by Tew, J. D.
From my observation of the room, I could tell my team wasn’t satisfied with the explanation of why Zane was recruiting teenagers, and they were just afraid of challenging him.
Dan started to speak up twice, then backed down each time. Finally, he asked, gesturing with his hands, ‘If the Dacturons are so powerful, then why would they need Travis? He is only a teenager, like us.’
There was a few seconds of what I assumed to be quiet pondering and Zane projected his voice, ‘Dan. Travis is not a teenager, I assure you.’
My colleagues looked at each other in puzzlement. Lincoln burst out, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about. Travis is the same age as Ted, and—’
Zane cut him off, with a tone of impatience. He was signaling his time with us was up soon. ‘Theodore knows. I repeat, Travis is not a teenager anymore. Theodore will fill you in on that I presume.’ He then stepped through the sliding doors.
My teammates were now murmuring among themselves in confusion.
Nezatron took over the situation. He sounded off through the intercom. He said, ‘Hello, feel free to ask questions at any time, if you don’t understand something. The key in working together well is to know what your brother or sister is capable of, on your left and your right. Liam’s strength and size are his advantages. Daniel’s amazing display of agility makes him unpredictable and thus formidable in battle. Lincoln’s attribute is his state of mind. He can prescribe what a correct course of action is, and he will be important in the decisions that you make together. Mariah is graceful and athletic. She outran every boy in her class this year. Three of you have been chosen for your physical skills, and one for his mind, two if you include Teddy. It is important for you to know that you are not limited to these skills. Every one of you is capable of becoming great in mind and body. However, I want you to sharpen your unique skills every day and advance those that need work. Theodore was chosen for scientific reasons too difficult for your young minds to understand. Regardless, you must follow his guidance. One by one you will be taken to the Chamber of Rafal to be fitted with the same telepathic devices that Theodore uses. Teddy-boy will give you a lesson in working these devices after we are done with the insertion.’
‘Wait! What? You are going to put something in our heads. No way, not me man,’ Dan said.
‘You will not feel a thing, Dan. We have been at this for a long time,’ Nezatron said.
‘But what makes you think we want something in our heads?’ Liam asked.
Nezatron said, ‘We are all equipped with nano technology, so don’t be concerned about us trying to control you. It will help you communicate. The Multiversal council mandates regulations that prevent anyone from using a nanocom to relinquish a person's rights. We will respect these regulations. The procedure isn’t painful. It is exactly what you need to ensure an advantage in this war. I will be your eye in the sky when you are in the field, and I will be your on-board computer. I am sure your training on computers has been limited to video games and to surfing hundreds of websites. We are going to take your current experience to the next level. If you are truly willing, I will evolve you into a band of human warriors in the Chamber of Rafal. Then you will rest, because tomorrow your training will begin, and believe me when I say this, or anything: you will always need your rest. If you don’t rest when you have been given the opportunity to do so, bad things might happen, and people can sustain injuries because of it. Okay, that is enough talking for now.’
‘I get it now,’ Lincoln said. ‘The reason you need teenagers—’
“That’s what I thought too,’ said Mariah.
‘—is that it doesn’t really matter what age we are. When this implant is done, we are no longer teenagers in our minds.’
‘Whoa!’ said Liam.
‘We’re practically like adults when this is done,’ asserted Lincoln.
Dan piped up, ‘I’m not sure I want to change! I like being a teenager.’
Nezatron took control of the discussion. ‘Yes and no. You will be like a hybrid. Physically, you will still be teenagers. Your mind will always have that malleability that is so important in teenagers.’
A foreboding air of silence hovered in the room as reality sunk in.
‘As Zane likes to say, ‘Youth is wasted on the young.’ We will ensure that not one bit of your youth is wasted,’ Nezatron said.
Give Liam credit for putting us back at ease. ‘When do we eat?’ he asked, rubbing his hands with glee.
