Savior Part 2: Son of Eden (The Savior Series) (5 page)

I was silent for a few moments as I took it all in. To be honest, the information was a bit overwhelming and I didn’t know how to react to it all—especially the part about my mother working with The Righteous.

“I don’t believe it. You’re trying to manipulate me,” I finally said.

“Why would I do that, Reaper? We’re all on the same side—”

“You’re always trying to manipulate me! I think you’re lying,” I continued as I narrowed my eyes and studied his stony face.

“You asked for it, dammit!” Wells barked, his face suddenly twisting into an angry scowl as he glared at me. “You asked me to tell you the truth, and I did! So, don’t you dare disrespect the hundreds of men that died on that day just because the truth wasn’t the fairy tale you thought it would be!”

“But why? Why would she do it?” I asked, still not able to accept the idea of my biological mother being a traitor.

“Because The Righteous is a master manipulator. It’s as simple as that, kid. Just look at what he did to your brother. Look at what he’s doing to this world,” Wells said solemnly. “He’s hell bent on destroying us, Reaper, and the sad truth is… we may not have enough time to stop him.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“We’re up against a pretty definitive time table. I was going to fill you in later, once we were able to zero in on His location, but I guess there’s no use waiting anymore, is there?” Wells said before taking a short pause to gather his thoughts. “We have a secret base on the dark side of the moon that has what’s called a master wormhole generator. We used to use it to communicate with our allies in the Andromeda Galaxy. When your mother helped The Righteous escape, she used the generator to send a distress signal to the Anokians back in the Andromeda Galaxy. Until that point, the location of the Equillian Federation’s prison here on Earth was a secret, but now that the cat is out of the bag, it’s only a matter of time before our space is invaded by an entire fleet of Anokian starships. Their ships are capable of traveling at nearly 150,000 times the speed of light. Even at that speed it would take quite a bit of time to make the three million light-year journey to Earth but I have it on pretty good authority that they set out for Earth nearly eighteen years ago. Our best guess says they could reach this galaxy within a matter of months.”

“This doesn’t make any sense, Wells! I thought you said I could stop this? What in the hell am I supposed to do against an entire fleet of alien spaceships?! Can’t you call some of your allies from the other galaxy to help us out or something?”

“Not any more. Our allies rely on wormhole technology for travel and communication from this distance. After your mother sent the distress signal to the Anokians, she somehow disabled the master wormhole generator in the moon base. Without it, intergalactic transportation and communication with our allies is impossible.”

“Then it’s up to the people of Earth. We’ll just have to unite our militaries into one and fight them all together,” I suggested.

“That’s not gonna happen, Sport. There’s too much bad blood between the nations of Earth to even dream of a unified front. It’s all a part of The Righteous’ plan. He’s got the rest of the world hating the U.S. because the U.S. is most powerful and now he’s got this country tearing itself apart as well.”

“Then, how do we stop them?” I asked.

“He’s not ready,” a deep raspy voice with a peculiar accent suddenly said from somewhere behind me.

I quickly turned and noticed a large elderly man making his way toward Wells and me. He was wearing a dark blue hooded cloak with several unfamiliar symbols imprinted on it. The tail of his long cloak flowed behind him as he approached. He had long flowing silver and white hair and a thick silvery beard that came all the way down to the middle of his chest. He stood around 6’8”, about six inches taller than myself, and despite the fact that his face made him look nearly ninety years old, the bulging muscles that showed even through his flowing cloak made it look like he could easily bench press over three hundred pounds. I could instantly tell that there was something odd about this man, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

“We still have time,” Wells replied to the man, as I stared at him in silence.

“And what do you hope to accomplish in what little time you have left?” the mystery man scoffed in his booming raspy voice as he dismissively glanced over at me. “This one would not stand a chance against The Greater. You’re a fool, Wells, and you’re praying for a miracle that will not come.”

I took a deep breath and exhaled as silently as I could as my blood started to boil due to his obvious disrespect. I had no idea of what they were talking about, but it sure sounded like this guy didn’t think very much of me, and it sure was pissing me off.

“What the hell is he talking about?” I asked Wells as the mystery man continued to disapprovingly stare at me.

“There is no cavalry coming to help us, Reaper. There will be no united army of Earth to defend us. In the end, only you can save us,” Wells said. “When The Righteous murdered the Galactic Counsel in order to gain dominion over the Andromeda Galaxy, he started a galaxy wide war that rages on to this very day. Even after he was captured and Eden was taken by our allies, his armies continued to fight and they’ll never stop unless ordered to do so by their High King—and that… is where you come in,” Wells continued as he nodded toward the mysterious elderly man.

