Arlaksis
Early Dark Age - Outskirts of Calais, Northern France
Arlaksis couldn't sleep.
He'd woken up exhausted for no reason he could think of. He was more tired than he was the night before.
Yet he could not fall back asleep.
So he decided to get out of his covers and watch the sun as it rose, hearing the Servitor click clatter next to him. He found he liked watching the sun.
It was a beautiful star, no doubt. He wondered what this world's inhabitants had thought of it, having something so gracefully destructive so close to home…
As it peaked at him over the sea outside his cave, he felt it's warming heat fight off the blistering chill that had seeped into his bones.
He wondered if Riis had one just like it… though he'd likely never get the answer. Not while he and his crew were stranded here.
It had been barely a week since the Devils arrived. The same night their fleet split apart, one of their Ketch's had flown over his crew's hideaway.
Even though he knew they hadn't seen his skiff, he ordered his crew to move to another location.
They found a cave along the coast, one which could aptly hide his skiff and shelter his crew.
The cave had a large opening by its front, which allowed light from the sky to pour into the cavern, and from below there was a small canal which led out to the sea.
And then there was the passageway which led out to the forest, that branched in from the side of the cave. He posted his best sniper outside, hiding among the trees with a wire rifle.
He'd be calling this place home for some time, no doubt.
Behind him, he heard his crew stumble out of their blankets, walking towards the fire.
They were a rowdy bunch, much more so than any other crew he'd seen. He'd barely known them for months now, he could only remember their names.
Sometimes.
But when they woke up in the mornings, they were silent. No yelling, jostling, joking, or fighting had gone around. All they did was sit around the fire with their ether portions.
The Servitor made its rounds to each of his crew, filling their ether tanks as per their station. Like usual, the Dregs got the least, while he received the most.
It was a brutal system, Arlaksis knew, to portion out the ether specifically based on rank. But it worked, and that's all the reason any Kell would need.
They knew it too, and they reminded him each time he caught an envious glance his way. That's why he took to taking his ether alone.
His crew was restless. They'd sat in this cave for almost a week now, with no outings other than to get wood for the fire.
Observe. He laughed at the simplicity of his orders, and also at how short sighted it was.
How was his crew to not mutiny against him if all they did was sit in this cave and 'observe'? Observe what? The Devils destroying cities and empty buildings?
Craask must've been a fool, then. Arlaksis knew that nobody else would dare say that, though. Dissenters were usually found floating outside the airlock.
What was the point of observing, while all their enemies simply gained ground? Arlaksis felt doubt in his Kell's plan, and he was frustrated all the same because he could not voice it.
There were nineteen in his crew-including himself-not counting the six shanks and the Servitor. All of them-himself as well- were itching for something to do, even as menial as collecting wood…
And Arlaksis wasn't about to give his crew a reason to put a spear through his chest. Might as well try something else…
In a matter of minutes, his mind landed on an idea. Scouting party! Yes!
He got up from his seat by the water and strode over the large fire pit in the center of the cave. All of his crew were gathered around, and they stood up straight as soon as they saw him approach.
"I am conducting a scouting party today. I require volunteers."
Just as he expected, all of them raised their hands almost at the same moment.
He decided on taking nine; three Vandals and six Dregs with him.
That left three Vandals and the other six Dregs behind to watch the cave. "You nine will find food and fortify our camp. This place is our home from now on, make it look like home." He looked to the eldest Vandal, Yrvaris. "You are in charge while I am gone. Understand?"
Yrvaris nodded hesitantly. "Y-yes, Captain."
He looked to the rest of his crew. "Come with me."
By all means this group was more than enough for a scouting party, but Arlaksis figured the less their minds on mutiny, the better.
They marched outside, stopping just at the mouth of the cave. Arlaksis separated the Vandals from the Dregs right away, bringing them aside.
"Each of you will lead a pair of Dregs for today." He told them, which seemed to only make them nervous. "By the end of today, you should know their names. Understand?"
"Yes, Captain." The three answered back.
Paliks, the one on the right, spoke up. "W-what is our mission?"
"I'm getting to that…" Arlaksis growled.
Drivan, the Vandal in the middle, elbowed Paliks hard in the side.
Arlaksis continued. "Each of you will take a portion of the city. Scout it, learn the area, and take anything you find useful." He leaned in closer, making his Vandals' uncomfortable. "Your top priority is to keep your pack alive, no matter what. Do you understand?"
All three nodded once more. "Yes, Captain."
He had watched each group depart himself. Each of those poor Vandals were incredibly uneasy during the whole ordeal.
