nearby spies might help should things take a turn for the worse. You can fly, right?”

“I can,” Axel answered. “You want me for recon?”

“No. That would be me. I can turn invisible and walk through walls; I can investigate the battlefield and plan accordingly. Should things go south, you’ll initiate an attack from above. I doubt they’ll see it coming.”

“What do you need me for?” Jack asked her.

“For… Assistance.”

“Right. Assistance.”

“Wait a minute. Why aren’t you carrying more rebels with you?” Axel asked.

“I’d rather not draw too much attention,” Luna explained. If the guards are aware before the raids that there’s an army of rebels, they will be prepared.”

“Good point,” Axel said. “We should get moving.”

“Well said, mate,” Jack said. “Let’s go.”

They headed out of the hideout towards the source of the explosion. The cloud of smoke was still faintly visible.

“It doesn’t make any sense,” Luna said. “They were simply supposed to find the blacksmith and collect the weapons. There was no chance of conflict.”

“Let’s not dwell on that,” Axel said. “Whatever it is, we’ll find out soon enough.”

“Quite right,” Jack said. “We’re getting close. Stay sharp.”

As they got closer, they heard a scream amidst the crackling sound of something burning and metallic sounds of swords clashing.

“We should hurry,” Jack said.

Their rescue was interrupted when something bright suddenly began glowing in the distance that immediately caught their attention. It was a projection of Ender created by a large crystal, a larger form of the Blue Emeralds. The announcement had begun.

“Oh no, this is too soon,” Luna said. “This can’t be good.”

“My dear citizens of Bluegate,” Ender began. He was wearing white king’s robes and had a crown on his head, but it wasn’t much different from the mage’s robes he used to wear. His face looked exactly the same as it used to before the war. Hearing his voice after five years, Axel’s hatred for him increased tenfold. “It has come to my attention that a new terrorist has entered our proud city.” His voice boomed across the district.

“There!” Jack pointed towards a wall. “We can take cover there.”

They scurried behind the wall while the announcement continued. “Axel. Brooks.”

Axel froze. He turned to the projection, gripping his staff tightly.

“I know you’re listening, Axel. I know you’re here. I didn’t believe it at first. Hell, I killed the announcer when he told me you are alive.” His laugh echoed across the city.

“Axel, don’t pay attention to him,” Luna said. “We need you here and now. I’m going into the battle. I’ll tell you what I see. You two stay here.”

Ender kept going on. “But when even more people began telling me that you’re alive, I was… Disturbed.”

Luna turned invisible. She ran right through the walls and buildings straight into the heat of battle.

“And you’ve already begun attacking my great city! The smoke and flames of the recent explosion are visible from my throne room! My fellow citizens, Axel Brooks used to serve the last king, Dormen the Dishonourable! So you already know how dangerous he is to our way of life!”

“Did you really serve the last king?” Jack asked Axel.

“Yes, and I betrayed him in the War to side with nonhumans. Of course he failed to mention that he also served the king before the war.”

“Do not fear, citizens!” Ender continued. “I have taken every step to ensure that his evil does not result in any more deaths! He will not ruin our great festival! He will not terrorise our great city!”

“What’s he getting at?” Jack said.

Suddenly his projection turned red.