The Jaguar

The sun was shining over the walls. A scorching ball of fire in a cloudless sea.

One of the few Whiskers who were stationed over the walkway, was treading back and forth, stopping sometimes to scan the horizon.

He was sweating and puffing, bored by the task which was given to him by his commander.

Then a sharp sound attracted his attention. He went by the bulwark, but his eyes didn't catch a thing.

He shrugged and got back to his position. He was certain that what he heard was nothing worth noticing.

Under him, a couple of meters from the parapet, a grappling hook was pierced to the granite.

A rope made of steel was attached to it. A long line which ran to the ground. On the lowest end there was a small squad of Hummingbirds.

Far from them, hidden in Zerzura's ruins, there was a bigger party of rebels. They were standing there, waiting.

Some of them were shaking, other were trying to think about something else. They were all shut.

Then one of their transceivers started emitting a sound. The squad's captain took it and turned on the volume.

"Secretarybird, situation report" said Gluskap on the other side.

"Jaguar is on the move. What's your status Komodo?"

Gluskap was in the tunnel with the rest of his army and part of the Shaxes.

"On our way to the target. What about Badger?"

The signal encountered an interference for a while then the voice of one of the Elders came from the transceiver.

"Whenn they times wills comey, wey wills bey ready"

Gluskap looked in front of him.

"If anything goes wrong, don't budge. We have only one shot"

"Copy"

"Copy, my king."

"Are you alright, sir?" asked one of his soldiers.

"Yes…Yes" said Gluskap changing the tone of his voice while trying to sound more confident than he was.

Tithon was on the parapet, looking at his city. Trying to find signs of the coming danger. He was wearing his battle suit, the new one, based on Malsumis old suit.

His eyes slightly closed to protect from the scorching sun.

The wait was excruciating.

He turned and paced back into the main room of the attic, where was standing Gehenna, in usual dark veil.

"When will they show themselves?" asked himself while looking to her.

She shook her head. Then tilted it, like she was looking at the sky in the windows.

He tried to understand what she was gazing at.

Then the sky jolted.

"What happened to Lud's clone? Did he betray us?"

"Give us the truth."

"Tell us that we can trust you. Tell us that we don't have to worry about Agaklythos"

"We need to talk to the people of Scarbray. They can tell us more"

"I won't move from here, not one inch. I just want to know the truth"

"What if statying here for all this time was what Agaklythos wanted? What if the Chief is not on our side?"

"Bollocks, I'm loyal to the Chief, not to a casual stranger who resembles Lud"

"Why can't we know what happened to him?"

"I've lived in Rocabarra for so long and no one ever told me that there was another city with more people. No more lies"

"Chief, answer to us. We need to know why a stranger wants us to leave and meet with his kind"

"If you have the balls you would answer to us"

"What is your deal with Agaklythos?"

"Who cares, where's the intruder?"

"We need to take our chance and go to Scarbray to talk with the others. We need to know the whole truth"

"You will" roared the Chief, shutting down all the citizens who were standing in front of him

"Where's Kurban?"

"He…We dealt with him"

"What? What happened?"

"He was…a spy…sent by the…Supreme Leader of Scarbray to subdue all of us. I caught him talking to…him on his transceiver"

"Is that the truth?"

"Yes, it that the truth?"

"Yes…it s the…"

"Chief, it doesn't look like that. Since he came here, no one has been armed and he wasn't even carrying a gun"

"He is deceiving us by showing us his kind side…don't be…fooled by…"

"That sounds like bullshit, sir. Why are you lying to us?"

"He is not lying. Our Chief never lies. He has always cared about the wellbeing of Rocabarra"

"Exactly, why would he lie to us?"

"People" said the Chief, attracting the attention of the whole crowd on him

"The stranger has been lying to us the whole time. You won't see him around anymore"

"That's not the truth, you're lying"

"Where is he?"

"How can we trust you?"

"We should listen to him"

"Shut up, he doesn't deserve all this consideration"

"What about Lud's descendant?"

