1

Sentinel
3 AUDIOBOOK COLLECTIONS

6 BOOK COLLECTIONS
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Chapter 1

Eli trotted along a brightly lit subway terminal, weaving through the crowds of people
waiting to board the train that had just stopped on his right. As a loudspeaker announced the
train’s next stop, Eli carefully scanned the cement wall that ran along the terminal on his left. He
distinctly remembered the description he was given of the man he was searching for: about sixty
years of age, tall, clad in grey, and piercing blue eyes. Eli had been told that the man would be
sitting on a wooden bench against the cement wall; however, there was no bench in sight. He
began moving faster, carelessly jostling past people exiting the train. They paid no attention to
him, brushing by as if he didn’t exist. Looks like rush hour… Eli thought. What a time to have a
meeting arranged.
As the crowds gradually began to thin around him, Eli set his sights upon a man slumping
on a bench far ahead. He wore a grey hat and coat; he appeared to be tall, slender, and wrinkled.
Though Eli was fairly confident in his initial assumption, it was not until he felt the man’s cold
gaze upon him that his suspicions were confirmed: This was the person he was looking for. The
man’s eyes were closely fixated on Eli as he drew nearer. When he had finally arrived at the
bench, the man smiled dryly.
“You must be Eli,” he said. “Why don’t you sit down, son.”
Eli took his place on the bench, keeping a few feet of separation from the old man. For
several minutes, they sat in silence, watching the people who passed by. The man’s eyes
gleamed with curiosity as he gazed at them.
“It’s interesting to see them hurry about in their daily lives,” he chuckled. “I suppose
they think they’ll simply work for a few decades, retire, spend some time with their families, and
ultimately become one with the Earth again, ending it all. Little do they know...”
Although Eli found the man strange and daunting, he eventually worked up the nerve to
speak to him. “Do you think any of them can see us?” he asked shyly.
The man shrugged. “Only very, very few people can,” he responded gruffly. “But no
such person is present here. Tell me, Eli. How did you meet your end in this world in the first
place? You appear to be nothing more than an adolescent.”
Eli stared down at the ground. “I got into a car crash as a sixteen-year-old,” he muttered.
“That was about three years ago.”
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The man shook his head in sympathy. “Must’ve been tough to leave your loved ones
behind so early.”
Eli lifted his eyes from the ground and shifted uncomfortably on the bench. “There
wasn’t much to leave behind,” he replied grimly. “Most of my family had been killed by the
virus long before my time came. The infectious agent had devastated the city I grew up in:
Nearly half of the population fell victim to it.”
While Eli and his new companion had been conversing, the terminal had quickly become
filled with bustling bodies once again. “Interesting,” said the man, as he watched the teeming
mass of living flesh that writhed before him. “It appears these people are affected by no such
virus.”
“The virus spreads slowly,” muttered Eli. “As of now, it only exists in a few regions of
the world, but such will not be the case forever. While the virus’ spread is slow, it is steady and
certain. There is no cure for it; it will someday claim all of humanity.”
The man laughed. “Good to know,” he said sarcastically. “I guess the Maw will soon be
overflowing with poor souls. By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask you: How’d you escape that
God-forsaken place so quickly? You said you died only three years ago, which means you
must’ve escaped the Maw in unprecedented time if you’re back here already. I’ve known souls
who have battled there for decades – centuries even. What allowed you to find your way out so
fast?”
Eli shuddered as he remembered his first moments in that hell. The last thing he had
remembered was a car colliding with him as he was driving to school. The next instant, he was
kneeling down in a clearing of dark grass, surrounded by dozens of other confused people.
Above them, a stately angel hovered in the air. He was tall and muscular, and the halo over his
head dazzled with a blinding glare. Gazing down upon the terrified souls below, he explained
their predicament. He explained that reality as they knew it consisted of five sub-worlds: the
Living World, the Maw, the Void, Gehenna, and Paradise. The clearing that they knelt in was of
the Maw, the place where souls are transferred after their respective bodies perish in the Living
World.
The Maw is a dreadful test of willpower, subjecting its victims to grueling climate
conditions, savage beasts, and ruthless hordes of demon-warriors. Any physical strength an
individual possesses in the Living World is rendered useless in the Maw – only willpower is
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necessary to prevail. Men, women, children, and elders all have an equal opportunity to succeed,
so long as their desire to survive is powerful enough. In order to survive the Maw, individuals
must journey from their respective spawn points - which are the areas where they first arrive - all
the way to the Edge. A barren plain with the occasional cliff dropping into shadows here or
there, the Edge is a land of triumph for all those who have weathered the dreaded journey across
the Maw. Souls rejoice whenever it comes into view, for it, and it alone, is the place that grants
escape. Every ten minutes or so, swirling vortexes of white, flaky material begin to appear
spontaneously throughout the Edge. Closely resembling small flurries of snow, these vortexes
serve as portals that transport wearied spirits out of the Maw. Few experiences grant more relief
than the envelopment of oneself in those bright flakes, as the surrounding area begins to dissolve
in a snowy mist.
Sadly, however, almost no one manages to complete the journey necessary to gain such
an experience, for in the Maw, spirits die in much the same way people die in the Living World.
Thousands and thousands of miles must be traversed on foot to reach the Edge from any given
spawn point, and multitudes of dangers are guaranteed to be found on the way; it is extremely
rare that one should bypass these dangers unharmed.
For instance, many souls fall victim to the horrific fauna that reside in the Maw. Deadly
cats with massive bodies and fangs lie in wait behind bushes and in trees, pouncing upon the
unsuspecting passerby. Relentless hawks and eagles wheel down from the sky, tearing at the
eyes and throat with their talons. Abnormally large mosquitoes and leeches dominate the
marshlands, depriving victims of blood and often contributing to their gradual downfall. One
could study the animals of the Maw for decades and would likely only encounter a small portion
of the deadly beasts, so numerous and diverse they are.
Even so, the fauna does not claim so much as half of the souls that find their end in the
Maw. The weather and climate conditions also claim a fair share of victims. Seldom is there a
calm day in any area of the Maw, as its bright sun bears down with unrelenting rays upon the
open spaces, and a frigid wind buffets those who dare journey through the mountains in the
hopes of finding a shortcut to the Edge. Thunderstorms, hurricanes, and tornadoes all form
without warning, tossing wanderers through the air like child’s play. Many victims are claimed
by heat stroke or hypothermia, as there is little refuge from difficult weather in the Maw.
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Of course, even if an individual does manage to brave the climate, they must still manage
hunger and thirst, in addition to resisting disease. It is worth noting that one need not eat nearly
as much in the Maw as would be required in the Living World, yet should a spirit undergo
extended periods of time without consuming some strange plant or small animal, irresistible
fatigue will set in, drastically lowering chances of survival. Likewise, a lack of water can lead to
devastating results. To the undoing of many, the grounds of the Maw tend to hold little moisture,
making it difficult to find water. Usually, it is only found through collecting rainwater, seeking a
marshland, or drinking from a lake, though many avoid doing so for fear of being dragged in by
some tentacled monstrosity.
Though food and drink remain essential in the Maw, one must remain wary regarding
what and how much they ingest, as infectious microorganisms remain widespread and can prove
problematic. Some of the diseases triggered by these infectious agents cause loss of function
within various body parts; others cause psychological damage, initiating descent into insanity.
Regardless of specific effect, each disease in the Maw can be potentially devastating, and each
requires significant strength to overcome.
While food, drink, and disease all present pressing issues in the Maw, they are merely
trivial inconveniences compared to the terror evoked by the aberrations that are the demon-
warriors. Hordes and hordes of them scour the land, destroying anything and everything they
come across. Their bodies and faces are bony, with only a few scarce bits of flesh to be found on
any given soldier. They wear dark, spiked armor on much of their torso and limbs, and they bear
horned helmets upon their heads, similar to those of Vikings. Their eyes glow red with fury;
their curved blades gleam menacingly. Terrifyingly, their skills in battle are exceptional, as they
hack through helpless individuals with ease. Furthermore, they nearly always outnumber their
victims, making retaliation on the part of those they attack hopelessly improbable.
These demon-warriors, along with the countless other horrors of the Maw, cause
indescribable woe for those who reside there. Almost no one manages to reach the Edge and
escape. Though some journey on for decades or even centuries, they nearly always perish at
some point, bringing them to one of the next stages of reality.
For most, this next stage is the Void. As its name implies, the Void is nothing more than
an endless pocket of darkness. Nothing exists there; when a victim of the Maw arrives at the
Void, their soul is instantly expunged from existence. They feel no pain nor regret, and they do
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not even experience their doom, so fast is the annihilation. Nothing remains of their form or
consciousness: They are simply gone. This is the inevitable fate of the vast majority of those
born into existence, but for those who have committed abominable transgressions while residing
in the Living World, a different consequence lies after they are eliminated in the Maw.
This consequence is Gehenna, the realm of the wicked. In truth, this reality is little
different from the Maw, but its few distinctions are still notable. For one, there is no escape
from Gehenna as there is from the Maw. Also, if an individual should perish in Gehenna, that
individual’s spirit will be regenerated and will live on. As such, Gehenna is a realm of unending
terror and lamentation.
Considering all of this, the outlook for human spirits would appear quite grim. The
Living World, the Maw, the Void, and Gehenna: All seem to inevitably lead to nothingness or
despair. There is, however, one more realm that exists as a component of reality. This realm is
known as Paradise, and it is a land of absolute peace and safety. Far more favorable than the
Living World, Paradise is the ultimate reward for those who manage to brave the most daunting
of hardships. In fact, Paradise is where those who traverse the Maw and reach the Edge have a
chance to inhabit.
Of course, one does not simply arrive in Paradise directly after exiting the Maw, as yet
another challenge must be overcome in order to enter the most coveted of lands. For this
challenge, spirits are transported back to the Living World, but not as the same flesh they once
were as humans. Rather, these spirits exist as Sentinels: invisible guardians of humanity. It is a
Sentinel’s responsibility to ensure, to the best of their ability, that humans are steered free of
harm. If a Sentinel serves the Living World long enough and does their job well, they will find
their place in Paradise.
Presently, Eli continued to tremble, recalling his most recent experiences. After he had
braved pangs of hunger and a relentless sun, warded off demon-warriors, scaled towering peaks,
and struggled against the many other challenges of the Maw, Eli had finally reached the Edge.
He remembered how he was enveloped in one of the enchanting portals, his senses fading as he
was overcome by bliss.
No sooner had the surroundings of the Maw disappeared around him than did Eli find
himself lying in a field of dry grass, with trash scattered about - he had returned to the Living
World. Rising to his feet, Eli noticed that he had assumed the same appearance of the body he
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had possessed as a living human, just as he had in the Maw. He had the same long, dark hair; he
still appeared to be of average height, but he also appeared strongly built. Upon his body were
the clothes he had worn on the day he was killed in his car: a black sweatshirt, a pair of jeans,
and a pair of tattered work boots. Of course, at this point he was just a spirit, with no earthly
connection to the ground on which he stood.
Gazing out in front of him, Eli noticed that the tall buildings of a city loomed up in the
distance. Before he could determine his next plan of action, a mystical voice sounded in his
head. Intriguingly, it was not the type of voice one hears during a hallucination or a dream or a
thought. This voice had authority; it seemed as real as a human voice that sent physical sound
waves to the ears. Eli felt he could do nothing else but obey it. It seemed to belong to a female,
and it told him that he was now a Sentinel.
The voice explained that he would walk the Earth as a ghost, serving the people of the
land. It said that the timing of his arrival was fortunate, as all the Sentinels of the world were
about to gather in a single location – an event that was almost unprecedented. It then proceeded
to give him careful directions to the location of gathering for the Sentinels.
Eli was led by the voice into the city, past massive buildings and crowds of busy people.
Everything seemed unfamiliar to him, and he realized that he had not the slightest idea as to
which city he was in. Nonetheless, the voice continued to guide him along until he arrived at the
entrance of a subway station. It then described the person he was to meet inside the station – an
old Sentinel named Jack. Shortly afterward, Eli found Jack, the man he currently sat next to on
the bench. Jolted back to the present from his thoughts, Eli realized that he had never answered
Jack’s question about his escape from the Maw.
He regained his bearings and turned to face the old soul. “I must admit,” began Eli
slowly. “Some of my memories from the Maw are a bit cloudy, perhaps because some
experiences are too terrible to bring to consciousness, or because I simply dashed through the
place in a blaze of blinded fury. I do remember feeling a deep anger that burned to the very core
of my being when I first arrived. I was furious that my time in the Living World had been cut
short so soon; I felt that I had been cheated. Refusing to accept oblivion, I began my journey
through the Maw with an unyielding power of will. I seldom stopped for anything, trampling
any beasts that crossed my path and striking down the demon-warriors that assaulted me from
either side. The trek felt as long as a millennium, yet as short as a few hours, like some form of
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bizarre dream. No matter what catastrophe was imminent, my resolve remained steadfast, as I
pressed onward relentlessly. And just as the energy of my spirit-body felt as if it would give way
to debilitating exhaustion, I reached the Edge. Basking in triumph, I wandered to the nearest
portal, ending my days in the Maw and bringing me before you today.”
Jack had been listening to Eli’s tale attentively, leaning towards him in anticipation.
When the story was finished, the elderly Sentinel scratched his chin thoughtfully.
“Huh, I never would’ve guessed you had so much fight in you,” he said. “I suppose you
really can’t judge a book by its cover.”
As he finished saying this, the terminal became filled with a low, metallic hum. Jack
casually looked above to see a patch of black nothingness spreading across the roof of the
terminal.
“Well!” he shouted, raising his voice above the increasing volume of the humming
sound. “I guess it’s time.”
Eli jumped to his feet in surprise as the floor and bench also began to become enveloped
in darkness.
“Time for what?” he inquired in disbelief.
The darkness spread throughout the entire terminal, blotting out the crowds of people
inside. Within seconds, Eli could see nothing around him but compressing shadows. The
humming noise ceased, and all was silent. Then, having lost all sense of direction, Eli noticed a
bright tunnel appear in front of him. The light it emanated was too bright to determine where it
led or what was in it, and Eli shielded his eyes from the glare.
He heard the quiet sound of Jack’s footsteps and voice as his shadowy outline moved
towards the tunnel. “Come along, Eli! Don’t be afraid. Besides, I’m sure you still have many
unanswered questions. Now is the time of enlightenment!” Jack vanished into the tunnel, and
reluctantly, Eli followed.
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Chapter 2

Eli and Jack treaded side-by-side down the luminous tunnel, which continued in only a
single direction and had no end in sight. Now that his eyes had adjusted to the glare, Eli was
able to make out the interior of the tunnel more clearly. He noticed that the walls formed right
angles with the floor and ceiling, and he felt he was traveling through some elongated box. The
tunnel’s interior was all white, except for some strange illustrations imprinted in a row along
each wall, which were depicted in various colors. Eli still could not determine the source of the
bright light, however.
Paying closer attention to the pictures on the walls, he found that they represented
multiple worlds and timelines. Some illustrated glorious angels, with beating wings and lances
of gold in hand. Some illustrated dreadful demon-warriors, with enraged eyes and malicious
scowls. Others displayed images of people at war; more still exhibited royal families feasting in
peace. As Eli scanned over these intriguing illustrations, he eventually found one on his right
that was especially captivating. He stopped and turned to face it, observing it more carefully. It
depicted an elderly but radiant woman. She had long, dark hair, and wore a confident smirk.
Cloaked in an exquisite gown of white and gold patterns, she stood with a commanding
demeanor.
“What seems to be the holdup, son?” shouted Jack, who had stopped a short distance
ahead. The slender Sentinel followed Eli’s eyes to the picture of the woman. “Ah, you’ve found
the Judge!”
Eli’s eyes widened. “Is she the one who determines which realities people are sent to?”
Jack came to stand beside Eli. “Good guess,” he said with a smile. “But she’s actually
just the leader of the Sentinels. It was she who arranged the meeting we’re headed for.
Remember hearing a voice in your head when you first arrived back in this world? That was the
Judge directing you to the nearest soul-gate.”
“What’s a soul-gate?” Eli asked curiously. Jack removed his hat and scratched his head.
“It’s what we’re in now,” he replied. “but its nature is a bit complicated. Soul-gates do not
actually exist in the Living World. Rather, they are scattered throughout the Void, serving as
portals that join distant locations in another world, which in this case, is the Living World.”
Eli was puzzled. “I thought nothing existed in the Void.”
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Jack placed his hat back upon his head. “For most purposes, nothing does,” he muttered.
“But there are rare exceptions. These portals are crucial for the transportation of Sentinels. They
also, however, have limitations. For one, they can only be opened by the Judge, and she can
only open one at a time. Additionally, the Judge can only open them at certain locations, hence
why she instructed us to meet each other in the terminal.”
Eli nodded in comprehension.
“At any rate,” began Jack, turning to continue marching down the tunnel. “we’d better
get going. Besides, I told you I would answer any other questions you might have. You’ve still
much more to learn if you ever want to end up in Paradise.” Jack’s eyes glinted briefly toward
Eli, beckoning him to follow.
Eli ran to catch up and listened intently as Jack began to speak.
“There are a few aspects of a Sentinel’s ways that are crucial for your understanding. For
one, we remain ever under the watchful eye of powerful Angels, who ultimately determine when
we are ready to enter Paradise. Be warned, though: They will not hesitate to banish us to the
Void if they see fit to do so. They do not want us overly involved in the affairs of humans.”
As the two walked on, the tunnel floor began to decline steeply ahead. Eli had to slow
his pace to maintain his balance on the sloping floor.
“You say the angels disapprove of our aiding humans,” Eli grunted. “yet such is
supposed to be our very purpose as Sentinels – I’m afraid I am terribly confused.”
Jack seemed to be faring far better down the sharp incline than Eli was, gliding down
effortlessly. “We are supposed to help humans,” replied Jack curtly. “We just have to limit how
much we do so. Our positions of power mustn’t be abused; after all, the humans must find their
own way in this world. We need only to ensure that they don’t fall too far.”
The soles of Eli’s feet began to burn from attempting to gain traction on the descending
floor, which did not seem to return to its original plane anywhere ahead.
“Difficult to keep your footing, isn’t it?” chuckled Jack. “This steep stretch equates to
miles and miles in the Living World; we’re headed for a secret chamber deep below the surface
of the Earth. It lies unbeknownst to humans, as they do not dare dig so deep. There will be
crowds of other Sentinels there when we arrive – perhaps you’ll meet some young people like
yourself.”
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Eli breathed a sigh of relief as the floor finally began to return to its original level a few
meters below. “Apparently, this is the first time that every Sentinel has met in one location,”
said Eli, recalling the Judge’s words. “I wonder what the meaning of it is.”
Jack shrugged, now treading along a level floor. “It’s either something very good… or
very bad. I fear that your transition to the role of Sentinel may be rougher than you anticipated.”
Eli noticed that the tunnel had widened, alleviating the cramped feeling he had
experienced before. The images on the walls disappeared, and the tunnel’s glow grew more
intense.
“Won’t be much longer,” muttered Jack quietly. “We’re almost there. Got any last
questions?”
Eli thought carefully for a moment, his eyes narrowing against the increasingly blinding
light. “Can Sentinels die in the same ways that humans can?”
For a moment, Jack’s face grew dark, and he paused. With a seemingly forced smile, he
eventually replied.
“Not usually. In fact, I can’t say I can recall the last time something of the sort occurred.
I wouldn’t worry about it.”
Eli didn’t ruminate on Jack’s response for long, as a large, bronze gate came into view
ahead. A solemn figure stood in front of it. He was a male – about the same size as Eli. His
head and face were shaved, and his skin was a very dark brown. His eyes were tinged with some
strange golden glow, which seemed to compliment the golden breastplate and protective leggings
he wore. Eli noticed that he also had an unusual tattoo on his forehead: It appeared to depict a
baby bird driving its head out of an egg.
The guard maintained his stoic expression even as Eli and Jack came within an arm’s
length away from him.
“Names?” the guard inquired in a deep, bellowing voice.
“It’s me, Jack,” replied the old Sentinel. He nodded towards Eli. “The boy is with me.
Let us pass.”
Without further questioning, the guard rotated a large metal wheel at the center of the
gate and slid it open with a slow groan. Jack marched straight into the opening with no
hesitation, and Eli followed nervously.
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Upon passing through the opening, Eli’s jaw grew slack in dumbfounded amazement.
The chamber he now stood in was as large as a sports stadium, with walls of gleaming bronze
climbing high toward a domed ceiling. At the center of the chamber stood a massive boulder
that glimmered orange, blue, white, and green. The boulder’s top was flat, and a row of four
chairs rested on it. The rest of the chamber consisted of large sections of chairs, which were
likely made from some dark, polished wood. They surrounded the boulder in groups of orderly
rows; many of them were already occupied with other people. Jack had taken a seat at the rear
portion of the section on their right, and Eli walked over to sit next to him.
“Welcome to the Chamber of the Judge!” exclaimed Jack. “This is not my first visit, but
I’ve never seen so many Sentinels here before. And more will come still!”
Eli curiously observed his surroundings. Jack was correct: Most of the seats in the
chamber were filled, and Sentinels continued to file in from entry points all along the circular
wall.
Taking note of the Sentinels who entered, Eli realized that many of them were elderly,
like Jack. Although they exhibited features typically associated with old people, such as
wrinkles and gray hair, Eli would not necessarily describe them as “old”. An inexplicable
liveliness shone in their eyes, and they moved about freely and easily. In addition to these aged
sentinels, younger Sentinels of various shapes and sizes filed in. They represented diverse races
and cultures, but Eli was most interested by those who resembled the guard at the gate. These
Sentinels also varied in race, as well as in size and gender. However, they all bore unusual
tattoos on their foreheads. Their heads were shaved, while their eyes flashed exquisite shades of
light.
“Who are they?” asked Eli, puzzled. “The Sentinels with the tattoos, I mean.”
Jack followed Eli’s gaze, his arms and legs crossed casually.
“Those are individuals who died in infancy,” replied Jack, with a tinge of sympathy in his
voice. “They are granted random spiritual forms when they enter the Maw, since the likes of a
newborn would not be fit for the role of a Sentinel – granted they succeed, of course. The tattoos
on their foreheads serve as indicators of their origins.”
Eli had not considered what became of children who passed on from the Living World.
As he grew aware of a few school-age children amongst the masses of Sentinels that filled the
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chamber, a feeling of admiration rose within him, as he struggled to imagine how such young
souls could find the strength to overcome the Maw.
Eli’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a voice on his left.
“Excuse me, are you two Eli and Jack?”
Eli looked up to see a young female Sentinel - about Eli’s age - with blonde hair and
green eyes standing next to him. She smiled warmly, but the two Sentinels who stood behind her
wore intense expressions. One of them was another female Sentinel, probably just slightly
younger than Jack. The other was a burly male with dark stubble on his face.
“Yeah, and who would like to know?” grunted Jack.
The older female Sentinel peered from behind her young companion.
“The Judge informed us that we would be assigned to a group with the two of you,” she
stated, sounding slightly irritated. “Apparently, all Sentinels are being asked to form alliances of
four or five members, but for what purpose I do not know.”
“Well then,” replied Jack. “I am officially intrigued. Please, do sit down.” The trio of
newcomers occupied the three seats to Eli’s left. Jack, now seeming much more agreeable,
eagerly questioned the three Sentinels. “So,” he chirped. “are you three well-acquainted with
each other?”
The two older Sentinels, who were whispering to each other mysteriously, ignored Jack,
but the girl gladly responded.
“No, actually,” she said. “We just met up earlier today. We received word from the
Judge that we would form a team with the two of you.”
Jack nodded slowly. “All Sentinels being assigned teams…” he began. “But what for,
exactly? Something big, no doubt. You sure you don’t know anything more?”
The girl shook her head, and Jack just turned away in disappointment, staring at the
boulder at the center of the chamber. The young Sentinel then began to chat with Eli.
“You probably get this a lot,” she said tentatively. “But how did you end up here? Like,
what killed you?”
“It’s alright,” responded Eli. “I just became a Sentinel, so I don’t get asked anything a
lot… yet. In any case, I was killed in an automobile accident.”
The girl frowned. “So sad,” she whispered. “But I guess everything happens for a
reason. Think about it: If that accident hadn’t happened, you wouldn’t be a member of this team.
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The Judge may have had to find someone else to fulfill the role – perhaps someone less fit for the
position. And who would fill the space left by that person? It could be that in your absence, we
alone would not be sufficient to complete whatever challenge confronts us. But things always
seem to have a way of working themselves out.”
Eli was perplexed and overwhelmed by the rambling of the young Sentinel. “
Well, I suppose so,” he muttered. “Don’t set any high expectations for me, though. It
still seems that no one even knows what we’re going to be doing.” Sentinels had mostly stopped
entering the chamber, as its seats were presently filled. “By the way,” continued Eli. “you never
told us what your names are. We’ll need to know if we are to work with each other.”
“Yes, how rude of us!” exclaimed the girl. “My name is Rachel, and my companions are
Ana and Victor.”
Ana and Victor both ceased their whispering at the mention of their names. They flashed
brief smiles toward Jack and Eli but quickly replaced them with their stern scowls.
“Don’t mind them,” said Rachel in exasperation. “They both seem to take their
responsibilities as Sentinels very seriously. I bet they’ll come around once they get to know you
better.”
Eli nodded in understanding. “You asked me how I died in the flesh,” he began. “and I
provided an honest answer. Now, it is only fair that you do the same. How did you come to find
yourself here?”
Rachel’s face quickly grew dark, and she gulped. “I… I took my own life,” she
stammered. Eli was taken aback by her response; he had expected no such answer, and he did
not know what to say.
“Come, child,” interrupted Jack. “You needn’t make up such stories; just provide an
honest answer. Any Sentinel knows that someone who takes her own life cannot return to this
world. After all, if she cannot tolerate the Living World, how can she withstand the Maw?”
Indignation glinted in Rachel’s green eyes.
“I’m not making it up!” she shouted. “I was experiencing tough times. Things weren’t
going well with my friends, and my father was becoming consumed by alcoholism. I felt like the
world was closing in on me, like there was no way out. I just… I just had to escape. It seemed
like the only option, and I felt there was nothing left to live for.”
She clenched her fists.
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“I followed through, and I ended up in the Maw. I was terrified – in no condition to fight
for freedom. I remember wandering aimlessly and eventually crawling beneath some boulder.
As I cowered in my place of hiding, I peered out from beneath the rock, watching as others
fought against the terrors of the Maw. One after another, they were butchered mercilessly by
demon-warriors. They fought back, though. Not only that, but they did it with a ferocity I’ve
never seen. Even if they had just witnessed the demise of their brothers and sisters, even if they
were surrounded by demon-warriors, they would lash out in a blinding wave of fury, fighting
with whatever they could.”
After seeing their will to live, something inside me changed. I suddenly gained a new
perspective on the very concept of life; I learned that it is precious and that it must be guarded at
all costs. After all, if these poor souls would fight to the bitter end against all odds, life must be
something worth fighting for indeed. With a newfound sense of courage, I crawled out from
beneath the boulder and vowed to find my way through the Maw. I regretted my selfish acts of
the past, especially my act of suicide. I understood that my existence is a privilege; I knew that I
would never take it for granted again. It took decades, but eventually I escaped from the Maw,
and just a few weeks after my escape, here I am.”
Eli had remained completely silent as he listened to Rachel’s account of her experiences
in the Maw. He was astonished by the profound intensity of the tale, and even Ana and Victor
had been listening closely in silence.
“What do you know!” grunted Jack, who had also been listening carefully. “I guess
there’s hope for everyone, then. You surprise me almost as much as Eli here. He may have been
too modest to mention it, but he escaped the Maw in only three years’ time.”
Rachel’s eyes widened. “That’s not possible,” said Ana, in her harsh, gravelly voice.
“No one born in this age of slothfulness and low morale would ever escape the Maw so quickly.
They would have to slowly learn the best methods of confronting the various threats there and
receive a good deal of luck along the way.”
Victor interrupted the conversation with a low, deep-throated voice. “The time for talk
has ended, for the time for listening is at hand. See for yourselves: the Judge stands upon the
great rock.”
 16
All throughout the chamber Sentinels had ceased their chatter, as they now looked
towards the stony mass at the center. The four chairs atop the boulder were now occupied by
Sentinels in dark gowns, but Eli barely noticed them.
Instead, he was fixated upon the woman who stood in front of them, gazing out upon the
crowd assembled below. Eli instantly recognized her as the one he had seen depicted on the wall
of the tunnel he had passed through. She had the same radiant beauty and exquisite white and
gold attire, but she was even more impressive now that he could view her in reality. Somehow,
unlike the other Sentinels, she exerted some form of intense aura, much like the heat generated
by a raging inferno.
Before Eli could begin to finish contemplating her majesty, the Judge began to speak.
“Greetings, brothers and sisters,” she began with a booming voice and a warm grin. “I
never once believed I would see the day when each and every Sentinel sits before this great
rock.” She let her eyes drift over the assembled Sentinels. “Many of you I recognize as familiar
faces, yet others are completely foreign to me. Alas, I so dearly wish I could present good
tidings to all of you on this momentous occasion.”
Her smile faded and her eyes grew serious.
“As several of you have undoubtedly suspected, the cause of our meeting is,
unfortunately, a dire threat. The Angels have informed me that the entire human race is in grave
danger.”
Immediately, a young red-headed Sentinel rose from his seat at the front of the crowd and
to Eli’s right.
“Hold on!” shouted the seemingly obnoxious youngster. “A message from angels? What
nonsense you speak of! How are we to believe a word of it?”
“You would do well to learn your place, boy,” responded a middle-aged female Sentinel
seated beside him. “I and numerous others among us can testify to the consistent reliability of
the Angels’ messages. Our Judge is well-versed in communicating with them.”
The volatile Sentinel returned to his seat, and the Judge continued speaking.
“As I was saying,” she boomed. “the humans, whom we are responsible for
safeguarding, face imminent extinction. A virus has begun to proliferate in a number of
locations throughout the Living World. In time, it will claim the entire race, as there is no cure
for the ailment.”
 17
Jack leaned over to whisper into Eli’s ear.
“Guess you were right about that virus,” he said. “I told you we were in for some bad
news.”
Throes of unrest gripped the assembly of Sentinels, and they mumbled amongst
themselves nervously.
“Then that’s it!” came an alarmed voice from Eli’s left. “We’re doomed; without the
humans, we’ve no purpose. The Angels will send us all to the Void.”
“Will you fools quit your racket!” shouted another voice, the origin of which Eli could
not determine. “Why would the angels have notified us if our failure is inevitable? Why do you
think we’re gathered here? Clearly, there is something we can do to address the crisis.”
“Indeed, you are correct,” responded the Judge smoothly. “The Angels did share the key
to averting this catastrophe. I have been informed that our salvation lies in the hands of a small
child, who is destined to rid the Living World of this scourge. However, we must locate this
child of our own accord.”
Ana rose from her seat confidently.
“So this is why we have been organized into groups,” she called out. “You want to
disperse a series of search parties to hunt this child down. Tell me, though: Why do we need to
find her in the first place? You say that it is already her destiny to save humanity, and surely our
actions cannot alter the declarations of Angels.”
The Judge nodded in understanding, her dark eyes fixated curiously on Ana.
“You are wise in your skepticism,” she said. “I must admit, I did not report the prophecy
in its entirety. The Angels have suggested that this child will save humanity, but only in the
event that we save her from her own imminent death. If we do not locate her relatively quickly,
she will perish, according to the prophecy. The nature of her potential demise is unknown, so all
we can ensure is that she is brought here safely and in good health.”
“And I assume you have information regarding this girl’s appearance and location?”
inquired Ana.
“All that can be confirmed is that she is a young Saint, the last remaining human with two
parents who are also Saints,” the Judge answered.
Eli, who had been somewhat puzzled throughout the discussion thus far, was now utterly
befuddled.
 18
“What does she mean by Saint?” he asked Jack.
“Remember when I said there are people who can see us Sentinels?” muttered Jack, still
attempting to follow the discussion. “They are called Saints, and there are two ways a human
may achieve this status: One way is through committing a series of benevolent acts, and the other
is through being born to a pair of Saints. The former is far more common than the latter, though
it appears the latter is true in this case.”
Eli glanced about, studying the surrounding Sentinels. So that’s how we find her, he
thought. Find the first person who can actually see us.. still sounds pretty difficult.
“Oh yeah,” continued Jack, leaning closer to Eli. “Fun fact: Saints, upon dying, do not
pass through the Maw or the Void; they get a one-way ticket to Paradise.”
Eli’s jaw dropped in disbelief.
“You mean a person can bypass the Maw simply by having a particular pair of parents?”
he gasped.
“Well,” replied Jack. “it would be expected that such a child would be morally
exceptional and pure, considering that her parents are both Saints. But like I said, usually Saints
earn their statuses by themselves.”
Eli ceased questioning and redirected his focus to the Judge.
“Since I was only provided with a very general location, we will need to survey an area
of up to 60,000 square miles,” she was saying. “so even with our great numbers, the task will
prove challenging. Given the part of the world we have been assigned, I assume that the child
will be present at her local school during daytime hours. Thus, I recommend directing your
search to school buildings. I will send you all in your groups to various points within the vicinity
reported to me by the angels. I will then relay communications with your group leaders to
promote efficient and systematic seeking of the target.”
“If I may,” piped Jack. “I’d like to review our objective: You plan to send us to a
specified area, which could require a good deal of time to scour. Specifically, you would like us
to explore schools to find our target, but we should also attempt to identify her parents to ensure
we have found the right Saint. Finally, we simply contact you so you can allow us all to return
here.”
The Judge began to raise her arms above her head slowly, causing her gown to shimmer
with white and gold.
 19
“You are correct,” she bellowed, quickly thrusting her arms downward again. “Now,
without further ado, I believe it is time to get started. Remain close to your appropriate groups.”
The chamber soon began to resonate with the same low hum that Eli had heard in the
subway terminal. As the Judge continued to oscillate her arms in some form of bizarre dance, a
patch of white light appeared on the surface of the boulder’s base. She must be opening a soul-
gate.
