For a moment, He allowed himself to dream of his glory to come. Ultimate power was within his grasp, and soon it would be in the palm of his hand.
The crystal was getting closer. He could feel its presence getting stronger. His imagination soared through the heavens—he saw the world prostrate at his feet, people afraid to speak his name aloud for fear of being heard.
“Playing happy families beside the ocean, in their pitiful wooden houses,” he sneered. “They will suffer dreadfully for opposing me,” he said to the cold walls. “Disease? Vomiting? Or maybe thirst? So much water and nothing to drink? And Sallinia, who dared to scorn me… stealing The Book of Power… my rightful inheritance!” he shouted into the empty temple.
With his power of memory, he had remembered every line in the book and rewritten it years ago.
“First, I’ll deal with Sallinia.”
Saying her name aloud made his blood boil. He kicked out at his footstool, sending it skidding across the floor. “And those worthless bears—they will die a slow and painful death for standing against me, for stealing my Crystal.”
He breathed deeply of the vapors rising from the brazier at his side, calming himself.
“Then to the ocean. To return to the land of the Ancient Ones. To return in triumph, to rule the world. The heavens themselves will not stop me!”
Waves of pleasure ran through him while he massaged his ego. The cold of the marble chair beneath him went unnoticed. The scorching heat of the day outside his temple was of no concern.
No one ever possessed so much power as I will soon control. Even among the Ancient Ones, there was never one man that held the three books and the crystal in their hand. How could they assume it would be too much power for one man to hold? How did they become so misguided? he thought.
“And what was their lesson to all who came in their footsteps? Love is the strongest power!” He felt hate boiling in his belly.
“Such fools! Fear is the key to power. FEAR!” he screamed.
He clenched his fists on the marble armrests, ground his teeth, and his breathing gradually slowed.
“The world will jump at my command because of fear. Fear of the power I possess. Fear of the pain I can inflict. And fear that I may destroy their worthless lives. That is the ultimate power.”
He sat looking out over his empty domain. Closing his eyes, he wished for just a moment that he could sleep and let his mind float on the freedom of dreams.
How long is it since I’ve slept? he wondered. He could no longer remember how it felt to escape his world and body. To soar with the circling stars without a care, taken to who knows where.
But then an image of Sallinia suddenly flashed before his eyes, as it did, countless times on countless days, sending his rage peaking again.
“And now she calls herself Salli. She’s even turned her back on her family name. She’ll suffer for deserting me. I’ll force her to watch the slow death of her daughter—or maybe I should give her to those disgusting apes as a plaything? When she grovels before me, then I’ll decide,” he told the empty room.
He was pulled back to reality by a pounding on the oak doors. The wood shook within the metal strips banded around them. Without moving, he focused his thoughts on releasing the lock he’d formed around his temple. An invisible and impenetrable wall kept the world out of his sanctuary until he chose to allow anyone to enter. The two doors slowly opened to reveal the Alpha ape with Sonny beside him.
As his gaze fell upon them, the ape bowed his head, falling onto his knuckles, but Sonny stood looking around His inner sanctum, a place few had seen since the day it was built. Even then, anyone who had worked on building the temple quickly died a mysterious and painful death.
“Weren’t you taught to bow down to your Lord and Master!” He said.
He sent an explosion of pain into Sonny’s head, pressing his brain outward, pushing against Sonny’s forehead. He made Sonny feel his eyes would pop from his head. Locking his scream within his mind, He constricted Sonny’s throat, stopping his breath.
Sonny collapsed to the floor, writhing in agony while He turned to the Alpha. He held out his hand; His command unspoken. The Alpha approached with a bowed head and stooped shoulders, holding the crystal in his outstretched hand above its head, like an offering.
He saw the ape was mesmerized by the crystal. Excitement rushed like a river through His veins in anticipation, but the ape hesitated to let it go. He knew the crystal was the only thing to have given the ape any pleasure in his godforsaken life.
The ape still did not give it up. Slowly withdrawing its hand, the ape stared into the depths of the clear crystal facets where sparkling rainbows of color were buried deep within the heart of the treasure. The ape suddenly looked up.
He saw the terrified look on the Alpha’s face. He reached out His hand, and the ape dropped the crystal into His palm.
A surge of power rushed through His body. Sitting upon his throne, waves of ecstasy flowed up his arms, making his heart race and his mind soar. He felt his pulse pounding in his ears.
Everything else was forgotten. Sonny, the Alpha’s hesitation, it was all now meaningless. The crystal was his, after all the years of planning, waiting, and dreaming. It was in his hand. His whole body shook with excitement.
Ultimate power! Nothing can stop me now. He stared into the crystal, immediately addicted to its inner beauty.
The Alpha backed away, bowing as he stepped back. Sonny crawled towards the doorway but couldn’t stop himself from taking one last look.
“Wait! I have work for you.”
Sonny bowed low, waiting for His command.
“Three worthless creatures have dared to cross my border. Take a patrol of apes and destroy them. Do not fail me. Now go!”
Sonny bowed his head again and stepped backward out of the temple, barging into a young ape approaching the door.
“You told me the bears were dead,” He said.
The ape stood on the threshold, afraid to come closer and look into his master’s face.
“You lied to me!”
A shaking of the ape’s head turned into a shaking of its body. The ape knew what punishment was coming. It raised its head with a look of pleading remorse in its eyes.
His cold, hard stare of contempt did not soften. That’s when the ape lost control of its bladder, a puddle formed between its legs. Its hands came up to its head, trying to protect itself, but there was no way to fight it. There was no escape.
He looked on in disgust while the ape squirmed on the floor, a silent scream contorting its face. Seeing the mess the ape was making sent Him into a fit of rage. With clenched fists, he concentrated his thoughts on the death of the young ape. Its scream never reached its lips. It twitched in a final spasm.
He looked at the Alpha ape, its eyes emotionless. Saliva dripped from its overhanging jaw onto the dead ape at its feet.
“Prepare my army,” He said. “We leave immediately!”
The Alpha bowed, then turned and ran, screaming and bellowing with excitement. War at last! Now my brother, Crag, will be avenged, the Alpha thought.
Sonny waited for the Alpha ape at the doorway. “The master has instructed that you come with me to destroy the intruders.” Sonny tried to put authority in his voice, but the shame of disgracing himself made it sound more like a pleading request than an order.
The Alpha screamed in Sonny’s face. Raising his lips to reveal yellowed and blackened fangs destroyed the last of Sonny’s fake confidence. A wave of stale, putrid air hit Sonny in the face, moments before the ape swung a backhand slap across his face. Sonny slammed into the wall. The ape reached for the back of Sonny’s neck and tail, throwing him through the door into the courtyard outside.
The Alpha made a grunting sound in the direction of a group of apes, squatting on the cool tiled floor, shaded from the blistering sun. They immediately rushed to comply, running to stand beside Sonny. With a noise that sounded like a bark, the Alpha gestured towards the archway in the walls, pointing the way north. The apes stood looking at Sonny, waiting for him to take the lead.
“You’ll pay for disobeying me,” Sonny screamed at the Alpha.
The Alpha charged at Sonny, causing the apes to scatter in all directions. Sonny turned and ran for the archway, moments before the Alpha’s fist crashed down on where he’d lain moments before.
The other apes followed him into the dried and barren lands outside the once-great city, now falling into ruin at the hands of the apes. A pain shot through Sonny’s heart. He understood that he really had lost the crystal forever.