I nod to Erik, and he takes us aloft. Half of the Twenty sit on the floor in the cargo compartment, making room for Sera to lie on her back on the bench seat. They brace her unconscious body to keep it from shifting while in flight and watch her like faithful devotees, their faces etched with concern. Dunn follows our trajectory toward the Mediterranean in the second vehicle, carrying the other nine aboard. The clone didn't seem happy about being separated from Sera. Strange behavior for a non-human.
"You may want to stick around and explore that facility," I tell Luther. "But brace yourselves for a hostile welcome." I fill him in on the details, including the gun-wielding Wong clones. Milton will need to disarm them all first.
"Solomon Wong was planning for another apocalypse," Luther muses.
"From what I hear, he has quite a collection in that ten-story bunker."
"Worth a look," he agrees.
"Milton should take his passengers on a tour."
"The spirits?" Luther sounds intrigued.
I gaze out the tinted window at Futuro Tower, frozen halfway up through the earth like an unfinished monument from ancient times.
"Tell him there are animals."
26 Epilogue
Spirits of the Earth
25 Years After All-Clear
Time passes differently for us than it does for the humans. We measure it in seasons, not years, moving with it now in bodies of flesh and bone as we did long ago.
We run.
We soar.
We swim.
We lie in the soft green grass sprouting from earth soil and bask in the golden sunlight filtering through the domed ceiling high above. This is our home now: Dome 11. The only Preserve left on the planet.
No longer do we hover above the desolate earth, seeking to bless or destroy the human survivors. Here, we have returned to the forms the Creator intended for us. We are only a small sampling of the multitudes we once were, but we are alive, and that is enough.
When one of our bodies eventually dies, either due to old age or a carnivore's fair kill, then an embryo from Futuro Tower in North Africa is brought to term and flown to Dome 11 to take its place. In this way, we always have host bodies, whether they be mammalian, reptile, amphibian, or avian. Due to limited space and resources, our genes have been modified to preclude reproduction.
There are humans assigned to monitor us, but they do not interfere with our lives. They ensure that our ecosystem remains balanced, and they study us from observation platforms throughout the dome. We don't mind them watching us. Many humans have never seen animals before.
Milton, Daiyna, and James Bishop visit us often. We do not speak to them anymore, but they speak to us, standing on an enclosed deck overlooking a wide grassland, sharing news with a lion or a bear or an elk. In this way, we learn about the lives of our human friends.
Milton has kept his talents for speed and flight hidden for the most part—ever since a video of him wrangling security cruisers in midair was shared online among every citizen in Eurasia. But his movements were too fast for anyone to identify him by appearance. Since the incident with Trezon, he no longer believes that every human in Eurasia should have supernatural abilities. His desire is to live a normal life, as much as possible.
Once the animal embryos were discovered in Futuro Tower, he was eager to let us depart from him.
"You've done enough for us," he said, staring at the racks of countless species in cold storage. "Time to live the way you were meant to."
Milton and Victoria work in Dome 3 now, a manufacturing center for various machines. Having grown up in a trade sector, and working as a laborer himself, Milton understands both roles. He and Victoria handle disputes between workers when they arise. Victoria's telepathy, as well as Milton's casual, honest attitude, goes a long way in diffusing conflict.
Their children, Florence and Boaz, soon will be taking a two-month tour of the Ten Domes to help them decide where they would like to work, once they finish their education. Their biological father, Cain, died aboard the Integrity. After a month of confinement and agonizing experiments conducted by government scientists, he managed to escape from his cell and kill half a dozen of his captors with his bare hands. He was attempting to dive overboard and swim to shore when a volley of rounds from the sentries stopped him in his tracks. Florence's biological mother perished in the Homeplace when Cain fired that missile.
