“Finally, some good news!” Titan replied.
“The trip to Hal ux will be a short one, my lord. Approximately fifteen hours. It is rather close, as you know.”
“Which is why I had chosen it.”
“Of course, your greatness.”
“Well then, shall we depart?”
“Certainly.”
On the way to his smal er ship, Solis turned to Titan in the midst of the gigantic docking bay. The bay constantly emptied and refilled as ships passed to and fro. Some soldiers froze at the sight of the Voir, though especially Titan himself. “Has she arrived on Earth?”
“Yes, she has.”
“And she will kil him?”
“Indisputably guaranteed.”
“Your wisdom and criterion exceed the highest heaven, my lord.”
Titan brushed off the reverential remark. He kept marching to his ship. “Disregard courtesy, Solis. If it were not for your heroic qualities, I would never have returned.
Because of Sonovan Lung, you heard my legend, and you alone acted.”
“Thank you, Titan.” Solis nodded once at a soldier who positioned like a tree next to the entrance into the craft. One thousand soldiers boarded the Invader I, along with Titan and his Voir. The two had been through it all. A mere group of rebels would not stop them now.
~~~
On the other hand, Justice had journeyed through the wormhole to Earth. It had been a while since she smelled the life-giving air of the blue planet. Putting on the coat Titan provided her, she blended into her surroundings. No one looked twice at her.
After a few hours, she arrived at her home. Henry sat at his table, praying, for he was a religious man. He had not slept since she had left. Justice knocked on the door. It opened, and her eyes met Henry’s.
“Greetings, Henry.”
CHAPTER 18
THAT WHICH IS NECESSARY
The group stood like a church congregation in the main room of Sonovan’s refuge in the mountains of Herook. There were plenty of windows, along with a wel -placed, doorless entrance to the cliff outside, which overlooked the hills and valley below, al the way out toward the horizon. “What must we do now?” started Sam. “We cannot just stay here and do nothing!”
“As for you, you must be trained,” Sonovan answered.
“Yeah, wel , I am a second-degree black belt,” Dustin responded. “So are the others.
I doubt we need any kind of help in that field.”
In a moment’s notice, Sonovan stood and fastened his hand on Dustin’s throat. He then slipped his left leg behind Dustin’s and swept. “Whoa what the f—” he yelped.
Dustin landed on Sonovan’s back, lying on his hips for a split second before being flipped onto his stomach.
“Do you still consider yourself prepared?”
“Obviously. I meant to do that!” he puffed.
The others, including Sonovan, laughed. “Of course, Sonovan! What do you think?
Didn’t you see how prolific of a fighter he was just then?” Ryan heckled, nearly bal ing in laughter.
~~~
Henry’s eyes went wide. “Rose! It is you! My prayers have been answered!” he exclaimed, full of glee. “I thought I had lost you. Please, sit down!” He led her in, moving papers and things strewn in unnecessary places. After he closed the door, he made his way to her, awaiting al the things he hoped she would say.
“Thank you, father.” She found a place to sit. It was the first chair she sat on when she learned to walk. “There is something I must tell you, father.”
“Anything, my daughter. Anything. I want to hear everything.” He sat on the chair nearest hers.
Justice drew the knife under her robe.
~~~
“Great, so when do we begin?” Johnny asked Sonovan, who had stood and ambled to his kitchen.
“How about now?”
“Oh OK, I just…what are you doing?”
“Making our meal, Johnny.” Though Sonovan ate food now and then, consumption was not a necessity. The pure Ooris in his veins supplied him with energy food could
never supply.
“Uh, what kind of meal?” Ryan asked, turning to Sonovan while in his chair. “I really hope you don’t ea…you know what? Nevermind.”
Five minutes passed and Sonovan entered the meeting room again, this time carrying several dishes of food like a chef. “Here, have this. One for each of you. It is the meat of the mountain animals that live in these parts. On the side is some vegetables the animals consume.”
