State of Mind (2)

Axeon reaches his destination in search of an ally

Author’s Note: This is adapted from an unpublished novel I’m working on to be a series on this page. Can always use feedback.

2. The Birthplace of Life in the Universe

Year C-80, Quarter 2

(10 Years Ago)

Whistling winds flew over luscious green hills. Through electric binoculars, a twelve year old girl watched the tightly guarded checkpoint closely. On the other side of the gate was the Memorian city of Otundra. Through the lenses, the girl saw a woman in a dark black coat approaching the guards. Acting with immediate hostility, the two guards raised their guns to point at the woman and demanded she identify herself. The spying girl zoomed in a little bit, trying to see the woman’s face, but she was facing the opposite direction. She looked toward Otundra.

Birds chirped above the tree line. The wind whooshed harshly toward the gate, causing the woman to turn to the side. The girl got a glimpse of the coated woman’s face and dropped the binoculars immediately. No.

“Who are you!?” One of the guards shouted nervously. The other one was silent and unmoving. The young girl ran as fast as she could toward the checkpoint. She was a few minutes away and already out of breath. Exhausting her throat, she shouted out:
“Nadia! Nadie, no!” Her hands were on her knees and the whole group at the gate turned to face her. The guns were still locked on the older woman. She looked distraught, a stark change from her usual calmness, “Nadia!” the girl shouted again.

The nervous guard lowered his gun and shoved the woman named Nadia to the floor. He tied up her hands while the other kept his rifle sights on her. The girl kept running, as fast as she could.

“No…” She said to herself before shouting, “NO!” She sprinted faster than she thought possible as the guards turned toward her.

“Runda, get out of here! Go!” Nadia yelled in a voice the girl had never previously experienced. The gun moved ever so slightly like a frantic twitch before firing a round straight into Nadia’s shoulder. She bled on the ground, screeching in agony. Nadia began to squirm and shout.

“Stop, please, she’s my sister, please she’s all I have. Please, please let us go.” The calm guard took a shot at her from about thirty yards. He hit the kid in the leg and she collapsed behind a grassy hill.

“You sick motherfuck–” Nadia began before he kicked her in the wound. All that was left were pained groans.

“Do it.” The shooter said, calmly. “It’s your turn.”

After a few moments of hesitation, the nervous guard fired a bullet through Nadia’s head. The calm guard patted him on the back and nodded. As they walked through the tall grass, the nervous one was shocked to find only a pool of blood where Runda was shot, and a bloody track leading into the woods.

“Earthborn scum’ll die from the injuries.” the calm one explained. “Now what were you saying about that new album?”

“It’s coming out Wednesday.” The nervous one whimpered. “Then, universal tour.”

*

Runda woke up screaming for Nadia and moaning in agony. There was a piercing pain in her arm and chest. She was in an unfamiliar, cold room that was some sort of makeshift hospital. There were scattered pills on the bedside table and ripped up paper covering the stone floor. Runda groaned in pain as she tried to lift herself into a sitting position. Tears streamed down her eyes as the pain became unbearable and she slammed back into the bed. She was hooked up to an IV, pumping her with water. There was one door in the room at the back left. It looked like it would fit in a cellar.

While she grunted and attempted to think past the pain, she suddenly remembered the sight of Nadia’s lifeless body dropping. The carelessness of the guards. Anger filled out her mind and she successfully sat up, still screaming. The door opened and a man wearing a lab coat entered with a tablet. He had a gentle smile and a well kept beard. He looked at Runda and then back at his screen.

“We’re all beyond pleased you’re still with us.” He said calmly and eerily.

“Who?” Runda responded, still shaking from the fear.

“Apologies. My name is Doctor Euye. Welcome to Grant’s Hollow, the underground headquarters of the Earthborn.” The sharp pain in Runda’s ankle surged again as she jolted. Her eyes were opened wide and her mouth ajar. She looked around the room again to realize there were no windows. Just walls, a door, and some decorations. A painting of wildflowers across from the bed, and peeling teal wallpaper wrapping every wall. “Trust me,” Doctor Euye assured her, seeing the worry in her eyes. “You’d rather be with us than the Tertians.” Runda could believe that. But it didn’t change the fear inside. Or the anger. “Please, rest up and let us know if you need anything.” He smiled uneasily and turned to walk out and remarked as if he’d just suddenly remembered, “Oh, I was so sorry to hear about your sister. She died an Earthborn hero.” He nodded, not waiting for an answer and left, closing the steel door behind him. A single tear rolled down Runda’s numb face and landed on the dirty tile floor.

