Legend of the Dark Messiah: Volume Ii—A Wicked Storm

Copyright © 2012 by J. Johnson Higgins.

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ISBN: 978-1-4759-2287-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-2289-9 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-2288-2 (ebk)

iUniverse rev. date: 05/19/2012

CONTENTS

Cast of Characters

Author’s Preface

Prologue

DMITRI AND THE STRONG OUTSIDE PARTY

PART I

1

THE INFORMANT ON THE EVIL AGENCY

2

HOW CONFESSA THE CHRISTY GAINED A

NOBLE CONFESSION

3

OF A FEUD CONCERNING THE

IMPORTANCE OF HER

4

THE PRISON THAT DOESN’T EXIST

5

SEALING THE DEAL WITH

CAPTIVE NUMBER FOUR

6

THE TRAGEDY OF ERRORS

7

CASSIDY’S DESIRE

8

FEELING DMITRI’S MOON SPELL

9

DARKNESS BEFORE SUNDOWN

10

THE DRAGON SPOKE TO THE CLIFFS

11

THE BLACK DUKE’S INSURANCE POLICY

12

THE REASON NO ONE SHOULD

EVER CROSS SHELLY HOLLIDAY

13

THE DEBT OF DARKNESS TO AN ANGRY SWORD

14

A TOAST TO THE MADNESS: A CONFESSIONAL

15

THE NATURE OF FIRE

PART II

16

THE KNIGHTS OF GAEA

17

OSTARA AT THE RUINS

18

THE FIRST PEARL

19

CASSIDY AND THE SHADOW THAT IS NOT HERS

20

THE HORRIBLE DEATH OF CAPTAIN GORIS

21

A CURIOUS OBJECT THROUGH A SPYGLASS

22

ONE PART WISDOM, ONE PART CURSE

23

ON THE RELEVANCE OF AN EVIL ME

24

MEET AIR MARSHAL FEN MATHISON-HAWKINS

25

OPERATION WÄRL-ICK AND THE FEAR MACHINE

Appendix

Glossary

Also by J. Johnson Higgins:

LEGEND OF THE DARK MESSIAH: The Mask and the Sword

For my family and friends, always.

As we ascend the social ladder, viciousness wears a thicker mask.

—Erich Fromm

Cast of Characters

Barring, Lucas—Architecture professor, architect, historian, painter

Blackpool, Reginald Reggie—An I-Starian senator, Senate Minority Leader, and SOP (Strong Outside Party) Calvin loyalist

Blesséd—Outsider to I-Star, town elder

Calvin, Dmitri von—The Divine Dictator, an unknown sorcerer and impostor, impersonator of the President of the I-Star Republic who goes by the same name, rumored to be the son of Darrot, rumored to be Darrot, rumored to be a dragon in human form

Connie—Senior development agent, Division Twelve head

Day—A Blue Society member

Deadmyer—Gainsborough scholar, Willwright agent; later, Division Thirteen head

Doris, Jane—Gainsborough scholar; later, Division Thirteen member, Masked Hand sleeper agent

Draconian, Confessa—Dragon in human form, Calvin loyalist

Drel—Illusionist, mechanic, thief, Blue Society and Masked Hand member

Edmund—Noble I-Starian senator, Senate Majority Leader

Elizabeth—The on-record owner of Sebastian’s mansion in Duri-alus

Gainsborough, Dalton—Dragon in human form, top scholar of dark sciences, composer, Calvin loyalist

Goris—A ship captain

Holliday, Alec—Father of Shelly, former I-Starian Noble senator

Holliday, Erin—Elder sister of Shelly

Holliday, Lori—Mother of Shelly, practitioner of unorthodox witchcraft

Holliday, Shelly Donna—Dragon in human form, student of medicine, guitarist

Jeremy—Development agent, Division Twelve member

Lancaster, Megan—Daughter of Drel, novice illusionist, skilled knife thrower

Lect Black Duke—Dragon in human form, lead interrogator of the Willwrights, Calvin loyalist

Mage, Cassidy Ann Cam—Dragon in human form, Dark Messiah, amateur photographer, architecture and language student

