DISCOVER
An excerpt from “Ja Rel Sunstormer and the Port Controller of Cruzar”
A Summons
Two mighty blades struck each other with tremendous fury, rousing the crowded arena into a deafening frenzy. More than one million sentient beings, encompassing races from across the galaxy’s nations, lent their voices to the growing din. The clamor suffused them with an almost religious fervor. It generated an intense exhilaration to which no one present offered the slightest resistance. Everyone’s focus was riveted to the contest now unfolding upon the brutal battle grounds of the Amphitheatre at Movotu Kirindarh.
The Amphitheatre was constructed directly beneath Azure the Lesser—the planet’s lone, geostationary moon. It was an aged structure whose colossal walls—hand hewn from natural stone—whispered a grand history of game, gala, and glory to all who were attentive enough to hear. Neither the arid lakebed upon which the historic coliseum stood, nor the miserable, beating heat of the sun—a blue supergiant of the first magnitude that almost completely filled the vapid, cloudless sky—could abate the anticipation of imminent victory shared by the raucous spectators.
The two combatants drew back from one another, each reassessing his situation. The champion was a giant, standing three hundred eighty cordites tall—twice the typical height of the galaxy-common human male. He was well protected by ancient-style armor that hid the identity of his species from both the cheering multitude and his guarded opponent.
His war-worn battle gear was engraved with numerous reminders of previous victories—reminders of the sort only well-skilled adversaries are apt to impart. Confident now that another triumph was upon him, the champion settled into a standard melee stance, shifting his weight off his lead foot and sliding his battle axe back into his dominant hand.
His war-worn battle gear was engraved with numerous reminders of previous victories—reminders of the sort only well-skilled adversaries are apt to impart. Confident now that another triumph was upon him, the champion settled into a standard melee stance, shifting his weight off his lead foot and sliding his battle axe back into his dominant hand.
The challenger was a young man, a galaxy-common human who comported himself as if he was a classic literary hero. He was shorter than the champion at one hundred sixty-three cordites, and he was adorned only in boots and an animal skin loincloth. His bare chest glistened under the sweat inducing glare of Azure the Greater, the planet’s blue sun. His lithe frame moved with such rapid agility that no one present, not even the champion, had yet seen his face in great enough detail to offer even a cursory description. He held his weapon at an angle to block the sun’s piercing light. It was a boh tu zan, a bladed combat staff etched with archaic glyphs. He wielded this weapon of the ancients with deft precision. A shadow from the boh tu zan fell across the young hero’s face and partially masked the intensity with which he studied the champion’s new posture.
The young hero tightened his grip on the boh tu zan and launched himself at the champion. The champion blocked the young hero’s forward lunge with his axe and lashed out with a punch intended to strike the youth in the chest. The young hero parried the champion’s blow while still in mid-air and delivered a swift kick to his armored helmet. The champion faltered, but recovered. The young hero landed in a crouch behind the champion, which placed his zan within reach of the champion’s armored knees. Locating an exposed point between plates of the armor, the young hero cut through the protective under-suit covering the back of the champion’s right leg.
The young hero tightened his grip on the boh tu zan and launched himself at the champion. The champion blocked the young hero’s forward lunge with his axe and lashed out with a punch intended to strike the youth in the chest. The young hero parried the champion’s blow while still in mid-air and delivered a swift kick to his armored helmet. The champion faltered, but recovered. The young hero landed in a crouch behind the champion, which placed his zan within reach of the champion’s armored knees. Locating an exposed point between plates of the armor, the young hero cut through the protective under-suit covering the back of the champion’s right leg.
Surprised, the champion stumbled and went down on the injured knee. The arena crowd fell silent. No one had ever wounded this champion. The young hero saw that he had gained a clear advantage for the first time in the struggle and pressed forward. The champion forced himself to his feet and suffered a new blow from the young hero. The boh tu zan slashed across the champion’s chest at a sharp angle. It penetrated the armor and punctured the skin beneath.
The champion staggered forward, both surprised at the apparent power of the boh tu zan and helpless as his life liquid bled from his damaged armor. The grayish fluid flowed from the champion’s wounds and fought evaporation in the intense heat. As he struggled to clear his head, the young hero attacked him again. The champion tried to block with his axe, but his strength failed him. The boh tu zan again found its mark unopposed. The young hero’s strike landed solidly against the champion’s helmet. The sharp crack of snapping bone reverberated across the coliseum. The champion dropped his battle axe and fell in a dusty heap beside the weapon.
The champion staggered forward, both surprised at the apparent power of the boh tu zan and helpless as his life liquid bled from his damaged armor. The grayish fluid flowed from the champion’s wounds and fought evaporation in the intense heat. As he struggled to clear his head, the young hero attacked him again. The champion tried to block with his axe, but his strength failed him. The boh tu zan again found its mark unopposed. The young hero’s strike landed solidly against the champion’s helmet. The sharp crack of snapping bone reverberated across the coliseum. The champion dropped his battle axe and fell in a dusty heap beside the weapon.
Find out what happens next!