They stared at Sonovan laid on the table. This food had been cooked to a wonderful y odd brown color, and he had sliced each piece in a circle formation.
“Uh, yeah, I don’t know if I—”
“It’s good! Try it! It is comparable to cooked deer!”
They each had blank faces. “I have never had deer,” grumbled Dustin.
“Neither have I,” Ryan added. The rest nodded in agreement.
Sonovan rolled his eyes. “It is delectable. Just try it.”
Dustin glanced at Ryan with a mischievous smile. “Eat it,” he said in his own iteration of a villainous tone. “Eat it now.”
“I shouldn’t,” Ryan fol owed.
“Do it!”
“Ugh, fine!”
~~~
The knife had been drawn. Now she waited for the time to strike. It must be done, her mind told her.
“By the way, where did you get this robe? It is so tan!”
“Oh, a nice gentleman gave it to me. It turns out he is the true ruler of worlds. Our planet is one of many that can support life. These other exoplanets are home to many kinds of species, but most of them will destroy themselves if it was not for Titan, our true emperor. He saved nearly every advanced civilization in the galaxy, and it appears Earth’s incompetence, hatred, and prejudice has promoted it to the top of Titan’s list.
After Hallux, Earth will be next. This planet I have cal ed home for my whole life will be saved from its own inhabitants. Earth is a special one on the list, because very few planets, in fact, have religions so widespread and diverse. It is as if every human is searching for something beyond its comprehension. And now, he wil come for us—to save us from ourselves.”
“That does not sound like the Rose I know.” His smile faded, and his expression turned twisted. “I do not know what you are even saying.”
“Your job is not to know,” she retorted, narrowing her eyes. “It is to accept.”
“Then I will not, whoever you are.”
“The name is Justice, Voir to the Titan, savior of the universe.”
“From what I can hear, he does not sound like a good man. What has he done to you?!”
“He is most wonderful, gracious, and generous. There is none reminiscent of him in al the cosmos.”
She then whipped out the knife.
~~~
Ryan savored the taste. “Oh yeah, you cooked this good, Chef Lung,” he garbled as he chewed. “What’s the name of it?”
“Aphelion Turm.”
Ryan paused in thought, half-expectant that the fancy name should amplify the taste.
“OK.”
Close to twenty minutes were spent eating the Turm and cleaning. Sonovan had already eaten, so he only sat and conversed. After they finished, Sonovan stood up and motioned for them to follow. “Now, we rest. Once you wake up, I will begin training you.”
“Do you have a studio?” Johnny asked.
“A studio?”
Johnny shook himself to remember the true name. “I mean, uh, a dojo? A place of training?”
“Ah, yes I do. In fact, we are in it now.”
“We are?”
“Yes. The room can be whatever you make it to be.”
“Uh, how so?” Dustin asked, confused.
Sonovan smiled at the reaction. “There is no law which states against it.” Leading them out, he paced down the hal to find them a place to sleep. Sonovan led them to a room. Situated like cof
fins were four sleep apparatuses analogous to the ones they had slept inside in Ledarius’s Octavian. “There are only four,” Ryan observed.
“The rest will have to sleep on the ground.”
“Like you?”
“Sometimes.”
“I’ll sleep on the ground,” Johnny offered. “You guys can sleep in the cases.”
Ryan raised his eyebrow. “Wow, thanks for being a pal, Johnny.”
“Yeah man, thanks a lot,” Dustin complemented.
“I owe you one,” Sam said.
“Thank you, Johnny,” Jane appreciated. “Thank you very much.”
He only stared at her but did not have the courage to do anything out of the ordinary.
“You are welcome,” he smiled.
Dustin frowned and turned to Sam, whispering, “He didn’t say that to us.” Sam snickered.
Sonovan surveyed the situation, confused. “That is a very gracious thing you did for your girlfriend and your friends, Mr. Sparks.”
