Rash'Tor'Ri (Soulguard Book 4), page 1
Books by Christopher Woods
Soulguard Series
Soulguard
Soullord
Bloodlord
Rash'Tor'Ri
This Fallen World Series
This Fallen World
Broken City
Power Play (Forthcoming)
Copyright©2016 by Christopher Woods
All rights reserved
Cover art by
Derrick Gallagher
Acknowledgements:
I'd like to thank all of you readers who have waited,
patiently, as I took so long to get this one ready.
And as always, I must thank my loving wife, Wendy,
who made it possible for me to live my dream.
And thanks to Tracy Mullins for a little story
about a bear.
Rash'Tor'Ri
Christopher Woods
Prologue
Rictor Hughes stood atop one of the enormous buildings in the city of Hub. Beside him crouched Kil'Sin'Deres, one of the strongest Kresh Rictor had ever seen.
"Seems odd to be workin' with you," he said. "Spent years tryin' to kill every one of your race I could find."
"When I decided to have Rash'Tor'Ri place his Mark on me," the giant Kresh rumbled, "I felt the same way. I used your race to push mine to join together and face a common foe. Never did I expect the way things worked out."
"He does that shit," Rictor said. "Just when you think you got it figured out, he changes the whole damn game. Boy's been pushin' folks from the day he was born."
"He would never claim any of the credit for what has occurred," Kil'Sin'Deres said.
"True enough. Can you tell if our target is in there?"
"My sources say he is," the Kresh'Farrara'Ti answered. "There is no true guarantee. I cannot see through the walls as Rash'Tor'Ri does. I find the abilities of my master very intriguing. He truly earns the name that was given to him."
"He always scared the shit out of the people around him. Always doin' something that would kill anyone else. Tryin' new stuff all the time. I'm guessin', considering who I'm about to assault a Demon Lord with, that he hasn't changed much in my absence."
Kil'Sin'Deres laughed.
"Are you sure this will work?" Rictor asked.
"Yes," Kil'Sin'Deres said. "It would not work on many of the clans but this one was different. There were two Kresh'Farrara'Ti at the head of this clan. One of them had taken the other with his Mark. The secondary is still here and the primary went to your world. The clans fell to the secondary when the primary died. If we do this, we take them all."
"It's a sound plan," Rictor said, "If he's here."
"And that is where we stand. We must find out if my source is correct. If we take him, we end the current war on your world. There will be another, but we can do what we can to help him."
"Agreed."
"Are you leaving your men atop the building?" he asked. "It seems dangerous to depend on a single person to reach him."
"They're good," Rictor said, "but they're not ready for this. They're Guard strength, not Mages, or whatever you'd call what I am now."
Rictor chuckled as he saw the one eye ridge raised by Kil'Sin'Deres.
"Maybe I'll tell you about it someday," he said. "When I first showed up it was in a facility with some sort of technology I've never seen in use by you guys. It healed me and more."
"More?"
"Much more."
Rictor launched himself across the distance between the two buildings to land on the roof of the facility housing the Gateway to the Doran Colony, Earth.
Kil'Sin'Deres landed beside him, and the two of them slipped through the darkness to a doorway. They entered quietly, and descended into the depths of the facility.
"Here's where we part ways," Rictor said.
"Remember, they must see you. It has to be a human."
"Oh, they'll see me," Rictor said, approaching the rail that was mounted to the stairs that wound down to the lower floors. "They'll see more than they want to."
Flames began to roll across his body, and he jumped over the rail to plummet down the central shaft toward the bottom of the facility. He Pulled from the Source of this world's life, and exploded with power that rained down onto the guards below. He landed with a crunch as the ground cracked under his feet.
Then he was moving. Out of the stairwell and into the throngs of Kresh that populated the facility. Most of the first Kresh he encountered were soldiers, and he ripped through them as if they weren't even there. The roars were deafening as the alarms were raised. A Wraith rounded the corner, and Rictor ripped its head completely off as he passed the space where the Wraith had been. The body toppled, and more roars sounded.
He saw more Wraiths to the left, and charged in amongst them. The more powerful would be surrounding the Farrara'Ti. Follow the power. He was Pulling without stopping, and the power was flowing through him. Before his "rebirth", he would never have been able to do this. A Mage is limited to the power his body can handle. Rictor's body had become different after the healing. He could now channel the power through himself, much as he had seen Colin do many times.
This must be what it feels like to him, he thought.
One difference he saw was that he did this with the cold calculating of a man who knows battle. Colin would have been fueled by rage, but Rictor sent the power where it would do the most good for his purpose. If his purpose had been to kill everything, he could have done like the Boss. But he and Kil'Sin'Deres had a plan.
The first Ma'Nar came within view, and Rictor hit it with a Soullance unlike any they used in the Soulguard. It projected from his whole body and just obliterated anything in its path. He was just past the Ma'Nar's charred form, and the Farrara'Ti saw him. This was the goal.