The pain in Runda’s torso was becoming so unbearable she felt like she was on the verge of passing out. Runda tried to stay awake, but between the pain from the gunshot wound and the emotional information dump she’d just received, her body fell asleep and her mind followed suit.

The next morning, there was another man in the room. Not a doctor and not a nurse, but some type of soldier. He was an average height, in shape, and his face was gruff. He wore camouflage and sunglasses, despite being inside. He had a solid black baseball hat and a fancy silver watch on his left wrist. Runda breathed heavily as she ran her eyes up and down the strange man’s lean, dark body. A long leather trench coat sat loosely below his knees. There was an uncomfortable silence where Runda knew that the man knew she’d woken up, and was waiting for her to start the conversation. She went with it.

“Are you some sort of space cowboy?

“That depends.” He answered earnestly in a higher pitched voice than Runda expected. “What’s a space cow?”

“It’s an old Earthen– Nevermind, who are you?”

“Qumar,” He attempted to deepen his voice, “The minister of defense here at the Hollow. I am to escort you to meet the Immortal One.” Runda followed Qumar through the maze of catwalks that stretched across the underground ravine. “I found you out there, you know?” Qumar mentioned off-handedly without looking back. Runda felt a momentary sharp pain in her left shoulder and stopped to grab it with her right arm. After a few more paces, Qumar realized she’d stopped, and halted himself, rather impatiently. Runda took a deep breath and pressed her hand against the cold metal rail. She sighed and nodded toward Qumar, indicating she was ready to continue, and they did.

“The Immortal One… You speak of Morgan Raider?”

“I do.”

“What does she want with me?”

“I’ll let her explain.”

The rest of the walk was silent. They continued switching from catwalks to thin hallways, concrete stairs and more catwalks. After maybe ten minutes of blindly following Qumar, Runda caught her breath outside Morgan’s office. Qumar nodded at her and said she could enter when ready. Runda took several deep breaths before opening the door.

At the end of a long, narrow office, a large silver haired woman with a magnetic presence jotted something down intensely into a tablet. She sighed and looked up, slightly taken aback by the arrival of the child. It was as if a light had switched. She stood up with a warm smile coupled with kind sea green eyes and an outright hand. Runda walked across the hall to meet her and shook her hand the way her father taught her to. A tight grip for a few seconds and then a hard release. Morgan ran her hand through Runda’s black curly hair and grabbed her softly on the shoulder.

“You will live here at Grant’s Hollow, under my tutelage, Runda Winter. As your sister did before you. As your parents did long ago.”

“You… knew my parents?”

“I was in the room when your father was born, young one. Such a large babe. Your grandmother once told me she feared him a golem. I know everyone, Runda, I’ve lived more lifetimes than anyone should. My three sons died of old age, the last in my own arms. I have loved, I have lost, and I have found true meaning. Genuine purpose, here. With the Earthborn. You too could find it.”

To a twelve year old who just lost everything, there was only ever one option. Runda looked back at Qumar who was still in the room. His face was blank and he looked down toward the ground. Runda sighed and made eye contact again with the old woman.

“Show me.” Runda said quietly, almost in a whisper. Morgan smiled with all her teeth and walked out of the office back toward the hall, motioning for Runda to follow.

Year: C-86, Quarter 1

(6 Years Later)

The sun did its best to shine through the thick clouds on a scorching day.

“It’s not just that.” Qumar reloaded his rifle and leaned back against the rusted wall. Runda was scouring the abandoned house, looking for supplies, talking to Qumar through the decayed wooden planks that separated the two floors. He sighed dramatically and then continued speaking, “I don’t want to live the rest of my days fighting someone else’s war.”

“Our war, Qumar. We’re fighting for our freedom.” She angrily slammed an empty cabinet and rummaged through the kitchen’s drawers.

“Yeah. That’s how I saw it too.” He aimed down the sights of his rifle through the window, calmly assessing for any movement. He also had an autonomous spider-drone planted on the ceiling and a screen on his watch to monitor. It was a damp cloudy day and the overgrown grass that even reached the outside of the second story window was painted with rain water. Thick clouds prevented the ferocious sun from beaming down on them, making it the ideal day to scavenge. Unfortunately, history showed that many other, hostile factions, had the same idea. Qumar was not slacking in his vigilance. “I’ve arranged passage to Desti. To start a new life. Jeju’s coming too. Would you consider…”

Mouth ajar, Runda stopped scouring and stood frozen in place. He didn’t finish his thought and he didn’t need to.

“You mean to betray Morgan? After everything she’s done for you?”

