Chad Rasmussen - The Sage Challenger

By Chad Rasmussen

THE SAGE CHALLENGER

Copyright 2017 by Chad Rasmussen

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be usedor reproduced in any manner without written permission, except inthe case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles orreviews.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters,businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either arethe product of the authors imagination, or are used fictitiously.Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, orlocales is entirely coincidental.

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Cover design by Chad Rasmussen in conjunction with EbookLaunch .

Ebook formatting by Ebook Launch

First eBook Edition, July 2017

Table of Contents

My head tilts back over my chair while I tryto quickly slurp down a CIBUS packet. Out of the corner of my eye Isee them and cough, spewing the liquid all over the floor.Regaining my composure, I look closer and realize it isthem, Sage Sentry marching towards me. My nerves make me want torun for it, but that would be useless. What are they doinghere? Ive never seen them in real life.

As I stand to face them, the figure of askinny old man with white hair appears behind the group ofSentry.

Nico.

What is going on? My mind is racing.What can I do to protect him? I will fight. My eyes scanaround me for anything I could use as a weapon and my musclestense; if he dies, we die together. There is nothing of usemy bodyfrozen stillI can do nothing but watch as they march closer andcloser.

When they are about ten feet away, Nicomakes eye contact with me and moves his head in a subtle nod.

One of the Sentry grabs Nico by the arm. Isthis him?

Yes, this is the one you are after, Nicoresponds calmly. For a second I think Im done for. What is hedoing?

Arian, we are Sage Sentry. You have passedthe requirements, and have been selected to enter the ChallengerRegionals Competition. We are here to escort you to the location.Do you understand?

Yes, Sentry, I stammer. I feel like Icant breathe and my palms start sweating. Now I know why they arehere. I cant believe this is really happening.

We will take you to your home to pack yourthings, and then we fly, the Sentry says curtly. Clearly theydont waste time with conversation. They are all suited in blackSentry uniform, and I notice the glowing blue Sage Symbol on thearm. The Symbol has been ever-present in the world, a circle aroundfive diamonds, connected and cut into ten triangles, for TenSages.

We start down the long hallway and I glanceover at Nico, who is now walking beside me. He looks straightforward, eyebrows knit together in concern, but his chin is up andhe has a look of confidence as he walks, seemingly unfazed, by theSage Sentry. They are some of the most elite of the Sage SecurityForces; their ominous presence makes even the most hardened of mypeople cower with fear. By now most of my fellow workers havestopped and are staring at us in shock, their eyes wide and facespale as we pass bythey have no idea what is going on.

The Sentry walk us out of the factory doorsto a black Sage transporter. A door lowers from the rear of thevehicle and we walk up the ramp. A Sentry directs me to a seat andasks Nico for coordinates. The transporter swiftly moves forward,its autodrive managing the busy streets seamlessly.

Nico stands confidently, conversing with aSentry, his demeanor no different than if he were speaking to aclose friend. After several minutes he takes a seat next to me.

He bites his lower lip and stares out thewindow, deep in thought. Then he places a firm hand on my shoulderand I know he is pleased. We have worked and trained for thisopportunity most of my life. Not for the reasons that most of mypeople aspire towe have different reasonsor at least Nicodoes.

We drive through the familiar streets, alongthe rows of Cive housing units I walk by every day on my way to theCIBUS factorythe place that I have spent most of my life workingfor the Sages. My memory flashes back to the day I entered the SageCUBUS, the small cubicles set up in cities across the world to findthe most intelligent and capable Civesto find the Challenger amongthe masses. Its kind of a blur, the testing, the hologramfighting, the target practice, the questioning. I can vaguelyremember some of it, but not the details. I honestly didnt think Iwould make it at all, and my mind is racked with worry. What ifI cant recall my performance in the test? Will this matter when Iget to Regionals? Taking a deep breath, I calm myself. Nicohas prepared me well. This didnt happen by accident.

We arrive at our house, and the transportercomes to sudden halt, its powerful turbine engines shuttingdown.

Arian, you have ten minutes to pack yourthings, and we leave, the same Sentry tells me.

Nico and I walk into our house, and when thedoor shuts, he turns to me and grabs my shoulders. This is it, myson. You have made it and you need to fulfill what I have alwaysprepared you for. Regionals are the first major step to becomingthe Challenger. Im proud of you, Arian. The competition will beintense, but you are up to the task. You are more than capable, hesays confidently, eyes unwavering.

But you are coming with me, right? I say,worried.

Arian, my work is done. Now is the time foryou to prove yourself and challenge the Sages. This is your duty; Icannot go.

Waitthis is insane to even talk about. Ofcourse youre coming! I say. The thought that we would beseparated through this process had never occurred to me. And Imsure Nico had purposely never mentioned it.

Arian, we dont have much time. I cannotgo. But you must know something that Ive never told you before.He pauses for a minute and steps back, his head hanging down. Itstime that you should know Sage Damon is my son.

The room appears to start spinning and growdarker around me, and I have to sit down.

What did you say? I ask in shock.

Arian, listen to me. It is true. I raisedDamon with the same purpose that Ive raised you, Nico continues.He made it to Sage City, worked his way up through the ranks, andeventually became a Sage. Before the Challenges were instituted,the most intelligent people worked their way up through the manylayers of Oro leadership. The most adept and expert ones stand asthe Ten Sages today. I had so much hope for Damonhope that hewould be the catalyst for change in the Sage Rule. I only daredwatch from the outside, for fear of what could happen to him. Myfears were realized as he became another person; overcome by hisposition and power, he forgot who he was. He tried to get me tojoin him in Sage City, but I knew he was on the wrong path. When Irefused to join him, he sent Sage Police after me. I was forced togo into hiding and change my appearance and identity. Then I madeit to this city, took you in, and raised you after your parentsdied.

My world is falling to shreds; how can heonly be telling me this now? I feel my face turning red with anger.Why didnt you ever tell me?

You werent ready, my son. It might haveaffected your training. But you know who you are, and I trust thatthis will never happen to you. Hurry, Arian. You must pack and go.Now is your time, Nico says.

I throw clothes in a bag, but don't reallythink about what Im doing. Nicos words keep ringing through myhead. Everything seems to be spinning out of control. Its as if agiant wave is crashing over me. Im in this deep now, and not sureif I want to be. Am I ready for this?

Nico hands me a couple of CIBUS packets, thefood packets that we Cives, the lower class, survive on. You mightneed these. He has been giving me one of his two allotted per dayfor years now, and has suffered a lot of hunger because of it.