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  The Sky is Endless

  Gestonian Series Book One

  Copyright © Alexander W. Meurant, 2018

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a database and retrieval system or transmitted in any form or any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the owner of copyright.

  Original illustrations by Il Kim

  Map by Alexander Meurant

  The Sky is Endless - Prologue

  * * *

  The lightning flashed, illuminating the darkened sky and casting eerie shadows across the land. The thunder roared, drowning out the cries and prayers of men fighting below. The rain pelted down hard and fast, turning the battlefield into a veritable and bloody mire. The battle raging below the heavens seethed across the land, vast hosts of men assailing each other, trying in any way to attain the slightest advantage to turn the battle, indeed the very war around.

  For three days and three nights battle had raged, accompanied by a tempest so violent the earth seemed to shake with rage.

  On the fourth day, the magi of Maldon unleashed a terrible magic, tearing a vast hole in the earth and casting tens of thousands of warriors into the fiery depths. In one devastating blow the war was all but ended.

  Three Kings of the defeated, Jerimias, Rulo and Agralarch stood upon a hilltop and cursed their god for their defeat, the war fought in his name.

  The tempest in the heavens worsened, lighting lashed the land, and the rains intensity changed dramatically. Both the victorious and the defeated cast their eyes to the heavens and looked upon the flashes of rage and sadness within the heavens, as their gods turned their backs on humanity. Humanity had ignored the god’s wishes to live peaceably, and despite the warnings, had committed a great and final atrocity in the names of their deities.

  Upon the fifth day, the gods vanished and a great flood enveloped the land, wiping all but a few from existence.

  At this time all history was taken from the land heralding the start of a new era, one that would become known as the godless age.

  * * *

  It has been over a thousand years since the gods disappeared. No one knows if they were forsaken by man, or if they just abandoned us, sickened by our eagerness to butcher one another. Both magi and scientists have devoted their lives to answering this question, but an answer has never been found. Some people say that the gods will return when the earth is in a harmonious state, whilst others argue that they will not, as human nature prevents us from reconciling with one another. My question is this, if they really did abandon us to our fates, if they were ever to return, why would we want them?

  Lord Geston, Founder of the Holy Gestonian Empire.

  Chapter 1 Part I

  * * *

  The boy’s feet pounded hard on the pavement as he sprinted down the walkway, dodging and weaving between the other pedestrians, a stumble here and a slip there, the boys breathing became ragged as he ran ever further. Slowing to a halt, he desperately cast his gaze about for a hiding place, a stack of crates in an alley, a car laden with boxes, or the nearby plaza filled with people. Making a decision, he dived into the alley and hid himself behind the crates. As he stayed hidden, he fought desperately to steady his ragged breathing and pounding heart, the blood pounding in his ears the only noise around him.

  Within moments his pursuers rushed by, not even slowing to look in the alley, the boy counting the blurs of movement as they sped past. He recognized only a few, but guessed that they were all part of one of the local gangs that constantly preyed upon, robbed and tormented the unfortunate souls that lived in the slums, his home for the last three years.

  The boy slowly crept out of the alley and crouching low, looked around for the thugs, and with none in sight he stood up with a lopsided grin, and began to jog confidently away in the opposite direction to which the thugs had run. Looking back with a smug look on his face he saw that the thugs were threading through the plaza looking for him. As he turned back to continue jogging he heard a familiar voice happily yell out his name. He stopped, shocked by the ice cold feeling running down his spine. Cursing silently, he turned and faced the one calling his name.

  "Sain, Sain what are you doing here?" queried Rin happily as she skipped up to him. Rin, only a year his junior was the daughter of the neighborhood baker and a little scatterbrained. Rin, a pretty little golden haired girl. Rin, who had just unknowingly announced his very location to the thugs that were hunting him, was just skipping towards him with a basket in her hand and a wide, bright smile on her face. And yet, Sain could not feel any anger or even the slightest annoyance towards her carefree attitude.

  "Sain, shouldn't you be at work? Are you faking sick again? You're going to get in trouble if you get found out you know" Rin stated matter-of-factly with a very serious and almost chiding tone.

  "I'm in trouble now" Sain muttered to himself as he watched the thugs hurriedly making their way towards him through the crowded plaza. A few shouts came from the area as people were shoved and pushed out of the way, more than a few of them falling heavily to the paved ground.

  "I have work off today Rin. Look, I’m sorry but I have to go, I’ll see you later okay" he muttered under his breath as his eyes darted among the crowd, judging how long he had before his pursuers reached him. Not liking the few seconds he had, he waved goodbye to a puzzled looking Rin, and bolted away from the plaza. He didn’t even look back, just leaving the bewildered girl by herself as he ran, his eyes scanning for something in the environment that he could use to slow his pursuers.

  His eyes locked onto an alleyway not far in front of him and he gritted his teeth as he went straight for it, sprinting hard. If his memory served correct, there was a construction site nearby that he could lose them in. He rapidly approached the corner of the alley, his blood pounding in his ears and adrenaline surging. He could even hear the heavy thumps of his pursuers closing in and it rattled him.