“I gave Morgan twenty five years of my life. That’s how long I’ve been fighting this goddamn war. Quit while you’re young, Runda. Or if you mean to stay, then stay for you. Not her. I’m finally learning to listen to myself.” Runda turned to see him at the top of the stairs. “Let’s move onto the next house.” He started walking down and Runda continued to observe in shock. “Join me, don’t join me, go to Haynan for all I care if your heart desires. Just… make sure whatever you’re doing, it’s for you. Don’t let her dictate your dreams. She’s exceptionally talented at that.”

“You’re leaving today?” Runda ran after him as he walked outside toward the house across the street. It was much more destroyed than the previous one, perhaps collapsed mostly on the inside.

“This is my final mission. I needed to speak with you.” He walked up toward the rubble and started to dig. “Jeju and I will be gone by morning.” He threw planks and dirt aside as he continued to dig out space to bring his drill in. “We aren’t asking for Morgan’s approval.”

Runda looked down at the cracked asphalt of an ancient street and felt tears building up in her eyes. As Qumar turned around to reach for his drill, Runda ran up and hugged him deeply. Her hands wrapped around him tight and she sunk her head into his chest. He spread his arms around her and laid his head on her shoulder.

“I have to stay.” Runda explained in-between bouts of wild tears. “I can’t turn my back on the cause.”

“I know, kid. I just couldn’t leave without giving you the chance.”

“I love you, Qumar.”

“I love you, too, kiddo. Take care of that old coot and don’t get yourself killed”

“I’ll do my best, captain.”

They hugged tight, out in the open, on the wet street, for at least ninety seconds. For the first time in a while, Runda felt safe in his arms. The sound of leaves crunching broke through any hopeful feelings and both soldiers pulled their rifles out to see three people before them.

“Excuse me–” The woman in front began. There was a younger boy next to her, carrying a wagon with a barely moving body propped up.

“Stop moving.” Qumar demanded while pushing his rifle forward. A droplet of sweat on the right side of Runda’s head itched and irritated her. Her hands shook, trying to aim down the sight, she took a deep breath.

“Please,” The woman begged, “They’ll kill him.” She cried, not seeming to react to two guns aimed at her face. Qumar side eyed Runda who was shaking nervously and sweating intensely. She shrugged back at him and focused again on her aim.

“Where do you hail from?” Qumar shouted with a crack in his voice.

“The Forge, my good folk. We evacuated the Forge.”

“Evacuated?” Runda asked with fear. “What’s happened?”

“You… didn’t hear? An interplanetary missile barrage in the night, probably sent from the war moon… They’re searching the rubble for survivors, for our leader, Ser Priznik Ecland. In the aftermath of the attack, my son…” she turned to the young boy who had tears in his eyes. He was looking longingly at what Runda could now see was an even younger boy in the wagon, missing a leg and arm. “Sunrise, they began rounding us all up. For labor I reckon because they killed the injured and the elderly. We had to run, we had no choice. Please, my good folk, have mercy on us. We’ve traveled for days, seeking shelter, safety.”

Runda lowered her gun slightly and could feel her heartbeat ease. Qumar, however, was even more concerned.

“This attack happened days ago? Why have we not heard about it?” He asked accusingly. The woman shook her head, she seemed just as confused as Qumar.

“It’s what they do.” The boy holding the wagon said softly. Hunt, kill, command, control. We swear we aren’t lying. Look at the satellite footage, you’ll see.”

Qumar nodded and motioned for Runda to lower her weapon. He took his backpack off and opened the front pocket to find a syringe and some fluid. He looked at the three refugees. The two capable of walking looked as if they were on the verge of imminent collapse.

“Protocol nine.” He said to himself loud enough so Runda could hear. He began to fill the syringe with the clear light pink fluid and prepared it for use. “You have two options!” Qumar turned his attention toward the trio and held the syringe in his left hand while the rifle in his right. “You can keep walking and this’ll all be ash in the wind. Or, you take a long nap and awaken under the protection of the Immortal One in Grant’s Hollow.”

The woman didn’t think twice, she grabbed her sons and pulled out their wrists. Runda watched in confusion as he injected them with the strange fluid and within minutes they passed out.

“That can’t be the truth of what happened. The Forge’s location was just as guarded as Grant’s Hollow. I think these people were betrayed by Ecland. Morgan always said he was slimy. Can you help me carry them to the ship?” He turned to see Runda had dropped her rifle to the ground and tears ran down her face.

“You used that on me, back then, didn’t you? Four years ago, when I passed out and woke up in Grant’s Hollow–”

“I saved you, just as we’re saving them. Would you pick up her legs?” He was over at the woman’s unconscious body, and Runda walked over to help lift her.

