Savior Part 2: Son of Eden (The Savior Series) (6 page)

I stayed for about another thirty minutes and went over a bunch of the Anokian laws with Wells regarding the succession of the crown. It bothered me that Wells didn’t seem very confident in my ability to succeed but I took solace in knowing that he wouldn’t have suggested I take on The Greater if he at least didn’t think I had some chance of winning. The more I thought about that, the more I began to develop a newfound respect for him. Wells was always tough on me and, to be honest, he was quite the jerk, but at the end of the day he had shown that he had so much faith in me that he was willing to put the fate of our world, as well as an entire galaxy, in my hands. I probably should have been nervous given the possible apocalyptic ramifications of what was to come, but as I stared down at the ice cold Mark of Eden that I held in my hands, I could not have been more excited.

“OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS GROW RESTLESS, MY LEIGE,” I said as I peered into the The Righteous’ dimly lit personal chambers. A sudden gust of wind picked up in the narrow hallway in which I stood, blowing loose strands of my black, shoulder-length hair into my face as I stood near the doorway of his quarters and waited for a response. I interlocked my fingers beneath my flowing white robe and patiently waited as several moments passed by in utter silence.

“Is that so?” The Righteous finally called out from the shadows, not bothering to stand or turn to face me. His voice came out much deeper and grittier than usual, no doubt a product of him having not spoken a word aloud in weeks.

“They were told the fleet would be here by now, yet not a single ship has arrived. It does not help that they have not seen you, their king, in months. I have done what I can to calm them, but I fear that there may come a time when only the word of the High King will matter to them.”
“And what then, my son? Will you challenge me for the Crown if the people demand it?”

“Never. I merely wish to convey to you the people’s need for word of their King, father,” I reassured.

“No. I must await word from the Goddess before—”

“She has not spoken to you in months!” I grumbled. I instantly regretted speaking out of turn, however I could not deny that some part of me was a bit relieved to have finally let him know what had been troubling me for so long.

“Yes, but we both know of the mysterious ways in which She works. I have to believe that Her silence is not without purpose.”

“What purpose could Her abandonment of us serve?” I demanded.

“It is not my place to question the actions of our Goddess, nor is it yours to question those of your King!” he snarled as he slammed his fists down on the arms of his chair.

“Forgive me, father. I didn’t mean to speak out of turn. I simply wished to convey to you the concerns of our people—concerns that I too share.”

“Your concerns are noted, my son, and your apologies are unnecessary. I understand all too well the frustration brought on by being away from our home for all this time, but you should know that our time is almost at hand. When last I spoke with the Goddess She revealed to me that the message sent within the distress beacon all those years ago was incomplete. Our people are aware of the galaxy in which we were imprisoned, but not the exact planet. By now, our fleet should be nearing this galaxy, but they will need further guidance in order to reach the Earth.”

“What do we need to do?” I asked.

“We must send a second message to the fleet containing the coordinates of the Earth.”

“But we have no means of interstellar communication,” I reminded him.

“I am aware. This is why we must return to their Area 51. That prison is the only place on this planet that has what we need in order to complete our own interstellar communicator.”

“Understood. I will see to it personally,” I said firmly.

“Very well, then.”

“Did the Goddess reveal anything else to you before She went silent, father?” I asked, curious as to if She had revealed the location of the one who was destined to become her new vessel.

“She did. She told me there was no need to look for her vessel, for the chosen one would search for me,” he answered.

“Is that all?” I asked.

“No,” he said. “She also told me that my son would try to kill me.”

“Father, you know that I would never seek the crown so long as you hold it!” I declared.

“Let us hope that that is true,” he said after a few moments of silence.

I stood there for a moment contemplating the gravity of his words. It was true that I had had periodic thoughts of my right to seek the Crown, but I had never given it any serious consideration. Still, it troubled me that the Goddess would say such a thing. What troubled me more was the fact that, so far, everything She had told him had come to pass.

