Lives of Future-Past (The Chronicles of Max Gunnarsson Book 1) (30 page)

     “My brothers and sisters. At Donus’ birthday, Jennie and I performed an ancient dance from the land of our ancestors, but tonight we shall all perform together. I have selected some music from Old-Earth, from centuries before we even existed, that I feel would be particularly fitting for a lycan celebration.”
     Max then tapped some data into the infoscreen, and started playing a song by a man named Zombie, which had a particular heavy, thumping beat. The young lycan mage then started jumping up and down, pounding his boots on the floor waving his arms around, calling his lycan brothers to join him. Jennie quickly cleared off the dance floor, not wanting to be caught in the massive crowd of lycan soldiers – soldiers who were getting their first experience at what was called
slam dancing
. It was almost immediately that things - and people - started to fly across the room, as tables and chairs were upended, true to a lycan celebration. (*21)
     Up on the mezzanine, Alfie, the castle’s master carpenter, looked down at the riotous commotion, and shaking his head turned to his apprentice, saying, “I do believe we shall have a great deal of work in the coming weeks, lad.” He then sighed and continued to watch the mayhem below.
     To Jennie’s shock and dismay, Liliana jumped down from the high table and headed for the dance floor while waving sparkles in the air from her wand. Curiously, nothing touched the small girl, as Draagh had created a protective cantus that enveloped her, following her every movement. Looking over at Jennie, he waved his finger around while maintaining a knowing grin. The copper-skinned lycan woman then looked out at the crowd, very relieved, and watched as Max slammed into various men nearly twice his size, causing them to fly off to the sides, only to have them jump up and again dive into the crowd.
     Jennie then got up and whispered something into the old mage’s ear, making him smile and nod. As she stood at the edge of the stage and looked out over the main hall, her pink dress morphed into an outfit of black leather, perfectly suited for battle dancing and complimenting her dark features quite handsomely. She then dove into the crowd, growling loudly, and proceeded to kick the butts of men easily twice her size.
     Krynos lightly elbowed Draagh and laughed boisterously. Then, throwing down another shot of whisky he asked, “Commander Max certainly has introduced a dance worthy of his lycan brethren, would you not say, dear friend?”
     Draagh just smiled, and turning his head away from his friend, took another hit off his beloved pipe.
     As the evening’s festivities were coming to an end, Max was again seated at the high table with Krynos, Draagh, Kangor (who had joined them after nearly destroying three tables during the dancing portion of the evening), Donus and Jennie, the latter having a very tired little girl sleeping while curled up in her lap. Still seated at the opposite end of the table from Jennie, Max would occasionally look over to see her watching him as he talked of various things – mostly science, which his multiple educational degrees certainly qualified him to do. He did try to keep things in context, realizing that most of his audience had relatively little knowledge of the wonders of the universe.
     As the hour grew late, and being tired, and wanting to sleep, Max stood and bowed to his friends.
     “Hey Jen, I’m gonna hit the rack. Are you going too? I could walk you girls to your room if you like.”
     “Oh, that’s ok. I’m going to sit here for a little while longer. I like Kangor’s jokes,” she replied.
     Max then again bowed to everyone and said, “Ok then. Well, goodnight everyone. I’ll see you all in the morning at breakfast.” (*22)
     Leaving the main hall, Max looked back twice to see if Jennie was watching him leave, only to be slightly disappointed that she was giving her rapt attention to Kangor and his unique sense of humor.  So, after walking the hallways for a while, and even sitting out on a ledge on the outside of the castle where he had a clear view of the waning moon, he went back to his quarters, simply wanting to lay in bed and dream of their victory and how he spent the night dancing with Jennie.
     Climbing into bed after he had changed into his sleepwear, he laid back with his hands clasped behind his head, letting everything that had happened play back in his mind – how he had barely escaped Azul with his life, his odd grandfather popping up out of nowhere, Jennie and Bagatelle arriving to arrest or possibly kill him and many, many other things - but the thing that penetrated his mind – his very core, was Jennie Escalante. He hoped that one day she would come to him, as he was not the kind of man to push himself on a woman. He had tried that after their battle with Vladros’ son, thinking that the moment was perfect, and it had ended badly.
     He was almost about to drift off to sleep when he was mildly startled by a light knocking on his door. Jumping up, he sniffed the air, detecting it was Jennie. His heart raced with anticipation, not having the slightest idea of what was going to happen next. Then, calming himself, he thought she was just going to thank him for the evening. It was usually that way with her. Aside from her horrendous table manners, she really was proper. Max only wished in the deepest parts of his soul that he would one day exit the
friend zone.
     Quickly adjusting his pajamas, he went to the door and opened it, astonished to see her standing in the door frame wearing only her white, military regulation tank top and a pair of pink panties, with her soft, brown eyes reflecting the light of the waning moon that hung in the sky outside his window. Seeing her wearing so little wasn’t unusual. He immediately convinced himself that it was nothing out of the ordinary. In the military, especially on vessels, women and men even shared the same showers – so conversing while in their underwear was perfectly normal. His subconscious mind told him this as a form of self-defense from emotional pain. If he kept his expectations at zero then he would lose nothing.
    
