Everyone wanted to shake her hand. Everyone wanted a quote, everyone wanted a piece of her. It was completely unnerving.
All she wanted was to get away. Throughout the entire ceremony, her eyes remained fixed on the city wall. It was as though she was trapped. She wanted to be back outside on the frontier, not here becoming a celebrity.
The signing of the accords was no better. Before the ceremony, Raiya stayed in the suite that had been prepared for her, Jagger, and Andrea. She remained hidden, refusing all guests and requests for interviews.
The suite had been built out of the top floor of Central Command’s west wing. It was spacious and clean with rooms for each of them. A large table by the door was completely covered with food for them to enjoy at their leisure. On the other side of the room was a large window that allowed them a view of the field.
Raiya watched as people began filing in. It wasn’t as coordinated as some probably would have liked, given the lack of personnel. Several Westcon soldiers were running around, trying to make sure that the final preparations were complete.
A massive table had been set up at the bottom steps of the building. A podium had been placed in front of the table with a microphone hooked into it. Banners displaying the emblems of each faction hung from every flagpole. The capital also had three massive banners draped over the entryway.
Raiya released a nervous breath as Jagger joined her by the window, “They’re going to want us there… aren’t they?”
“Yup.” Jagger replied.
“Are they going to ask us to say anything?”
“Probably.”
Andy walked into the room from his bedroom, “Hey guys, ready for the signing?”
“As we’ll ever be.” Raiya replied.
“Shall we?” Andy asked as he beckoned them to the door.
“Fine, let’s just get this over with.”
The group proceeded out of the suite. A pair of Westcon soldiers stood guard on either side of the door as the group exited. It had been there job to make sure that the ‘Heroes of the Red War’ remained undisturbed. They nodded as Raiya passed ‘Ma’am.’
Jagger frowned as they passed the soldiers. Since the fight, Raiya had been the focus of everyone’s attention. The rest of the group had been like a footnote. Eric had been all but forgotten in the massive wave of casualties that had come in. Miranda now had a field named after her, but that was it, and Andy was barely a mentioned in the whole story.
Jagger was the only one who ever stood with Raiya and even then, he was off to the side. It made sense. She was the one who killed the dragon. She was the hero of the day, but still she worried. She didn’t want her friends to be forgotten. It was something that kept her on edge.
“So, what are your plans after everything settles down?” Andy asked.
Jagger shrugged, “I never really thought about it.”
“Raiya?”
“I don’t know either.” Raiya replied. “My life has been consumed with killing Eutherys. Now that I’ve accomplished my work… I really don’t know where to go from here. I never really thought about what I’d do after.”
She turned so that her focus was on Andy “What about you?”
Andy smiled, “Dr. Castillo is being relegated to the R&D Branch of the U.S. Army. Though rumor has it he’ll be quietly asked to retire or face an ethics board.”
“You think he’ll accept that?”
“I don’t know.” Andy replied. “To be honest… Despite his problems, he did contribute a lot to the war effort, part of me doesn’t want him to. Either way, he won’t be anywhere near patients. That’s my job.”
“Oh?” Jagger asked.
“Yup. You’re looking at the new director of Medicine for the U.S. Remnant. I take office as soon as the peace accords are signed.”
Jagger frowned, “Be careful, you may not have that job for long.”
“Oh, I know.” Andy replied. “Politics being what it is. A new world government is going to need to be established. At that point, I’m sure they’ll be appointing new people to each position. Honestly, I’m fine with that. If I don’t get the job, it’s back to treating patients. Maybe I’ll even found my own hospital.”
Jagger smiled, “If you do, I’ll probably wind up being your first patient.”
“Consider it a deal then.” Andy replied as he adjusted his glasses.
A sharp feeling entered Jagger’s arm as they reached the entryway and the doors opened to the ceremony. He looked down to see that Raiya was grasping his arm tightly.
The crowd exploded into cheers and applause as the group made their way to the seats that were waiting for them at the rear of the table. Raiya’s eyes were wider than he’d ever seen, “You okay?”
“Fine.”
“You’re lying.”
“Yeah? What are you gonna do about it?”
“Do you want to go back inside?”
Raiya frowned, “I doubt that’s really an option.”
Within minutes, the field was completely crowded. People had come from all across the world to see this historic moment and everyone wanted to make sure that they had a good view.
Field Marshal Lavoie led the precession of faction representatives out to the field. Captain Suen, Commander Bhatia, and Lt. Commander Travers followed closely behind the leaders. They were each dressed in their respective faction’s uniforms and were equally adorned in sparkling medals.
Three men carrying a dark wooden box followed behind them and were accompanied by a large group of dignitaries. They lined up on one side of the table and opened the box. Each man removed large documents from the box and placed them at each station.
Jagger couldn’t see clearly, but it looked as though they were each copies of the final peace treaty that would be signed by the leaders of each faction. There were four copies in total.
Three chairs had been set up at the table, each one with the emblem of their respective representative. A copy of the treaty was placed in front of each chair. The fourth copy was placed at the end of the table and a large ink well was placed next to it.
