First Flicker Scene from "A Path Chosen"
Draft
If you haven’t read “Winter Night” or “A Path Chosen”, read them here before reading this scene. Feedback welcome…Narg always trying to make it better…
Narg felt her cool lips meet his skin and then the world flickered.
He rode behind a set of eyes, feeling but not controlling a body. The owner of those eyes hung spread-eagled from nothing in the middle of a sleek and sterile white room made of gleaming cueran and illuminated by recessed glowbulbs. He was Nargis…Nargis Khan Trollocmon, first advisor to Mierin Sedai, or Lanfear as she now styled herself…across the room from him, also suspended in air, was the finest specimen of a Trolloc Narg had ever seen…no… not a trolloc, an abomination… a human animal construct...a wolf's muzzle jutted out below sunken eyes. Flat, emotionless, vacant, all too human eyes. The construct had a human torso, arms with corded bulging muscles, meaty hands covered in thick glossy fur and goatlike legs ending in sharpened hooves; Its chest rose and fell rhythmically, but other than that it showed no signs of life.
He’d awoken to find himself hanging and gagged by invisible bonds and after mastering his revulsion at the monstrous creation opposite him, had spent the last few hours going over how he had ended up in this sterile room…some kind of lab or medical suite if he was to guess…his last memory was of Lanfear telling him that Ishar Morrad...Aginor… had requested strong willed “volunteers” to be sent to him for a special project…a project that could tip the balance of their near century long shadow war on the Light into open conflict. He’d assured her he would have a list of candidates for her within the hour…her eyes had twinkled with amusement…and the next thing he knew, here he was…”volunteered”.
Betrayal was part and parcel of life when working towards the Great Lord's return…but Nargis had always been the betrayer not the betrayed… Lanfear’s betrayal stung not because it was totally unexpected, but because he hadn’t seen it coming so soon. He’d been working with her for the last twenty years, sowing plots to unbalance and undermine the world's Governments and The Hall of Servants; ever since she’d turned to the Great Lord after Lews Therin spurned her. In many ways they’d been the right and left hands of the Great Lord.
While the ranks of the Chosen were reserved for those with the ability to channel, he’d hoped to force his way into those ranks with the power of his intellect and cunning…so to be outmaneuvered by someone with at best, a quarter of his intelligence, and driven by petty jealousy to boot…well that smarted…
A displacement in the air pressure behind him, snapped Nargis out of his thoughts. He knew the difference between a door opening and a Gateway… a Gateway meant an Aes Sedai. “My my my! My dreams have always been beyond those of other men, but not even I ever imagined that the great Nargis Khan Trollocmon, the youngest citizen ever to earn a third name, would one day be at my mercy.” The voice was one Nargis recognised…Aginor… “Luckily for you, mercy is not something you'll need...though I must admit the idea of you abasing yourself before me, pleading for your life, is a tempting one…but no, I’m well aware of your cunning tongue and ability to talk an Ogier under the table; so I will forsake that pleasure…Your presence here, is actually an honour. The Great Lord chose you himself…you could say you are now one of the Chosen…You always aspired to that no?” he said laughing.
Nargis strained to turn his head far enough to get a look at his tormentor, but Aginor remained a disembodied voice as he continued speaking.
“So how do you like my new construct? Beautiful isn’t it? It has taken longer than I thought, but we finally have the ultimate organic fighting machine. A perfect blend of human and animal genetic material capable of natural reproduction. A short 10-15 year lifespan unfortunately, but that was the trade off for faster procreation, maturity and enhanced healing. All it lacks is a soul…It seems the Pattern has no trouble in putting a human soul into a mouldy walking talking tree, but combine human stock and animal stock and it balks” he said incredulously. “Fortunately, the Great Lord provides! He assures me that once he forces a human soul into this construct, the Pattern will be forced to recognize it and its like, as suitable vessels. The process won’t be perfect and there may be some degradation of the souls both now and with each successive generation, but they will take. It’s fascinating really. Just think of it! What would happen if a female soul was forced into a male body or vice versa? Would the Pattern start randomly throwing out souls into the wrong bodies from then on? And if the Great Lord can put a soul into an empty vessel, can he also take one from someone while their body is still alive? If so, what happens to the soulless body? Does it continue to function? The possibilities just make me giddy!”
“But I digress…though based on your increased heart rate, it would seem you already have an inkling as to what your role here will be…rest assured, if your soul is strong enough to survive the process, I will do you the honour of naming these beastmen after you…I was thinking of calling them Gaidin, but Trollocmon…Trollocmen…or perhaps just Trollocs…will be more fitting…just think, your name will forever be attached to constructs who have just enough intelligence to follow the orders of their betters…something despite all your vaunted intelligence, you never were able to do…”
“Now as you’ve already pledged yourself to the Great Lord, there will be no need for pain inducement to open the way for him to claim your soul upon death…any last words?”
Nargis tried to scream around the gag of air, but all that escaped was a pitiable moan…the sound of Aginor’s laughter engulfed his mind and then he heard Aginor invoke the Great Lords name “The Great Lord comes. Blood feeds blood. Blood calls blood. Blood is, and blood was, and blood shall ever be. Shai’tan I beseech thee…” The room seemed to lurch, waves of dizziness sloshed through him…and then…
flicker