by Jamie Doyle
‘Yeah, she’s a good woman alright,’ Kris agreed. ‘Got room for two more at the table?’
‘You and Abdullah?’
‘Yep.’
‘Shouldn’t you be off having a romantic candlelight dinner or something?’
‘Nah,’ Kris said, waiving the comment away and starting to walk towards the mansion. ‘Not that kind of girl, besides, lamb roast would be my last supper too, so make sure there’s plenty of gravy.’
Max nodded. ‘Maybe I should’ve married you?’
Kris shook her head. ‘Forget it, champ. You can’t afford me.’
At that moment, Elsa stepped out onto the balcony to wave them in for dinner and stopped. Folding her arms, she smiled and shook her head. Out on the lawn, Max had wrestled Kris up over his shoulders into a fireman’s carry and was jogging back to the house. There was no talking and no shouting. Only laughter and it was the sweetest sound Elsa could hope for. With just two days to the arena, laughter was what they all needed. It proved they were still alive and holding onto hope.
5pm, 31st December (2 days later). Final Reflections
The thick, green carpet of the mansion’s north lawn pulled away as the helicopter’s wheels lifted off, the shuddering shadow of the aircraft’s rotating blades making the turf flicker beneath the afternoon sun.
As Joe looked out the window of the helicopter, the aircraft slowly spun clockwise to reveal the Pain Train on the edge of the lawn, the truck’s iridescent orange bulk flaming against the rich green foliage behind. Then as the craft rose higher still, the deep, bottomless blue of the sea flowed into view beyond the palm trees fringing their tropical hide away. The Pacific Ocean. So vast and so humbling that Joe had no words in his mind to describe it, so he let his thoughts fall silent, his mute appreciation the highest honour.
Then as usually occurred when he was in the air, Joe’s mind wandered into reflections of his own personal circumstances and the history of his life. However, this time instead of lamenting the death of his parents when he was an infant and the loneliness of his orphanage upbringing, Joe’s thoughts instantly found a much happier refuge. The present.
Yes, the world was facing an imminent and likely doom, but right now, right here, Joe had finally found what it was like to have a family. Not through blood or birth, but family nonetheless. Max, Elsa and of course their children, Millie and Jason as well as Abdullah and Kris and not forgetting Peter too. Together they were his kin. They were his siblings in this time of need and even though it had taken his whole life to find this happiness, Joe was grateful for it. His world was a better place for having become close to these people and if his world ended now, that was fine by him. His last six months had been the best of his life and finishing now would be finishing on a long awaited and much deserved high.
From his seat across the cabin, Peter saw the smile creep over Joe’s face as his Prime Minister looked out the window. It was true. The man was happy and Peter knew that true happiness had been as elusive to Prime Minister Tollsen as the sun is to the moon. Peter had been with Joe now for the last six years and in that time had grown to respect the man more than his own father
Peter had been a broken man after discharging from his SAS regiment. Losing five of his men on his last mission had brought him undone, completely. Alcohol, drugs and finally a trip to emergency after swallowing a bottle full of pills had been his response to the trauma and ceaseless nightmares.
Then a former commanding officer had fished him out of his hospital bed, guided him through rehab and found him a job on a government security detail. Peter had turned up to work, insecure, lacking all confidence and ready to throw in the towel before he started. Then out of the car stepped the Prime Minister of Australia and before he knew it, Peter was shaking hands with one of the world’s most powerful people as he accepted the role of leading Joseph Tollsen’s personal security team.
It was a good thing Peter had had no time to think as he probably would have refused the role and run straight back into the nearest dark shadow. As it turned out, Joseph Tollsen saved his life. The man’s honesty, wisdom and humility demanded respect and Peter gave it in spades. Joseph Tollsen was the proverbial man amongst men and here at the possible end of it all, Peter could think of no finer person to be with and then Max had come along.