"She died in her sleep" answered the Chief.

"Dis she say or leave anything before dying?" asked a young woman.

The Chief looked at his pocket for a mere second than turned his eyes toward the person who asked the question.

"No"

The people didn't say a word, even though some of them were shaking their heads.

Then one of the few guards of the city rushed in, panting.

The people didn't understand what was all that fuss.

"Sir…sir…"

"Calm down and tell me."

He went by his ear and whispered.

"The stranger has left the room"

The Chief frowned then diverted his sight.

"It happened again" this time louder.

"Are you sure about that?"

The guard nodded.

The people were looking at him. They were waiting for him to spill what he knew.

"People of Rocabarra. We will be safe" stated him, firmly.

"Did you see it?" asked one of the 'Birds who was climbing up the wall.

"The sky…there was only the purple star there."

"Whatever it was, keep climbing. We don't have much time" stated Gluskap in their earpiece.

"I've seen something like that before, what about you?" asked him to the Elder while they were moving forward in the tunnel with a quick pace.

"Wey always thoughts thatt its wass our minnd, trickings uss intoy thinkinga thats sometthing was goings ons beyonnd they cloudds"

"What about now?"

"Therey arey trutths whichs wey arey nots suppossed toy know, I think."

Gluskap puffed.

"Alright. Anyway, what's your status Jaguar?"

"Sir, we're close to the parapet. We still hear movement up there."

"Wait then but act as soon as you see a window of opportunity."

"Copy, sir"

"How long is it left to the end of this gallery?" asked him to the Shaxes which was treading by him.

"Nott muchs, I thinks"

Kurban got out of the secret passage. He was back to the surface of Rocabarra, in the outer sector of the city. Not far from there he saw the spot where the Dragons were parked.

He paced toward it.

Once he was in it, he started looking at the huge war machines. Those were different than the one he used to see flying above the city. He found them slicker and armed better.

Rust. was on most of them. Others were covered by a thin veil of sand and the livery's color was fading out.

Only the emblem was still intact.

It looked like a triquetra meshed with the profile of a flying swallow. It resembled the 'Birds symbol but it was different in many ways, as it felt more restrained and peaceful.

He walked past all of them, entering the city. There was a task more relevant than wondering around old piece of metal.

No one was around. He started scanning the place. It was impossible. What would have brought all of them underground?

He needed to found the house, the door which would've brought him back down.

He was trying to remember.

He checked the buildings, knocking on every door, in vain.

Then he remembered that there was Rocabarra emblem on it.

He looked for it.

One building after the other. He was examining all of them.

Then he found it. It was on the tiniest construction.

Then the sky glitched.

And it was light again.

He was worried.

He proceeded toward the door.

Tithon was frozen. His chest was moving quickly.

"What just happened?" asked him to Gehenna.

She shook her head.

"The sky doesn't just turn deep dark with no reason. What is going on?"

"I…I don't know. It happened before but I…never…considered it worth noticing"

He went by her. Her hand moved toward her arm, which averted it like it was infected.

"You're lying"

"I…we never understood what it was" tried her.

"What if there is something, hidden in the sky? Have you ever thought of that?" insisted him

"What are you talking about?"

"Has anyone ever been sent out of this planet?"

She didn't answer.

"Spill the truth. Now." ordered him.

"Yes, but he said that he saw nothing. Just an infinite space of stars"

"Who was sent up there?"

The Whisker was still alone. His watchmates were too far from him.

He started kicking the air without putting to much force in his kicks.

Then a sound distracted him. It was like someone had felt on the floor.

He embraced his gun and took the safe off. The weapon was shaking in his hands.

Then he walked toward the parapet.

Another sound, this time behind him. He turned. There was no one.

His quivering hand started moving toward the transceiver.

His eyes were scanning around, frantically.

His chest was moving up and down fast.

A drop of sweat dropped on the gun.

The hand was closer to the transceiver. Closer.

