Savior Part 2: Son of Eden (The Savior Series) (12 page)

ECHO:
Without her physical form the Equillians believed that the Goddess would be destroyed for good but the Anokians believed that Her spirit survived, and that one day She would return. That’s where you come in. I think they mean to resurrect the Goddess with you as Her new vessel.
Friday 10:22 pm

MONICA:
This is absolutely CRAZY, Howie… Where are you getting this from? What makes you think any of it is true?
Friday 10:27 pm

ECHO:
I know it sounds farfetched, but believe me, I’ve seen the data that proves most of it with my own eyes. We all got dragged into this mess because of our alliance with the Equillian Federation. They gave us some of their technology in exchange for the right to build a prison on earth in order to house their most dangerous prisoners. That’s why The Righteous and his followers were brought here. But now they’ve escaped and before long The Righteous’ army will invade earth and attempt to rescue him.
Friday 10:29 pm

MONICA:
Oh my God, Howie! Are you serious???
Friday 10:32 pm

ECHO:
Dead serious…
Friday 10:32 pm

ECHO:
Monica, I’m going to ask you to do something… and you’re probably not going to like it…
Friday 10:33 pm

MONICA:
???
Friday 10:33 pm

ECHO:
I need you to arrange to meet with The Righteous.
Friday 10:34 pm

ECHO:
Monica??
Friday 10:35 pm

ECHO:
Are you there?
Friday 10:35 pm

MONICA:
I don’t know, Howie. That sounds dangerous
Friday 10:36 pm

ECHO:
I wouldn’t ask you to do this if I thought we had another choice. This gives us a perfect opportunity to find out exactly what he’s planning
Friday 10:36 pm

ECHO:
If he truly means for you to become the vessel of Eden then they won’t harm you… Plus I’ll be watching you every step of the way. If anything goes wrong I can have Jason on the scene in a heartbeat
Friday 10:37 pm

MONICA:
What do you think Reaper would say?
Friday 10:38 pm

ECHO:
He’d tell you not to do it… and he’d probably kick my ass for asking… that’s why I’m not going to tell him. I’m sorry to put you in this sort of position, Monica, but it’s the only way that we can get ahead of what’s coming and the sooner we do it the sooner this can all be over.
Friday 10:38 pm

ECHO:
And the sooner it’s over, the sooner you and Reaper can be together.
Friday 10:39 pm

MONICA:
Okay…
Friday 10:41 pm

MONICA
:
I’ll do it.
Friday 10:41 pm

- TWO WEEKS LATER

THE COOL AIR THAT FLOWED THROUGHOUT THE DIMLY lit hallway caused the tail of my flowing white robe to gently flicker as I stood just outside the doorway of The Righteous’ personal chambers. His room was almost completely dark, however I could still see that he was resting in the large decorative bed that stood along the wall to the left of the doorway. A lone candle burned atop the Alter of Eden nearly twenty feet away from his bed. The candle’s faint light was so completely beset by the darkness that filled my father’s room that, from where I was standing, I could not make out the distinct and elegant craftsmanship of the Alter that The Righteous had no doubt recently used to pray to our Lord and Savior, The Goddess of Eden.

My father shared an incredibly strong connection with The Goddess, a connection the likes of which had not been seen since the time when the Ancient Ones first pulled Her across the veil into our world. It was She who had put him on the path that led to war with the Equillian Federation—a war which ultimately led to the fall of Eden. Still, despite our devastating losses, my father remained true to his divine cause even as his connection with my mother, The Goddess, began to fade. In years past, The Righteous could communicate with The Goddess from across the veil with no more than a mere thought, but as the Great War waged on, his connection to Her began to wane. By the time we found ourselves imprisoned on the Earth, he could barely establish a connection with Her at all. Our troops were completely unaware, but The Righteous’ connection with Her was now so limited that he could only obtain a few obscure visions and whispers from across the veil after months upon months of continuous prayer. To me, it felt as though She had abandoned us but my father believed that The Goddess was merely preparing Herself for the return.

“How are you feeling, Father,” I finally asked from the doorway as I brushed my dark, shoulder length hair from my face and waited for him to reply.

“I have seen better days, my son,” The Righteous muttered without turning in his bed to face me.

