Temple
Right it's been such a long time since I've written anything for this story that I had to actually go back and reread it just to get the plot I had written down :S but I have a new chapter for your reading pleasure, hopefully you'll enjoy it anyway I won't fluff so on with the chapter, I don't own Jak and Daxter but I do own ORTZ!
The rag tag group climbed out of the vehicle as it entered a large open area with huge stone columns lining the bridge way between two rows of cliffs, Ortz looked up at the monoliths in awe; they must have stood at least sixty feet tall.
"They are some big rocks," Ortz uttered whilst turning on the spot being dwarfed by these huge towers.
"This is just the entrance," Preacher chuckled as he sparked causing an eerie glow to emanate from a large door way embedded in the cliff face, "Seem you shall lead."
She just nodded as she walked forwards into the temple, "What is this place?" Ortz asked Preacher as he ran his hand along the walls of the hallway.
"It's a temple child," Preacher replied as he continued to admire the towering stone work. "Now I'd say that is enough fraternising, Seem get the observatory cleaned up so I can admire what is coming." He added as he scuttled towards the entrance to what looked like a prayer room.
"Yes, Preacher," Seem said begrudgingly.
'What has he got over her?' Ortz thought as he continued to follow the group the Scot was simply riding behind everyone trying to not annoy Preacher.
"Where do you think you're going?" Preacher said suddenly as he abruptly stopped in the doorway of a stairwell leading up to into one of the spires of the temple. He turned and faced Ortz, "Well?" She demanded to the now terrified Ortz. Veins had risen on Preachers face they were a deep purple, they pulsed with every beat of his heart, he began to shake and his eyes blacken, "Go!" He spat as he continued up the stairs, "Get the damn observatory ready!"
Ortz sat in the corner of the prayer room, the Scot came over with a drink, "Take this," He said quietly as he passed the small brass cup of water.
"What is your name?" Ortz asked as he downed the cup and passed it back to the Scot.
"Kabal, I was born a desert wanderer but the damn marauders put an end to that, now I fight for Spargus well not that Damas knows that he doesn't see a difference in the two groups." Kabal laughed as he looked around the room seeing obviously familiar faces.
"How do you know so many of these monks and priestesses?" Ortz then asked.
"What is this twenty foocking questions?" Kabal replied eagerly.
"Not exactly," Ortz shrugged.
"They were my fellow tribesmen, these monks forgive past sins they care only for your devotion to the precursors," He said calmly whilst looking at the residues in the base of the cup, "So why did you stop being one of those KG asswipes?"
"They got me and several of my comrades into the shit without any sign of getting out and then murdered them," Ortz told him as he stood up and looked to see where the water was kept.
"Well I can see how that might cause you to switch allegiances," Kabal said as he pointed over in the direction of the water collectors.
"Kabal!" A voice screeched across the room as Ortz walked towards the collectors, followed by a young woman running across the room. She then started speaking in a strange language to Kabal. Ortz had heard stories as a trainee of men who spoke in tongues in the wastelands who can only be defeated by a strange essence, an eco that can be controlled.
"Cén fáth a bhfuil tú anseo?" The woman said as she sat up next to Kabal.
"Tá an múinteoir a thug dom anseo," Kabal replied to which they had some conversation which ended with the word that Ortz had been hearing said about himself. Váli.
The woman parted from Kabal and joined a precession of monks, "Who or what is Váli?" Ortz asked as he sat back next to Kabal.
"Váli? He was a precursor, said to have slain his half-brother for killing his brother," Kabal smiled at Ortz.
"Then why does this name follow me?" Ortz asked.
"It was the thought of the rising of Váli that gave the marauders the shivers and what caused the death of my tribe," He told Ortz solemnly as they heard a distant humming emanate through the temple followed by a roar.
"What the fuck was that?" Ortz asked as the room shook.
"The observatory it just fired."
"What is the observatory?" Ortz asked again playing twenty questions.
"A method of channelling eco from the ground to a vessel."
"Preacher?"
"Indeed, but he cannot control it," Kabal sighed, "For his is not the true Váli."
"Who is Preacher to you?"
"A man who rose from the desert, I know not where he came from only that he had a deep understanding of the way marauders and my people worked."
"Why do you question his lineage?"
"Because Váli could only kill the guilty not the innocent, he slaughters both, I also find it funny how he arrives just as the marauders slaughter our people."
"We must leave!" Preacher bellowed into the room.
"Well that was sudden and asshole like," Ortz said as he climbed to his feet and looked helped Kabal to his feet.
"None of that leaves your mind," Kabal told him as he led Ortz from the room back into the winding corridors of the temple as they began their precession deeper into the temple.
They seemed to be guided by the chants of the monks from the belly of the temple, eventually the group arrived in a huge room with a central bronze statue, it had massive boggly eyes with a strange series of spheres making up the main body of the statue.
"The precursors have smiled upon me today!" Preacher shouted as he silenced the chants. "I am blessed by the powers of the eco." He started to spark as he approached the statue eventually shocking the staff which it was holding onto, he struggled to maintain the purple strikes of lightening when it cracked off nearly hitting a few of the monks who were knelt next to him in fear. "Ah so I see, the precursors demand a sacrifice!" He declared as he scanned the monks who were now covering their faces from the glowing man. "You!" He pointed at one monk in the crowd who stood up, she pulled her hood down exposing the face and blonde dreadlocks of the woman who had spoken to Kabal earlier.
"No! Not her!" Kabal demanded.
"That is not my decision you insolent child!" Preacher exclaimed, "It is the precursors decision!"
"no you are a false deity, nothing more than a heathen demigod, not the true Váli!" Kabal shouted as he stepped towards Preacher.