‘We will notify you about dinner. You will find your new clothes behind the platinum doors next to your beds. Take a moment to explore your rooms. Within your closet, there is some unique tech-gear, try to avoid the temptation to use them until your training.’
The ambient lighting throughout the quarters made me feel at home. There was no denying it. The Uriel was my home. With my grandparents deceased, my mom and dad incapable of parenting, I was willing to accept these changes with no resistance. I was still deeply cut by the loss of my guardians.
Zane gave me credit for sacrificing everything, and that surprised me. I could have ensured the death of Travis by driving him into the ground myself, but someone was watching the altercation and teleported him. I should have finished him when I had the chance.
‘Theodore, may I please come in,’ came a young girl’s voice through the door intercom.
I said yes, and when she stepped in, I have to admit, I was taken back. She was covered from head to toe in sandy brown hair, about an inch long. The hair appeared soft and alluring, shifting slightly in hue as I adjusted my line of vision.
She wore a crown. It was a rolesk. Clothed in a sort of toga, she reminded me of a Greek goddess, and her voice was gritty, yet enchanting.
Her pupils were a shade of brown not far from black, and the whites of her eyes contrasted sharply against them. I felt drawn toward these gorgeous features, my heart palpitating.
She stood proper, punctual, and perfect. Her posture reflected her sense of grace and poise. I found myself attracted to her aura of mystique and beauty.
‘I am Tez. I will be escorting you to the Chamber of Rafal. Welcome to the Uriel.’ She smiled to me, tilting her head. ‘What is the matter, you have never seen a Karshiz princess before? I am a leader like you. My father is King Trazuline.’
Yes! King Trazuline, whom I had met when I escaped from my near-certain death at Taylors Falls. ‘I am Theodore. You can call me Ted if you like. You are right, I have never met a princess. The only thing I—that is a matter—I mean, what is—. Dang it, I cannot talk! It is just, you are...’
‘Different?’ she asked.
‘Yes, don’t get me wrong, you are beau—’
‘Okay, okay, let’s just get to the Chamber,’ she said, ‘I remember when I went to the chamber for the second time. It was after I was given the rank of Messiah.’
‘Messiah? What rank is that, like, is that in the military on your planet?’ I asked.
‘No, it is more of a position. You are a Messiah too. Let me explain. If Zane is at the top, you and I are two levels underneath him. That is just if you are organizing us in a level of importance to the resistance. If we were talking about military rank, I would say Migalt and Nezatron are closer to the top, but they don’t formally have a position. They are like Zane’s left hand and his right hand. King Trazuline, my father, definitely has an official position. He is a General, and he is Zane’s tactician and advisor. He would be directly under Zane in rank. All Generals carry out Zane’s orders.’
We walked for a bit down the hallway. The hallway of the Uriel made it seem like I was separated from space by glass, walking on a bridge toward the next wing of the ship.
Once we arrived at the chamber, there was a machine guarding it. Box-like, it had about fifty camera lenses on the flat surfaces of it, peering out in every possible direction. It easily swiveled in response to motion, balancing perfectly on an anti-gravity sphere that allowed it unlimited mobility.
‘What are thos
e things?’ I asked Tez in awe.
‘That is one of the Ophanims. When the ship Uriel elevates its defensive readiness, the Ophanims spread their forces across the ship, making sure there are no security breaches. The eyes on the Ophanims are cameras. They record many different vantage points and process all the information to be sent into the mainframe—Nezatron. If there is a breach, they are known to be extremely deadly, with the use of lasers and plastic monofilament restraints.’
The ship’s defenses made me feel safer. When we stopped at the gate leading to the chamber, the Ophanim protecting it spoke:
‘Please state your name and your purpose. First, tell me the security response to this phrase: People of purpose are…?’ the Ophanim requested in a female robotic voice.
