Zein: The Prophecy Read online

  Covering the older man with a blanket he had gone to his room. He did not see the Teacher open his eyes and then follow Kabel’s retreating back, or the slight chuckle he gave.

  He felt for the piece of paper in his pocket. I wonder where these will take me. Kabel mused. Anyway, that was for later. Now it was time to obtain his Achiever status. Slinging a final smile at his sister, he picked up the book the Teacher had given him and kissed his mother’s forehead before launching his body out of the front door.

  He raced to the Village Council. The Village Council building was the central focal point of Livescale and was next to the Transportation building. Livescale was the largest village in the Western Quadrant, sprawling as far as the eye could see and with a population numbering some twenty thousand. The village was like one great wheel with the main streets feeding into the central hub which contained the principal village community buildings. As the main streets spread out, like spokes on a wheel, the connecting streets weaved and connected, creating a uniform spider’s web map of interlocking picturesque streets, each containing hundreds of replica residential buildings.

  Livescale was where Lord and Lady Southgate’s main residence was, a delightful but relatively small palace on the outskirts of the village away from the Village Council building. Due to the presence of the Palace there was great prestige in living in Livescale. Other villages had councils but only Livescale could make new rules of Zein Law that affected all villages. In total there were over a thousand villages, with the smallest, near the Outer Perimeter Wall, accommodating just over a hundred residents.

  Kabel easily beat the heavily panting Drogan to the impressive front door of the Village Council. Drogan, startled, just growled. Kabel entered the building, turning right onto the stairs. His long legs ran up the curved stairs two at a time.

  Drogan could not keep up and followed him up the stairs that curved up to the main council room one step at a time. Kabel burst into the council chamber and the Council, who were partially seated, looked at him with a mixture of amusement and irritation.

  ‘What is this, Kabel? You should not be here,’ said Hilah Wheatstone, surprised at seeing his son.

  ‘Forgive me, father, but I need to address the Village Elders,’ Kabel answered.

  ‘This is highly irregular,’ fumed Lord Barkley Malacca, his face an indignant red, matching his tunic. ‘The agenda is set.’ He stared at Lord Southgate, who was silently watching events. Other members of the Village Elders, numbering a dozen in all, watched with interest.

  ‘I don’t think there is any harm to see what the boy wants,’ the Teacher interjected. ‘I agree,’ the respected Elder Vois echoed, stroking his well-manicured beard. The other Elders murmured their agreement. Drogan, who had arrived late, looked at his brother in puzzlement. Lord Southgate waved Drogan impatiently to his seat to take up his duties as Senior Recorder for the Council. All the Elders settled into their places, taking care not to catch the eye of the tall Lord Malacca, who carried on muttering to himself. Kabel always marvelled at the customary Malacca Clan flat and dark features which set Lord Malacca aside from most of the other Elders.

  Once seated, Lord Southgate said, ‘All right, Kabel, you have the floor.’

  Kabel cleared his throat, all of a sudden intimidated by the focus of the Elders. He caught the Teacher nodding his head in encouragement.

  ‘Your worshipful Elders,’ Kabel started with the standard respectful phrase, ‘as you know I have been in front of you three times in the last six months with my inventions.’ Lord Malacca rolled his eyes. Kabel ignored him and continued.

  ‘I would like to draw your attention to Article 76.1 of the “Rules and Guidelines of Village Council Etiquette”, which states,’ Kabel pulled out the book in his tunic and flicked to the bookmarked page; ‘in event of an individual presenting at least three times in any six month period any new inventions, whether successful or not, it will be deemed that he or she has demonstrated an intention to improve the health and well-being of the Zein people. In the instance of that person being unsuccessful the Village Elders, by a majority vote, can recognize the effort by awarding a three month probationary Achiever status with all the same rights of a full Achiever.’ Kabel finished the quotation and waited for the Village Council’s reaction.

