Infinite Testament (29 page)

“Stop it, Elpis. I didn’t
personally
kill
him. Bruce was just in the way.”

Elpis tried to pull herself away from Moros, but he
wouldn’t let her free. “The darkness has turned you into a
monster
!”

“All I can tell you is that I’m sorry,” Moros
whispered. “I’m so sorry. I love you so much.”

Elpis looked into Moros’s eyes. The darkness had
completely overtaken them. There was no trace of light. This filled
her soul with sadness. Moros was a good man. But the loss of his
son was too much for him to handle. The committee never should have
selected him.

Elpis, despite the pain Moros had caused her, smiled.

Just then, Moros pointed three fingers to Elpis’s
stomach. And shot her. Her insides were instantly dismantled.
Elpis held her stomach and fell into Moros’s arms. The physical pain
inside her was nothing compared to the pain in her heart. Nonetheless,
she fell to the forest floor as Moros guided her on her back. There would
be no healing for Elpis, not from the darkness.

Moros looked at the face of the girl he loved. She
was dying, leaving forever. An enormous sense of guilt grew inside of
him. “Come with me,” Elpis had said on the day of Jesus’s death. He
could’ve. They would have spent the rest of their lives together.
Instead, Elpis lay inches from death. Moros looked into her dying eyes
and began to weep. What had he done?

Elpis, whose face was growing pale, lifted her hand to
Moros’s cheek. “I will always love you, Moros. No matter
what.” Elpis closed her eyes and peacefully accepted death.

Moros cracked and burst into tears. “No.”
Disbelief surrounded him. He keeled forward and brought Elpis’s limp body
close to his. “I love you,” he said to her unhearing ears. Visions
of her smile resonated in his mind; her beautiful blue eyes, full of light,
full of happiness. She was always cheerful, always energetic. “I
love you, Elpis.” Moros put the E.M. ring on her finger. When she
first received it so long ago, she loved it. Elpis had hugged him in the
fields, in the blue grass, her favorite spot. Moros now rocked with her
dead body grasped close. All he had now to serve her memory was a flimsy,
old blue backpack. He would hold on to it and never let go. He
whipped back his head and let out a screaming cry.

Elpis, the love of his life, was gone.

The Final Day-3:33 PM

X stood in front of the Keres. The machine bursted
with a deafening noise. X thought his head might fly right off. The
intense blast of sound thrust him to the ground.

Sara stepped back. The glow emanating from her face
disappeared. She furrowed her brow and grew visibly livid. X
trembled with fear.

Sara declared, “Stephen Pandora was not lying. You
cannot
change things. You’ve made a mistake. You’re going to kill billions
of innocent people. And now it’s too late.”

The machine roared the loudest sound X had ever
heard. He held his hands over his ears. The end of the world was
minutes away.

“My old friend wants to say something to you,” Sara
said. Despite the enormous noise stemming from the machine, X could still
hear. “I’m sorry. But you will never see me again.”

From behind Sara walked a man. The man, like Sara,
was exempt from the blue hue, and retained rich color like he was outside on a
sunny day. Also like Sara, he was dead.

The dead man, Bruce, emerged and faced X.

“Hi Ronnie,” Bruce said with a cocky grin.

“Bruce,” Ronnie said in disbelief. The rivalry
between them was strong, even in death. Ronnie, for the first time in a
long time, was terrified. “What does Sara mean I will never see her
again?”

Bruce pursed his lips. “Shut the fuck up.”
Bruce looked at Ronnie’s hands covering his ears. The cast on his left
hand made Bruce smile. “Looks like I got your hand pretty good.
Next time, it’s gonna be a lot messier for you.”

Ronnie’s eyes widened. “Sara said…”

“What Sara says is what she means,” Bruce
interrupted. “I’m here to tell you
one thing
…”

Bruce looked up at the giant clear cylinder that filled the
room. The blue fluid and the fire grew brighter as the dancing spectacle
increased in speed. They whizzed together and the Keres roared ever
louder, shaking the ground Ronnie stood on.

Ronnie looked at Bruce in horror. He was usually in
control of situations. But now, there was nothing he could do. It
was all over.

Bruce put his eyes directly in front of X’s and stared deep
into the darkness. The light in Bruce’s eyes had the clear advantage as
he taunted X.