‘Security response: prisoners of production,’ Tez quickly responded confidently and precisely, as the Ophanim beeped in approval. ‘I am Tezmarine Halperin, daughter of King Trazuline Halperin, and princess of the planet Karshiz. I have with me Theodore Crane, Messiah by Urilian order.’
While Tez spoke, the Ophanim scanned our eyes and pricked the tips of the index fingers of our right hands, matching up the results to a pre-screened database. We were clean and good to go. The gates opened, and the Ophanim collapsed into the wall ergonomically.
‘Okay Ted, this is where I stop. Theodore, your life from here on out will be—different. You have to separate friendship from leadership. The humans that you brought are your subordinates now, and should be treated like soldiers of the resistance, with respect, but not love in the sense of friendship. However, they should be valued just through hard work and dedication to you as their leader. Congratulations Theodore, you deserve it—your story inspired me to join in the fight.’
‘My story?’ I asked, ‘You mean people know about me?’
‘Yes, Theodore. Right down to your abusive parents. It is amazing you have made it so far, having parents like that.’
I felt embarrassed.
‘Okay, one last thing—you have a hole in your shoe.’ She giggled and turned her back to me. As she walked away, I felt drawn to her.
I dug deep to think of something clever to say. Fumbling, all that I could come out with was, ‘You too.’
She shook her head without glancing back and continued on, as the vault to the chamber closed right behind her. I bent my knee to bring up my foot at an angle into my line of vision. She was right. I had a hole in my old shoe hologram that was programmed into my XJ-731’s. Thus, the hole was fake, but obvious to any passer-by. I re-programmed the hologram to get rid of the hole.
I walked into the chamber, and its decontamination field inspected my entire body for viruses and mutant micro-organisms. Once in, I noticed that everyone from my crew was in the Chamber of Rafal.
‘What are you guys doing here?’ I asked.
Lincoln was swift to address me, ‘We’re here to watch your little promotion to the rank of weirdo—I mean—Messiah. Seems like you are the only one they needed. I don’t know why you needed us.’
‘We are a team and that is the end of it,’ I said warmly, smiling over the sense of adventure that we all would collectively embrace. Hopefully.
‘Whatever,’ Lincoln said. He stepped about five feet away from me with his arms crossed. I wasn’t sure what was bothering him. He had been quiet ever since we had that argument with Liam at my grandparents’ house. Lincoln just wasn’t himself.
‘This is Nezatron. Sorry for the interruption, now that we have you all here we can get started. Because of your dedication to duty and your fearless ascent into space we are rewarding you all with Sandolphin’s Bracers.’ He stopped for a moment, and an airborne robotic-looking Sepheran, hovering from one teammate to another, strapped the dark polished gray bracers to our wrists and forearms. ‘These bracers confer endless offensive and defensive benefits. The purpose of these bracers is to encapsulate or cover your hands with titanium nano-chain mail. Liam, please demonstrate by simply pressing the ruby button at the back of your hand.’
‘Just press right here?” Liam asked.
We all looked on at this chain mail—tiny rings of metal interlocked together to provide a sheath of protection over parts of the body. It looked like a macramé coat of metal.
‘Yes. This mail armor is used for hand-to-hand combat,’ Nezatron said, ‘With these titanium gloves on your hands, your bones will not break. Otherwise, if you lose a hand or a finger while fighting, it can be devastating to the team in the heat of battle. Moreover, these gloves can cause serious damage to any enemy. Since these gloves are so powerful, you have to show your restraint while fighting. Their force is so great that you could break a bone in your arm located beyond the support of your bracers. So ease up on whatever knock-out blow you deliver.’
Nezatron paused. ‘Finally, it is because of one courageous boy that you are assembled here today. Make no mistake; without you, he would not be here either. However, it was his blind devotion to Zane that gives us this newfound advantage over our enemies—Odion, Travis, and the Dacturon Council. Because of that devotion, the rank of Messiah was bestowed upon you, Theodore! Zane decreed it the moment you entered his ship.’
‘That is awesome, dude—good job!’ Dan said.
