“It’s time, Darius,” The Redeemer said as he glanced down at my father’s sword.
“Very well,” I answered as the two of us turned and headed to free my father and ultimately confront The Godhand.
THE GODHAND WAS STILL ALONE BY THE TIME THE REDEEMER, The Righteous and I reached the dome-like Sanctuary located near the first quadrant of the Pillar of Eden. The extravagantly large, candle-lit room was a lavishly decorated shrine to my mother, The Goddess and in the center of the large ivory colored dome stood a massive golden Altar of Eden, where The Godhand kneeled and prayed in silence as the three of us approached him from behind. Our footsteps echoed throughout the hallowed room as we made our way towards the kneeling Lord Commander, but despite the fact that he could obviously hear us coming, his head remained bowed and he continued his prayer as though we were not even there.
The Redeemer was still wearing his silver and black combat gear but my father and I were both dressed in the pale grey uniforms that we had been forced to wear upon turning ourselves over to their custody. My heartbeat quickened as I continued towards the Altar of Eden with The Righteous and The Redeemer following to my left and right, respectively. The Godhand was wearing one of his decorated black and white service uniforms along with a white hooded cloak that shrouded his face from view— but though we could not see his face it was easy to determine who he was based on the fact that even in a kneeled position he was so large that he was still taller than any of us.
“Have you betrayed me, Jonas?” The Godhand finally asked without bothering to turn and face us.
“It is not my wish to oppose you, Lord Commander, but I must honor my Covenant with The Goddess,” The Redeemer answered as we paused a few feet away from The Godhand.
“There’s no way you can win this, Cyrus. Do not make me do something that we shall all regret,” I warned as I held the Fifth Blade before me. We all watched in anticipation as The Godhand quietly finished his prayer to the Goddess then finally rose to his massive feet and turned to face us.
“You shouldn’t have come here, Darius,” he warned as he locked his stern gaze on me.
“No, Cyrus, it’s you who should not have come. If you never intended to rescue us you never should have made this journey,” I scolded.
“The two of you left me no choice! You allowed yourselves to be captured by an enemy that we never should have engaged in the first place!” The Godhand boomed. “And you left me to pick up the pieces of our empire after you all but disappeared from existence!”
“But is that not your duty, Lord Commander?! Is it not your place to lead the people in the absence of the High King and the Right Hand?” I snapped.
“Do not speak to me of duty, Son of Eden! One who has shunned his duties as Right Hand for as long as he has held the title!” The Godhand shot back.
“I have done what was in the best interest of our people!” I insisted.
“Oh, spare me, Darius! You have done what was in the best interest of your father! You care nothing of the will of our people!” The Godhand scoffed.
“And you do, Cyrus?! You tried to extort your way to the Crown! How do you think our people would react if they knew that you threatened to leave us here lest my father relinquish his power?!” I demanded.
“The greater good of our people is my only concern. If I must sacrifice my honor in order to ensure it then so be it,” The Godhand replied.
“You will not obtain the Crown, Cyrus. Surely you must see that you have lost,” I urged.
“I can still challenge you for The Right Hand,” The Godhand insisted.
“But why? Why must we continue to fight each other when we should be focusing our energies on reclaiming that which was taken from us by the greys?” I questioned.
“No, Son of Eden. I will not step aside and let you take my people back down that bloody path. Eden is lost and I have come to terms with that,” The Godhand answered.
“But it doesn’t have to be, Cyrus. Not if we fight!” I insisted.
“We haven’t fought The Equillians in decades, Son of Eden— not since I agreed to accept the cease fire that your father so foolishly declined all those years ago. He could have saved billions of Anokian lives were it not for his hubris,” The Godhand growled.
“A ceasefire with The Equillian Federation is out of the question. I will not allow it!” The Righteous suddenly interjected.
“It’s already done! And I’ve saved countless lives because of it! And before you object you should know that as Lord Commander it was well within my rights to strike such an agreement in your absence,” The Godhand replied.
“Unbelievable! Do you realize what you’ve done, Cyrus?” my father fumed as his wrinkled face twisted into a stern grimace.
“Of course I do! I’ve found a way for my people to know peace instead of nothing but perpetual war and destruction!” The Godhand argued.
“You are pathetic, Cyrus, and I will not allow the very essence of my people to wither away and die simply because you lacked the resolve to continue the fight in my absence!” The Righteous scolded.
“I did continue to fight! And I watched as the Equillians and their Counsel allies chipped away at our territories until we were left with almost nothing! In the end it was either accept a ceasefire or accept annihilation!” The Godhand insisted.
“Then it is clear that you made the wrong choice,” The Righteous said darkly. “There will be no ceasefire. I will repeal that worthless agreement the moment I return to Andromeda.”
“You’re a fool, old man, and you would see that our people stayed locked in combat until kingdom come— all for nothing more than your own foolish pride!” The Godhand hissed.