“That’s protocol nine?” She asked, never having heard anything like that.

“Yeah.” He responded uneasily. “This is protocol nine.”

“I wasn’t given the choice.”

“No, you weren’t,” He placed the woman’s unconscious body into their modified ratrunner’s backseat. “Neither was the kid in the wagon. Hell, neither was I, Runda. Sometimes someone else needs to make the tough decision that will save your life. Especially if you are unable or unwilling to do it yourself.”

“I was a child–”

“Exactly. That’s why I made the choice. You would’ve bled out beside your sister on that fateful day. All of her work would have meant nothing. I saved you for her.”

“You said you hardly knew her.”

“Well, I lied.” He admitted fairly calmly. Knowing he’d be gone by morning was helpful. “She uh, she really never liked me all that much. And I liked her… A little too much. It was a fraught relationship that I didn’t feel like explaining to her grieving sister. But I cared about her. I cared about her a lot. And you, well, you were what she cared about. She would have taken a thousand bullets if it shielded your life. She loved you beyond anything I’d ever seen. All the way to the end. After the end. It’s still here.”

Runda’s tears continued rushing down her face, but a smile crept out from behind her sunken head. I love you too. She thought. Thank you, Nadia.

Year C-90, Quarter 4

(Present Day)

“Where are we going?” Axeon asked innocently with a strong hint of impatience. The old woman was still several paces ahead of the young man.

“If you moved more quickly, I could show you.” Axe looked into an ancient tech store. There were broken screens and wires coming out of the walls. He processed Morgan’s message and ran up beside her. “The fall of Earth was inevitable, predictable.” She explained as he listened carefully while trying to match her pace. “Our climate was permanently damaged before I was even born, the nations were constantly at war with one another, and the threat of nuclear holocaust was always looming.” She turned a corner and Axeon eyed ahead what looked like a giant flat field. “To think that the majority of folks would come together to do… anything seemed unattainable. Until… Yěhuǒ Feng, a revolutionary, who lit a spark across the world. After a dark time in human history, suddenly there was hope.”

“Oh, wait, I know that guy! He was a founding father of the First Tertian Republic.”

“That’s right.” She responded. The two of them passed a collapsed apartment building. There were beds and furniture in the wreckage. There were bones. Axe didn’t look for long. “Back then though, it was just the Republic of Tertia.” Morgan led the boy to the wreckage of the widest building he’d seen in the city.

“Guld Helm,” he realized. “The base of operations for the FTR. It fell during the Final World War.” Morgan was impressed.

“That’s correct.” She remarked. He looked down, shamefully. Morgan rested her hand on his back. “Human history is riddled with chaos and destruction. We have conquered beasts, plagues, nations, space, even ourselves. You must not be a pawn in someone else’s game, Axeon. Beat them using your rules, not theirs.” They walked around the wreckage of the building. Axe remembered virtual tours of it. It was a giant golden sphere atop a marble base with a grand staircase. It was a monument to humanity. Axeon was getting increasingly nervous. Morgan led him back towards the city.

“Why did we come here? Where are you taking me now?”

The old woman sighed and walked beside the boy.
“Axeon, there’s something I’ve been keeping from you,” she announced shamefully. They walked in the middle of the empty ancient road that went straight almost until the horizon but with buildings all the way at the end. “The government has been watching me for days. Maybe weeks.”

“What? What do they want?”

“You. They’re trying to get ahead in a potential upcoming conflict... ”

“What does that have to do with me? Surely, they’re not going to war with the Silent Kingdom?”

“Not quite,” she scoffed. “With Multi-World.”

“So how do my people factor into this? And what makes me so special?”

“Apparently the Silent Kingdom of Ozan has been trading with Multi-World. They tried to keep it under wraps, but Tertian drones spotted a weapon, one you described to me when you first escaped, one you were worried could find a way to target you.” Axe stopped in the middle of the street. Morgan gestured at him to keep moving but he stood still. “Of course you’re special, Axe, but truthfully this has nothing to do with you. You’re the pawn, that is, if you allow yourself to be. That’s the problem with Memorio, Tertia, and the Silent Kingdom. Every single goddamn one of us is being played, hundreds of billions of miserable cowardly slaves to the system. Only the few, the elite of the elite, buy our land, cities, oceans and moons; even government officials have private organizations battling for economic control of the Tertia systems.”

“You still haven’t told me where we’re going.”

Morgan groaned, realizing he would not move until she gave him what he needed and it saved her time from having to do it later.