  As he made it to the corner, a blur of movement came into his line of sight as someone else came barreling around the corner. Sain didn’t even have time to utter a sound of surprise as he collided with a person he could have passed off as a tree. He was knocked straight over, thumping to the ground rather heavily. He bounced off of the concrete, the left side of his head smacking loudly into the surface and sending his vision swimming. Dazed, he looked up with a groan, flashes of color masking the face of Jalel, the leader of the Blue Fang gang, the local thieves. The man stood above Sain, clearly surprised at the situation before him. His eyes were wide and his mouth hung open slightly. Shaking his head, Jalel seemed to come back to his senses and looked around as the rest of Sain’s pursuers arrived.

  Jalel grinned then, and gestured at the downed youth who was quickly grabbed by the goons, pulled to his feet and hauled into the jumble of side streets and alleys that made up the slums of Rindai city. Within moments Sain was alone with Jalel and his minions, all smirking proudly as if they had won some grand prize at a fair.

  "Well Sain my boy, how are you feeling this fine morning, running around like a chicken?" the brutish Jalel asked slowly, his gaze narrowed and with suspicion painted all over his face.

  Sain raised his head to look at the man, his head throbbing and his vision only now returning back to normal. He groaned softly and blinked blearily, his head drooping somewhat. After a few moments, he groaned yet again, his gaze lifting and his brown eyes opening to scan over Jalel's features. Jalel was a thug, and his visage reflected that in a dirty blonde cropped haircut and a wide heavy jaw. Even his nose appeared to be wide and flat, reminding Sain of a pig snout.
The man stood confidently, his large muscular frame betraying his habit of fitness.

  Sain sucked in a breath, his frame droopy and limp in the thugs grip. He hurt all over and had a splitting headache courtesy of the pavement. He closed his eyes and seemed to think for a moment, gathering his words for a response he knew would not earn him anything else but pain.

  "I'm fine Jalel, just getting some exercise is all. Though I didn't expect to see your ugly mug this early in the morning" came his indignant and tired retort to a shocked array of faces. He swore he even heard one of the goons gasp, and flicking his gaze up, Sain saw a goon with a hand pressed against his mouth in somewhat of a comical gesture. Sain smirked right before turning his attention back to Jalel, that smirk still painted on his face, which was certainly noticed by the thug in charge of this mob.

  "Heh, you think you're real funny don't you" Jalel stated with a dry and unimpressed tone, almost like he was bored by the tediousness of this conversation. Silence seemed to hang in the air for a few moments, before the thug spat to the side, and as Sain watched the spittle fall, Jalel slammed his oversized fist into the youth’s stomach.

  Sain felt all the air leave his lungs and he let out a gasp and splutter before he sank to the ground winded. He was not given time to recover as the thugs that were flanking him pulled him back to his feet and proceeded to hold him against the wall as Jalel hit him twice more. The force from the huge man’s punches slammed the youth back against the wall behind him each time and as Jalel pulled back from his final strike, Sain doubled over in the thugs grip, a hacking cough coming from him and a small part of his breakfast coming up to fall from his mouth and splatter on the pavement. Jalel just made a disapproving face, like he was disappointed that the youth could not take the hits so well. Then the man just shrugged before casually leaning against the wall and starting to speak.

  "Now, I hope you don't feel like being funny again boy. So why don't you just sit still and listen to what I have to say" came his words in that same droning and unimpressed tone as before. With nothing but a groan from Sain, Jalel smirked and crossing his arms across his chest, started talking once more.

  "So. My friends have told me that you have not only been ignoring your family’s obligations to the blue fang, but have also been fucking up our business with other folks, and that is a very unfortunate thing Sain. I'm afraid I can't overlook it this time, orders from the top you see" the man droned out again. He sighed dramatically then and moved his hands to produce a packet of cigarettes from his breast pocket. Pulling a cigarette from the pack, he lit up in front of the youth and exhaled a plume of smoke right in Sain’s face. As the youth coughed and spluttered, the big man sneered and continued.

  "I've been told to make an example of you, you know. So that no one else gets any funny ideas or notions of fucking with the gangs. But I got to thinking you know, you got smarts and a good arm, and it'd be bad to waste that. And then there's your magic. So why not stop following the mage law and working for that madman at the factory. Join me and you can start making some real scratch, maybe enough to even pay off your da's drinking debts. What do you say to that my boy?" Jalel droned out before blowing a plume of smoke into Sain's face once more, causing him to splutter again.

  Sain closed his eyes and waited for the smoke to clear before he mustered the courage for his next remark knowing full well what the consequences would be. He was a smart ass and he always got in trouble from his words more than anything else. This time was no exception.

  "Well, first of all, I wasn't aware that you actually had any friends" hissed Sain through gritted teeth.

