Blue Nexus #78 - Sunset

Previously in "Blue Nexus": The war between mages came to an end, and several members of the Zanderia had to go their separate ways. As part of a means of getting back into a flow with the Zanderia, Kyle was tasked with going off-planet with Phoenix to solve an alien crisis; now, he has been tasked to stay off-world once more, but for a much different reason. 

            “When the weather would get like this back on Earth, we call it autumn by the way, my parents would take me down to this massive open field and let me run through the tiny mounds of fallen leaves until the sun came down. Sometimes on weekends we would go to lacrosse games, which is a sport back on Earth, they should have it here on Xenomaria X, it’d be great. Um, anyway, sorry, I’m rambling. So, yeah, as I was saying, this is my favorite weather, if only because it was when my parents could finally get a break from their work and spend time with me.

            “We’d spend sunup to sundown together, playing around the house or getting to drive around my town on the weekends, which is when I wasn’t in school. When I was, I couldn’t wait to get home and see them; it was even better if I was with my two friends, Kip and Luke. And if they had work, they would let me see. Most if it was pretty boring stuff. A ton of arithmetic and calculations for various interstellar ideas. When Riko, the one who reached out to you, first arrived they exploded with excitement and at first, it got me very excited.

            “And then they stopped showing up to play in the autumn, and I’d spend the winters by myself while they were across the world, jumping from country to country, collecting research or getting with other groups. And before I knew it, they’d vanished. My grandparents always said they were away on travel until I was smart enough to realize that travel doesn’t go for that long and they finally let me in that my parents actually did go missing, and the search to find them went away. It wasn’t until around a year ago that I found out they were still alive, somewhere among the stars.”

            Kyle eased up on the trangulor, the eight-legged, small-headed, large torso beast that tugged the carriage along. It clapped and clopped like an Earth horse would. The thing appeared to be something straight out of a nightmare, but was actually quite friendly, and had quite the long mane. It seemed to giggle every time Kyle tugged on the mane, which also served as the reins, to give it direction.

            The cart shifted a bit as they rolled over a boulder. Raeala, in her light golden dress, trembled a bit from the shock. Kyle barely held onto the beast’s reins.

            “Oh, that wounds quite unfortunate,” Raeala said. Her glistening jewelry in beamed Kyle in the eye. He looked away, and looked straight into one of the distant three suns of Xenomaria X. He grimaced and focused on the path.

            Still, Raeala’s presence alone soothed him. She smiled at him, and then took one of the reins from him, easing back into her seat.

            “During mid-year’s heat is my favorite season,” Raeala said. “The guard eases up and allows me to go on more trips such as these, though with much looser implications, and without such a high-profile escort.”

            “I didn’t think the Zanderia was such high-profile,” Kyle said.

            “You’re renowned throughout the galaxy,” Raeala said. “Renowned enough to draw the attention of my guard, anyway, which means you must be of some level of fortitude.”

            Kyle shrugged, also easing up in his seat, but not relaxing. He was still on alert, even if the scenery did want to make him just sit back and soak it all in.

            Xenomaria X was one of the most perfect planets for living in all the galaxy, and was one of the least inhabited. An offshoot type of human had evolved here, but they did so in such a rapid way that they took themselves and their technology off-planet to another world, leaving Xenomaria X behind. The other Xenomaria planets hardly paid attention to this one because of it. Now, the planet had become more of a vacation place; or, more likely as Kyle was experiencing, a world for the rich to drop their offspring and let them roam free for a while.

            Raeala was no such exception to that, although she did appear to be an exception to some rule. Kyle had seen several nobles going along their own journeys, and were totally in their own heads about things. Many of them complained about the lack of a connection to the networks from their own planets, the inability to be constantly checking in with their friends, or were posing for pictures on some sort of camera he didn’t recognize in the middle of the road. Raeala rode alongside Kyle quietly.