The four Sentinels seated behind the Judge, who had remained silent until now, rose to
their feet.
“Division A1,” announced one of them, a short male. “Please proceed through this soul-
gate; it will transport you to the outskirts of a metropolitan area. We recommend that you
disperse upon your arrival to explore every portion of it as quickly as possible. You will be able
to communicate with your group leader through the medium of your consciousness.”
A group of five Sentinels seated at the front of the crowd rose and marched uncertainly to
the patch of light on the boulder, which had now grown large enough to easily accommodate an
adult-sized body. Their leader came to stand hesitantly before it, gulped, and eventually walked
through it. His fellow division members followed suit, with the soul-gate diminishing behind
them.
As the Judge’s strange arm movements and the steady humming sound persisted, a new
soul-gate almost immediately replaced the first on the rock.
“Division A2,” continued the Sentinel. “Please proceed through this soul-gate.”
Eli noticed Ana shifting her feet impatiently.
“This could take a while,” she grunted. “I was informed that we are Division C4, and
taking into account the number of Sentinels present, there will likely be many who enter before
us.”
“So you’re the one who was given our identification information,” responded Jack.
“Then I take it you’re our group leader? Would’ve been nice to let us know earlier.”
“It makes no difference now,” Ana retorted. “What I’m concerned about is the reliability
of the communication method we have been given. How in the world do we communicate
through our consciousness?”
“Well,” mused Rachel. “the Judge does it. I suppose it is not much of a stretch to
assume she can bestow this ability unto you.”
 20
“I believe you are all oblivious to our primary crisis,” Victor interjected. “We are clearly
short on time. It is not certain what threat our target is facing, and we cannot be sure that she is
not dead already.”
“Exactly,” growled Ana. “That’s why I’m champing at the bit; we must get on with our
mission.”
“I can’t believe I have been assigned to collaborate with such an impatient bunch as this,”
scoffed Jack. “Just keep your composure. The Angels do everything for a reason. I am certain
we will be given a fair chance to preserve our occupations as Sentinels. The only way we’ll fail
is by doing something stupid.”
The Sentinel atop the boulder proclaimed yet another announcement. “Division B4.
Please proceed through this soul-gate.”
Jack slapped Eli’s back.
“Too bad, son,” he said. “It’s your first day as a Sentinel, and you won’t receive any
opportunity to experience the beauty of the responsibility. There will be no averting wars, no
saving children from drowning… instead, you’re tossed right into a desperate struggle for
survival. Can’t be too hard, though; all we need do is retrieve a small child. I think everyone is
acting a bit overdramatic.”
Eli watched carefully as another group of Sentinels disappeared into a soul-gate.
“I still don’t understand how this child will save humanity from the virus,” he stated. “Is
she going to develop a cure as an adult? By that time, the world could be cleansed of human
life.”
“No,” replied Jack. “Saints tend to possess unusual abilities. Moreover, it is said that
there are rare spiritual sites scattered throughout the world. When their powers are invoked by
Saints, they can produce drastic effects, such as the reversal of natural disaster damages or the
diversion of comets on a collision course with Earth. There is undoubtedly some way this girl
will be able to rid the world of the virus through her status as a Saint.”
The ongoing hum pulsating throughout the chamber had begun to aggravate Eli. Much
like Ana, he was eager to proceed with the mission. Though he had previously been
apprehensive, he was no longer daunted at the prospect of locating the girl. After all, as Jack
mentioned, the task cannot be particularly difficult.
“Division C1,” announced the short Sentinel. “Please proceed through this soul-gate.”
 21
Jack hopped twice in exhilaration.
“We will be called upon soon!” he cried, like a child on his birthday. “Our wait is almost
over. Is everyone ready to go?”
Victor just snorted. “Where are we headed?” he asked Ana.
“I didn’t get many specifics,” she responded. “I suppose the only logical option would be
to disperse across our assigned area. I dare say we needn’t stick together; we aren’t likely to
encounter any dangers.”
“Exactly,” added Jack. “I mean, what could harm us? We’re Sentinels… right, Eli?”
He smiled humorously at Eli, who responded with a hesitant nod.
Without any further warning, the Sentinel proclaimer called upon their division.
“Division C4,” he said, as a blinding soul-gate appeared on the front of the great rock.
“Please proceed through this soul-gate. You will arrive beside a road with towns set toward its
northern and southern ends. Explore them both quickly, then follow the road past the northern
town if your initial search yields no success. There will be more human settlements beyond.”
Eli and his group quickly approached the soul-gate. As he drew within a couple meters’
distance, he paused briefly. Ana, Rachel, and Victor passed him without hesitation and
disappeared into the portal; Jack halted beside Eli.
“What’s the holdup?” he jeered. “You’re not afraid, are you?”
“No,” Eli said in defiance. “I’m not.”
He plunged into the gate and felt Jack dive in after him.
 22
Chapter 3

The instant after he entered the soul-gate, Eli found himself falling face-down onto a
surface of dry soil. Jack immediately landed upon Eli’s back with a grunt, and the others were
already on their feet nearby. Jack quickly sprang up.
“What a shame,” he sighed, gazing about. “I was hoping there’d be better scenery.”
Eli slowly rose to his feet and observed his surroundings. They had indeed been
transported to the side of a road, which was narrow and currently free of traffic. The ground was
barren as far as the eye could see, with the occasional brown shrub dotted here or there. To the
left, the road extended to a cluster of buildings on the horizon. To the right, it wound into the
distance.
“Two towns at each end of the road,” Ana announced. “Just like he said. If we don’t
find the child in either, we will follow the road through the northern town and proceed to the
next one.”
Victor bore a skeptical expression. “Chances are we won’t find much out here,” he
muttered. “But I suppose we can leave no stone unturned. We’d better hurry up and split into
groups.”
“You and Rachel will head to the northern town off in the distance with me,” declared
Ana. She pointed at Eli and Jack. “You two will head south. The town is visible even from
here, so you needn’t go far.”
Jack tilted his head to the side and stretched out his neck.
“Simple enough,” he said. “Let’s be off; I don’t think we can afford to waste any more
time.”
Ana began to walk along the road, beckoning Rachel and Victor to follow. She briefly
turned toward Eli and Jack.
“Once you’ve investigated the entire area, find us at the northern end of our assigned
town,” she called. “Should you find the child, notify me, and we shall rendezvous back here.”
Jack trotted toward the town to the south.
“Sounds fair,” he responded. “Come on, Eli!”.
Eli took after Jack, who was quickly gaining speed. Glancing quickly behind him, he
thought he saw Ana, Rachel, and Victor travelling several meters off the ground. He shook his
head, trying to eliminate the effects of whatever hallucination he was experiencing.
 23
“Funny,” he whispered. “I could have sworn I saw them flyi-“ Eli stopped short as he
saw Jack ascending through the air at his side.
He looked down at Eli and snickered.
“Oh?” he jeered. “You can’t fly? It’s my fault I suppose; it seems I neglected to inform
you of all the Sentinel’s abilities.” Jack descended until his feet were level with Eli’s head. “It’s
not difficult, really,” he continued. “Just pretend you are light as a bird and brimming with some
type of uncontainable gas. All Sentinels can learn to do it quickly.”
Eli closed his eyes, trying to imagine himself as light and airy, just as Jack had instructed
him to. With a few sprinting strides, Eli leapt into the air. He remained suspended temporarily,
but slowly fel to his feet again.
Jack remained close by.
“Try it again,” he urged. “You’ll need to fly if we’re going to search the whole area
we’ve been tasked with. Get to it.”
Eli sprinted forth once again, this time trying to concentrate more intently. He propelled
himself as explosively as he could into the air. Although he immediately began to descend, he
redoubled his efforts and managed to remain suspended. Using every ounce of his will, he then
began to rise.
“I told you it wouldn’t take long,” said Jack with an amused grin. “but it’s only flotation
and lateral movements that are simple. Ascending higher than just a few meters will prove
difficult at first and will require a good deal of practice. When you reach my ability, however,
you’ll be able to soar with eagles – assuming you survive long enough to reach it.”
As he willed himself to drift toward the town, Eli cast an uneasy glance toward Jack.
“Don’t worry,” insisted Jack, seemingly reading Eli’s thoughts. “I already told you we’ll
find this kid easily. The Sentinels will undoubtedly continue to exist.”
Eli and Jack picked up speed as they glided through the air. Eli no longer struggled as
much to stay suspended, and he was now roughly ten meters from the ground. The road below
drew on across the barren plain, heading directly for the town that had once been a blurry mass
against the horizon. Now, its modest, densely packed buildings could be seen quite clearly, and
they were rapidly growing larger.
“I don’t know about you,” Jack called over the wind that was now whistling past quickly.
“but I have a very good feeling about this. I can sense the presence of a Saint all over my body.”
 24
“You can just sense Saints?” asked Eli skeptically.
“Well, no” replied Jack. “Like I said, I just have a good feeling. Nothing wrong with
that, right?”
A metal sign that read “Welcome to Johnson” loomed up from the right side of the road.
“Johnson, huh?” mused Jack. “I never would’ve guessed the kid who will prevent the
apocalypse could live in such a detestable town.”
As the pair came within about fifty meters of the first few buildings of the area, Eli could
not help but think that the town did appear detestable. At the outskirts stood a set of dilapidated
buildings, with several patches of faded paint visible upon their walls. Farther towards the
center, a labyrinth of shadowy alleys creeped its way between the cluttered, depressing
apartment buildings and houses. The streets were littered with debris and refuse, and although
Eli was not certain that he could actually smell anything, he wrinkled his nose in anticipation of a
foul odor. Farther still, the town featured larger buildings that were clearly not intended for
housing. Surely a school of some sort can be found there.
Eli quickly noticed that, in his thoughts, his flight concentration had dwindled, and he
had become outpaced by Jack. The experienced Sentinel was already hovering over a brick
apartment building ahead and was surveying the town. Eli quickly glided over to him.
“This area does not occupy much land,” Jack observed. “but it is densely populated. It
may be harder to search than I had originally guessed.”
Eli felt a bit daunted by the impending task.
“Where do we even begin?” questioned Eli.
“Well,” Jack replied thoughtfully, his arms crossed. “I recommend we heed the Judge’s
suggestion. One of us should locate the town school and investigate. Since it shouldn’t take two
of us to scout the building, I propose that one of us search the school for the child and that the
other search the housing for her parents. School should still be in session now.”
Eli had never cared to note what the time of day was. Now that he gazed above, he saw
that the sun had begun to descend. The sky was not particularly cloudy, but it was not a clear
blue either.
“Definitely early afternoon,” concluded Eli. “School will probably not remain in session
for too much longer. I suggest we determine who will head where and move along.”
Jack began ascending through the air, gazing about intently.
 25
“Right,” he replied enthusiastically. “I will find the school while you search for the
parents – if that’s okay with you, of course.”
Eli nodded.
“I’ve no objection. Let us proceed.” He started towards the brick apartment building
below but paused quickly. “Hold on,” he said. “How do I enter these buildings? Won’t someone
notice if their door is opened in the absence of any visible cause?”
Jack, who had already begun his venture to the center of the town, briefly turned back
towards Eli.
“Your spiritual form should be able to bypass physical matter,” he called. “so if you
concentrate hard enough, you will be able to move through the walls undetected.”
With that, Jack flew off, and Eli could not help but think that Jack had not been entirely
helpful in explaining the ways of the Sentinel. First flying and now this – let’s see if I can get
this to work. Eli dropped to the littered alleyway beside the brick apartment building. A metal
door was built into the wall before him, and there were a few sparse windows on the floor above.
Eli peered into the windows and around the building to determine if any humans were present,
though he knew that they would not be able to see him anyway. At any rate, he did not see
anyone in the immediate vicinity.
He did, however, hear angry shouts and the rumble of motor vehicles nearby. They were
nowhere in sight, as the only visible sign of life was an orange cat with ruffled fur and ravenous
eyes that padded softly behind him. Having ensured that no one was present, Eli approached the
door, staring at it doubtfully. Remembering his state of mind when he had first managed to fly,
Eli attempted to achieve that same level of concentration. Reaching tentatively toward the door,
he imagined himself as some gaseous substance. I must think light and airy.
His hand made contact with the door, and he could feel the heat that had been absorbed
by the metal over the course of the day. To Eli’s disappointment, his hand did not extend beyond
the door.
“Come on,” he said impatiently. “I guess I have to concentrate harder.”
He closed his eyes. As his unwavering concentration caused the noise from his
environment to dissipate, his body became gripped by a tingling sensation. His hand soon
became unable to sense the heat absorbed by the door; for that matter, he quickly became unable
 26
to sense the door at all. Taking care to maintain his focus, Eli glided his hand through the door’s
surface. Immediately, he felt the rest of his body being drawn into the building.
Before he could think to resist, his entire form had passed into the door, and he was
propelled forcefully through to the other side. Standing beyond the door, Eli looked down upon
his hands. They seemed to have assumed some fluid form, as they had no definite shape.
Ripples slid across them, but they eventually returned to their original form. A little bizarre. But
doing it isn’t terribly difficult.
Eli felt a stifling heat surround him. It would seem that the apartment had little
ventilation, which was not surprising given the apparent living conditions the town offered. The
room he was now in was mostly empty: There was a metal desk before him and an oak staircase
to his right. Still, no living humans were in sight. Understanding the urgency of his mission, Eli
quickly scampered up the wooden staircase. His feet barely made any sound at all, even though
he did not intend to remain unheard.
Upon arriving at the top, he stood at the end of a dark and grimy hall. Both walls were
lined with numbered doors, which were spaced well apart. Eli approached the nearest door on
his left. Though the floorboards beneath the carpet he treaded on moaned ever so slightly, the
sound was still audible over any other human voice or movement. Is no one here?
Uncertain, Eli once again concentrated on adopting the same state of mind he had when
he first entered the building. He passed through the first door easily, still slightly disconcerted
by the uncontrollable force that drew him along. The living area he had entered was essentially
colorless, and the walls and furniture were coated with dust. It was no cooler than the other parts
of the building either. Eli noticed that he was standing in a small kitchen, but he quickly
proceeded through a passage on his right. He entered upon a bedroom, which was also vacant.
Hurriedly searching out the rest of the area, Eli found no humans present.
Returning back to the hall, he decided to place his ear upon each door to listen for
activity, as opposed to taking the time to survey every room thoroughly. He scampered down the
hall, stopping at each door to listen for any sound on the other side. Eventually, he thought he
heard running water behind a door at the end of the hall. He entered the apartment to find an
elderly woman washing her hands at a kitchen sink. Eli did not believe she would be relevant to
his search, but out of curiosity, he waved his hand before her face. She simply dried her hands
 27
and turned away without taking notice. Slightly disappointed, Eli retreated back to the hall.
Hopefully the other Sentinels’ searches are yielding more success than mine.
A sudden din of gleeful laughter jolted Eli from his negative thoughts. He whipped his
head around toward the source of the sound, and he found himself facing a door at the other side
of the hall, near the staircase he had ascended. With a surge of excitement, Eli dashed over and
essentially dove through the door.
The apartment he entered exhibited the same room structure as the other ones he had
investigated. From his position near the kitchen, he continued to be bombarded by the sound of
laughter, which emanated from an adjacent chamber on his left; it sounded as if multiple children
were present.
Eli followed the stream of noise to emerge upon a living room, with two children
engaged in rough-and-tumble play in the center. Two adult women were chatting casually on a
small sofa. Eli noticed that the children were extremely young – not old enough to begin full-
day school. He also recalled that the Judge had never specified the age of the target; she had
simply assumed that she would be present at school.
With this in mind, Eli approached the rowdy children and stood imposingly over them.
They proceeded with their play unabated, and the two women, probably mothers, never ceased
their chatting. Frustrated, Eli exited the apartment. Although he realized that the odds of finding
the Saint in this particular location were minimal, he had been enthused by Jack’s words, and his
failure to find the Saint was depressing him already. Listening carefully, he stood before every
other door on the floor, but he detected no signs of activity.
The absence of any other Sentinel and his inability to communicate with anyone had
granted Eli a strange feeling. For the first time since returning to the Living World, he felt truly
alone. This search is quickly starting to get old. Eli scrambled toward the next set of stairs,
which was located directly beside the set he had already climbed.
Upon reaching the top, a shout sounded from outside the building.
“I won’t get distracted again,” muttered Eli, moving toward the first door on the floor.
The shout sounded again, only more desperate and disconcerting this time. Someone was
calling for help.
Eli stopped and tried to determine exactly where the call was coming from. As the shrill
pleas continued, Eli determined that it was directly outside the building, opposite the side he had
 28
first entered. He did not want to compromise his search for the child or her parents, but Eli could
not ignore the cries any longer. I hope I don’t regret this.
With reckless abandon, Eli charged through a door directly in front of him. The cries for
help were growing weaker, but they seemed to be closer. Eli was now alarmed. I have to see
what’s happening down there. He dashed through a kitchen and found a window in an adjacent
living room gazing out upon the area where the commotion seemed to be. Peering down through
it, Eli could see three figures in the alleyway below. Two of them were large – definitely adult
males. The third was smaller and appeared to be a young woman.
Anger welled within Eli’s being as he quickly came to the realization that the woman was
being assaulted. One of the men had pinned her against a building opposite the one Eli currently
stood in, and he struck her in the head repeatedly. The woman, seeming to have mostly lost
consciousness at this point, no longer called out for aid. Meanwhile, the other man was sifting
through a cloth pouch, laughing arrogantly.
Eli had observed quite enough already. He transitioned through the window smoothly
and descended to the alleyway, landing behind the perpetrators without making the slightest
sound. With rage surging through him, he approached the one who was assaulting the woman.
Raising his fists above the man’s head, Eli suddenly recalled what Jack had told him.
The old Sentinel had explained that Angels do not view excessive interference with humans
favorably, and if Sentinels do not mediate their interactions with the living, they will be banished
to the Void.
With this in mind, Eli was not certain that violence was the appropriate solution to his
dilemma. I should contrive an alternate approach – I do not want to risk invoking the Angels’
ire. With an agile mind, Eli determined that he would distract and deter the men from the area.
Turning now to the one culling the woman’s goods, Eli swatted the pouch out of his grasp with
the back of his hand. It collapsed to the asphalt below, and Eli pounced upon it, covering it
completely with his spiritual form. I hope this works.
The man was bewildered, staring down at the pouch in disbelief.
“What the Hell?” he shouted.
“What is it?” growled the other, who had finally ceased his striking of the woman.
“Nothing, man,” replied the first, shaking his head and smiling. “I just dropped it.”
The second man left the woman lying against the building and joined his partner. “
 29
What’s so surprising about that?” he jeered. “Idiot. You’re always dropping stuff. Now
hurry up and take what we need. I wanna get out of here before trouble shows up.”
The man who had been rummaging through the pouch laughed and stooped to retrieve it
from the ground. He extended his hand toward it, and the world seemed to stop for Eli as he
awaited the result of his scheme. The man’s hand fell upon Eli’s back, but the young Sentinel
would not be intimidated; he remained curled up upon the pouch. The man retracted his hand
abruptly, his eyes wide with fear.
“What now?” said the other in exasperation.
The first pointed to the pouch with a quivering finger.
“Th… There’s something stopping me from touching it!”
His larger associate seized him by the collar of his white shirt.
“You’re starting to tick me off!” shouted the bigger man, shaking his dazed counterpart.
“How hard is it to do such a simple job?”
He flung his partner to the ground and reached for the pouch. In so doing, he too found
Eli’s back with his hand. However, he did not retreat as his partner did. Instead, he pushed
against Eli, grunting. The man was impressively strong, but Eli resisted and held his position.
Eventually, the large man stepped back, sweat dripping from his face.
“It feels like… a person”, he whispered.
“What did I tell you?” exclaimed the other, still a bit shaken.
“This is getting too weird for me,” grumbled the strong man. “I’m gonna run. And I
should really watch what I smoke from now on. I ain’t hanging around with you again, either.”
He made haste through the alleyway and headed toward the interior of the town.
“Don’t just ditch me like that!” said his associate, who scurried after him while peering
nervously over his shoulder.
When the two men had disappeared behind a row of houses, Eli came to his knees and
returned to his feet. He breathed a sigh of relief. It worked, he thought. Fortunately, I didn’t
need to resort to anything rash.
The sound of faint breathing diverted his attention to the woman who lay unconscious
against the brick wall before him. She had dark skin and dark hair; while she did not at all
appear to be short, she was undeniably slender. Her face was bloodied and bruised, and the
tissue around her right eye was swollen. Now what shall I do with her?
 30
Eli did not believe it would be prudent to leave her here; perhaps other brutes would
befall her. In that case, Eli’s efforts would have been futile. On the other hand, there was no
obvious method to relocate her. Attempting to carry or drag her away may attract unwanted
attention and would breed disastrous results if she regained consciousness.
As he pondered these things, the woman began to groan and shift about uncomfortably.
She was reawakening. Eli quickly placed the pouch in her lap and placed his hand upon the
building she leaned against, attempting to transition inside. That took way too long. I have much
work to make up in order to stay on track. This has been quite a setback.
“Thank you,” came a trembling voice from beside him.
Eli looked down upon the woman he had assisted. She was gazing directly at him with a
weak smile.
“It was my pleas-“ Eli began to speak, but he faltered once he realized his situation: This
woman could see him. “You can see me?” he inquired.
The woman laughed lightly.
“Of course I can see you,” she answered. “You were the one who drove off those thugs,
right?”
Eli was taken aback; he did not expect to have encountered a Saint at this point in his
search. He would have to notify Ana somehow, but first he would need to confirm that this
woman was the mother of their target. Of this, Eli was currently unsure. I’ll have to follow her
to her home… Find out if she has a child, and if so, discover the identity of the child. In the
meantime, I just need to ensure that she maintains her belief that I am an ordinary person.
The woman shakily regained her footing.
“I’m sorry to ask you this,” she began hesitantly. “But could you see me home? I feel
rather vulnerable now.”
Eli grinned. Perfect.
“Yes, gladly,” Eli responded.
“Thank goodness,” she gasped in relief. “Don’t worry. We won’t have to travel far; my
home is close to this place.” She walked out of the alleyway, through the same end the two
muggers had exited. Eli trailed after her as she turned left upon reaching the street along the
apartment buildings.
 31
Free from the imposing presence of the apartments, Eli could gain a more precise
perception of the town, and he was reminded once again of its degenerate nature. Few signs of
life were evident, save some apparent homeless people and gang members lurking between
houses. The street was mostly vacant; it appeared that most travelling in this town occurred on
foot. The sun had dipped farther toward the horizon since his arrival; Eli was sure that school
must have been dismissed by now. I wonder how Jack fared. Perhaps he found this woman’s
child, but it’s certainly a stretch. I can’t even confirm that she is a mother. Although Jack did
say he had a good feeling…
While thinking about Jack, Eli was reminded again of his team’s mission plan. Since he
had found a Saint, he should attempt to contact Ana. As he and the woman walked alongside an
endless series of dark alleyways and decaying buildings, Eli closed his eyes in an effort to detect
Ana’s presence. He tried to envision her in his mind and extended his senses beyond the town,
searching for her consciousness.
“Are you alright?” asked the woman from beside him, as she had apparently discovered
his disengagement from the external environment.
“I’m fine,” replied Eli curtly, fixating on the sound of her footsteps so that he could
remain on his path. “I just like to uh… meditate.”
“Oh,” said the woman in surprise. “In that case, I guess I won’t disturb you.”
Recollecting himself, Eli tried once again to find Ana. To his disbelief, it seemed that
someone had already found him. Indeed, he was now aware of another consciousness within his
being, and it began to speak to him.
Eli? called a voice from within himself. Can you hear me?
The voice sounded identical to Ana’s.
With a rush of excitement, Eli attempted to gather his thoughts and respond. Yes! I can
hear you, and I have some interesting news. A brief pause ensued; Eli feared he had not
successfully responded to Ana.
Eventually, he heard her voice once again. You have interesting news? Like what?
Eli joyfully shared his discovery. I’ve found a Saint! I am following her to her home as
we speak! It is possible that she is related to our target.
Once again, there was a delay before Eli was aware of Ana’s response. And it is a
greater possibility than you may think, Eli. Jack has reported the discovery of a young child who
 32
can see him, and he is currently with her as well. I am guessing that you have found this child’s
mother, but we will need you to confirm that her father is a Saint as well before we can terminate
the mission.
Ana’s words seemed too magnificent to be true; Eli felt as if he had entered some form
of dream. Alright, replied Eli. I will be arriving at this woman’s house shortly. We should be
able to identify her family soon. Jack and I will notify you when we have more information.
Goodbye for now.
Eli opened his eyes and looked over toward his new companion; she was staring at him
with a confused expression.
“Sorry about that,” said Eli. “Just trying to clear my head. I’m still a little shaken up
from my encounter with those two thugs.”
The woman looked sympathetic.
“That’s okay,” she stated quickly. “I am sorry that you had to go through that. I still
can’t thank you enough for what you did.”
Eli shook his head.
“Don’t mention it… uhm… I’m sorry, but I never caught your name.”
The pair had been travelling in a straight path since exiting the alleyway, but the woman
now turned to cross the street on their right.
“It’s Sheila,” she responded. “And you?”
Eli looked ahead to a strip of houses lined along an intersecting road that stretched into
the distance before them. I’ll bet we’re close.
“My name is Eli,” muttered the young Sentinel, a bit lost in his thoughts. “It’s a pleasure
to meet you.”
The pair had crossed the street and found themselves on a sidewalk parallel to the strip of
houses.
“It’s nice to meet you as well,” replied Sheila. “You don’t seem like you’re from around
here, Eli. Where exactly are you from?”
Eli temporarily froze in his tracks. He was unnerved by such a question, as he had not
prepared an answer for one, but he did not want to make his surprise evident to Sheila, so he
resumed walking. I should have been ready for something like this. Oh well - I’ll just make
something up.
 33
“I suppose you could say I’m just a wanderer,” Eli began. “At this point, I’m not really
‘from’ anywhere. If you must know my origin, it is from the East, namely the eastern coast.”
Sheila looked intrigued by his response.
“Oh my,” she said in wonder. “You really aren’t from around here. You certainly have
done a lot of wandering.”
Eli was internally berating himself for not providing a more believable answer, though he
did not know exactly where Johnson was to begin with, and he really had no way of knowing
what would constitute a believable answer. This talk is growing tiresome. Where is her house
already?
The two had walked past several houses along the strip thus far, and many of them were
in far better condition than the buildings at the town’s outskirts. They were all mostly intact and
bore various colors. Having traveled to the strip’s halfway point, Sheila pointed to a gray house
about fifteen meters ahead. Eli breathed an inaudible sigh of relief. Thank goodness. That must
be her house.
“I live right over there,” she announced. “Thank you for seeing me home. Be safe on
your travels.”
Eli realized he had not determined how he would persuade Sheila to allow him to stay.
After all, he would need to find out who her family is.
“Is there any way I could take refuge in your home for a little while?” asked Eli
hopefully. “As I said, those thugs gave me a hard time, and I’m still a bit shaken. I would like to
wait a while before I resume my journey.”
Sheila smiled warmly.
“Of course you can,” she answered. “I’m still the one who owes you, remember?”
Eli started toward Sheila’s home.
“That’s great!” he exclaimed. “Thank you, I appreciate it.”
Sheila followed Eli toward the house, which was equal in size to the other houses on the
strip. It only had one floor, but it still looked far more inviting than the rest of the town. The
pair treaded over a smooth, stone path that led to a white door at the front of the home. It made a
groaning noise as Sheila opened it and invited Eli inside.
The interior of the house was mostly open, with very few walls. A dining table stood
immediately to the left of the entrance, beside a miniature cooking area. To the right was a
 34
bathroom, and Eli could see a bed in an adjacent chamber. Otherwise, the house was mostly
empty, though it was remarkably clean.
Sheila entered the house behind him.
“Don’t worry about taking your shoes off,” she said. “Here, why don’t you take a seat? I
can make you some coffee.”
Eli pulled a chair from the table and sat down. Will I even be able to drink coffee as a
Sentinel? I’d rather not have to find out.
As Sheila placed a filter in her coffee machine, Eli gazed about in search of any other
people present. He did not hear or see anyone else in the house. I’ve wasted too much time.
Let’s find out if this woman has any family here.
“So, Sheila,” began Eli casually. “you live here by yourself?”
Sheila turned away from the machine as it began to dispense coffee and sat across from
Eli.
“No, actually,” she replied with a smile. “While this house may grant the impression of a
one-person space, I am not alone here. I have a husband who is currently working and a
daughter who should be returning from school soon.”
Excellent. Just what I wanted to hear. That would mean Jack should be arriving here
with the girl shortly. In the meantime, I’ll just have to extend our conversation.
“Ah, I see,” mused Eli. “Then you are typically alone for most of the day. But what
were you doing in that alleyway? I can’t seem to picture you associating yourself with lowly
villains all that often.”
Sheila retrieved the cup of coffee from the machine, which was now filled.
“I don’t venture to that part of town very often,” she explained. “but I have friends who
live in the apartment buildings; sometimes I like to visit them. I was pinned in that alleyway by
those two criminals after I had finished a visit. Speaking of which, how did you manage to fend
both of them off?”
Eli remained silent as she placed the cup of coffee in front of him. Just how many hard
questions are you going to ask? At any rate, she would have to discover that he is a Sentinel at
some point. He and Jack would not simply abduct the child without warning; they would have to
explain who they were and what their objective was. Still, Eli had not received sufficient
 35
evidence that this was the family he was looking for – that discovery would almost seem too
good to be true.
“I guess I’ve just adopted a tough-skinned persona,” Eli answered eventually.
“Dangerous situations and physical altercations are not uncommon for me; I have to be able to
fight well in order to survive. But in this particular case, I also wielded the element of surprise.
Driving them off was not as difficult as it may sound.”
Sheila nodded in comprehension.
“You must be very brave, then,” she said. “Are you going to drink your coffee? It will
get cold soon.”
Eli wanted to roll his eyes. The obstacles are seemingly endless. What will I say if I
can’t drink this? I am running out of excuses… Jack needs to get here quickly. He should know
how to handle this. Eli grasped the small cup of coffee in his hand; it was still hot to the touch.
With tremendous uncertainty, he anxiously lifted it to his lips. He barely dared to breathe as he
took the first sip, fearing that the liquid would spew out of his body immediately. Oh, well. I’ll
have to reveal my identity sooner or later. Contrary to his expectations, the coffee remained
within his spiritual form as it trickled down his throat.
“Ah, that hits the spot,” commented Eli.
He did not really know if the coffee tasted well, as his sense of taste seemed rather weak
in his current form; he was simply attempting to be polite.
“I’m glad you find it satisfying,” replied Sheila. “You probably need it to keep your
energy up. That reminds me: Where will you be heading next?”
Eli rapidly gulped down the remainder of the beverage and placed the mug on the table.
“I’m not sure,” he said, pretending to sound pensive. “I don’t tend to put much planning
into my journeys. I sort of just roll with the wind.”
“Don’t you have any family?” inquired Sheila.
“Well…” began Eli with a tinge of regret. “I did, but they’ve all passed on now. I
assume you’re aware of the virus that is dismantling our world as we speak?”
A shadow of fear fell upon Sheila’s face.
“Yes, I have heard about it…” she answered. “I’m sure everyone must have at this point.
I am deeply sorry for your loss.”
Eli believed he could hear a high-pitched voice not far from the house.
 36
“It’s alright,” he assured her. “I’ve been alone for a long time. I’m quite used to it by
now.”
The sound of light, rapidly approaching footsteps emanated from beyond the door.
Before he could react, a young girl burst through, flinging her shoes onto the mat next to the
entrance. She bore a striking resemblance to Sheila. Finally. Took long enough.
The girl placed her pink backpack by her shoes and turned towards her mother.
“I’m home, Mom!” she exclaimed gleefully.
Her excitement seemed to dissipate when she noticed Eli sitting at the table. So she can
see me. Must be the girl Ana mentioned. Where’s Jack, then?
Sheila, understanding the child’s confusion, introduced Eli.
“Sarah,” she began. “This is Eli. He’s just staying here for a little while before he leaves
town. Trust me, we owe him.” Sheila gestured towards the girl. “Eli,” she said. “This is my
daughter, Sarah.”
Sarah’s skittishness seemed to quickly fade.
“Hello, Eli,” she said with a smile. “It’s good to meet you,” Eli replied, feeling a sense of
satisfaction.
As he gradually surveyed the child, though, a chill of unease climbed his spine. She was,
of course, in some form of danger: The prophecy had indicated exactly that. The cause of her
danger was still not clear, and Eli began to doubt his ability to safeguard her. I’m probably just
being irrational. We’ll be fine once we remove her from this town; as has been made obvious,
this is a very dangerous area.
The sound of footsteps outside drifted into the house once again, and someone appeared
in the doorway. Eli whipped his head around to find Jack entering the house.
“Eli, you’re here,” he observed. “With perfect timing, just as I would expect.”
 37
Chapter 4
Sheila gaped at the old Sentinel who had entered her house, but Sarah did not seem
surprised in the slightest; Eli was simply relieved. In her shock, Sheila rose from her chair and
pointed at Jack.
“Eli,” she gasped. “You know this man?”
Eli nodded. “Yes, I do.”
“I know him too!” piped Sarah. “His name is Jack, and he walked me home.”
Sheila embraced her child with a dreadful fear in her eyes.
“What is the meaning of this?” she demanded.
“Calm down,” Jack assured her. “If I wanted to harm your child, I would have done so
already. Eli and I are only here to help, but we will need some time to explain. Care to listen?”
Sheila slowly retreated back to her seat.
“Fine,” she grunted. “Tell me everything. I’ll wait.”
Jack advanced farther into the house.
“Ah, good,” said Jack. “I’m afraid that you may not like everything you here, but it will
all be in your best interest.”
Jack closed the door behind him and took a seat at the table. As Sarah headed to another
room to retrieve a chair for herself, Jack began to speak.
“Where to begin…” he sighed. “What if I told you that the two of us were not of the
Living World? Would you believe me if I said that we are apparitions from a past life?”