The Farrara'Ti started toward him, and every Kresh in the room staggered. Rictor saw the look of utter surprise in the eyes of the Demon Lord. Kil'Sin'Deres stepped from the darkness and walked through the kneeling Kresh.
"Welcome to the Rash'Tar," he said. "And now there is work to be done."
Rictor nodded to Kil'Sin'Deres.
"I thank you, Rictor Hughes," he said. "They had to see only humans until the end or our secret would be out."
"You're welcome, Kil'Sin'Deres," Rictor said. "If you see him while you're over there, give him my best."
"You could come."
Rictor looked at the platform where the Gates opened with a longing he had felt many times.
"I can't leave 'em behind," he said. "I got too much work to do over here."
"Understood."
Rictor slipped back into the darkness of the facility, and retraced his steps to the stairwell.
He hoped the Marking of the clans would help. There were so many of the bastards, it would take many more of the Kresh joining Kil'Sin'Deres before they could become the army he knew Colin needed. In the meantime, he would build the Guard on Kresh, and prepare them for the war that would come. Perhaps then, he would get to see his friends and family again.
Chapter 1
The C-130 was loud, but I had grown accustomed to the noise after all of the trips we had made in the aircraft over the years, since the first attack in Kansas.
"I still don't see why you have to go alone, Boss," Andrea Prada said. Over the last few years, she had been one of the two "bodyguards" that always accompanied me anywhere.
"They're no danger to me anymore," I said. "Kil'Sin'Deres marked the leader of this clan. They're mine now. The hardest thing is goin to be keepin' everyone from shootin my clans before we can get them back off world."
"I don't understand this Mark," she admitted. "I've seen it in action, though, so I can trust what you say. Many others won't. They killed fifty million humans and, poof, they're no longer the enemy."
"I know," I said, "I've got a lot of explaining to do. I never wanted to use the Mark again on Earth. I thought it wouldn't actually be an issue."
"Should've known better than that."
"True enough," I said. "At least, I have some people in my corner. Paige and Gregor, both, are workin' with their people to get the word out about what's happened."
"We're five minutes from target," the pilot said over the com.
"Roger."
"What?"
I hadn't even noticed who the pilot was. I had met him some time back. He was a copilot on a flight I had taken back then.
"How's it goin, Roger?"
"Fair," he answered, "all things considered."
"Best we can all hope for at the moment," I said.
Prada laughed, "I remember that guy."
I smiled.
"How many of these groups are out here on radio silence?" she asked.
"Four in this area," I said. "I'm gonna hit one and let em signal the others. They have flares for that."
"You see Hicks, tell him I said I can't wait for him to get back so I can f…"
"Too much information," I interrupted her.
"Spoil sport."
"Two minutes," Roger said.
The guy in the back of the plane pressed the open switch and the big door began to drop. The flashing light was red. It would flash green when I was over the target.
I already know I was close. I could feel them all. There were thousands of Kresh down in the jungles below us. Most of our forces had been ordered to cease fire, but there were several
The light turned green. Before I could move, Prada grabbed me. Her laughter rang in my ears, as she threw me out of the plane. I guess I deserved that. I couldn't help but laugh.
I twisted and positioned myself where I could look down, and find the target I wanted. I could see the dark souls of my new clans below, and out at the outskirts, I could see the bright souls of the Marines who were set to attack.
I went into a dive, toward the closest of the Marines. At the last minute I opened the portal to an enormous shield parachute. With a bone jarring jolt, even for a Soulguard, my speed dropped to a manageable speed. I had devised this one for a quick drop.
I still hit the ground with a deep thud, and dirt exploded out from my impact. I landed in the center of a squad of Marines.
One of the snipers had been about to fire his weapon, but he jerked around reaching for his sidearm.
"I'd appreciate it if you didn't take that shot, Corn," I said. "Been a few changes in the last couple of days. We're under a cease fire, now."
I approached another of the squad. He held a source weapon. I pulled an envelope from my shirt, "I brought new orders with me."
He read the orders, "Seems we have a cease fire, Marines. Santos, orange flare."
He turned to me, "Care to explain why my orders also say to report everything you do while in our area?"
"It's a long story, Hicks," I said. "The short version is this. You're familiar with some of the things from my past. I told you about the force on Kresh that's building up."
He nodded.
"My forces on the other side took the clan that was hittin' us. Now they all serve a new master. One who will not allow them to kill humans."
"That Mark you were talkin about?"
"Yes."
An orange flare shot skyward.
"Still hard to believe in somethin' like that," Hicks said.
"Follow me and see it for yourself," I said.
I walked past Corn, who still held his sniper rifle's butt against his shoulder. At least, his finger was off the trigger.
"Form up, Marines," Hicks ordered. "We'll be following Mister Rourke."
I headed down into the valley toward the dark souls that waited below. They knew I was there and dropped to their knees as I came within view. They came out of the shadows from every direction.
