The Genesis Sequence Books 6-10

by Mackenzie Morris

  "Hola. I am Sandra Noriega, the pilot for his ship. I will go fetch Prince Benjamin immediately."

  "I do not have much time on this secure line. Can I trust you to deliver a message to him?" Cunningham asked.

  "Go ahead."

  "What I'm about to tell you is for his ears only. No one can hear what I'm going to tell you other than him. If this gets out to the wrong person, I will be killed. Tell Prince Benjamin that I want to join the Red Sand Rebels. I am planning to turn against the Flight Force and lead my own rebellion. Congress is beyond saving. They issued a mandate today that all children and teenagers had to be delivered to the Elysian capital for training. They took my niece and nephew from their home. I can't be a part of this anymore. Both Azimandia and Elysia must be stopped before humans meet the same fate as the Biromians. I am aware that you are transporting some Azimandians, including two warbringers, two Biromians with bounties on their heads, and the soldier Lucas Stephens. No one will be held accountable for their past actions, and all punishments will be forgotten. I have the backing of two hundred ships and one thousand pilots with gunner partners who have already secretly been contacted and who have signed pledges of allegiance with me and my cause. I believe we can make a difference if we work together. If you accept my offer, call me back on this number in two hours. We will make further plans from there."

  Further plans? "I will let Prince Benjamin know as soon as possible. Thank you for contacting us, sir."

  "I await his favorable reply."

  As soon as the call ended, Sawyer crawled back out from underneath the consoles with grease smeared across his right cheek. His brows furrowed as he tapped on one of the screens. "Uh, Sandra?"

  "What is it?"

  "One of the escape pods is gone."

  She pointed to Kalimis. "Kalimis, turn those cameras back on now! Ahora!"

  The warbringer fumbled with the controls until the video feed came back on. "They're gone."

  "What? Get down there now!"

  "Yes, ma'am."

  Sandra bounced nervously on her toes as she waited, her eyes glued to the screen.

  Kalimis entered the cell, looked around, then looked up at the camera and shook his head. "They're gone. I found Ben's robe, but nothing else. I think Vance overpowered Ben, then kidnapped him. He must have stolen that escape pod to get away."

  She spun around and picked up her ship radio. Two button pushes put her through to the radio on the escape pod. "Escape pod 2, this is Sandra Noriega. Return to the ship immediately."

  Vance's cocky voice came over the speakers. "No can do, sheila. I've gotta get out of there before you lock me up again and feed me oatmeal for another weak. There's only so much of that mush a man can take."

  "Do you have Benjamin with you? Is he alive?"

  "He's alive. He's gagged, bound, and a little worse for wear, but he's alive. Did you think you could keep the warlord of Azimandia in some cell? You should have known I would get out of there."

  "Do not harm Prince Benjamin. What do you want?" Sandra asked, her hands perched on her narrow hips as she glared up at the empty escape pod bay on the screen.

  "Huh? You think this is a hostage situation? No, no. This is just me taking back my husband and running away with him. This will be like the honeymoon we never had."

  She snarled as the muffled screams and grunting could be heard over the signal. "I hear someone. Is that him? Ben, if you can hear me, know that we will find you. We will come get you. Stay strong."

  "He can't hear you. He can't hear anything aside from the music blaring through those headphones. I turned it all the way up so he won't know anything. You can try to come find us, but you won't get very far. Please listen to me and trust me."

  "Trust you? Why in space would we trust you? By taking this violent action against our prince, you have eliminated any last bits of trust we could have had in you. Do not make us retaliate."

  "I'm not afraid of you. Give me one night away. I will contact you in the morning with more information."

  "Don't do this." Kalimis took the radio from Sandra. "Vance, this is Kalimis. I don't want to hurt you. You have the ability to turn around and make this right. I know what Ben did to you in there, but you have to show him mercy for beating you like he did. You and I both know you deserved it. If you are determined to continue down this path, at least let us speak to Ben. Have him say something so we can know he's still alive."

  "Uh, no can do, big buddy."