Mage, Catherine—Sorceress of early I-Star and the name adopted by Cassidy

Mathison-Hawkins, Fen Loup-Garou Mortkind—Air marshal, Willwright officer

Mordrid—Dragon in human form, Calvin loyalist

Murculus—Keeper of Mount Killmoulis

Murdock—Gainsborough scholar; later, Division Thirteen member

Oxford, James—Technician, inventor, founder of G-Tech Corporation

Pace—Development agent, Division Twelve member

Quincy—Gainsborough scholar; later, Division Thirteen member

Rede—Dragon in human form, rogue former Special Agent of the I-Star Justice Agency

Ripley—Rogue former Special Agent of the I-Star Justice Agency, Blue Society and Masked Hand member

Sairys—Dragon in human form; said by many to have been killed before the birth of I-Star

Samuel—Development agent, legal consultant, Division Twelve member

Sara—Daughter of Elizabeth, an on-record resident of a mansion in Duri-alus known as the Sanctuary

Sebastian—Wealthy mercenary of Duri-alus, Blue Society and Masked Hand consultant, an advanced human-machine

Stone, Benjamin—Noble I-Starian senator

Wall, Marco—Noble I-Starian senator

Whisperer, Eric—An I-Starian senator and SOP Calvin loyalist

Author’s Preface

This novel is the second in The Legend of the Dark Messiah series. It came into being because I wanted it to exist—and others did too, thankfully. I primarily wrote it because I enjoy the process. Hopefully, you’ll enjoy reading it.

For my new readers, this volume was written to stand alone—I made an effort to make the most important details accessible, and those who begin here should be able to follow the story and enjoy it. On the other hand, the atmosphere of this installment will be familiar to those who have read The Mask and the Sword, and they will have an advantage as far as the backstory and the big picture are concerned. Readers of the first volume will also more easily catch the significance of subtle references.

For these reasons, I urge you to read the first book if you haven’t already—for the sake of context and story evolution. In truth, I’d rather not think of A Wicked Storm as separate from the first book—my pen never actually stopped moving when I dreamed this all up—the breaks between the novels were artificially imposed. However, the challenges facing the characters are different in this volume, because the situations they find themselves in are different. In addition, the narrative is meant to be more intense but the fun and adventure just as strong, if not stronger.

Blah, blah, blah, I think I’ll get on with the story. Have fun!

—J. Johnson Higgins

Prologue

DMITRI AND THE STRONG OUTSIDE PARTY

In the eleventh year of Dmitri von Calvin’s presidency, darkness gripped I-Star. For centuries, black magick was an illegal force in this unified world government built on the foundations of magick and technology. With the intensifying rise of magick violence and corruption, however, Dmitri convinced the I-Starians that using the dark forces was its best form of protection and the answer to all of society’s troubles. Soon he created a better and more appropriate force to police the vast nation—a black magick organization known as the Agency of Willwrights.

The promoted purpose of Dmitri’s new organization was counterterrorism and intelligence, but few realized at the time that it would soon become the premier sponsor of terror and the legs on which newer corruption ran amuck. They couldn’t have known that Dmitri was actually an impostor with a much more violent agenda in mind. This was the most powerful and diabolical dark sorcerer in all of I-Star, posing as the moderate president he had assassinated years ago. Dmitri had easily fooled the masses into believing he was the true president of I-Star by wearing an enchanted mask—undetectable as such to everyone but his most loyal followers.

According to an old I-Starian legend, a Divine Dictator would rise wearing a special mask with a crescent smile and vicious eyes. The mask would represent vengeance and the overthrow of all things light. This dictator would unite those who believed in the lesser powers of darkness, cast out the white magick Nobles who had ruled for centuries and start a new era under Darrot, the masked god of vengeance. The legend also told of a Dark Messiah. She would be the carrier of Darrot’s black sword and would possess the power to wipe out the Divine Dictator’s opposition, defy the Powers That Be, and deliver his victory.

Was there any truth to this legend? It would seem so. The false president’s loyal followers were the exclusive members of his new agency: they could see Dmitri’s mask, they believed in his power, and they wanted nothing less than the reversal of five hundred years of the white magick Nobles’ dominance. Indeed, they were calling for the return of the Dark Messiah to usher in this new age, and darkness was beginning to prevail.

