by CJ Davis
The two of them followed the panicked crowd out of the playhouse. The sense of mindless panic was overwhelming. A couple of unfortunate souls had fallen on the ground and Reese watched them get trampled, followed by bright flashes.
Reese stayed right behind Marquis, who aggressively pushed his way through the crowd. By the time they worked their way to a street Marquis was laughing.
“Why did the Red destroy that woman?” Reese asked Marquis. “And why are you laughing?”
“She put us all in danger by bringing a man on the brink of becoming a Lost Soul into a crowded spot,” Marquis said. His laughter subsided. “Come on, you didn’t think her scream was hilarious? Did you not hear her voice crack?”
“Are you some sort of psychopath?” Reese asked. “That woman was murdered in there.”
“Oh, shut up noob,” Marquis replied. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. That woman deserved it. Trust me.”
“This is crazy,” Reese said.
Marquis momentarily grabbed Reese and put him in a playful headlock, before letting him go.
“You need to stop worrying so much,” Marquis said. “You are on the cusp of one of the greatest moments in the Afterlife. Don’t let some loose Lost Soul bring you down. You’ll get used to stuff like that before you know it.”
Reese shoved Marquis, sending him a few steps back.
“I’m not overreacting, and never put me in a headlock again,” Reese demanded.
Marquis held his hands up in the air, calling a truce.
They had a long quiet walk back. Reese finally broke the silence.
“I shouldn’t have lost my cool back there,” Reese said. “I’m sorry. How long did it take you to get used to it?”
“Not too long,” Marquis replied, shooting him a crooked smile. “This is a wonderful world with a lot of excitement, and sometimes it’s dangerous, but if you stick with me, you’ll be just fine. You should go to the History Archive tomorrow to learn all about the history between the Blues and the Reds. Afterwards you can join me at the Red Temple for an opening ceremony party honoring the Centennial. It will be a fantastic party. I’m sure it will help get you get excited about being here again.”
“Sounds good Marquis,” Reese said. “I will see you here tomorrow then around 7:00?”
“Sure,” Marquis replied. “And hey, if you ever shove me again, I’ll kill you.”
Marquis grinned crazily at Reese, turned and walked away.
Chapter 8
Mexico - The Recent Past: Reese and the group of escapees meandered through a small jungle creek in the opposite direction of the cartel camp.
“Do you really think walking in the creek is helping?” Tom said, as he tried to dislodge his left foot from thick mud. “This river must be filled with snakes, and god knows what else.”
“Trust me buddy, the poisonous snakes are the least of your worries.” Reese said. He shook his head.
“What are the chances that we’re making it out of here alive?” Jessica asked.
“You mean you don’t want to talk about the local wildlife like Tom?” Reese asked. “I’m sure we can spot some rather interesting species along the creek.”
Tom finally pulled his leg loose and let out a huff.
“No way to sugar coat this one Jess,” Reese said. “It’s not looking great.”
“Great,” Tom said. “More good...”
Tom was interrupted by the chopping blades of a helicopter in the distance. Reese signaled aggressively for everybody to get out of the creek and underneath the thick leaves of a giant tree.
“It looks like Hector is in that helicopter,” Reese said to the group.
“That man is a grade A bastard,” Jessica said.
“I truly get sick to my stomach just thinking about him,” Kate added.
The loud helicopter swooshed over the tree they were hiding in. Reese knew it was only a matter of time before they were spotted.
“What are we going to do?” Tom demanded. “Maybe you shouldn’t have rescued us.”
“Let me tell you what Hector Chavez is going to do to you if he catches us,” Kate replied evenly. “Just last month, a family of a local official that had the gull to stand up to Hector Chavez was found burnt alive in their house. There were three small children under ten in the carnage.”
Tom looked pale.
“She’s right,” Jessica said. “We don’t stand a chance if he catches us. Shut up Tom, and do exactly what Reese said. He’s our only hope.”
Reese nodded his head at Jessica, and then looked up in the sky at the helicopter.
“The three of you stay here, and under no circumstances are you to come out of this hiding spot until I get you,” Reese ordered.
Kate put her hands on her hips, and leveled her gaze at him. Even under stress, she was one sexy lady…
“Bring me with you,” she said. “You’re not fighting them alone. I won’t let you.”
The leaves several feet above their heads fluttered rapidly. The helicopter was practically close enough to touch. By some miracle, they weren’t sighted.
“All right, Kate,” Reese replied. “You can join me, but you have to follow my directions. If I say get down, you don’t ask why, you just do it. If I say shoot over there, you don’t stop to look, you just start firing. Do you understand?”
“Sir, yes, sir,” Kate replied with a trace of insolence. Reese found himself smiling. He glowed inside every time they talked.
“Now somebody give me one of those machine guns,” Kate said. Her voice shook.
Jessica wrestled herself up from the ground and hugged Reese tightly.
“My Dad would be proud of you if he was here,” Jessica said.
“I know,” he replied.
The helicopter passed by, leaving the perfect opportunity for Kate and Reese to run down the creek bed. Their feet slid in the filthy sludge by the bank of the creeks, but at least they stayed out of sight.