“We’re going to an off grid location called Grant’s Hollow. It’s a stronghold hidden and blocked out on all satellite footage. They can’t see us there. As for the weapon, the feds saw that device you described to them five years ago planted on a Multi-World. Seems our ‘silent’ friends have been trading behind the scenes. Egg thinks he can use you as leverage because he suspects there is contact between the two.”

“Who is - wait, contact between my father and the Multi-World parliament?”

“I’m afraid so.”

“I guess it was only a matter of time. What’s the play?”

The two moved towards the right side of the road where there was an alleyway entrance into a vast hall. It looked like a castle on the inside, made of iron and steel. Electric torches marked the walls, and the carpet was grand red. There were catwalks crossing over chasms and at least a hundred people working, laughing, and standing around. Slowly, in groups, they eyed Morgan the Immortal at the entrance. Within thirty seconds, a young woman wearing all black with a funny hat sprinted over to them. She smiled greatly and welcomed her guests.

“Welcome back to Grant’s Hollow, Immortal One.” Axe sceptically looked up at Morgan.

“Thank you, minister. Has the shipment arrived yet?” The old woman responded without missing a beat. The minister smiled through her worried face. Axe followed as they walked up a metal staircase to a catwalk.

“It arrived yesterday, but our engineers are still assembling it. We didn’t expect you so soon. Give us a few hours to finalize our preparations.”

Axe backed away from Morgan. The minister nodded and waved over another person, dressed all in black. He joined them, gathered the situation, and attempted to escort them through the facility. There were pipes running and winding around each other below them. Axe could hear the sludging from some liquid inside a pipe on the wall.

“What is all this?”

Axeon’s bottled frustration was about to explode if Morgan ignored one more of his questions, which he was sure she would. Morgan put her hand on his shoulder as they walked past a catwalk intersection and the minister responded from ahead of them,

“These are the last remnants of the Earthborn.”

Axe widened his eyes and stopped moving. Morgan halted with him, but the minister kept moving until realizing the sounds of footsteps behind her had ceased. Axeon spoke with caution,

“The Earthborn… are real?”

The minister chuckled,

“The Immortal One said you might have questions.”

“Just one, actually.” He stopped in his place which Morgan ignored and continued walking. The minister stepped sideways and asked Axe concerningly if he was okay. “What is my place in all this?” The particular question caught Morgan’s attention and she finally stopped, now very far ahead of the other two on the catwalk. She responded without turning her head.

“The answer you seek can’t be found in the words or desires of others, child. Whatever I say will be a passing whisper when you are face to face with your destiny.”

Axeon rolled his eyes and pulled his backpack straps as high on his shoulders as they’d go. The minister chimed in as they picked up the walking pace on the seemingly endless maze of catwalks.

“She means to say that your ‘place in all this’ is for you to decide. Nobody is here out of fear or coercion. We’re fighting for what we believe in.”

“Thank you, Runda.” Morgan smiled at the minster, signaling for her to leave them alone. Runda Winter took the signal in stride and made her way back to the security office. It was just Axeon and the old woman alone in a regal, carpeted room with a painting of ships on an ocean towering over.

“You never told me…” Axe didn’t seem particularly offended. It was just a fact he was pointing out.

“You weren’t ready for all this. You had your own stuff to work through.”
“This is what you do, what you really do?” Axeon looked out the glass window at the people rushing past each other on the walkways.

“These are my people.”

“Right…” He was a little shocked but non-judgemental. “The Earthborn.” He got a closer look at the painting. There were two old ships, but one was far bigger than the other. “Qumar too?”

“For a time, yes.”

“Why did you come for me on Xircus? Why go through the trouble of infiltrating a Tertian facility on a far away planet for a boy completely unrelated to this cause?”

“Axeon.” Morgan sat straight, her long beautiful silver hair flowing in the artificial white light shining through the windows. “I took you in because you needed someone. And they would not have treated you well. It was a lucky coincidence that I was on Xircus at the time. And that my folks saw your ship fall from the sky.” Axeon looked down at the crimson carpet in shame. Morgan saw immediately that she struck a chord.

“So… why tell me all this now?”

“Because I have a favor to ask of you. Leave this planet with a couple of my most capable soldiers and live peacefully in a place they’ll never find you.”

“Morgan I just got here–”

“And Egg will take advantage of it. We don’t have time for this, Axeon please, put your trust in me once more. We will be together again soon, I swear it.”

He forfeited a reluctant, boyish nod before releasing a deep breath and taking another look out the glass window.

“My dad really did it this time, huh?” He remarked solemnly.

“It does appear that way.”

“Alright,” Axeon sighed, resigned in his path, “when do we leave?”