            He was thankful for as much when he first met her. He’d been headed up by four massive guards that he would have no chance against without his Nexus bracelet. Raeala looked like quiet the sheepish young woman when he approached, but quickly warmed to him when he told her where she was from. He was able to speak with her through a communication device Eclipse had been working on specifically for him, since he didn’t speak many languages besides English. The chip was still in its beta stages, so he had use some words in English and then explain them to Raeala. She’d picked up on it during their second day of travel.

            Jeez, had it been two days? Kyle looked behind him on the road. Rolling red hills and a beautiful orange sky looked back at him. He tugged at his shirt. It was humid on Xenomaria X, but not nearly as humid as it often got back on Earth. He wondered how much school work he’d missed. Thankfully, Eclipse had sent down a projection of Kyle into school, and Andreus covered for Kyle during lacrosse practice by saying that Kyle was still recovering from an injury suffered during the Magus War.

            That last part wasn’t entirely false, either. Kyle winced every time they bumped over a rock or when the cart took a sudden lurch. One of the reasons he’d been sent to Xenomaria X was that it was known to heal humans quite rapidly due to its low gravity and relaxing aura that it emitted. Kyle felt the effects upon immediately arriving on the planet. All the muscles in his body were no longer tense and he smiled freely, without thought.         

            Raeala hummed a song to herself while she waggled her fingers through the air, as if orchestrating the music. The main reason he came to Xenomaria X was for her, to serve as a bodyguard as part of a favor that Phoenix and Riko owned the Xenomaria Kingdom in general. Princess Raeala had specifically asked for someone younger to join her, and since Brenda constantly had her plate full with helping mages, Prism was locked in an epic investigation, and Sandy was in a self-imposed training exile, Kyle was the only one left.

            So, here he was. He half-turned to Raeala. “A composer?”

            “My half-sister is,” Raeala said. “The best of her class. Father would have it no other way, of course.”
            Kyle nodded. “You’ve mentioned your father a few times.”
            “I have.”

            “Is he awaiting you as well?”

            Raeala lowered her hands, and her expression lowered as well. “I should think not. I haven’t seen him for several years, now, perhaps three decades.”

            Kyle’s grip on the reins tightened. Raeala didn’t look a day over twenty. She had a similar stature to him and no lines that signaled she would be at least thirty-five years or so.

            Raeala smiled beneath her hood. “I forget, Earthlings have such a short life-span.”

            “Alien cultures are still new to me, forgive me,” Kyle said, placing his hand over his heart.

            “It’s fine,” Raeala said. “My father’s several millenia old if that makes you feel any better.”

            “It doesn’t,” Kyle said. Must be a powerful dude. He tried to think of all the kings he knew in the galaxy. Mars was a Kingdom Planet, the Orion system used to have a king, or at least a prince, before Black Nexus thwarted that family line by destroyed Orion VI. And then the Xenomaria planets.

            Raeala was on her way to try and help the line, much as she didn’t want to. One of the king’s princes, a man that was actually around Kyle’s age, was slated to marry Raeala as part of a favor that the Xenomarians had with Raeala’s mother; in return for giving her a son, they would give the Xenomarians protection.

            “But it sounds as if your mother holds more sway,” Kyle said. “Right?”

            “My mother does, yes, as she was an established ruler long before the denizens of Xenomaria X even left their world,” Raeala said. “I’m fourteenth of my mother’s children, and one of hundreds of my father.”

            Damn, Kyle thought. Having just one kid seemed a daunting task back on Earth. Although, if your kids were as capable as Raeala, perhaps it wouldn’t be such a problem.

            During their time together, Raeala had done most of the things that Kyle was supposed to. She stayed up for a watch at night, helped set up camp, prepared the foods along with him, and even did a bit of mental training. She wasn’t physically capable as some of her older sisters, of which apparently there were hundreds, but she had been trained with her inner energy, something that supposedly ran in the family.

            “So, is your mother going to be joining us?” Kyle asked. He sounded like a kid trying to see if his girlfriend’s parents were home.