Then his neck snapped, cracking with a sharp sound. He felt down, lifeless, with his gun still in his hand.

On him there was a masked Hummingbird.

"Komodo, we're on top" told him to the people on the other end of his earpiece, while more 'Birds were coming up from the wall.

"Well done. Take it down" said Gluskap

The 'Bird nodded while the 'Birds which were on the ground, beside the wall, started taking out pyramidal objects from the bags they had with them.

Fanon was at the table. In front of him there was the map with all the detachments on the walls and in the city.

He had his hand under his chin. He was rubbing it.

He looked at the time. The clock was still ticking with that tedious sound. It was early, but not too early.

He took the transceiver on his desk.

"Wallwatch 17, status report"

A buzzing sound came out of it at first then a man started speaking.

"No movement, copy"

"Wallwatch 8, status report"

"No movement, copy"

"Wallwatch 13, status report"

"No movement, copy"

He was checking all the squads.

It was too quiet; he didn't like it.

After a while he thought that he did all of them, when he noticed that he missed a few. Like the one, four, six and twenty-three.

Then something weird happened.

"Wallwatch 4, status report"

No one answered.

"Wallwatch 4, status report" repeated him with a firm voice.

The transceiver buzzed.

He wringed his eyes. The hands on the table started ticking with increasing speed.

"No activity, copy"

He put it down.

Then stood up and went to the window.

He tried to calm himself down by inspiring and expiring.

Kurban knocked on the door. No one answered.

Knocked again.

He looked around. He hoped to find someone, anyone who can help him get in.

Again.

He kept knocking.

A peephole in the door opened.

Two eyes appeared in it, hidden behind a mask.

They looked at him for a while.

"Please, open, please" begged him

"Lud?" asked the guard.

"I'm Kurban, I'm the clone…don't you remember?"

The man behind the door stood there, thinking about it.

"I need to come in…I need to…"

"I remember you, now."

"Please, let me in."

"Mmmm, the Chief told us that you're not worth our trust. He told us that you're here for the wrong reasons and that I can't let you in."

"Wait, what?"

"Yes, he said also that you can't get back in Rocabarra"

"Did he also tell you that he took care of me?"

"Yes but…I thought, most of us think, that you were dead or stranded in the desert"

"Exactly. It means that the Chief is lying" remarked Kurban

"But, why would he lie about you?"

"Because he doesn't want you to know what happened to Lud"

"But, why?"

"Let me in and I'll tell you."

The guard turned for a second.

Then came back.

Nothing happened at first.

Then a sound of metal gears reached his ears and the door started unlocking.

Then he entered and, when he arrived at the other end of the gate, he looked at the guard.

"Thank you for trusting me."

The guard took the helmet off and nodded.

When he got rid of his protective clothes, they started running, one after the other.

"Are we free to move?" asked the squad captain to the 'Bird who answered to the transceiver.

He nodded, got past him and put his hands on the rope which was going down on the other side of the wall. It was strained, maybe too strained, with tiny fractures in the weave.

They were descending carefully, trying to avoid any noise.

The ground was still far from them.

The captain and the other 'Birds were looking around, to detect any issue.

"Komodo, we're almost ready" said the captain in his transceiver

"Move faster. We need to execute phase one now" remarked Gluskap

The captain looked at his comrade, who shook his head and hands.

"Sir, we can't. Rushing the squad's descent could compromise the mission."

The transceiver buzzed.

"Speed it up because we're almost halfway to the target, as the Elder says"

"Copy, Komodo" and put it down.

The captain went to the parapet, toward the city, and signaled the others to hurry up with a bunch of gestures.

Fanon was moving back and forth in his room. He felt like something wasn't right.

His transceiver started vibrating again.

He took it and looked at the caller's name. Then he stopped and expired. Just this time

"Malsumis, why are you calling?"

"I just wanted to know how it's going on your side."

"I'm annoyed Mals"

"I can understand your frustration. We're waiting for them to attack when we could've been the one who attacked them"

"Sure but there's another thing which is bugging me right now"

"What?"

