City of Gold (29 page)

“Hansi? What are you doing here?” she stammered. His handsome face and dashing smile made her quickly regret having so rashly removed her makeup.

“You have been summoned to the chamber of the Golden King.”

“At this time of night?”

“The King has something…
special
planned for you.”

69

Packaged

CODY’S HEAD BURNED as he fought for breath. The hollow wraith’s fingers clamped tighter around his neck, pressing against his windpipe. Cody’s vision began to blur. He could faintly make out the shapes of the two Wielders and four hollow men closing in on him.

He grasped the attacker’s wrists, trying to pry them away from his throat but the grip was too tight. His vision was lost and his body went limp.

Boom!
Cody’s ears rang at the sound of a bang. The pressure on his neck instantly loosened. Cody rolled to the side, falling off the bed and crashing to the floor. The hollow man on the bed was scorched black from head to toe. Gasping for breath, Cody scanned the room. The other hollow men and the two Wielders were scattered across the floor, steam rising from their lifeless bodies.
What in the world just happened!?

He didn’t have time to find out. He scrambled to his feet and dashed away from the area. Whatever boom had slain the men had not gone unnoticed by the rest of the factory. Disorder rose up from all parts of the domed room.

Cody looked across the vast factory and calculated the sea of enemies separating him from the corridor exit.
It’s too far
.

Heavy footsteps and voices behind set him running again. He darted around the corner and leapt over a conveyor belt. His feet skidded to a stop as several golems clustered in his path. He threw himself behind cover just as they approached. Crawling on all fours Cody scurried quickly along the floor. Glancing over his shoulder he saw the shadows of four more golems.

He sprinted down the side of the belt and pulled himself around the corner, pressing his back against the ledge and covering his mouth to suppress the sound of his heavy breathing.

The corridor exit was still far away. He couldn’t keep up the game of cat-and-mouse much longer.
Thud
.

Something brushed past him, knocking hard against the side of his head. It was a large steel container. Cody watched the container’s path as it rose into the air and soared over the room on the complex pulley system.

Cody felt the bump of another container as it glided by. The agitated voices of the four golems were getting louder. Before he realized what he was doing, he impulsively grabbed the next container and hurtled himself over the edge.

His landing was softened by something cold and squishy. Cody sunk into spongy matter up to his neck. He grasped the side of the bin to keep from sinking in over his head. He vomited when he saw that the bin was completely full of unattached ears.

He thrashed in disgust, trying to pull his body out. They’re fake! They’re just artificial, created parts…. His desperate reassurance did nothing to ease his stomach. He finally managed to pull himself up and onto the bin’s ledge.

The floor was tiny below as he soared a hundred feet above it. He instantly felt queasy again. He traced the path of his bin right past the exit. He braced himself to jump.
Wait for it…wait for it…wait…for it….

At last the bin came parallel with the corridor’s ledge. Cody leapt from the bin, stretching his arms outward. He stumbled as his left foot caught the edge of the container. Suspended in the air, his face peered down at the ground.

He groaned as his body swung and crashed against the wall. His fingers burned as they held his weight and kept him from plummeting to a mushy death a hundred feet below.

He risked a glance down even though his arms shook violently from the tension. A cluster of Dark-Wielders had gathered below and all eyes were on Cody. They raised their arms and he saw their mouths begin to move.

With a pained scream Cody pulled himself onto the ledge by his fingertips and out of the sunken warehouse. The lengthy corridor stretched out before him. Cody rolled to his feet and sprinted as fast as he could. The door at the far end grew larger and larger.
Almost there!
He didn’t dare look back to see if he was still being followed. He needed to escape the nightmarish laboratory—and fast.

The door was now only a dozen feet away.
I made it!
He reached out to grab it. From the corner of his eye he saw motion but was too slow to react. A fist collided against the side of his head sending him staggering to the floor, winded and dazed.

A hooded man stepped over him, grasping him by the collar and dragging him into a side room. Cody flailed his arms, swatting at the man, but his sense of balance had been knocked out of sync by the unanticipated blow.

Cody felt himself being lifted into the air and dropped back onto a hard surface. He was now in one of the silver crates. “Noooo!” His cry was suffocated as the lid of the crate slammed shut, trapping him in darkness. Cody pounded his body against the sides of the encasing, but the tight compartment confined his arms, pinning them against his side. He couldn’t move an inch in any direction. He coughed as the air began to grow thin. “Help!” he tried to scream, but no sound came.

He heard muffled voices from outside the box. “Where’s this crate headed?” asked a steady voice. “Should I bring it to initiation?”

“No,” replied a second voice. “Not this one…send this to the furnace.”

70

Stranger in the Night

THE HEAT OF THE HUNTER’S BREATH burned like fire against her face. Its two flaming eyes remained still, penetrating her and savoring the pitifulness of its helpless prey.

Tiana thrashed desperately at her bindings but the work only managed to press her face harder to the cold ground. She heard the sharp sound of the Beast’s talons as they cut across the ground, slowly approaching.

Her screams were silenced by the golden platelet over her mouth. It was no use. She could do nothing but wait. The approaching steps grew louder as the Beast drew closer. She felt breathing against the back of her neck and braced herself for the piercing sting of the Hunter’s fangs.

Suddenly, the bindings around her loosened and she immediately wiggled them off. The Hunter squealed. Tiana jumped to her feet. She grabbed at her mouth trying to pry the platelet off.