            “No,” Raeala said. “Just myself for this.”
            “And you’re being married on the spot?” Kyle asked.

            Raeala shifted her hair around a bit, shrugging. “What you conceive of as marriage on Earth is quite different beyond Earth, especially Xenomaria.”

            “Is it not the union between two families with the hopes of having a kid one day to further the line?” Kyle asked.

            “Not necessarily,” Raeala said. “It’s more akin to trade. And having a child?” Her face blanched. “I’d never allow someone like the prince of Xenomaria VII bear my child. Much as I dislike my father and mother, I respect them enough not to have filth like that in our line.”

            “Is he so annoying?” Kyle asked.

            Raeala rolled her eyes. “No, he’s just a crude little bastard is all. Besides, I’ve already two others that I’m hoping to join in union as well.”

            “More men?”

            “Two women.”

            “And your family is okay with allowing multiple marriages?”

            “As I said, it’s akin to trade,” Raeala said. “A three-way trade, in many respects. No, wait, four, I should say.”

            “Your family, their family, and?”

            “Myself and my betrothed,” Raeala said. She smiled. “We gain gifts of marriage; often, it’s some material, or its something immaterial.” She raised her hand, and it glowed until a sigil formed atop it. “My first union came with the exchange of one of my mortality rings for the ability to become a Reality mage.”

            “You’re magical?”

            “Aren’t I?” Raeala asked, flipping her hair back a bit and posing. Kyle laughed.

            “Very,” he said.

            “Are you?” Raeala asked. “Let me see.”

            Kyle blushed as she started to lift his shirt. He grasped her hand and lowered it. She didn’t seem to get it until he showed her his right arm, where the Demon mark was taking up his entire bicep and tricep.

            “I was cursed,” Kyle said. “It was given to me as part of a deception in another realm.”

            “Another realm?”

            “Ever hear of the Nether?”

            “Only in stories,” Raeala said. She grinned. “Kyle the Realm-Walker. Is that what they call you on Earth?”

            “Only Kyle the absent,” Kyle said. “I’m not around my friends all that often. Especially nowadays.”

            “Why not?”

            Kyle looked around at Xenomaria X, and Raeala nodded. Her hand was still near his, so she reached out and grabbed his free hand, squeezing.

            “Wrong. You’re with a friend now,” she said.

            “Thank you, Princess,” Kyle said. “Thank you so much.”

            They rode on through the countryside. With Raeala taking one half of the trangulor’s reins, Kyle was able to observe more of the scenery. In the distance, jutting out with tall wooden buildings and a windmill, was a small town. Kyle pointed it out and Raeala seemed genuinely happy to see it.

            “On my home world, most homes are connected,” Raeala said. “What about you?”

            “Same, in a way,” Kyle said. “It’s pretty rare to see a small town just in the middle of nowhere like that.”

            They continued on, and the road levelled out. The path sloped left, taking them away from a forest where there had once been a path. Kyle’s arm trembled and he sensed dark magic within the forest. More Demon mages, no doubt, or just straight up Demons. He looked away from the forest to draw attention away.

            Raeala started to sing once they were away from the forest. She asked Kyle what Earth looked like after one song, and when he told her, she conjured up the best looking Midwestern-open plain. The roads were a bit wonky, as the concrete wasn’t nearly as bad as it normally looked. She reached out and placed a hand on Kyle’s shoulder, taking the image from his mind. When she opened her own eyes, she was impressed by how different the Earth appeared. She was a bit disappointed by the gaping holes in the atmosphere, and Kyle commented that being on other worlds put a bit of a perspective on how the Earth was still being treated.

            Once the sun started to see, the trangulor started to slow up a bit, too. The beasts were perfectly operable during the day, able to go the full daytime without the need for food or water. They practically feasted, though, during the nighttime. Raeala tumbled to the back of the cart to begin camping preparations.

            “We should reach the keep within the day tomorrow,” Raeala said. “But it’d be nice to rest before then. No need to wear ourselves out any more.”

