SECOND CHANCE: KING OF THE SKY

In the eighth book in this action packed series a telephone call sends Justin Imperiale to the South Continent. The caller is a man who claims to be from planet Glyon. Justin flies to the South Continent to talk to the man about re-establishing an ancient Empire along the mountain crests. 

Justin meets the man and convinces him that he, Justin, is the King of The Sky, a legendary warrior who can defeat any man in combat. The man then returns to Glyon. Justin is contacted by a man who claims to be from the South Continent and also claims to have information regarding a major drug shipment, due to leave the South Continent.  The information is supposed to lead Justin into a trap. However, he is clever enough to avoid the trap and seize a couple of drug shipments.

The men from Glyon return. They might be willing to try to set up an Empire, but first they must talk to a High Priest of the Temple of Vorell.

While waiting to make the trip to see the High Priest of the Temple of Vorell, Justin is attacked in his hotel room, but escapes.  He and the men from Glyon then travel to talk with the High Priest of the Temple of Vorell.  It's decided that the people of Glyon will come through the Gate and try to establish a new Empire. The capital will be near the old Empire capital city of Corzaro. The start of the new Empire will be financed by gold and emeralds, mined from jungle mines, discovered by the ancient Empire.

The need to operate mine in the jungle leads Justin and Tapu, the leader of the men from Glyon, into a conference with the jungle people.  Justin reinforces his standing as King of The Sky. Tapu then begins to set up the new Empire.

Justin returns to Zaya to crush the last warlord and also to obtain fighter aircraft for the new Empire.  Glyon mechanics go with Justin and refurbish the aircraft.  Glyon pilot then fly the aircraft back to the South Continent and are attacked on the way.

Justin discovers that the Association of Nations betrayed the Glyon flight and he retaliates by seizing bank accounts.

The Sky Path people attack the Glyon, who use advanced weapons to defeat the attack with little loss of life. Justin makes it appear as if the magic of the King of The Sky caused the defeat and builds the image of the new Empire among the original inhabitants.  After the initial defeat, Justin leads a raid on a Sky Path camp and again defeats the Sky Path people.  Justin also finds evidence that the Association of Nations is secretly funding the Sky Path. Justin then must fight a warrior, recruited by the Sky Path to prove his tight the title King of The Sky.

With the Sky Path well on the way to its defeat, Justin now turns to the problem of the President of Alvarado. Justin has promised to make the sky fall on the President.  So, he uses the space patrol boats and his anti-gravity machines to do a bit of asteroid mining. Astronomers have found a nickel iron asteroid not too far from Corin. He arranges for the asteroid to be dropped on the Presidential Compound of Alvarado. The asteroid ends the problem of the President and the distribution of the nickel iron will create jobs for the subjects of the Empire.

Justin then gets Tapu and the President of the Association of Nations to agree to return a mysterious tribe of original inhabitants from the jungle to the mountain crests.

I GET A TELEPHONE call from the South Continent.

A man down there wants to talk to me.  He wants to talk to me in Galactic.  The man claims to be from the planet Glyon.  I get contact info from the man who claims to be from Glyon.

As far as I know, there's maybe just a Priest or two of the Temple of Vorell who speak Galactic down in the South Continent.  Thus, the Galactic speaker is either a Priest, playing some sort of joke on me, or he's most likely from Glyon.  Since the cost of the joke would be very heavy indeed for a Priest of the Temple of Vorell, I assume that the speaker is indeed from Glyon.

I have my anti-gravity aircraft prepared for a trip to the South Continent.  It's fully fuelled, but I'll still have to make a refuelling stop along the way.  However, the aircraft is as ready as it can be.

Now, I have to get me as ready as I can be.

I have continued to work out with my swords on a day-by-day basis and I'm ready for any kind of combat.

I have done a quick review of what little is really known of the Empire that ruled the mountain crests of the South Continent a few centuries back.

I have packed a couple of outfits, one for jungle and one for high altitude.  I also have a business outfit, in case I need to talk with the man from Glyon in a fancy restaurant.

The people from Glyon were very probably the ones who created an Empire that ruled the mountain crests of the South Continent a few centuries ago.  Now, it might be that the people from Glyon want to come back.

I might be able to use their administrative skills to rule the South Continent.  Such rule will expand the area of my rule and give me a bigger base to fight those who want to oppose me because I might replace their incompetent rule with more efficient rule.

After a review, I find that I'm as ready as I can be, on short notice, and so I leave for the South Continent.

I take my time getting to the South Continent.  I conserve fuel with a slower than normal flight speed and I give myself time to think on the situation that might result from my meeting with the man from Glyon.

If the people of Glyon are truly ready to return to Corin and once again create an Empire to rule the mountain crests, I have an enormous opportunity to expand my Kingdoms.  Of course, there's also risk involved.

What do the people of Glyon really want?  Will they want to operate independently or will they accept my oversight of their operation?  Even if they accept my oversight initially, what will happen once they begin to acquire power?  The situation is fraught with both risk and reward.

A lot will depend upon my initial contact with the man they have sent from Glyon.  I try to envision what type of man they might send.

If there's a mog making the choice on Glyon, to send a man through a Gate that hasn't been used in centuries, the mog will most likely send an adventurer.  He'll most likely send a senior warrior who can talk with whomever he might find on the other side of the Gate.  The mog who's sent can talk a little, if talk seems the best tactic, the mog can fight, if that seems necessary, and the mog will give an impression of the strength of the men from Glyon.