"I've checked all the detachments and one of them left me…unsure"

"What happened?"

"I called and I had to wait"

"That could happen."

"It isn't just that. The answer I got was different."

"Completely different?"

"Slightly"

Malsumis sighed.

"What do you think? Should I investigate that?"

"Fan…you can make another check and assess your doubt."

"Yeah, but I still think that attacking us directly would be a witless choice."

"Do not undervalue my brother. He can play with your mind, change it if he needs to."

The 'Birds were putting the pyramids on the wall. So far only two were on the wall, as they were waiting for the other to come down with rest.

The rope was being bent to its limits.

The transceiver which used to belong to one of the Whiskers behind the captain buzzed again.

His men were looking at him.

He breathed out and pushed the button on its side.

"Wallwatch 4, status report"

"No activity, copy"

Then the let go of it.

He breathed a sigh of relief.

But the voice spoke again.

"State your name, Whisker?"

He looked around than the others looked through the dead Whiskers clothes.

One of them found a name and showed it to him.

"Hepimiz Olduk…sir"

"Your code, Mr. Olduk" remarked Fanon on the other end

He was waiting for a number. Or an idea.

"4..15..15..13..5..4"

No one was answering.

"415151354, sir"

Nothing.

Then he felt it.

The Whiskers close to them were looking excited.

"He's here to save us" shouted the citizen to the one in front of him.

"Bollocks, he's just a spy. If you don't believe the Chief you should leave this city"

"Why do you believe him, he's lying. It's clear as glass"

"I won't leave Rocabarra for a fuckin' clone"

"What if there won't be any Rocabarra?"

"Agaklythos won't ever destroy us"

The Chief was watching the two factions, which were heating up in front of him.

The women and their kids were grouped in another spot.

Their eyes were begging for a peaceful resolution.

"The stranger will lead us to our death"

"Why so sure?"

"I know it. Would you like to die now?"

"Fight me, asshole"

And they started tussling by pushing each other and throwing punches in the air.

"Bring all the guards here" ordered the Chief to the one which was standing by him.

"But sir, we were supposed to look for…"

"Then bring here half of our men," shouted him.

He rushed away from him.

"Fuck" whispered the Chief to himself.

After a while a large squadron of guards came in and intervened in the brawl.

They were shaking. They never saw a situation like that.

The kids were crying. The women were trying not to look to their foolish partners.

Then the scuffle started to tone down.

The Chief was shaking his head with satisfaction, but he noticed something.

They were all turning their backs to him.

"What are they doing?"

"What are you doing?"

The people weren't considering him. He was like a ghost.

"He…he's back" said one of them.

And the Chief shivered.

Lamps started appearing on both sides of the tunnel.

"How are those here?" asked Gluskap

"Wey don't knows. Wey never noticed thems"

"Gehenna knows about it. What if…?"

"What do you think, sir?" asked one of his lieutenants.

"It can't be. This tunnel never showed on any of the map we own. Why was left it out of them?"

"Sir, you obtained those maps."

"I know but…I thought that she didn't knew about the Shaxes. Why is there a tunnel which connects somewhere to the Graveyard?"

The lieutenant shook his head.

"Should we go back and join the others? What if we're walking exactly where she wants us to be and make an ambush?"

"No" stated Gluskap

"How can you say that? She won't stop at nothing to…"

"I said no."

Then Gluskap turned his head and increased his pacing.

"Sir…"

"We're close"

Then the transceiver beeped.

"Sir, we've lost our advantage," said the captain.

"Then complete phase one, no matter what. Understood?" answered Gluskap

Squadrons of Whiskers were moving on the wall, headed toward them.

There were too many bombs left to set. At least ten. And they were all still on the rope, which was making a strange noise.

Then.

It.

Snapped.

He heard it, mixed with the screams of his men, falling down the steep wall.

He went to the parapet and looked down. They were all dead, while the pyramids were undamaged and blinking.

"Protect the target" ordered him to the 'Birds left.