Kris looked forward to the seats in front to find Peter looking across at Joe. She knew Peter looked up to Joe more than anyone else in the world and felt happy for him to have found that respect in someone else.
She then looked down and thought about who that person would be for her and found her father’s face filling her mind. He had always been her guiding light. It was her father who had encouraged her to leave home and find her own life, even though he was never far away to help her when she stumbled. It was her father who had supported Kris in starting her own personal training business. It was her father who had helped her through the messy breakdown of a long term relationship and it had been her father who had been on the other end of the phone whenever her single life became unbearable.
Sure, Kris loved her mother, but she had built a special bond with her father. All those times she and he had spent out in the yard of their north Queensland home, cutting the grass and drinking lemonade afterwards. The simple things. The things that really count.
Then Kris realised again whose hand lay clasped with her’s right now. Kris felt the warmth inside their entwined fingers. She felt the softness of the man’s skin and the comfort it radiated. Nestling in closer to Abdullah, Kris let the image of her father sitting on the back steps of their house in the bright summer sun drinking lemonade linger as she squeezed Abdullah’s hand. The wind tossed waves of her sea of despair were long gone. Kris was free from fear and life was good. At last life was good.
Abdullah returned the squeeze and revelled in the closeness of Kris. These next few hours might be their last together and even if they did survive beyond the arena, any chance of enduring bliss together would be severely challenged, but those thoughts were not for now. Instead, Abdullah had cleared his mind and let his conscience wander through the sacred passages of the Quran, soothing his mood, while letting his body relax in the close comfort of his new love, Kris.
If Heaven lay just beyond the realms of this day, Abdullah knew eternal solace was close at hand. He had almost wasted his life after the tragedy of losing Fathiya, but with Allah’s divine intervention and his own courage, Abdullah had regained control and found his destiny. Here now and maybe at the end, he knew he had done all he could and if this select group of wonderful people could not save the world, then the world was beyond saving and so be it.
Abdullah had searched the globe for worthy allies in his fight against injustice and along the way he had found Joseph Tollsen and that had been a rich day indeed. Then calamity had dawned with the appearance of Macktidas and his alien horde and in that time of dire desperation, these other individuals surrounding him had risen to the challenge. Abdullah felt blessed. Truly blessed, for not only did he now know these wonderful people, but he knew they considered him to be their friend. Allah be praised. Peace was with him, come what may.
In the back row, Elsa sat on one side with Max at the other end and their two children filling the space between. It had been a surreal day, struggling to find the right mood to get on with all the appearances of a normal day for the sake of the kids. While Millie and Jason knew that tonight their father was going to a special place to fight some aliens and that was exciting and all, how could she explain to them that their father might actually get killed and if that happened, the world was going to come to a violent end? What possible meaning could you give to that? What rationale?
There was nothing, so she had kept up the half truths and the veiled deception and the day had passed, slowly and painfully, but it had passed. Max had been great. Every moment he had kept close to her and the kids. A hug here. A touch there. Never far away. Always there.
Then the dream Elsa had had o
f Max protecting her and the children and the rest of humanity came back to her. She vividly recalled Max’s transformation into the giant the world needed to save them, but then she also remembered how the tide had dragged him away at the end and left her alone. Scared and alone. Was it an omen? Was it a portent of Max’s death, even if he did save them by winning tonight? Elsa had not told Max any details about the dream, not wanting to upset or unsettle him, so she had harboured this vision within herself and now, here at the end, it haunted her still. It was as if the images were shackled into her conscience to deliberately torture her. Again she remembered Max’s eyes winking out in the darkness as the sea sucked him into the void. How could she rid herself of this fear and then she turned her head and there was Max looking back at her.
Max’s bright blue eyes burned back at her, their radiance maybe stronger today than she had ever seen them before. There he sat, the man she loved and the man the whole world loved. Their champion. Her champion. Max.
‘I love you,’ Max mouthed as he reached over their two children to rest a hand on her shoulder.