Bruce finished, “…We’re coming for you. See you
soon.”

Bruce smiled. The Keres ripped open and began its
path to destroy every living thing on the planet.

The sky lit up bright yellow, like the Earth had morphed
into the Sun. It was brighter than Stephen’s eyes could handle. He
held out his hand to Lisa, who had no idea he lay only yards from her.
His hand was as outstretched as it could go. It might’ve come right
off. He extended his fingers. He couldn’t get to her. She was
so
close. But he couldn’t do it. He just could
not
do
it. He continued to scream, “Lisa!”

She didn’t hear him. Looking at the city, Lisa wished
she could be with Stephen. All her life, she searched for the one thing
she once had. She would give anything to see him one more time, anything
to apologize for that fateful day. She would never know Stephen had
forgiven her. And he was only yards away.

The air grew blazingly hot. Stephen saw Lisa and
everything around them turn into a blur. The world stretched into
infinity. This was it.

Everything was gone.

Everyone on the planet was dead.

Except, of course, for Moros, who had already left the
planet.

The nurse carried the baby boy in her arms through the
hallway. The air of the hospital was typically nauseating and full of
sickness. But not today. The baby boy looked up at the nurse.
His legs softly kicked through the blue blanket that wrapped him. His
tiny fingers gently curled.

The nurse walked through a sliding door and into the
nursery. A litter of babies lay peacefully, most of them sound
asleep. One baby girl, however, cried incessantly. Her high pitch
whine didn’t seem to bother the others.

The boy in the nurse’s arms reacted negatively to the
crying, shutting his eyes and flailing his arms. “Oh no,” the nurse
baby-talked to the boy, “You don’t have to get upset.”

The nurse placed the boy in his tiny bed, right next to the
crying girl. The bed was a cubby with clear walls. It was on an
elevated structure that was able to hold babies under the toughest of
duress. This boy was initially delighted by the fluffy, cloud-like
blankets. The delight lasted only seconds as the girl next to him let out
a loud shriek.

The nurse turned her attention to the crying baby
girl. “You don’t have to cry.” The nurse picked her up and held her
in her arms. “You’re going to wake the others.” The nurse cradled
the girl for several minutes, gracing her against her chest. Once the
baby girl was somewhat calmed, the nurse placed her back in her cubby, next to
the newly arrived boy. As the nurse removed her hands from the baby girl,
she cried again. The nurse whispered, “I have to go now, little Lisa
Binsby. You have a neighbor now. Be nice to him. His name is
Stephen Pandora. You two get along.”

As the nurse left, baby Stephen looked to his side to catch
a glimpse of the crying maniac. Lisa’s cry pierced the air.
Instinctually, she looked at her new neighbor, Stephen.

And fell silent.

Lisa fell into Stephen’s deep blue, round eyes.
Stephen gazed into her green eyes. He smiled. She
smiled
.
In each other’s eyes, they found comfort. Peace. And above all, a
light that seemed to cause their insides to warm. For the rest of the
time they spent in the nursery, a time that felt like an eternity, Stephen and
Lisa were lost in each other’s eyes.

Later, the nurse brought Stephen back to his mother.
She lay in the hospital bed and held out her arms, anxious to have her baby
back in her arms. When the nurse handed her a blanket-wrapped Stephen,
the nurse gave her usual, “He’s a special boy” line. But in this case, she
didn’t know how right she was.

Stephen’s mother peered into baby Stephen’s entrancing blue
eyes. She marveled at the miracle resting in her arms.

Stephen’s mother had great hopes for her baby. On
this day, hope filled the air of the hospital. Hope he would live a productive,
happy life. Hope for a brighter future. Hope for happier times.

In the air on this day was an unseen, unheard hope that
this time… would be
different
.

A small, 5 year-old Stephen Pandora sat on the floor in his
bedroom, toys sprawled about everywhere. In his left hand was a
scary-looking blue alien toy. Its long legs connected to a slick
body. In Stephen’s right hand was a soldier.

Stephen made the alien exclaim, “It is over you dumb jerk!”

“Oh yeah?” the soldier responded, “I’ll beat you up!”