On both sides of the walkway, two groups of Whiskers showed themselves.

"You need to listen to me" said Kurban when he had all eyes on him.

"They won't" countered the Chief after moving toward him.

The people were looking at them both.

"Speak, stranger"

"This is a big lie. We're being used by Agaklythos"

"How so?"

"They've been funding you to control you. All the buildings and the resources are just a mirror for larks"

"You've never left this town because Agaklythos didn't want us to reunite with the ones in Scarbray. And they enforced it through the Chiefs."

"That's a lie. The Chief wouldn't be on Agaklythos' side."

The people were looking at their leader. He was still.

"Are you?" asked Kurban

"I'm not with Agaklythos. This is just a baseless accusation. You should be banished for that."

"What about Lud?"

"There're no secrets because no one knows what happened to him"?

"Then tell your people about Lud's secret bunker."

The Chief grinned.

"You're delusional, he never had a bunker."

"You're not the only one who knew about it"

"She can't speak. She is dead"

Kurban's words died in his lungs.

"It's just your word against mine, kid."

"You put in me in there and then locked me in."

"That's not true."

"The Chief didn't say that."

"What did he say?"

"That he got rid of you, like he ki…"

"Don't" interrupted the leader.

"He lied about it. How can you trust him?"

"Because we know him. You're just a stranger."

"Even when the lie is exposed?"

"Yes"

"Don't you see it? You can't win. You can't destroy the peace of Rocabarra and the spirit of its citizen with speculations."

Kurban nodded and reached for his pockets.

"Stop. Guards, if he does something extremely stupid, shoot him"

The kid's hand was still hanging. Then, after a few, he went into his pockets and took what was there.

As he was taking his hand out, the people gasped, while the guards where shaking.

He unfolded it and showed them the pyramidal keys.

And after it put down Lud's journal too.

"A metallic rod and a book, are you serious?" joked the Chief as he gulped.

"Wallwatch 5, status report" asked Fanon.

"We have a small squad of 'Birds here. On both sides of the wall actually"

"What are they doing?"

The transceiver buzzed for a while.

"They're setting up pyramidal blinking tech like a concentric round. Those are like the bombs you wanted us to…"

"Stop them and remove the devices."

"But sir, those are already armed."

"I don't care. The wall has to stand."

"Copy, sir. What about the 'Birds, do we have to kill or seize them, because there seems to be no one else around."

Fanon puffed.

"Slaughter them"

"With pleasure. Copy, sir"

Fanon turned the transceiver off and turned to the door, where there was one of his subordinates.

"Is the Dragon' ready?"

"Yes, but shouldn't we notify the Supreme Leader, sir?" asked him confused.

"We don't have time" said him while rushing out of the room, bumping him in his path.

As he went out of the building, his hair started trembling.

The Dragonfly's engines were already running.

Another lieutenant came to his side.

"Sir, what about the squads scattered in the city?"

"Converge to Wallwatch four."

"All of them?" asked the under.

While Tithon was watching the town, a Dragon' took flight.

Behind him he heard Gehenna gulping.

"Something is moving in the outer rim" stated him.

She didn't flinch.

"No one is telling me anything, that's odd. What should I do?" asked her.

She shook her head.

"What?"

"I think…that you…should wait."

"Mmmm. If Gluskap is willing to risk everything by attacking the city head down, then he is dumber than I thought"

The tunnel's walls were becoming less rough and more metallic with each step.

Gluskap noticed that there were sensors and photocells scattered along it.

"Are we being watched?" asked to the Elder

"No"

"Then what is the purpose of all those devices on the gallery's sides?"

"I dos nott know, my Kings"

"I hope that you're not bringing us directly into a trap. For your own sake"

The Shax shivered.

"No…my Kings"

The transceiver buzzed.

"Sir, we need help here, they're overwhelming us" shouted him while sound of shots were audible in the background

"Terminate your task, captain" told him without hesitation.

Then he changed the channel.

"Secretarybird, the signal is incoming."