  "Why not?"

  "He's uh . . ." Vance laughed. "Ben is not available to speak at the moment."

  "By the Great Horned Mother, you killed him. If you did indeed kill him, I swear I will hunt you down and beat you to death with my own two fists. I don't know why you want Benjamin, but you can't be this selfish or heartless. Those fifteen boys need their father. And yes, Ben has become their father. You can't take him away from them."

  "One night. All I'm asking for is one night away, mate. When I come back, you can place me in cuffs and torture me some more. I will explain everything, I swear."

  "Why can't I talk to Ben?" Kalimis repeated the question. "Vance, tell me you didn't hurt him."

  "I can't say things like that. I can't say he'll come back without any additional marks or bruises, but know that he's alive. That's all you need to know. Kalimis, if I have ever done anything that confirmed you are my friend, please know that I am doing the right thing. I know it's confusing. I know it looks awful from the outside, but this is all going according to my master plan."

  "At least tell me where you are going."

  "A place that no Azimandian can set foot. I'm immune, I guess, because I'm a half breed."

  The warbringer growled in his frustration. "No. You wouldn't go there."

  "I would. I'm going to the Tlishiness Galaxy to speak with the Great Horned Mother."

  * * *

  Rav slid down into the cockpit of the Galaxy Glider then gently placed his son into the gunner's chair that faced the weapons consoles on the back of the ship. He stopped for a second to look at the boy who had still not spoken a single word. With a sigh, he knelt down beside him and took the box of apple juice from the duffel bag, punctured the top with the straw, then handed it to Nemo. "Here you go, buddy. It's your favorite. Apple juice."

  Nemo remained staring straight ahead without any sign of life in his pale green eyes.

  "How about this? You've always loved these." He took the box of animal crackers out and tore the end open. Rav smiled as he took out one shaped like an elephant and placed it on his son's leg. "Look, Nemo. It's an elephant. Remember how you used to want to ride one? Those big ears and trunk? You would ride on my back and I would make sounds like I was an elephant? Don't you remember that?"

  The boy made no sound, no movement other than the shallow breathing in his chest.

  Rav bit his lip as he pushed back the onslaught of tears that threatened to spill from his eyes. He placed the cracker back inside the box then picked up the one thing that Nemo could never resist. It was his favorite thing he owned. Rav held up the plushy green and blue spaceship in the soft light from the consoles. "I brought your spaceship, Nemo. You love your spaceship." He took Nemo's hands and placed the plushy between them, but the toy slipped out and fell to the floor of the ship.

  The boy showed no emotion.

  Rav rubbed his eyes and choked back the lump growing in his throat. "It's okay, buddy. It's all okay. We'll take things slow. You don't have to rush your recovery. Just know that I'm here for you, all right? I love you."

  He waited for a response, but the the boy only blinked twice and slumped down farther in the leather chair.

  "Do you see these controls? This is where the gunner usually sits. These screens will show you video feed from outside the ship, facing backwards. I'll turn off the weapons systems back here so you can play with the controls and pretend like you're shooting at any enemies we find, okay? Doesn't that sound fun? You used to love to play pilot while riding on my shou
lders around the house."

  When it became all too clear that he was not going to get through to his son, Rav leaned over to kiss the side of Nemo's head where all the blond hair had fallen out or been shaved off. With a squeeze of the boy's hand in his, Rav stood once again to move around to his own chair in preparation for takeoff.

  There was no reason to keep pressuring Nemo into talking or doing anything. Nothing would work. For the past week, Nemo would only sleep after he had become so exhausted from staring at the walls or screaming his lungs out that he passed out. As for eating, the nurses at the children's hospital had been force-feeding the poor boy through a feeding tube. On the last day there, Nemo nibbled on a grape ice pop and sipped some applesauce through a straw that a nurse had held up for him. That was enough for them to agree to let Rav take him home to his house on the Flight Force base. Since then, Rav had not been able to get his son to eat or drink anything aside from some nutrient-enriched water that the hospital had sent with him.