He had not left his chambers in months by that point. It had been quite a while since The Goddess had last spoken to him, so long that I feared that she may never make contact again, but my father’s faith was a great deal stronger than that of my own. When prayer and meditation did not work to bring the voice of the Goddess back to him, he resulted to fasting. He probably thought that this escalation was making him more devout but to me he simply seemed more desperate. Still, it was wise of him to remain within his quarters as he undertook this bizarre ritual. The men were already grumbling at me for answers and I could only imagine how they would react if they were to lay eyes upon their High King while he was in such a malnourished state.

“Any word from the Goddess?” I asked, more so for his sake than my own.

“Yes,” he whispered, to my surprise. “She has shown me glimpses of what is to come.”

“And what did she reveal?” I asked, suddenly excited to hear that She had made contact.

“The Knights of Eden are near, but before you rejoice be warned that one among them means to challenge you for the Right Hand,” he replied.

“The Godhand is among them?” I asked, though I already knew the answer. The concern in his voice told me everything I needed to know. If he considered my place at his side in jeopardy, I knew it could only mean that the Commander of the Knights of Eden meant to challenge me for the Right Hand once again.

“He leads them,” my father replied. “And he sails aboard the Pillar of Eden.”

“He does what?!” I growled as a wave of blood rushed to my face.

“Calm down, Son,” The Righteous ordered.

“I will do no such thing!” I said defiantly. “I refuse to sit quietly while he disrespects the very crown that I have sworn to protect! That is
your
ship and he has no business at its helm! If he covets my place then let him come! It would not be the first time that he has suffered defeat at my hands.”

“Do not forget that you were barely able to defeat him, Son,” The Righteous cautioned.

“Do you doubt my abilities, Father?!” I scoffed.

“No. But I see your pride and I know it clouds your judgment!” The Righteous boomed. “The two of you are my strongest soldiers and I shall need you
both
in the days to come. The Godhand is not your enemy, Darius. It is not he who has devastated our home world and imprisoned us onto this forsaken planet! It is the Greys who have taken that which is most precious to us, and it is they whom we must destroy—not each other.”

“I understand, Father. Please forgive my thoughtlessness,” I said, slightly bowing my head despite the fact that he wasn’t facing me. “Will there be anything else?” I asked after he did not reply for a few moments.

“Yes, you must ready a team to accompany me to America,” he instructed after a few more moments of silence. My heartbeat instantly quickened as I heard his order.

“America?! Father forgive my questions but is that really the best idea considering the assets of the Greys that reside in that land?”

“It must be done. The Vessel has made contact. America is where she resides therefore America is where we must go.”

“Then send me, Father. I will retrieve the Vessel while you rest and continue your communion with the Goddess,” I pleaded, hoping that mentioning the Goddess would change his mind.

“That will be all, Son,” The Righteous said firmly, completely ignoring my plea to take his place.

“Understood, my liege. I will ready a team at once,” I confirmed. A troublesome feeling festered in the pit of my stomach as I considered how bad of a decision my father’s trip to America could prove to be. As far as the American’s and their Equillian allies were concerned, The Righteous was the most wanted man on the face of their primitive planet. He had not set foot there since we escaped the prison at their Area 51 and if it were up to me he would remain within the shadows, driving our campaign of terror against the Greys and their American allies from afar rather than putting himself back within the scope of their clutches.

First you abandoned him, and now you lead him to the slaughter
, I cursed inside my head, hoping my mother would hear my blasphemous thoughts as I trudged away from my father’s chambers. As I continued down the hallway I couldn’t help but wonder if his visions were truly the messages of the Goddess Herself or merely the ramblings of a mad man too far removed from his home world to adjust to this new reality. His demeanor had become far too erratic for me to tell for certain but I had sworn my life to protecting his and that is what I intended to do no matter the cost.

Many Anokians considered me to be the greatest to have ever held the title of Right Hand of the Crown but in truth I was only living up to one facet of the responsibilities that came with my title. The primary function of the Right Hand was to protect the High King at all costs and that was something that I had done with reckless abandon since the moment my father obtained the Broken Crown. Thousands had challenged me in hopes of obtaining the chance to compete with The Righteous for the right to rule our empire, but besides The Godhand, all of them fell before my might. With me at his side, my father’s reign had spanned centuries whereas most of his predecessors had only lasted a few decades.