What the legend did not reveal was the destabilizing tension between the Divine Dictator and the Dark Messiah. She had so far resisted this dark ruler’s every advance and even stood as the force for his defeat. Overcoming this challenge would be the dictator’s next step.

With Dmitri’s new agency the strongest single force in all the land, the impostor president and his followers were on the cusp of the greatest transformation I-Star had ever seen. Those who believed in this new direction had united under the flag of the Strong Outside Party—the SOP.¹

*       *       *

It was cold in the mountains. The sky always seemed to be overcast near the Mountain of Stars. Wind whistled between them as thousands of people stood in silence in this secret place far beyond the I-Star capital city of Jennison. This was a private rally for the Strong Outside Party. The rally would conclude with a spell to summon a woman named Cassidy Ann Mage, believed to be the Dark Messiah and holder of the black sword.

Cassidy was the most important key to their cause’s success, but first they had to find her, lure her out of hiding, and convince her to follow Dmitri’s lead. She’d resisted him once before, but things were different now that the influence of the sword in her possession was growing stronger and stronger every day.

With this spell, she was sure to be drawn into the open. It did not matter if Cassidy wanted any part of Dmitri’s plans. He was convinced that it was only a matter of time before the black sword burrowed into her mind and controlled her every move, assuring him success. Perhaps the black sword would whisper to her, beg her, and torment her into wandering into the crosshairs of this puppet master Dmitri von Calvin.

All the attendees wore dark garments in honor of this special day and seemed unbothered by the cold air that revealed their steady breaths. Many wore a look of anticipation as they gazed in the same direction. Others shifted to get a better view of their charismatic leader.

A phantom stood before the crowd. His mask expelled visible, rapid puffs of air as if it were laughing. Perhaps the man behind it was laughing; perhaps he considered the world around them to be a big joke. One thing everyone knew, if there was a joke involved, someone other than him or his followers was going to be the punchline, and it was not going to be delivered painlessly by the looks of it. A row of twenty of his private guards stood before him dressed in black suits and gray overcoats, with black, misty voids for eyes and semiautomatic weapons in their hands. Like statues, the soldiers did not move, but their scarves flapped in all directions.

Before the audience could analyze the impressive scene further, the masked figure spoke. We have waited a long time. Dmitri’s voice echoed across the mountains. You are now the chosen ones. You are now, each of you, knives ready to cut away the shame attached to our names. Look back five hundred years. He outstretched his hand for emphasis. Our story has not been told, my fellow Willwrights! Tonight our story will be brought to life and in the most vivid way possible. Look around you. Dmitri indicated the dark but serene outdoors. "I chose this location for a special reason: this is where it all began.

"This is where I-Star started. This is where our true founders conjured great dragons in their image. This is where the sorcerers and their dragons developed the principles of government we know today. There is only one I-Star, and it is the one conceived that day. I-Star is not the abomination that the white-magick Nobles would have you believe it is. It is not a system that grants privilege to a family line of coconspirators. It is not the land where dragons are a myth. It is not a world where humans fear their return! No! Those beliefs are a cancer to true I-Starians." The onlookers cheered for him before he went on.

"In I-Star’s infancy, the so-called Nobles murdered our founders and took credit for our system. The crowd booed and jeered the Nobles. The great dragons were sealed inside the mountains. The audience continued to respond with jeers for the enemy. Now, the dragons are the subject of legends, malleable legends that cast them in shame. Dmitri looked out among his followers. That story is all-too-familiar, and unfortunately, it is our story too. Those of us who know about the dragons and could free them have been victimized for centuries. We’ve been imprisoned, made into an underclass, considered outlaws! You know this! You are the silenced, and the unseen of this great land. But I promise you: we will take our names back and write the true history of I-Star, even if we have to write it in the blood of Nobles."

This comment drew enthusiastic cheers, but Dmitri was not finished.

"All of those wrongs I named will be righted sooner than you think. The wizards of I-Star, Dmitri spat, as if the name were an insult, our supposed wise leaders, claim publicly that they protect us all. But no! They fear us. They fear our resolve. We are not shaken, and here is why. Dmitri placed his gloved hands on the lectern before him and leaned forward. I have freed the dragons from the cold confines erected by the Noble wizards!"