Sheila shook her head.
“Quite frankly, no,” she replied. “Is this all you have to say? If it is, I am going to ask
you to leave.”
Jack removed his hat and scratched his head.
“I see…” he mused. “In that case, I suppose I will have to provide some form of
evidence.”
Sarah had returned to the small kitchen area with a wooden chair clutched in her tiny
hands.
“You’re just in time, my dear,” said Jack, rising from his place at the table.
“For what?” asked Sarah.
Jack smiled endearingly.
 38
“You’ll see,” he answered. “Tell me, Mom. Do you believe me now?” He began to
hover over the floor, rising until his head made contact with the house’s low ceiling. “Could I do
this if I was a human like you and your daughter?”
Sheila bore a surprised but skeptical expression.
“Well,” she muttered. “I know of illusionists who can perform similar tricks, so you will
have to do better if you want me to believe you.”
Jack returned to the floor.
“Very well,” he sighed. “Let’s see… What else…” He crept toward a window that was
directed toward the sidewalk outside of the house. “Ah, here’s something.”
Eli and Sheila peered out of the window to find what Jack was referring to. In the
gathering gloom, a young man was walking along the street outside.
“Sheila, did you know that you are amongst a miniscule group of humans who are able to
see me?” Jack asked.
“No,” she replied briskly. “What are you getting at?”
Jack placed his hand upon the window and began to seep through it.
“Observe and see for yourself,” he challenged before he exited the house and treaded
towards the unsuspecting pedestrian.
Sheila appeared puzzled.
“Passing through solid material?” she whispered. “I’ve never seen that illusion before.
But what’s he trying to prove? What does that man outside have to do with anything?”
Eli was intrigued to see what Jack would do as well, as he was now only a couple meters
away from the man.
“He’s probably going to demonstrate that typical people cannot see us,” answered Eli.
“You and your daughter are unique because we are visible to you, but we are invisible to most.
That is how I managed to ward off your aggressors; they were never even able to see me.”
Sheila grew pale in disbelief, as she appeared to come to the realization that Jack and Eli
may be correct in their assertions.
“So that’s it,” she muttered. “That man outside will never notice your friend, if what
you’re saying is true. But let’s see if your words actually are true.”
Eli observed the events unfolding beyond the window as Jack peered over the
unsuspecting man’s shoulder mischievously. Jack is behaving quite boldly, Eli thought. Yet we
 39
haven’t met the father of this family, so we can’t confirm our suspicions at this point. Is he truly
so confident in his initial belief that the child we’re looking for is in this town? I suppose the
odds are just too heavily in our favor now.
Sheila held her breath as Jack leaped into the man’s path, blocking him. The man
collided with the slender Sentinel and fell back to the ground, eyes wide with shock. Jack
loomed over him, waving his hand before the man’s face, but the confused civilian made no
response; he simply returned to his feet and scrambled on past Jack nervously. Jack turned
towards the window where Eli and Sheila were with a triumphant grin. He transitioned through
the door and stood before Sheila with his arms spread challengingly.
“See that?” he beamed. “Wouldn’t that fellow have noticed me if I wasn’t akin to an
apparition? He carried on straight into me without the slightest regard for my presence.”
Sheila’s face remained pale, and she stared at the wooden floor of her house.
“Fine,” she eventually admitted. “I get it - you two are ghosts. Now why are you here?”
Jack returned to his seat at the table, and Eli followed suit.
“Have a seat, and I shall explain,” the old Sentinel assured her. “As I have already
suggested, the news I bear is not entirely pleasant. I implore you to keep an open mind and
know that we are only acting in your best interest. Now…” Jack’s eyes darkened. “Allow me
to cut straight to the point: We are going to need you to temporarily relinquish your daughter to
us. We fear that she is in grave danger, and we wish to ensure her safety. Trust me, there is no
better place she could be than with us.”
Sheila opened her mouth abruptly for a retort, but she checked herself from saying
anything rash. Instead, she let her face sink into her hands and shook her head.
“Why?” she demanded quietly. “What danger is she in? And what would you do to
prevent it?”
“I can’t say with certainty what crisis your daughter faces,” Jack replied. “You see, I get
my information from.. er… I guess you could call them ‘higher-ups’. We were not given many
specifics concerning our mission; we just know that we have been tasked with retrieving your
daughter. Once we do, she will be completely safe. No danger lurks where we Sentinels
congregate.”
“Then why do you want to take my daughter specifically? If you can save anyone from
danger, why are you doing it for only Sarah?”
 40
Sarah had been seated quietly at her place by the table as the discussion had unfolded.
She was looking towards the floor, with a mixture of fear and curiosity in her eyes.
“Sarah is a very special child,” Jack responded. “The human race faces impending
extinction because of a malicious virus, and Sarah is the only one who can curb the menace. We
need to ensure her safety so that she may later fulfill her purpose and preserve humanity.”
Sheila did not appear fully convinced, as she remained dazed and silent.
“Understand that we do not know much more about this than you do,” Jack continued.
“The details will become apparent as time draws on. In the meantime, we should prepare to
leave with Sarah. We really don’t have any other options.”
Eli’s heart sank as he saw Sheila and Sarah exchange a regretful glance. He had already
determined that this would probably be an unpleasant experience, but it was difficult to bear,
nonetheless. Tough as it is, it has to be done. Sarah must come with-.
His thoughts were interrupted by a clamor beyond the door. Heavy footsteps were
approaching, and a deep voice sounded outside.
“Sheila, I’m home.”
The door swung open with a moan, and an adult male entered. He was tall and broad-
shouldered, with a dark mass of curly hair upon his head.
“You wouldn’t believe what happened today!”
After removing his shoes, he looked toward the group inside and froze. His eyes met
Jack’s, then Eli’s. So he can see us too. Now we know for sure.
“Sorry,” said the man. “I didn’t expect visitors. What brings you here, and at this time of
the day?” He looked toward Sheila questioningly. “And Sheila,” he gasped. “your face is
bruised! What happened?”
Sheila finally managed to free herself from her stupor and respond.
“I was assaulted in an alleyway,” she answered, pointing to Eli. “but this person rescued
me. His name is Eli, and his friend is Jack. They have some very important news.”
The man came to stand by the table, undoing the red tie about his neck.
“You saved my wife?” he asked, placing his hand on Eli’s shoulder. “Then I suppose I
am indebted to you. Forgive my cold welcome; my name is Michael. It is very nice to meet you
both.”
A chill of unease gripped Eli. Great. Now we have to fill him in, too.
 41
Jack seemed to have been pondering the same dilemma Eli was grappling with.
“Sheila?” he asked softly. “Would you be willing to share our current situation with
Michael? He may not take to it kindly from me.”
Michael raised his eyebrows, perplexed.
“What’s our current situation? Is there some sort of emergency?”
“You will learn in due time,” Jack promised, rising from his place at the table. “Right
now, there’s someone I need to notify. Sheila and Eli can answer your questions while I’m
gone.”
Jack exited the house without further explanation, leaving Michael in a state of utter
confusion.
“What’s going on?” he asked Sheila, with a hint of nervousness in his voice.
Sheila drew a deep breath.
“We need to let Sarah stay with them for a while. Her life, as well as the fate of the
world, is at stake.”
A flash of dismay appeared in Michael’s eyes, but he was able to maintain his
composure.
“So you’re foreign enemies or something?” he suggested with a glance toward Eli.
“No,” Eli replied calmly. “You misunderstand. We are only here to help. Our goal is to
return your daughter to you safe and sound as soon as possible.”
“You see,” Sheila added. “These people are something akin to spirits; they aren’t
normal. They say that Sarah will somehow liberate the world from the developing pandemic,
and they need to protect her from some unforeseen danger until she does.”
Michael remained silent.
“I’ll be alright, Dad,” Sarah assured him. “Jack and his friend are very nice. I know I’ll
be safe with them.”
Eli was surprised by the girl’s tone of certainty. Such courage… How can she trust us,
though? Is she really that naïve? Or can she somehow sense that we have no evil intentions?
“I know this is a lot to take in,” Eli piped up. “but we need you to trust us. We wouldn’t
be trying so hard to get you to understand if we weren’t facing a pressing issue.”
“Sentinels..” muttered Michael quietly.
“I’m sorry?” Eli prompted. “I didn’t catch what you said.”
 42
Michael now bore a reminiscent expression.
“You guys are Sentinels, right?”
“That is correct…” Eli answered suspiciously. “How did you know that? Did you
overhear part of our conversation?”
“No,” Michael breathed. “I’ve known about you for a while – since I was a mere child. I
used to talk with Sentinels.”
Fascinating, Eli thought. I never would have guessed a human could have interacted
with Sentinels in such a way… I thought we were supposed to minimize engagement with
humans.
“My peers used to make fun of me for it at school,” Michael continued. “Said I was
crazy, that I had imaginary friends. Sometimes I wondered if I was crazy…” He paused, his
eyes seeming to lose focus and become distant. “But eventually, I accepted that I wasn’t just
dreaming them up; they were definitely real. I asked them so many questions… To my
disappointment, they would only answer a few. I still learned much from them, and I would
always jump for joy at the prospect of meeting one.”
Jack, who had managed to enter the house without anyone noticing, chuckled.
“Very interesting,” he commented. “I’ve never known of a human with such extensive
experience in communicating with Sentinels. Since you have such experiences, do you feel you
have good reason to trust us?”
Michael said nothing, while Jack tapped his foot repeatedly on the floor in anticipation.
Eli voiced his thoughts to persuade Michael.
“I really don’t think we have any other options here. Surely you can understand our
predicament, and that we are only here to help?”
Sheila gazed expectantly at Michael. “Well?” she prompted. “What do you think?”
With a shade of doubt upon his face, Michael glanced toward Eli.
“I think you’re right: We don’t have much choice. If our daughter is truly in danger, I am
willing to do whatever it takes to keep her safe. You Sentinels have earned my trust in the past;
we will give her to you. But…” He placed his hand on Sarah’s head. “Is there any chance we
could keep her with us a little longer? Could you wait till tomorrow morning to take her with
you? We would like to offer her a proper goodbye, and it’s getting late now.”
 43
Indeed, darkness had abruptly gathered beyond the window; Sheila rose to fetch a candle
from the kitchen counter.
Sarah yawned drowsily.
“I think I’m too tired to go now. I’d like to leave in the morning, too.”
“I’m surprised you’re so willing to go at all,” Jack commented. “Very brave, but I
suppose I shouldn’t have expected any less from the Chosen One. At any rate, all you’ll likely
have to do is invoke the powers of Gaia’s Shrines. In other words, your role shouldn’t be too
challenging.”
“Gaia’s Shrines?” Eli interjected in surprise. “What are those?”
“Oh, yes,” chuckled Jack. “They are the shrines I told you about back before we were
transported here – I just never explained what they are called. They will probably be how Sarah
will conquer the virus; they can be used to produce a variety of beneficial effects when their
powers are elicited by a Saint.”
“Ah, I believe I’ve heard that term before,” added Michael. “Saints. They are the ones
who can see Sentinel’s, correct?”
“That is correct,” Jack responded.
“Well,” Michael continued. “That would make our entire family a group of Saints. In
other words, Sheila and I could each draw out the power of the Gaia Shrines ourselves. Why do
we need to send our young child?”
Sarah’s eyelids began to quiver as she sat, illuminated in her seat by the yellow light
emanating from the candles Sheila had lit. Jack gazed at the child fondly.
“Your daughter was requested specifically,” Jack reminded him. “Besides, she faces
imminent danger, so we need to ensure her safety. As for her time of departure…”
“Right,” piped Sheila, who was drawing faded gray shades over the windows overlooking
the front of the house. “Is there any way you can leave tomorrow morning? You can’t just steal
her off into the night.”
Eli glanced questioningly toward Jack. I don’t’ think he’ll go for it. Even in her own
house, Sarah could end up facing peril. This is clearly an extremely dangerous town to live in.
Jack sighed.
 44
“Very well,” he conceded. “We’ll leave in the morning, at about the time Sarah would
normally leave for school. Eli, you may return to the rendezvous point we’ve previously
established. I shall remain here to watch over the house until the time for departure arrives.”
Eli stood up and glanced toward Jack expectantly.
“I already notified our friends,” Jack assured him. “They’ll be waiting for you.” With an
arrogant snicker, he strode to the entrance. “I said we would be the ones to find them, didn’t I?
Too easy. I really am the best Sentinel, not that crone Ana, or anyone else for that matter.”
His hand trickled through the door.
“I’ll be outside till morning. Feel free to contact me with any concerns, though you’ll
probably want to get some sleep. See you later, Eli.”
He disappeared beyond the door and into the night.
Eli nodded farewell toward the family of Saints.
“All right, I’d best be off. I’ll leave you to offer your goodbyes. Don’t worry, though:
Sarah will be safe with us, and we’ll return her to you as quickly as possible. I wouldn’t be too
concerned.”
Making haste, Eli transitioned through the door and took to the air in the dark of night.
The streets were very poorly lit, illuminated only by a few faint lampposts. This truly is a
perilous place to live. I hope I’m not making a mistake by leaving Jack all alone to defend the
home.
He glanced back toward the house to catch a glimpse of Jack, but he had already traveled
too far to make him out in the gloom. Wind rushed by his ears as Eli soared over buildings and
quickly left the town behind him; he could not avoid thinking that the notion of being abandoned
by their child would be difficult to swallow for Michael and Sheila. It’s still not easy to do, but
again, we’ve no other choice.
As he glided past the town’s welcome sign, Eli became aware of his increase in flight
speed since first learning the skill. Now, it seemed he could travel at a pace twice that of when
he and Jack had initially sought out Johnson. I’ve got to keep my eyes peeled, then. I could be
coming upon the others at any moment.
In the distance, an almost imperceptible glow could be seen on the ground. Presently,
Eli was struggling to follow the road in the absence of any nearby light source, so he headed
directly toward the glow. Maybe that’s them. Surely they’d be using some sort of beacon to
 45
guide me through this impenetrable darkness. It would only make sense that they are
responsible for that gleam.
Eli listened carefully for any sound that may confirm his suspicions, but his ears were
met only with the sound of vicious shouts and conflict. A sense of dread formed in his stomach
and sank heavily within him. It’s as I feared. Rates of crime ascend substantially by night in
this town. Will Sarah’s family be subjected to home invasion? No… wait.
Upon further discretion, Eli concluded that the collection of aggressive shouts was not
sourced in the town; rather, it originated somewhere off to his right, though he could see nothing.
“What’s going on?” he voiced aloud.
He almost desired to investigate the turmoil, but his attention was diverted by another
sound.
“Eli!” came a shout from below, near the spec of orange light ahead. It was a high
female voice, most likely Rachel’s. “Are you out there? We’re waiting for you.”
With a sigh of relief, Eli sped through the cool air toward the voice. As he neared the
field of illumination produced by what appeared to be a dim fire, he was able to make out Rachel
peering up through the darkness. Victor was crouched by the fire, prodding at the coals with a
short stick, while Ana was pacing back and forth nervously by the road. Eli descended to the
ground near the fire.
“You made it back!” exclaimed Rachel jovially. Victor made no comment upon his
return, and Ana did not cease her pacing. Rachel scurried over to the fire and bombarded Eli
with questions. “So you left Jack with the girl? Do you think she’ll be alright? What does she
look like? How old is she?”
“Uhm, yes,” answered Eli. “she should be fine. I’d say she’s about ten years old; she has
long, dark hair and luminous skin, with gleaming eyes and a contagious smile. Satisfied?”
“What is the meaning of this?” Victor demanded from his place by the fire. “Why are we
waiting till morning to retrieve the child? Jack notified us about it earlier.”
“He’s respecting the wishes of the child’s parents,” Eli explained. “They want to be able
to offer her a proper farewell, so we’re putting the mission off until tomorrow. Besides, the child
seems too drowsy to leave with now.”
 46
Victor tossed his stick into the fire in frustration. “Even if she is drowsy, why does that
mean we cannot leave with her? This isn’t exactly a game.” He sighed heavily. “So be it: All
will be well so long as Jack manages to ensure her safety.”
“To think that our team would be the one to find her…” Rachel mused. “Such great
news! We’ll be back to our ordinary routines in no time.”
Peering at Ana in befuddlement, Eli grew concerned by her pacing.
“Is something the matter with Ana?” he asked nervously. His worry became even more
pertinent as he came to notice that Ana was muttering to herself.
“Oh, her?” Rachel chuckled. “She’s been trying to contact the Judge to let her know that
we’ve completed our mission. For some reason, she can’t get through to her at the moment, but
it’s really not that much of a problem. We won’t be needing her to open the soul-gate again until
tomorrow, so it’s no emergency.”
“But what’s interfering with the signal?” asked Victor, rising to his feet. “Perhaps the
Judge is currently preoccupied, and she cannot presently respond? I would imagine she’d have
been able to do it at some point - Ana has been at it for over twenty minutes.”
Ana finally ceased her pacing and collapsed on her knees by the fire.
“Yes,” Victor encouraged her. “I would implore you to rest. You may be too fatigued to
be able to communicate with the Judge - it is certainly a possibility.”
“I- I’m not sure that’s it,” Ana sputtered. “although it might indeed be a possibility.
Even so, I don’t want to rest for too long; I’d like to hear from the Judge soon to quell my rising
anxiety.”
The four grew silent as Ana lay down upon the ground, while an owl cooed eerily in the
distant trees. A sliver of a moon hung in the sky, barely shedding enough light to see a few
meters beyond one’s face. The fire, which had served as their primary light source up to this
point, was now little more than a mere collection of sparks and coals.
Eli did not feel tired in the slightest, nor did Rachel or Victor, judging by their
appearances and behavior.
“I guess we just wait now,” muttered Eli.
“Silence!” hushed Victor. “I’m trying to listen!”
“To what?” Rachel demanded. She closed her eyes, and furrows appeared on her
forehead as she tensed herself in concentration. “Wait… I hear it too!”
 47
A chill of unease ran up Eli’s spine. What is it? He could only hear the same distant
commotion he had heard before, but now it seemed nearer; it also now consisted of a single line
of sound, instead of multiple noises jumbled together.
“It’s travelling toward us,” warned Victor.
“And it almost sounds like a distress call,” Rachel added.
Ana sat up as the noise became louder and louder.
“Whoever it is must have seen our fire. I’m guessing it’s a human in danger – perhaps a
wild animal is pursuing him. If that’s the case, we should just subdue the animal and let the
human be on his way.”
Eli strained his eyes as he sought out any indication of movement in the shadows. He
could see nothing, yet the sound continued to intensify.
“It’s coming from above us,” Eli observed. “Whoever it is isn’t travelling at ground
level.”
“So…” Rachel began. “It’s a Sentinel then. What’s a Sentinel doing here? Did Jack get
into trouble?”
The shouting became louder still, and it became clearer too.
“Run! They’re coming!” came the desperate yells.
Can’t be Jack. He was at Sarah’s home when I first heard the noises, and that isn’t his
voice. Eli and the others began to retreat as the source of the sound bore down upon them,
accompanied by the clamor of thundering footsteps. Suddenly, the figure of a flying Sentinel
became visible before them in the stifling darkness; a choking stench of smoke filled the air.
“Get going! There’s no time!” the Sentinel screamed.
Eli and Rachel bolted away from the voice, but Victor and Ana stood undeterred,
awaiting to see what would occur next.
“Hurry! It’s almos-“ The voice was interrupted as a flash of orange light pierced through
the gloom with a thundering roar. The Sentinel’s agonized, wailing face was briefly visible
before he was reduced to ash.
 48
Chapter 5
Eli, Rachel, Victor, and Ana all gazed on in disbelief upon the heap of soot on the ground
that had been a Sentinel just moments before. A deep, menacing voice resonated in the air with
laughter.
“Curses!” Ana hissed. “We should have seen this coming; I guess we had just all
assumed we’d never see the likes of them again.”
“No use regretting our actions now,” Victor reminded her. He drew a broadsword from
within the front of his overcoat. “This is a matter of life and death – prepare to run, young ones.”
In the illumination remaining from the orange flare, Eli could see an imposing assailant
before them. He bore thick, black armor from shoulder to toe; dark clouds of smoke billowed
from the seams in the shoulder and knee joints. His eyes burned like embers in an unquenchable
inferno, and his white beard was riddled with ash. Most concerningly, he clutched a massive
halberd with a red-hot blade, and he continued to laugh wickedly.
“Wh- What is it?” Eli stammered in terror, continuing to back away from the apparent
foe.
“An escapee from Gehenna,” Ana answered gravely. “I’ve only met one once in my time
as a Sentinel, but there’s no mistaking them after you experience just a single encounter.
They’re called Outlaws.”
The smoldering soldier began advancing toward the group of Sentinels.
“Tell me where I can find the Saint,” he boomed. “If you do, I might let you go.”
Ana extended her hand towards Victor, and he gave her a chained kunai that he had
retrieved from underneath his pant leg.
“Eli, Rachel,” she whispered. “Go find Jack and get the girl as far away from here as
possible. We’ll hold this monster off.”
Eli felt as if his feet were frozen into the ground.
“But…” He had no time to speak as Victor rushed the Outlaw with a fierce battle cry.
With Ana just a sprint behind, Victor hefted his blade and swung it down toward the
Outlaw’s skull, but the fiery warrior intercepted the strike with the shaft of his halberd, causing
Eli’s ears to ring with the sound of clashing metal. While he was preoccupied with Victor, Ana
hurled her kunai in an attempt to lacerate the Outlaw’s throat. With impressive agility, given his
heavy armor, the Outlaw evaded the potentially lethal blow by leaping high into the air. He then
 49
swung his halberd across his body, projecting an arc of blazing light toward the ground below.
Victor and Ana darted backward to avoid the attack, leaving it to strike the ground in an eruption
of flames and hissing fumes.
“What did I tell you?” Ana screamed, jolting Eli from his stupor. “Go! It’s not safe
here.”
As Victor and the Outlaw prepared to clash again, Eli noticed that Rachel had already
taken flight and was looking back at him expectantly.
“You heard her. Come on!”
The screech of metal stung his ears from behind as Eli ascended toward Rachel and
began leading her back to Johnson. He felt as if fear and panic were gripping him so fiercely that
he could barely fly straight; his flight speed was hindered, and he could vaguely hear Rachel
urging him to make haste from behind. All of his senses seemed to have diminished, and he felt
numb. What’s wrong with me? Not too long ago, I was subjected to the terrors of the Maw. If I
could function then, why can’t I function now?
Even as he thought these things, Eli knew that his current situation was different than the
Maw. The intense eyes of the Outlaw had become burned into Eli’s visual system, so that he
saw them everywhere he looked. He shook his head violently. This is no time to allow myself to
be overcome with fear. We have a mission to complete. Wind buffeted his face as he managed
to regain his bearings and increase his flight speed.
With the return of his senses, Rachel’s voice managed to drive its way back into his
consciousness. “Eli! Are we almost there?”
Observing the area ahead, Eli identified the quickly approaching outskirts of Johnson.
“We’ve nearly reached the town!” he shouted. “It won’t be much longer till we arrive at
their house.” A flicker of red light from behind penetrated the surrounding shadows, and the
sound of a heavy thud permeated the air. The battle with the Outlaw was escalating. “I just hope
Ana and Victor can hold him off long enough.”
Flying above the first buildings of Johnson, Eli scanned the interior of the town, recalling
exactly where Sheila had led him. In the dim light generated by a few scattered lampposts, he
could barely spot the street he was seeking ahead and to his left.
“This way!” he directed Rachel as he propelled himself toward the street.
 50
Apartment buildings and houses blurred past them below, and Eli tried to identify the
gray house amongst the rapidly approaching strip he had visited earlier.
“One of these houses should be-“ Eli was interrupted by a blow dealt directly to his
throat. A dexterous hand had grasped hold of his neck; even in the shadows, he could quickly
identify the entity before him as Jack.
He soon released Eli with a snort.
“What are you doing back here? I thought you were an enemy!”
“It’s urgent!” Rachel cried, tugging Jack’s arm. “Victor and Ana are fighting off an
Outlaw! He’s coming for the little girl!”
Jack’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“An Outlaw?” he shouted. “Do you even know what you speak of?”
“Yes!” Eli insisted. “Ana said it was an Outlaw – an escapee from Gehenna. It wants to
know where it can find Sarah; we need to get her away from here! If he somehow finds out
where she lives, she’ll be doomed unless we get her to evacuate the town in time.”
“Well, what are we waiting for?” prompted Jack, descending downward to a house
cloaked in shadows. “We must be on our way with Sarah now!”
Eli and Rachel followed him, and Eli could identify the house below as Sarah’s. The
three reached the ground in front of the home and plunged through the door. The interior of the
house was now completely dark, with no light source present; no one was awake.
“Rachel, stand by the door,” Jack instructed. “Make sure no one gets in.”
“Got it!” Rachel replied, as Jack and Eli headed into the room located behind the kitchen.
A bed lay on the floor of this chamber, and it was occupied by Michael and Sheila.
“I’ll wake the parents,” Jack whispered. “You fetch Sarah.” He pointed to a door at the
other end of the room on their right. “Her bedroom must be beyond that door. Be swift!”
Eli scurried past the door and entered upon a miniscule room with a low-lying bed and a
wooden dresser next to it. Sarah lay curled on her side beneath the sheets, breathing lightly. Eli
reached down and gently shook her.
“Sarah, wake up!”
Sarah’s eyelids fluttered and slowly opened, while distressed voices sounded from her
parents’ room.
“Is it time to go already?” Sarah asked drowsily.
 51
“Unfortunately, yes,” Eli replied gravely. “We haven’t got much time. It’s time to leave
now.”
Sarah clumsily crawled from her bed, her eyes only half-open. Eli led her out of the
room to find Jack attempting to console a pair of seemingly confused and anxious parents.
“We’ve encountered an unexpected issue,” Jack explained calmly. “Sarah must leave
with us right now; there are no other options.”
Sheila rubbed her eye.
“What is the issue? You told us not too long ago that we could wait till morning.”
“Plans have changed since then,” Jack told her. “An old enemy of the Sentinels has
resurfaced. Their forces wish to foil our mission, so we must act quickly to avoid them.”
“What’s going on?” piped Sarah, who came to stand beside her parents.
“I don’t know,” said her mother, with sorrow in her voice.
“I’ll make it clear,” Jack intervened. “I only woke you to briefly explain what we are
doing, so that you would not unexpectedly find that your daughter had vanished by morning. I
won’t be taking no for an answer. In fact, we’ll be leaving this instant. You are all in danger.”
Michael embraced Sarah in his arms, and Sheila followed suit.
“Goodbye, Sarah,” her father began. “Stay safe and come back soon. I know that Jack
and the others will take good care of you.”
“Be strong,” her mother added. “We’ll be waiting for you when you get back.”
Jack took hold of Sarah’s hand.
“It’s time to be off, young one. If our mission succeeds, you’ll be back here in no time.”
With a wail of regret from Sheila, Jack cradled Sarah in his arms as he dashed toward the
front door, with Eli racing after him.
“Time to go!” Jack signaled Rachel, as she opened the door so that Jack could exit with
Sarah. The three took to the sky, while Michael and Sheila voiced their last farewells from
behind.
Jack led the others south, with Sarah clinging to him desperately.
“Wait!” she cried. “I never got to change out of my pajamas.”
“That will be alright,” Jack assured her. “Nobody will think poorly of you. Besides, not
many will even see you where we’re headed.”
“Speaking of which,” Rachel piped in. “Where are we headed?”
 52
“Past the southern end of town,” he answered. “I hope to find an area where we can hide,
preferably a place where there are few other people around. Perhaps some type of hollow or
abandoned building – somewhere we can wait until we move out again. After all, we want to
give Victor and Ana a chance to catch up… if they survive, that is.”
Eli gulped at the thought of the Outlaw having slain two of his fellow Sentinels and
heading after them at this very instant. Why even stop? Ana said to get as far away as possible.
Sarah’s nervous moans penetrated his thoughts. He gazed at the young girl and noticed
that her eyes were tinged with red and wet with tears; she also seemed distressed by the altitude
and speed they were travelling at. Eli felt a pang of sympathy for the tiny Saint. Right. We
cannot travel incessantly with her. She’ll need to eat along the way, in addition to receiving
other accommodations.
The housing below became less and less cluttered as they drew on - they were nearing
the end of the town. Eli tried to make out what lay beyond, but his vision could not penetrate the
shadows that had gathered about them.
“I surveyed some of the town’s surrounding area,” Jack announced, seemingly reading
Eli’s thoughts. “There are sparse patches of woodland beyond the southern boundary – we may
be able to take shelter there. At the very least, it would make it difficult for the Outlaws to spot
us, though it would render us vulnerable to their weapon of choice…”
“What’s that?” Eli asked.
Before Jack could respond, something came upon Eli and brushed up his right side.
“You know,” sneered an icy, metallic voice.
Eli snapped his head around toward the voice and found himself looking upon a full-
armored humanoid figure.
“It’s fire!” screeched the newcomer, as it drove its palm into the center of Eli’s back with
terrifying force. Burning pain seared through Eli’s body, and he was sent plummeting down to a
road below. He was stunned by the impact of the fall, but he desperately tried to regain his
footing to face his adversary. Another Outlaw? How did it find us?
Eli winced as he managed to struggle to his knees. Gazing upward, he saw Rachel and
Jack exchanging fixed stares with the armored figure.
“Hand over that kid,” sneered the newcomer, his face hidden behind a steel helmet and
his eyes emanating a fiery glow through his visor.
 53
With his eyes still fixed upon his enemy, Jack placed a quivering Sarah into Rachel’s
arms. The sudden transfer of weight caused the young sentinel to descend toward the ground,
but she managed to stabilize with a grunt of effort.
“Continue onward,” Jack ordered her. “This abomination shall not pass me.”
The Outlaw laughed maniacally.
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that. Surely you don’t believe you can fight me all by
yourself?”
As Rachel flew off into the distance, Jack and his opponent tensed their bodies, preparing
for the initial strike. Eli tried to stand and assist Jack, but searing pain racked his body yet again.
Dropping back to his knees in agony, he reached for the area on his back that had been struck by
the Outlaw. His clothing had been burned away to leave the affected skin exposed, and the raw
wound he felt was sensitive to the touch. I got burned? I didn’t think Sentinels could be
wounded like this. These Outlaws are indeed dangerous.
Overhead, the air rang with the repeated collision of weapon and armor. Jack, wielding a
long scimitar, was slashing vigorously at his enemy. The Outlaw continually deflected the blows
using the gauntlets on its forearms, although it was clearly struggling; Jack was forcing him
backward, and many of his strikes pierced the Outlaw’s armor. The Sentinel raised his scimitar
high over his head and drove it downward in a finishing blow. The Outlaw managed to intercept
it with its gauntlets, giving Jack an opportunity to kick it in the midsection and send it rocketing
backward. Jack is amazing! He’s even more powerful than this terrifying foe.
“Eli!” hollered Jack from above. “Go after Rachel! She may encounter more trouble on
her way.”
With a renewed sense of urgency, Eli managed to overcome his injury and stand on his
feet. Briefly looking back to see Jack engage with the Outlaw again, he ascended and followed
the path Rachel had taken. She had traveled too far for him to see her at this point, so he had to
allow his intuition to guide him along.
The town must end somewhere close… His hunch was accurate, as buildings began to
disappear below and gave way to barren plains. In the distance, beyond the refuse of the town,
Eli thought he could see trees looming through the shadows. Did Rachel decide to seek refuge in
the forest? Or did she find it wise to travel farther? How will I find her with such little lighting
available? The din from the battle behind continued to bombard Eli even as he glided past the
 54
first trees; he wondered how Victor and Ana had been faring against their adversary. This isn’t
good. Our three most experienced team members are currently occupied. If another Outlaw
strikes, Rachel and I will be defenseless. We don’t even have any weapons… or at least I don’t.
Eli’s injury was also concerning him. The pain had temporarily subsided while he was
desperately trying to escape, but now that he had to slow his pace to navigate the throngs of trees
he was searching, he became aware of it once again. The agony induced by the injury was worse
than anything Eli could remember enduring in the Maw. If a living individual was subjected to
such a burn, they would likely need urgent medical treatment. Eli bit his tongue in frustration,
hoping to distract himself from the injury. I’ve got to stay focused.
As he peered through the surrounding trees, searching for the slightest sign of movement,
Eli began to feel that his efforts were futile. He could barely see a couple meters before his face,
let alone scour this dense woodland for two individuals who did not want to be seen.
Fortunately, the density of the surrounding trees seemed to be lessening: He was approaching the
end of the miniature forest. Within a few moments, he burst back into the open air and halted.
Though the trees had encroached upon his vision, he was not able to see very well beyond them
either. He scanned the dry ground below and gazed ahead into the shadows. They must have
continued onward.
Before he could resume his search, a hand prodded Eli’s shoulder from behind. He
whipped his head around to see Rachel before him; Sarah was nowhere to be seen.
“Where is the child?” Eli demanded.
“Shhhh!” Rachel hushed. “She’s in a secluded cabin I found; it’s abandoned, and it’s
difficult to spot from above. Follow me.”
Rachel descended into the darkness, gliding along the edge of the tree clusters. Eli
followed cautiously, anxious that another Outlaw would unexpectedly burst from the trees or
sky. After traveling about twenty meters, Rachel veered left into the trees and descended into a
large hollow, which was invisible from outside the wood. At the center of the hollow stood a
tiny brick building; part of the roof had collapsed, and masses of vines had engulfed the walls in
a tangled shroud. Rachel slipped through a gap in the roof, with Eli following doubtfully. This
place isn’t very far from where we encountered the Outlaw. Hopefully, it is hidden well enough,
and Jack will be able to ward off our enemy.
 55
Eli landed upon a flat, stone floor within the building. His vision was completely
inhibited by the stifling shadows within; all he was able to perceive was Sarah’s quick breathing
in one corner of the room and Rachel scurrying about. She seemed to be carrying some form of
tarp, which she raised through the opening, unfurled, and slid over the roof. With a sigh of
relief, Eli collapsed down onto the floor, but the impact reminded him yet again of his injury. He
grunted in pain, which alerted Rachel.
