Chapter 42: Setting the Blaze

With the patient and aloof attitude of one who is supremely confident in their existence; not from any great pride in her individual importance, but from the quiet understanding of her significance and insignificance in the vast scheme of the universe; Aeron stepped forward until she stood face to face with Riddick. Her cool eyes appraised him as they had on their first meeting, seeing deeply and harboring within their depths a wealth of wisdom and secrets.

"And so we meet again." She said simply, shortly, with almost a maternal air, "You have learned much since our last meeting."

Her gaze traveled to Kyra who was holding Brac against her shoulder. The cool, calculating eyes softened slightly as she saw the obvious loyalty and air of defiance that lingered in the very essence of this woman. She could see why the endlessly defiant Riddick had chosen her.

Aeron looked back at the silent man before her, "Yet there is much left for you to accomplish before you fulfill the destiny that has laid itself before you. Sit, if you will, and listen. I will speak to you of the plague that still contaminates this universe and the threat that is about to crash down upon us all."

She let her mystical gaze travel around the room, including the gathered citizens in the warning she was giving their leaders. A deep, heavy hush fell like a blanket over the already silent room as the importance of her words became apparent to them all.

She continued, coming directly to the point as was her custom, "The Necromongers have left the Underverse. They have amassed under one of the previous Lord Marshals, the rumors that have reached us have not named him, but we know that they have spread out across the universe like locusts; destroying galaxy after galaxy. No longer are they interested in converts: The death toll has been like nothing ever imagined. Men, women, and children, slaughtered without warning. Only a few have escaped to bring warning to us.

"It is said that they come quietly in the night, creeping up on the planet, hiding in its shadow. Within hours the planet is destroyed. The only survivors are those that were already off planet and who ran as soon as the Necromongers were detected entering the atmosphere.

"System after system has fallen before them. They're destruction is quick and complete. No resistance has been successful. The Universe is falling under a shadow so thick that we will smother in it. Hope is dying; anarchy is spreading as those who once treasured life and freedom resort to chaos. The Necromongers are waging their final cleansing on the Universe; their power is growing as lives are snuffed out.

"There is only one light that can be seen in this growing darkness; there is only one hope that some still cling to. Word of the Prophecy has spread from Helion Prime and the legend of a race of warriors has been revived Now, the eyes of the Universe have turned toward Furya for salvation.

"I have come to give you this call. Our Universe is dying, no planet is safe. They are destroying world after world. Unlike the devastation they wrought on this planet, the annihilation is complete. The time for vengeance has come." Aeron turned her eyes on Riddick alone, impressing upon him the magnitude of her appeal, "Raise your people up, Riddick. Fight for our freedom, our future, and our lives.

"Your fight has come at last."

Riddick stood silent as Aeron finished speaking. The room was hushed; time seemed to hold still as her request became clear to them all: A request to wage a war against the Necromongers, the cult that had nearly destroyed their race thirty years ago; a war that they may not win; a war that, if they lost, would mean the complete destruction of the living Universe.

A nearly tangible tension swirled around the chamber. The air seemed to vibrate as the lust for war, for vengeance, washed over the assemblage. Like the ancient Spartans, these were a people who lived for a fight, a battle to win, and seemingly unconquerable challenges to face.

Riddick watched as the crowd became restless and shouts rang out; the crowd in turn watched their leader, each face full of determination and a barely controlled fury. Marks burned brightly throughout the hall.

Riddick's mercury eyes took it in, as he scanned the great chamber. He understood what he saw shining in the eyes of his people; he too remembered the atrocities of the Necromongers. The vision of the Furyan world as the Necromongers ravaged it, seen from his cradle as a baby, flashed again before his eyes; Imam's bloodied, still face; Kyra slowly dying on Necropolis, her life blood seeping across the black floor, whispering of her unwavering loyalty; the destruction and suffering in the Underverse, the Necromonger's fucking paradise. Fury was smoldering within him as well.

A slight smile tugged at his lips; unconscious confidence, bordering on arrogance, made him seem invulnerable as he stood before the Elemental Aeron, the High Priestess Shirah and an assembly of his race. "Freedom? Vengeance?" A harsh laugh burst forth, and a small light seemed to burn behind his silver eyes as he said in a low, rough voice, "Fuck that, Sister, we'll do this for fun."

The crowd burst into yells and shouts at his words. They were kindred spirits; warriors, fighters, predators all.

Aeron smiled her small, mysterious smile as she watched the scene unfolding. Finally, after years of darkness and suffering, the race that had become legend was reborn; the passion and fire of these warriors was re-kindled, and the torch of Furya blazed forth once again