No big deal – she’s just tired
, he thought to himself. 
     “Hi, Max, you busy?” she asked softly.
     “Um, hi Jennie. No, ermm, not really,” he replied nervously while peeking out and looking up and down the hallway.
     “So, where’s Liliana?”

     “Oh, I put her to bed. She tanked.”
     “Yeah, I saw that. Hah, she’s great. I think it’s awesome that you—”
     “Shhhh…” she said as she quieted the commander.
     Then, quite unexpectedly, and before he could utter another sound, she took a step forward, and wrapping her arms around his neck, kissed him tenderly. Totally surprised, but eager to finally hold the woman he had secretly loved in his arms, he brought her in close, and slipped his hands under her shirt, delicately tracing his fingers along her back. Then, without warning, she jumped up and wrapped her long, muscular legs around his hips and lightly nibbled on his ear, whispering to him.
     “So, you gonna invite me in?”
     Using a free hand to softly run his fingers through her hair above the nape of her neck, he said, “Oh, you’re invited. No doubt about that.”
     He then spun around with the gorgeous dega in his arms and kicked the door shut.
     (*23*)

     The following morning the sounds of birds chirping filled the air as a gentle auditory reminder of the new day, while the sun rose up from behind the castle.
     Max awoke to find the unclothed figure of the most beautiful woman he had ever met (or kissed) lying next to him, her hands in a prayer-like position between her cheek and the pillow, with her legs together, knees tucked-in slightly, and her bent arms covering her breasts. Most men would have done a private and silent fist-pump, but Max felt instant terror coursing through his system.
    