“What happened? Are you hurt?”
“Yes,” Eli grumbled. “That Outlaw struck my back and burned me. It hurts, but it
should be alright.”
“In that case…” Rachel began. “I’ll be the one to stay on the lookout in case any of the
others come searching for us. You and Sarah should stay here.”
With that, she moved the covering on the roof aside and exited the building.
“Is… is Jack going to be alright?” Sarah peeped from the corner of the room, invisible to
Eli.
Eli nodded, though he doubted Sarah would see his gesture.
“He’ll be alright. Jack is very, very strong, and he knows what he’s doing.”
Sarah let out a sigh.
“You’ve gotten to know Jack fairly well already, haven’t you?” Eli observed.
“I met him after school,” Sarah replied. “And he walked me home. He told me all about
himself… told me that I was about to do something special.”
A pang of guilt erupted in Eli. This mission was supposed to be simple, yet it had
quickly evolved into a dire and complex situation. I feel so dishonest… We assured them that
everything would be fine. So much for that theory.
“I am sorry that we’ve arrived at these circumstances,” Eli lamented. “Don’t be too
discouraged, though. All we have to do is get back in touch with the Judge; she’ll know what to
do. Then, you’ll be able to fulfill your destiny. Just be patient.”
Eli wished he could believe his words as much as Sarah was probably believing them, but
he simply could not bear to speak grimly to her at this time.
“By the way,” Eli continued. “We still have two other strong Sentinels on our team
whom you haven’t met yet. They could be joining up with us soon – they just have to defeat a
single Outlaw, if they haven’t done so already.”
 56
I’m not sure if that’s true either.
In fact, Eli was deeply concerned for the safety of Victor and Ana. Their opponent
seemed skilled and powerful, and Eli did not know if even their combined efforts would be
sufficient.
“So where are we trying to go?” Sarah inquired.
“Well,” Eli explained. “I guess we’re headed for the Chamber of the Judge. She is the
one who organized this mission, so she’ll know what to do next.”
“The Chamber of the Judge?” echoed Sarah. “How do we get there?”
“That’s our problem,” Eli responded. “We need to contact the Judge in order to access
her dwelling, but for some reason unbeknownst to us, we have been unable to do so. After we
figure out what the problem is and notify her, she’ll be able to open up a soul-gate, which is a
sort of portal that will transport us to where we need to go.”
A faint noise sounded from above. Eli looked up and heard the noise several more times.
Something was repeatedly striking the roof, which Eli soon identified as rain.
“That’s weird,” he observed skeptically. “I wouldn’t have guessed this area would be
receiving rain tonight. This could help us… It may quench the fire that the Outlaws use.”
“Maybe you should go outside and let the rain wash over your burn,” suggested Sarah.
“Water helps me feel better when I get burned.”
The pain from his burn was so potent that Eli almost felt tempted to accept her proposal;
however, he decided not to.
“It’s not worth risking our cover. We should really have as few of us outside as
necessary – I probably wouldn’t be able to defend myself if I encountered an Outlaw anyway.”
Eli could hardly believe his own words. What’s wrong with me? I am perhaps one of the
most impressive Sentinels in existence. I managed to escape the Maw in just three years! Why
am I suddenly so terrified of these Outlaws?
The rain intensified, striking the roof with more force and frequency.
“I hope they can get back soon,” Sarah moaned drowsily.
“Why don’t you rest for a bit?” Eli prompted. “You should take advantage of the time
we have here. I’ll wake you when they arrive.”
A light thud sounded from across the room, followed by the sound of fabric sliding across
stone: Sarah had curled herself into a fetal position and drifted into sleep. That didn’t take long.
 57
It’s easy to forget how young she is. Having been reminded of the child’s need for rest, Eli
became aware of an additional issue. What are we going to do for food? She’ll need to eat, but
there’s nothing out here.
As their time in the cabin drew on agonizingly, Eli began to desperately wish that Jack
and the others would return so they could contrive a plan together; the uncertainty surrounding
their current course of action had begun to make him anxious. The pain from his burn had not
subsided either. While the sound of Sarah’s shallow breathing and the patter of rain on the roof
soothed his nerves slightly, he was not sure how much longer he would be able to maintain his
composure. Shouldn’t the Judge have contacted us by now? Dawn will be upon us soon…
Perhaps it is already here.
Suddenly, something large landed upon the roof, causing Eli to leap to his feet in
surprise. Sarah was startled awake as well and sat up in anticipation.
“Jack?” she called out.
“Hush!” Eli insisted, though he knew whatever had landed would have already heard her
anyway. Their place of hiding was safe no longer. The covering over the roof was slowly drawn
back, allowing the faintest shades of light to trickle in from the dawn above. Eli tensed himself,
ready to fight till the bitter end. My cowardice perishes here. A figure dropped down onto the
floor, and Eli breathed a sigh of relief as he recognized it to be Rachel.
Before Eli could ask any questions, Rachel looked to the gap in the roof and beckoned
with her hand. “Come in! It's safe!”
With that, two more figures descended into the building. They were unrecognizable to
Eli, but they certainly did not appear to be Outlaws. Both were male. One was tall and thin with
blonde hair, although it looked black with the filth that coated it. The other was shorter and bald,
had black stubble on his face, and bore glasses. They were covered in soot and dirt; it seemed as
if they had just concluded a day of work in a coal mine.
The taller one collapsed to the floor in exhaustion, while the other began to speak.
“Thank you, Rachel. This should be a perfect place for us to regroup.”
In the light that had entered the building, Sarah was now completely visible from across
the room. She was on her feet, staring warily at the two newcomers.
“This must be the child,” continued the visitor, returning Sarah’s gaze. He then fixed his
eyes on Eli. “And this is one of the other Sentinels. Where’s the rest of your team?”
 58
“They were fighting off Outlaws that had attacked us unexpectedly,” Rachel replied
grimly. “Eli and I managed to escape with Sarah, but the others haven’t returned yet. I’m
starting to grow concerned about them.”
“Well, I doubt they’re still fighting now,” the newcomer reasoned. “At this point, they’re
probably either dead or searching for you.”
“You’re right,” Rachel admitted. “We should go search for them. I’ll go with one of
you; the other should stay here with Eli.”
“No,” Eli objected. “I’ll go search. Someone else will stay here.” Time to prove to
myself that I’m not a coward – injury or no.
The newcomers looked upon Eli with uncertainty. “You look like you’re hurt,” observed
the blonde-haired one.
“Doesn’t matter,” Eli argued. “I’ve suffered worse. Besides, they’re my teammates; it’s
my responsibility to help ensure their safety.” Why am I even conversing with these two? I don’t
even know who they are.
“Your courage is commendable,” admitted the bald visitor, whom Eli had determined to
be an obvious Sentinel. “but we are confronted with a troubling task. We don’t know exactly
where the Outlaws could be lurking, and we’ve lost the Judge.”
Eli gulped. “What do you mean when you say ‘lost the Judge’?”
Both of the unfamiliar Sentinels stared at Eli in surprise.
“You mean you didn’t know?” gasped the shorter one. “The Judge is deceased; she is no
longer with us.”
 59
Chapter 6
Dread and panic seized Eli as time itself seemed to pause about him; he only heard the
songs of the birds outside the building. What? This cannot be! How will we get back?
“How did you ever find out about something like that?” Rachel demanded.
“The Outlaw that confronted our group told us that one of his cohorts had infiltrated the
Judge’s chamber and assassinated her,” explained the short Sentinel. “Unfortunately, I’d have to
say he wasn’t’ lying. It would explain why we weren’t able to contact the Judge when we
needed to.”
“Wait…” Eli interrupted. “You were attacked by an Outlaw also? Don’t tell me the rest
of your team was…”
The blonde-haired Sentinel stared at the floor, and his companion began to speak shakily.
“They’re most likely gone. No one in our group is well-versed in combat, so there was
nothing we could have done to defend ourselves. Our best bet was to simply flee, but we weren’t
all able to escape.”
“I’m so sorry,” Rachel sympathized. “We also had no choice but to flee. We’re still
worried for the rest of our team – hopefully, they’ll be alright.”
A voice suddenly interrupted from above. “Hopefully? Hope no longer.” Jack then
descended into the room, followed by Victor and Ana.
“Jack!” cried Sarah in glee, rushing over to meet the old Sentinel.
“Glad to see you’re still safe,” replied Jack, bending down to embrace the child.
“What happened?” Rachel demanded. “How did you manage the Outlaws?”
Ana grunted in disdain. “Victor and I engaged in an extensive battle with the one that
invaded our camp,” she began. “He was a formidable opponent, but Jack eventually came to our
aid. Then, the three of us were able to drive him off easily.”
“In that case,” laughed Jack. “It seems that I was the fortunate one: The Outlaw that
impeded our travel was foolhardy and inexperienced. Deterring him was child’s play.”
“You mean you didn’t destroy him?” piped the blonde-haired Sentinel in dismay, who
had remained almost completely silent until now. “Why would you waste that opportunity? You
implied that he was an easy opponent.”
 60
“Calm down, friend,” urged Jack. “Where’s the fun in destroying him? He wasn’t even
worthy to fall at my hands, not to mention I can handle him easily if he returns.” He narrowed
his eyes, surveying the two unfamiliar Sentinels. “Who are you guys anyway?”
“They’re the only two remaining members of another team,” Rachel answered. “Their
group was victimized by an Outlaw and was forced to disperse. I found them hiding at the edge
of the forest.”
The shorter Sentinel bowed his head in greeting. “It is nice to meet you all,” he stated
kindly. “My name is Jean, and my companion is Gerald.”
“They call me Jack,” replied the old Sentinel. “My friends here are Victor and Ana.
Now that we’re all acquainted, I believe it’s time to vacate this cramped building. We found it
pretty easily, so it probably won’t be long until the Outlaws seek it out, especially with all of us
here together.”
Eli noticed that Jack was right: The building had become rather cramped. Everyone had
conglomerated into a mass of bodies with very little available space.
“I guess I’ll try to contact the Judge again,” Ana announced. “This mission has taken its
toll on all of us. Time to end it.”
“That won’t be possible,” Jean pointed out. “The Judge is deceased; she was murdered
by Outlaws.”
Ana’s eyes widened.
“What are you babbling about?” she hissed. “There’s no way any Outlaw could have
accessed the Chamber of the Judge.”
“I’d have to side with Ana here,” added Jack, nodding in agreement. “Such an
occurrence is completely and utterly unheard of.”
“Well, have you any other explanation?” Jean challenged. “That’s what an Outlaw told
us, and it would seem his claim is true. Have you managed to contact the Judge yet?”
“I fear that he may be right,” Victor interjected. “These are unprecedented times - it has
been decades since anyone has even seen an Outlaw. Perhaps they have developed new abilities
that would allow them to access secluded locations. I’d say they are undoubtedly planning
something…”
All shifted uncomfortably within the room.
 61
“Don’t forget what that one Outlaw told us,” Ana reminded her comrades. “He said he
wanted Sarah. I’ll bet they killed the Judge so that we’d never be able to return with her.
Instead, we are stranded here - completely vulnerable. I just don’t know what they need Sarah
for.”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Jack prompted. “They’re Outlaws; they want to see the Living World
burn. If they know Sarah will save it, then she is a prime target for them.”
Eli scratched his chin, determining what he should make of all this. But how do they
even know about Sarah at all?
“This is all very strange,” Eli piped in. “How does anyone manage to escape Gehenna
anyway?”
“That has never been quite clear,” answered Jack. “It appears that only the most
malicious and spiteful souls are able to escape, but no one is certain as to how it is done. What’s
most unusual is that they have suddenly appeared now. In fact, Ana and I are probably the only
ones who have been Sentinels long enough to have ever met one prior to last night – that’s how
long we haven’t been aware of their activity.”
He turned to Victor. “That reminds me: We used to provide weapons to all our Sentinels
as a means of defense from Outlaws. However, so much time had passed since we had seen one
that we eventually stopped supplying them. How come you had weapons? We ceased providing
them shortly after I became a Sentinel.”
Victor removed his overcoat and lay it upon the floor, revealing its interior. Rows of
steel weapons lined the insides of it, gleaming in the light trickling in from the roof. His
companions gaped, with the exception of Ana, who did not appear surprised.
“When I first became a Sentinel,” explained Victor. “I was mentored by a far more
experienced Sentinel who had endured countless battles against Outlaws. After defeating one, he
would claim its weapon as a prize; as such, he quickly accrued a large array of deadly tools.
Before he passed on to Paradise, he relinquished all of them to me, hence the collection you see
before you.”
“Very good,” Jack observed. “Young folks, I recommend that each of you claim one of
these weapons. You’ll need some means to defend yourselves as we move on.”
“Move on?” Rachel said in confusion. “Where are we going? We’re sitting ducks
without the Judge.”
 62
“Not quite,” Jack replied.
He reached into his pocket and retrieved a silver, crescent-shaped piece of metal from it.
The other Sentinels gazed on in awe and curiosity as the green gems and golden veins on the
crescent glimmered majestically.
“This is what is known as a soul-key,” Jack explained. “Or rather, it is half of one. If a
complimentary half is added to the object you see before you, a soul-key will begin to form,
which can then be used to open a soul-gate without the Judge.”
The other Sentinels began to rejoice, and even Sarah, who had experienced difficulty
comprehending the discourse thus far, raised her eyebrows with curiosity.
“Excellent!” exclaimed Jean. “I presume you have the complimentary piece?”
“Unfortunately, I don’t,” Jack replied in disappointment. “I was hoping that someone
else here had one.”
An air of dread descended upon the chamber.
“Are you serious?” Ana scolded. “You just assumed that someone else had the second
piece? Of course none of us have it! What good is it if it’s not complete?”
“No need for harsh words,” Jack defended. “It’s certainly possible that someone here
could have had one. Besides, I have an alternate plan to claim the other piece. There is no
guarantee that it will succeed, but there is still a decent chance that it will.”
“Spit it out then,” Ana snapped impatiently.
“Yes,” added Jean. “Time is of the essence.”
“Alright,” Jack babbled hurriedly. “My plan is to locate another team of Sentinels in the
hopes that one of their members possesses a piece. Come to think of it, I recall seeing a team
that proceeded through the soul-gate before us, and I recognized one of its members to be a
Sentinel who is almost as old as myself. He may very well have the piece we’re looking for;
much like weapons, soul-keys used to be distributed to serving Sentinels in case of emergency
situations, but they aren’t anymore. In other words, more experienced Sentinels will be more
likely to have them.”
“Your plan isn’t as sound as I would like,” Ana objected. “You haven’t pointed out how
we are to locate this individual.”
“Oh Ana,” scoffed Jack. “Must you always be so obtuse? We can formulate a rough
estimation of his whereabouts by identifying the division name of our friends’ group.”
 63
He gestured toward Jean and Gerald. “Tell me, what title was assigned to your team?”
Gerald paused thoughtfully, staring up at the roof. “Let’s see… I believe we were
division C5.”
“Not unexpected,” Jack replied optimistically. “And you were assigned an area just
south of here, correct?”
“Correct,” Jean responded.
“I see…” Jack mused. “Your division has the same section letter as ours, it is numbered
higher, and you were assigned an area due south. If memory serves, the division of the Sentinel
I’m hoping to find was C2. As long as the divisions have been geographically arranged in the
way that I believe they have, we should find our target north of here, but we may need to travel
for some time.”
“We may not have to travel as far as you believe,” Victor pointed out. “There is a
settlement located northeast of the area we explored, and it was rather large. That must have
been the location assigned to C3; given the size of the area, that team was probably not assigned
any other settlements, which means that whichever city is just north of that one must be where
we can find C2.”
“Assuming they’ve survived,” Ana reminded everyone. “And what of the child?”
A grumbling sound emanated from Sarah’s stomach, and Eli’s hope began to dwindle.
She’s right. If we leave Sarah here with someone, she’ll be mostly helpless if the Outlaws
discover this location and attack it. On the other hand, it would be very dangerous if we travel
with her in the open, not to mention the fact that we still need to feed her.
“Well, I don’t think we can leave her here,” Jack reasoned. “It’s far too close to where
we were attacked. If the Outlaws have as much brains as a rock, they’ll be able to pinpoint this
place soon.”
Victor stooped and began rummaging about in a pocket of his overcoat.
“Not necessarily,” he stated confidently. “I have this.” He retracted his hand from the
pocket, clutching a small cannister.
“Goodness…” muttered Jack. “Never thought I’d see one of those again.”
“What is it?” Eli asked.
“It’s exactly what we need,” Victor answered. “I can’t say I know what it’s called, but
my former master explained its function when he bestowed it unto me.”
 64
“It is referred to as instant shroud,” Jack explained. “It’s essentially a can of mysterious
dust that renders whatever it is sprinkled upon invisible. That means we can use it to conceal
this building.”
“You are correct,” Victor responded. “However, it has notable limitations, namely, the
duration of its effects: If applied to this building, it will only conceal it for about 48 to 72 hours.”
“In other words,” Ana inferred. “We can leave Sarah here if we shield this cabin from
the Outlaws’ sight. This shielding will only be necessary until we are able to locate another team
of Sentinels and construct a soul-key. The only shortcoming of this plan is that the shroud will
soon lose its potency if we do not act quickly enough after applying it. In any case, 48 hours
should be plenty of time.”
Eli listened on doubtfully, while the continuous pain from his burn granted him no peace.
We’ll be assaulted on our journey, though. And how many Outlaws will strike then? We may
not be able to defend ourselves.
Jack crouched down before Victor’s outstretched coat, studying it carefully. “I wouldn’t
say we’ll have plenty of time,” he argued. “Even so, I think that’s the plan we’re stuck with.
Can anyone propose an alternate solution?”
The room remained silent.
“I suppose that we now have an objective, then,” Jean observed. “I have one question:
Do we leave someone with the child?”
Sarah had curled herself into a ball near the center of the floor and had fallen asleep
again.
“Definitely,” Jack decided, inspecting a long knife he had found in Victor’s coat. “Even
with the dust, leaving Sarah by herself would be too great a risk. Who will remain here,
though?”
The Sentinels all exchanged uncertain glances.
“Eli?” Jack prompted. “Would you be willing? I’m not sure you’re fit to travel with that
burn.”
Eli opened his mouth to object but held his tongue upon the realization that Jack had
somehow discovered his burn. He had not mentioned the injury in Jack’s presence yet, and it
was unlikely that he could have seen it from his position in the room.
“How’d you know about that?” Eli asked, puzzled.
 65
“Your body language betrays you,” Jack answered. “Also, I saw the Outlaw strike you –
those fiends tend to leave bothersome injuries that cause searing pain. At any rate, will you stay
behind?”
The room remained silent, save Sarah’s squirming about on the stone floor. How dare he
single me out… I won’t be staying here.
“The burn is nothing,” Eli insisted. “I intend to travel with everyone else who sets out.”
“So you do…” Jack murmured in surprise. “In that case, who else would be willing to
stay here?”
Eli gazed upon Jean and Gerald, neither of whom volunteered immediately. Why
wouldn’t one of those two be willing to stay here? They don’t look particularly impressive.
Then again, Jack did not appear to be powerful, but he had easily defeated the Outlaw that had
brought Eli to the ground in a single blow.
Eventually, Jean nodded. “I’ll stay behind just in case trouble arises. Will I be alone, or
should we leave one other behind?”
“We’ll probably need to let Ana stay here too,” Rachel pointed out. “She is the only one
we can communicate with at this time.”
“Yes, good idea,” said Jack. “Alright. We know what we’re trying to do, we know
where we’re going, and we know who’s going. It’s definitely time to set out.”
He rose from his position by Victor’s coat with an array of weapons in his arms.
Approaching Gerald first, he handed him the large blade he had been inspecting earlier, which
was about a foot long. He then proceeded to Rachel, bestowing unto her a chain whip with a
steel sphere the end. Finally, turning to Eli, he offered him a single shuriken with a strap passing
through the opening in the center; the weapon was relatively large – about thirty inches separated
the tip of one blade from the tip of the blade on its opposite side. Four blades protruded from it
in total, each blade perpendicular to the adjacent one.
“Aren’t these meant to be thrown?” Eli asked.
“Why, yes,” answered Jack.
“It won’t be particularly useful then,” Eli noted. “I’ll have to retrieve it after each throw.
In other words, I’ll be unarmed and vulnerable for prolonged periods of time in combat.”
Jack chuckled.
 66
“That’s no ordinary shuriken,” Victor explained. “It possesses unusual properties. For
instance, it will rebound after striking an object and return to its owners grasp without fail – a
very powerful weapon.”
“That’s right,” Jack added. “I’ve witnessed them in use back in my day. They are quite
effective.”
As Victor retrieved his coat from the floor and Jack knelt down by Sarah for his last
farewell, Ana announced that it was time to depart.
“No more lollygagging,” she grunted. “It’s time for you to get going. Be sure to notify
me if anything significant occurs.”
“Will do,” Jack replied, pushing the covering on the roof aside. “Time to depart,
everyone. Be ready to fight at all times – the Outlaws do not relent.”
With that, Jack vacated the building; he was quickly followed by Victor.
Eli proceeded to the hole tentatively, wincing at the pain from his burn. Going to have to
suck it up. He climbed out onto the rooftop and peered up through the overhanging branches of
the surrounding trees. The portion of the sky he was able to see was partly covered by cloud, but
he could catch a glimpse of sunlight as well.
“The sun is high up already…” Eli muttered, as Rachel and Gerald exited the building
beside him.
“Let’s get a move on!” shouted Jack from above the trees. “Victor will quickly apply the
powder to the cabin, and then we’ll be leaving.”
Eli slung the shuriken over his shoulder and fastened the buckle at the end of the strap in
front of his body. With that, he ascended to the treetops with Rachel and Gerald. As he emerged
from the branches, Eli feared that an Outlaw would suddenly appear and assault them again.
Upon joining Jack in the sky, however, he realized that no one else was in sight.
“Three cities north of Johnson…” Jack muttered. “We’ll have some distance to travel
until we arrive at our destination, and we’ll still have a good deal of searching to do when we
reach it. Distractions could prove fatal for our mission.”
Faint clouds of a purple substance billowed up from the trees, indicating that Victor had
applied the shroud to the building.
“We’d best be off,” Jack announced. “Keep your weapons at the ready – we could
encounter issues at any moment.”
 67
With no further wording, Jack soared off to the north, with the rest following closely
behind.
 68
Chapter 7
The perfect opportunity for redemption… Should we come across an Outlaw, I’ll
confront it and defeat it. I won’t need any help from Jack, either.
The five Sentinels glided back across Johnson, buffeted by the clamor of motor vehicles
and angry shouts from below. They quickly arrived at the street that Sarah lived on, and Eli
experienced a twinge of sorrow as he gazed upon her house. I hope her parents are doing all
right… We’ve undoubtedly subjected them to terrible anxiety.
Gerald had modulated his pace so that he could draw to Eli’s side.
“So…” he began awkwardly. “Are you new?”
“You mean to being a Sentinel?” Eli responded. “Yes. I believe I’m the most recent
addition out of all of us. What about you?”
Gerald gazed ahead to where Jack was leading the party, soaring confidently. Rachel
followed Jack closely, and Victor brought up the group’s rear with a blank expression.
“Let’s see,” Gerald muttered thoughtfully. “I believe it’s been about fifteen years since I
escaped the Maw.”
“You’ve that much experience?” Eli gasped. “I would have guessed you were a novice,
given your apparent age. I supposes Sentinels don’t age, though…”
“You are correct,” answered Gerald. “In fact, Jean has been a Sentinel for about twice as
long as I have – nearly thirty years. Of course, you would never be able to determine that by
evaluating his appearance.”
“Make haste,” Victor interjected, appearing between them. “Jack has quickened the pace,
it seems.” Victor was correct: Jack and Rachel had accelerated with a renewed sense of urgency.
“There tends to be a good deal of variance in the duration of the shroud I applied to the
building,” Victor explained. “We aren’t certain as to how long it will last; as such, we cannot
afford to waste much time.”
The three gained speed until they trailed Jack and Rachel by only a couple meters.
“Jack said he knew what our target looks like, right?” Eli asked, pretending not to exhibit
the pain his burn was still causing him.
“Apparently, yes,” Victor replied. “Of course, we do not know if he’s still alive. This
entire mission is quite a gamble.”
 69
“What is the end goal of all this anyway?” Gerald pondered. “I know we need the Saint
to stop some form of virus, but why so much urgency? I hear that the virus will not propagate
throughout all the world for some time.”
“It’s always best to nip the issue in the bud while it’s possible,” Victor pointed out.
“especially when we are confronted with something as dire as our current situation. We are wise
to be acting now.”
Victor propelled himself forward toward Jack and began conversing with him.
Meanwhile, as the northern outskirts of Johnson appeared below, Gerald resumed discourse with
Eli.
“Seeing how you’re such a recent addition to the Sentinels,” he began. “You probably
haven’t been able to experience our typical routines. As you’ve probably guessed, we don’t
usually trouble ourselves with such grim affairs.”
“In that case, what were your typical routines?” Eli inquired. “What were you usually
tasked with?”
“Our goal is to help prevent catastrophes for the humans,” Gerald explained. “For
instance, if we find a potential fire hazard in a home, such as a burning candle left unattended,
we will rectify the situation to avoid destroyed housing or lost lives. We also might save a child
from drowning, or we could assist an elderly person who has fallen from his feet and has no way
to call for help. We have even aided the homeless and starving. While there are limits
concerning how much we can engage with humans, we are usually allowed to act when death is
imminent, especially if it is to occur on a large scale.”
The barren road that extended north of Johnson appeared below amidst lifeless plains.
“Yes,” Eli acknowledged distantly. “Our actions are monitored… by Angels. Who are
the Angels anyway? Are they former Sentinels who have entered Paradise?”
“That’s a good question,” Gerald responded. “I’m quite certain that they aren’t Sentinels;
they seem to be completely different from us. However, I haven’t the slightest clue regarding
their origins.”
“How bizarre…” Eli mused. I wonder what Paradise is actually like.
The dust-ridden road below was a faint blur as Eli and the other Sentinels pressed on.
“How far until we reach the area your team explored?” Jack asked Victor.
 70
“If we continue at this pace, we should arrive soon,” the burly Sentinel responded.
“Then, we’ll head northeast to the next establishment; that journey won’t be terribly long either.”
“It will still be too long, though,” Rachel said nervously. “I fear that it will offer the
Outlaws more than enough of an opportunity to ambush us.”
“Set your fears aside, child,” Jack told her gruffly. “The Outlaws will inevitably ambush
us – they are clearly tracking us Sentinels carefully. It is simply a matter of whether we will
overcome them when they do strike; your worrying about their appearing is futile.”
Doubt weighed heavily upon Eli after hearing Jack’s words. With the burn on his back
still causing him relentless pain, Eli began to lose faith in his ability to help the group if – when-
an Outlaw appeared. Overcome with paranoia, Eli swiveled his head back and forth, scanning
the area for trouble. He saw nothing but the road, dirt, and a few trees in the East. There’s still
nothing in sight. What are they up to?
Eli began to fear that the Outlaws had descended upon Sarah and the other Sentinels
sheltering in the cabin. Perhaps the powder Victor applied had worn off earlier than expected, or
maybe the Outlaws had found a way to locate them anyway. Could it be that they had somehow
overheard their discussion in the cabin, and that they now lie in wait for them somewhere ahead?
Worse, they could have tracked down the Sentinel division to the North and eliminated them,
therein eliminating any chances of salvaging the other half of the soul-key.
“Hey!” Rachel cried suddenly. “Is that the city up ahead?”
Eli gazed into the distance and noticed a blotch on the horizon. As the group continued
to soar through the sky, the blotch morphed into the outline of a city. The settlement did not
span a large area, though its buildings appeared to be quite large.
“That’s the town you two explored?” Eli asked, slightly puzzled.
“Yes!” Rachel responded enthusiastically.
Victor seemed confused.
“Yes, that is certainly it,” he admitted. “but we’ve arrived so soon – I don’t even recall
passing the area where we had established our camp earlier. We should have noticed it,
especially since it had been scorched after our scuffle with the Outlaw.”
“You’re right,” Jack added. “Remain wary, friends.”
The five Sentinels pressed on, while the road below widened and transitioned into one of
asphalt. As the city loomed ever closer, Eli could not help but notice the change in sunlight.
 71
Though he expected that the sky would be growing darker at this point in the day, it instead
seemed to have grown brighter. The land surrounding the road changed too; no longer was it of
barren dirt, but it now gave way to lush grass and even an occasional flower. The trees to the
East were now far closer to the road as well. What’s going on?
“This all seems very familiar somehow…” Jack murmured. “Yet I can’t quite put my
finger on it.”
An aromatic scent filled the air – a stark contrast to the stench at the outskirts of Johnson.
Meanwhile, the city came into clear view. It appeared to be well-sanitized – at least in
comparison to Johnson. Its buildings were much larger as well; apartment complexes and
buildings of commerce rose into the sky.
“How did you manage to search this entire area?” Jack inquired. “It appears to be quite
densely populated. Also, what is a city like this doing out here?”
The five halted in awe immediately before the edge of the city.
“It’s different,” Victor declared. “This is not the same area I explored with Ana and
Rachel.”
“But it is still so similar somehow,” Rachel mused. “I wish I could put it into words…”
“All meaningless drivel,” Jack pointed out. “We don’t care about this area; the location
to the Northeast is our next target. We should be able to see it from here, correct?”
“Yes,” Victor replied, as Gerald ascended to try to spot the city they were seeking. He
held his hand above his eyes to shield them from the sunlight, peering to the Northeast.
“You see it?” Eli prompted.
“No,” he replied in befuddlement. “I don’t see anything. There’s a strange mist blocking
my vision.”
“A mist?” responded Victor. The rugged Sentinel joined Gerald and followed his gaze,
squinting. “He is correct,” Victor announced. “I can see nothing but a glimmering mist.”
Jack stared ahead at the city before them with a pensive expression.
“Listen…” he whispered. “There’s no one here. I can’t hear a sound.”
Eli observed the city’s interior and noticed that not only could he hear nothing, but he
saw no signs of movement either, not even within the buildings.
“We’re at the wrong city,” Gerald concluded.
 72
“Not quite,” Jack answered. “No area like this could ever be a ghost town – it’s too well
maintained. In other words, something strange and inexplicable has occurred. Either we have all
gone crazy, or…”
“Or what?” Rachel asked.
“Let’s get a closer look at this place,” Jack said curtly. “But stay together. I don’t know
what we should expect.”
With that, he glided toward the nearest complex and perched atop it, while the others
followed him tentatively. Gazing upon the city below, Eli was stunned. A bubbling fountain at
the center tossed shimmering water droplets into the air; gardens filled with rows of colorful
flowers surrounded it, with stone paths weaving amongst them. In the streets, not a speck of
trash or grime could be seen, and small trees lined the sidewalks.
“It’s different,” Victor declared. “Similar, but also markedly different. I’m going to
explore more closely.” He descended down to the streets, with Rachel following, clutching her
chained weapon nervously.
Eli looked behind toward the South; to his surprise, a crimson mist had blocked his
vision of anything beyond the city they were now in.
“Uhm… G-guys?” he stammered. Hearing no response, Eli whipped his head back
toward where his friends just were. They had all left the top of the building. Where’d they go?
Eli peered down towards the street that Victor and Rachel had headed for, but he saw no one. He
scanned the air above the buildings, but the mist had drawn in closer around him, impeding his
vision further. Panic began to grip Eli. Jack said we were supposed to stay together.
He returned his gaze toward the streets and the fountain, where the mist had not yet
gathered. Wishing to call out for his friends, he felt a strange fear that prevented him from doing
so. A chill had come upon his entire body, and he worried that something would strike him if he
dared to call out. This isn’t good.
Suddenly, a small figure darted along the periphery of Eli’s vision. He adjusted his gaze
toward the movement, and he believed he saw a child scurry behind some housing quarters at the
eastern portion the city. Intrigued, Eli set his fear aside and descended toward the area,
remaining attentive for any sign of his teammates. Still, he saw and heard nothing. Did I lose
consciousness somehow? This feels like a dream… Even as Eli pondered these things, he felt an
uncontrollable urge to follow the child.
 73
He quickly came upon the building the child had run behind, observing it carefully. It
was not as tall as the other ones in the city, and it was made of stone rather than steel. Eli
thought that it seemed vaguely familiar, though he could not remember where he had seen it
before. How peculiar. Although he was eager to recall where he had seen the building, he was
more eager to pursue the child, so he rounded the front of the complex and sprinted toward the
back.
The sound of voices began drifting to Eli as he came upon the rear portion of the
building, which projected faint patches of light onto the ground through its many windows. No
one was outside. He must’ve headed inside. Eli studied the rooms within carefully, searching
for movement. He noticed a short figure hurrying about in a room directly above him, near the
roof of the building. Ascending toward the chamber’s window, another wave of familiarity
crashed down upon Eli. I’ve been here… but when? And why am I seeing it now? I’ve never
been to this city.
Gloom rapidly crept about Eli as the sunlight in the sky faded without warning. Night
and darkness had fallen. Eli gulped as he raised his eyes just above the windowsill, peering
within. There was a dresser placed directly by the window, and it blocked Eli’s view slightly.
However, he could still make out a family within.
A man was sitting on a sofa at the other end of the room, reading a newspaper. Two
other figures seemed to be doing something in the corner to Eli’s left, but he could not quite
make them out. The child, whom Eli was most interested in, could be seen sitting at a table to
the right, eating his supper. Now that he could see it more closely, Eli could confirm that he was
a male. He had dark hair and was extremely slender; Eli doubted the child could be older than
five years of age. Like the building, the child seemed familiar. I should know who he is…
somehow.
The man on the couch set aside the newspaper he was previously holding in front of his
face, revealing himself. Although it had been years since Eli had last seen him, Eli quickly
recognized the man as his father.
Eli thrust himself back from the window, racked with shock. My father has been dead
for years – what am I seeing?
Eli then realized that the boy at the table was himself at a younger age: This was his old
home.
