Chosen of the One: Chapter 5, Part 3

1 January 2026

Happy New Year! (An arbitrary date, I know) We hope that this year will be better than the last! Today’s installment of our epic fantasy, Chosen of the One, sees the kortexi, Blakstar, finish his ascent of the Mountain of Vision, traveling through elemental air. . . . (16 December 2013) We again remind our readers to right-click on the Glossary link, open in a new tab or window, thus enabling the reader to learn what each of these new terms mean.

Chapter 5, Part 3

Light grew in front of him; he saw the golden line leaving the rock, moving off into open air. As he approached the edge of the stone, he saw empty space and the monochrome ocean and beach far below. He felt a twinge of fear deep in his middle as he left the rock and stepped into open air. He heard the rumble of thunder overhead, and in front of him, he saw huge, dark clouds approaching rapidly from the west. As his path climbed higher in the sky, the storm clouds surrounded the mountain, obscuring his vision. Multi-forked bolts of white lightning crackled around him, rending the air with deafening peals of thunder. A single bolt struck his nimbus of protection and curled around it, lighting the kortexi’s face with flashes of pure white; he felt his skin tingle and all his hair standing up. He thought that he was climbing before the clouds encircled him, and his path and line soon left the clouds, leveling off on top of them. The golden line curved around the huge anvil shape towering over him, moving around the storm’s center. Circling around the storm, he could see small colorful shapes flying that looked like lizards with wings. Four noticed his presence, diving from overhead toward him. As they came nearer, he realized that they were aperum colored red, yellow, blue, and orange. Each flew past him and his sphere, its bat-like wings spread wide and its teeth bared in a reptilian grin, mouth open and releasing the full fury of its breath, of fire, lightning, frost, and acid. Having learned well his response to each attack, the kortexi kept his thoughts focused on the rod, walking forward and willing the sphere to turn back each breath attack. Each aperu screamed in fury after each released its breath against Blakstar. The red, the apparent leader, howled to its companions, who responded to his call by hovering above the kortexi and attacking in unison. Again, Blakstar kept his thoughts focused on the rod as he walked forward, mentally reinforcing his shield. The aperum roared in fury, calling for their master. Orkegan, Lord of the Skies, flew down to stand on the cloud to Blakstar’s left. He appeared to be a large wethi-shaped figure with black, feathered wings at his back, legs ending in talons, like a bird of prey. He grinned as he looked at the kortexi walking on the clouds.
“It appears, my children,” Orkegan said, “that you have been thwarted by a questing kortexi. Perhaps I am to aid you in ending his quest.” He stroked the jeweled scepter he held in his right hand. He nodded to the kortexi. “We were actually expecting you; the Great Lord informed me of your approach and gave me leave to do whatever pleased me. As his loyal prince, I feel constrained to obey, although I wish to rule no other realm but the skies.” He raised his left hand, palm outward, toward the aperum circling above. Four beams of light shot from his hand and surrounded each aperu, causing each to glow with its particular color.

“Now, my children,” Orkegan said, “you have the strength to pierce his shield.”

Recalling the promise he had been given, Blakstar threw all his will into reinforcing his shield, making it impervious to the enhanced breath of each aperu. Orkegan had expected this response and nodded once. For the third time, the aperum attacked the kortexi with fire, lightning, frost, and acid. At the same time, the evil lord of the skies pointed his scepter toward Blakstar and said, in a breathy voice, “ghwergheusum.”

The sudden blast of wind did not affect the aperum or Orkegan, being creatures of the air, but the wind struck Blakstar’s nimbus of protection like the punch of a megatri. Too late, the kortexi realized his threat: the aperum were not meant to pierce his shield, only to cause him to make it impervious to any attack. The evil lord of the sky’s hurricane blast of wind was meant to push rod and kortexi out of the golden line they followed.

Orkegan smiled as he watched Blakstar tumble head over heels into the clouds below, still gripping the now useless iron rod. “Quite simple.”

Paaki, one of the ekludi contingent guarding the aerial approaches to the Mountain of Vision, felt the evil force driving the storm threatening the mountain. He had also been warned, when he came on watch, that a questing kortexi of great importance would ascend the mountain while he was on patrol. Knowing of Orkegan’s hatred toward the kortexem, Paaki sent a mental summons to his wing of gold aperum to join him in investigating the storm. He knew from experience that the evil lord of the skies would attack the kortexi in the elemental realm of air. Paaki sent another thought, informing his second, who would strengthen the Mountain’s defenses by summoning extra flights of silver and bronze aperum aloft, with their respective ekludi leaders. He rose higher in the air and took his place at the head of his wing of aperum. The ekludi were akin to the land-born kerono, but much, much larger, nearly the size of the smaller aperum, moving through the air like a wisp of golden cloud; in ancient, ekludi meant “floating horse.” The hooves of the ekludi never touched earth. Its golden mane was full and merged with a long, flowing tail of the same sunny hue; its coat was scaled and the color of the sun on a cloudless day; its hooves and horn blushed the rosy pink color of the sunrise. They followed the path of the mind and were proficient tekson. Mind-speech was their only form of communication, but with it, they could converse with all creatures, including wethem. In the world’s beginning, they were close friends of Melbarth, Shigmar, and Karble, and still supported the heirs of each order. Holvar himself set them to this task, along with the aperum, to guard the Mountain of Vision from Orkegan and his minions.

Paaki led his wing above the storm to find the force driving it and disperse it before the questing kortexi entered this realm. Floating above the thunder head, Paaki saw the evil aperum circling in frenzied worship of the ansu that drove the storm. He also saw the four aperum descend, attack the kortexi, and summon Orkegan. He sent a summons to his second with instructions to bring up two other wings and attack the aperum, driving off both them and the ansu controlling the storm. Knowing what Orkegan would do, he and his wing dove toward the kortexi, half of them diving on the aperum and the other half diving beneath the kortexi. Paaki saw Orkegan reinforce his aperum and raise his scepter. Too late, he hurled a mental no to the kortexi. Half his wing was nearly beneath the kortexi, so he and the other half charged the four aperum and Orkegan. The ekludi leader knew he could not destroy the evil lord of the skies, but he could at least make him very uncomfortable. He lowered his head and crashed into Orkegan’s unprotected back. The force of Paaki’s charge impaled Orkegan on his teka horn, causing the evil sky lord to drop his scepter, which fell into the sea far below. Paaki threw back his head to remove the broken body from his horn. The body immediately disappeared; the aperum fled after seeing the fall of their lord; the ansu driving the storm howled defiance but withdrew, and the clouds began to disperse. Paaki knew that it would be long before Orkegan troubled questing kortexem again.

Good work, Paaki thought to his wing when he saw one of his gold wingmen rising from the clouds holding the shocked kortexi gently in his forelegs. Let us take him to the summit, he sent to his wing, leading them to the mountain’s summit, where the gold aperu carrying the kortexi landed and gave the kortexi to the keeper, who stood waiting for them to arrive.

Come back tomorrow when we will return to Klaybear as he returns to his home in Shigmar, experiencing the first consequences of his corrupted vision, and his marking by Gar. If you cannot wait until next week, you can download the entire novel for free from Smashwords!