It is true that the Ancient Anokians created our laws regarding the crown for the purpose of bringing order to our otherwise war-torn world—but they also created these laws for the specific purpose of ensuring that our people were led by the strongest of us all. For some time, my father’s plan worked and the people truly believed him to be the strongest of us all, but as his reign continued and he began to grow older and physically weaker, there were those among us who began to call for me to exercise my right to challenge The Righteous for the Broken Crown. There was no doubt that I would win but I believed in him far too much to remove him from power. At one point the bureaucrats even stooped as low as to alter the Anokian laws regarding the secession of the crown in order to allow challengers to fight with up to three allies in hopes of finally defeating me. As a result, my father dissolved our senate but he allowed the amended laws to remain in effect in order to show them all the truth—no matter the odds, no matter what I found myself pitted against, I could not be defeated.

I could not stop my father from making the journey to the Americas but I could certainly accompany him there. I had no knowledge of what was to come but I was absolutely certain of one thing—if the Equillians and their American assets moved to silence The Righteous, nothing would stop me from destroying them.

(LAS VEGAS, NEVADA)

- THREE DAYS LATER

“JUST STAY CALM, MONICA. EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE okay,” I heard Howie say through the earpiece in my left ear as I stood at the entrance of the crowded casino and stared down at my trembling hands.

“I have a bad feeling about this, Howie. Something just doesn’t feel right,” I replied as I tried to remain as calm as possible.

“Monica, you’re fine. I’ve got access to the entire grid. If anything happens I’ll have an army of cops there before you can even blink,” he said, confidently.

“What about Jason? You said you’d have him on standby,” I questioned.

“Jason has been M.I.A. for a few days, but that’s no big deal. Trust me, I’ve got you covered,” Howie replied. He was doing his best to reassure me, but the nervous feeling in my stomach kept getting stronger.

“You’d
better
have her covered,” I heard Nina sneer in my earpiece. When I filled her in on Howie’s plan she had insisted on coming along and both Howie and I were powerless to stop her. She certainly didn’t give us any tactical advantages but in the back of my mind I was kind of glad to know that she was there—just a few floors above me in our hotel room with Howie watching my every move.

My hands were still trembling as I finally mustered enough courage to walk onto the casino floor. I had never been inside of a Las Vegas casino before that point, therefore I was a bit overwhelmed by the craziness of it all. Hundreds of people swarmed about bouncing from one slot machine or table to the next, all hoping to win that big pay day. I kept my head down and tried to blend in as I walked over to a nearby bar and took a seat in order to catch my breath. I took a deep breath and stared at myself in the reflection of my smart phone as I focused on slowing my nervous breathing. Nina had picked out the stylish red cocktail dress that I was wearing and she had done my hair and makeup to absolute perfection in order to help me blend in with the Vegas crowd. The makeup made me appear a bit older than I actually was but not necessarily in a bad way. To be honest, I was actually astonished by just how good Nina’s impromptu makeover had turned out. Before she worked her magic on me, I was nothing more than a depressed, love-sick 18-year-old, but I now looked like a mid-twenties bombshell that was ready for a crazy night on the town.

“Is
e
verything okay?”
Howie asked as I continued to admire myself in the reflection of my phone and wondered what Reaper would think if he saw me dressed like this.

“I’m fine,” I mumbled, trying not to move my mouth in case anyone was watching me.

“Good. I’ll maintain radio silence until they make contact. I may give you a few instructions during the meeting but whatever you do, make sure you don’t respond directly to me,”
Howie said.

“Got it,” I whispered.

“You’ll be fine, Monica. I’ve hacked into the building’s security cameras so I can see everything from here,”
Howie continued.

I nodded my head and ordered a glass of water from the bartender that had just approached me. I had managed to stop my hands from trembling but my shaky nerves were still making my mouth dry. I steadied my hands as I grabbed the cold glass of water and gulped it down in under a minute.

It was Howie’s idea to meet at this casino after The Righteous requested to meet me in Las Vegas. The idea was to meet him in one of the most crowded places possible so as to discourage him from trying any funny business. It seemed like a decent plan at first but as I sat there and glanced around the crowded room I began to wonder if Howie’s plan would actually backfire. This was one of the busiest casinos in the country and while it was true that it was crowded, it was actually so crowded that it would be easy to get lost amongst the thousands of hopeful gamblers and hotel patrons. So far only the bartender and a handful of guys who were hoping to “hook up” with me had even noticed my presence—and if I had disappeared shortly afterward none of them would have even thought twice.