 74
“So one of the other two people in the room must be my mother,” Eli thought aloud.
“Then who is the last one?”
Eli returned to the window in an attempt to identify the people in the corner, but he still
could not make them out. The window was too small, and a picture standing on top of the
dresser was in his way. Further, he felt as though he would not be able pass through the wall, as
his body was gripped with a cold rigidity. Maybe the picture will give me a clue. Whom is it a
picture of?
The picture was angled in such a way that Eli could see it if he stared at it from the edge
of the window. Squinting with his cheek pressed to the wall of the building, he saw that the
picture was of a young male. It was in black and white – Eli doubted that whoever it was would
be with them at this time. Still, the person in the picture, like everything else, seemed familiar.
Upon further consideration, Eli realized that this was only because the man reminded him of
Jack. He had the same thin build, mischievous grin, and piercing blue eyes. I bet this is what
Jack looked like when he was younger.
Otherwise, Eli could not recall anything about the man in the picture, and he still could
not identify the people in the corner. This is quite frustrating, and I’m beginning to feel uneasy.
It’s time for this memory to dissipate. He closed his eyes and shook his head vigorously, hoping
to awaken from his strange dream. Upon opening his eyes, he found that his surroundings had
not changed. Did I die somehow? Eli quickly dismissed the thought, as he would have been sent
directly to the Void if he had died.
Beginning to experience panic, Eli looked about frantically for the rest of his team, but
his attention was diverted back to the room when the boy left the table and approached the
window. He paced slowly toward Eli, gazing directly into his eyes.
“He sees me…” Eli observed aloud. “Could this really be a hallucination?”
Eli’s former self soon reached the window and grasped the lift with his tiny hands; he
raised the window, never averting his gaze from Eli. The others in the room either had not
noticed what the boy was doing, or they did not care, as they remained indifferent. With
nothing separating the space between Eli and his old self, the boy slowly extended an open hand
towards Eli. Taken aback, Eli was not certain how to respond. Will I be able to feel him?
He tentatively brought his own hand forth to meet the child’s. The air about him seemed
to quickly grow warmer, yet he also felt a peculiar chill spread throughout his entire body. A
 75
playful smile crept across the child’s face, and Eli withdrew his hand. Something is wrong
here… Nothing stirred about them in the darkness; the rest of the family in the room had not
moved.
“What are you afraid of?” the child murmured in a soft voice. “Give me your hand.”
Despite his concerns, Eli was mesmerized by his former self. Still gripped by chills, he
felt his hand slowly moving back toward his young counterpart’s. What am I afraid of? It’s just
a kid. Eli’s hand was soon within just a few inches of the child; the child’s grin grew wider.
“Eli!” shouted a frantic voice from above him. “Don’t touch it!”
An amber blaze penetrated the surrounding shadows as a body was driven into Eli’s side;
the young Sentinel was thrust into a hard surface, and he felt his breath become ripped away
from his body in a single gasp. The world around him became distorted, shifting into a myriad
of shapes and colors. He had lost all sense of where he was and what had happened, rendering
him in a state of utter confusion. As the turmoil about him began to settle, he noticed flames
leaping from the ground and from buildings. His back was upon the ground, and he had Jack on
top of him.
“Get your bearings, son!” Jack hissed. “We’re under attack. You were almost a goner.”
The old Sentinel quickly sprang to his feet, as Eli directed his attention to the source of
the malicious laughter that was now pulsating at the center of the city. Standing up amidst
sparks and embers, he saw a trio of Outlaws posing beside the crumbled remains of the fountain.
“It was all an illusion,” Jack explained. “We have not actually reached the city yet – this is
nothing more than a mirage created by the Outlaws, namely, that new one…”
Eli stared at the three Outlaws chuckling ahead. He recognized two of them as the pair
that had attacked them the night before, but there was one he had not seen yet.
This one was a female with golden hair, which was riddled with embers; she wore full
armor, except upon her head. Eli found her particularly daunting, as he felt her narrow, serpent-
like eyes of sheer blackness penetrate him. Creases and craters were visible on her face, which
was coated in white ash and lit with coals embedded in her skin.
“Rats, so close,” she cackled. “I almost had you.”
Eli noticed that her left hand was engulfed in a sickly-green flame.
“You were about to take her hand…” Jack muttered. “Fortunately, I stopped you before
you could. Touch that flame, and you die.”
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“I thought she was a former version of myself – a mere child,” Eli explained. “So that
was all an illusion? How does she know about my memories?”
Rachel, Victor, and Gerald all descended beside Jack and Eli. They were covered in
soot, with their weapons drawn; Gerald was clutching his right arm.
“I’ve encountered Outlaws that can produce illusions,” Jack responded. “but this one’s
are especially vivid – she’s still generating a damaged version of the city all around us. There
are powers at work here that even I cannot explain.”
“How dull!” yelled one of the Outlaws from across the ravaged city: It was the one that
had burned Eli. “Are you going to stand there chatting all day? Or are we going to finish things
here? You’ve nowhere to go – no one escapes Mary’s hallucinations.”
“Well,” began the one that had battled with Ana and Victor. “they can be spared if they
simply divulge the child’s whereabouts. Their refusal to do so makes one wonder if they are
even sane. Their prospects here are hopeless!”
“Jack, what do we do?” Rachel asked, breathing heavily. “I don’t think we can fend
them off for much longer.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Jack replied bluntly. “There’s no way to escape the illusory world
she has created; only an outside source can penetrate it. We used to have precautions to guard
against situations like this back in the day, but obviously, we are unprepared for them in these
times.”
Eli reached for the buckle on the strap that secured his shuriken; with shaking hands, he
unfastened it. No… This is exactly what I wanted. These Outlaws will rue the day they crossed
me.
“They do not seem interested in complying with our wishes,” sneered the female Outlaw,
apparently named Mary. She took a step backwards and planted her rear foot into the ground.
“So, death it is.”
She launched herself forward with unbelievable speed, releasing a banshee-like scream.
Jack quickly met her midway between the two parties; he slashed at her with his scimitar whilst
dodging her flame-cloaked hand.
Everyone else quickly tossed themselves into the fray, but Eli was keen on confronting
the warrior who had burned him. It had propelled itself toward Gerald, a glow of fury emanating
from its visor. You…
 77
Clutching his shuriken, Eli leaped toward the Outlaw just before it could reach a stunned
Gerald; he barreled into the demon, planting his shoulder into its side and driving it along the
ground for several meters. With a metallic growl, the Outlaw wrapped its arms around Eli,
twisted its torso, then quickly twisted it in the other direction, throwing Eli into the air. Eli
managed to find his bearings in mid-air and fell to his feet gracefully.
The Outlaw scrambled to its feet, fuming with rage, while Gerald landed on the ground
behind Eli.
“We’ll fight him together,” Gerald declared, a hint of fear in his voice.
“No,” Eli insisted. “He’s mine. I fight him alone.”
“You can’t be serious!” Gerald objected, but Eli silenced him with a raise of his hand.
Meanwhile, the Outlaw had regained its composure, laughing at the pair of Sentinels.
“Yes, I remember you,” he scoffed, pointing at Eli. “If memory serves, I left you with
quite a burn last night. One hit, and you were down for good! And your blonde friend hasn’t
fared any better – he won’t be using that arm any time soon.”
Eli looked back to evaluate Gerald’s arm. His forearm was bloodied, and he held his
hand to his brachial artery; blood continued to trickle down from that area.
“You lot are so weak,” laughed the Outlaw. “Your friends received quite the beating
while you were wandering about aimlessly in your delusions. Now, I’m finally going to put you
out of your misery.”
“Well, it looks like you are going to be pretty disappointed,” Eli responded. “I’m not
dying today.”
The Outlaw continued laughing.
“Oh, it seems you are still delusional. I’d better hurry along and finish things here.”
A steel blade protruded from each of the two gauntlets he wore.
Eli gripped his shuriken tightly.
“It’s over – you cannot win,” Eli asserted. “You won’t take me by surprise this time.”
With a growl of frustration, the Outlaw charged Eli. Before his foe could travel more
than a couple meters, Eli hurled his shuriken directly at the crevice between his helmet and chest
plate, where the throat should be.
The Outlaw halted immediately and crouched, letting the shuriken sail over his head. It
quickly returned to its feet.
 78
“You didn’t think I would see that coming?” it jeered. “Nice try!”
Eli saw the shuriken soar on through the air, but it soon wheeled and headed back toward
him. The Outlaw resumed its charge; however, it jerked its head backward at the sound of the
now rapidly rotating shuriken flying straight for him. The fiery fiend managed to deflect the
shuriken with its gauntlets just before it reached its face, but the impact of the blow left it
staggering sideways.
Seizing his opportunity, Eli swept the Outlaw’s legs out from under it with his foot.
While the Outlaw was in mid-air, Eli brought his palm down upon its face, driving it into the
ground with tremendous force. The Outlaw released a grunt of pain and surprise, while a crater
was formed in the ground from the impact of the strike.
Eli ascended into the air, as the stunned Outlaw below was left twitching in its crater. He
raised his hand, and the shuriken returned to him without fail. Gerald looked on, shocked.
Perfect. Everything is going as well as it could.
As Eli raised his shuriken, preparing to hurl it again, the Outlaw slowly struggled to its
feet. It’s just like when I was in the Maw – I cannot even feel my burn anymore.
“Finished already?” Eli scoffed. “You were so lively just a few seconds ago.”
Without further hesitation, Eli hurled his shuriken at the Outlaw again, and again the
fiend raised its gauntlets in defense; it managed to deflect the shuriken, though it was sent reeling
backward. The shuriken returned to Eli’s grasp once more, as the Outlaw now seemed barely
able to stand. Eli threw the shuriken a second time, then a third time, then a fourth time. The
Outlaw was continually forced to defend itself with its gauntlets and retreat backwards,
trembling with fatigue and bodily trauma.
As the shuriken returned to his hand yet again, Eli analyzed the surrounding turmoil.
Rachel and Victor were struggling to dodge the malicious swings of the halberd-wielding
Outlaw’s blade, while Jack was engaged with the female Outlaw in what appeared to be an even
battle; Gerald was simply spectating Eli’s battle. My allies could use some assistance. I’d better
finish this promptly.
Eli extended his leg and raised it, then brought his heel down upon the Outlaw’s helmet
with all his might – the Outlaw was violently jolted to the ground. Staring down upon his
enemy’s exposed back, Eli grasped his shuriken with both hands. He stood over the Outlaw’s
motionless body, preparing to deal a finishing blow.
 79
“It’s over,” Eli said quietly, as he drove the blade of his shuriken into a small crevice in
the armor of his foe’s lower back.
As the blade pierced the Outlaw’s armor and sank into the flesh beneath, a hissing sound
emanated from the Outlaw’s helmet; rays of amber light burst from the seams in its armor, and
its body shook vigorously. The hissing sound grew louder – the beams brighter. Eventually, in a
blinding flash of light and heat, the Outlaw’s body disappeared, leaving only a husk of metal
armor. He vanished… I guess he’s gone to the Void. Silence fell all around: the surrounding
turmoil had come to a temporary halt.
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Chapter 8
“You- you defeated him with ease,” Gerald observed with wide eyes.
The other two Outlaws gaped at the remnants of their fallen comrade, which still rattled
about on the ground softly.
“What happened?” growled the bearded one. “How did Asher manage to get himself
killed?”
The female Outlaw, Mary, fixed her deathly stare upon Eli.
“The boy defeated him… somehow. This is certainly unexpected…”
Eli stared down at the now still pile of armor. Well, I guess that’s one down.
Jack chuckled loudly.
“You fools made a big mistake in underestimating Eli,” he crowed. “He’s no slouch –
he’ll be stronger than all of us in time.”
Mary’s eyes were bulging from her head in disbelief, and she even seemed to shudder
slightly. However, she quickly regained her composure. Her mouth soon curved into a wicked
smile, and she began to cackle condescendingly.
“He can have all the time he wants!” she scoffed. “It doesn’t matter. You all are stuck
here, remember? Besides, Asher was relatively weak – Clovis and I will have no trouble
finishing you off.”
Clovis, the other Outlaw, rose into the air, gazing down upon the Sentinels below him.
He hefted his halberd above his head, and its blade began to glow crimson. He’s going to
incinerate the ground, just like he did last night.
“This is your final chance,” he boomed threateningly. “If you do not divulge the child’s
whereabouts, you will die here.”
“Ha!” mocked Jack. “We wouldn’t agree to that earlier, and you think we’ll comply now
that you’re down a man? Talk about an empty threat…”
Clovis did not move upon hearing Jack’s words; he simply frowned at the old Sentinel
with a face of stone-like fortitude.
“Very well, then,” he eventually said. “We’ll find the child ourselves.”
The large Outlaw began to swing his red-hot weapon across his body, and Rachel and
Victor braced themselves in anticipation of the flame strike. No, you won’t manage to complete
the attack.
 81
Thinking quickly, Eli hurled his shuriken toward the blade of the halberd. His aim could
not have been more accurate – the shuriken collided with the blade mid-swing, and the halberd
was jarred out of its master’s grasp. It spun through the air wildly, with Clovis staring after it
with a surprised expression.
While he was distracted, Eli leaped high into the air to strike Clovis. The now battle-
crazed Sentinel caught his rebounding shuriken and attempted to slash the Outlaw’s throat. To
Eli’s surprise, his foe caught the shuriken blade in his hand and grinned in amusement.
Frustrated, Eli punched the Outlaw just above his nose with his free hand. The armored hulk
reeled back slightly, but he did not seem particularly fazed by the blow.
Eli tilted his head from side to side, stretching his neck out. This one is indeed strong.
No wonder he gave Victor and Ana such a hard time. Battle cries filled the air as Jack and Mary
resumed their fight, while Victor and Rachel ascended to either side of Eli.
“Three on one?” sighed the Outlaw as he rubbed the area above his nose that Eli had
struck. “Alright, bring it on!”
He extended his right arm, and his halberd immediately returned to his hand once more.
Before Eli could respond, he quickly drew his halberd across his body, creating the crimson arc
of light that Eli had remembered. The three Sentinels, who hovered directly in the path of the
arc, narrowly managed to doge it.
Victor then rushed the Outlaw, hacking at him with his sword. Despite his large size,
Clovis was able to outmaneuver Victor, avoiding his strikes with stunning ease. Rachel,
whirling her chained weapon vigorously, entered the fray. She struck the top of Clovis’ helmet
with the sphere portion of her weapon; Victor quickly followed the strike with a thrust of his
sword. The stunned Outlaw was barely able to evade the potentially lethal blow of the sword by
moving to his left, but Eli then capitalized on Victor’s attack, bringing his knees to his chest
above the Outlaw and thrusting his legs toward the fiend’s head in a double kick. The blow was
enough to send the Outlaw plummeting to the ash-covered streets below.
“Nice one, Eli!” exclaimed Rachel.
“There is no time for celebration!” Victor urged. “We must continue our onslaught! He
won’t be easy to finish.”
Rachel nodded. “Right!”
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She dove downward to the Outlaw, whirling her weapon once more. Suddenly, she was
met with a bright green projectile; with a sharp cry, she was sent wheeling backward through the
air. Eli shifted his attention to the area from whence the projectile had come, and he noticed
Mary smirking in amusement, her arm extended toward the location where Rachel was struck.
“Oh, how careless of me,” she chuckled. “I should really pay more attention to where
I’m throwing those things.”
“Leave them out of this!” shouted Jack, who was standing across from Mary. “Your
battle is with me – you don’t have the luxury of getting distracted.”
“Well, that’s not for you to decide,” Mary replied. “I didn’t deal a lethal blow, anyway.
I’m having too much fun for this to end yet.”
Eli saw Rachel curled on her side amidst the rubble below; green flames licked at her
garments, but Gerald was currently tending to her, and he managed to extinguish them swiftly.
She can fire flame projectiles from her hand? This Outlaw seems to possess a wide array of
abilities - I wonder what more she is capable of…
With a heavy groan, Clovis rose from his place on the ground; he shook his head,
attempting to regain his senses.
“He doesn’t give up,” Eli observed. “What do we do? We haven’t been able to penetrate
his armor yet.”
Victor’s face hardened as he readied his sword.
“I suppose we just need to wear him down,” Victor responded gruffly. “although it won’t
be easy: He can endure quite a bit of punishment, and for quite some time. To make matters
worse, I don’t think Rachel and Gerald will be fit to help us.”
Clovis pointed the end of his halberd up into the air, directly at Eli and Victor. A melon-
sized sphere of fire formed at the edge of the staff, and it was launched toward the pair of
Sentinels. Eli and Victor evaded it easily, but the Outlaw immediately created a new fireball.
He began launching them continuously into the air, forcing Victor and Eli to swerve about madly
to evade them.
After a particularly large fireball singed the edge of Eli’s pantleg and nearly hit him
directly in the thigh, Victor rotated a tiny knob on the handle of his sword. The sword instantly
became enveloped in an azure glow; Victor swung it into the nearest fireball, which was then
redirected back towards the Outlaw. The sphere of flame grew larger and adopted the same glow
 83
that Victor’s sword had. Forced to respond to the counterattack, Clovis ceased firing his flaming
projectiles and leaped backward.
The spot in which Clovis was standing just an instant earlier erupted into a blaze of blue
fire, tossing smoldering bits of debris into the air. Clovis breathed a loud sigh of relief, as the
inferno before him cast flickering lights onto his ashy face.
“Perfect,” Victor said with satisfaction. “I was hoping he would do that. When I alter
my sword using this knob, I can deflect small projectiles and magnify their size and power. It’s a
shame he managed to dodge at the last moment.”
Clovis stared at Victor with a blank and listless expression.
“You were prepared for that, eh?” he muttered, barely audible from where the two
Sentinels were.
After yawning slothfully, he turned his back to his opponents and trotted over to where
Jack and Mary were engaged in intense combat.
“Where are you going?” Eli called after him. “Don’t tell me you’re running away.”
Clovis ignored Eli’s calls and paused before the ever-battling warriors, looking at Mary
expectantly. As they became aware of their new spectator, the Outlaw and Sentinel ceased their
bout.
“What now?” Mary hissed, irritated.
“I think I’m ready to leave,” Clovis told her. “I’m beginning to lose interest in this battle,
and more importantly, I need to locate the child. Takashi will grow angry if we do not retrieve it
soon.”
Mary waved her hand in exasperation.
“Fine,” she growled. “Be off.”
Victor and Eli descended to ground level, where Rachel was now on her feet, her arm
draped over Gerald’s shoulders for support.
“Look at how they mock us,” she breathed faintly. “They don’t even acknowledge our
presence; they act as if we’re just toys in their game.”
“And he’s going to leave that female Outlaw to fend us all off by herself,” Gerald added.
“How arrogant.”
The foursome gazed on as Clovis began to dematerialize, flaking apart into specs of
darkness; within seconds, he had disappeared entirely.
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“You forget our circumstances,” Victor pointed out. “We can’t leave this realm of
illusion – we are completely at their mercy.”
Ahead, Jack stood resolute, not seeming concerned.
“You plan to finish us on your own, do you?” he inquired. “You are aware that I could
end your existence at any time I wish, right? I’ve just been humoring you so far.”
Marry grinned in response.
“I know you have,” she replied in her icy voice. “but I haven’t been exerting myself
either – I find it amusing that you believe you could end this fight at any time.”
Before any more words were spoken, Mary fell directly onto her back, and her body
began to merge with the ground, as if it were some amorphous substance. She let out a howl of
laughter as she gradually disappeared beneath the earth.
“See if you can find me!” she growled just before her face could no longer be seen.
“Where’d she go?” demanded Gerald in surprise.
Jack was gazing all about, as if he expected something to strike him suddenly.
“She has become one with her mirage,” he explained. “She could be anywhere – she’s
probably searching for a suitable place to strike.”
Eli immediately feared for Gerald and Rachel, who were both injured and would likely
be the demon’s first targets. Before he could warn them, however, a pair of hands sprang from
the ash below and grasped hold of Eli’s ankles; they drew him downward violently, causing his
forehead to slam against the ground. The other Sentinels whipped their heads toward Eli at the
sound of their fellow warrior being struck down.
“No!” shouted Jack, and he dashed over to the fallen Eli with his scimitar drawn. The old
Sentinel slashed at the hands gripping Eli, but they retreated into the ground before he could
make contact. “On your feet!” he urged Eli as he grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up.
“Be ready, everyone. We are in her world – she can assault us from all angles, then return to
safety.”
Mary’s spine-chilling cackle now resonated throughout all the city.
“That’s right!” came her voice, though no one could identify where she was. “I have
merged with the illusion I have created, and you will never be able to even touch me. The worst-
case scenario for me here is a battle of attrition, in which case I will still inevitably defeat you!”
 85
With his eyes darting about frantically, Gerald began taking steps backward with Rachel,
attempting to place their backs to a nearby building for security.
“That won’t help you, you fool!” mocked Mary.
Her flame-cloaked hand protruded from the building and swiped at Gerald as he drew
near. Gerald managed to dart away just in time, causing Rachel to fall to her knees. Mary then
emerged from the building, fully exposed; she kicked Gerald with terrifying force, sending him
skidding across the soot-covered ground. She retreated back into the building, while Rachel and
Gerald were left slumped in the debris.
Eli thought carefully about what he had observed thus far. Mary just separated her entire
body from that building. In other words, she was temporarily vulnerable. I wonder if we can try
to lure her out…
“Take to the sky!” Eli shouted. “She won’t be able to strike us from the ground or from
buildings if we are in the air.”
With that, Eli and Jack ascended high above the buildings; Victor followed, carrying
Rachel and Gerald beneath either arm. Neither of the two young Sentinels looked able to fight.
This isn’t good. If they cannot battle, they’ll be a huge liability for us. Worse, if we leave them
down there with Mary…
A flash of rapidly approaching green triggered Eli’s reflexes and forced him to duck. A
sphere of green fire sailed just over his head.
“Oops. Heads up!” Mary jeered from her place atop a flaming parking garage nearby.
Damn – I forgot she can utilize long-distance attacks. Well, so can I. Eli flung his shuriken at
the Outlaw with as much force as he could muster, but she slithered back into the building well
before the weapon could make contact. As Eli’s shuriken rebounded immediately, the young
Sentinel paid close attention to the building Mary had retreated to. Let’s see… What’s that?
Eli believed he saw a shadowy outline racing down along the building and into the
streets.
“You’re mine,” he muttered, as he tracked the shadow’s movement across the ashy
ground below. It continually gained speed, and it rapidly crept up a housing complex behind
Jack. The elderly Sentinel was scanning the city before him, searching for Mary. The shadow
on the building suddenly paused, shifting into a humanoid form. She aims to harm Jack next!
“Jack!” Eli cried. “Look out!”
 86
He hurled his shuriken at the shadowy form that Mary had assumed; Jack heard his
warning soon enough to avoid the weapon as it whirled past and collided with the building
before Mary could emerge. Did I connect? The ring of steel clashing with steel sounded from
the building just before Eli’s shuriken rebounded again. Looking carefully at his target, he
noticed that the shadow had vanished, and Mary was nowhere to be seen.
“Perfect!” Eli shouted in triumph. “Right on t-“
He was cut off as something struck the top of his head and sent him plummeting to the
ground.
“Eli!” Jack cried. “Are you alright?” Eli hurriedly returned to his feet, the burn on his
back now causing him pain once more.
He looked above him to see Mary hovering high in the air, where Eli just was.
“You didn’t actually think you’d be able to hit me, did you?” she scoffed. “I can cross
this entire battlefield in an instant - you cannot lay a finger on me.”
Eli dusted the ash off his sleeves, while Jack and Mary locked gazes with one another.
So, not only can she emerge from the ground and buildings, but she can also travel through the
air undetected. Eli noticed that her left hand was not ablaze, meaning she had not struck him
with her deadly fire. She could have finished me off – she’s just toying with us at this point.
Victor had descended back to ground level with Rachel and Gerald; he lay them both
down upon a long bench near the crumbling water fountain. He was tending hurriedly to Gerald,
who was motionless on the bench. Gerald isn’t doing well… Meanwhile, Mary and Jack had
resumed combat above, meaning Mary was no longer concerned about concealing herself.
“Your arrogance will be your downfall,” Eli muttered as he brought his arm back in
preparation to hurl his shuriken. The Sentinel and Outlaw were moving about rapidly,
continuously striking and evading each other. Eli eagerly awaited the moment that Mary would
be still, so he could land a blow with his shuriken. “Hold still…”
As if Jack had read his thoughts, he suddenly took Mary’s back and underhooked both of
her arms with his, rendering her completely exposed.
“Now’s your chance, Eli!” Jack shouted. “Finish her off!”
“No!” Mary shrieked with rage. “Get off me, you geezer!”
Excitement coursed through Eli’s body. It's over. He launched his shuriken directly
toward her breastplate; time seemed to stop as the rotating weapon made its way to its target. An
 87
expression of despair could be seen upon Mary’s face, whereas Jack grinned in anticipation of
the finishing blow. Just before the shuriken could impale Mary, her eyes met Eli’s; a strange
sensation of familiarity crept over him. Those eyes… I’ve seen them before somewhere… but
how is that possible?
His thoughts were promptly distracted by a smirk that crept across Mary’s face, and she
vanished from sight. As a result, Jack was left in the path of the shuriken, but he managed to
draw his scimitar and deflect it immediately before it would have collided with him.
“Where is she now?” Eli demanded as his shuriken returned to him, feeling both
frustrated and defeated.
Yet again, Mary’s spine-chilling laughter resonated throughout the illusory city.
“You lot really are quite dense,” she mocked. “I said you cannot touch me in this world.
Now, are you finally ready to succumb and perish? I am not having so much fun anymore.”
The city began to grow distorted, just as it had when Eli had been wrenched away from
his vision; every nearby structure assumed some type of fluid form and merged with the ground.
The sky began to change in color, and it seemed to swirl and heave up above.
“What is this devilry?” Jack mumbled in confusion. “Another change in scenery?”
Mary spontaneously toppled down from a dematerializing building and fell to the shifting
streets.
“Curses!” she shouted angrily. “Someone has disrupted the illusion? But who?”
Eli recalled Jack’s words about the illusions the Outlaws could create, and how they
could only be eliminated by an external source. Did Ana or Jean come for us? Surely they
wouldn’t venture all the way out here?
The surrounding mirage began to dissolve and vanish, revealing the same road that the
Sentinels had been following earlier. A city loomed up in the distance, and Eli guessed it was
the one they had mistook Mary’s illusion for. The ash and flames that had covered the
environment just moments earlier were now gone; a dark night sky and a bright moon could be
seen overhead.
“Well, well,” came a rough voice behind Eli. “What have we here? An Outlaw?”
Eli whipped around to see a trio of humanoid figures standing behind him, presumably
Sentinels. The one in front, who had just spoken, was a broad-shouldered male. He appeared to
be quite old: His hair was stringy and white, and his face was wrinkled, though he still appeared
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very strong. With his blue overalls and straw hat, Eli thought he looked like something of a
farmer.
The other two were more youthful, but they were still much older than Eli; one was a tall,
dark female clothed in colorful garments, and the other was a middle-aged male with long hair
and a rough face. Upon seeing the newcomers, Mary scrambled to her feet, hissing.
“What are you doing here?” she screeched. “How dare you barge in like this!”
The trio of Sentinels did not seem daunted.
“Hmmm…” began their leader, looking at Eli, then at Jack. “I count five warriors able to
fight, but there’s only one of you. I reckon you won’t have much of a chance against our
combined force, especially now that you can’t use any more of your tricks.”
Mary remained tense, as she activated the green flame on her hand; however, she
eventually relaxed, understanding the reality of her situation.
“I’ll be back,” she growled. “You’ll rue the day you trifled with us. And let it be known:
The child will soon be ours.”
With that, she cloaked herself in a wreath of flame, and when the flames had gone, she
had vanished as well.
“Jack!” shouted the old newcomer cheerfully. “I haven’t seen you in ages! How is my
old friend?”
Jack descended to meet the trio of newcomers.
“Ah, Phillip,” Jack said, clasping his friend’s hand. “I am well. How are you? And who
are your friends?”
“Hey! We need help!” came a frantic shout, interrupting the reunion. Victor and Rachel
were crouching down by Gerald, who lay motionless on the barren ground next to the road.
“Gerald isn’t doing well!” Rachel yelled. “He’s not showing any signs of life!”
The five Sentinels rushed over to Gerald immediately.
“Back away, everyone,” the one named Phillip announced. “My associates are well-
versed in providing medical assistance. Let them take care of it; you’ll only get in their way.”
Victor and Rachel seemed hesitant to obey, but the two newcomers brushed them aside
and inspected Gerald.
“It’s his arm,” Victor said before finally backing away with Rachel. “He’s lost a lot of
blood.”
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Eli and Jack came to stand beside their teammates, while Phillip observed from a
distance.
“What on Earth happened to him?” Jack demanded. “He was on his feet not too long
ago… You’re saying it was that initial arm injury?”
“I believe his wound was opened further after being assaulted by the female Outlaw,”
Victor explained. “He was already quite depleted by the time Eli had returned to his senses. The
bleeding had begun to stop at that point, but it continued at an alarming rate after Mary attacked
him from behind.”
Eli refastened the shuriken to his back, watching the unfamiliar Sentinels tend to Gerald.
They did not actually seem to be providing any form of care; rather, they appeared to be
inspecting him carefully. Eli clenched his fists nervously. They’re evaluating his condition first.
Is he beyond saving?
His nervousness escalated as the two Sentinels rose from Gerald’s body and turned to the
others. The female opened her mouth, hesitated, and then spoke.
“Your friend is dead.”
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Chapter 9
Eli’s heart sank at the sound of the Sentinel’s grim news. How did this happen? There’s
no way… Rachel collapsed to her knees and buried her face in her hands. Victor simply stared
at the ground, while Jack approached the body and knelt down beside it.
“Rest in peace, son,” he whispered. “You fought well.”
“He seems to have been dead for a little while now,” reported the female newcomer.
“There was nothing we could do,” added the other with a tinge of regret.
A gust of wind was sent whining across the plain, and Gerald’s body began to fade. It
gradually grew more and more transparent until eventually, it could no longer be seen. He
must’ve gone to the Void, never to return. I can’t believe this.
“I understand how hard this might be for you,” Phillip quickly piped up. “but we really
need to move along. More of us will die if we stick around and let that Outlaw return with
reinforcements.”
“Indeed,” said the female. “We need to hurry up and find the Saint. She could be
anywhere, and I’m guessing we’ve lost several Sentinels during battles with Outlaws, meaning
we have fewer eyes to search with.”
Jack rose from where Gerald’s body had been moments before and smiled coolly.
“That won’t be necessary,” Jack pointed out. “We have already found the Saint.”
“What?” Philip shouted in surprise. “Then why in the Devil are we still here? You
should have notified the Judge so we could leave this barren rock through a soul-gate. What’s
gotten into your head, mate?”
“Trust me – we’ve tried that,” Jack explained. “The Judge has been assassinated by
Outlaws, therein preventing us from returning by any normal means.”
Philip’s eyes widened with shock.
“You’re kidding! So this was all one well-coordinated assault by the Outlaws? Where is
the kid then?”
“We have her in a secure location,” Jack answered. “We had actually set out in search of
you. Since we cannot contact the Judge, I figured we could attempt to open a soul-gate on our
own, using a soul-key.” He reached into his pocket and revealed the gleaming crescent he had
shown the others in the cabin: one half of a soul key. “I’ve got one half – I was hoping you
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might happen to have another; you are the only one I could think of who would have been a
Sentinel long enough. So, do you have the piece?”
Phillip smiled, then closed his eyes. He began to chuckle, shaking his head.
“I can’t believe you would devise a plan like this on such a wild guess. You honestly
believed I would have the piece?”
“Well?” Jack prompted. “Do you, or do you not?”
All looked at Philip expectantly.
“You’re lucky - I have it,” Philip answered at last. “It isn’t with me now, though. I left it
in the hands of our other teammate, who is currently north of here.”
Eli breathed a sigh of relief at the sound of the news. Perfect. So our mission is not in
vain. We have hope.
“How far away is your crewmember?” asked Jack.
“Not too far,” Philip responded. “We left him back at the area we were assigned to
explore – it’s a densely populated urban settlement. It won’t take very long to reach if we fly.
But…”
“But what?” Jack demanded.
“We’ll be safer if we go my way,” Philip explained. “I can still sense Outlaws nearby –
it’ll be best to go undetected.”
“You can just detect the presence of Outlaws?” Eli inquired. “How do you do that?”
“Oh, believe me, boy,” Philip said in his rough voice, reaching for the front pocket of his
overalls. “There’s a lot I’ve learned in my years, and one thing I know for certain is that it ain’t
good to hang around in the open when you know enemies are around. It’s time to get going – we
can all get better acquainted once we’re inside.”
He retrieved a black, baseball-sized cube from his pocket and tossed it into the air; it
expanded exponentially, growing to the size of a tiny cottage. As it remained suspended in the
air, Eli, Victor, and Rachel gaped in awe.
Jack simply chuckled.
“Well, what do you know…” he mused. “I’ve never even seen one of these before,
although I have heard about them.”
A circular hole appeared in the bottom of the floating cube, and it projected a beam of
white light onto the ground.
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“Yup, it’s a transport cube,” Philip explained. “They were used long ago to help
Sentinels traverse long distances without being caught by Outlaws. Fortunately, one of my old
friends had served long enough as a Sentinel to still possess one when I became a Sentinel, and
he bestowed it unto me after I first escaped the Maw.”
“You mean we’re supposed to go inside that thing?” Rachel asked, still seeming very
shaken by Gerald’s death.
“Oh yes,” Philip responded enthusiastically. “It’s a lot more spacious than it looks. You
enter it by standing beneath that hole at the bottom, within the beam of light it produces. Once
we’re inside, it will take us to wherever it was used last, which is the place where our associate
his. However, it seems we may have a capacity issue.”
Jack looked around at the six other Sentinels who had gathered together.
“That’s right,” he noted. “I recall hearing that these cubes can only allow a moderate
number of Sentinels to enter at a given time.”