Now, it seemed, as he walked along the northern edge of the city by the sea, the Vandals could not stop chattering. He had resisted the urge to mute their radio channels, but he endured their nervousness nonetheless.
It was incredibly likely they had never been given command before. Likely the first time they've been trusted with command…
Arlaksis could not blame them for their shameless agitation. He was in their place not too long ago, a complete wreck when his own Captain had given him command of a handful of Dregs…
"They are your blood. Care for them like they are your own hatchlings. Understand, Arlaksis?" his father's words echoed in his mind.
He put that memory to rest. Right now, he needed to follow his orders. Observe.
The stone roads of this city were littered with fleshless corpses and metal shells that once might've been vehicles. Could those large metal frames take to the air like his skiff?
As for the corpses, they were nothing Arlaksis had expected. He'd imagined giant, six armed creatures.
There was no way these pathetic, two-armed corpses could have once cultivated a grand empire on this dead world.
They would've lacked both the strength and the speed to take on even the lowliest Dreg… With short spindly arms and tiny heads… How they accomplished anything was a miracle.
They must've been quite hardy, or deceptively cunning… Or both.
If their bones were anything to go by, they certainly weren't all that big, either. He'd be genuinely surprised if they were still alive after their Whirlwind.
He could hardly believe that it was these tiny, weak beings that had once stolen the Great Machine from his people.
If some of them were still alive, he knew the Devils would finish them off. Then it would just be the Eliksni clashing in the bones of this extinct civilization.
He came upon a statue towards the center of the city. There were six of them, all carved in rusted metal. Four of the figures had missing limbs; a head here, an arm there…
What was so special about them?
He wrapped himself in his cloak, turning from the metal statues.
"Captain!" Koliks, the third of his chosen Vandals shouted over the radio channel. "W-we found something!"
Arlaksis sighed. "What is it?"
"It is like a Servitor, but tiny. It's eye is blue and it is staring at us." The Vandal informed him. "It isn't moving."
His day wasn't going to get more exciting if he stuck around… "Where are you?"
He found Koliks' squad down the street heading towards the south, just near the canal that ran through the city. They were standing by a great cathedral. It looked religious, at least.
The Dregs had their shock pistols pointed at the small machine, and the Vandal was pacing behind them.
As he approached, he got a better look at the bauble floating silently in front of his crew. It was far more angular than a servitor, and it's blue eye was a diamond. He could hold it's dark frame in his palm.
"Velask, Captain." Koliks greeted him.
Arlaksis nodded in kind. "What is this?" he gestured to the eye.
"I-I do not know." Koliks shook his head. "I thought-"
"Lower your weapons." Arlaksis commanded. The Dregs lowered their guns, albeit hesitantly.
He stepped forward in front of the machine. It certainly did not look like Eliksni technology, but neither did it look anything of this world.
Still, basic respect did not leave him. "Velask," he nodded.
The eye only crinkled. It must've been confused. Not Eliksni, then.
"Hello." He said bluntly to the small machine. It inched away, It must've understood.
"Uh… hi!" He heard a lighter, female voice coming from the machine. It can speak… good.
He bowed. "I am Arlaksis. Captain of the House of Kings."
The small machine came a bit closer. "M-my name is Calia! Ghost of the… uh… Traveler!" it-she chuckled nervously.
He'd never spoken with a machine before, and neither had he met one as sentient as this. "It is an honor to speak to a machine."
"Oh… thank you!" her laugh was strained. "I don't think I've ever met your species before. You're definitely not Human. Where are you from?"
Arlaksis nodded. Human… That is what they must be called… "We are Eliksni. We have come from Riis to reclaim the Great Machine."
Calia nodded. "The Great Machine? What's that?"
Arlaksis raised an eyebrow. She does not know? "It is big and… spherical. White."
Understanding dawned on the Ghost. "You mean the Traveler. That's what the Humans call it."
"I see…" Arlaksis thought back to her earlier statement. "And you are from the Great Machine?" Servitors made smaller Servitors at times, out of junk and scrap metal. Perhaps it was the same with the Great Machine and this small one in front of him.
"Yes. Exactly that!" Calia nodded again. "It… made me, for a lack of a better word."
A blessing! There was a reason why it had found his crew, then. It came from the Great Machine! "Then you must come with us." He bowed again, his squad did the same behind him. "It is not safe here. The Devils' would surely kill you."
"The Dev-"
KABOOM!
Just as soon as she spoke, Arlaksis heard a skiff entering the atmosphere. He turned his head and saw the skiff descend into the city, heading towards them.