I SAT THERE FOR NEARLY AN HOUR WONDERING WHEN and how The Righteous would make contact. I was just starting to get frustrated when I finally decided to contact Howie again.

“Howie, do you see anything? It’s been nearly an hour,” I whispered as I covered my mouth with my right hand.

“Radio silence means you’re not supposed to talk to me, Monica,”
Howie groaned

“Hey! You don’t have to get an attitude with her!”
I heard Nina snap in my earpiece. She had taken the words right out of my mouth.

“Listen Nina, I appreciate your help with… whatever it is that you’re supposed to be helping with, but let me take care of this okay? I know what I’m doing,”
Howie snapped.

“Now you’re getting an attitude with me?! I don’t know who—”

“Hey, can we focus on me for a minute!” I demanded. “I’m starting to get a little freaked out here.”

“Sorry, Monica,”
Howie replied.

“Yeah, sorry, babe,”
Nina chimed.

“I know you’re in a tough position, Monica, but we have to be patient,”
Howie coaxed.

“I’m doing the best I can. But I don’t know how much longer he expects me to just sit here. I feel like I’m being used as bait or something,” I said.

“Just hang in there, Monica. You know I won’t let anything happen to you,”
Howie reassured.
“And remember, we have to maintain radio silence.”

“Why can’t she talk to us?”
Nina demanded.
“Don’t you think she would be more comfortable if she didn’t have to just sit there like an idiot?”

“Jesus H. Christ…”
Howie grumbled.
“Someone could be watching her, Nina, and we need her to look like she’s alone. If anyone from The Righteous’ forces notices her seemingly talking to herself they’ll assume that she’s actually communicating with someone else. That could put her in danger and I’m simply not willing to take that risk.”

“
Well I don’t think it’s that serious,”
Nina retorted.
“I mean, what could they possibly do to her with all of those people down there—”
Nina’s sentence was suddenly cut off by a screeching fire alarm that rang out with no advanced warning. The confused crowd of gamblers who filled the room began to clamor as the fire alarm continued to wail.

“Howie, is that you?” I asked.

“No, it’s not,”
he said, nervously.

My heartbeat quickened as someone yelled “Fire!” and the crowd suddenly, rushed towards the exits.

“What should I do, Howie? The rest of the people down here are leaving!” I asked as the hurrying crowd became an all-out stampede.

“What do you see?”
he asked, frantically.
“Is anyone moving toward you?!”

“No, I don’t see anyone!” I said as my heart beat even faster as I noticed the desperation in Howie’s voice.

“Nina, lock the door!”
Howie ordered.
“Monica, I need you to get out of there as fast as you can! We have to abort the mission!”

“Should I come back to the room?!” I asked as the fire alarm blared on and my head began to spin due to the sweltering anxiety that had taken hold of my entire body.

“
No, just fall in with the crowd and make your way outside as quickly as possible. Once you’re outside, find a police officer and stay with him until we can get to you!”

“Okay! I’m headed out now!” I confirmed as I swallowed a lump in my throat and grabbed my purse. A sick feeling churned in the pit of my stomach as I turned to look for an exit and my eyes fell onto an incredibly large, bearded man who was wearing dark sunglasses and a black suit and facing my direction as he stood motionless amongst the surging crowd of patrons that were dashing toward the exits. My legs turned to jelly as the man removed his sunglasses and I realized that he was glaring directly at me. Even with the ocean of people between us I knew that there was no way I could outrun someone as athletic as he looked—but I still had to try.

I turned and darted into the crowd as quickly as I could, hoping to lose the man in the chaos as I made my way toward the exit. My heart pounded faster as I looked back and saw the powerfully built man pushing his way through the crowd with alarming speed.

“How’s it going, Mo?”
Howie suddenly asked over the radio.

“I think there’s someone coming after me!” I shouted as I pushed forward through the crowd.

“Are you sure?!”
Howie asked.

“Yes I’m sure! He’s looking right at me and he’s as big as a freaking house!” I yelled as I looked back at the icy glare of the man who was moving to capture me.

“You have to hurry, Monica!”
Howie encouraged.

“I’m trying!” I yelled as the man closed in on me while I fought to keep my balance amongst the stampede.

“Monica, listen to me! When you get outside you have to—”
Howie’s transmission was abruptly interrupted as I felt someone behind me suddenly yank the earpiece from my ear. Before I could react, a massive hand suddenly clasped over my nose and mouth and I was yanked from my feet before I could even muster a scream.