After wading through the water for a couple of minutes the sound of rushing water filled Reese with elation. It’s exactly what he was hoping for.
“What’re you so excited about?” Kate asked. “It’s just a river.”
“Look, up ahead,” Reese exclaimed. He pointed down the river. “It’s a waterfall. We might just have a fighting chance.”
The two of them were becoming experts at timing their movements to the helicopter crisscrossing the area. They were moving so quickly that it only took a few minutes to make it all the way to the waterfall. They crouched down by a large rock.
“We really lucked out Kate,” Reese said.
Kate stared blankly at Reese.
“Combined with the dense jungle and deadly drop-off, the waterfall is the perfect choke point,” he continued. “If we can somehow lure the cartel soldiers to land their helicopter, and come after us, we’ll be in the perfect position to push them toward the waterfall. With the proper amount of cover fire, they will have no place to escape. You’ll be safe on the other side of the river too. All we have to do is for you to lay down covering fire at the right time, and I will be able to flank them.”
Reese saw that Kate continued to look confused.
“Look, it’s not complex,” Reese said reassuringly. “I need you to lay over their behind those rocks. When I give you the signal, I need you to start shooting your machine gun towards the men. Got it?”
Reese winked at Kate to try and calm her nerves.
“Well, when you say it like that, sure,” Kate replied.
“You’re going to want to use your ammunition sparingly,” Reese said. “Shoot short burst every so often. I’ll give you one of our grenades too, just in case they get close to you.
Kate’s wide eyed gaze caught Reese off guard. She opened her mouth as though to protest, then shut it again.
“No pressure,” Reese continued. “But if you run out of bullets, this whole plan falls apart.”
He was rewarded with a nervous grin. Resisting the urg
e to wrap his arms around her to protect her from harm, he just returned her smile. Not enough. He deeply admired her spirit. Reese could feel his heartbeat pounding, and could only hope that she didn’t see the flush he felt rising in his cheeks.
“Hey, one last thing,” Reese said. Throwing caution to the wind, he reached out and gently touched Kate’s shoulder. Unexpectedly, she melted into his arms. He grabbed her and held her tight. “Listen,” Reese said softly into her ear. “We would not even be here if it was not for you. It was dangerous to help me, but you did it anyway. I know you’re strong. You can do this. You really are amazing.”
She buried her head in his shoulder. .
“Everything is going to be all right, just think about how great that mojito is going to taste,” he said, and then, he surprised himself by seeking her lips for a tender kiss. She didn’t hesitate, but leaned into his embrace, savoring the experience. Not a kiss of passion, but of love. How odd that it felt so right. Reese silenced his thoughts and lost himself in the moment. The heat of the jungle, the sounds of the waterfall, everything disappeared until there was only the two of them and that unforgettable kiss.
***
Hector veered the helicopter back towards the river after doing another loop around the giant area. The jungle stretched for miles in every direction. The bright sun lit up the whole area, but did little to penetrate most of the thick tree canopy. He was to remain composed, but the more he thought about the escaped prisoners the angrier he got.
“The three of you better start looking harder for them,” Hector at his men. “Or we’ll find out if you can fly!”
His men looked at each other with frightened eyes. They scanned the ground more intently.
Hector knew they couldn’t have gotten far in this dense jungle.
Without warning, a muzzle flash by the riverbank caught the eye of Hector.
“We’re taking fire!” Hector yelled. “It has to be them.”
Rat-at-tat-tat-tat echoed in his eardrum as the helicopter took a couple of rounds. His heart pounded rapidly in his chest.
“I’ll swing back around, and hover over the target in a perfect firing position,” Hector said. “Get ready to unload everything we have at them. The shots are coming from right by the river bank, behind that boulder, about fifty yards up from that waterfall.”
After a brief moment, Hector navigated the copter to a perfect firing position over the river. Before he had the chance to give the firing order, the men unleashed a metal hail storm of bullets at the river bank. The men were methodical in their execution. They aimed at every square inch in the area. Dust and bullets filled the air all around the boulder.
The undergrowth took such a hammering, that all that was left was wrangled stubs and shredded dark green vegetation spread out all over the misty landscape.
“Hold your fire,” Hector yelled.
The air was filled with a heavy cloud of thick dust, After a moment the heavy helicopter blades dissipated the air enough, to reveal what appeared to be the sprawled out lifeless right arm and leg of their assailant protruding from a large rock by the river bank.
A couple of Hector’s men gave each other fist bumps, but their celebration was short lived. Hector glared at them.
“I want to be one hundred percent sure he’s dead, and we still need to find our other prisoners,” Hector ordered. He lit a cigarette and watched his men scramble to obey.
“We’ll have to wait for the dust to settle.” The soldier caught Hector’s eye and quickly resumed scanning.
“We need to get to the ground and hunt these animals down,” Hector continued. “There’s a clearing right over there where I’m going to land the helicopter. I need all of you to stay alert.”
Hector landed the helicopter in a small area around fifty yards away from the river. The three guerrillas leapt from the cockpit with their rifles pointing toward the jungle. They made their way through the dense jungle to the corpse by the river.