"Inside!" He snatched the Ghost out of the air and ran in the cathedral, Koliks and his squad close behind him.
He went past dozens of wood rows and seats, and as he heard the skiff come closer, he saw the upper levels of the chapel were mostly clear of debris. "Climb!"
In a matter of seconds, he and his small squad were huddled together on the top level of the cathedral. He knew if the Devils' came inside, his crew would be obscured from view.
The Devils' skiff slowed, but it did not stop outside the chapel. Instead, it dropped down by the eastern road, only a minute or two away from the cathedral.
Arlaksis could see them clearly as they jumped out of the skiff, red cloaks as plain as the day. Eleven total; ten Vandals and one Captain.
Much like he'd done with his crew, the Devils' split apart into groups. But this time, the Captain took the lion's share of his crew with him. Instead, he had four Vandals, leaving the other two groups only with three each.
"Uh… excuse me!" The Ghost piped up from his palm.
"Quiet!" he hushed, keeping his eyes trained on the Devils. The two groups of Vandals split away from the skiff, heading in opposite directions and away from his group's hiding place.
The Captain's group, however, began making their way closer to the chapel. They did not seem to be in a rush, which gave Arlaksis pause.
Already, I'm disobeying orders… "I do not think they know that we are here." he said to the despondent Dregs. Koliks himself was flinching occasionally. They were incredibly young.
Arlaksis held up Calia to the shattered window for a moment. "See?" He drew her away. "Those are the Devils."
"But they're Eliksni, too…" The Ghost looked back at him. "Why are you fighting each other?"
He gripped his golden cloak, holding it up to the small machine. "We are House Kings. They are House Devils." he gritted his teeth. "We are fractured people."
"I see." Calia nodded. "So they'll kill you if they find you?"
"Yes." Arlaksis gestured back to his nerve-wrecked group, he knew they could fight, but they would die. "And you with us."
He looked back outside. The Captain pointed to the cathedral and yelled at two Vandals. He knew exactly what was going to happen. "We need to leave," he told his group.
But where would they go? Breaking the windows would give them away, and leaving from the front entrance meant death.
Fighting the Devils would be worse, still. Even if he and his crew survived, that Ketch further inland would be hunting for them.
"Wait!" Calia looked around the floor, staring at the floor, wall, even the ceiling. "I know a way out. The Devils won't see us leaving."
He was not going to question the small machine, it came from the Great Machine, and it was with them for a reason. "Show us."
Calia wasted no time, she darted away and led them down a stone hallway in the dark. Luckily, a small cone of light emitted suddenly from her, lighting the way.
They found a set of stairs leading down. It was tight and rather constricting for Arlaksis, but he endured. Once they reached the bottom, they came upon a split hallway. The left led back out into the cathedral, and the other led to a small wooden door.
"Here!" Calia floated to the door. "This leads outside."
Arlaksis pulled open the door as quietly as he could while trying to fit through the small door frame. Once he was outside, Koliks and his squad followed.
They entered into a small dock that was partially in the canal, and just nearby there was a small trail leading up into the main road that led out of the city.
He clutched Calia once again, and pointed to the trail. "Let's go!"
Even though he knew the Devils' hadn't seen them, he still took the long way back with Koliks, arriving back at the mouth of the cave just when the sun began to set.
During the whole trip, Paliks and Drivan had spoken of the Devils' tearing the city apart, and how they set up camp in the same cathedral he'd hidden away in.
Arlaksis didn't care, though. If the Devils' wanted the city, they could have it.
Still, he wanted his crew to lay low for a while, so he called both Vandals back to their hideaway. He met up with both of them along the way back.
All of them-save Koliks' squad- had gawked at the small machine floating by his shoulders, but Arlaksis said he'd tell them when they returned.
Even though he was physically exhausted from the day's efforts, his energy had increased by leaps and bounds. The Great Machine had sent him one it's creations, no doubt it was a sign.
He entered the cave with his crew not far behind him, the sniper had probably already told the other four about Calia. His crew was in for a surprise.
The cave was a bit different now. There was a wooden bridge now in place above the canal that led to the other end of the cave, giving them extra space.
"Come here, all of you!" Arlaksis called to his crew, bringing them near the fire.
He pointed to Calia above his shoulders. "This is Calia." he stepped away. "She is a blessing sent to us from the Great Machine! She will be staying with us."
The wariness and confusion had all left his men. Instead, they now looked at the small machine with wonder and excitement.
"Uh…hi! My name is Calia!" The Ghost looked down at Arlaksis' waiting crew. "Very nice to meet you all!"