  The most terrifying thing was that Nemo was falling apart. He was losing weight. His eyesight was failing. He would start coughing in the middle of the night until he spit out clots of blood. All Rav could do was watch and hold his son's trembling hand through it all. Even the doctors had given up on him. On those rare occasions when Nemo did manage to fall asleep, Rav took the opportunity to hook him up to a computer and pump coolant into his system to keep him as stable as he could. It was a full time job to tend to the boy, but Rav would have no one else do it.

  The nurses had told him all the things that had happened to Nemo, what those Olonictians had done to him, based on the evidence. It was a long list of horrible tortures that Rav had tried his best to forget. That, coupled with the abuse Nemo went through as a prisoner to the Azimandians, was enough to break him.

  Rav hated himself for ever allowing Nemo to fall into any of it. Sure, it was Helen and Darren who had sold Nemo, but he blamed himself for not being there to stop it. He blamed himself for not searching hard enough. He blamed himself for failing his son. Even if they did find a way to get Nemo back to the happy boy he was before, that was a burden of guilt that would stay with him for the rest of his life.

  All he could do now was keep his son comfortable while he continued doing the best job he could to end the war. He would save other children from falling into the same fate. Rav pulled his headset on then started the Galaxy Glider engines. The sweet metallic scent of burning Vitalanum cores filled the cockpit and the vibrations spread underneath his feet.

  His heart skipped a beat when he heard the quiet giggling from the chair behind him. Rav moved around the center beam to see his son smiling and tapping the soles of his little purple sneakers on the vibrating floor. Nemo was laughing. "Do you like the feel of the engines, buddy?"

  Nemo's eyes lit up as his thin pink lips parted with another fit of giggles.

  Could this be the key to breaking Nemo out of the prison his mind had become? Not wanting to push him or end this moment, Rav took his seat again then grabbed onto the yoke. He secured his orange-tinted flight goggles on his face then spoke into the mic on his headset. "This is Quasar Luminous, requesting permission for takeoff."

  The soft voice of the female flight control officer came over the headset. "Permission granted. Will you be taking off vertically or down the runway?"

  "Runway. I need to test out the maneuverability of this thing and make sure everything is working right after those repairs."

  "Confirmed. Whenever you're ready, sir."

  If Nemo liked the feel of the engines, then he would love to fly. Rav smiled as he started down the runway and his son's giggling only grew. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. He silently swore on his own life that he would do all he could to keep that sound alive.

  Chapter 3

  Ben trembled uncontrollably as he was pushed to his knees onto something soft. No light came through the blindfold covering his eyes, a gag was filling his mouth, his wrists were bound behind his back, and all he could hear was the extremely loud metal music screaming in his ears from the headphones. The only things he could sense about the world around him were warmth dancing on his bare chest and a floral smell that was a relief from the mustiness of the escape pod he had been in for what felt like days. He was filthy, exhausted, and sore.

  The first thing to be ripped from him was the headphones. Ben instinctively let out a cry from behind the cloth gag as the silence swept across his over-stimulated ears. As the ringing continued, he concentrated on what else he could hear. Birds singing . . . monkeys howling . . . water rushing . . . footsteps.

  Someone grabbed his arms and began to drag him forward on his knees until he felt sticky mud around him. With his head being held steady by his hair, Ben struggled against the hand that removed his jeans. Before he had a chance to come to terms with what was happening, he was shoved forward. The cold water surrounded him as he fell, splashing and thrashing as he sunk. Without his arms to help him swim, Ben could only kick his legs as the oxygen left his lungs.

  The hands grabbed his arms again and pulled him back out of the water. In a flash, the gag was ripped from his mouth and he took a few deep breaths that filled his burning lungs. Dripping with water and terrified, Ben shivered as his curly brown hair matted against the sides of his face. Again, the footsteps circled around until they stopped in front of him. Ben's body tensed when the blindfold fell off, leaving him to squint in the bright yellow light that cascaded down from a tall jungle canopy.