High above the rally, four humanoid shadows stood on the mountains in the four corners of view. These were special guards as well as honored guests. They were guarding the event initially, looking out for miles in all directions to be sure that it remained a private rally. They also periodically inspected the crowd below to be sure that there were no infiltrators or suspicious activities. Once Calvin beckoned them by name and invoked their presence, the four special guards temporarily left their posts. As if it was easy, the four leaped from these distant cliffs and floated down gracefully. Their descent was fast, then slow, then fast again leaving delayed after images the entire way down. They approached the president and landed at his side.

There was something different about these four guards. It wasn’t just that they were dressed in a manner indicating that they were of the highest rank in Calvin’s new agency—personalized, one-of-a-kind overcoats with unique colors and markings—they also seemed superhuman. Their eyes shone with an otherworldly brilliance, sparkling with every color in the spectrum. They each bore different-colored gems or crystals on their foreheads—called Smot-spots—and their proximity could be felt, like a magnetic field upon arrival. To the far left was Lect, Calvin’s lead assassin. His eyes were like glowing red rubies. Next to him was Mordrid, the keeper of energy. He rotated harmony spheres in his right hand so that his energy would not surge out of control. By him was Confessa Draconian whose name said it all. She was the keeper of truth. Lastly, there was Dr. Dalton Gainsborough, Calvin’s top scientist, capable of entering and leaving dimensions at will.

The four guards with the shimmering overcoats jumped forward as if to lunge the crowd, but it was just for effect. All four of them drew their swords and held them to the sky, conjuring images of battle. The crowd broke into wild applause, even as their spines were chilled to ice. These were the dragons that Dmitri von Calvin spoke of.

Dragons that enter the physical world almost always mirror the humans who impress them, the ones who first called them into that world but with variations that set them apart from the average look of a human. The variations were typically abnormal hair colors, preternatural eyes and sparkling gems as part of their foreheads rather than worn as ceremonial or cosmetic additions. These dragons were no exception—they bore the likenesses of four sorcerers who had lived five hundred years ago, the true founders that Calvin spoke of. In a way, it was like taking a peek into the past, but they were certainly more than they appeared to be.

In nature, dragons exist among all things as the energies that support or oppose actions. It is said that if humans were the chess pieces of the gods, then dragons were the rules to the game. In other words, dragons are the personification of elements, concepts, and laws. Their powers do not dissipate by taking on our form, and they have a natural propensity to make up the rules of their surroundings as they move. To have a dragon take on a human form is both rare and fascinating, as only a handful have ever done so. Their presence, for that reason, is often magnetic, for better or for worse.

In the last five hundred years, only nine dragons have taken human form; five are vengeance seekers—against the Nobles for sealing them in the mountains. Dmitri von Calvin is rumored to be one of them—the first to escape the mountain—but as a phantom, this has not been confirmed. The four other vengeance seekers were the specters that swooped into the rally.

The resisters—not present at the rally—were Cassidy Ann Mage, Rede, and Shelly Holliday. Lastly, Sairys Van Alan was the only dragon said to have died before the birth of I-Star.

In unison, Calvin’s four dragons stamping to attention, one hand fisted behind their backs. They had the crowd in the palms of their hands.

Dmitri lifted both hands in front of him and pulled the audience’s attention back in. The truth can be hidden no longer. Now, let us summon another dragon: the Dark Messiah! A hush fell over the gathering like a shadow. I promised that I would bring you a blackened empire. In short time, you will see that I have done that. Let us spill the blood of the Noble wizards together, my fellow Willwrights. The preparations are over, and a new flag will fly in I-Star Quarter! President Dmitri von Calvin exclaimed to the crowd of his most vile and murderous followers.

He pointed to the perimeters, drawing their attention to the banner of the party, which flew at every vantage point. It consisted of a stylized black octant—a navigation instrument resembling an eighth of a circle. Below it are three downward pointing arrows, reminiscent of drawings typically found in a book of spells.