Oh my God,
he thought,
what if she wakes up and has regrets about what happened last night? I had her… so how can I lose her? What if it was all just a fluke?
     He sat there with his eyes practically bulging out of his head - nearly paralyzed and staring straight ahead for a full five minutes as the pendulum on the wall clock tick-tocked away. While he waited for the inevitable, scenarios ran thought his head – she would wake up and just want to be friends, saying that she was overcome by the battle, or that it was simply her way of thanking him for risking his life to save hers. In either case, he didn’t feel worthy of her – she was totally out of his league. So when delicate fingers gently touched his cheek and started stroking it lightly he almost passed out from shock.
     “Good morning, hun. Slept well?” An instant feeling of gut-wrenching relief rushed through his body as he looked down at her amazing and stunningly beautiful face. He relaxed slightly, scooting down so that he could gaze directly into her eyes. His heart was still beating so fast it sounded like a chip shredder, and she could hear its cadence roar with a lone, unrequited love from the man who deserved so much more, yet only thought of others first.
     “Yeah, best night ever,” he quietly said. “How about you? Slept well?”
     Jennie moved closer to him and set her head upon his chest while tenderly tracing lines with her fingernails over his taught, well-formed stomach, softly moving her cheek across his skin, trying to bring him back down to earth.
     “Yeah, same here. Best night ever.”
     She smiled and snuggled up to him a bit more. Then, lifting her head slightly, she looked at him and said, “I had a little discussion with Draagh and Krynos last night, after you tip-toed off to bed. I kinda asked them some questions about…. how people do things around here, you know, with couples and stuff.”
     “Oh, you did?” replied Max, who was barely managing to slow his noticeable trembling.
     Jennie took his hands into hers and attempted to calm him, thinking it was absolutely adorable that he was so nervous. She opened his clenched fists and placed his open palms onto her chest so he could feel her heartbeat which was, surprisingly, also quite rapid.
     “Yup,” she responded. Then, with a gentle smile and a look of complete sincerity she said, “Commander Maximilianus Xavier Gunnarsson, of the Azul Military Scientific Research Division
and
of the Rhönen Dominion, victor of the Battle of the Blood… my Max, the man who risked his life to save me from those nasty vampires, the man who changed my life and showed me that there is so much more out there – I choose you as my mate, to be with for the rest of our ridiculously-long lives. That is, if you’ll have me, you know, you being an all-important werewolf commander and mage and all that stuff. Oh, and Liliana comes along too. She’s part of the package.”
     Max put a finger to his lips and jokingly acted as if he had to think it over, to which Jennie yelped, “Brat!” and, rolling over on top of him, started to playfully slap him on the chest.
     He laughed and took her into his arms, pulling her body in up against his. Then, after gently running his lips across her full, dark eyebrows and softly nuzzling her face with his nose, he stared deep into those baby browns that had him mesmerized since day one and said, “Jen, you don’t have to ask twice. I’ve been yours since you stopped threatening to kill me. Oh, and can I say it – you know, finally, that I love you? I… erm… have for a long time.”
     “Gawd, Max. I already knew that - but yeah, you can say it… I want you to say it to me everyday.”
     “Te amo, Jennie Gunnarsson. Te amo.”
     “Max, we’ll have to discuss that surname thing,” she said with a wry smile.
     “Well, the law here specifically states that a child must have the surname of her fa—”
     “Ok,” she interrupted laughingly, “Gunnarsson sounds kinda kick-ass anyway.”
     “Oh it is – do you know the etymology of Gunnarsson? It actually comes from—”
      “Max - shut up and kiss me… dork.”
     No one in the castle saw either of them until well beyond the lunch hour.

