Chapter 1

Beneath an old weathered buckboard. its rimless wheels axle deep in tall grass, the perfect snipers hide, Az‑Rak lay—waiting. And although he looked human, everything about him, including the weapon that he poked through the curtain of grass around the buckboard, came from a planet light years away.

After eleven years of false leads and dead-ends, Az‑Rak’s search was about to end.Relishing the moment he would obliterate his targets, a mother and her two boys in a secluded house nestled against a forest, he took a deep breath. Master would be pleased.

Just then, the front door of the house swung open and a stranger, a boy who was not a target, appeared. Surprised, Az‑Rak straightened, hitting his head on the bottom of the buckboard, dislodging dust and pollen.

His eyes began to water and stifling the urge to sneeze, he watched as the boy ran towards a gate in the white picket fence, surrounding the home, scramble over onto the winding laneway in front and call out to the family.

Az‑Rak strained to listen, but the boy was too far away. Maybe the boy saw his sudden movement, maybe he was warning those inside the house, maybe… Crouching low again, he peered along the weapon, paused and careful not to make any sudden movement, straightened again.

But, the boy could not have seen me, he convinced himself. Besides, only a clinical kill would honor Master, the boy’s death would sully this trophy. No, it’s better to wait a little longer. The targets, the family, are still inside, surely, that’s all that matters.

Chiding himself for his indecision and convinced the boy had not warned the occupants, Az‑Rak settled down to wait, to choose a time that would allow him to check the aftermath, sanitize the area and leave only dust and ashes. Enough time to erase all trace of master’s enemies. What difference could a few minutes more make?

And yet.

He watched the boy run along the tree lined winding laneway in front of the house and disappear around a bend leading to the main road. For a while, he stared transfixed at the spot, lost in thought, wondering; trying to make sense of two words that kept going round and round in his brain, ‘Nolferrum Edict’.