‘The next day, we will ensure that each of you enter the Chamber of Rafal. Theodore has already been adapted. Now it is up to the rest of you to await your turn. When you finish, you will be given a rolesk for the rest of your years,’ Nezatron said, “With the rolesk, you will have a vast but limited ability to control Dietons. There have only been twenty-five rolesks issued in the history of the multiverse. When you are in the Chamber of Rafal, it will only take about fifteen minutes, and it will help you to understand the conflict on a deeper level. You will be provided with history of the multiverse and the resistance. Now, dinner will be ready in half an hour. Although I am a robot, I have been programmed with the understanding of the human need for bonding. You may take fifteen minutes to share camaraderie and freshen up before we have dinner.’ He left.
‘Man, I wish they had one of these chambers in school. I would much rather have fifteen minutes a day to learn everything, than seven hours a day in the classroom!’ Liam said.
‘Hell yeah, that would leave more time for shredding pavement,’ Dan said. He dreamily visualized his skateboard.
‘I guess we head to our rooms now,’ Lincoln said, ‘Mariah, you have not said much, are you alright?’
‘No posanada…’ she started, speaking in Spanish before she caught herself. ‘I mean, don’t worry. I’m fine. Can you walk me to my room, Linc?’ she asked.
Her room must have been down at the other end of the hallway, so we had to part ways. Liam, Dan and I kept fooling around with our bracers. We were giving each other a made-up handshake with the bracers equipped. We were clanging metal together all the way back to our rooms. Meanwhile, Lincoln and Mariah were having a heart-to-heart.
‘Listen Lincoln, I know you are having a hard time not getting all the attention, but I think you should lay off Theodore a bit.’
‘It isn’t that. I don’t really feel like talking about it right now. What is wrong with you? You have not said much of anything since we got here,’ Lincoln said.
‘I know, it is just, I miss mi familia and well, there is more. I don’t feel like talking about it either. Do you need a hug?’ she asked.
Lincoln leaned toward Mariah and gave her a hug. I caught just a glimpse of the embrace as I was entering my room. I badly wanted to halt in mid-step and drink in all of the spectacle, but was too embarrassed to stick around.
I will admit, it bothered me, but I had so much more to think about than women. Tez said I needed to distinguish my leadership from friendship. I really took that to heart. Resting on my bed, I decided to use the time from that moment until dinner to read my grandfather’s research and to learn about my rolesk.
Looking through the pile of research papers was going nowhere. I flipped to the last page and I discovered the
one truth that could destroy everything Zane had desired to protect. The night of the storm, when our tree was ravaged, my grandfather found hundreds of glowing Dietons, or Metalons as he called them, scattered amongst the yard. The remains of the Dietons were left dismantled on blades of grass and other surfaces.
Reading on, I learned about Marvin's final postulation. After microscopic investigation, he believed the Dietons were destroyed by the lightning bolt's extreme surge of electricity.
He journaled further of an experiment that would test his theory, but I reached the end of his research and there were no results to follow. He wouldn't live to test the Dietons. If the Dacturons got their hands on that information, Sephera could potentially see destruction.
I switched my focus from the research toward the rolesk. I was hankering to settle my curiosity of it.
‘Rolesk,’ I said. Since I was now aboard the Uriel, I didn’t have to hide my inquiries anymore, so I just said it aloud.
Nezatron said, ‘The invention of the rolesk was initially to help Zane amplify his powers of telekinesis. It was necessary to control so many Dietons. Later, when he enlisted individuals to help him, he knew that he needed these rolesks for them as well. Therefore, he developed rolesks with varying degrees of security levels and limitations. Theodore, since I have your ear, I must inform you there are two other teams aboard the Uriel. As you know, there are you five, who comprise the Humans. Then the other two teams are the Bromels and the Karshiz.’
I attempted to set the record straight. ‘The Bromels—these giant angels, like Migalt?’