- THE NEXT DAY

THE EVENING SUN HUNG LOW OVER THE HORIZON AS JASON, Reaper and I made our way toward Reaper’s all-black, two-door sports car parked at the edge of the street near our metro-Las Vegas safe house. We had all planned to hang out on the day before, but we weren't able to do so due to the Manhattan incident. Wells had given us a few days off to cool down, so now that we had a bit of precious free time we decided to head into the city and grab a bite to eat. Reaper was wearing his typical dark jeans, black shoes and another of his myriad of graphic T-shirts. Jason had chosen a pair of much more expensive jeans, dark leather sneakers and a long-sleeved plaid collar shirt that only he could have pulled off. I never really wore anything other than slacks and a polo but since we were going into the city I had decided to wear my favorite leather jacket as well. I still didn't look anywhere near as stylish as Jason, but the jacket certainly gave the illusion that I was dressed better than I normally was.

“Shotgun!” I yelled as Reaper remotely unlocked the car as we neared.

“Dude, come on,” Jason groaned, looking over to Reaper as I opened the passenger door and prepared to claim the front seat. I could tell Reaper didn’t want to get involved by the look on his face, but when he sighed and finally looked at me I knew what was coming next.

“Yeah, I know. He’s taller than me,” I grumbled as I pushed the driver seat forward and crammed into the back seat. One of the perks of working for Wells was that we were all given credit cards with virtually no limit. Considering how much money Reaper had spent on his car, you would think it would have come with a lot more space. Don’t get me wrong, it was one of the best looking sports cars on the market at the time, but it just wasn’t conducive for more than one passenger. The back seat area was so small and tight that I actually used to wonder if it was just for show.

“You know it sucks that I always have to ride in the back seat,” I mumbled under my breath as Reaper and Jason climbed into their seats and shut the doors.

“What was that?” Reaper asked as he fastened his seat belt and looked at me in the rear-view mirror.

“I said—” I started, but my words were suddenly interrupted by the car’s powerful engine roaring to life. I sighed and rolled my eyes as Reaper and Jason burst into laughter at my expense. “Ha ha ha,” I said sarcastically as they continued to laugh.

“I’m sorry, bro,” Reaper chuckled as the roar of the engine mellowed to a steady idle. “But seriously, what where you saying?”

“I was just—” My sentence was cut short once again and I was virtually stuck to the seat as the engine roared once more and the car sped forward into the street. I shook my head in silence while Reaper glanced at me in the rear-view mirror as he and Jason chuckled at my expense once again.

“Are you done?” I finally asked as I glared back at him.

“Come on, Howie. You know I’m just kidding, bro.”

“Yeah sure,” I groaned as I pressed a button on the side of my smart glasses which brought my email inbox and a few more windows into my field of vision.

“Hey, thanks again for inviting me to go out with you guys,” Reaper said, obviously trying to lighten the mood. “It seems like we haven’t done anything for fun in forever,” he continued as he shifted gears and drifted to the far left lane of the highway.

“Tell me about it,” Jason added.

“Yeah well, maybe next time someone else should drive because I’m tired of having to cram myself into this tiny back seat,” I grumbled as I continued to sift through my emails using my smart glasses.

“Is it really that big of a deal, Howie?” Jason asked without looking back at me.

“As a matter of fact it is. I called shotgun, Jason. You have to respect the Shotgun!” I answered.

“The world could end tomorrow and all Howie cares about is who called shotgun,” Jason chuckled. I glanced at Reaper who was desperately trying to hold back laughter but I pretended not to notice.

“Did you guys see that watch that Wells was wearing?” I asked, changing the subject as I suddenly remembered the oddly advanced device.

“Yeah, I saw it,” Reaper replied. “He always wears it. What’s up?”

“Nothing much,” I continued. “I’m just surprised I’ve never noticed it. It looks pretty sophisticated, even by our standards. I’d be interested to know if I can get one of those for myself.”