Within minutes, they arrived at the spot where the lopsided firefight had taken place. Hector gave a signal for all the men to stop. It was quiet. Only the sound of the flowing river and the jungle filled the air.
At least a twenty-five square yard area had been cleared from the intense bullet barrage. The body of the man lay on its side behind the large boulder, facing away from the men. Now that he was closer Hector was sure this was Reese. Gingerly, one of the soldiers approached. Step by cautious step, he edged to within a foot of him.
“Just shoot the body and be done with it!” demanded Hector. Truly, the superstitions of his underlings were annoying. Just as he turned away in disgust, the corpse reached up, grabbed the barrel of the rifle, and leapt to his feet. Within moments, Hector’s soldier collapsed, a six inch hunting knife buried deep in his chest.
Almost instantaneously there was a stirring in the underbrush, and Hector hit the dirt as a barrage of bullets whistled overhead. One of his men spun as he fell, another dove into the brush. Hector was sure that Reese was the only fighter among them. Who the hell was playing target practice with his soldiers?
Chapter 9
Afterlife - Present Day: Reese sat in the dimly lit History Archive theatre. He tapped his foot on the floor of the mid-sized 1920’s themed room. Just before boredom settled in a life-sized hologram lit up on the giant empty stage of a man dressed in a stiff suit.
“Welcome to the History Archive,” the hologram said. He casually paced to the far side of the stage. “For those of you who don’t know yet, my name is Epicurus, and I’m the elected leader of the Greens. I will be your guide through today’s presentation.”
He pointed toward the stage, which suddenly lit up with giant holograms of life size cavemen wandering around a lush country landscape.
“Since the beginning, the Afterlife has shaped the very roots of the human condition,” Epicurus continued. “In the beginning, before Asgelot, when the souls of the very first men on Earth arrived here, they would wander around aimlessly. Some would be devoured by beasts, and others would simply eventually be drawn to the great source lights."
When an orchestrated soundtrack swelled in the background it made the hairs on the back of Reese’s neck stand up.
"As it is today when we enter the source light, these ancient souls were reincarnated back to Earth upon entering the light,” Epicurus said. “Their memories were erased, but their souls held onto what made them unique, which remained with them after each transition between the two worlds.”
Reese sat mesmerized as beautiful holographic images of developing civilizations unfolded on the stage.
"The great Afterlife cities developed over the centuries,” Epicurus continued. “The Afterlife technologies develop at a slightly faster rate than Earth, due to the fact that our scientists can focus on their developments as long as they desired, without death or old age slowing them down. The biggest city in the Afterlife is Asgelot. There are a total of five cities in the Afterlife, and vast uninhabited land in between them."
When the stage is filled with an elaborate miniature hologram of Asgelot Reese immediately recognized some of the buildings. The landscape stretched from one side of the stage to the other.
The lights dimmed and Epicurus gestured to the left of the stage.
"It’s now time for you to learn of the history of soul development in the Afterlife, and the ride will now transition to the next section,” Epicurus said. “So hold onto the arms of your chairs and remain seated.”
The entire theatre groaned slightly as the floor moved to a new position.
Reese leaned towards the edge of his seat. The new stage was much bigger. Large animatronic figures were scattered throughout.
"Despite the dangers outside the city walls, some curious and adventurous souls journeyed through the Wild Lands,” Epicurus continued. “These original great explorers would eventually return with stories of wild galorim pools and the unbelievable powers these pools gave them. The explorers were faster, stronger, and
smarter.”
The spotlight highlighted animatronics of ancient warriors. Many of them were standing over very large slain beasts. The music changed from being suspenseful, to more of a heroic theme.
Holograms of ancient warriors ran across the stage. Some moved at accelerated speeds, others lifted enormous rocks with very little effort.
"After a time of great discovery and growth, eventually these adventurers learned they had limitations on how much galorim energy they could absorb in the Afterlife," Epicurus said. "They found out they could only absorb new powers from the galorim pools if they went through a reincarnated cycle on Earth, which increased their galorim capacities when they returned to the Afterlife."
“Through trial and error they learned that to receive the greatest amount of power after a reincarnated life cycle, one had to live a selfless life on Earth, by helping those around them," Epicurus added. "Over the years, and many lifetimes souls mastered this approach and became very powerful. Eventually an order of these advanced souls was established in the Afterlife, and they called themselves the Blues. The significant majority of souls that didn't venture outside the city walls became known as Greens."
A hologram of men and women in Blue togas sitting at a very large round table appeared in the front of the stage.
"It was not long before our society started to prosper as a result of what the Blues were accomplishing,” Epicurus continued. “The Blues were able to develop great technologies with their advanced intelligence and strength."
"One day one of the most powerful advanced souls, whose name was Morkel, discovered a different path towards earning the most galorim powers. During his lifetime on earth, he discovered that if he focused his energies on himself, rather than meeting the needs of others, that the power was more concentrated and came more quickly. Upon his return to the galorim pools in the Afterlife, he noticed he absorbed twice as much power as he had in his previous reincarnation cycle. His ability to gain more galorim power in less time, despite hurting a lot of people, was seductive for Morkel."