“Bingo,” Philip confirmed. “This puppy can only hold six Sentinels at once; as soon as
the sixth one enters, that light will disappear, and the hole will close up. We’ll actually only be
able to take five with us, since we need to save a spot for our friend when we pick him up. That
means we will have to leave two behind for now…”
“That doesn’t seem necessary,” Jack reasoned. “We can just have the other two fly with
us. You said our destination isn’t far off.”
Philip made a series of clicking noises with his tongue, shaking his head again.
“That would defeat the entire purpose, Jack,” he pointed out. “We don’t want to draw
any attention to ourselves and have a gaggle of Outlaws on our hands. I’d say whoever stays
behind should make their way to the place where we’ll open the soul-gate. I think we should be
able to have it ready by noon, assuming the place where the Saint is isn’t terribly far away.”
“So who will stay behind?” Eli questioned, looking around at the other Sentinels.
“I’d be willing to,” volunteered the long-haired Sentinel.
“Ah, Jacob,” Philip responded. “That’s good, but you’ll have to go with someone from
Jack’s group to guide you.”
“I’ll go as well,” Victor announced. “We’ll try to lay low, which may slow our journey,
but we should still arrive by noon tomorrow easily.”
“Very well,” Philip said briskly. “Then the rest of us will be off – be sure to stay safe.”
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With that, the female Sentinel leaped into path of the light emanating from the cube; her
form seemed to become liquefied, and she was drawn into the cube. That reminds me of when I
first tried to transition through a solid substance in Johnson. Rachel approached the beam of
light and paused in front of it, hesitant. Eli could see that her eyes were wet with tears. Gerald’s
death completely devastated her. Nobody expected it, and I guess we all feel as if there’s
something we could have done to prevent it.
“Go ahead,” Jack encouraged Rachel. “It might feel a little funny, but it won’t hurt.”
Rachel nodded and proceeded to step into the beam of light to become drawn into the
cube; Jack followed her immediately. Eli approached the light next.
“Go on,” Philip encouraged. “It’s nice inside – just see for yourself.”
Trusting the old Sentinel’s words, Eli stepped into the beam of light and felt his body
being jerked vigorously upwards. He was propelled through the hole in the cube and thrust into
the space beyond. While in mid-air, he noticed he had entered a room with white walls and a
white ceiling. It’s just like the passage Jack and I travelled through to reach the Chamber of the
Judge.
He fell to the floor beside the hole in the cube, which closed again after Philip had
entered. Eli was amazed as to how large the room was: The ceiling was about seven meters high,
and the square floor was easily ten meters across. There was a row of cushioned seats lining one
of the walls, where the female Sentinel was now settling.
“I told you there was plenty of room in here,” Philip stated proudly. “There’s more than
one room in here too – it isn’t anything like how it appears from the outside.”
Eli became unbalanced and teetered about as the floor seemed to move beneath him.
“And we’re off,” Philip announced. “We won’t be able to travel quite as fast as we
would if we were flying, but we’ll still be arriving there shortly.” As Eli regained his balance,
Jack and Philip sat down by the wall. “Come sit down, young ones,” Philip invited. “There’s no
reason to be standing around.”
Eli quickly snatched a seat beside Jack, and Rachel sluggishly walked over to sit on the
other side of Eli.
“I guess I never properly introduced myself,” began Philip. “My name is Philip, an old
friend of Jack’s. The two of us go way back. In fact, we’re probably two of the oldest Sentinels
around.”
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Jack laughed.
“Yeah, when you get to be Sentinels for as long as we have, you usually end up in
Paradise. What’s taking us so long?”
Philip chuckled along with Jack, gesturing to his female cohort.
“And this is Ruby. She and I had actually known each other fairly well prior to this
whole fiasco. Before the Judge sent us all on this new mission, we would often patrol together
and share stories about our past lives. Our other groupmate is Jacob - we just met the fellow
yesterday, so we don’t know much about him.”
Eli noticed that there was a smooth wooden door built into the wall opposite the
Sentinels; the illustration featured on it was similar to those in the soul-gate he had been through
yesterday. It depicted a heavily armored Angel staring down upon a vast globe, and there was a
small group of people standing on the globe’s surface. The angel also seemed to be holding a
marionette, with strings attached to the people below. What a strange image…
“This is a bit off-topic,” Eli broke in, pointing to the picture on the door. “but what does
that illustration mean?”
Philip followed his pointed finger to the door and shrugged.
“I’d be bluffing if I said I knew,” he admitted. “This transport cube is extremely old,
meaning that illustration could essentially be ancient. I’ve seen a lot of angelic artwork in my
day, but nothing like that one – what it means is anyone’s guess.”
“I think I’ve actually seen a similar depiction in a soul-gate I used to frequent,” Ruby
added. “For some reason, it was removed by the Angels, though they didn’t touch any of the
other pictures.”
“You don’t say…” Philip responded. “That’s pretty weird. I can’t believe Angels would
ever concern themselves with such a trivial matter.”
Eli continued to stare at the image. It’s so bizarre.
“Won’t Outlaws still be able to attack us like this?” Rachel asked nervously. “A large,
floating cube should be easy to locate, even in the night.”
“No way,” Philip answered. “This cube uses the Void as a medium to travel through,
very much like soul-gates do. In other words, the Outlaws cannot actually see us – no one in the
Living World can.”
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“If that’s so, then why can’t we just use it to head to the Chamber of the Judge?” Rachel
inquired.
“The cube doesn’t quite work like that,” Philip explained. “It can only allow us to travel
to locations along the Earth’s surface; we can’t go very far beneath, so we’d never make it to the
chamber. We need a more potent soul-gate for that.”
“Hmmm…” Jack pondered, scratching his chin. “The Outlaws managed to infiltrate the
Chamber of the Judge – that means they might have found a way to bypass the Void. If they can
do that, then surely breaching this vehicle would be a simple task? I don’t think we are actually
safe here.”
“You misunderstand,” Philip told him. “It doesn’t matter if the Outlaws have the
capabilities to access the cube: Their issue is locating it. While the chamber is a well-known
location amongst Sentinels, which the Outlaws could have discovered easily, they probably don’t
know about the cube. Chances that we’ll get attacked are slim-to-none, so don’t worry.”
Eli was rocked sideways in his seat as the vehicle began to gain speed.
“Ah, here we go,” Philip observed. “It seems we’re picking up the pace. We’ll be there
before you know it.”
“Is it okay if I look around this place while we wait?” Jack requested. “I’ve never been
in one of these things before, and I’m pretty curious to see what the layout is like.”
“Go ahead,” Philip answered. “Ruby, why don’t you show him around?”
Ruby stood and walked toward the wooden door.
“Very well,” she said. “Come along, Jack. There are more rooms beyond this door.”
Jack followed her merrily, proceeding through the door with Ruby.
“Don’t you two want to go?” Philip prompted with a look toward Eli and Rachel.
Eli noticed that Rachel appeared to be a bit dazed and listless; she simply stared at the
floor with a blank expression. She’s still not managing well. It’s not really surprising, since she
was the one who had to watch him die.
After seeing Rachel’s forlorn demeanor, Philip turned to Eli.
“Maybe I can just show you a few things,” he whispered. “Come with me.” He lifted the
seat that Jack had occupied moments earlier and leaned it against the wall, revealing a cavity in
the floor. Philip hopped straight into the opening. “Jump right on down,” he said from below.
“It’s a short drop.”
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Eli peered down into the hole and saw nothing but darkness. Nonetheless, he descended
downward, and his feet immediately collided with solid ground. He heard a creaking sound
behind him, and dim lights above were activated, casting a purplish glow into the space he now
resided in.
“Check this place out,” said Philip, who was standing by a large power switch behind Eli.
“It’s like a storage chamber. We keep all sorts of things in here – I’m not even sure what all of
them do.”
In the light, Eli could see that a tunnel lay before him, with shelves lining both walls.
There were several different objects packed on the shelves: blades, cannisters, firearms, tools,
pieces of armor, and irregular objects that Eli could not identify. Philip began to proceed
through the tunnel.
“This place was probably very important back when Sentinels were commonly attacked
by Outlaws. It stores a wide variety of tools and weapons; there’s something here for just about
everything.”
Eli followed Philip slowly, thinking about Gerald’s death.
“But no medical supplies, huh?”
“Well,” said Philip, rummaging through a pile of tools on one of the shelves. “There is a
remainder of a medical kit in here, but it’s just an empty case. Everything is used up.”
Eli paused to inspect a row of cannisters on his right; a couple of them looked like the
mystical shroud Victor had used.
“So, your name is Eli, right?” asked Philip.
“Yes, that’s right,” Eli responded as he continued to move along.
“I see,” Philip muttered. “Jack has told me so much about you.”
Eli stopped in confusion.
“What? When did he do that? We just met you.”
“No,” Philip laughed. “Jack and I have known each other for quite some time,
remember? He used to tell me all about you when we worked with each other as Sentinels.”
Eli stared at Philip in confusion.
“You must be mistaken,” Eli explained. “Jack and I just became acquainted recently. He
hasn’t known me for very long – I just barely became a Sentinel.”
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“You sure about that?” Philip pressed. The older Sentinel looked up thoughtfully. “Meh,
maybe I am mistaken. No matter – what I really want to show you is up ahead.”
Philip pressed on towards the end of the tunnel, and Eli followed. That was odd.
At the tunnel’s end, Eli thought he could make out a workbench, with rows of vials
enclosed in glass containers hanging above it. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the vials
contained a dark fluid.
“Here it is,” Philip announced. “Perhaps the most interesting thing on this cube. Not
many Sentinels know about these.”
Eli stopped in front of the workbench, and he almost believed he detected movement in
some of the vials.
“What is that liquid?” he asked curiously.
“That’s what’s so interesting,” Philip replied in an awe-struck tone. “There’s an old
legend that says the Angels keep human souls in vials, but there are different tales regarding how
they use them. Some say that the souls in these vials are the source of every human’s spirit.
That is, the angels use the souls they keep to instill life into humans when they are born into the
world. But…” Philip broke off as he placed his hand upon one of the glass containers and stared
at the vials, mesmerized. “There’s also a rumor that the Angels just use them to create false
humans - impostors, you might say. These false humans intersperse with real humans and do the
Angels’ bidding, whatever that may be.”
Eli’s skin crawled at the thought of the vials containing human souls.
“Why would the Angels need to create false humans?” Eli wondered aloud.
“Who knows…” said Philip with a shrug. “Like I said, those are nothing but rumors and
old stories. I doubt any of them involve a kernel of truth, though that won’t prevent me from
being a tad unsettled by these vials. I don’t dare mess around with them.”
The glass containing the vials was heavily coated with dust, serving as an indicator of its
old age.
“These have clearly been here for a long time,” Eli observed.
“Yeah, this transport cube is a lot older than I am,” Philip admitted. “Honestly, I have no
idea what the liquid inside is used for, which may be for the best.”
Something in one of the vials seemed to move yet again, and Eli withdrew a couple of
paces in discomfort.
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“Eli, do you ever think about what Paradise is like?” Philip asked.
“I haven’t received much of a chance to think about it thoroughly,” Eli told him. “Ever
since I escaped the Maw, I’ve been thrown into this whole ordeal with finding the Saint.
Dreaming of Paradise has not exactly been one of my top priorities.”
Eli heard footsteps overhead; it seemed that Jack and Ruby had finished up their brief
tour.
“You know…” Philip began again. “There’s a reason why many of us older Sentinels
have not yet entered Paradise: It’s because we’re suspicious. I mean, nobody really even knows
what it is like. We hear vague descriptions – that it is a desirable place – but no details. And
what’s the point of all of it? We are supposed to relish in luxury, knowing that most human
souls have been obliterated in the Void? I’m just a bit too suspicious of the system.”
Listening keenly to Philip’s words, Eli was taken aback. Intentionally avoiding
Paradise? Why would someone do that?
“I can see that you aren’t quite following me,” Philip said, seemingly reading Eli’s
thoughts. “but I think you’ll discover the truth soon. Protect yourself, Eli.”
The lights in the tunnel began to flicker briefly, while Eli stood in befuddlement. What is
he talking about? Eli opened his mouth to respond, but he was distracted by the sound of
footsteps approaching from behind.
“What are you two discussing?” Jack demanded as he came to stand by the other two
Sentinels. He looked toward the vials of purple liquid, narrowing his eyes. “What are these?”
“Nobody knows,” Philip muttered. “They’re extremely old, as they were here long
before I gained possession of the cube. I’ve never seen them anywhere else before.”
Silence befell the threesome, causing Eli significant discomfort.
“I’d better head back up,” Philip announced finally. “This rig actually has a special type
of engine and cooling system that have to be maintained. It’s about time I give ‘em a check.”
With that, he scurried back through the tunnel and leaped up through the hole, while Jack
shifted his gaze toward Eli.
“So, what was he telling you about?” Jack asked with a stern expression. “These vials?”
“Yes,” Eli replied nervously. “There are apparently a bunch of rumors and stories
surrounding them, mostly involving Angels.”
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“I see…” said Jack thoughtfully. “Well, just don’t listen to Philip too much. He isn’t
mentally sound, and he often doesn’t know what he speaks of.”
Casting one final glance at the vials, Jack turned away and exited the tunnel; Eli followed
suit with uncertainty plaguing his thoughts. I wonder what’s really in those vials. As he came
beneath the hole and prepared to exit the tunnel, he thought he could feel something watching
him from behind, like a malevolent gaze burning through his back and piercing his soul.
However, he dared not look back, as fear had gripped him completely, freezing his muscles. I
hate this place. Something evil resides here.
Shaking his entire body to dispel the chilling sensation that gripped him, Eli finally flew
up from the tunnel and returned to the main floor, where Jack, Rachel, and Ruby were gathered.
After Eli had emerged, Ruby lowered the seat that was above the hole, leaving the cavity
exposed no longer; she stared at Eli with a concerned gaze.
“Is something the matter?” she wondered. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Yeah,” added Rachel, who now seemed slightly less depressed. “You aren’t looking
well.”
Eli, not wanting the others to notice his unease, wiped off the beads of sweat that had
accumulated on his brow.
“No, I’m fine,” Eli stated coolly. “I just get a bit claustrophobic sometimes. Maybe
that’s what it is”
He darted his eyes toward Jack, who was standing at the far end of the room with his
arms crossed; he said nothing, but his expression was hard. He didn’t want me to speak with
Philip for some reason? But why? Does he just think Philip is insane?
Philip was the only one currently absent from the room, presumably because he had gone
to tend to part of the cube as he said he would.
“I believe we’ll be arriving shortly,” Ruby announced enthusiastically. “Just sit tight –
you won’t need to wait much longer.”
Eli proceeded to sit beside Rachel, who had not moved from her seat since boarding the
vehicle. While the young Sentinel still seemed a bit gloomy, she now appeared to be more alert
and functional.
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“Do you think the others are all right?” she asked as Eli sat down. “Ana and Jean, Victor
and the other Sentinel: They’re left in pairs. The Outlaws will overcome them easily if they
manage to track them down.”
“I don’t think that will happen,” Eli assured her. “The Outlaws are likely pursuing us
instead– they know we’re heading north, and they don’t necessarily know where the others are.
Besides, we’ll all be meeting up soon, so they won’t be left by themselves for much longer.”
Rachel leaned forward and covered her face with her hands.
“I just can’t believe we lost Gerald. It feels so awful, like there was some way it could
have been avoided.”
Eli wished he knew what to say, but because he had become used to seeing people who
he knew die, he could not completely empathize with Rachel.
“It is awful,” he agreed. “Of course, he would want us to proceed with our mission and
remain focused on the task at hand - he would not want his death to hinder us in any way.”
Rachel lifted her head, and her face brightened a little.
“Yeah, that’s true,” she said. “But he’s completely gone, never to return. Nobody ever
gets a second chance after being sent to the Void.”
Rachel’s words resonated powerfully with Eli. She’s right. How could Angels even
allow something like this to happen? Gerald had simply been striving to access Paradise; he had
died in the Living World, survived the Maw, and even served as a Sentinel, yet it ultimately
meant nothing. He was killed by an Outlaw: a degenerate that had never accomplished anything,
except for committing acts of evil. One wound, left unattended, led to his demise and the
permanent erasure of his very existence.
Philip made a good point. What is the point of Paradise? No matter how grand it is, it
can’t be significant enough to outweigh the magnitude of billions and billions of souls being
eliminated in the Void.
Upon further contemplation, the entire purpose of Sentinels seemed trivial as well.
Sentinels watch over humans in the Living World, hoping to prevent unnecessary deaths, even
though the humans will inevitably perish. Then, all that will matter is their ability to surmount
the woes of the Maw, but Sentinels cannot assist them there. Almost seems like a waste of time.
A sudden jolt to Eli’s body disrupted his thinking; the cube’s movement had ceased. The
door across the room swung open, and Philip emerged.
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“We’re here,” he announced.
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Chapter 10
Eli and Rachel rose from their seats, and the entrance cavity in the floor opened once
again. Well… That didn’t take too long. Jack walked toward the center of the room, where they
had first entered the cube.
“All right,” he declared. “let’s get moving then.”
Philip stepped in front of Jack and held his arm in his path.
“No, there’s no need for all of us to leave,” Philip pointed out. “I just need to recruit our
teammate. We’ll be heading back to where you’ve hidden the Saint after I do so.”
Jack backed away and retreated to his place at the other end of the room.
“In that case,” he responded. “make haste.”
Philip nodded and let himself fall through the cube’s entrance cavity, exiting the vehicle.
“He should be back promptly,” Ruby assured everyone. “Our crewmate, Jedediah,
should be somewhere just outside the cube.”
Eli and Rachel sat down again, and Eli winced from his burn. Still causing pain? I guess
burns from Outlaws do not subside in a short time. With his mind currently fixed on Outlaws,
Eli was reminded of what Philip had told him about his ability to sense them. He hasn’t warned
us about them being near. Does he not feel the need to because he is confident they cannot harm
us, or are they truly not even in the vicinity?
Almost immediately, Philip ascended up into the cube once again, and he was closely
followed by another Sentinel. This one was notably large – even larger than Victor; a bushy,
black beard covered his face, and he was cloaked in a black trench coat.
“We’ve retrieved our half of the soul key,” Philip announced. “It’s time to head back.
Let’s get to it.”
“Hold on…” Eli broke in, puzzled. “How do we get to where the others are? Won’t the
cube just take us back to where we fought the Outlaws?”
As Eli spoke, he felt the cube begin to move again; it was automatically returning to its
previous point of activation.
“Yes, but there’s something we can do about it,” Philip told him. “The cube can be
guided manually via our navigation system. Jack, I’ll go show you how to operate this thing,
since you know where we’re supposed to be going.”
Jack headed for the wooden door at the other side of the room.
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“Actually, Ruby already showed me how to operate it,” he pointed out. “She explained
everything I need to know when she led me around.”
“Okay, then we’re all set,” said Philip, while Jack exited the room to take control of the
vehicle. “In the meantime, let me introduce the two of you to our final associate: Jedediah. He
has been a friend of mine for quite some time.”
Jedediah nodded toward Eli and Rachel in greeting.
“It’s good to meet you both. What are your names?”
“I’m Eli,” responded the young Sentinel. “And this is Rachel. It’s good to meet you
too.”
The floor beneath seemed to shift as the vehicle changed direction: Jack had seized
control of the cube.
“Do your friends know we’re on the way?” Jedediah asked. “We want them to be ready
to go as soon as we arrive.”
Eli scratched his chin.
“I don’t think we ever notified them…” he admitted.
“Well, I would do so as soon as possible,” Jedediah advised him. “We don’t want to
waste any time before opening the portal when we get there.” Eli closed his eyes, attempting to
communicate with Ana. Why didn’t any of us think to do this earlier? We might have even been
able to save Gerald if we had Ana or Jean come to disrupt the Outlaw’s illusion. I would have
guessed that Jack would remember to do something like that.
Redoubling his efforts, Eli tried to dissociate from his surrounding environment and let
his consciousness wander. His body grew numb as he drifted into an altered state of mind; he
could no longer hear or feel anything from his surroundings. Ana… Where are you? Why aren’t
you responding?
Eli waited; he thought he could feel some form of presence imminent, but he still heard
nothing. There was no sign of Ana’s voice.
“I don’t think our group leader is expecting anyone to contact her at the moment,” Eli
stated eventually. “She isn’t responding at all – sorry about that.”
Eli opened his eyes to find that he was speaking to no one, for the room was currently
vacant.
“Where did everybody go?” he whispered.
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Confused, he rose to his feet, only to stumble forward unsteadily. There was a strange
weakness in his legs, and he lurched about before finally collapsing onto his back. The ceiling of
the room spun above him, as he felt afflicted with a sudden light-headedness. His surroundings
became distorted, just as they had during his encounter with the Outlaws. With terror now
surging through him, Eli tried to stand up again. He slowly lifted himself from the ground as
everything went dark; blackness enveloped him. Distant laughter reached his ears, while a flash
of bright light temporarily blinded him.
When his eyes had managed to recover from the glare, he saw that his environment had
completely changed. He stood in the middle of a primitive village, which was situated amidst a
lush meadow. Light-green grass sprang up around miniscule buildings of stone; a warm sun beat
down upon his neck with its rays, and he heard the sound of a stream gushing and frothing
nearby, though he could not see where it was.
His light-headedness subsided, but laughter sounded in his ears yet again. Whirling
round, Eli tried to identify the source of the noise; however, he could not find anything.
“Take a look around,” hissed a voice from behind Eli. He quickly turned towards the
voice another time, only to face the stone wall of a building. “What do you see?” prompted the
hidden entity. “I think there’s something happening over there…”
Eli heard the sound of nervous chatter and distressed wails to his left. A crowd had
gathered beside a stand selling meat near the edge of the village; they were staring down at
something, stupefied. With his heart beginning to throb and his palms starting to sweat, Eli
approached the crowd to determine what they were obsessing over. Nobody took any notice of
the young Sentinel as he pushed his way to the front of the group.
When he had a clear view of the spectacle before him, he gulped: A bloodied, mutilated
corpse lay in the grass. The victim’s skull had been bashed in, and its right arm was detached
from its body; Eli could not even determine if the body was that of a male’s or female’s, so
disfigured it was.
“Oh my…” breathed the hidden voice. “That certainly looks tragic.”
Eli gazed about, attempting to identify the source of the voice, even though he now knew
who it was. It’s Mary. What is she trying to show me this time? He observed the surrounding
crowd, as he wondered if there was someone whom he might be able to identify. However, he
recognized no one, and the crowd was speaking in a language unknown to Eli. Where is this
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place? One woman burst from the crowd and rushed toward the corpse. She stared down at it
with wide eyes, then unleashed a blood-curdling howl into the sky.
“Tell me, Eli,” Mary said coldly. “Why is it that you have no recollection of your time in
the Living World? What are you hiding from yourself?”
Now deeply unsettled, Eli fled from the murder scene; he streaked past the corpse and
those gathered around it. As he left the last of the crowd behind, he looked over his shoulder to
cast a final glance at the corpse. The gristly sight only further adrenalized him, and he picked up
speed. Suddenly, while his eyes were averted from his path of travel, he collided with a solid
object and fell backward onto the ground.
A wooden post outside the village stood in front of him, and someone seemed to be
trying to attach something to it. Returning to his feet, Eli saw that a man was nailing a board to
the post. Once the man had finished and walked away, Eli stood and observed what was on the
board: An image of a man’s face was burnt into it. The depiction triggered something in Eli’s
memory, as it appeared vaguely familiar.
“It’s a notice for a wanted criminal,” came Mary’s voice once again.
While Eli stared closely at the image, attempting to identify it, a pair of villagers came to
stand beside him. They gasped at the sight of the man and pointed at it with trembling fingers.
More and more of the villagers assembled around the post, studying the wanted notice.
“You and I are more alike than you think, Eli,” Mary told him, her raspy voice resonating
throughout the air.
Eli retreated from the post as more villagers still gathered about.
“No,” he responded indignantly. “You and I are nothing alike - you’re a murderer. You
killed my friend.”
Mary laughed demonically.
“But you killed my friend first – that makes you a murderer too. See? We are exactly
alike in that sense, but that was not quite what I was alluding to.”
Though terror continued to rack Eli’s body, he stood his ground, as he desperately wanted
to learn who was depicted on the board; his inability to determine the man’s identity, despite its
familiarity, tormented him. The man had no hair on his head, a defined jawline, and narrow
eyes. Where have I seen him? Wait!
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The man’s identity became available to him the next instant: It was his father. Eli had
not recognized him at first due to his missing hair and the primitive depiction style, but it was
indeed his father. What was my father doing here? What part of the world is this? It’s certainly
nowhere near where we used to live.
Eli had thought that his father had died of the virus, just like his mother had. Now, he
questioned this assumption; in fact, he knew it was not true. His father had left his home prior to
the virus’ outbreak near the city, although he was never certain as to where he had gone. How
could I have forgotten something like that?
Eli noticed that a party of warriors armed with spears had stopped by the post. They
studied the image of his father briefly, then left the village, hollering battle cries.
“They’re looking for my father?” Eli wondered aloud. “He didn’t murder that person, did
he?”
As he said these things, a strong gust of wind enveloped him; the sky began to spin
rapidly above. The people around him became blurred, and the ground heaved. The light from
the sun began to fade, as Eli was subjected to another change in scenery. The ground, now
consisting of dirt and stone, was lit by a full moon hanging in a starless sky.
Eli soon came to realize that he was standing by a highway, surrounded by urban
settlements. To his left, there was a large truck that had parked beside the road; it was a
commercial truck, probably for transporting some sort of food. Two people stood outside of it,
conversing. One was a lanky man, but the other was nothing more than a shadowy figure whom
Eli could not identify.
Despite his uneasiness and fear, Eli’s curiosity was intense enough to move closer to the
mysterious pair. When he was just a few meters away, he saw the shadow-cloaked entity hand
the man, presumably the truck driver, a thick helmet and a wad of cash.
As he struggled to understand exactly what was occurring, multiple memories were
triggered at the sight of the truck: This was the same vehicle that had caused his untimely death.
Indeed, Eli could not soon forget the last sight he had laid eyes on in the Living World. Yes,
that’s definitely it. And there’s an exit up ahead that leads to my home city. This must be the
night before I was killed.
With this new knowledge, Eli became even more intrigued as to what the mysterious pair
was doing; the shaded figure was now offering the driver a heavily padded suit, which looked
 107
like it was designed to withstand tremendous impact. The driver put the suit on over his clothes
and placed the helmet upon his head. As he returned to his truck and revved the engine, the
shaded one seemed to be providing him with some final instructions. The truck driver nodded in
acknowledgement and drove onto the highway while the dark figure waved after him.
“What on Earth is happening?” Eli whispered. “What did he pay him for?”
When the truck was out of sight, the figure swiveled its head back and forth to see if
anyone was near, then rose into the air and disappeared. A Sentinel? Whatever that thing was, it
wasn’t a human. Another gust of wind descended upon Eli, and his surroundings became
distorted yet again.
“Now what?” he muttered. “Why am I seeing these things?”
The air rang with Mary’s chilling laughter as darkness closed in on Eli once more. Now,
he was set in the midst of a sea of shadow - there was not a speck of light to be seen anywhere.
The ground beneath his feet had seemingly disappeared, and he felt as if he was suspended in a
formless void.
“So many lost memories…” came Mary’s voice, louder this time. “What more could
you be hiding deep in the recesses of your mind?”
Feeling threatened, Eli reached for his shuriken in preparation for battle; however, it was
missing, no longer strapped to his back. Panic overcame Eli as Mary’s cackle rang on through
the darkness, but he could barely move in his suspended state. Damn it. I can’t die here
An emerald glow appeared before him, penetrating the shadows. The darkness retreated
to reveal Mary hovering across from Eli, her hand ablaze with the green fire. Eli shivered, and
beads of sweat streaked down his face, but he was still unable to flee. Mary’s figure began to
advance toward him menacingly, as Eli looked on in horror.
“The secrets run amok ceaselessly, granting you no peace,” Mary hissed. “but it will all
come to an end when you finally allow it to – when you can finally come to terms with reality.”
As she drew dangerously close to Eli, she raised her flame-cloaked hand in preparation to
strike. Eli opened his mouth to scream, but no sound was released; a ringing filled his ears, and
the image of Mary became blurred. A flash of green flooded his vision as Mary brought her
hand down. Eli closed his eyes, awaiting death.
 108
The next instant, he could hear his own scream resonating all around him; he had not
died, nor had he experienced any pain from the expected blow. Eli slowly opened his eyes, only
to see Philip and Rachel staring down at him.
“What in the Devil are you screaming about?” asked Philip in bewilderment. Eli quickly
glanced about and realized he was lying on the floor next to the seating area in the transport
cube. All of his fellow Sentinels surrounded him, appearing very confused.
“The Outlaw!” Eli gasped. “She almost claimed me – she was right there!”
Philip shook his head and sighed.
“You’ve gone mad, son,” he told Eli. “There are no Outlaws around. I can’t sense ‘em
anywhere. You must just be shaken up still from your first Outlaw encounter.”
Eli got to his knees, wide-eyed.
“No,” he insisted. “It was the female Outlaw. She was right in front of me, and she
almost struck me with that green flame technique she uses.”
Ruby stepped forward and helped Eli to his feet.
“You probably just experienced a trauma-induced flashback,” she assured him. “They
can often seem very real, and they would not be abnormal for someone who has experienced
what you have recently.”
“Yeah,” Philip added. “There’s absolutely no way you saw a real Outlaw. We’ve
completely thrown them off our trail, just like we had hoped. It looks like we’re gonna make it
out of here easily.”
Still trembling, Eli felt somewhat comforted by the Sentinel’s words, but he knew what
he had seen was somehow real.
Jack walked over to the exit cavity in the cube’s floor.
“I suppose it’s time to move along now,” he announced. “We’ve wasted enough time
already.”
“Wait…” Eli began. “Jack, shouldn’t you be piloting the cube?”
“Good gracious!” Philip shouted in exasperation. “We’ve already arrived at our
destination. We’ve just been sittin’ here for the past few minutes watching you writhe about on
the ground, trying to wake you up. You were trying to contact your friend, and the next thing we
know, you’ve gone bonkers. There are actually going to be real Outlaws on our tail if we don’t
get the hell out of here!”
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Spending no more time in conversation, Jack jumped into the exit cavity, immediately
followed by Ruby and Rachel.
“We’ve stopped right above the cabin,” Philip explained. “I think it’s still invisible; you
can hide in there until Jack and I get the soul-gate open.”
Eli nodded in acknowledgement, while his uneasiness gradually dissipated. He leaped
into the hole and felt his body being tugged downward forcefully; his feet suddenly collided with
a hard surface, and looking down, he saw that there was nothing beneath his feet – or so it
seemed.
Jedediah landed beside him with a loud clamor.
“This must be the cabin,” he observed. “How do we get in?”
The sound of canvas being drawn across metal could be heard as an opening in the
invisible roof appeared, with Rachel looking up expectantly at them.
“Get in! Quick!” she hissed.
Eli and Jedediah obeyed, and Rachel drew the tarp back over the roof. The room was not
well-lit, as only a narrow stream of light trickled in through a crevice in the roof during the early
morning. The cabin was also extremely cramped: Jean, Ana, and Sarah were all still present,
while Eli, Rachel, Jack, Ruby, and Jedediah had just entered.
Jack approached Jedediah and extended his hand.
“Okay, it’s time for you to give me your portion of the soul-key,” he told him.
Jedediah reached into a pocket in his trench coat and retrieved the piece without question.
Jack snatched up the piece, pulled the tarp away, and exited the cabin.
“Well,” Ana piped up in her gravelly voice. “That sure was a nice greeting. Jean and I
were worried sick about you all.” Ana looked over everyone present. “And I see you’ve found
some friends, just like you had hoped. I already met the one who escorted Victor here – they’re
both keeping watch outside. Who are the others?”
Jedediah removed his hat and bowed.
“I’m Jedediah,” he said. “You can call me Jed.”
“And I’m Ruby,” said the female Sentinel. “Our associate is Philip, and you’ve already
met Jacob.”
Jean was sitting in a corner of the cabin beside a sleeping Sarah; he was searching the
cluttered group of Sentinels.
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“Where is Gerald?” he asked. “Is he outside as well?”
Eli’s heart immediately sank with despair, and he saw Rachel look to the ground. What
am I to tell him? He knew Gerald a lot better than any of us did.
“I’m not sure how to say this…” Eli began. “but Gerald is no longer with us. He was
killed in a brutal battle with a trio of Outlaws.”
Jean’s face darkened, and he lowered his head.
“I see…” he muttered grimly.
Ana stood rigid with her arms crossed.
“That should not have happened,” she said. “If things had gotten too far out of hand, you
should’ve sent one of us to help out. It was only a trio, right?”
“Yes,” replied Eli. “However, a couple of them were quite powerful. Also, I attempted
to contact you a short while ago, but I was unable to. Calling for reinforcements would likely
have been futile.”
Ana looked confused.
“You tried to contact me?” she asked, puzzled. “I’ve been prepared to receive signals
from you ever since you departed. Surely I would have been able to respond if you had tried to
reach me?”
“Well,” Ruby chimed in. “he did indeed try to reach you, but while he was doing so, he
experienced some sort of strange panic attack that disrupted his efforts. He claimed he
encountered an Outlaw, even though there are no Outlaws anywhere around.”
Ana nodded in understanding, although she still seemed a bit skeptical.
“I’ll note that these Outlaws have the abilities to induce hallucinations and delusions,”
Ruby continued. “They may be capable of more than we have known of them to be in the past. I
believe that they are extremely dangerous adversaries.”
As the others were engaged in discussion, Jean rose and exited the building.
“Wait,” Jedediah ordered. “We should have as few individuals outside as possible. We
don’t want to risk a chance of alerting the Outlaws.”
He attempted to follow after Jean, but Ana seized the large Sentinel’s arm.
“He needs to get some space for now,” Ana told him. “Let him grieve. I do not think it
will jeopardize our mission in any way.”