"Never thought I'd be a dad," Milton confides, standing behind a clear pane of plexicon. Below him, a small herd of horses roams free. "Never thought it would be possible. But I love these kids—they're really growing up. And Victoria sure keeps me on track." He shakes his head in awe. "I can't get away with anything. She's always in my head. But so were you." He smiles, and his eyes glisten. "I love her more than anything...and I'll always love you, Julia."
We were never Julia, not really. But we love him, and we are glad his life has taken him here, into this season. We are proud of the man he has become.
When Daiyna visits, she tells us about her work in Dome 6 where she and Luther serve at a hospice, providing care for those nearing the end of their lives. Belief in The Way has grown in the absence of Chancellor Hawthorne's iron fist, and Luther has emerged as a leader due to his knowledge of ancient scripture. His unfailing hope and faith have impressed Daiyna over the years, as well as his unconditional love.
"That's why I married him." She smiles in the sunlight as deer forage below the observation deck. "I'm still not convinced there's an all-knowing Creator out there with a plan for our lives, but...he's always believed, no matter what we've gone through." She pauses, and her expression dims. "He carries a heavy burden of guilt for all the lives we lost along the way. I wish I could take that from him."
They keep in touch with their ten biological children—Sera, in particular. She made a full recovery following her injury at Dr. Wong's hand, and Commander Mara Bishop promoted her to the rank of Investigator in Dome 1. Given her choice of human partners, Sera instead selected a security clone named Dunn. After being shot in the head by Drasko, it lost all of Erik's reprogramming. When it showed her such great devotion in Futuro Tower, it did so of its own volition. For her, that was reason enough to want it by her side.
Drasko has retired from law enforcement, instead choosing to fill the underworld void left by Trezon. He covertly derails the Domes' criminal activity as much as one man can, often acting as an unofficial informant for Investigator Chen. In the absence of fascist rule, crime has been on the rise, keeping law enforcers busier than ever before.
At least a third of the Thousand—children of the Twenty—are exhibiting supernatural abilities as they reach puberty. It remains unclear how many of them will accept the Eurasian neural implants with their augmented reality instead of enjoying the superhuman gifts passed down through their DNA. Perhaps they will appreciate the best of both as Sera and Erik do, turning off their implants when they wish to use their gifts.
They see one another weekly for a casual meal, and they refuse to admit they have feelings for each other.
"That takes time," Daiyna admits. "If Sera's anything like me…" She laughs quietly to herself before sobering. "Thank you for seeing me through, Rehana. I never would've made it without you by my side."
We were never Rehana, but we love Daiyna like a sister, and it gives us great joy to see her at peace. Like Luther, she carries more than her share of guilt for the past. But perhaps with the passage of the seasons, those scars will continue to heal.
Samson and Shechara work in Dome 9 on Erik's family farm. After footage of his rooftop run made its way across the Linkstream, there was no shortage of Dome 5 entertainment companies offering to hire him for lead roles. He was tempted, but after coming face to face with his own mortality at the tattooed hands of Trezon and his henchmen, Erik decided to return to his roots. And he invited his biological parents to enjoy the simple life with him. Mrs. Paine was more than happy to have them all back on the farm; after hearing the true story
of Erik's origins and what Samson and Shechara survived outside the Domes, she promised to cook a delicious meal for them every day until she ran out of days.
Most of our human friends live on the same floor of a cube complex in Dome 2. After being together for so many seasons, living in caves and city ruins, they could not bear the thought of living apart. They spend much of their free time wandering among the trees, inhaling the oxygen-rich air until they are almost dizzy with it.
James Bishop was unanimously voted in as Interim Chancellor once Hawthorne's psychotic break became public knowledge. She never recovered from seeing her husband's ghost; the wild one who appeared to Milton as Jackson, to Daiyna as Mother Lairen, and to Cain as Gaia has not left her.
Erik managed to temporarily shut down the Linkstream long enough for every human to remember James Bishop and what he did for Eurasia. His status as a hero brought back from the dead made it possible for him to enact important changes.