A confused look appeared on Raiya’s face, “What’s the fourth one for?”
Jagger didn’t even get a chance to answer. A massive shadow appeared in the sky over them and circled the field twice to a mix reaction of cheers and gasps. Raiya looked up to see a massive dragon with yellow scales descend on the field.
Amzer’ial folded her feet underneath her at the end of the table where the final copy of the treaty had been placed. Three elder dragons appeared and landed on top of the capital building. No doubt there to make sure their leader was safe.
The crowd fell silent as the rest of the group also took their seats. They each quickly glanced over the document that they would soon be asked to sign off on.
It was as though time stood still. This treaty had been hastily drafted by members of each faction and few had been given a chance to read it. Would there be any objections?
The tension seemed to disappear as the three leaders placed their copies back on the table. Each were handed pens by the assistants that had carried the treaties. Amzer’ial couldn’t hold a pen and instead dipped her claw into the ink well. She made the mark of a dragon on the paper.
Once each paper was signed, it was then handed to the right for the next representative. Again, they looked over it and signed their names. This was repeated two more time until all four documents had been signed by everyone.
The moment they were done, the documents were placed inside black coverings and taken inside. The faction leaders each stood and shook hands before turning to Amzer’ial.
The entire crowd watched as the three men stood silently for a moment and then bowed to the dragon. An appreciative smile appeared on Amzer’ial’s face as she respectfully lowered her eyes.
The cheers of the crowds died down as Field Marshal Lavoie stepped out from behind the table and quickly made his way over to the podium. He stood for a moment, straightening out
the wrinkles in his uniform before he spoke.
The crowd watched and waited. What was he going to say? What was to become of them and how was humanity going to progress forward.
Marshal Lavoie cleared his throat and spoke into the microphone with a powerful voice, “On behalf of myself, our great allies in the Eastern Coalition, our friends in the U.S. Remnants, and those newfound friends from the nomadic clans that gave their lives… I welcome you all here. Today is a day that no doubt many of you thought would never come. Others may have held out hope against hope. I myself was beginning to doubt… but thanks to our new heroes…”
Lavoie stopped for a moment and beckoned back to Jagger and Raiya. The crowd cheered for a moment before the field marshal turned back, “Thanks to them, we can now rejoice. Ladies and Gentlemen, the war is over. A cessation of hostilities has been agreed to and the fighting will end... While I join you in rejoicing, I must remind all of you not to lose sight of what lies ahead. First we must fulfill our side of the agreement. We will use what technology we have at our disposal to help dragon kind leave our planet. They hope to return to their home world either to be welcomed as friends, or as invaders planning to take back what is there’s. I know many of you may have mixed feelings about this. I was also hesitant at first, but in the end, it really is the best course of action.”
The crowd applauded as Lavoie paused. He turned and nodded to Amzer’ial who looked on as the speech continued, “Secondly, a new world government will need to come to fruition. I think I speak for everyone around the world when I say that our minor differences can no longer divide us. So many have died… Humanity has been driven to the brink and our world will never be the same… but I promise you, we will survive.”
Cheers went up from the crowd as Lavoie raised his voice, “We will survive, and we will come back even stronger than before. Let the world never forget what happened here. Let our children and our children’s children sing songs of this day…”
Lavoie once again turned back and looked at Amzer’ial, “And hopefully someday… when our races are ready, we can meet again as friends.”
As the crowd died down one last time, he turned back to face them, “But my friends, we must remain vigilant. For our true enemy is still out there. This fight wasn’t just about defeating the dragons. It was a fight against the temptation to give up what we are. Every day we survived, we were confronted with a dark prospect. Every day, we had to remind ourselves that we were still human. That great task still remains before us and we must continue to fight for it… and we will fight. Since the beginning of this terrible war, one fear has stood above the rest; losing our morals, our rights, and our freedoms… That scares me more than any canban…”
The volume of cheers increased.
“Or dragon horde...”
The cheers erupted.
“Or any adversary we may yet face ever could!”
Even with the speaker, Lavoie now had to yell just to be heard over the crowd, “Let us overcome these obstacles together, in the spirit of what our forefathers, friends, and neighbors fought and died for!”
Three fighter jets flew overhead, each one left a colored trail of smoke behind them; blue, yellow, and green. Hats, streamers, and anything people could grab were thrown into the air.
Jagger, Raiya, and Andy stood in silence and watched as the crowd quickly turned into a party. Food was carted out, music that most of them had never heard before emanated from the speakers.
Raiya looked at Jagger, “So what’s going to happen now?”
“Now…” Jagger replied. “The world leaders will likely start squabbling over how to form a new government.”
“Sounds fun…”
Jagger shook his head, “I’d rather not be a part of it.”
“Why not?”
“Politics was never my thing. It’s a lot of fancy speak and weaseling.”
Raiya lowered her eyes, “Well… I’ve been offered a position as good will ambassador between the nations.”
“Oh yeah? That’s awesome, congratulations!”