The alien swooped and flipped its way in front of the
soldier. “Too bad you can’t hurt me!” The soldier gripped a plastic
gun in his hand and fired a few shots into the alien. Sure enough, the
alien was unharmed. “Haha!” the alien exclaimed. “Now you will
suffer for what you have done!”

Stephen grabbed a Barbie from the rubble of toys and placed
her in front of the alien. “No! Not Barbie!” the soldier
yelled. The alien held out its hand and blasted Barbie clear across the
room as Stephen flung her away.

The soldier, whose face was frozen with plastic,
dramatically faced the alien. “Now you did it, alien.” The soldier
soared toward the alien with his foot extended.

Knock Knock! Stephen dropped his toys and hobbled
with his little legs to the door. As he opened it, his mother appeared,
towering above him. “Hi, Mommy.”

Mom held a tissue and dabbed her eyes. Her eye makeup
was smeared and she had obviously been crying. Stephen naively smiled at
her. “Want to play with me?” She shook her head. “Your
father…” Her voice cracked as grief overcame her. “…needs to talk to
you.”

Stephen hopped around, oblivious to his mother’s
suffering. “Okay!” He jumped on the bed and bounced.
Stephen’s mother disappeared from the doorway and his father appeared in her
place. He was an attractive man with short brown hair and a trimmed
beard.

“Hey, buddy,” he said to his son.

“Hey, Dad!” Stephen threw back his head and pounded
his fists on his chest like an angry gorilla. Stephen’s father
laughed. “Sit down, kiddo.”

Stephen plopped on the edge of the bed and his father sat
next to him. “I need to talk to you, Stephen. Like two grown ups,
okay?”

Stephen anxiously nodded. “Okay, Dad.”

Stephen’s father’s eyes grew heavy. Nonetheless, he
forced a reassuring smile. “I have to go on a business trip. I’m
going to be gone a long time…”

“When will you be back?” Stephen asked. He could
sense something was very wrong.

His father sighed as his eyes darted around, looking for
easy answers. “I’ll be gone for a long time. A very long
time. I’m going to come see you again if I can.” He peered at
Stephen, whose face was contorting with pain. Tears were throbbing his
eyes and they began to make their way to his soft cheeks.

The sight broke his father’s heart. He knelt in front
of his son to get closer to him. His blue eyes looked into his
son’s. He put a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t cry, Stephen.”

Stephen pushed himself off the bed and wrapped his arms around
his father. His teary eyes smeared against his father’s shirt.
“Please don’t leave. I love you, Dad. I’ll be good, I promise.”

His father squeezed him closely. “I love you too,
son.” He pulled back his head and looked into Stephen’s eyes. “You’re
a special boy, Stephen. No matter what, always remember that I love
you. Love is all you will ever need. When you find someone to love,
love her forever.

“And when life gets tough, remember this: All paths lead
nowhere. Follow the path with heart.”

Stephen nodded and wiped his eyes. His father leaned
in and hugged him.

Then his father left him.

Abandoned.

Stephen stormed through the hallways of the research lab at
the university. He approached one of the white-coat lab workers.
“Chris, have you seen Moros?” Chris shook his head. “Sorry,
Stephen.”

Stephen took off, nearly sprinting toward Moros’s
office. When he reached the door, he whipped it open. But to
Stephen’s surprise, it was empty. His files, his phone, even that stupid
blue backpack he lugged with him everywhere were gone. All of Moros’s
stuff-everything- was gone. All that remained was a bare desk that
could’ve belonged to anyone who wanted it. “What?” Stephen muttered in
disbelief. He walked into the minuscule room and opened all of the
drawers in his desk. Nothing, nothing, nothing. There was no trace
of Moros.

Stephen pulled out his cell phone and dialed Moros’s
number. He put the phone to his ear and waited. A recording: “The
number you have dialed is no longer in service.” Stephen ended the call
and shook his head, enormously flustered.

Stephen left the room and stood in the hallway, looking for
answers. From anybody. Friends and strangers roamed the
hallway. Some looked and smiled, others ignored him altogether.
Luckily, none of them had tuned in to the news, or they’d all want to talk to
him. None of them would know where Moros was. Most of them didn’t
even know
who
he was. Moros tended to keep to himself.

Stephen ran down the hallway and climbed a flight of stairs
until he arrived at the office of the head of the department.