            “Am I supposed to be that tired?” Kyle asked, yawning.

            Raeala tossed a pillow of straw at him. “Apparently.”

            Kyle pulled the trangulor over to the side of the path. They were probably a good mile from the forest. Up ahead, about two miles, was a small shack that’d been abandoned long ago, it appeared. Windows were broken in and the wood was corroding. One of the suns set behind them, turning the sky purple.

            Kyle could only marvel for a few minutes before Raeala swung around the front and jokingly barked orders at him as if he were a castle guard, and she a true princess. Kyle didn’t see it at all, though. He could swear that he’d seen Raeala in school, that was how normal she was. She was the princess of a king, not some girl from first period, but here they were, laughing and joking at the trangulor’s odd sounds as it feasted on the food Raeala brought for it.

            The second sun continued to set while Kyle worked at pitching Raeala’s tent and she got the fire crackling.

            “I wonder what my father would think of this,” she said, standing up from her stoop. “Me, his daughter, lighting a small campfire at the side of a path on an uncivilized planet.”

            “Your father would probably like it,” Kyle said. “I imagine a king likes a simpler life?”

            Raeala shrugged. “Not my father. He prefers things his way, and this does not seem to be his way.”

            “What is his way?”

            Raeala heaved a sigh and stepped away from the fire. She removed the first covering to her dress. It was nothing revealing, just some wears she had on to hide the brilliant light golden dress beneath. She bent over and removing the stitching on the lower parts of the dress, so it ran to only her knees, and sat down on the back of the cart.

            “Ruling,” she said. “Conquest. The glory of battle and seeing his foes conquered.” She took a small bit of grass that flowed in the breeze and snapped it in two. “It’s how he treats all. He sees them as his to own, that they belong to him. My marriage to this prince is nothing more than adding to his collection.”

            “Even if it was your mother that arranged it?” Kyle asked.

            “Indeed,” Raeala said. “Because now he can lay claim over part of Xenomaria, if not all of Xenomaria.”

            “That would cause a war, wouldn’t it?” Kyle asked.

            “Not for my father,” Raeala said. She grimaced. “Not at all.”

            “Raeala,” Kyle said. “You seem ashamed to say his name.”

            “Not shame,” Raeala said. “Just ignorance.” She tossed the grass away, and said, “Eru.”

            The name rung in Kyle’s ears, wracking his brain. When it struck, it did with a bolt of lightning. He was suddenly all-too aware of the Nexus bracelet on his hand.

            “The War God?” Kyle asked.

            “Indeed,” Raeala said. “The strongest of them all.”

            Phoenix! Riko! What the hell have you gotten me into?

            Kyle nodded. “Impressive. Well, I guess that explains his age and all of his children. So, you’re a true Demi-War God, then?”

            “Indeed,” Raeala said. “One of the few mages, I believe.”

            “Most Demi-War Gods are just self-proclaimed pricks, I’ve found. You ever meet Gargador? One of Cata’s.”

            “Cata draws the worst of them.”

            Like your father, I bet, Kyle thought, but his eyes fell to Raeala again. Except her. Was she the only exception? One in hundreds, thousands? She was a powerful Reality mage, no doubt, though not on the level of Tania. She had to have some sort of innate strength that she was no displaying, but Kyle couldn’t sense it at all.

            “You fear me now, don’t you?” Raeala asked.

            “Nope,” Kyle said, standing up. He approached Raeala, and held a hand out. “In fact, it makes my job a lot easier.”

            He made sure the hand that was out was his right, to draw attention from his left hand. Raeala held her hand out as well, and Kyle clasped it.

            “Easier?” she asked.  

            “The daughter of one of the strongest War Gods has to be pretty tough, right?” Kyle asked. “Getting into a fight shouldn’t be too big a deal.”
            The second sun finally set, and the sky turned to a darkened blue. The stars were starting to poke out from the night’s sky. Raeala nodded, and then her face changed for the worst when she looked over his shoulder.

