Zax - 1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Across the sky ocean

Empty currents swell

And beat themselves into

Oblivion

Reefs of swirling sand

Crystal formations and

Beaches of time

Erupting lava black of soul

Rubbed raw until smooth

The Pearl of Meridian

A short-term, containment cell was designed as a jar that provided storage and protection for a valuable asset. But, it was still a place of confinement, a prison; if that asset was alive. It was also used for other more aesthetic devotions. Here on Paragon, the great pearl of the Meridian Crown, there was much that was hoarded. And there were many such jars. Every vault had one or more. Every Paragonian of rank had several vaults. The Great Castle Vaults were legendary. The Palace Vaults, places of splendor. And the Pleasure Vaults, well enough said. Your Vault was your home, be it ever so humble or ever so grand. Of course there were many mercantile vaults, large and small.

As such vaults go, this was a small one. About 100 meters cubed. And it was spartan. It was very well organized and almost full to capacity. It belonged to, shall we say, a rather unorthodox trader. Keufer K’han dealt in Riddles, Puzzles and Mysteries… the oddities, game quests and mind tinglers of a race obsessed with knowing secrets. Secrets. His meat and blood, where all the precious, shining things came from. It was best to have a self deprecating, amusing air about one’s treasure. Wouldn’t do to let on and completely unseemly to display in public.

Keufer K’han lay at his spiral desk watching.

~*~

Through the void. Mindless with madness. From every orientation. Distance and movement and passage. All and nothing at all. He awoke.

Strangely the jar did not discomfort him. He was cushioned on a body pillow of invisible, formed air. He was mildly restrained, but free to move like one does in sleep. He was naked. He had already discovered that his waste was sucked away somehow and he felt no thirst or hunger. Periodically, a small wafer would appear and hover before his mouth. It was most insistent the first time, demanding entrance. It melted on contact with his tongue. He also sensed his body was being subtly massaged and stimulated.

Strangely his skin appeared to golden. Some kind of light wave pretension, he decided. His hair was not affected though, it was still crystalline. What all else was going on was just too boggling to his already completely boggled mind.

But strangely he was not overly stressed.

Aelix sighed. And returned to his efforts to regroup and understand what had happened to him. His Young Master had sold him and at public auction. But the truly, surprising part was… here he sat well aware of the fact that he had been sold. He should not even be aware of that much. He shouldn’t know anything, especially that. But. Somehow. He was well aware of who and what he was. Which was impossible. Which didn’t make much sense. He was now someone else. Or more someone. Or more than one someone? How to understand it? But he knew. After all, the mind wipe worked. At least at first. Had it not? Aelix rubbed the back of his neck. He had woken up in this holding cell two days ago. It just didn’t make sense. No one sold an elite and certainly not at a public auction. He was an Elite? Again Aelix rubbed his neck. And no one recovered from a mind wipe. But, apparently he did. This time. His mind had been wiped before? He should only be barely functional, until the new directives and identity were imprinted over his mindset. All this at the specification of his new owner, be it whoever or whatever that was. How did he know any of this?

He had been playing dumb. Just sitting and sleeping and taking the small rations he was given. That did not make sense either, but he felt absolutely no compulsion to tell anyone that the mind wipe… didn’t work. He had not seen anyone, but he felt watched. In fact his mind was a jumble of new information. And at the apex of all this… this pile of shit… what? That can’t be. Aelix knew he could not curse or swear or blaspheme. Something new to ponder. So many new things to work thru. Shit. Sudden laughter. Aelix clamped a hand across his mouth. What the hell is this. More laughter. He couldn’t let this continue, it would give him away. So he relaxed, “calm yourself” he said into the chaos that was his mind. And then there it was again, his name. Zax. Another impossible fact. A mental prompt. A call. Around that name were flashes of insight and strangely, mystery. But at this moment only one of countless many caught his attention. Zax come home!

Was he Zax, not Aelix. In fact, he was not sure of anything… he was sure he was not any of the dozen names he suddenly had as his identity. What, he had a dozen previous names? And identity files and personality matrixes? As lists of functions and skills and special programming scrolled overlapping thru his mind, he was simply discombobulated, flabbergasted. Aelix thought he was a tutor… and a valet… and body servant… and guardian for his Young Master. That was all he was, other than an elite. But what was an elite?

And now he was on display in a strange vault. An exhibition.

Again, Aelix began at the beginning…

~*~

Durush S’oar, Minor Prince Royal of House Meridian, counted the minutes. His plan was flawless. With this last piece of information it was complete. All he had to do now was wait. Then they would all know. And they would pay.

~*~

Timfer K’han rocked on the edge of the serpentine rift. Father can’t hold me back forever he thought again. It is my time. Passed my time. If I have too, I will take my own quest dowry and steal away. Timfer jumped. In freefall, he imagined himself falling in the opposite direction. Not toward the pit of Paragon but into the vast unknown of space. He would have to fall far to actually reach unknown space. He would prove himself one way or another.

Timfer snapped his hands three times, from balled fist to open palms with flaring fingers. Instantly his invisible nonexistent wings manifested. His rapid descend slowed into a controlled glide down the cut cliffs. One more snap of his hands and he would be battle ready. But today was not about battle, today was about escape.

January 25, 2011