Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Gerry sat at his work table.

“Careful, careful.” He whispered. He turned the helmet in his hands slowly, gradually forming the curve. A knock at the door broke his concentration. He sighed. “Come in!” 

A man stepped through the door, followed by a girl. He was a tall man, militant posture. Gerry estimated him to be about middle age, close to 8 or 9 cycles. His face betrayed his age more than any other part of him. The dark brown hair of his head was peppered with gray and scars on his cheeks met the wrinkles of his eyes like rivers on a map. The girl appeared closer to Gerry’s age, perhaps a bit older, 3 and a half, maybe 4 cycles. They were strange, foreign. The man turned and closed the door.

“Can I help you?” Gerry asked. He stood and wiped his hands on a rag.

The man glanced about the room with a soldier’s apprehension.

“Yes.” He said. “We’re looking for Gerry the Shaper.”

“You’ve found him.” Gerry said. He offered a handshake. The man accepted.

“Well, talent knows no age.” He said with a smile. The girl looked at Gerry sideways, nodded and turned back to look at the wall. She wore a long poncho and hood that hid her form. However, her caramel face and long, espresso hair were clearly visible. A few freckles decorated the bridge of her nose and cognac eyes tucked in above them. 

“It’s nice to meet you both.” Gerry started. He offered a hand to her. She turned abruptly and walked outside. The man watched slightly amused as Gerry composed himself.  “Yes, well, what can I do for you?”

“Do you mind?” The man motioned to a chair beside the table.

“Oh no! Go right ahead.” Gerry hurried to sit on the bench on the other side..

The man sat down with a sigh. From a bag he produced a round object the size of a large fruit. It was white with red, blue, green, and yellow markings ornately decorating it. He held it in his hand for a moment before placing it on the cluttered table between them.

“Do you know what that is?” He asked. 

Gerry was at a loss. He felt a cold sweat crawl over him. The man watched him.

“That’s a uh, that’s a....Celest Orb.” He finally spoke. 

“Do you know what it is for?” 

Gerry fidgeted a bit in his chair.

“It’s uhh...it’s a designed to store and convert particle energy f-from wave form into physical....usually to create a...uh..a...force field. 

“You’re right. I’ve shown this to eight different Shapers in six different Tribes.” He leaned forward. “Three of them had no idea what it was. Two of them recognized it but couldn’t understand it. Two more called me a blasphemer and threatened to hand us over to their Ma’law. The last one actually tried to do that and he is no longer alive.” 

Gerry tried to swallow but failed. 

“Now, according to this Tribe, you’re the most gifted Shaper anyone’s ever seen. They say you reshaped the Shadow of the Tribe Champion.”

“T-That’s true. Shadows are my specialty and m-my cousin is a Sentry so...” 

“Impressive.” The man said. “Well, tell you what. How about I leave this here a few days and you tell me if you can crack how it works? If you can, I’ll pay whatever your price within reason. If you can’t, we’ll pack up and be on our way no harm done. How’s that sound?”

Gerry’s heart quickened with fear and excitement. Holi-Tech like this never made it to Asul Tribe.  The chance to actually see how something actually made by GOD works, his eyes flashed at the thought. His body remained tense but he managed a nod.

“Great.” The man stood. “I’ll be back in three days. Until then...” He paused at the door, “we’ll be around.”   

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Thank you for reading Chapter 1 of Machinae: The Shaper, The Shifter, The Shadow. There will be more chapters uploaded. Please subscribe to either this site or www.blueboltband.com for more information as the book comes closer to completion!