“You forget yourself, Lord Commander! I am still your King and until such time as I am properly removed from power you will address me as such!” The Righteous warned, causing my heart rate to rise with the anticipation of an attack from The Godhand. I was relieved when instead The Godhand simply scoffed and turned his back to us all without a word.
“You once said that you would follow my father to the edge of the universe, if he required it, Cyrus. Do you remember that? Of all people I would have never thought that you would move against him,” I said as I took a step closer to him.
“I did follow him,” The Godhand answered as he glared at me over his broad shoulders. “But that was before I knew of his greed and his potential for madness. His lust for power was the very reason we lost Eden. And now we find ourselves on the brink of ruin, allied with refugee scum and hoping to win a war that will only lead to our annihilation… Give me one good reason why I should listen to what either of you have to say?”
“Do you know how many people have challenged me for the Right Hand of the Crown and actually lived to tell the tale, Cyrus?” I asked.
“One,” he said flatly as he turned and faced me once again.
“That’s right. Just one… just you,” I said as I pointed my right index finger at him. “And do you know why I spared you?”
“Because you wanted to humiliate me— to turn me into a walking advertisement of just how powerful the son of our Goddess truly was,” The Godhand sneered.
“No, Cyrus. That’s the last thing I wanted. When you challenged me for The Right Hand you fought me like no other and were it not for my mother’s holy energy I think we both know that I would not have been able to defeat you. That is why I spared you, Cyrus— because I knew that you were far too powerful and far too important to our cause to be destroyed. I always thought that if anything ever happened to my father and I our people would be in worthy hands with you as their leader— but this is not what I had in mind, Cyrus. The Godhand that I knew and bled with would not have settled for a piddling ceasefire with an enemy that had stolen our home— a ceasefire that was practically written in the blood of the innocent Anokians who were slaughtered by their Guardians on the day that Eden was lost. The Godhand that I knew would endure— no matter the cost. It is not my wish to deny you the
chance to fight for the Crown but what good is the Crown without the Throne, Cyrus?” I asked as I looked up at him and extended my right hand. “Help us, brother. Help us take back our home and then we shall fight— not only for the Right Hand of the Crown but for the throne of Eden as well.”
The Godhand’s intense brown eyes widened with surprise as he realized the gravity of my words.
“You would challenge your father for the throne?” he gasped as he glanced at The Righteous then back to me.
“Aye. Once Eden is reclaimed I will accept your challenge and whosoever should prove victorious shall face my father for the throne of Eden. I give you my word, Lord Commander,” I confirmed as I extended my right hand closer to him.
The Righteous watched in silence as The Godhand stroked his long black beard and stared at my outstretched hand. We all knew the stakes: he could either accept my offer or fight the three of us right then and there. I was confident that even The Godhand could not withstand the combined might of my father, The Redeemer and me but I still hoped that he would choose my offer to delay his challenge because the last thing I wanted was to return to Andromeda without the single most formidable person to have ever served as Lord Commander of the Knights of Eden.
“I will accept your proposal, Son of Eden,” The Godhand finally answered as he wrapped his giant hand around mine to confirm his approval.
“You should know that my father and I value your allegiance above all else, Cyrus. You will not be disappointed with your decision,” I replied as I shook his hand then held my right fist across my chest to salute him.
“Thank you, Son of Eden,” he replied as he returned my salute. “Thank you for showing me the folly of my ways— and for reminding me of just how much we have lost. Though I still shutter at the thought of plunging our galaxy back into conflict, I now realize that it is unavoidable.”
“Indeed, Lord Commander. We must reclaim our home at all costs, and it is only through war that Eden will find itself restored,” I replied.
“And what do you propose as far as our next step?” The Godhand asked.
“For now, The Righteous should reassume control of The Pillar of Eden and we must complete the ritual in order to bring The Goddess back to this realm,” I said.
“I have no issues with stepping aside but we may have a problem when it comes to completing the ritual,” The Godhand responded.
“And what might that be?” The Righteous asked.
“We retrieved the Equillian antimatter device from your former human allies; however, the bomb was remotely activated by their leader once it arrived aboard this ship. It was set with a seventy-two hour countdown and The Suspect has advised that he will only deactivate the device if you agree to meet with him in person.”
“Have you responded to his demands?” The Righteous asked as he stroked his long grey beard and pondered a solution to the unexpected problem.
“I gave the order to prime the Infinite Mass Weapon and I sent word to the humans that we will destroy their planet in forty eight hours if The Suspect is not handed over to our custody,” The Godhand replied.
“I see. Do we still have any wormhole technology aboard The Pillar?” The Righteous asked.
“Yes. We have an old shipment of Equillian generators that were seized during the war,” The Godhand answered.
“Perfect,” The Righteous said before turning to me. “Darius, I need you and the Lord Commander to assemble a legion of Knights at once. We will capture the nation of India then move the bomb when the time is right using one of the wormhole generators. As far as The Suspect is concerned, send word that I will agree to meet him, but only aboard this vessel.”
“And should he decline?” I asked.