"Jesus," Corn muttered. "I thought there were a couple hundred of em down here."
There were thousands. If things had been like before, Corn would have opened fire and they would have been swarmed by a flood of Kresh.
"…bowing to him…"
"...What the hell is goin on?"
"…Who the hell is this guy?"
I heard the whispers that passed between the Marines. They weren't familiar with the boost to the senses that the enlarged Soul stream imparted on me. I was used to it by then. I heard the whispers wherever I went.
I saw the Ma'Nar ahead of us. He was the strongest Ma'Nar I had seen yet. Maybe on the cusp of becoming Farrara'Ti. He stood tall as I approached. I saw his eyes narrow as he sensed the power in me. I could see his confusion.
"How is this Mark so strong? You could not have placed a Mark this powerful."
He spoke in Kresh, but I understood him as if he had spoken English.
"I will show you," I said in his language. Then I pushed outward with one of the info dumps that the Shak'Tar used.
"Son of a…" a voice sounded behind me.
"What the…"
I had sent the info dump to those behind me as well.
"That's the Mark?" Hicks asked.
"That's what it felt like as it happened from my viewpoint," I said. "Probably nowhere near what those around me felt."
"And that would carry over to all the Humans around you?"
"That's why I can't use it here. That would have Marked every man, woman, child, and Kresh within ten miles."
"Damn, Rourke," Hicks said. "Startin' to believe all the hype."
"Gonna be hard to convince a lot of the other folks," I said.
"This is something never heard of for my kind, Rash'Tor'Ri," the big Kresh said. "Perhaps there is something to this feeling that came from the one who passed this Mark to my clan. It passed along with the Mark."
"What feeling?"
"An anticipation of something," the Kresh said, "something better."
"That feeling is called hope, Tor'Vas'Reman," I said.
"It is something I have never felt," he said. "It is hard to grasp, much like a Savakos."
I saw in his mind a slimy reptile that slipped through the hands as if coated with oil.
I laughed, "Sometimes it is. But when you truly grasp it, there is no more powerful emotion in the world. Never let it go once you catch it."
"Savakos taste wonderful," he said. "We will see how this… hope… tastes."
"That we will."
"Rourke," a voice said from behind me, "I got someone on the squawk box for you."
I turned to find the com officer.
"Patch me through."
"Soullord one?" the voice on coms asked. "I have one of your aids, here. They want to know where the gate needs to be opened."
"I'll get the coordinates to you in a sec," I said. "Can you give them the coordinates for that clearing over there?
I was talking to the com officer.
He nodded.
"Coordinates incoming," I said over the link, "Soullord one out."
I nodded toward the man and he rattled off the GPS coordinates.
"Now we wait a while, and send these guys home."
"There's gonna be a lot of people who have a problem with this, Rourke," Hicks said. "I'm havin' trouble with it, and I know some of the back story. Some won't have that advantage."
"I know," I said. "Things are probably gonna get a little interesting for me from this point out."
"They did just kill over fifty million people," he said. "That's almost the same body count of World War Two. That's not gonna be easy for anyone to overlook."
"It's true," I said. "But they aren't the same Kresh they were before. You may not be able to see their Souls, but I can."
"We saw what you saw when you did that thing a few minutes ago," he said. "Which means we saw that Kresh's Soul get slammed by the Mark you blasted him with. We saw the thing's Soul afterwards too. I believe you when you say they're changed, but others won't."
"I know, but I can't let people attack my clan either," I said. "When they're Marked by me, I'm responsible for their safety. They're mine, true. But I'm theirs, just as well."
"I sure as hell don't envy you that position," he said.
"Me either," I said and turned to Tor'Vas'Reman. "I need your help with something."
The Kresh nodded.
"You saw in the info dump how I used the others to make the power of the Mark more powerful?"
He nodded again.
"I want to try to call all of the Kresh in to this place. I need you to lend me your support, and the support of all of the Kresh here."
"I do not understand how you can do this, but I will try."
"Just don't fight when I reach for the power."
I closed my eyes, "When I give the word, I just need all of you to push the message with your will toward me. I will be the antenna."
I concentrated on the message I wanted to send, and let them all hear the words. This would be something grand, or it could be something that would make me look like an idiot. Hard to say which it would be.
"Now."
I felt the mental strength of three thousand, and forty one Kresh pushing a single message at me. I launched it outward with my mind.
COME TO ME CLAN OF RASH'TOR'RI.
Hicks and his Marines staggered as the mental voice boomed through their minds.
"Jesus!" Corporal Santos exclaimed.
"Now we just have to wait and see how far that carried," I said.
I looked back at Tor'Vas'Reman. His Soul rolled with amazement. His race would never have been able to make themselves do something like that before the changes made by my Mark. Whatever happened from this point out, his race would never be the same again. There were too many with the Mark now. There would be no going back to the way it was before.