"I'm no politician," Bishop tells us, watching majestic elephants graze below him. "With the election coming up, I'll be stepping down and throwing all my support behind Emmanuel."
During his seasons as Chancellor, he has accomplished much. He dismantled Hawthorne's authoritarian regime and its strict class divisions. The Governors were allowed to remain in power if they fell in line; all agreed to do so, some begrudgingly, for the sake of Eurasian stability. Bishop invited the malcontents from Dome 10 and elsewhere to air their grievances and share their strategies for making the Domes more equitable with regard to opportunity and advancement. Captain Mutegi and his crew returned home to their families, and the raiders were given new responsibilities that included locating any remaining survivors across the globe and transporting them to Eurasia. The families of Granger, Sinclair, and Harris were well provided for. And when Bishop eventually revealed Dr. Wong's plan to terraform the earth, citizens were inspired by hope for a future they would never see, but one later generations would someday enjoy.
While the real Persephone Hawthorne will live out her days under psychiatric care in Dome 6, the cloned version was assigned the role of looking after Dr. Wong's clones in Futuro Tower. Wong originally designed them to work nonstop until they expired, only to be replaced by the next clone out of its maturation chamber. But the Hawthorne clone has instituted break time, meal time, and recreation time, and the Wong clones are thriving. Should the Creator will it, they may very well discover how to terraform the earth ahead of schedule.
"I know you were never really Emma...but thank you for keeping me alive over there." Bishop squints up into the sunlight, seeming to speak to the Creator when he says, "I'm not sure if you exist. But Luther has always believed in you, and he said I'd see my family again." He nods slowly. "Thanks for that."
We love him, and we are pleased that he found his way to his children. Perhaps he will find his way to faith, as well.
The Creator moves in mysterious ways, and we play only a small part in His great plan. Humankind, made in His image, is equally capable of magnificent wonders and horrific destruction. We have seen them achieve both.
We existed alongside them, shared our abilities with them, helped them and harmed them. We do not understand them completely, and we never will. Some of us love them, while others continue to hate them, and still others remain indifferent. But we are all thankful for this Preserve that reminds us of the magnificent earth that was before and our place in it as companions of humankind.
Humankind destroyed us. Humankind gave us new life.
Because of them, now we run across these fields of grass.
We soar through fresh air untainted by ash.
We dive and swim through clean water.
We live.
And if it is the Creator's will, perhaps someday we will return to the earth outside these glass walls and find it is not so very different from how we left it long ago. Humans and animals alike, living together in a distant future we can only imagine, in a world that is very good.
As it was in the beginning.
Spirits of the Earth
25 Years After All-Clear
Time passes differently for us than it does for the humans. We measure it in seasons, not years, moving with it now in bodies of flesh and bone as we did long ago.
We run.
We soar.
We swim.
We lie in the soft green grass sprouting from earth soil and bask in the golden sunlight filtering through the domed ceiling high above. This is our home now: Dome 11. The only Preserve left on the planet.
No longer do we hover above the desolate earth, seeking to bless or destroy the human survivors. Here, we have returned to the forms the Creator intended for us. We are only a small sampling of the multitudes we once were, but we are alive, and that is enough.
When one of our bodies eventually dies, either due to old age or a carnivore's fair kill, then an embryo from Futuro Tower in North Africa is brought to term and flown to Dome 11 to take its place. In this way, we always have host bodies, whether they be mammalian, reptile, amphibian, or avian. Due to limited space and resources, our genes have been modified to preclude reproduction.
There are humans assigned to monitor us, but they do not interfere with our lives. They ensure that our ecosystem remains balanced, and they study us from observation platforms throughout the dome. We don't mind them watching us. Many humans have never seen animals before.
Milton, Daiyna, and James Bishop visit us often. We do not speak to them anymore, but they speak to us, standing on an enclosed deck overlooking a wide grassland, sharing news with a lion or a bear or an elk. In this way, we learn about the lives of our human friends.