However, others might send a diplomat, instead of a warrior.  A mog who can talk with whomever he might find on the other side of the Gate.  A mog who might obtain the maximum benefit from talk with those he might encounter.  A mog who comes from authority, but has no real authority to do anything, except report back to those who sent him.  However, such a mog might send a message to those on the other side of the gate.  A message that petty politics could be the intent of the people of Glyon.

Still others might send a man of religion.  A mog who can talk with whomever he might find on the other side of the Gate from a basis of belief.  A mog who can set forth the position of the men of Glyon from an unarguable, faith based point of view.  A mog who comes from the ultimate authority, but has no real authority to do anything, except report back to those who sent him.  However, such a mog might send a message of inflexibility to those on the other side of the gate.  A message that dealings would have to be conducted with regard to unknown, unarguable beliefs that might clash with the beliefs of those with whom the people of Glyon will have to deal.

However, after quite a bit of thought, it seems to me that the men of Glyon might seek to combine the possible messengers into just one mog.  The mog would be a warrior priest.  He can talk from the strength of a warrior, but also from the unassailable strength of religious conviction.  Such a mog could also be a sort of diplomat, but without the obvious diplomatic credentials.  Just the one mog, with multiple capabilities, could be more dangerous than multiple men, who would have to coordinate their efforts.

In any case, I'll have to deal with the mog or mogs that the men of Glyon actually send.  I'll also have to use my own strengths.  I'm a warrior, who can probably over match the strength of a warrior from Glyon.  I'm not a man of religion, but I can use the religious power of the Temples of Vorell to counter religious arguments from Glyon.  I can also function as a diplomat, in fact a plenipotentiary who can make and enforce his decisions.

I remember back to my hearing before the Arquellian Arbitrator.  I won that arbitration, mainly because I was better prepared than my opposition.  I used my preparation and clear reasoning to defeat those who tried to use supposed authority and a position of governmental power against me.  I also used the knowledge that I gained from the advanced technology that Dorond had supplied to me.

In the past, the people of Glyon didn't use advanced technology on Corin.  That doesn't mean that they didn't have advanced technology then and that they don't have advanced technology now.  Of course, there's the matter of the advanced technology sword weapon that I now have and that came from the ancient, probably Glyon ruled, empire.  However, the advanced technology sword weapon perhaps came from Lord Vorell and not from the people of Glyon.

I can now allow the people of Glyon to use at least certain items of advanced technology here on Corin.  However, there's the risk that the people of Glyon might move enough advanced technology items through a Gate and that they could at least try to take over the entire planet of Corin.

One thing that seems to diminish that last possibility is that the Gates to and from Glyon are smaller than the Gate from Aozora.  A smaller Gate automatically puts a limit on the size of objects that can be moved through the Gate.  Even something like an Arquellian flame rifle isn't enough for at least a small group to conquer a whole planet.  For conquest of a planet, the people of Glyon would need some sort of heavy weapons and trucks or some such to move them.  Really heavy weapons and heavy trucks won't fit through the Gate from Glyon.

Of course, the people of Glyon could simply plan to use the political hold that they should obtain on the people of the South Continent mountain crests.  They could recruit a lot of original inhabitants and build a very formidable army, loyal to their leaders.

However, the original inhabitants will ultimately obey the commands of the King of The Sky.  Since I'm the King of The Sky, I can always overcome any sort of political plot against me, involving the original inhabitants.

Also, the people of Glyon will meet opposition in the form of the Sky Path movement.  The Sky Path people should keep the men of Glyon occupied for a bit.  The process of defeating the Sky Path people will take time.  Time is on my side here.

If what I suspect is true is actually true, then the people of Glyon will also need to interact with the Priests of the Temple of Vorell.

(I suspect that the people of Glyon were originally here on Corin to try to protect Lord Vorell.  If so, then they would be a part of the same apparatus as the Temples of Vorell.  Thus, any sort of plans of conquest by the men of Glyon would also need to be cleared by the Priests of The Temple of Vorell.  I have some standing with the Priests and I suspect that the Priests would be slow to turn on one who has supported them for some time.)

As with most things in my life, the men of Glyon present a risk and a reward.  I must carefully balance the reward against the risk.  However, after quite a bit of thought, it seems a risk that I must take.

The other nations of Corin are becoming aware of my power and they're worried that I might assume some of the power that they think to be theirs.

As I gradually move the advanced civilizations, off Corin, away from killing me for being a Kivosh, I find that the more primitive nations of Corin may decide to try to kill me, because I present a danger to the old state of things here on Corin.  If it isn't one thing, it's another.

When I see my fuel getting a bit low, I land at the next handy airport, get my plane refuelled and then continue my trip to the South Continent.

Once I get to the high mountains, I again stop, refuel and then call the man from Glyon.  I tell him that I'm on my way and that I'll meet him tomorrow morning at a specific spot.  I also ask him how many there'll be at the meeting.

The mog agrees to the meeting spot and time.  He tells me that he's the only one here from Glyon.

Everything is set up.

I leave my aircraft at the airport and get a room in town, a workout and follow that with a big meal.  I then get a good night's sleep and a light meal in the morning.

It's now time for me to actually meet the man from Glyon.