“He will come and that is precisely when we shall move the bomb. In the event that he refuses, however, we can still use the IMW to bring back the Goddess by destroying their entire planet. There are so few worlds across the cosmos that are naturally able to sustain life, therefore, I would hope to avoid the complete destruction of the earth. However, I will do what I must in order to ensure the Goddess’ return. If we can bring Her back, I know that She will protect us from the bomb.”
“An excellent plan, my Lord,” The Godhand acknowledged just before turning to me. “I will lead the battalion that delivers the bomb, Son of Eden. It is the least that I can do.”
“That’s not necessary, Cyrus. I can also—”
“You are their ruler, Son of Eden, not their commander— and in that regard I have several decades more experience than you,” The Godhand insisted.
“He’s right, Darius. You and I should remain here within The Pillar to oversee the completion of the ritual and The Godhand will lead the attack on India. Their military is vast; however, a legion of a few thousand Knights should be more than sufficient.”
“Are you certain, Sire? The humans have already proven to be much more resourceful than we originally anticipated. With their entire planet on high alert I doubt even a legion of our finest Knights could capture an entire nation without any reinforcements,” The Godhand said.
“No, keep it small. I know how the humans operate. If we send word to the other countries that we only intend to invade India the others will not intervene out of fear of provoking an attack on their people as well. They do not fight together as one like our people, Cyrus. They hide behind their imaginary borders pretending that the superficial differences that separate them somehow make them better than those whom they would forsake. As long as we keep our operations within the confines of the Indian borders we’ll be fine.”
“Very well. Jonas and I will assemble a legion at once,” The Godhand confirmed as he and The Redeemer saluted The Righteous then turned and headed towards the exit.
“Forgive me, Father,” I said after I was sure that The Redeemer and The Godhand had left the room.
“You have done me no wrong, my son. In fact, you have made me proud. It was selfish of me to ask you to delay your right to challenge me for all these years,” The Righteous replied.
“But why does it feel like betrayal, Father?” I asked.
“No, my son, betrayal is that which was perpetrated against us by Ezekiel, The Elder,” my father said as his face twisted into an angry scowl. “They sent my own son after me, Darius— a son whom just a few weeks ago I didn’t even know existed.”
“Speaking of The Reaper, have you decided what to do with him once he regains consciousness?” I asked.
“That depends,” The Righteous replied, as he stroked his long grey beard and stared into space.
“On what?” I questioned.
“That depends on if he still wants to kill me.”
17. HOPELESS
AUDREY:
- 60 HOURS TO DETONATION
AFTER OUR CLASH WITH THE ANOKIANS IN TIMES SQUARE I followed Ace and his group into a wormhole and emerged on the other side in a secret government base that was apparently located on the dark side of the moon. Once we arrived I was immediately separated from their group and taken to a small room with pale grey walls that felt like more of a holding cell than a waiting room. There was a large mirror to the right of the rear exit that was probably made of one-way glass and the room was almost empty except for a dark green couch near the back and a small black table in the center that was surrounded by four uncomfortable chairs.
I was still wearing my combat armor minus the mask as well as my black and maroon trench coat as I sat at the table and waited. After about twenty minutes of waiting I removed my vest and upper body armor then flopped down on the green couch to take a short nap. That “nap” ultimately turned into a much deeper sleep than I anticipated and I awoke several hours later without a clue as to where I was or how I had gotten there. As I stood and walked towards the rear exit it all started to come back to me. I stopped in front of the “mirror” to the right of the exit and I placed my face to the one-way glass to see if I could determine what was happening on the other side. After a few moments
I realized that it was no use and I pulled my face back and simply stood and looked at my reflection.
My usually flawless red hair was a mess, in part due to the virtual fight to the death from a few hours earlier but mostly because I had just woken up. I continued to study my face in the mirror as I ran my fingers through my hair then pulled it into a loose ponytail using a small elastic band from one of my hip pockets.
“Checking yourself out?” Ace asked as the door to the room suddenly opened. He was wearing dark grey sweatpants with black gym shoes and a black and white tee-shirt and even though he clearly hadn’t bothered to dress his best he still somehow managed to look like a male supermodel.
“A girl’s gotta look her best, right?” I smirked as he stepped into the room and let the door close behind him.
“I doubt you’ve ever had much trouble in that department,” he replied as he walked past me and pulled out a chair from the center table.
“Is that a compliment, Mr. Kilpatrick?” I asked, wondering if his remark had anything to do with the shirt that I was now wearing.
“Just an observation,” he said nonchalantly as we both sat across from each other at the table in the center of the room.
Is he flirting with me? I thought as I stared into Ace’s striking green eyes and considered getting up and putting on my coat. He was easily one of the most handsome guys that I had ever laid eyes on so I can’t deny that a small part of me was intrigued by the idea of him finding me attractive, but I did what I could to ignore that impulse because he was also best friends with The Reaper— whom I was still hopelessly in love with.
“How’s the arm?” I asked as I glanced at his black and silver, mechanical right hand.
Savior Part 3: Legion of The Godhand (The Savior Series) Page 15