  There was quiet at first and then Lord Southgate started laughing, followed by a number of the other Elders. The Teacher smiled. Lord Malacca frowned. Lord Southgate called to see the passage. Drogan hurried to his side with the book open at the right page. Lord Southgate read the passage and then removed his glasses and placed them on the desk in front of him.

  ‘Well, my young Kabel, I do believe you are right,’ said Lord Southgate. ‘It also says for this to be awarded one of the Elders needs to agree to take you under their wing for the three month probationary period and support your expertise to develop a device that will lead to the award of the full Achiever status.’ Kabel’s heart sank. In his excitement he had not spoken to any of the Elders about this support.

  There was a slight pause as an uncomfortable silence invaded the room and then, ‘Lord Southgate, I will take Kabel under my tutelage as an extension of my teaching duties.’ On hearing the familiar deep voice, Kabel smiled with relief at the Teacher.

  ‘I can’t see any reason against this,’ Lord Southgate said, looking at the Elders of the Council.

  ‘Brethren please signify in the usual manner all in favour?’ All but Lord Malacca and his two faithful colleagues raised their hands. Kabel saw one of these colleagues, Elder Barthelme, whisper in Lord Malacca’s ear. Lord Malacca slowly stood up and whilst looking directly at Kabel, which made Kabel go slightly pale, added his agreement, swiftly followed by his two previously dissenting colleagues.

  ‘We should award perseverance. Well done, young Kabel,’ said Lord Malacca, who inclined his head to Kabel and then sat down so as to dismiss the young Zein. The Teacher frowned.

  What was the old coot up to?

  Kabel bounced out of the Council meeting and ran to tell his family. Even Drogan was complimentary on his achievement when he arrived home later in the day.

  Chapter 3

  The Awakening

  In the Underworld, or, to be precise, a leafy suburb of Manchester in England, Tyson woke up in a panic. Nightmares again! It had happened nearly every night for the last two weeks. Eyes with no pupils, voices in his head, a girl with red hair kissing him, a man with a wolf. The dreams got more vivid every night. He lay there trying to control his breathing. He never had any sleeping problems when he was younger and wondered why he did now.

  His iPhone rang next to his bed. He reached over and had a look at who was calling him at such an early hour; it was just before midday. It was Bailey. Bailey had been his best friend since they had met at reception in the local primary school aged four. They simply connected – whether it was a love of football, cricket, cycling or, as they grew older, girls, beer and just having a good time.

  The message was simple, as befitting Bailey: “fancy a bit of a knock up”. He was referring to the cricket practice nets at the local cricket ground. Tyson’s text back read “ok see u there at 2”. He crawled out of bed, realised how bad he smelt from last night’s pub crawl and decided a shower would be a good idea. The walkin shower was lovely. He enjoyed the feeling of the water running down his back and the memory of the nightmares receded as the water soothed his worries.

  Later, refreshed, realising his mother must be out shopping, he cooked a fry-up; eggs, bacon, sausage and baked beans with plenty of tomato sauce and bread of course. He tucked into his favourite meal…you couldn’t beat it, he thought. Full and satisfied he placed the dirty pots beside the kitchen sink, he wasn’t watching what he was doing and he knocked the knife off the kitchen top and the knife went spinning towards the floor. Before he knew what he was doing, Tyson dropped his right hand down and caught it by the handle before it hit the floor.

  ‘Wow, good reactions, Tyson,’ he said,
laughing and placed the used knife back onto the side. Without another thought he raced up the stairs to collect his sports kit and cricket bag. He didn’t notice that he was taking the stairs three steps at a time and that he left a faint blue trail behind him…

  The day was a good one. The sun was out, which was unusual for Manchester. Tyson’s summer had been full of holidays and nights out. You couldn’t beat the student life. He had finished his last year at Sheffield University and was looking forward to starting his new job at DLA Piper law firm in Manchester in September.