While the audience appeared to be made up of a uniform culture of business leaders, upstanding elected officials, educators, doctors, husbands, sons, wives, and daughters, they were all infiltrators, just like Dmitri. What was not readily visible was that the assembly was also composed of mafia; rabid disaster capitalists; and an unbreakable fraternity of black magick adepts ready to be let loose on society like never before. These adepts faced the phantom at the podium as he drew his sword and held it above his head. This action drew additional cheers from his onlookers. After a pregnant pause as he waited for all eyes to be locked onto it, he lowered the sword to his gloved hand and dragged the blade across it, cutting into his hand. He showed the onlookers his wounded hand and squeezed the blood from it into a fire bowl. This was the first step in leading the summoning ritual. The chanting followed in the language of Ancient Pearl:

Come to me!

Come to me!

Come to me . . .

Perhaps Cassidy, the legendary Dark Messiah they wished to summon, would emerge from hiding but still resist the madness, including the prophecy of her evil role at Dmitri’s side.

PART I

THE DARK STORM DEATH PROJECT

1

THE INFORMANT ON THE EVIL AGENCY

Cassidy, Rede spoke. Cassidy stopped and turned around. Take this with you. Rede handed her one of his XMs, a small, silver-colored firearm. It was easy enough to conceal but certainly a little bigger than something she would pick out for herself. She didn’t even use them. Something doesn’t feel right about this.

Excellent. Just what I needed to hear, Cassidy responded as she shoved the weapon into her purse. Rede was always right when he had unexplained hunches. It was one of his abilities as a dragon; namely, divine inklings and psychic dreams.

Try to stay calm. Remember, even though you may not see me, I will always have you in my sight. I’ll be close at all times, Rede reassured her with his hands on her shoulders. Stay calm, he repeated before putting his forehead to hers just above her red gem. The green gem on his forehead touched her.

Okay, Cassidy replied in a low but convincing voice.

Rede believed in Cassidy and for a good reason. She’d proven again and again that she could handle almost anything if she put her mind to it. It didn’t matter how crazy, dangerous or unbelievable.

Cassidy had come far for a dragon who had only a few years ago woken up inside of an enchanted mountain cave with no memory of her past and no clue of how she’d gotten there—the cold room, as she referred to it. She and the other dragons were locked in the icy Mountain of Stars for over five hundred years because humans believed they were evil. She, of course, didn’t know about all of that at the time. She didn’t even know she was a dragon. She looked and felt human, so that was how she lived her life when she’d first woken up so many years later. She was the proverbial clean slate but became someone extraordinary.

In her time in Jennison, she’d learned about the vast world around her. Most of her time was consumed running one of the busiest hotels in I-Star’s capital city, the Legacy Inn. She had a gift for seeing the beauty in ordinary things and in her spare time she dabbled with photography to express it. Her life really transformed when she was hired as a consultant to restore that capital’s most treasured landmark, an enormous clock tower called Jennison’s Watch Face. Her achievements gained her several recognitions all while she was still just an architecture student. Rede was amazed by what she had done.

By most accounts, Cassidy was on her way to becoming a Christy, or one of the top positions in I-Star’s government. A Christy was an appointed title given to the president’s closest associates. When appointed, their orders are of the highest authority and are considered to be as good as from the president if the president is not around. A Christy was female and the male counterpart was called a Guy.

If she’d become one of Calvin’s Christies, she’d probably have been the head of Development—an agency that oversaw both law enforcement and economic growth; quite an honor. She exhibited potential in both areas. As a dragon in human form, she had special powers. She could read the auras of others without even trying, she could cause and manipulate fire with a single thought, and she could quickly learn skills that usually took humans years to master—all useful in such a position. But Cassidy did not become a Christy because she had another skill that got her into trouble. She could see that Calvin was wearing a mask and learned that he was a demented, violent, ghoul of a sorcerer and impostor set on world domination. For that, she refused to use her abilities to help him. She fought him and defeated him, so she thought. She and her friends have had to keep their movements a secret ever since. Now, they are considered outlaws and Calvin has been carrying on without a sign of hesitation.