“I think it’s like a wrist mounted supercomputer or something but from what I can tell it’s no different from your smart glasses. Do you really think you need two wearable computers?” Jason asked as he flipped down the sun visor then reached in his pocket and withdrew a pair of designer aviator shades.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” I admitted. “So Reaper, did Director Wells mention how you’re supposed to go about challenging The Greater?” I asked as I turned my attention to Reaper.

“I thought we agreed not to talk about work,” Jason said.

“It’s fine, Ace,” Reaper replied, still keeping his eyes on the road as he drove. “We just have to find him, basically. With that necklace I told you about, he has no choice but to accept my challenge. The problem is that I have to challenge him in person. Besides that, Wells also went over some other stuff about the rules and regulations and such. It's actually a pretty interesting process.”

“Oh, yeah? How so?” I asked.

“Well, apparently I don’t have to fight him alone if I don’t want to. The Anokian laws allow up to three allies to join the challenger in the battle against the Right Hand.”

“Really?” I questioned, as I wondered about the purpose of such a law. “What about him?” I continued. “Does he get to fight with anyone?”

“No. The Right Hand must defend his title alone.”

“Wait a second… you’re telling me that this guy has defeated over a thousand challengers who all had the potential to fight him with four to one odds?”

“That’s what Wells said,” Reaper said nonchalantly.

“You don’t sound too concerned about this, Reaper,” I replied.

“Why should he be?” Jason asked. “Their laws allow us to take him on together. I don’t care how many times he’s won in the past. There’s no way one guy’s gonna beat us both.”

“Actually…” Reaper started. “I was gonna take him on by myself, Ace.”

“Excuse me?” Jason asked, obviously taken aback.

“I just think I should take him on alone. One-on-one, you know? You don’t think I’m up to it?” Reaper asked.

“No, I’m not saying that. I’m just saying if I’m allowed to fight with you, why not let me help?”

“So you’re saying you think I need help?” Reaper asked. “You really don’t think I can beat this guy by myself, do you?”

“Come on, Reap, this is the fate of the world we’re talking about here. I’m not saying I don’t think you’re up to it. I just think it wouldn’t hurt to have a little insurance considering the stakes. I’m sure we can all agree that you’re pretty much guaranteed a victory if we fight him together.”

I stopped skimming through my emails and chuckled after listening to Jason’s last statement.

“What’s so funny, Howie?” he asked.

“Well, I was just thinking that we may be getting ahead of ourselves,” I said.

“What do you mean?” Jason asked.

“I just want to make sure we’re not going into this thing with a false sense of security.”

“Meaning?” Reaper responded with a hint of frustration in his voice.

“I agree with Jason. Taking him on alone is simply a bad idea,” I said flatly.

“Hey, I didn’t say it was a bad idea!” Jason protested.

“Sure you didn’t,” I said sarcastically as I looked back to Reaper. “In any case, I think both your ideas are bad ones. As confident as I am in both of you guys’ abilities, I think it would be foolish to think of this thing as a done deal just because you get to fight together. I don’t think I have to remind you that the two of you were once defeated by the Stranger officer Tango who was not only fighting alone, but he was just a man. If The Greater is as powerful as they say it will likely take more than just the two of you to defeat him. If their laws allow for a team of four then that’s what we should do. It wouldn’t hurt to have a couple of extra hands on deck just in case we need them.”

“You’re kidding me right, Howie?” Reaper asked with a hint of agitation in his voice.

“No, I’m just being practical,” I replied.

“More like pessimistic,” Jason quipped. “As I recall, Reaper wasn’t even 100 percent during our first fight with Tango, and in the second fight I fought him alone and mopped the floor with him. Not to mention we’re both twenty times better than we were back then.”