With a rumble the ceiling of the cave began to collapse. Tiana took off running the opposite direction of the wailing Beast. Completely blinded in the dark, she staggered dizzily as her head screamed for air.

She could hear footsteps beside her but couldn’t see a face or body. She stumbled into a wall but felt two hands grasp her shoulder and gently shift her direction. Tiana continued to run through the gloom.

As she ran, the stranger continued to guide her path. It was as though the invisible guide was running in beautiful summer daylight.

She didn’t know how long she ran or if the Hunter was behind her. She put her faith in the invisible stranger and ran until her legs began to wobble. All at once the utter darkness was replaced by the expansive landscape.

Tiana staggered out from the cave. Down below in the valley sat El Dorado in a tranquil slumber. Tiana heaved over, clutching her head and trying to maintain her vision.

She turned back to the opening of the cave. Inches from her face, a man stared directly at her like a ghost. He had no eyelids.

Tiana shuffled back in fright. The man stepped toward her and reached his hand for her face. Tiana closed her eyes and flinched. The next thing she knew a wave of soothing air flooded her lungs.

She grabbed her mouth—the gold platelet was gone. She looked back at the stranger who motioned for her to follow. Without waiting for a response, he disappeared over the dune. Tiana glanced around, and then ran after him.

Cody felt himself bobbing through the air. He kicked at the walls of his prison and his head whiplashed and smashed against the floor, all to no avail.
Did they set me down?

He strained to hear. He could make out quiet voices but couldn’t determine whom they were or what they were saying. Suddenly the cart began to rumble and he heard a cranking noise.
They’re lowering me into the furnace!

Cody thrashed with all his strength. “Help! Help!
Help!
”

He began to sweat as he was lowered deeper and deeper into the blazing heat.

PART FOUR

ILLUSIONS

AND REALITY

71

Phase Three

HE WATCHED THE NUMBERS CLIMB like the steady ticking of a bomb:
23…24…25….
He removed his hat and ran his boney fingers through his thick, sweat-dampened hair.

He anxiously shifted his weight back and forth between his right and left legs. He was not one overly acquainted with the sensation of nervousness. Such sentiments belonged to weaker men. Yet, as the numbers continued to rise, the jitters seized control of him—
35…36…37….

It must be a significant development
, he thought, dropping his gaze to his freshly polished dress shoes. In all his years, the number of times he had been summoned for a face-to-face meeting could be counted using just his fingers. He was never eager to add to that tally.

As the digits hit
66
it was announced with a
ding
. The elevator doors slid open and he took a final deep breath before he marched out into the room. He hoped to reveal more confidence than he felt.

The back of the chair faced him, a haze of smoke rising up from the other side. He removed his hat in respect. “My master, you summoned me…?”

Another puff of smoke preceded the reply, “Indeed, my faithful Dunstan, in hopes that your lips carry good tidings.” The man’s voice had not an ounce of warmth. Dunstan felt his hands twitch. Phone communication was frightening, but in person, the voice, naked and untainted, was downright haunting.

“I have personally assured that the boy’s journey was successful. The Book Keepers have been united at last. I obediently await further orders, my master.”

“And, our man on the inside?” the master asked.

“He remains under our control. We remain in possession of the leverage. I assure you he will play his part when the time comes.”

The master’s hand appeared from behind the chair. The skin was like rough leather and a prominent scar ran from the top of the hand to his elbow. He dropped the cigarette butt and grasped a shiny object leaning against the desk.

There was gleam as he lifted a magnificent sword. “The time for CROSS to rise from the ashes has come at last. Begin
Phase Three
.”

Dunstan felt a chill run down his spine. “Sir,
Phase Three
? Now?” He bit his tongue before another reckless sound could exit.

“You question me?”

Dunstan felt his heart racing out of control. “Of course not, master! There is no other like you. I live only to do thy bidding, my master.” Dunstan rubbed the wrinkles on his forehead. “It’s just…after all this time; all this preparation….”

The master brought the sword down, its blade piercing the floor. “Patience is the greatest virtue of the greatest predators; but the time has come. Go, faithful Dunstan, and do what you must do. Today the spark we ignite will become a raging inferno.”

72

Resistance

AM I ALIVE?

The consuming darkness around him was suddenly dispelled by light streaming in from above. Two hands broke through the glare and grasped his collar, hoisting him into the air. Cody gasped for air as the world blurred back into focus around him. The air was damp and heavy.

Cody looked down to the empty silver crate and then to the hooded man who had pulled him out. “Where am I? I thought I was lowered into the furnace.”

The hooded man nodded, “And so you were.” Without any further explanation the man urged him forward. They were in a darkened tunnel; the rocky ceiling of a cave only ten feet above their heads. “Where are we?” Cody asked again, but his escort offered no reply.

As they turned around the bend the tunnel opened up into a wider compartment. Cody gasped in surprise—there were hundreds of people.

They wore tattered clothing and their skin was shaded gray with grime and filth. Their emaciated bodies appeared as mere walking bones draped with a thin blanket of skin. Scattered about the caverns, small huts and shelters had been weakly constructed with tattered tarps and stacked rocks.

The shanty hovels and deprived people became scarcer as Cody was led to the outskirts of the parish. They came to a small nook in the side of the rocks. Cody stopped to examine the solid rock mount in front of him, running his fingers across it. It was a dead-end.

He sensed the hooded man blocking his only path out. Cody gulped. “Are you going to kill me?”