  His mother was pleased he was back at home. He had overheard her tell a friend that the house had seemed very empty when he was away and being a single mother it was no fun knocking around the house in silence. Like most lads he was close to his mother and since they had only had each other throughout his life he was looking forward to moving back in permanently. He grinned. Plus it saved on costs and gave him more beer money!

  He slung his cricket bag over his shoulder and was in a world of his own walking down the sun strewn streets, when all of sudden behind him there was a squeal of tyres, a loud crash and a scream of pain. Tyson glanced behind him and saw a car mounted on the pavement. It was a difficult junction with a feeder lane from the main road and the car had swung too fast around the corner and lost control. The car had collided with a cyclist, who was now trapped under the front of the car with the bike.

  One of the onlookers at the bus shelter was already busy on her phone calling an ambulance. Tyson dropped his bag and went to see if he could help. The cyclist was moaning in pain and the car driver, who had climbed out of the sleek red Audi A4, was holding his head in his hands in shock.

  ‘What have we got here?’ a voice said behind him. Bailey. Tyson was pleased to see him.

  ‘Come and help me. Let’s see if we can get the cyclist out from the car,’ said Tyson.

  ‘OK, mate, always willing to try.’ Bailey dropped his own sports bag and followed his friend. The two friends moved to the front of the car while another passer-by comforted the distraught young cyclist by taking hold of his hand. The front car wheel was resting on the front wheel of the bike, which then pinned the cyclist underneath the remainder of the frame. Tyson positioned his body with his back to the front bumper nearest the offending wheel; Bailey did the same next to him.

  ‘Right, can you be ready to pull him out if we can move the car slightly?’ Tyson asked a couple of the other people who had stopped to help. Two men went either side of the cyclist ready to pull him out if the pressure of the car was released.

  ‘One-two-three-go,’ Tyson counted and they both used everything they had. The car didn’t move. ‘Again, one-two-three-go,’ Tyson said again. The muscles strained on both their arms but again nothing. Tyson felt dizzy, his muscles ached, both he and Bailey were strong lads and he had hoped they would be able to create a little movement to free the cyclist.

  Then he felt a tingling in his hands and a creeping, burning sensation up his arms. He couldn’t see his arms as they were still hooked around the bumper; however, miraculously, the aches and pains seemed to disappear and he felt his strength increase and belief ripple through his body. He felt invincible.

  ‘Again Bailey, one-two-three-go.’ Tyson didn’t wait any longer, he closed his eyes, straining every sinew and muscle and suddenly the weight of the car didn’t seem an obstacle. The car moved. ‘Keep it up, Bailey, get him out,’ Tyson shouted at the other helpers.

  ‘We have him,’ one of the men said. Tyson hardly heard him. He opened his eyes and found he was looking at Bailey, who was staring at him in complete awe. Tyson looked down at the road. The car was in the air, the cycle removed along with the injured cyclist. Tyson’s strength left him and the car slammed down back to the ground. Tyson just managed to get out of the way.

  ‘Mate, I thought you had hold of it,’ Tyson said to Bailey, as he brushed off the dust from the road where he had tumbled away from the car.

  ‘I did the first two times but I got cramp in my hand and had let go just at the point when you decided to do your Superman impression,’ said Bailey, still shaking his head at what he had just witnessed. People were holding their phones up and were recording what was happening. Tyson felt embarrassed and when he heard the sound of the ambulance coming he picked up his bag and walked off towards the cricket club. People congratulated him as he walked past them. He wasn’t listening.

  How could he move a car on his own!

  Bailey caught up with him. ‘Tyson, that was awesome, just think how much the girls will love this story?’

  ‘Bailey, give it a rest.’ Bailey put his arms up in surrender. He knew when his friend had reached the point where he should shut up and become the strong silent type.

  A game was under way on the front pitch so they got the key for the outdoor nets on the back pitch and decided to get some well needed practice. Tyson was immersed in his thoughts as he waited for Bailey to pull on his batting pads. He felt he was missing something. He felt different but could not put his finger on what it was.