“You know what, screw this, okay?” Reaper demanded. “Enough about work! The longer we talk about this crap the more pissed I’m gonna get and I’m just trying to have some fun for a change,” Reaper continued as he pulled the car into the parking lot of David’s Bar and Grill, our favorite restaurant and usual place to hang out whenever we found ourselves with any down time.

“Fine with me,” Jason said as he flipped open the vanity mirror in front of him and ran his fingers through his flawless black hair as Reaper put the car in park and shut off the engine.

ALL EYES WERE ON US AS WE ENTERED THE MODERATELY sized restaurant and followed the hostess as she led us to a booth near the back of the open room. As we continued toward our seats, I could tell that the girls that were practically gawking in our direction as we passed them by were really only looking at Jason. Reaper and I were both used to that sort of behavior by this point. Jason was one of those guys that gave off some sort of celebrity-like aura that members of the opposite sex seemed to be completely transfixed with.
They probably think we’re just lowly members of his entourage,
I thought, shaking my head and chuckling as we continued onward.

Jason and Reaper both slowed their approach as we neared the table. I sighed and shook my head once more but I pretended not to notice what they were doing. They weren’t being polite; I knew they wanted me to reach the table first so they could both sit on the outside. It always pissed me off that they sometimes treated me like their little brother, but for the most part I did my best to ignore it. The hostess smiled at Jason then walked away as Reaper and I sat on the bench to the left.

“Can I get you guys anything to drink?” a warm voice chimed just as Jason took a seat on the bench across from Reaper and me. I looked up from the display of my smart glasses and noticed a blond waitress smiling brightly at Jason and completely ignoring Reaper and me.

“The service is always so great whenever Jason is around,”
I whispered to Reaper as I nudged him with my right elbow. I clenched my lips firmly together to hold back laughter as Reaper responded with a muffled chuckle. Jason smiled and did his best to ignore us as he turned his attention to the slender waitress who was completely enthralled by his movie star quality good looks.

“I’ll have a glass of water, please,” Jason said. The waitress scribbled something down on the notepad in her hands and continued to stare hopelessly into Jason’s green eyes. She nearly dropped her notepad as her trance was finally broken after I cleared my throat as loudly and obnoxiously as humanly possible.

“Oh! I’m sorry!” she said as she finally turned her attention to us. “And for you, gentlemen?”

“I’ll take the biggest glass of lemonade you have,” Reaper said enthusiastically.

“I’ll have a glass of water,” I said as she looked to me. “And perhaps you should grab one for yourself as well,” I continued.

“W-what do you mean?” the waitress asked.

“I just think you look awfully thirsty,” I said, trying my best not to laugh as Reaper nudged me with his left knee and snickered.

“He’s just joking,” Jason interjected as the waitress’ face instantly turned red with embarrassment. I rolled my eyes at Jason for coming to her rescue and the waitress seemed to forget all about my quip as soon as she turned her attention back to Jason.

“Not drinking tonight?” the waitress asked as she smiled at him.

“The night’s still young,” he chimed. She blushed once more as Jason continued to beam his 1000-watt smile at her. I cleared my throat and was just about to release another obnoxious sigh when she finally turned and headed to the kitchen to retrieve our drinks.

“I don’t get it,” I said, shaking my head as I glanced from the waitress to Jason.

“What?” Jason asked, pretending to be oblivious.

“You don’t even have to do anything! You barely said a word to her, yet she’s practically falling all over you!” I replied.

“What can I say? Women know what they want… and in most cases it’s me,” Jason said with a crooked smirk.

“Give me a break,” I said, jokingly rolling my eyes.

“Wait a second,” Reaper started. “Correct me if I’m wrong, Howie, and I’m pretty sure that I’m not, but the last time we went out like this… didn’t I get more phone numbers than Ace?” Reaper asked before raising an eyebrow and looking at Jason.

“As a matter of fact you did,” I confirmed, as I recalled the event.

“I demand a recount,” Jason declared as he dismissively waved his hand and we all burst into laughter.