     Both Max and Jennie believed that they were to soon leave the Dominion after having defeated Vladros, but Draagh informed them that since they had a number of years in which to prepare for the Vrol, and that he had some pressing offworld matters to take care of first, they would stay for a while and continue training. This came to their mutual delight, and especially to that of Liliana, who was quite enjoying the fact that she had a new family that she loved very much. She was also very proud of her new name – Liliana Gunnarsson, of which she made everyone aware - especially the etymological meaning of her new surname, which meant
son of warrior
. (*24*)
     While the little girl dutifully attended her classes, and was receiving some extra lessons in science from her brilliant, adoptive father, Jennie had implemented a training program, teaching the lycans to use the power gauntlet along with limited cantuses that would enhance the glove’s already formidable destructive capacity. Dominion weapons makers were busy replicating gauntlets, which Draagh would then imbue with the ability to harness magic particles, or nanobots as Max and Jennie called them.
     Max really got into the art of war, and learned all he could about recon, battle strategies, guerilla warfare and other complexities that one in a leadership position would need to know. He trained his Special Forces group to work with him - in and around his magical abilities – to harness them to their benefit, but not to rely on him, as he did have certain limitations, and wouldn’t always be around.
     Days turned to weeks, and weeks into months. During that whole time there was one thing that Max wanted to do – to give Jennie a truly classic wedding. So, after they had been in the Dominion for roughly five more lunar cycles after the Battle of the Blood, he conferred with Krynos and made arrangements to have a ceremony in the gardens outside of the throne area of the castle. It was to be attended by the entire Dominion, and Max even insisted that some normals be invited – specifically those that had assisted in the Battle of the Blood, as well as the families of those who met their untimely end at the hands of Vladros' forces.
     Jennie was delighted with this gesture, and set about working with the castle seamstresses to hand-make a beautiful, white wedding gown. Of course, Liliana was also elated, especially after learning that she was to be the flower girl and would also wear a pretty dress. Max resigned himself to simply conjuring a smart, black tuxedo; with a pink cumber bun and matching bowtie, in honor of Jennie’s favorite color. Upon seeing the groom’s outfit, Krynos almost bit his lip off, desperately trying to not tell Max that he thought it looked ridiculous - but then again, Krynos had significantly different tastes in clothing and apparel.
     When the wedding day arrived, Max rushed around madly while helping in the preparations, but had something on his mind. He had looked for Draagh, and called out to him mentally on various occasions, but the old mage had a tendency to sometimes pop out of the realm to care for duties in other locations.
     The one material item of value that Max possessed was in a drawer in the galley of The Machu Picchu, and he knew he had to get it before the ceremony. Even though they were mated for life, he wanted her to have a perfect wedding, and in a wedding the two to be married always shared something of great importance that would signify their eternal bond. Unwilling to wait, and as Draagh was nowhere to be found (Draagh usually being either in the pocket-dimension office with Krynos, or off-world), he felt he knew enough about 4D time slips to safely get to The Machu Picchu and back, so he went to his new, expanded quarters that he was sharing with his lovely mate. Pulling his gear bag out from underneath their massive, wood-framed bed, he retrieved his Stinger and comm, as well as his personal console, and put them in a leather backpack, which was made for him according to his specific instructions given to Dominion tailors. Grabbing his katana, he then looked out his door, and making sure no one saw him, bolted down the hallway and entered Draagh’s room where, to his good fortune, the mage’s staff leaned up against the wall in the southwest corner.
     Bringing up an infoscreen, he tied into the staff and looked up its most recent coordinates, which were all readily available. Then, surveying the powerful device momentarily, he went to take it into his hand. Before he could do anything further, Socrates coalesced in the air right in front of his face, floating as if it had just come out of an ethereal mist.
     “Query. Master Max, what is it you are attempting to do?”
     “Socrates, don’t say a thing. I need to get something from my ship for Jennie, and Draagh isn’t anywhere around. He’s been ignoring me. The ceremony is in a few hours, and I promised my mother if I ever got married that I would give it to my wife.”
     “Master Max, I would not recommend that you attempt to do this, as—”
     Max interrupted the electronic intelligence interface, saying, “No worries - I’ll be right back!” and slammed the staff to the ground, while creating a most inconvenient energy sphere that caused Socrates to instantly dissipate. It was only moments later that Max disappeared out of site.
     “Oh my. This is not good,” Socrates plainly stated once his face had reconstituted itself.

     At that same moment, elsewhere in the castle, Jennie quickly approached Krynos and Draagh in the throne room, obviously concerned about something. Making a quick curtsey, she asked, almost breathlessly, “Draagh, Lord Krynos, have either of you seen Max? I can’t seem to find him anywhere, and he’s got me worried. I mean - I just completely lost his scent.”
     Before either Draagh or Krynos could even respond, Socrates appeared in front of the old mage.
     “Lord Draagh, we have a problem.” (*25*)