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Sarah, with Jean no longer beside her, began to stir a bit on the floor; Eli studied her
movement carefully, waiting for her to awaken.
“How has Sarah been doing?” Eli inquired.
Ana followed his gaze and set her eyes upon the young child.
“She’s been doing pretty well, given the circumstances,” she reported. “She’s been
subjected to a great deal of stress, and we have not been able to gather much for her to eat or
drink, although she hasn’t been away from home for very long. We actually just barely managed
to lull her to sleep again, so hopefully she will manage to benefit from some rest.”
“Well, at least she’s doing all right,” Eli observed. “We’re likely going to need to keep
her with us for at least a little while longer, though. What are we even going to do with her after
we get the soul-gate open?”
The sun now rose higher in the sky, as was indicated by the increase in light that entered
through the roof.
“I imagine we would keep her somewhere in the Chamber of the Judge,” Ruby answered
thoughtfully. “That is where the soul-gate will take us. As an alternate possibility, she may stay
with one of the chieftains.”
Eli cocked his head on one side in perplexity.
“Chieftains?” he repeated. “I’m not familiar with that term. Who are they?”
“The chieftains are the ones who stood by the Judge while she addressed us in the
chamber,” Ruby explained. “They serve as… I suppose you could say they are next in
command. They play a role in the Judge’s decision-making process, but I am not sure if they can
actually communicate with Angels.”
“Importantly,” Jedediah added. “a chieftain always replaces a Judge after she can no
longer fulfill the role. In most cases, this is because the Judge has transitioned to Paradise; of
course, the reason for a transition of power in this case would be death. I wonder who will
succeed the Judge this time?”
A roaring sound could be heard from beyond the trees, and the walls of the cabin rattled
and shook. Eli froze, fearing the worst.
“The Outlaws!” he hissed. “They’re here! I told you I saw them!”
He reached for the tarp covering the roof, but Jedediah slapped his hand away.
 112
“That isn’t the sound of an Outlaw,” he told him. “That’s the sound of a soul-key being
formed; it means we’ll be on our way momentarily.”
“Well, we’d best hurry,” Ana noted. “That sound will send any Outlaws remotely in our
vicinity coming this way.”
“No,” Ruby corrected her. “Philip can detect Outlaws. He would not have produced
such a clamor unless he knew they were far enough away.”
Eli noticed that the din and the impact from the soul-key formation had caused Sarah to
toss about on the floor with discomfort. Eventually, she sat up, rubbing her eyes.
“What’s that noise?” she yawned drowsily. Upon opening her eyes, she gaped at the
number of Sentinels present. “Are we about to leave?” she asked quietly. “Where’s Jack?”
Ana came to stand beside the young Saint.
“He’s right outside,” she told her. “And we’re almost ready to leave.” All present in the
cabin looked upward as something landed on the roof. “We’ll be leaving now, in fact,” Ana
corrected herself.
The tarp on the roof was flung away yet again.
“Come on out!” came Jack’s voice. “We are prepared to leave. Philip says there are no
Outlaws near, so we will be safe!”
Without hesitation, Ana lifted a now-elated Sarah into her arms and flew out of the
building; the other Sentinels quickly followed, with Eli taking up the rear. Once everyone was
hovering outside the cabin, Jack pointed north, where the forest transitioned into plains. He
darted in that direction, and the rest hurried after him.
The group of Sentinels soon burst through the trees to find Philip, Victor, and Jacob
standing below; Jean was sitting on the barren ground nearby. As everyone descended, Philip
extended an ovular object forward with both hands: It was the completed soul-key.
“Alright, folks,” he announced while the soul-key began to adopt a sapphire glow. “The
gate will only remain open for about thirty seconds, so don’t waste any time once it appears.”
The key now began to vibrate, and Philip clenched his teeth and tightened his grip. Sarah
released a gasp with wide eyes as a swirling cone of blue mist came roaring from the soul-key.
The hair on the heads of the surrounding Sentinels was blown back by the force emanating from
the enlarging portal of blue. In a matter of seconds, the cone had morphed into a giant sphere,
and the soul-key split apart into its original halves.
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“Let’s go!” shouted Philip over the roar of the tumultuous sphere. “The portal is
finished!”
With the pieces of the soul-key in hand, the old Sentinel struggled forward against the
powerful winds exerted by the portal; he reached toward the sphere with his hand, and when he
made contact, he was drawn into the stormy mist and out of sight. Jedediah entered soon after,
then Victor, then Ruby.
Jack was standing near the portal, waving his fellow Sentinels along.
“Hurry up!” he shouted as he cast a stern glance at Jean, who was lollygagging.
The small Sentinel heeded Jack’s words and marched briskly toward the portal. Jacob
entered, then Rachel, then Jack. Jean finally approached the portal and reached into it tentatively
before being drawn in.
Ana, with Sarah in her arms, entered just before Eli reached the sphere. He extended his
hand toward it, but he froze at the sound of cold laughter echoing behind him. Stationary with
fear, Eli dared not look toward the laughter. With the portal beginning to shrink in size,
however, Eli freed himself from his terrified state and entered the sphere before it was too late.
 114
Chapter 11
Eli found himself rocketing through a vortex of mist and electrical currents. Unlike the
soul-gate he had travelled through to arrive in the Living World, it became evident that this soul-
gate would not bring him to his destination instantaneously. Instead, he was being drawn
through a winding tunnel of blue, and his gut was wrenched by the high speed at which he was
travelling. I… can barely take this. I don’t even want to know how Sarah is managing. After a
short time, however, his pace began to gradually slow. The swirling of the mist-tunnel slowed as
well, until eventually, everything had stopped altogether.
The mist dissipated to reveal Eli’s fellow Sentinels standing around him. It did not take
Eli long to identify where he now stood: the Chamber of the Judge. He had arrived safe and on
his feet; the rock at the center of the chamber glimmered just a few meters away from where the
Sentinels were now gathered.
“We’ve arrived, folks!” Philip announced. “That means we’ve completed our mission.
Only problem is…” He scanned the chamber with concerned eyes. “I don’t know what to do
next. No one is present, and without the Judge, our options are somewhat limited.”
Indeed, the Chamber of the Judge seemed completely vacant.
“Well, why should anyone be here?” Jack pointed out. “We were fortunate enough to
return, but all the other Sentinels are sitting ducks right now. Don’t forget that every Sentinel
available was mobilized for this mission.”
Victor wandered away from the group, peering around the boulder and studying his
surroundings carefully.
“I’m not sure if we’re safe here, either,” Victor stated. “We know that the Outlaws can
infiltrate this place somehow. They could bear down upon us at any moment.”
“I don’t sense any, though,” Philip reported. “They aren’t near.”
Eli frowned, skeptical of Philip’s claim. I’m not certain that his abilities are effective.
He can’t seem to sense Mary very well. Then again, perhaps I am just crazy…
An awe-struck Sarah squirmed free from Ana’s grasp and scurried toward the great rock;
she placed her palm on one of the glowing gems, mesmerized.
“It’s so beautiful,” she murmured.
Jack took her hand gently and led her away from the rock.
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“You shouldn’t touch that, dear,” he told her. “This is a revered object that only high-
ranking Sentinels make contact with. In other words, it is extremely important.”
“Indeed it is!” exclaimed a voice from above.
The group of Sentinels looked to the top of the rock to see a short man with glasses
standing at the top; Eli immediately recognized him as the one who had directed the groups of
Sentinels through the portal into the Living World. So, he must be a chieftain… The man
hovered down from atop the rock and landed gracefully before the Sentinels.
“I cannot say how joyous it is to see so many of you return! Not all hope is lost! How
did you ever manage to come back?”
Philip stepped forward to greet the Sentinel.
“Ah, Vlad,” he said, shaking his hand. “It’s very good to see you too. We actually
lucked out – I happened to have a piece of a soul-key with me, and my friend Jack had the
complimentary piece. We met up and managed to open up a soul-gate. We did encounter some
Outlaws, however, and one fellow from Jack’s group was killed.”
Vlad’s smile quickly faded, his face hardening.
“Yes, although I am elated to see you all,” Vlad began. “we have much to attend to at the
moment. The Judge was assassinated by Outlaws, which is why we could not provide you with
an opportunity to flee the Living World. While those of us who remained here managed to ward
them off, our situation is perilous. Not only are we short a leader, but it also means we are going
to have to reimplement the security standards we had in place back when Outlaw activity was
commonplace. Weapon provisions, Sentinel training, assigned security guards – it all must
return immediately. Daniel!”
At the shout of the name, another Sentinel appeared through one of the gates on the
perimeter of the chamber. Eli was also able to recognize him as one of the Sentinels who had sat
atop the great rock with the Judge; his dark gown was what had allowed Eli to identify him, but
otherwise, he seemed unfamiliar. He looked as if he could not be any older than twenty-five; he
was thin, broad-shouldered, and blue-eyed.
“Daniel, a few of our brothers and sisters have returned!” Vlad shouted enthusiastically.
“Would you please accommodate them with some fortress keys? I have some work I need to
do.” As Daniel walked solemnly over to the group and began to distribute some strange, crystal
spheres, Vlad held out his hand in front of Philip. “I see you still possess the remnants of the
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soul key,” he observed. “I need you to give them to me right away. If I can just alter their
properties a bit, I should be able to use them to open up soul-gates in the Living World, allowing
the remainder of our forces to return here.”
“Oh yeah,” said Philip, handing him the halves of the key. “You’ll want to watch your
back, though. This place is a prime Outlaw target now that we have the Saint with us.”
Vlad’s eyes widened, and his jaw dropped; he shifted his gaze to Sarah, who was clinging
to Jack.
“Y- you have retrieved the Saint?” Vlad stammered in disbelief. “This is tremendous
news. We truly are a prime target for Outlaws - we must assemble our defense forces
immediately!”
“What are we going to do with the child?” asked Philip. “We’ve got to make sure she’s
as safe as possible.”
“Yes, yes,” Vlad replied. “I would say that she would be safe with one of you, but you
will all soon be busy with training and securing the area. As such, I will look after the child. I
know of a chamber where she will be safe.” Vlad smiled at Sarah and beckoned her over to him.
“Come along, child,” he said gently. “I have got a nice room for you to stay in. With any luck,
you will be back home in no time.”
Sarah cast a doubtful glance at Jack, but after the old Sentinel nodded in encouragement,
she scurried over to Vlad. Vlad retrieved one of the crystal spheres that Daniel had been offering
from his gown, and he tossed it into the air; it remained suspended above him and rotated
rapidly. In a glimmering flash, the sphere disappeared, while a wooden door appeared on the
floor below it.
“Well, I had better get to work,” said Vlad, flinging the door open. The passage he had
created seemed to lead nowhere; it was merely a metal frame with a door hinged to it. “I have
much to do… So many Sentinels are still left stranded in the Living World. The time for their
return is nigh.”
The mysterious chieftain lightly nudged Sarah toward the passage.
“Go on,” he prompted her. “It will take you to a comfortable little room. You can rest
there – you look like you could use some.”
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Sarah did appear a bit exhausted and shaken, which could be expected after the brutal
passage through the makeshift soul-gate. With more encouragement from Vlad, Sarah tiptoed
tentatively into the passage and vanished from sight.
“Oh, and one more thing,” said Vlad as he grasped hold of the door. “Once our fellow
Sentinels have returned here safely, we will cast a vote to determine who the next Judge will be.
Until then, Daniel will inform you of everything you need to know. Bye for now!”
With that, he entered into the passage and closed the door behind him; he vanished along
with Sarah, and the door faded away as well. Meanwhile, Daniel finished offering the spheres to
the gathered Sentinels.
“Do these function like the one that Vlad just used?” Eli inquired.
“Yes,” Daniel responded in a low voice. “You see, there is a space available in the Void
that we use for living quarters. We call it a soul-fortress, and it contains many different terrains
within. Each of your spheres will take you to your own personal space in the fortress.”
Jack turned his sphere about in his hands, studying it carefully.
“I remember these things,” he reminisced. “I never got one of my own, though. By the
way, doesn’t the Judge have a space in the soul-fortress? If that’s where she was attacked, I’m
not sure why you’re giving us access to that area, as it clearly isn’t safe.”
“Well, maybe it wasn’t safe before,” Daniel conceded. “but as I am sure Vlad has
already stated, we are going to return to a standard of security that we have not observed in
decades. We will soon assign guard units to defend the fortress, just as we have done in the past.
After we have done this, it will be safe.”
“So…” Philip piped up. “I guess that means you’re going to have to give out an awful lot
of weapons. We’re going to be pretty busy once we get all the other Sentinels back.”
“Indeed,” Daniel nodded. “In the meantime, however, I do not believe I have anything
for you to do, since our next course of action is dependent upon having everyone else present. I
suppose you can just take a look at the spaces you’ve been given in the soul-fortress if you like.”
Jack looked expectantly at Eli and Rachel.
“Yes, that sounds good,” he said. “Young ones, would you like to check out your living
quarters?”
Rachel, who had not exhibited any significant sign of enthusiasm since Gerald’s death,
showed a spark in her eyes.
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“Yes!” she chirped. “I can’t wait to see what it’s like.”
“I think you will find them satisfactory,” Daniel told the Sentinels. “They are
comfortable, but they also serve as an appropriate training environment, making them perfect in
our current situation.”
Eli inspected the sphere he held in his hand; it was surprisingly heavy for its small size,
and it glimmered as he moved it around.
“So…” he said thoughtfully. “I just throw it up and wait for a door to appear?”
After receiving a nod of confirmation from Daniel, Eli tossed it lightly into the air. As
expected, it started rotating rapidly until a door appeared before Eli; this door, however, was not
one of wood like Vlad’s had been. Instead, it seemed to be made of thick bamboo plants, or
something of the sort. Eli was a bit confused and hesitant to enter.
“Go ahead, Eli,” Jack encouraged him. “I think the doors are supposed to be different.
They lead to different types of environments.”
Reassured by Jack’s words, Eli eagerly opened the door and stepped into the metal frame.
His surroundings changed instantaneously: He was now in a grassy clearing, surrounded by
bamboo forest on all sides. The open space was quite large, and there was a straw hut at the edge
of the clearing to his left. At the center of the clearing, there was a strange contraption that sent
water trickling down a series of horizontal bamboo cylinders and into a basin in the ground.
The gentle sound of the flowing liquid was all Eli could hear in this tranquil place, and it
felt quite soothing. Looking above, he saw that the sky was cloudy, but he did not find it
depressing. The air temperature was moderate – not particularly warm nor chilly; there was a
good deal of moisture in the air, though it felt refreshing rather than uncomfortable.
Eli was pleased with the living quarters he had been assigned so far. I didn’t expect this
to be an outdoor environment. The soul-fortress must be massive to be able to contain so many
spaces such as this one. Eli walked toward the straw hut at the edge of the clearing, evaluating
the ground beneath his feet. It’s firm, but it’s not too hard. And there’s a lot of space out here. I
would expect that this area would serve as a perfect training ground.
As he drew closer to the hut, he noticed that there was no door – at least no ordinary
door. At the front, Eli saw a hole about three feet wide and two feet high; he would have to
crawl through it in order to enter. He lowered himself onto his knees and tried to squeeze
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through the opening. Without too much difficulty, Eli managed the entrance and stood again
once he had entered the hut.
The building in which he now stood consisted of only a single circular room, although it
too was spacious. The roof was also about three meters high, so Eli did not feel cramped in the
slightest. It was easy to see in the hut, as openings in the far wall allowed some light from
outside to enter. A mattress made of some sort of dark fur was positioned at the center of the
room. Next to it was a tan chest, which Eli found incredibly intriguing, until he saw what stood
at the far end of the room.
Eli stared at a small table with a rectangular case of glass on top of it; inside the case was
a captivating katana blade. The weapon had a handle of deep black, and there was a mystical
aura all about the blade. Eli approached the table in awe, mesmerized by the katana. I haven’t
yet seen a weapon such as this one. In the hands of an able warrior, its destructive potential
would probably be tremendous.
While Eli gazed on at the blade, something gently nudged his heel. He looked down to
see the crystal sphere he had used to arrive at his living quarters; confused, he snatched it up.
“You forgot to pick this up!” shouted a voice from outside. “You’re not going to want to
lose that thing! You’ll need it to return to the Chamber of the Judge!”
Eli recognized the voice as Jack’s.
“What are you doing here?” Eli shouted back.
Jack suddenly appeared in the entrance, and he squeezed into the hut.
“You forgot to close the door when you entered the passageway,” he told Eli, brushing
dust off of his jacket. “If you leave it open, it won’t disappear, which will allow others to enter.
I just wanted to let you know that… and I was curious about what your new place looks like.
The best part about these living quarters is that we can all visit each other if we so desire.” Jack
let his eyes dance across the room. “So, what do you think?” he asked. “It’s certainly modest,
but it will serve its purpose. I like the outside as well.”
“Yes,” Eli replied, a bit distracted. “I like it too.”
Jack came to stand beside Eli and looked down at the sword.
“Well, what do you know!” he exclaimed. “I suppose this place comes fully stocked.
That may be one of the finest blades I have ever seen. You might even want to dispense with
that shuriken you’ve got now.”
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Eli imagined himself confronting a horde of Outlaws with the katana in hand, slashing
through their armor and slaying them instantly; the mere thoughts alone caused him to feel
powerful.
“Yeah,” Eli responded. “This shuriken works well, but I think I would be far more
effective in battle with that.”
“I guess there is only one way to find out…” Jack said. “Why don’t you pick it up?”
Excited by the prospect, Eli set the glass covering on the ground without hesitation.
Despite his eagerness, he hesitated to pick up the sword – it was as if he did not feel worthy
enough to lift it.
“There’s definitely something inexplicable about it,” Jack remarked, apparently sharing
Eli’s sentiment. “Regardless, it won’t hurt you. See how it feels in your grasp.”
Eli obeyed and grasped the handle of the sword; beads of sweat formed on his face as he
lifted it with both hands. The blade was thicker than those of most katanas, and even so, it still
felt heavier than it appeared.
“Good,” Jack encouraged him. “Now, take a few swings with it. The sooner you learn to
handle it, the sooner you will be able to use it in battle.”
Eli retreated from the table to lend himself more space, feeling unbalanced by the weight
of the katana. How can it weigh this much? He tried to steady himself and gain control of the
weapon by holding it vertically, along his center line. Then, he raised it and brought it
downward in a practice strike. He rotated his wrists and slashed through the air; he did not
possess any knowledge about swordsmanship, so he was not sure how to evaluate a new sword.
“Quit playing around,” Jack instructed him. “Swing like you mean it! You wouldn’t be
doing that in real combat.”
Eli tightened his grip on the handle and hacked with as much force as he could. To his
surprise, a wisp of green flame was launched from the blade as he drew it across his body, and it
flew into the base of the straw wall.
The material quickly ignited, but Jack dashed over to the area that had been struck and
stomped out the flame, preventing disaster.
“Put that thing down!” he yelled. “Now!”
Startled and perplexed, Eli released the weapon and let it drop to the floor. Jack
motioned Eli to step away from it, and he slowly moved closer to inspect it.
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“Damn, I should’ve known that blade when I saw it,” he muttered. “The question is:
What is it doing in a Sentinel’s living quarters?”
“Wh-what blade is it?” Eli asked nervously.
Jack gazed at the blade with a hard stare. “
It’s the blade of Jay Takashi,” he answered solemnly. “The most powerful and spiteful
Outlaw known to Sentinels.”
“Takashi…” Eli breathed. The name seemed familiar to him somehow, but he was not
exactly sure where he had heard it.
“He is the bane of all Sentinels – an aberration,” Jack continued. “Legend has it that he is
powerful enough to fight one hundred well-trained Sentinels simultaneously. Encounter him
alone, and death is inevitable. No wonder this blade seemed so powerful…”
“What are we going to do with it?” Eli asked.
Jack removed his hat and scratched his head thoughtfully.
“I suppose I’ll just have to turn it over to one of the chieftains,” he answered eventually.
“They’ll find a safe place for it. After all, it’s far too dangerous to be left lying around.”
Jack removed his jacket and carefully placed it on top of the blade; he then picked the
blade up and wrapped the jacket around it. With Jack now wearing just a dark shirt, Eli could
see that he was much stronger than he normally appeared. He was still thin, but muscles rippled
beneath his shirt. The old Sentinel looked anything but old.
“Anyway,” Jack began again. “we’re not going to have anything else that we need to do
for a while. It will likely take several hours – perhaps even days – to bring back the remaining
Sentinels, get a tally of the survivors, and assign them to the new positions that will be
established. Fortunately, I have something we can do in the meantime.”
“What’s that?” Eli wondered as Jack slid out of the hut with the concealed weapon. Eli
followed him through the entrance and readied his fortress key.
“We’re going to do some training,” Jack told him. “I can tell that we Sentinels are going
to need to do a good deal of fighting soon, so everyone must be as prepared as possible. We can
have Rachel and Jean do it with us if you want.”
The prospect of being trained by Jack was exciting to Eli.
“Sure, that sounds good,” he said. “Where are we going to do it?”
Jack paused, scanning the clearing thoughtfully and feeling the ground.
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“This place will definitely suffice,” he stated. “If it’s okay with you, we’ll train here.
Now, let’s go round everybody up. I have to give this weapon to the chieftains as well.”
Eli nodded and tossed his fortress key up; the bamboo door immediately materialized
before him in a blue flare. He opened the door, and the two Sentinels proceeded through it. The
walls of the Chamber of the Judge rose around them once more, with Philip and Jedediah
standing nearby.
Eli’s fortress key fell from above into his waiting hands, while Philip trotted over to
them.
“Finished up with your exploring, eh?” he observed. “Well? What do you think? And
Jack, what is that you’re holding?”
“Bad news,” Jack answered quickly. “It’s a powerful katana blade, and I am almost
certain it’s the one Jay Takashi once wielded.”
Philip clutched at his heart and staggered back. “
Jay Takashi!” he shrieked. “You mean the Demon Mercenary? The Emissary of Evil?
The One of Nightmares? That Jay Takashi?”
“Unfortunately, there are no other Jay Takashi’s that I know of,” Jack replied.
“What are you carrying that thing around for?” Philip demanded. “And where did you
even find it? That thing should be burning in the depths of Hell!”
“It was in Eli’s domain,” Jack told him. “I guess the Sentinel who last used Eli’s key
found it in the Living World and somehow found it fit to claim it for himself. But don’t worry –
I’m turning it in right now.”
Jack ended the conversation and headed for one of the gates in the chamber wall. After
he knocked forcefully on the gate, it slowly slid open with a prolonged groan; it shut again once
Jack had entered.
“Anyway,” Eli said to Philip. “can you tell me where Rachel and Jean are? I’m trying to
gather them for a training session.”
Philip pointed to a door frame near the giant rock.
“The girl went to check out her new living space,” he answered. “And the other one – I
think it’s Jean – is sitting over there.”
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Eli noticed that the petit Sentinel was hunched over in one of the front-row seats facing
the great rock. He sat motionless, staring straight ahead. I’ll go fetch him after I find Rachel.
He could probably use some training.
Eli then headed for Rachel’s living quarters, ruminating on the weapon that he had found.
He had been impressed by the strength of Mary and Clovis, yet Jack claimed that this particular
Outlaw was far more powerful. Fortunately, Eli believed that it was unlikely that he could still
be alive; after all, someone could only have claimed his weapon if he had fallen in battle. It’s
probably nothing to worry about. He set his troubling thoughts aside and prepared to enter into
Rachel’s new space.
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Chapter 12
Once Eli had stepped into the passage Rachel had left behind in the Chamber of the
Judge, he felt his feet sink into loose sand. A cool breeze blew into his side from an endless
expanse of blue water on his left - it seemed he was standing upon a wide and sandy shore. A
sloping beach of white sand extended before him as far as the eye could see. Waterfowl circled
and danced in the cloudless sky above, which seemed to be darkening into evening. There was
no stench of seaweed or salt present near this beach; rather, the surroundings produced a sweet
scent that was soothing to Eli. He noticed that there were some short plants to his right, where
the sand eventually gave way to vegetation.
Turning to the water, Eli walked to the edge of the sand and watched the gentle waves lap
at it. He then sat down, directing his attention to the horizon. The water’s vastness amazed him
– the rolling mass of blue was so large that it met the sun as it sank in the far sky, staining the sea
with rose. This is amazing. I can’t believe that the fortress can hold so many places like this. It
must be colossal!
Before he could become too enthralled by the majesty of the peaceful waves, Eli
reminded himself of why he had come to this place. Geez… Stay focused. Where is Rachel? He
only needed to look along the shore’s edge to find the female Sentinel sitting by the water about
fifty meters to his left. She appeared to be dipping her feet in the water, and she was watching
the waves as Eli had been doing.
Eli flew over to her hurriedly and landed beside her, and she looked up at him in surprise.
“Eli!” she exclaimed. “How… what are you doing here?”
“Jack sent me to fetch you,” he explained. “As it turns out, we can access one another’s
designated living areas. We’re going to begin a training session at my place, and we were
wondering if you and Jean would join us. Want to come along?”
Rachel stood up and brushed grains of sand off her legs.
“Sure,” she answered. “I don’t exactly have anything else to do. Are we headed straight
from here to your place?”
“No, I still need to ask Jean, who is back in the chamber,” he told her. “so you’ll have to
take us back there – just use your fortress key again.”
Rachel reached into the sand by her feet and pulled out the crystal ball that was her
fortress key.
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“I guess we’re off then!” she announced. “I could probably use some training.”
She activated her key, and a bronze door was formed before them. After stealing one
final glance at the sea, Eli entered through the doorway behind Rachel. The pair returned beside
the great rock, in the same area they had used to access Rachel’s chamber; Eli noticed that Jean
remained seated in one of the nearby chairs, but now, Jack was seated next to him. The two were
conversing about something, and Jean seemed the liveliest he had been since hearing of Gerald’s
death.
Eli waved to the pair of Sentinels in an attempt to seize their attention.
“I’ve got Rachel with me!” he called to them. “We are all set to begin!”
Jack and Jean ceased their talk and walked over to Eli while he prepared the entrance to
his living quarters. As the bamboo door appeared before them, Eli saw that Jean was clutching a
medieval mace in his hands; it was long and intimidating, making it seemingly unfit in the
possession of a meek Sentinel like Jean.
“Then it’s time,” said Jack cheerfully, flinging the door open. “Let’s make the most of
this.”
Jack hurried through the opening, followed by the other Sentinels.
The four found themselves in the center of the bamboo clearing; Jean and Rachel looked
impressed.
“Wow!” Rachel exclaimed. “I thought my domain was undoubtedly the greatest one
available, but I’m not so sure about that now. This place is really great.”
“Yes,” Jean added. “It should be a perfect environment for our training.”
Jack was pacing about the clearing, pulling his heels toward his back in a stretch.
“Ah, back to the days of old,” he remarked. “I haven’t done any combat training since I
first became a Sentinel. I never got to do much of it, although I enjoyed what little I did get to
do.”
“So what are we starting with?” Rachel asked enthusiastically. “Conditioning? Learning
special techniques? Basic weapons training?”
“No, none of that,” Jack answered, locking his legs out and reaching for his toes. “We
will do some sparring first. I cannot identify your weaknesses unless I receive an opportunity to
observe you in battle. Let’s see… Why don’t you all come at me at once? That should make for
a fair bout.”
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“Fair?” Jean protested. “You just admitted that you have only received limited training
in your lifetime. How can you fight three of us at once?”
Jack rose from his stretch and cocked his head to one side, causing his neck to make a
loud cracking sound.
“Prove me wrong, son,” Jack challenged. “If you defeat me easily as you believe you
will, the only one who pays is me. Now, I’ll stand here in the center of the clearing, and you
three will surround me. You can come at me whenever you’re ready.”
The three Sentinels reluctantly obeyed, forming a triangle around Jack; each of them
stood about ten meters away from their older comrade.
“Are we supposed to use our weapons?” Rachel inquired.
“Why, of course,” Jack answered. “By all means - you’re going to need them.”
Eli unstrapped his shuriken, and Rachel began whirling her chained weapon, while Jack
just snickered. I forgot that Jean has never actually witnessed Jack in battle - he clearly has no
idea how strong he is. And I suppose Rachel isn’t necessarily aware either.
Jack drew a deep breath and closed his eyes, transitioning into some state of meditation;
Eli raised his open hand to get the others’ attention without alerting Jack. He lowered each of his
phalanges into a closed fist one-by-one, then pointed to Jack, signaling to the others that they
would strike in unison at the count of five. The pair nodded in understanding, and Eli began to
count down with his fingers.
The three clutched their weapons tightly in anticipation as the countdown progressed,
whereas Jack did not move at all. Once Eli had lowered his last finger, the team of three dashed
toward the old Sentinel with weapons raised. Yes, we’ve timed it perfectly. There’s nowhere for
him to go!
They quickly came within striking distance, but as they brought their weapons down
upon Jack, he sprang high into the air. The three Sentinels missed him by just a narrow margin,
and all of their weapons collided where he had been an instant earlier.
The old Sentinel was now somersaulting through the air over Eli’s head. Eli immediately
turned and hurled his shuriken at Jack as he fell to the ground behind him; Jack promptly ducked
to avoid the strike. The shuriken continued on its initial trajectory for a moment, then changed
direction, while Rachel and Jean charged Jack again.
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The old Sentinel, barely exerting himself, planted the blade of his foot in Jean’s stomach
with a brutal sidekick. Saliva jetted from Jean’s mouth as a result of the blow, and he tumbled
backward. Jack proceeded to sidestep Rachel as she sprinted at him with her chained weapon
whirling through the air; he shoved her in the back as she stumbled past him, causing her to fall
forward and skid on her belly through the grass. Eli’s shuriken had rebounded and was heading
straight toward Jack’s midsection, but he stomped it into the ground immediately before it could
make contact. In what had seemed like no more than an instant, Jack had stymied all three
attacks, and although Rachel managed to return to her feet, Jean still lay on the ground in pain.
The grass of the clearing was already upturned in several areas, with clumps of dirt
scattered about.
“Come on, you’ve got to do better than that!” Jack told them. He lifted his foot from
Eli’s shuriken so it could sail back to its owner’s possession. “I need to see everything you all
are capable of.”
He scooped a clump of dirt and grass from the ground and hurled it at Jean.
“On your feet, son!” he shouted. “Weren’t you so certain of your victory in this little
sparring match? I’m waiting!”
His speed is hopelessly greater than ours – it’s as if we can only move in slow motion by
comparison. Hell, he hasn’t even drawn his weapon yet.
Eli was unsure of how to continue; Rachel appeared just as lost and helpless. Jean finally
got to his feet and looked to Eli as if he was awaiting orders. Maybe I can try to occupy him in
combat single-handedly. That way, the others might be able to find an opening and strike him
when he is off guard.
“If you won’t initiate another attack,” Jack began again suddenly. “then I suppose I’ll
have to take the initiative. Here I come!”
Jack leaped several meters up through the air and descended toward Eli. The young
Sentinel sprang backward just as Jack swung his heel down to his head; the blow grazed the tips
of the hairs near Eli’s forehead.
With Eli unbalanced, Jack shuffled forward and jabbed at his face. The blow landed, and
blood spurted from Eli’s nose. Jack followed the jab with a devastating uppercut that caught
Eli’s chin and forced him onto his back. The young Sentinel struggled to breathe as his nose
became choked with blood; he coughed violently while a grinning Jack stood over him.
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“You can’t be done this early,” Jack said as he seized hold of Eli’s collar. “I’m not even
warmed up yet.”
He lifted Eli off the ground with a single hand and held him in the air. Eli sputtered as
Jack’s knuckles pressed into his neck, impeding the flow of air in his throat. As he struggled to
breathe, he kicked at Jack’s ribs desperately, but his efforts were in vain.
“Well, this is just depressing me now,” Jack admitted. “I’m disappointed in you.”
Without warning, Rachel pounced onto Jack’s back with a fierce battle cry and wrapped
her arm around his neck in a chokehold. Jack stood unconcerned, and he calmly grabbed her by
the shoulder with his free hand. He then flung her forward, causing her to tumble along the
ground with a surprised screech. Grunting with effort, Jack tossed Eli into the dirt beside
Rachel. Eli’s eyes were watering from the blow dealt to his nose, while he continued to gasp
from his prolonged air shortage; neither he nor Rachel was able get to their feet.
Jack gazed at the pair of Sentinels and shook his head.
“You should’ve used your weapon,” Jack pointed out to Rachel. “I probably would have
negated your attack anyway, but at least you would have had a better chance.”
He turned to a trembling Jean, who was looking on with wide, frightened eyes.
“And you…” Jack began again. “You could have capitalized on Rachel’s assault, yet you
still just stand there, quaking like a timid puppy. I suppose you will need me to instill some
backbone in you!”
The old Sentinel dashed toward a stationary Jean and leaped at him with a powerful yell;
from his place in the upturned grass, Eli closed his eyes in anticipation of the brutal blow that
Jean was about to sustain. Jack is taking this seriously – he’s showing no mercy whatsoever.
This “sparring match” feels more intense than any real battle.
“What the-?” came a surprised exclamation from Jack.
Eli opened his eyes to see a confused Jack staring at the ground; he had driven his fist
into the area Jean had been moments ago.
“Where is he? What kind of trick is this?”
The sound of rapid footsteps could be heard as Jean, now appearing reinvigorated,
charged Jack from behind and lashed out with his mace. A surprise attack? How did he manage
that? Eli was certain that Jack would not be able to avoid this attack, as it appeared that the
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mace would easily club his head. However, Eli had underestimated Jack’s uncanny speed, and
he watched the Sentinel crouch just as the mace passed over his head.
“I can’t believe it,” Eli muttered weakly. “That was such a clever trap – I don’t even
know how Jean managed to execute it – yet it still failed to break Jack’s defenses.”
Jack laughed in amusement as he dealt a powerful palm strike to Jean’s stomach, sending
him tumbling backward. For a few moments, all four Sentinels paused, neither moving nor
making a sound. It’s over… This is nothing more than an exercise in futility. We’re no match
for him.
Jack studied each of his three sparring partners as they lie motionless in the dirt.