Elsa felt the warmth in that touch and in that moment, the haunting images from her nightmare fractured and washed away. Her hero was here, still alive and full of hope. They were all still together and this was no time to wallow in despair. This was maybe their last time to enjoy life together? Right now, life really could be too short to worry.
Lifting her own hand, Elsa laid it on top of Max’s and smiled back. She mouthed, ‘I love you too.’
Max did not smile back, but he held a gentleness in his expression that Elsa adored and it was the last little thing she needed to beat off her worry. Looking down, Elsa gave Jason a cuddle and scratched Millie behind the ear, both kids giggling in return. A deep tingle rippled across Elsa’s skin, quickening her heart beat a little. Joy. Pure joy.
Pulling his hand back, Max let Elsa focus on the kids for a bit. He knew she was having a tough time today, so every moment that happiness found her she deserved to hold on to it while she could. Looking out the window Max cast a brief glance at the helicopter gunships accompanying them to the arena island. Inside them, he could see the soldiers who had remained loyal to Joe and Abdullah, sacrificing their personal lives and families to see them all the way to the end. On the arena island were even more soldiers making the same sacrifices. Everywhere Max had gone in the last six months, he had been surrounded by strangers giving up their safety to protect him and his family and while he was now about to repay them all through risking his own life, he still could not come to grips with the depth and breadth of care being afforded him.
This was not how he had wanted this to unfold. Max had spent much of his adult life preparing for this day, knowing Macktidas would eventually find him and now that the day was here, he was ready, but he had inadvertently dragged the world and all humanity into it. Civilisation had imploded and Death stalked the Earth, scything down millions as law and order decayed. The world had become a war zone and all the work Team Max had done to hold it together had finally been unravelled. There was only one thing left to do. Fight and fight to the death.
Max fought off an urge to draw himself inwards and unleash his Nar’gellan blood lust. There was still time for that. Right now he needed to be with his family. They needed him too. Refocusing on the helicopter drifting along next to theirs, Max reasserted his humanity and kept his alien instincts at bay.
Next to him, Jason giggled again and Max turned to look. Seeing Elsa tickling their little boy, Max dug his fingers gently into Millie’s ribs and she squealed as well. Instantly, they were all laughing and squealing and like a ripple spreading across the surface of a lake, that joy spread through the cabin of the helicopter. Unbidden, matching smiles gilded the faces of everyone else.
Team Max was together at the end and against all the odds that their doom had stacked against them, still they found joy. Still they found the courage to be happy and for them, this was a victory on its own.
11pm, 31st December (6 hours later). Clash of Blades
Max walked warily yet purposefully onto the flawless green turf of the arena, his senses piqued and his frame tense. He was alone inside the boundaries of the enclosure with no clear sign of his first adversary, but despite the absence of his foe, he knew it was close. The atmosphere over the island had become more and more charged as the evening had drawn later.
At first the late afternoon winds blowing over the island had picked up, blustering the palms and foliage until right on sundown, a brief, but powerful thunderstorm ripped overhead. This had caused chaos for the arriving dignitaries and world leaders. Helicopters were buffeted, while ground staff raced in near panic to execute emergency landing and rescue procedures.
Then, after the storm had passed, the atmosphere had remained charged, only slightly, but definitely. This charge had persisted through sundown and the length of the night so far. It had put everyone on an even sharper edge than was expected, considering the world might be just about to end. Something was lurking out of sight, preparing to attack. The world was being stalked.
Max had stayed close to Elsa and the kids, the family virtually shutting itself up in their own private quarters inside one of the stadium stands. Only at the end had Abdullah, Joe and Peter come to see them and wish him luck. It had been a brief coming together and largely symbolic as Max’s mental preparation had already pushed him past meaningful engagement with others outside of his family. Max was loaded and ready to fire. The arena beckoned him.