"Really?" He said as he slicked back his hair before quickly shocking Kabal to the floor. After a few seconds Kabal's arms started to burn the hair was igniting but Preacher showed no mercy.
"Enough!" Ortz shouted over the sound of the searing flesh.
"Your insolence insults me boy!" Preacher growled as he stopped shocking Kabal who was now a burnt husk, barely breathing on the floor.
"He was right; you're no god, such as you pretend."
"And what do you know of that?"
"Váli only kills the guilty not the innocent, you've tasted the blood of innocents," Ortz replied calmly as he stepped towards Preacher, who was slowly raising his hand to Ortz. Eventually the inevitable happened, a plague of lightening bolted towards Ortz who took the shock but was definitely hurting his clothes were being burnt by the blast and his skin was cooking. Yet he continued to walk closer unfaulted. When he got to within striking range Ortz seized his chance striking Preacher on the hand causing an explosion of purple arching, which blinded all in the room for a few seconds.
Once everyone had regained their vision what had happened became visible, Ortz knelt on one knee before Preacher, arm still outstretched from his punch. Preacher was stood looking in amazement at his arm, for there was now only a stump no hand just a stump.
"How?" He whispered as he looked up at Ortz.
"Because you're no god!" Ortz shouted as he pulled himself to his feet eyes blackened and veins raised in a deep purple.
"What?" Preacher shouted as looked upon Ortz and then cauterised his stump using a single bolt of lightning.
"You are not a god!"
"We shall see!" He spat as he burst into a cloud of purple smoke leaving only the faint glow of the boot prints he had left.
"You fool!" Seem burst forwards from the group of monks, "We're all dead because of you!"
"No, he ended the tyranny of Preacher!" A monk shouted from the rear of the crowd.
"No he will be back and he will bring more of his kin."
"But he's gone for now," Kabal choked as he was helped to his feet by the woman that he knew.
"What possessed you two to do that?" Seem asked angrily.
"I didn't want to watch your supposed friend die," Ortz told her as he walked up the stairs towards the prayer room, "Make sure he doesn't die." Ortz said as he cleared the stairs and exited the temple back out in the wide open entrance of the temple. The vehicle that the group had arrived on still sat just outside the pillars, Ortz jumped up on the driver's seat and set the massive engine roaring as he spooled it around.
He then set about blasting into the desert sending clouds of dust into the air around himself, the air seemed even drier than usual, the engine continually spat as a result of the dry air. However after only a few minutes of driving the marauders were draw to the vehicle like moths to a flame, only a few at first but then more and more, a never ending army of flesh and steel.
Ortz pulled the vehicle up in a small dusty village just as the marauders had disappeared from his view, he waited in one of the small mud huts which still had the remains of its former inhabitants spread over the walls like butter, the house otherwise was perfectly furnished every item was in place every chair was perfect, every picture frame straight and there was even an undisturbed cup on the table from which someone had obviously planned drinking but not got round to doing so.
"Ortz! I know you're here!" A female voice shouted from outside the house as Ortz admired the building, "I can smell you," they said again as he heard the from door open, followed by light and gentle footsteps.
"Valetta?" Ortz whispered.
"Yes, so you do remember our encounter in the eco mine," She whispered back as if she was standing right beside him. Ortz turned his head to see the metallic sparkle of Valetta's mechanical eye, which stunned him in his frame. The eye twitched looking him up and down, "Now," She started, "You…you are a little meddling one aren't you?" she growled as he stood up slowly eyes fixed on the glowing red object.
"Erm….. What do you mean?" He stuttered.
"You know exactly what I mean!" She snapped slapping him to the floor, "Oh shit, I'm so sorry Váli," She cried as she helped him to his feet again.
"What the?" Ortz blurted out in confusion.
"Well," Valetta said as she dusted off his shoulders, "Now you see what you did in harming Preacher is that you let some very bad people get away scot free."
"Bad people?" Ortz asked confused again.
"Kabal and Niah Kergiz, the desert crawling devil worshipers, they shame the precursors with their presence in the temple," She said to him as she grabbed his hand and looked him in the eyes, "They worship the dark makers, a very bad sort who are bent of world destruction."
"Lady, you're fucking crazy, their tribe was wiped out by your kind for just being desert wanderers," Ortz told her bluntly.
"No! They were harbouring dark magic!" She said through gritted teeth.
"You ethnically cleansed them," Ortz said as he pushed his way outside to be faced with the barrels of the marauders rifles. "Come on then!" He shouted as he held up his arms.
"Don't shoot!" A voice bellowed above the sound of the desert winds tearing through the ghost town, "I want him alive!" the voice said as it came closer, the wheezing from their lungs made the silence of their approach more ominous. But eventually a purple veined stump broke through the lines of the marauders and a face with jet black eyes, purple lips and sunken cheeks stared at Ortz.
"Preacher?" Ortz asked as he looked back at the vacant eyes.
"Yes," he wheezed in response.
"What happened to you?" Ortz asked looking at Preacher with pity.
"You did! You drained my power destroyed my connection with the eco, I was to become a god!" He attempted to shout back as Valetta exited the house.
"Take his blood already and dump him in the desert for the birds to scavenge already," She said mercilessly whilst climbing on top of the lead marauder vehicle. To which Preacher nodded and two marauders grabbed Ortz's arms and legs while a third plunged a needle deep into his neck and pulled out several small ampules of blood, causing Ortz to pass out in the process.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I know so far Ortz had been made to seem practically invincible I'm hoping that I can get some action in where you may fear for him hopefully that is. But anyway I hope you enjoyed this chapter and a review is always appreciated and very much taken on board. So until the next time….PEACE!