Milton has kept his talents for speed and flight hidden for the most part—ever since a video of him wrangling security cruisers in midair was shared online among every citizen in Eurasia. But his movements were too fast for anyone to identify him by appearance. Since the incident with Trezon, he no longer believes that every human in Eurasia should have supernatural abilities. His desire is to live a normal life, as much as possible.
Once the animal embryos were discovered in Futuro Tower, he was eager to let us depart from him.
"You've done enough for us," he said, staring at the racks of countless species in cold storage. "Time to live the way you were meant to."
Milton and Victoria work in Dome 3 now, a manufacturing center for various machines. Having grown up in a trade sector, and working as a laborer himself, Milton understands both roles. He and Victoria handle disputes between workers when they arise. Victoria's telepathy, as well as Milton's casual, honest attitude, goes a long way in diffusing conflict.
Their children, Florence and Boaz, soon will be taking a two-month tour of the Ten Domes to help them decide where they would like to work, once they finish their education. Their biological father, Cain, died aboard the Integrity. After a month of confinement and agonizing experiments conducted by government scientists, he managed to escape from his cell and kill half a dozen of his captors with his bare hands. He was attempting to dive overboard and swim to shore when a volley of rounds from the sentries stopped him in his tracks. Florence's biological mother perished in the Homeplace when Cain fired that missile.
"Never thought I'd be a dad," Milton confides, standing behind a clear pane of plexicon. Below him, a small herd of horses roams free. "Never thought it would be possible. But I love these kids—they're really growing up. And Victoria sure keeps me on track." He shakes his head in awe. "I can't get away with anything. She's always in my head. But so were you." He smiles, and his eyes glisten. "I love her more than anything...and I'll always love you, Julia."
We were never Julia, not really. But we love him, and we are glad his life has taken him here, into this season. We are proud of the man he has become.
When Daiyna visits, she tells us about her work in Dome 6 where she and Luther serve at a hospice, providing care for those nearing the end of their lives. Belief in The Way has grown in the absence o
f Chancellor Hawthorne's iron fist, and Luther has emerged as a leader due to his knowledge of ancient scripture. His unfailing hope and faith have impressed Daiyna over the years, as well as his unconditional love.
"That's why I married him." She smiles in the sunlight as deer forage below the observation deck. "I'm still not convinced there's an all-knowing Creator out there with a plan for our lives, but...he's always believed, no matter what we've gone through." She pauses, and her expression dims. "He carries a heavy burden of guilt for all the lives we lost along the way. I wish I could take that from him."
They keep in touch with their ten biological children—Sera, in particular. She made a full recovery following her injury at Dr. Wong's hand, and Commander Mara Bishop promoted her to the rank of Investigator in Dome 1. Given her choice of human partners, Sera instead selected a security clone named Dunn. After being shot in the head by Drasko, it lost all of Erik's reprogramming. When it showed her such great devotion in Futuro Tower, it did so of its own volition. For her, that was reason enough to want it by her side.
Drasko has retired from law enforcement, instead choosing to fill the underworld void left by Trezon. He covertly derails the Domes' criminal activity as much as one man can, often acting as an unofficial informant for Investigator Chen. In the absence of fascist rule, crime has been on the rise, keeping law enforcers busier than ever before.
At least a third of the Thousand—children of the Twenty—are exhibiting supernatural abilities as they reach puberty. It remains unclear how many of them will accept the Eurasian neural implants with their augmented reality instead of enjoying the superhuman gifts passed down through their DNA. Perhaps they will appreciate the best of both as Sera and Erik do, turning off their implants when they wish to use their gifts.
They see one another weekly for a casual meal, and they refuse to admit they have feelings for each other.
"That takes time," Daiyna admits. "If Sera's anything like me…" She laughs quietly to herself before sobering. "Thank you for seeing me through, Rehana. I never would've made it without you by my side."
Spirits of the Earth: The Complete Series: (A Post-Apocalyptic Series Box Set: Books 1-3) Page 117