Elsa had been brave with no tears. Millie and Jason had just asked him to be careful and then after a final and lingering family hug, Max had left their quarters and made his way downstairs. It was time for destiny to make an entrance.
Max had met Kris in the main weapons yard downstairs and together they had checked their communications kit, Max with his earpiece in place and microphone stuck to the base of his throat and Kris with her headset. They both knew the system was also wired into Abdullah and Joe’s private booth as well as Elsa’s. They could all hear Max and Kris talk, but none of them could talk back for risk of distracting him, not even Elsa.
Then Kris had handed Max his first weapon. His sword. He had hefted it and twisted it and then lowered it to his side. Finally and wordlessly, Max gave Kris a hug and that was it. He left the world behind. Striding through the doors and into the arena, Max was on his own.
Standing now on the turf, his sword held out to his right side, cocked and ready, Max scanned the grassed surface with no idea of what to expect as his first opponent, so he expected nothing, except to have to fight for his life. The electricity in the air had intensified. Random, tiny blue sparks now crackled all around like miniature firecrackers.
Max knew the crowd surrounded him, the twenty thousand strong mass loud and raucous, but he had closed it out. All was quiet in his world. Everything was still as he waited. Inside himself, Max had slowly unfurled his Nar’gellan instincts, ensuring his human emotions kept them in check. Now, standing on the arena surface, Max’s alien urge for combat and blood was barely contained. He was like a fighting dog, straining at its chain to break free and wreak carnage upon his first foe. Max’s muscles rippled as they flexed and tensed.
Then, he felt it. The electricity in the air amped up and Max raised his head to fix his gaze on the centre of the arena. Suddenly, a brilliant blue column of light shot down from out of the inky blackness of the night sky to stab into the green grass.
The crowd gasped. Max did not flinch. Then the light snapped off and a golden figure stood in its place, lustrous and tall. Slowly the glow hazed away and there it stood, Max’s first foe.
The creature was humanoid in shape with two arms, two legs and a head as part of a tall and lithe build, similar to an Olympic high jumper. Dressed in a shiny, purple, lycra type suit, the alien radiated a shimmering metallic sheen that enhanced its extraterrestrial nature and dazzled all who looked upon it. However, Max’s attention cut straight through the distraction
to the katana like sword in the alien’s hands, which demonstrated its true intent. The creature also wore a helmet with a mirrored visor, so Max had no clue what the alien’s face looked like or what form its eyes took to take in its vision.
All up, the enemy did not look overly dangerous, but Max knew that was folly. Macktidas would not have sent a patsy down for him to slay. This creature was here to test him and expose any weaknesses he had and if possible, exploit them and kill him. This seemingly mundane being was absolutely lethal and Max could only treat it as such.
Then, two more shimmering columns of blue light appeared either side of the creature and a few moments later, two additional and completely identical creatures stood in front of Max as well. Three foes. Max heard Kris gasp in his earpiece. Macktidas had cheated. The golden rule of only one opponent per bout was already out the window. Well, so be it. Max had no recourse. No judges to complain to. All he had was his hands, his feet, his skills and his will and they would have to be enough.
The three sword wielding creatures fanned out and started to advance. Max raised his sword and eyed them off. As a trio, they moved gracefully and in harmony. Max started to move as well, side stepping carefully to the left, crossing his feet over as he went and trying to circle around to engage only the creature on that end. The ploy failed as the three foes automatically adjusted and wheeled as one line, keeping Max squarely in the middle. Max realised the counter move and stopped. Trying to be clever was not going to work. This was going to be a full frontal assault. Max would have to weather the first brunt and manoeuvre himself out to an edge during combat.
Suddenly, the charge came as all three creatures launched as one, their swords whistling through the still, thick air. Max stepped to the right, parried the blow from the furthermost right attacker and rolled. Rising back to his feet, he was immediately on the defensive with all three assailants instantly reforming and crowding in around on three sides, their blades flashing.