            “Oh, no,” she muttered. “Royal scouts.”

            “I’ll handle it,” Kyle said. “You just sit tight.”

            Kyle turned to face them and felt his heart drop to his stomach. Three guards did approach; two of them were clad in some sort of light armor and swords, while the other was in dark blue armor with a mask around his face and a glowing blue sword in his hand. He also had a blue ring upon his finger, and Kyle felt that energy before. He was surprised he didn’t sense it before.

            This was a Nexus user.

            Kyle approached, folding his arms behind his back. He saw another scout over their shoulder, standing by the ruined building.

            “You’re not guard,” Kyle said. “You’re bandits.”

            The two guard and Nexus user stopped at the fire. The Nexus user waved his hand and the fire went out. The night air descended, bringing with it a bit of a chill. Kyle didn’t sway from his position.

            “Scouts,” he clarified, and the Nexus opened his palm to create a crest that meant nothing to Kyle. “Come to aid you on your journey back.”
            “Our ride is currently occupied,” Kyle said, gesturing at the trangulor that was still feasting with the odd noises. “We wouldn’t be able to get far, unless you wanted us to walk back?”

            “It would be better than sitting out in the open waiting for bandits to attack,” the Nexus user said. “Come. Our prince awaits his lady.”
            “She’s fine with me,” Kyle said.

            “And just who are you?”

            “Zanderia,” Kyle said, showing his Zanderia communicator. “I’m sure you’ve heard of us? The legion of super beings from Earth?”

            Kyle barely got the sentence out before the communicator was destroyed in his hand by the finger beam of the Nexus user.

            “You must’ve dropped your communicator,” the Nexus user said.

            “I know what you want,” Kyle said. “She’s not like the other Demi-War Gods.”

            “Her magic has gotten into your mind,” the Nexus user said. “It cannot effect a Nexus.”

            Kyle laughed. Oh, oh how wrong could this guy be? He must be new. No, oh God, Kyle realized what he was, and wanted to badly to avoid the inevitable. This guy was the symbol of hope for…

            Kyle looked to the guards, who appeared tired and desperate. Please, no. Kyle shook his head, and with a hardened look turned back to the Nexus user.

            “I’m on your side,” Kyle said, raising his arms. It revealed the bracelet. The Nexus user didn’t notice it.

            “You’re with her,” the Nexus user said, tensing the muscles in his arms to raise the sword. “The side of the War Gods.”

            “Far from it,” Kyle said. “But she is good.”

            “Doesn’t matter,” the Nexus user said. “She sends a message to King Eru, that he cannot lay claim over our galaxy anymore! That I, Kiri of the Ker Clan, have come to destroy his family, and end his reign over all living things!”

            He swung the sword up. Kyle knew to dodge and did, flipping back and landing on both feet. He slid back, glowering up at the Nexus user. He groaned and punched the ground. The Demon magic coursed happily down his arm until it reached beyond his hand and formed into a larger talon.

            “A demon,” Kiri said. “You claim to be with us, but you’re a demon!”

            “I don’t want to fight you, Kiri,” Kyle said. “We’re the same. I was given a chance, too, and I’ve used it to fight the War Gods. Please, go away.”

            “You cannot hope to win, anyway,” Raeala said, slyly stepping next to Kyle. “My father has never lots in combat.”

            “I suppose he’s never told you of his shameful loss to the Dragon Rider,” Kiri said.

            “It was a draw,” Raeala said.

            “See how she defends him?” Kiri asked.

            “Leave, Kiri,” Raeala said. “I don’t want you to be my enemy.”

            “The Nexus shall always be enemy to the War Gods,” he said.

            Kyle stood, standing next to Raeala. He felt his body shiver and the Demon magic mostly receded. He laid his finger over the bracelet, and swept it.

            Brilliant blue light filled the night’s sky until it settled around him as his aura. Raeala gawked at him and Kiri roared with anger. He launched an energy blast that Kyle easy swatted away, soaring way into the sky before dissipating.