  White and red monkeys swung across the dark wood trees on flower-speckled vines, colorful birds with large curved beaks dove into the crystal-like pool of water at the base of a tall waterfall, and foot-long green lizards crawled across three walls of carved stone ruins that stood out from the underbrush on the opposite side of the pond. The warm air was filled with seedlings flying from nearby giant pink flowers and a haze of pollen that hovered around the tops of the trees. Ben could barely make out any of it without his glasses.

  Ben flinched and let out a yelp when the metal hand touched his shoulder. "Please don't kill me!"

  "Don't be afraid. I'm not going to hurt you."

  He watched through his blurry eyesight as his husband knelt down in front of him. What was he trying to do? Why was he staring at him like that?

  Vance pushed Ben's curly bangs out of his eyes then reached around to unlock the handcuffs. "Your pants are over there. I didn't want them to get wet."

  Once his panic had faded enough for him to take a steady breath, Ben spoke the first thing that came to his mind. "I could have drowned."

  "You're clean now."

  "What are you going to do with me?"

  "Don't be so frightened."

  "How long have we been gone?" Ben asked as he cautiously tiptoed over to get his pants.

  "Two days. Lucky for you, Sandra's ship was relatively close to the Tlishiness Galaxy. With the warp boosters someone equipped to that escape pod, we made good time."

  Ben pulled on his jeans and buttoned them before wiping the water from his face. "I can't see."

  "Here. You didn't think I would bring you all the way out here and not have you able to see, did you?"

  Ben gritted his teeth as Vance slid the glasses onto his face for him. "Please don't kill me. I'm sorry for hitting you so hard back there in the cell. You can do it to me if it will make you feel better. Please let me go back to my children. They need me."

  "Children? What children? The Nemo clones? Did you adopt them?"

  "I did. Because of who I am, I got a quick emergency adoption when we stopped on AX-97. I've named them all and grown to know what they like, their talents, their passions, their fears. They all have different personalities. I'm their father now, and they need me."

  "Dearest, I'm not going to hurt you. That was never in the plan."

  "Then why handcuff me? Why keep me as your prisoner, Vance? Why?"

  Vance stepped over to the sleek red hull of the escape pod then pulled
out a cheese plate and a bottle of white wine. "Here, have a few sips. It will help calm you down. Don't worry. It's not poisoned."

  "Maybe I don't want to calm down. Maybe I'm tired of being pushed around by you! You're my husband, not my owner." Ben looked down to see his clenched fists as the anger brought heat to his face. That was not the way to handle the situation. "Have you ever read the Bible?"

  "Is that the book you love so much?" Vance asked as he set the plate of cheeses on the flat stone between them like a table.

  "It's not just a book, Vance. It's important. It's the word of God."

  "It's also the book that makes people like the ones in Odyssia and your father hurt people like us. How can you defend something like that?"

  "You will never understand."

  "Why even bring it up? You're religious. I get it. So what? You will never be like the people in that book of yours. Why do you cling to something that doesn't exist? Why do you feel the need to revert back to stories and fairy tales? Why put yourself through the self-hatred that you do?"

  "Because I'm not perfect!" Ben shouted, but caught himself. "I'm only human, Vance. Sometimes us humans need something bigger than ourselves to believe in. It's not a fairy tale. It's not a story. Not to me. You've been wanting to know why I stay with you, why I keep putting myself through this emotional torture that is our marriage. You want to know? Because I have faith. I have faith that we can fix this. I have faith that you are capable of loving people again."

  Vance unwrapped the plate and began arranging wheat crackers around the edge. "Then your faith is misplaced, mate."

  "Don't. Don't do this."

  "Your father was a priest. And what did he, a preacher of your book's goodwill, do to you? He sold you to a crazed maniac. Your own father did that to you because the translation of that book he had said you were an abomination. Well? I'm waiting. What's your comeback for that?" Vance's jaw tensed before he scoffed. "See? You don't have one. We live in a universe of science, Ben, a universe of facts. Things are made of atoms and cells. Other things are made of code and electricity. I create things. I've created life with my own hands."