Cassidy turned and made for the door of Sebastian’s grand mansion, the Sanctuary. Before leaving, she turned to face Rede once again. She came back and kissed him before she disappeared through the door, a thank-you for restoring her shaken confidence. It was a quick motion, almost stolen if it hadn’t been for the appropriately paired action of leaving. Rede did not anticipate the gift but wished he had, in order to reciprocate. She was already gone. On the other hand, Rede was glad to see that Cassidy had gotten her strange enthusiasm for the situation back. It was what he liked about her: her immediate tasks always became the most important things in the world to her and excited her. It didn’t matter if it was something trivial like getting to a movie on time—before going into hiding anyway—or something much more serious like her current meeting with a special informant regarding an agency considered much more evil than average. She left the door hanging wide open. It was a reminder that Rede should be on the move almost immediately after her. He would do just that, but before walking out the door, he went over his supplies. Everything was in order. He was on the move.

It was calm walking through the gardens of the Sanctuary, a temporary safe-house for government resisters like her. It was nothing like how it would be once she made it further into the city of Duri-alus: busy, loud, and exposed. She passed through the large metal gate and continued down the steep sidewalk. It was a beautiful city in its own unique way, but Cassidy had an eye for architecture, and she only found Duri-alus impressive because it was so uniform and neat. She was convinced that there were no older parts to this city and that it all just popped up at once—and recently at that. Similarly, everything from the lawns to the buildings just looked functional rather than artistic. She put it out of her mind and caught a bus once further along.

Though mostly out of sight, Rede on occasion crossed Cassidy’s vision. He was not completely clean-shaven like he usually was; instead, he had a small mustache. This was a deliberate and convincing disguise that was not as silly looking as it sounded. He was like a different person. He also wore a hat and coat and carried a side bag with him.

Cassidy had altered her image significantly too. She’d darkened her hair from the obvious dusty rose pink to a near jet black, cut it shorter, and even wore a scarf and sunglasses. She wore brown contact lenses beneath her shades to disguise her naturally rainbow-flecked irises, which lacked any one solid or dominant color. People often saw what they wanted to see in her eyes, but today they needed to see brown without question.

The two covert dragons could not afford to be spotted by anyone during this operation. If they were randomly checked by authorities, she even had a fake ID to prove her name was Rain Silverly, not Cassidy. Rede’s said Joseph. If they could have done anything about it, they would not have been out in public at all, but this had to be done. Dmitri von Calvin was still in office, and from what they’d heard, he was planning something big. An unknown force was compelling her to briefly come out of hiding to meet a special informant, despite the risk of being discovered.

As Cassidy walked through the city, she became more and more paranoid. The number of people she passed increased. She had a constant fear that she was being followed. She walked faster, looking harder at everyone as she passed. She was again put at ease with the thought of Rede. She checked the time. It was 11:41 a.m.

I’m early.

But that did not matter. She could see that the person she was looking for was right across the street with her face buried in a newspaper. She considered jaywalking, but decided it was better not to attract the extra attention. She crossed at the crosswalk with everyone else.

This was definitely the meeting place. Cassidy saw the mall across the way with dressed manikins in the windows. She slowed her pace and approached the reading woman.

Did you drop this? Cassidy asked in the Sapphire language of the Far West. She handed the reading woman a small, powder case that was, at first, resting on the ground beside her.

Yes. Thank you so much, the woman replied in the same language, stroking her brow. Cassidy copied the motion of stroking her brow, and the message was received. They were both the people they were supposed to be. The reading woman’s name was Day, or at least that was what she called herself. She was a Blue Society resistance member, and she knew major secrets about the unspoken fear that gripped I-Star. She knew of the Dark Storm Death Project that Calvin recently set into motion. Walk with me, Day insisted.

I’m surprised; I didn’t think you would come, Day said in a shy and wary fashion. Day was shorter than Cassidy and had the face of someone she thought she knew or maybe someone she would want to know if it weren’t under these circumstances. She was also surprisingly younger than expected. She must have been just a teenager after a better look at her. Nobody wants this information, because it’s so dangerous. Cassidy could feel Day’s nervousness. Let’s keep moving. We can’t stay here.

I have some questions, Cassidy started as they crossed another intersection.

"Not now, it’s not safe here. Wait until we get to that