            “Not this Demi-War God,” Kyle said. “And not this Nexus.”

            “You’re a traitor!” Kiri said.

            “I’m standing up for a friend,” Kyle said. “And you can’t see that she’s nothing like what her father is.”

            “I hate my father,” Raeala said. “I’m hardly a daughter to him! I’m an item, all of his children are!”
            “Then he won’t mind if you die!” Kiri shouted, and launched another energy blast.

            Kyle dove forward, knocking it away, and bounded for Kiri with speed he couldn’t hope to match. Kiri instead just dove out of the way.

            The third son began to set as Kyle stood between the two swords of the guards. Kiri turned around with a grin. Kyle lowered his hood, dropping his cloak around him.

            “Two moves,” Kyle said. “That’s all the time you get.”

            “Kill him,” Kiri said.

            The guards jabbed. Kyle swatted up with enough force to knock them off of their feet. Kiri bounded toward Kyle, who braced himself against Kiri. He caught Kiri’s fist and delivered a swift elbow into Kiri’s chest. Kiri spat blood, but didn’t give up. Kyle grimaced, flipping over Kiri, trying to kick in his leg. Kiri swung his leg out. Kyle dodged it, and got cut across the face from his sword.

            Kyle landed and blocked the quick flurry of blows from Kiri, who tried to press an advantage. Kyle, though, easily saw through his movements and elbowed him in the ribs, chopped at his neck, and then managed to slam his shoulder into Kiri. He summoned his lance forth, blocking the sword that flung at him.

            Kiri dropped to a knee, still in the Nexus. Kyle swiped his finger over the bracelet, falling out of the form.

            “Please leave,” Kyle said. “And never come back to Xenomaria X.”

            “The Zanderia, you said?” Kiri asked. “They’re from Earth, right?”

            Kyle opened his mouth to answer, but a flash of green light and a yelp later and Kiri was gone, leaving naught but ash upon the ground. Kyle spun to look at Raeala, who initially had a hardened look upon her face, but then dropped to her knees, looking at her tremling hands.         

            “He threatened your friends,” Raeala said, babbling the words out. “I couldn’t stand by and do nothing.”

            “It’s okay,” Kyle said, and sprinted to her. He slid down, clasping her shaking hands. “I promise, it’s okay.”

            “You have to leave,” Raeala said.

            “What?” Kyle asked.

            “You’re a Nexus,” she said. “If my father discovers that a Nexus aided him, he’ll do terrible things to you.”

            Kyle smiled, and then helped her to her feet. “I don’t care. I have to complete my mission; I have to help my friend.”

            Raeala shook her head, but Kyle nodded, and she could only look away. Kyle embraced her, and she stopped crying, and hugged him back.

            “Okay,” she said. “Thank you so much, Nexus.”

            “You’re very welcome, Demi-War God,” Kyle said.

           

            As he soared through the cosmos later the next day, after dropping off Raeala and speaking no more of their encounter with the Nexus, Kyle stole a look down to his hand, blinded a bit by the sharp blue light that penetrated his vision from the Nexus aura. In his hand was a small bead, one that Raeala intended to give to her betrothed.

            “I’ll instead give him an illusion,” Raeala had said. “For I think I have another destination in mind, if you would have me.”

            Kyle smiled down at his hand, thinking to what he gave her: a parchment with his phone number on it.

            “Make sure to give me a call when you arrive,” Kyle had said, and she could only laugh. He did as well.

            Kyle folded his hand over the bead, and placed it in his pocket. Earth would be in view soon, and he could finally get back home. He sighed with a bit of relief, but, also with a bit of anticipation that he would one day get to see his alien…friend?

            No, wait, he suddenly realized…

            Was he married now?

Next time: Kyle is back on Earth, and Boomer's prison sentence in the Cube is up! But that doesn't mean everything's coming up easy for them, as there are some who would prefer the good doctor stay in prison in "Blue Nexus #79 - Sweet Release"