“Jean,” he said, walking over to the defeated Sentinel and helping him to his feet. “I had
no idea that you could use puppet clones – even I don’t know how to perform the puppet clone
technique.”
Jean managed a weak smile.
“Yes, it’s one of the few skills I possess that could aid me in battle,” he responded. “I
actually learned it in the Maw after watching demon-warriors perform it. Once I had seen it
executed several times over, I was able to use it for myself – it’s how I managed to escape the
Maw undetected.”
“Well, what do you know!” Jack exclaimed, slapping his knees. “I may be an old dog,
but I suppose I can still learn some new tricks! You will have to show us all how to use that
technique sometime; I believe it could be incredibly useful against the Outlaws.”
Eli and Rachel both struggled to their feet; Eli would have guessed that the battle would
have triggered some pain from his burn, but he hardly noticed the injury, as the agony inflicted
by Jack’s onslaught had overwhelmed it. I certainly hope we don’t have to face Mary and Clovis
in the near future. In my current state, it will be difficult to compete with them.
“You two are probably a bit puzzled,” Jack said as Rachel and Eli hobbled their way
over to where Jack and Jean were standing. “The puppet clone technique allows the user to
create a shell of their original self: a copycat, if you will. This copycat distracts opponents, and
it allows for a stealth attack. I’m not quite sure how it works… I guess that’s just another-“
“Enough!” Eli interrupted angrily; the three other Sentinels whipped their heads around
toward him, startled. “I want to know how the hell you’re so strong. If everything you’ve told
us is true, there’s no way you could ward off three Sentinels at once with little or no effort –
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you’ve had essentially no training during your time as a Sentinel. Explain what’s going on! No
lies!”
Jack backed away, holding his hands up in defense.
“Calm down, son!” he urged him. “I understand your frustration, but you need to realize
that there are multiple explanations for the results of this little battle we had. For one, I have
acquired some fighting experience as a Sentinel, despite the fact that I haven’t encountered many
Outlaws. There are often times when I have had to interfere with wars in the Living World,
which required me to develop elite combat skills. It is also possible that the Angels have
lessened the severity of the Maw since I was sent there. In other words, it may be that your
escaping the Maw in three years is not as impressive as you think.”
Eli gritted his teeth with anger upon hearing Jack’s insulting words; Rachel placed her
hand on his shoulder.
“Yes, you need to calm down,” she told him. “If anything, we should be honored that we
get the chance to learn from Jack. We all need to work together if we want to beat the Outlaws.”
“Exactly, and that brings me to my next point,” Jack added. “After receiving the
opportunity to spar with you, I’ve identified several obvious deficiencies in your fighting
abilities. The time has now come to correct these deficiencies. But where to begin…”
He flicked Eli’s nose with his index finger without warning; Eli staggered back with pain.
“Why did you do that?” he demanded. “That area is still sore from your punch.”
“Yup, that’s it,” Jack stated, appearing to have come to some sort of revelation. “I need
to toughen you all up – both physically and mentally. That is how we will progress with our
training, and I have the perfect exercise.”
Jack flew off into the bamboo forest surrounding the clearing; stalks of bamboo rustled
and creaked as he rummaged about in the undergrowth.
“What’s he doing now?” Eli asked impatiently.
An enormous chunk of bamboo came rocketing from the forest, and it landed directly in
front of the unsuspecting Sentinels with a loud thump. Eli knelt down to study the hefty
segment: It was over one meter in length, with a dense, tan exterior.
“Look out!” Rachel shouted as two more bamboo segments came plummeting down
towards them.
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The trio leaped away as the large plants came to the ground; Jack came soaring out of the
foliage behind the bamboo he had hurled.
“Perfect!” he said with satisfaction. “They’re all about the same size and shape. They’ll
be more than enough to challenge the three of you.”
“What are we going to do now?” Jean inquired.
“One of the few training exercises I learned from my earlier times as a Sentinel,” Jack
told him. “This will be the first drill you attempt under my tutelage. It won’t be pleasant, but
it’s a fine place to start nonetheless.” He pointed to the straw hut at the edge of the clearing.
“Now,” he continued. “carry these big logs over there. That will be your starting point.”
Too thoroughly beaten and tired to argue, the three obeyed, and each seized hold of one
of the bamboo segments. Since the bamboo was hollow, Eli assumed it would not be as heavy as
it looked, yet he found himself struggling to get it off the ground. The best he could manage was
to simply drag it along, and Rachel and Jean did not seem to be faring any better. Dare I even
ask what he plans to have us do with these?
“Hurry along,” Jack ordered from beside the hut. “We don’t exactly have infinite time to
waste.”
Huffing with fatigue, the three finally managed to reach Jack; they released their bamboo
fragments and let them tumble to the ground.
“You’re going to need to pick those back up,” Jack told them. “Place them upon your
backs and squat down – you’ll be doing some duck walking.”
The trio of younger Sentinels groaned with dismay.
“Are you telling us we’ve got to carry these things around on our backs?” Jean asked
him.
“Yes,” Jack replied. “I want you to carry them along the perimeter of the clearing,
preferably three times. This exercise will be tedious and wearying to say the least, but its
benefits will far outweigh its costs. You’ll strengthen your bodies as well as your wills – I
cannot think of a more appropriate drill to initiate your training.”
Jack scooped one of the bamboo fragments from the ground effortlessly and directed Jean
into a crouching position; he then laid the bamboo across his shoulders. Eli gulped as he
watched Jean tremble beneath the weight of the log, knowing that he and Rachel would have to
bear the same burden. Without hesitation, Jack then did the same for Rachel and Eli. Though
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the group had not even begun to move yet, Eli felt a debilitating ache in his legs from the weight
of the segment.
“All right, time to get moving,” Jack told them nonchalantly. “The longer you have to
carry those things, the worse it will be for you. Keep as close to the edge of the clearing as you
can, and don’t you dare rise from that squatting position.”
Eli summoned his remaining strength to begin hobbling along from his crouching
position with the crushing piece of bamboo on his shoulders. Every time he took a single step, it
seemed he was undertaking some tremendous feat; the muscles in his legs quickly became so
tight that he could barely move them. Judging by the sounds coming from beside him, Rachel
and Jean were not enjoying the exercise any more than he was.
“This bamboo is quite extraordinary,” Jack remarked as he trailed behind the struggling
Sentinels. “The density of its exterior is so great that, even as a hollow plant, it is as heavy as
lead. You won’t find anything of the sort in the Living World.”
Taking miniscule steps forward, Eli found that it was a constant battle to merely keep his
head up. He often had to allow it to drop, which caused him to lose sight of his path and collide
with the other Sentinels.
“That’s it,” Jack encouraged from behind. “Keep moving along – I told you this would
be a test of will.”
Eli became light-headed due to the fatigue he was experiencing, and he began to
disassociate from the world around him. Still, he somehow managed to continue moving.
“I want you to pretend that you’re in a fight against Outlaws,” came Jack’s voice again.
“You are extremely exhausted, but you need to continue battling if you wish to preserve the lives
of your comrades. What will you do? Will you roll over and die, or will you find a way to
continue fighting? These are questions you will be forced to ask yourselves in time.”
Eli made an effort to take note of Jack’s words, despite his fatigue; as he trudged onward,
rounding a bend in the clearing border, he recalled his battle with the Outlaws. He remembered
his victory over the gauntlet-wielding Outlaw, and he thought about the grueling battle he and
the others had fought against Mary. Perhaps most important of all, he invoked memories of
Gerald’s death; the feeling of dread that befell him upon learning that his fellow Sentinel had
been killed returned to him once more.
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I can’t let something like that ever happen again. No matter what, I have to ensure the
safety of my friends. No Sentinel deserves to be banished to the Void. Somehow, Eli managed to
salvage one last ounce of vigor from the depths of his being; he felt rejuvenated, as a hint of
additional strength returned to his legs, and he continued forth. As the straw hut came into sight
ahead, he became aware of the heavy breathing of Rachel and Jean behind him. Though they
were likely exhausted, they also had refused to quit, which motivated Eli even further.
Despite his renewed motivational drive, however, his legs quickly grew weak and numb
again. It felt as if every step he took would be the last he could manage, yet he always found a
way to keep moving. In a battle, failure is simply not an option. Warriors will always grow
weary and fatigued, but the one that surmounts their limitations will be the one to succeed.
Never surrender, and I will never lose. As long as there is the slightest amount of strength
remaining in my body, I won’t succumb to my opponent.
With splinters from the bamboo now boring into his shoulders, Eli envisioned Mary in
his mind. Images and scenes from their battle in the Living World seemed to flash before his
eyes, then they quickly faded. He additionally saw fragments of the visions he had witnessed
within the transport cube, the ones that had presented him with troubling and perplexing events.
He caught sight of an image of his father’s face, the same one that had been nailed to a wooden
post near the village he had visited. Figures of shadow danced before his eyes, and he
transitioned into some sort of hypnotic state.
Though he knew he was still trudging on, he felt as if he had ceased the exercise; Jack’s
shouts from behind began to fade out of Eli’s awareness once again. Now, he saw a legion of
Sentinels marching along a barren plain – a vision he had not yet seen before. There were
initially about two dozen of them, but one by one, they began to vanish in cloaks of mist. After
half of them had been swept away by the mist, the rest were enveloped by a blazing inferno, and
they too disappeared.
These scenes are grippingly life-like. Why am I seeing them now? I wonder if this new
one could even mean anything… With all the marching Sentinels out of sight, the inferno
continued to rage. Eventually, the flames parted, revealing a slender object suspended in the air
amidst the fire. As the object’s black casing slowly slid off of it, a katana blade was revealed,
and Eli recognized it as Jay Takashi’s weapon. The exposed blade rose upward, while the flames
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below darkened and liquified; the dark-red liquid spread across the entire plain in surging waves,
frothing and heaving. A sea of blood… but whose is it?
Nobody was present within the sea, yet Eli could still hear voices raised in battle cries
and screams; he was almost expecting to see Mary emerge from the shifting mass of blood, but
he neither saw her nor heard her dreadful cackle. The vision remained as it was, although Eli
hoped that it would change or disappear, as the sight of the blood unsettled him. He could smell
its scent as well; the taste of blood was even in his mouth.
His concern heightened as he felt a thick, warm fluid flow around his ankles. Looking
below, he saw that the blood from the sea had somehow reached him; it was rapidly rising,
reaching his hips as it produced a sickening gurgling noise. His surroundings became pitch-dark,
while the blood tugged down at his clothes. Now breathing quickly with panic, Eli shrugged the
bamboo off of his shoulders and tried to free his legs from the blood. To his dismay, his efforts
were fruitless. The blood soon became level with his shoulders – all but his head was engulfed
in the sticky mass of red liquid.
“What’s… happening?” he sputtered as blood filled his mouth.
He became engulfed completely, and he lost consciousness.
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Chapter 13
“He’s regaining consciousness,” came a vague and distant voice. “Stand back – give him
some room.”
Eli opened his eyes to see the dark sky of his living quarters above. He was lying upon
his back near the straw hut, and as he attempted to sit up, Jack stepped forward to speak with
him.
“Eli, are you alright?” he asked with a concerned tone. “You were experiencing another
episode of psychosis, and a severe one at that.”
As Jack aided him to his feet, Eli shook his head vigorously to free himself from his state
of confusion; his legs ached from the trauma induced by the grueling training he had endured.
Jack had to place his hands under his back to prevent him from falling, as the young Sentinel
could barely stand.
“You were doing so well with the exercise, too,” Jack continued, while Jean and Rachel
approached them, breathing heavily. “You had left these two in the dust, but you collapsed
immediately before completing your final lap. You were twitching on the ground for a short
time, before fainting altogether.”
Rachel and Jean’s eyes displayed worry.
“Are you okay, Eli?” Rachel asked him. “This is the second time this has happened. Is
there something you aren’t telling us – some issue we should know about? We may be able to
help you.”
Eli simply shook his head.
“I’m not sure…” he said quietly. “I was thinking about the Outlaws again, but then the
same sort of visions I saw during my last episode appeared before me once more. This time, I
witnessed a new scene: a group of Sentinels being devoured in flames and a sea of blood.”
“So…” Jack mused. “You experience visions? Is this something you have always done,
even in the Living World?”
“No, not at all,” Eli told him. “It’s only happened very recently. I think it has something
to do with the female Outlaw, Mary.”
Jack nodded in comprehension.
“Yes, she is an unusual one,” Jack admitted. “Even I am not sure of her full capabilities;
her mental-manipulation skills are undoubtedly second to none.” He slowly lowered Eli down to
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the ground again. “Here, sit down. You look as pale as a ghost, and you can’t even stand up
straight.”
Eli noticed that the bamboo door that led back to the Chamber of the Judge was visible
near the center of the clearing. They must have found and activated my fortress key. I suppose
it’s nearly time to leave.
“At this point, the chieftains have probably managed to summon forth many of our
fellow Sentinels,” Jack announced, seemingly reading Eli’s thoughts. “We shall aim to return to
the chamber as soon as Eli is fit, though I doubt they have assembled everyone yet, and they
certainly are not prepared for us to cast our votes for the new Judge.”
Eli came to realize that he was sweating profusely – not just from the training, but also
from his illusory experience; he did indeed feel unfit to do much of anything.
“Come to think of it, you two should leave,” Jack instructed Rachel and Jean. “Eli and I
will be following you soon.”
The two obeyed without hesitation, opening the bamboo door and disappearing beyond
its frame.
“So, what do you think?” Jack asked Eli. “You certainly aren’t looking well, but are you
at least feeling strong enough to return to the chamber?”
Eli drew a deep breath, attempting to regain his composure; he stretched his legs out
along the ground, and he found that they were left with a dull ache.
“I can sit down once we get back,” Eli responded. “so I should be fine. More than
anything else, my inner fortitude is shaken – these visions have not been pleasant at all.”
“Yes, about those…” Jack began tentatively. “It will be problematic if you continue to
have them, or at least the loss of consciousness associated with them will be. Is there anything in
particular that seems to trigger them, such as concentrating thought on the female Outlaw?”
Eli lifted each of his legs slightly and noticed that they were already beginning to recover,
as he could now move them without any significant pain or limitations.
“Well, that is what happened in this particular case,” he answered. “I thought about
Mary, and a series of unsettling images followed. In contrast, the cause of my delirium on the
cube is unknown. I attempted to contact Ana, failed, and found myself warped to a new reality.
I then witnessed events from the past that somehow related to my former life, and I found them
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quite disturbing. However, it is important to note that Mary was present in those visions as
well.”
Recognizing that Eli was ready to move along, Jack helped the young Sentinel back to his
feet.
“In that case,” said Jack as he laid Eli’s arm across his shoulders and headed for the door.
“it seems as though you are vulnerable to these delusions whenever you are either fatigued or in
an altered state of consciousness. As such, I implore you to always remain vigilant and alert,
especially during battle, when the time comes.”
The pair of Sentinels proceeded through the entrance back to the chamber; when they
arrived, they found themselves utterly duped, for the space they were in was now crowded with
other Sentinels. Bustling bodies teemed about them, and Eli could not even determine what their
position in the chamber was, as the masses of bodies that pressed him hindered his sight.
“Good gracious!” exclaimed Jack. “I can’t believe they’ve made so much progress
already. We would be fortunate to have this many Sentinels alive in total, yet they may not even
be finished in guiding the rest back here.”
Eli felt joy well up in him as he saw his fellow Sentinels greeting one another and
laughing together. Who knows what they have endured on their missions. If it was anything as
terrible as what we experienced, it is no wonder they are so elated to have returned safely.
Amidst the optimistic chatter about him, Eli heard a voice calling for him and Jack. He
turned to his left to see Jean and Rachel burst from the surrounding crowds, their faces alight
with excitement.
“Everyone is back!” Rachel shouted with glee. “I think we’re going to hear from the
chieftains soon! We can finally take our next course of action together!”
“Indeed,” Jean added. “I believe I just heard others say that Vlad will be addressing all
of us momentarily.”
“Then I suppose we’re just in time,” Jack said. “I’ll bet we’re going to hear about the
new training divisions they’re going to establish, as well as the much-needed security measures
that will be put in place. However, I don’t think we’ll learn what we’re going to do with Sarah
yet - that probably won’t be until after a new Judge has been appointed.”
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Eli, now feeling more stable in his legs, lifted his arm from Jack’s shoulders and stood on
his own, scanning the Chamber. He noticed Philip and Jedediah conversing with a wiry, young
male, but otherwise, he could not identify anyone else in the crowd.
“I wonder whom we will be grouped with for training,” Eli thought aloud.
“Oh!” Rachel jumped in. “I hope that we’re all together for one training division!”
“Well, if memory serves, there are usually three to four Sentinels in a single training
division,” Jack stated. “so it’s certainly a possibility, though I’m not sure if they intentionally
group together Sentinels who are already familiar with one another.”
Eli could not share Rachel’s sentiment in this regard: Continuing to train with Jack was
not at all appealing to him. Although he was not typically one to shy away from a challenge,
Jack’s intense training was a bit excessive for even Eli. On the other hand, I do believe I would
grow substantially under his guidance…
“Everyone, please sit down,” came a command from above.
The crowd conglomerated in the chamber looked up to see Vlad perched atop the great
rock, his fellow chieftains standing beside him.
“We have managed to recover all of the survivors; thus, it is time to announce how we
will proceed with the dire circumstances we face.”
The cluster of Sentinels migrated toward the nearest section of chairs, and Eli seized a
seat in the front row; Jack and the others pushed their way through the mass of Sentinels to claim
the seats beside him.
As everyone began to settle around him, Eli noticed that there were far fewer Sentinels
present now than when he had first entered the chamber. They seemed to have been many in
number when they were crowded into a single mass, but now that they had spread apart
throughout the room, it was clear to see that their numbers had been halved. And Vlad said that
these were all the survivors. Those who did not survive must have been victimized by Outlaws…
how could there have been so many? This was a massive onslaught, and we must make them
pay.
A hand slapped Eli’s shoulder from behind.
“What do you think, son?” came Philip’s voice. “They finally rounded everyone up. Just
imagine if we hadn’t found you guys when you were fighting them Outlaws: We’d still be
wandering about the Living World, getting picked off one at a time by those bastards.”
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Philip, Jedediah, and the unknown Sentinel whom they had been speaking with all sat
down in the row behind Eli’s.
“Yes,” Jedediah agreed. “Our construction of the soul key was pivotal for every Sentinel,
for without it, not one of our allies would have been able to return.”
Chatter amongst all of the Sentinels present slowly faded as Vlad raised his hand up,
signaling for silence.
“To begin, I would like to present you with some uplifting news,” he announced. “We
have recovered the Saint: She resides safely in my bunker as we speak. This means that, despite
our losses, our first mission was successful.”
The Sentinels gathered in the chamber, save Eli and his friends, began to clap in triumph;
Vlad raised his hand once again for silence, then continued to speak.
“But… we have a major issue that must be addressed: Outlaws have managed to infiltrate
the Judge’s domain, and they have assassinated her. This means that we are currently without a
Judge.”
Upon hearing the grim news, panic fell over the room; the chamber rang with anxious
murmuring and even a few wails. That’s right – none of these other Sentinels have heard the
news yet. They are completely unaware of what has transpired recently.
“Furthermore,” Vlad continued. “it means that we need to introduce new security
measures, such that we have not seen in many years. We are not exactly sure how these Outlaws
managed to breach the Judge’s domain, but with our precautions in place, they should not be able
to succeed again.”
“You shouldn’t be so certain,” Jack piped up, rising to his feet. “These Outlaws are not
to be trifled with. My group encountered one in particular that has abilities that far surpass those
of any Outlaw I have seen in the past. In other words, don’t underestimate them – don’t
underestimate them in the slightest.”
As Vlad nodded in comprehension, another Sentinel stood from her place at the far end of
the chamber, near the wall. This one looked just like a female version of Jack: She had the same
blue eyes, and she looked to be about the same age. Despite her short white hair and wrinkled
skin, there was a certain essence of youthfulness to her, just as there was with Jack.
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“I agree,” she stated. “I am the last surviving member of my group – the rest were killed
by a pair of Outlaws. Their strength was formidable, but I am more concerned with something
one of them mentioned: He said something about Jay Takashi, acting as if he was still alive.”
More murmurs of unrest filled the chamber, and even Vlad released a gasp of terror.
“T- Takashi?” he stuttered. “He still roams the Living World? Has anyone seen him?”
The anxious chatter in the chamber continued, but no one answered him.
A female chieftain beside Vlad studied some stationery she was clutching and whispered
something into his ear; he almost appeared to be trembling as she eventually pulled away, and
the crowd of Sentinels silently awaited what had been said.
“My friends,” he said solemnly. “I’ve just received word that there are four divisions of
Sentinels in close proximity with each other that have been annihilated entirely. It could be
possible that Takashi was the culprit; this theory would explain why no one has seen the demon:
No witnesses survived.”
The assembled crowd was seized by throes of unrest, as the Sentinels’ chatter grew
louder, and they fidgeted about nervously.
“Of course,” Vlad continued. “we do not have conclusive evidence of this. Moreover,
regardless of whether Takashi is alive or not, we already know that we must keep our guard up
against the Outlaws that currently threaten us. Doing so will require every bit of effort and
vigilance we can muster; Takashi’s being alive and well would simply make things more
challenging for us.”
Eli squeezed his fists tightly and clenched his teeth at the thought of being confronted by
Jay Takashi. Jack said that he could defeat one hundred Sentinels, so I suppose that decimating
four divisions, which would amount to no more than twenty Sentinels, would be child’s play for
him. We are fortunate that our group did not meet him, or else Sarah would not currently be
with us.
“As such,” Vlad went on. “changes must be made immediately. We will assign a team
of guards to protect our domain from further Outlaw infiltration. We will additionally distribute
weapons to all of you and divide you into training units, so that you shall be prepared for any
coming battles. In fact, my associates are determining whom the units shall consist of as we
speak; we hope to include six to eight Sentinels per unit.”
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“Well, shoot,” Philip muttered from behind Eli. “Those are some pretty big training
units. It must be because there are too few experienced Sentinels to lead the training sessions, so
they have to settle for fewer groups, with more members per group.”
“I will note that we have already decided who will make up the Judge’s guard,” Vlad told
the crowd. “The Sentinels we have selected are: Jedediah Williams, Kawi Nkrumah, Jane Smith,
Victor Asimov, Richard Brar, Thomas Morales, and Ruby. You seven will be tasked with
protecting the Judge, whoever that will be.”
Philip snorted, while Jack chuckled quietly.
“That’s hilarious,” Jack remarked. “He acts as if he doesn’t know that he will be the next
Judge. There’s no way anyone else will be selected.”
“Yeah,” Philip agreed. “I guess he’s just too modest.”
Eli found it interesting that three of the seven selected happened to be Sentinels he knew.
I had a feeling that Jedediah and Ruby were strong, but I am surprised they did not choose Jack;
perhaps that is because they would rather have him lead a training unit: a responsibility that
requires significant experience.
“As for the rest of you,” Vlad proceeded. “you will still be required to do battle, should
the necessity arise. Because of this, most of you will soon be sent to our armory to retrieve new
weapons, although I know that this will not be the case for some of you, who are already armed.”
Vlad then turned to face his fellow chieftains and paused for a moment; the chieftains
shared a series of glances amongst themselves, and after some time, stared back at Vlad and
nodded.
“I suppose that is all I have to say… for now,” Vlad announced as he turned back toward
the crowd. “I will point out that we shall need to wait a good deal longer before the Angels
appoint a new Judge. We will soon be able to cast votes, but more time will be needed before
the new Judge is actually given the power of the position. Aside from all this…”
Vlad trailed off, observing the Sentinels conglomerated below with an expression of
feigned optimism.
“I do not know exactly what the future holds for us, but I have spoken with some of our
senior Sentinels, and we agree that in all likelihood, our next order of business will be escorting
the young Saint to a shrine. I cannot say where this shrine would be located, or if we will even
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be able to open a soul-gate in its vicinity, but it is probable that we shall need to seek one out
nonetheless.”
Jack leaned toward Eli’s ear.
“By ‘senior Sentinels’, he means me and Philip,” he whispered. “I guess we carry a quite
a bit of weight around here, don’t we?”
“Shut the hell up,” Philip grunted from behind. “Some of us are trying to listen – this is
very important.”
“Regardless,” Vlad was saying. “There is no doubt that challenges lie ahead – such that
we have not seen yet. Unity, perseverance, and grit will all be paramount as we move forward.”
Vlad’s face grew stone-hard; a solemness fell upon all gathered around the great rock,
and Eli gulped. He's having a difficult time hiding his concern. What is he afraid of? Takashi?
Whatever it is, everyone else can… just sense it.
“Ultimately, there’s no avoiding it,” the short chieftain said. “Our future hinges on our
success. Should we fail, all will be lost: not only the Living World, but also us along with it. I
cannot overemphasize how important our next course of action will be; it will require each of
you, and each of you will be required to give everything you have.”
The chamber was now completely silent – not even Jack uttered a sound. Eli felt chilled
to the bone as he heard Vlad speak, though he knew everything he had said was likely true, and
that all assembled needed to hear it. Against the Outlaws, one must indeed give everything they
have. Then again, it would seem that the other divisions have had to battle Outlaws as well, so I
am sure this isn’t news to them.
“But…” Vlad eventually carried on. “I know we have encountered challenges in the past,
and we have always overcome them. In a way, I feel that Sentinels’ success is always inevitable,
no matter what the obstacle is. After all, we’re all here for a reason, for none of us could be
Sentinels if we could not surmount difficult odds. It’s as if a Sentinel is always guaranteed to
give their all, especially when it matters most, as it is all we know how to do.”
Vlad’s words resonated profoundly with Eli, who had not soon forgotten how he had felt
during his time in the Maw; many of the other sentinels, however, did not seem particularly
convinced, as doubt shadowed their faces. I don’t know if we actually have enough powerful
Sentinels to win whatever fight lies ahead, but I’ll always give my best, regardless of whom I’m
fighting with.
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“I wish you all the best of luck in the days ahead,” Vlad concluded. “Trust yourselves,
and trust one another.”
With that, Vlad retreated from where he was standing atop the rock and nodded to one of
his fellow chieftains; it was the one who had informed him of the death toll suspected to have
been caused by Jay Takashi. She assumed his place in front of the rest of the chieftains, a sheet
of paper in her grasp. She must be preparing to announce the personnel for the new training
units. This should be interesting… I wonder if there’s any way I will not be assigned to Jack’s
group.
“Many of you already know me,” she began in a low voice. “but for those of you who
don’t, my name is Elizabeth. I have recently assumed the position of Chief Scribe, which was
held by Vlad prior to the Judge’s death.”
She flashed her eyes toward her paper quickly, and Eli’s suspicions were confirmed.
Those are the listings for the group members.
“Therefore,” she continued. “I will be informing you of whom our newly formulated
training units will consist of. After this has been done, we will distribute weapons to all who
need them, and we will then commence training immediately. We have no time to waste if we
wish to overcome our assailants, so we will spend every available moment preparing to defeat
them. After all, chances that we will not need to encounter Outlaws another time are quite slim.”
The crowd shifted uncomfortably around Eli – it was as if he could simply smell their
fear. Most of them are deathly afraid of the Outlaws, which is understandable, but it will
drastically impair our ability to complete whatever mission lies ahead. I hope they can find a
way to overcome their fears – they’ll need to if we are to succeed.
“Without further ado,” Elizabeth announced. “I will begin listing the constituents of each
unit, so please grant me your attention for a few moments. Unit one will be led by…”
Elizabeth’s voice seemed to trail off, as a ringing began to fill Eli’s ears; the Sentinels
about him became warped and distorted, shifting into bizarre shapes.
“Not this again!” Eli muttered in anger, clutching at the sides of his head.
Dizziness befell him, just as it had during his previous delusional experiences, but this
time, the Sentinels did not disappear; they simply remained in their distorted states, and he could
still vaguely hear Elizabeth’s voice, though he could not quite make out what she was saying.
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The young Sentinel almost felt relieved that this episode was not as severe as the
previous ones, until he caught sight of what was before him. Posing in front of the great rock
was a bloodied man with crazed eyes. He was staring at Eli intensely, and none of the other
Sentinels seemed to notice him. Once Eli was able to ignore the blood-spatter on the man’s
clothes and face, he identified him as his father with a jolt of disbelief.
Wearing a familiar yet disturbing grin, Eli’s father approached him slowly.
“It’s been a while, son,” he said softly. “It looks like you’ve grown a bit since the last
time I saw you.”
Eli was taken aback, not knowing exactly how to respond, especially after having seen
his father in the strange vision he had experienced before.
“What are you doing here?” Eli asked tentatively. “I thought you were dead. Where
have you been as of late?”
Eli knew he could not expect a reliable answer, as the person he saw before him was
merely an illusion; none of the other Sentinels had noticed him yet, and Elizabeth did not cease
her speaking.
Still, as his father gazed into his eyes, Eli strongly felt that what he was seeing had to be
more than an illusion.
“I suppose you can say I’ve been… taking care of some business,” his father answered
eventually. “I had to temporarily leave you and your mom behind, and you were both gone
before I could return home. Unlike the two of you, I never died.”
Eli’s father caught sight of Jack, who was just staring ahead at the speaking chieftain.
“Who’s this?” he asked curiously. “Your friend?”
“Oh, this is Jack,” Eli told him. “He’s more like my mentor than my friend; he’s the first
person I met upon becoming a Sentinel.”
His father nodded in comprehension, still studying Jack carefully.
“Yes, about that…” he began again. “What do you think about being a Sentinel so far?
It looks like you are all in a bit of a bind right now.”
Regardless of whether he was currently witnessing an illusion or not, Eli found speaking
to his father somewhat comforting, even given the series of visions he had seen.
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“It has been nothing but stressful,” Eli admitted. “Because of the bind we are in, we have
not been able to receive a moment’s rest. The very fate of the Living World hangs in the
balance; if we fail to protect the Saint we have been tasked with guarding, all is lost.”
Eli’s father seemed as though he had not been paying attention at all to his son’s last few
remarks. Instead, he was fixated on his surroundings, surveying the chamber and the Sentinels
within it.
“Dad?” Eli prompted, awaiting a response.
His father redirected his attention back to Eli and smiled.
“Dad?” he repeated. “We’re both fully grown now. You can just call me by my real
name – call me John.”
“Alright… John,” Eli continued. “exactly what kind of ‘business’ did you need to take
care of? Why was it so important that you had to leave us?”
John opened his mouth to speak, then hesitated, choosing his words carefully. His
father’s difficulty in providing an honest response to such a simple question concerned Eli, and
he felt a churning of worry in his stomach. What have you been up to, John? And why am I
seeing you just now?
“At this time…” John began slowly. “it’s hard to explain. You’ll learn more about me as
time draws on; just keep doing what your friend – er… mentor – tells you to.”
“If you are an insinuating that I am going to have to learn through more of these visions,”
Eli answered. “then I would have to decline. My fellow Sentinels will need me soon, and I
cannot afford to continue experiencing hallucinations like this if I wish to aid them.”
As John opened his mouth to speak again, Eli’s attention returned to the blood-spatter on
his clothes. It was all completely dried; there was no telling how old it was.
“Don’t worry about the visions,” John finally assured him. “It will all be worth it in due
time. Good things for you lie ahead, Eli. I simply need you to trust me for a little while, and for
you to stay safe on your missions.”
He placed his hand atop Eli’s head.
“Well, I’ve kept you long enough already,” he told him. “You still have some important
work to do – please see to it that we’ll be able to meet again. The next time I get to see you, I
will have something great in store. So long, son… for now.”
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Bright light blinded Eli from all angles, and it forced him to cover his eyes. When it
seemed that the glare had vanished, he removed his hands from his eyes, only to see that his
father was gone. The appearances of his fellow Sentinels had returned to their original forms,
and he could hear their voices clearly. To his surprise, they were all vacating their seats and
heading towards the center of the chamber – some were even activating their fortress keys.
Jack was grasping onto Eli’s shoulder and shaking him lightly.
“Hello, anyone home in there?” he prompted. “It’s time to get back to it.”
Eli looked to Jack in confusion.
“Time for what?” he asked. “What’s going on?”
Jack rolled his eyes.
“Don’t tell me you did it again!” he exclaimed, exasperated. “You missed the
announcements for the new group assignments! Everyone is getting ready to start training.”
Jack rose from his seat and yanked Eli up along with him.
“Come on, you’re in my group,” the old Sentinel said. “The others are waiting for us
ahead.”
The pair hurried over to a crowd of young-looking Sentinels standing at the foot of the
great rock. One of them was Rachel, but the rest – four others - were unfamiliar to Eli.
“Sorry about that,” Jack apologized. “We’ll be departing right away. We can all get
acquainted once we arrive.”
He tossed his fortress key into the air, and an icy, metal door fell to the floor with a heavy
clamor.
“Go on in,” Jack ordered them. “I’ll be right in after you.”
Everyone obeyed, save Eli, who stood beside Jack outside the door for a moment.
“I’m going to give you a bit of time to pull yourself together,” Jack told him. “Training
won’t do anyone any good if you keep zoning out like this – we need you in a sound mental
state. Once you think you’re ready, join us immediately.”
Jack proceeded through the door, leaving Eli alone.
Now that his vision had ended, he was feeling well; he was not convinced that there was
much he could do to prevent his visions, as they seemed to occur of their own accord. What did I
just see? Was it an illusion created by Mary? If so, why does she keep showing me my father?
On the other hand…
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Eli considered the possibility that what he had seen was actually is father, rather than just
a false imitation. Of course, he had to dismiss the possibility almost immediately, for if his
father had died in the Living World and survived the Maw, he would obviously be a Sentinel. If
he had failed to conquer the Maw, he would be in the Void; it would make no sense for him to be
able to simply appear and disappear as he chooses.
Shaking his head in an attempt to rid himself of his troubling thoughts, Eli moved toward
the doorway before him. I must be just imagining things on my own… but still, the question
remains: Who is my father? Perhaps more importantly, who am I?
3 AUDIOBOOK COLLECTIONS

6 BOOK COLLECTIONS