  Chapter 4

  The Museum

  Kabel, still in a good mood from the morning’s excitement, pulled from his pocket the paper he had picked up when the Teacher had fallen asleep. He stared at the unfamiliar numbers - should he use these coordinates tonight? He already knew the answer and grinned like a giddy teenager. He settled back on the bed with his feet hanging over the edge. It was time to grab a few hours’ sleep before his next adventure.

  He woke in the deep of the night. He quickly dressed in his marauding clothes, as he called them, black tunic and trousers, and stole into his brother’s room. He knew where his brother kept the key. It was always in his left boot. His brother had proudly boasted about his hiding place to his friends when enjoying the strong ale in the local hostelry, The Golden Sphere. Kabel had overheard and filed it away into his memory. As he reached down into the boot his brother snorted and turned in his sleep. Kabel froze and continued only when the regular snores began again. He found the key and quickly went up the stairs and outside.

  Kabel made his way to the centre of the village, avoiding, relatively easily, the leisurely patrols of the Western Militia by climbing onto the roofs of the residential buildings. He reached the Transportation building, which was an imposing five storey building standing next to the equally impressive Village Council. The portal was on the ground floor with the offices of the Elders on the other floors.

  He had a special entrance: a loose latch on one of the ground floor windows was simple to manoeuvre and he could then reach in with his long arms and open the larger window. Once it was opened, he climbed in quickly. The building was eerily quiet. He made his way out of the room he was in and across the hall. The doors of the transportation room were locked by an elaborate mechanism. He took his brother’s master key and inserted it into the lock and turned the door handle. Behind the door the whirl of disengaging locks could be heard as they unfurled and the door swung open.

  He always enjoyed the room. It was simple but impressive. The transportation portal could easily hold two hundred people, which was useful for senior quadrant meetings at other villages. The walls held a variety of pictures of the vast Western Quadrant. Flanking the transportation field were four huge towers directing the zinithium power onto the subjects to be transported. Next to the portal there was a sleek console. He walked to the console and with a flick of his hand he brought up the hologram initiator. He felt in his pocket for the paper and pulled it out. He tapped the coordinates written on the paper into the display and pressed the initiate button and then quickly stepped into the transportation portal.

  He felt the surge of power through his body. Every time he had travelled he felt an incredible infusion of adrenalin and excitement. The walls of the transportation room folded away from him. They were replaced with what seemed like a replica of Livescale’s portal.

  He blinked and stepped outside the portal. He found himself in a smaller room w
hich was similarly decorated. He went to the door. The door opened easily with the master key and he found himself in a corridor with many murals and fine paintings depicting Zein and the other Earth Colony quadrants adorning the walls. He sauntered across the complex marvelling at the wall decorations.

  He caught his breath. There it was, Elanda…the remarkable battleship that brought the Zeinonians to Earth. He had only seen it in boring history books but here it was in all its glory, an impressive mural on one of the largest walls. The mural displayed the battleship alongside its flotilla of support ships. The art depicted the arrival of the force to Earth after a traumatic journey filled with mercenary attacks and rogue asteroid belts. The mural was dominated by the battleship with its sleek external hull that enclosed over fifty decks, each capable of holding up to five thousand men, women and children of the five Lords’ personal armies and clan members. It must have been a joyous occasion when they arrived at this galaxy over a hundred years ago.

  He looked back at the other paintings and he could not suppress the thrill down his spine. They were paintings of the Expedition Lords of the five clans: Blackstone, Fathom, Southgate, Tyther and Malacca, all figures that he had followed in his history lessons with the Teacher. Of all these pictures, it was the picture of the leader of the Expeditionary Force, Lord Morgan Blackstone that his gaze rested upon, with the dazzling blue eyes and strong face.

  Enough of the pictures, he had exploring to be done. There was a door at the end of the corridor and when he turned the doorknob he found himself outside on a street of a village he had never seen before.