     The three stood in Draagh’s partially destroyed quarters (as the 4D slip energy had basically laid waste to the room’s furniture), along with Socrates floating in the air off to their side, looking at the mage’s staff, which lay on the ground near the window.
     Socrates then stated, in his typical monotone fashion, “He said that he needed to go to his ship and retrieve something for today’s ceremony - something that was important to his mother. I tried to warn him, but he was gone before I could finish.”
     Draagh looked at his staff, and then bending down, picked it up and examined it for clues.
     “Well, the staff is fine, as should be expected, but it should have gone with him. As it did not, it somehow rejected him. We will need to go find him before he manages to get himself into any further trouble.”
     Jennie had a panicky and extremely preoccupied look on her face, and desperately asked, “Can you find him? I’m going too!”
     “Very well then, my dear,” Draagh replied to Jennie, “Please change into something more appropriate to an expedition and grab your technical equipment, as you may have need for it. Remember, on Old-Earth you have neither skills as a lycan nor as a pseudo-mage.”
     Krynos looked at Draagh and said, “I will inform all that the wedding will suffer a slight delay. We shall care for young Liliana Gunnarsson during your absence.”
     Jennie rushed off and quickly changed into battle leathers, returning in minutes with her gear bag in hand and katana slung over her back. The three departed the castle and went out to the north entrance, stopping at the open plains.
     Draagh rested his hand upon his old friend’s shoulder and said, “We shall be back soon.”
     Krynos then looked consolingly at Jennie and gave the girl a gentle hug, his massive frame overshadowing hers, and then backed up.
     “Safe travels, my friends,” he said as he raised his great hand to them.
     Jennie and Draagh walked further out into the open field, removing their spectators from the 4D slip's sphere of influence. Once a safe distance was reached, Draagh slammed his staff to the ground, as he and Jennie disappeared from that world.
 

     Arriving at the edge of the Urubamba River, in exactly the same location from where they had departed only months before, Draagh and Jennie were both relieved to see that The Machu Picchu was still hidden underneath its naturally occurring camouflage, as Draagh had waved off the invisibility cantus upon arrival.
     Jennie ran to the craft, yelling out, “Max! Max! You dork! Come out here!” but she received no response. No longer able to smell things like she could on Earth of the future, she looked around helplessly. “Draagh!” she cried out. “Where is he?”
     “There-there, my dear. We shall find him,” he said as he strode over to the ship, waving his arm out and causing the loading ramp and bay doors to open. Entering the ship, Jennie ran ahead and searched frantically, while calling out his name, but no one replied. After a couple of minutes Draagh called Jennie into the ship’s galley, where he held a small jewelry box in his hand – the same jewelry box Draagh had seen Max look at with a sad expression right before he first took off from Azul. Opening it, there was a beautiful 3-carat blue diamond ring in a gold setting.
     Jennie looked at the ring for a moment, and then at Draagh. As tears filled her eyes she cried out, “That idiot! I don’t need a ring. I only need him!”
     Then, looking out of the open back of The Machu Picchu, she cried, “Max, what have you done?” as she wiped the wetness from her face.
     Draagh led the distraught woman out of the converted transport and, after conferring with Socrates, began their quest of visiting nearly every saved destination in his staff as they searched for the missing lycan commander.
     Max Gunnarsson regained consciousness; face down in a putrid puddle of contaminated water, human waste and oil – apparently in some sort of drainage tunnel. Disoriented and unaware of his location, he lifted himself out of the fetid muck, and shifting his vision to the infrared spectrum, looked for Draagh’s staff. After determining it was nowhere to be found (although one of Draagh's chairs and some of his clothing were nearby, floating in the putrid waste), he crawled forward, coming up to an opening that exposed the night sky. Exiting the tunnel in which he had found himself, he stood up and looked out over a landscape that he never imagined he would have seen.
     Alien Vrol flyers soared overhead; looking like giant, demonic bats, while dozens of hominids of varying subspecies scrambled around and over the ruins of what appeared to be a mostly destroyed city. He smelled not only lycans and vampires, but also other beings he was unable to immediately identify.
     Looking up at a fairly expansive hillside to the north he saw a large, man-made landmark, instantly familiar to him thanks to his studies of Earth’s ancient past. His stomach soured as he scanned the horizon. He knew where he was, and he definitely wasn't supposed to be there.

     “Oh, man. This is
not
good…”