“Thanks…”
Jagger felt his heart sink. Raiya was about to become a celebrity. It wouldn’t be long before she was lavished with all the attention she could ever ask for and more. There was no way around it. Soon he would be forgotten in the mix.
Raiya was about to say something when a crowd of people surrounded her. Some had recording devices, others had scraps of paper and pens. They each spoke at once, each fighting to get a word in, “Raiya, what can you tell us about the peace accords? How do you feel about the treaty?”
“Have you been offered a position in the government?”
“Have you considered running for office?”
“What are you plans now that the war is over?”
Raiya had an overwhelmed look on her face. She smiled as she looked at the crowd, “Well… I suppose I never really thought of it…”
Jagger was quickly pushed to the side and quickly found himself several hundred feet away. This was exactly what he thought would happen. He was now on the outside looking in.
He felt a hand tap him on the shoulder, “Tough, isn’t it? Watching her get all that attention… when you were the one by her side all this time.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Oh bullshit.” Andy replied. “I may not be an exobiologist, but I can see what’s been going on here.”
“It’s not like that… I don’t care about fame… I just…”
“What?”
“I guess I’m going to miss her. She’s famous now.”
“Ah I see.” Andy replied. “Now I get it… you’re losing a friend.”
Jagger was becoming annoyed with Andy’s irritating questions, but he quickly shrugged it off, “I don’t care… she’ll have a good life now. I’m happy for her.”
“What about you? What are you going to do?”
“Dunno.” Jagger replied. “I’ve seen a lot more death and destruction than I ever hoped to. Maybe I’ll head back east… you know… see what’s going on out there. Maybe carve out a little existence of my own, huh?”
Andy smiled, “You sure about this? You’d likely wind up being a general or something if you stuck around.”
“I’m good. I joined the Westcon to protect New Framingham. Now that they’re gone… well technically I already resigned.”
Andy smiled and extended his hand, “All right… well good luck my friend.”
“And you too.” Jagger replied, as their hands came together.
They stood looking at each other for a moment before parting. Andy stepped backwards towards the crowd, “If you’re ever in Charleston again, look me up.”
“Will do.”
Chapter 30
The moment Jagger was free from the crowd, he quickly turned and ran towards the main capital building. He was stopped for the occasional ‘hello’ and ‘thank you,’ but otherwise was able to slip by relatively unnoticed.
The guards that had previously been protecting the suite were now at the front doors to the command center. They both nodded to Jagger as he proceeded inside. He quickly made his way up to the suite, which was now unguarded.
Hoping to make a quiet getaway, he grabbed a few bags and began packing food into one and some supplies into the second. There wasn’t much, just a few knives, some cloth, clothes, and some toiletries that would make the trip more manageable.
Flashing lights outside the window distracted him for a moment. He took a peak through the glass to see what was going on. Some of the soldiers launched makeshift fireworks into the sky. Without actually knowing what was going on, someone might have concluded that the city was once again under attack. The lights and loud explosions reminded Jagger of when they arrived in Charleston.
Jagger smiled, “Enjoy it… you have no idea the long hard road that’s still ahead of you. Have fun tonight.”
His eyes darted over the crowd. He knew that there was no way he could s
pot Raiya, but that didn’t stop him from trying. The largest congregation of people all seemed to be grouping together, focused on something in the middle. That must be where Raiya was. He placed the palm of his hand on the glass so that it appeared to be right on the center of that group. A deep sigh escaped his lips as he turned away, “Goodbye.”
Jagger stepped away and gathered up the remainder of his belongings. It wasn’t much, just his two pistols, a few more changes of clothing, and a med pack. Everything else he’d need was already in his jeep.
He opened the door and slowly made his way down the hallway. He felt like he’d been sent on an infiltration mission, slipping into the shadows anytime he heard a noise. Hoping to avoid notice, he took the back stairs to the bottom floor. The guards were too busy tending to the celebration to notice him sneaking out. Thankfully the back exit was completely deserted.
Jagger thanked his good luck that Raiya hadn’t seen him leave. He’d always hated long goodbyes. Having to play out a sad scene with her was something he preferred to avoid. She’d probably hate him for sneaking out, but it was for the best. There was no future for them, she’d made that abundantly clear.
What could he have expected anyway? Even if she did decide to settle down in a town, she’d be a celebrity. She’d likely have no time for him. No, it was better to just let her go and move on.
The jeep was parked out by what was left of the city walls. He slowly made his way to the almost-empty parking lot where the armored vehicles had been stored from before the battle.
He passed by the smashed buildings he’d seen on the way in. This will all be rebuilt soon… just watch. We’ll have large cities just like the ones we used to have. It’s all going to come back now.
The sun was quickly setting. Perfect timing. Now he could get away under the cover of darkness.
The jeep came into view, out of the distance. It was the only car in the entire lot. Even the armored transports were gone. To Jagger, it was a welcomed sight. He hadn’t had a chance to drive since he’d been carted everywhere in armored trucks, “Hello beautiful!”
Drakin: The Story of Raiya Page 33