The mentioned man turned hastily, his expression scrunched in disbelief. “Whoa, what?! I, uh, what are you…what are you saying?”
“Oh my gosh, no!” Jane exclaimed.
“Not again,” Sam mumbled, closing his eyes until this comedy expended itself. I never asked to be plunked in a cringy Hallmark Christmas movie, he grumbled to himself.
Sonovan jumped at the sudden response. “What do you mean? Aren’t you together?”
“No,” Jane stated timidly. Johnny was clenching his teeth, trying to think of something intel igent to reply with.
Ryan and Dustin could not stop snickering. Stil confused, Sonovan prodded on with a question. “Why not?”
Jane did not answer and only huffed. Johnny was rubbing the back of his neck.
“Uh…”
“Yeah Johnny, aren’t you together?” snickered Dustin.
“Shut up!”
A light bulb flashed in Sonovan’s mind. “Oh, I understand now! She is your helper like Aiko was for me!” he returned, trying to comprehend this mystery.
Johnny rol ed his eyes. “No, she is not my helper either. She is just, uh, a friend and a teammate.” Johnny enunciated the response more as a question than a statement.
“That was an unclear response.”
“Uh, whatever, OK? Can we just move along and get some sleep?”
“If that is what you desire.”
Jane scurried to the case and locked herself in. Ryan, Sam, and Dustin were still neighing away. After urging his eyes to open due to the fact the awkward conversation had ended, Sam patted Johnny on the back. “Just a friend.”
“Yeah, where have I heard that before? Oh yeah, everyone?” Dustin replied.
“My advice? Don’t wait so long,” Sam added. “You will probably lose her then.”
“Yeah, wel if you did not notice, we might actually lose our own lives any day now,”
retorted Johnny, rolling his eyes.
“Damn, so pessimistic.”
“No, it’s realistic.”
At that moment, Sonovan snapped his fingers. “Enough chatter. Now we sleep.”
The group eyed him in wonder. Ryan raised his eyebrow and turned to Dustin.
“Since when did he become the leader?” he whispered.
“As of two seconds ago,” replied Sonovan. He had heard their murmurs.
Ryan and the brothers locked themselves into the sleep apparatus. Sonovan closed the door and met Johnny in the main room, where they were nigh on an interesting conversation.
~~~
In one swift motion, the knife found the heart of Henry. Blood seeped out as the knife cut necessary parts of his body. “Ah!” he wailed. “No, Rose!” He grabbed her arm in confusion and fright. “Why? Why you?”
“I had to.” Her voiced changed. “There is no more Rose Johnson, Henry. There is only Justice.”
“No, that is where you are wrong,” he murmured, trying to catch a breath. “In time, she will find a way back.”
The deep voice of Titan resounded as he ful y controlled her mind at that instant.
“How can you be so sure, worthless nothing?”
“Because if I know my daughter well, she never goes down without a fight.”
“There is not a fight to compete in, I’m afraid.”
“Rose, if you are in there, never stop fighting. You hear me? Never stop! I love you.”
A single tear dropped from Justice’s eyes. “I know.”
Henry’s eyes widened. “If you can hear me, whoever you are who is control ing her, this is the moment of your downfall.”
Inside her mind, Titan did not respond. Henry died only seconds later.
CHAPTER 19
JUSTICE PREVAILS
Johnny found a place to sit inside the main room, and Sonovan was next to him.
Peace enveloped him and content kept them warm. Sonovan gave off both. “You are a truly perplexing fellow, Johnny Sparks. Are humans of the day al like you?”
“No, and that’s a good thing.”
“Why?”
“Eh, it’s just my personality, I guess. Sometimes I wish it would be just another extrovert. Nope. INFJ.”
“INFJ?”
“It’s nothing real y.”
Sonovan nodded, realizing Johnny did not continue on the subject. “The rest of the population? Are they similar to how I had been when I was younger, or are they far better now? I assume the latter.”