"Copy, sir"

Then he noticed that the men in front of him stopped walking.

"What happened?" asked him confused.

A 'Bird came from the front with a sustained speed.

"Sir…the tunnel, is closed."

"Show me"

They followed him and arrived at the gallery's end. There the tunnel was much wider.

A giant wall of steel was standing in front of them.

"This isn't just a metallic rod; this is a key" stated Kurban

The people weren't saying a word, watching the confrontation with excitement. The need to know the truth was eating them.

"Alright, then show me the box which it is supposed to open" said the Chief grinning

A bunch of citizens laughed.

"In his journal he wrote that he intended to leave something to his children. I assume that you know what I'm talking about, don't you?"

"Are you kidding? Your logic is ludicrous."

"You told me that this key is supposed to open a box."

"So what?"

"Tell us the truth, Chief" said an old man in the crowd.

"Do it"

The Chief looked at Kurban. His confidence, he resented it.

"There has never been a box. Everyone who stood beside his last descendant can confirm it"

Kurban didn't answer to it.

Silence fell on the premise.

Kurban sighed.

"This isn't true," said a feminine voice.

A tiny girl emerged from the throng.

Kurban recognized her. The Chief too.

"She kept an octagonal box by his side till his death. She never spoke to me about it, but she cared a lot about it. It's not there. Someone took it."

"What are you insinuating?"

She shrunk.

"I…I…"

"You have it" said Kurban

"That's a bold accusation. Guards, take them both out. You're banished"

The Guards weren't moving.

"You respond to me. Do as I say" insisted him.

They were shaking, waiting for someone to anything.

"I'm your Chief, execute the orders" calmly.

"Do. As. I. Say"

He was tense.

Then one of the guards detached from the group. He was the one who got Kurban back into Rocabarra.

The woman started to flicker. The men beside her stepped in front of her with uncertainty.

"Perfect, loyalty"

The man passed close to the Chief. Then stopped.

"Take them. Now"

Then he turned toward his leader.

"I'm sorry, sir. I can't be loyal to a liar" as he said that, jumped on the Chief and shook him.

He was being stirred like a ragdoll. He looked powerless.

Then an object felt on the ground.

Kurban paced toward them and took it, then showed it to the citizens.

The Chief was then thrown away from them, toward the crowd, losing the cap during the fall. A flock of silver hair came out of it. Long and straight.

"You can't do it. This isn't what Lud wanted. Please, don't do it"

No one cared about him.

"If you show them the truth, Rocabarra, this planet,…everything will die"

Kurban got the key and plugged it into the case.

"Please, we will be doomed if you open it. I beg you. All of you"

He was a ghost.

The key was spinning. A sound of turning gears was coming out of the box.

Then it unlocked.

Fanon landed closer to Wallwatch 4 and took off, quickly. A large squad of Whiskers reached him and were waiting for his orders.

"I don't care about strategy or tactics now, remove the bombs from the wall and kill all of them" stated him.

The group started running disorderly.

Some of them got hit by the opponents' projectiles.

Then he saw them. The bombs and the rebels. They were strenuously defending those.

He tilted his head and saw soldiers falling down the wall. Their bodies were being crushed by the tumble.

Their forces were bigger enough to annihilate them but it wasn't going as planned.

"Sir, we need more men" asked one of his lieutenants who was standing beside him.

"Don't stop"

"What if there're more of them?"

Fanon looked at him than shook his head.

"Gather here half of our entire army. The rest will protect the Tower."

"Yes, sir"

"How long will it take?"

"I don't know, sir."

The 'Bird avoided the Whisker's dagger and hit him on the face, making him fall down. Then he killed him and proceeded to the next attacker.

The devices behind him were blinking faster.

He and his comrades looked at each other for one fleeting moment.

They knew.

They were running out of time.

One of the bombs was thrown to the enemy who didn't care about it. At all.

Then they looked up and caught the eyes of their captain.

He nodded.

The pyramids light stopped flashing.