  Jalel stared at Sain for a few moments before offering a short bark of laughter. Cutting off the sound abruptly, the man swung his left hand hard, backhanding Sain across the face, sending his head smacking back across the wall behind him. Motioning for his goons to release the boy, Jalel looked down angrily at Sain who just slid down the wall with one hand cupped on the side of his face, rather dazed. The thug just sneered before he slammed a vicious kick in the boy’s ribs, causing him to cry out in pain and collapse sideways onto the ground. Jalel scowled and stomped the downed youth twice on the shoulder before turning on his heel and starting to walk away. Stopping, Jalel looked back over his shoulder and spoke, a callous and rather malicious glint to his expression.

  "Three days Sain. That was the time limit my uppers gave me to deal with you, and it’s the time limit I’m giving you. Don't disappoint me, or mark my words you will be an example to remember" he stated with a severe lack of enthusiasm.

  Smirking, Jalel then walked away briskly, quickly trailed by his followers, leaving Sain to nurse his bruises and mull things over in his mind.

  For a while he just lay there, sort of resting against the wall, his eyes closed and breath ragged as he recovered from the beating. Everything hurt and ached to the point he felt like something was broken or cracked. After a while, what seemed like hours to him but was most likely no more than ten or so minutes, he hauled himself to his feet amidst pained gasps and protests of pain from different areas on his body. He gritted his teeth and started stumbling through the streets, rather switched off to his surroundings.

  He headed in the general direction of his home in west Rindai, the occasional shooting pain running through his body and causing him to stagger in his footsteps. It was an effort to drag himself forward. He came to a street corner and stopped as a small Ute bumped its way down the single roadway that was no more than a small alley. He looked up, catching a glimpse of the driver through the window who shot him a suspicious and worried look. It was a look that was seen often in the crime ridden city of Rindai, and one Sain had experienced many a time.

  When the car passed by, he sighed and looked down, catching a glimpse of himself in a puddle of water sloshing in an overflowed and blocked gutter. A pair of brown eyes looked back at him and he scanned his features, noting the slimness of his face and chin. His clean skin was marred by an angry bruise swelling up on the left side of his face, and his expression was tight and pained, showing his discomfort. The dirty blonde hair on the left side of his head seemed to be stuck to his skin by blood and he winced, a hand going up to gingerly touch the skin of his temple. It was split and grazed, where his head had smacked against the pavement. He sighed and stepped off of the curb, his feet splashing into the puddle, obliterating his reflection. He simply started moving forward again, this time turning to head away from his original destination. Going home looking like he had been mauled by a sea cow would not earn him any favors with his old man.

  As Sain walked, his mind drifted, his downcast eyes flitting over different parts of the alleyways, each scarred in their own way. A harsh reminder of what the city of Rindai had become. Rindai was the name of the port city on the south coast of the Gestonian Empire, and had once been the capital of its own proud nation. But for over fifty years now, the nation had been under the empires dominion, and was now the center of the empire's power production.

  Where ever Sain went, he always heard how many of the elders still spoke of what the old country had been like. It sounded like it had been a horrible place, and as a nation that had been renowned for its military, it had been a place where the strength of a man's arm earned him his power and position. The weak where trampled on, used and abused, whilst magi had free reign to do as they wished, hence the introduction of the mage law after the empires invasion. The mage law wasn't a bad thing, indeed it prevented magi from abusing their powers. The law stated that any magi found to be using their abilities unsanctioned on another person or persons would be suspect to investigation and severe punishment, but it had of course proven quite hard to police in the crime ridden city of Rindai, where murders and assaults were commonplace enough. Anything and everything in the city could be bought or sold, be it stolen goods, people or even justice.

  No matter what the elders said of the nation’s past, however, it fell onto the deaf ears of the young, who had only known life under the e
mpires rule. Education was only for the wealthy, healthcare was nonexistent and most uneducated citizens became laborers or soldiers for the empire, forever building or using the machines of war to conquer the world. Sain had heard of places in the other world nations that talked of equality and wealth for the masses, but the more he heard about it, the more it seemed like a fairy tale.

  Coming to the end of the block, Sain lifted his head and looked around, realizing he had entered the industrial area. The buildings around him were mainly brick and concrete and looked shabby and old. There were stagnant puddles, clogged drains and small piles of trash heaped against the stained walls of the buildings. He grimaced slightly and lifted a hand to run it through his hair as he tried to place where he was.

  Doing a quick turn on the spot, he looked up and caught sight of a tall building a few blocks away with a radio tower on top. That was a landmark he knew, and a place he was quite familiar with. He had friends there.

  With a sigh, he started meandering down through the narrow street, trying to ignore the myriad of smells and rustles of rodents from the trash. Occasionally he heard the screeches of cats as some fight over scraps started and he scowled. This really was a wild place in a way.

  After a couple of minutes of fast paced walking, Sain arrived at his destination, and looked out over the entrance of the building. It was run down like the rest of its surrounds, with a flickering neon sign hanging over the slightly ajar door.

  The eerie blue lights were barely distinguishable in the sunlight of the day. They read Hard Sixty Nine, causing Sain to chuckle under his breath and shake his head as he approached the doorway.