Johnny shook his head, releasing a sigh. “Yeah, you assumed wrong.”
“How?”
“I don’t think they hold the morals and goodness you fought for anymore.”
“What has happened to society?”
“It’s like Titan said. They’re selfish and rebellious. Technology might have advanced it, but besides that, it has only brought distraction, among other things.”
“I see.”
“I might hate him, but the things Titan speaks are scary precise.”
“Yes, I can agree,” he nodded, looking away. “He has a vast knowledge of the universe and worlds. Sometimes I wish he wasn’t always as right.”
“I’m sure he does. Where does he come from?”
“I am not sure. A servant of his who I released, Torion, told me he perhaps came from a race of beings strong in Ooris, so it is possible he originates in the Shadowverse itself.”
“You said that place is a parallel universe?”
“Yes.”
“How do you get to it?”
“Only beings of true and pure Ooris such as Titan and I can see it. We have the power to walk between the realities.”
“Well, that’s neat.” For a minute, he ceased further dialogue. “How can we get Rose back?”
“Since I experienced your dilemma first hand, I can say without a doubt it wil be difficult. For starters, Titan’s telepathic power is unlike anything I have seen. That is his original ability—the power to read and control the minds of others. To retrieve her from his grasp, you must sever the connection.”
“Well, how do you do that?”
“There is no way other than to disconnect the cord into his head.”
“Yeah, wel that sounds way easier than it is.”
“Trust me, I know.”
“Then how?”
“You must shift his attention with a distraction. Now remember! If you somehow kil him before the connection is severed, her mind is lost.”
“What? Why?”
“It is a bridge. If a bridge is cut in half while people are moving to and fro on it, all of them perish. The people must cross first, and then the bridge can be disunited without fatalities.”
“Got it. You will be the distraction.”
“I know.”
Johnny raised his eyebrow. “How’d you know?”
“I surmised.”
“Oh, great.”
In a slight change of subject, Johnny asked, “What are those things, you know, the wires for? Why does he need them?”
“He
doesn’t necessarily need them, but they amplify his psychic abilities to heights inaccessible by any. In short, it strengthens him.”
“Oh,” Johnny replied. Great, he thought.
The black shroud wrapped around and covering most of his body lifted and shifted into a human color. He caught Johnny off-guard with his move. “Whoa, what the hell?”
“A gift bestowed to me, as you know.”
“Awesome!”
His skin had become tan, his hair raven, and eyes dark brown.
“Wow, that’s sweet.”
“It is…sweet,” Sonovan replied in his pristine, slight Oriental accent. “Like Gujuman Tea.”
“Guju-what?” Johnny repeated, puzzled.
Chuckling, Sonovan smiled as he elaborated upon his response. “Gujuman Tea. A friend on Atheros made it for me. It has a lot of sugar in it. About six tablespoons in one cup, to be exact. Mind you, the Atherian sugar is three times the sweetness of Earth’s sugar. In fact, it is possible for some species to die from the sweetness.”
His jaw dropped. “What? Holy shit.”
“Yes. ‘Holy shit’ indeed. It is made for religious congregations in the hil s of Atheros.”
Johnny chuckled, arms wrapped around his knees as he sat. “You know, you have a personality to you.”
“It emerges every so often.”
“That’s good.”
After this, the two sat without speaking once more. Desperately yearning to continue an exchange, Johnny spoke again.
“Did you really have to say that stuff about Jane being my girlfriend?” he asked, trying to hold back a grin. “She isn’t one for big deal stuff like that.”
Nodding, Sonovan laughed. “I had the same response you had once. You know, Aiko was my helper. She made equipment for me.”
“I know.”
“And over time, I saw the compassion she had for others. Who would have thought?
A metalworker, a samurai who had a tremendous heart, even though I used those weapons to stab people in the heart.”
“Wow, that’s gory.”
“And you two have something everyone craves in a relationship. It’s the building block of a good one.”
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