Stephen barged into her office out of breath. Alice,
a hard-nosed professional woman, hung up the phone as he stormed in. Her
office was a comfortable place, where supposed great minds could think.
“What are you doing, Stephen?”

Stephen was hunched over, with his hands on his knees,
trying to catch his breath. “Did Moros quit? Where is he?”

Alice never particularly liked Stephen and was especially
annoyed today. “I don’t know. I don’t care. Mr. Moros hasn’t
quit. He hasn’t been fired. Why don’t you try calling him?
Just get out of my office, Stephen.”

Stephen could have said something in defense. But he
didn’t. Alice wasn’t worth his time. Hands on his hips, he left her
office.

Stephen Pandora lay in bed.
The shades
were shut but light managed to peek through. He was dizzy in his sleepy
stupor. The phone sitting on the nightstand next to his bed rang
obnoxiously. “Uuhh,” he mumbled. He picked up the receiver of the
phone and slammed it back on its base. The phone sat silently. And
rang again. “Damnit.”

Stephen picked up the receiver and brought it to his
ear. “What?”

“Stephen Pandora?” an unknown voice asked.

“Yeah. Who is this?”

“I’m a reporter. Do you have a minute?”

“What’s this about?”

“Your discovery.”

Stephen’s body shot out of bed. “What do you
mean?” Without waiting for an answer, Stephen slammed the phone back into
the base. He darted into his closet, picked out an outfit, and slipped it
on. Stephen hustled through the hallways of his small house and grabbed
his car keys off the counter. He opened the door to the garage and
slammed the garage door button. As the garage door pulled itself upwards,
Stephen saw a slew of television news vans parked on his street.

What was going on?

As he walked to his car sitting on the driveway, he noticed
hoards of people with cameras and microphone booms standing on his lawn facing
his front door. They simultaneously rushed toward him.

Stephen gazed at them in bewilderment. “Why are you
all here?”

A woman with a microphone blurted, “We want to speak with
the man who discovered the supposed ILD.”

Stephen blankly stared at them. How did they all
know? There had to be at least a dozen camera crews gawking at him.
He made a promise to Bruce. A promise to remain silent. But how
could he do that now? There was no way. Not with the reporters
already on the loose. Stephen licked his lips and took a deep
breath. “Umm… well…”

Stephen rushed down the hall and opened the door of
his office.
Next to his desk was Vince’s, where he diligently
typed away on his computer and filled the room with the sound of keyboard
buttons. “Where’s Moros?” Vince ceased his typing and the room fell
silent. He observed Stephen, who seemed to be panting; he was a bit
hysterical. “What’s wrong, Stephen?”

“I woke up this morning and every god damn news station in
the world was on my lawn!”

“Every one in the world?” Vince asked, confused.

“No, Vince! It’s sarcasm! Stop taking
everything so literally!”

Vince ignored Stephen’s outburst. “So what did they
want?”

“What do you think they wanted? They asked me about
the ILD!”

Vince stood up as his chair rocketed away behind him.
His eyes grew wide with worry. “How did they know?”

“I have no idea. That’s why I’m trying to find
Moros. He’s the only one who would have opened his mouth.”

Vince took off his glasses and set them on his desk.
He took a deep breath of concern. This wasn’t good. “What did you
tell them?”

Stephen became defensive. “What was I supposed to
say? They had me cornered.”

Vince rubbed his hand over his eyes, trying to ease the
tension building in his head. “We agreed to never talk about it,
Stephen.”

“What was I supposed to say?!”

“I don’t know. But you’re going to handle this.
Don’t bring me into it.”

A feeling of dread fell over Stephen. Moros had gone
against their pact of silence and now Stephen was going to have to pay the
price. He would forever be the face of the ILD.

Vince picked up the phone and dialed. “I have to tell
Natalie,” he said. Stephen glared at Vince.

As Vince held the ringing receiver to his ear, he couldn’t
help but be reminded of Stephen’s plight in the church so many years ago.
He came in, covered in blood, with seemingly nothing left in his life, and
begged him and Natalie for help. Since that day, Vince had always worried
for him. The phone continued to ring in his ear.

Stephen said, “If you see Moros, tell him…

…I’m going to kill him.”