“The Righteous may have been captured, but his people still view him as their King. In order to challenge the High King of the Anokian Empire for the Broken Crown, one must first challenge and defeat his protector, the Right Hand of the Crown. Once the challenger defeats the Right Hand he is then, by Anokian law, granted an opportunity to face the High King in combat for the right to rule the Anokian Empire… but to think that
you,
a degenerate half breed, could accomplish such a task is utterly foolish,” he grumbled.

“Wells, who the hell is this clown?!” I demanded, glaring at Director Wells as my face grew warm with rage. Normally, I was a lot more respectful of my elders but this guy was really working my nerves with his disapproving stares and condescending remarks.

“Mind your tongue, boy!” the man growled, flexing his massive forearms as he balled his hands into giant fists.

“He means well, Reaper. Just calm down, okay?” Wells asked, looking from me to the mystery man. I took a deep breath and nodded my head at Wells as the man continued to glare at me.

“Reaper, this is Ezekiel, The Elder. In addition to being one of my closest advisors he is also our best source of information when it comes to the Anokians,” Wells continued.

“Oh yeah? What makes you such an expert?” I scoffed.

“Because I am Anokian,
boy—
full-blooded at that. Not some half-blood scum like yourself,” The Elder arrogantly boasted.

“But I thought they all followed The Righteous?” I asked Wells, doing my best to ignore the man’s derogatory remarks.

“The Righteous is still my King but my ultimate allegiance is to Eden. It was he who started the Great War and it is because of him that our home was lost. I do what I do now in hopes that we may someday reclaim it.”

“Look, I know you obviously don’t have any faith in me but just humor me for a moment, will you?” I said firmly to The Elder. “What if I beat him—what if I challenged The Righteous and took the crown? Would I be able to stop the war and save Earth?”

The Elder narrowed his eyes and looked me over once again, as if he was deciding if it was even worth his time to answer my question. “Yes, if by some miracle you were able to justly obtain the crown, the Knights of Eden would be bound by the Goddess to kneel at your command,” The Elder said with his face still filled with doubt.

“Then I’ll do it. Tell me what I need to do and I promise you that I won’t fail,” I said firmly, hoping that I could persuade him to believe in me.

“It won’t work, boy. It simply will not work,” he complained as he shook his head and stared blankly at Wells. “I will not place the fate of my people in the hands of a
child
.”

“Hey, you don’t know anything about me!” I fumed.

“But I have watched you, Adam,
The Reaper
, and I know you all too well. Your Anokian blood gives you the right to seek the crown, but it would be foolish of you to do so. To earn the right to fight the High King, you must first defeat his Right Hand, and I assure you that you have never faced an opponent as powerful as Darius, The Greater. Thousands before you have sought to dethrone The Righteous but they all fell before The Greater. It is foolish to think that you would fair any differently.”

“I might surprise you.”

“He’s right,” Wells added. “And he’s also our only chance, Ezekiel.”

Several tense moments of silence passed by as The Elder continued to stare at me as if he was somehow contemplating my worthiness just by looking at me.

“So be it,” he begrudgingly grumbled as he reached into his cloak and withdrew what appeared to be a silver necklace with a circular charm the size of a silver dollar. “Kneel before me, boy,” he said to me as he pressed a button on the charm, then handed it to Director Wells.

Wells held the charm before him as I watched in silent awe. I had no idea what was happening as a blinding, cone shaped wave of bright, blue light suddenly came cascading out of the charm and enveloped both The Elder and me.

“I said kneel!” The Elder repeated angrily as he glared at me.

Coming to my senses, I kneeled before The Elder and stared up at him as the shimmering light from the necklace continued to surround us.

“I am Ezekiel, The Elder—son of Isaiah, The Wise—Elder Priest to The Second Kingdom and servant of the Goddess of Eden,” The Elder boomed as he peered directly at the shimmering charm that Wells still held before him. “I have found you, Adam, The Reaper, worthy in your pursuit of the Throne of Eden, and it is my right, by order of the Goddess Herself and the Anokian laws that bind us all, to bestow upon you my blessing. On this day, I Ezekiel, The Elder grant you, Adam, The Reaper the right to challenge Darius, The Greater for the Right Hand of the Broken Crown. Now rise, Challenger, and accept this Mark, that you may show your true worthiness in your pursuit.”

The shimmering blue light that surrounded us suddenly intensified and engulfed the entire room, then faded away and disappeared completely just as quickly. By the time my eyes readjusted The Elder was now holding the silver necklace in his tightly clenched right fist and Wells was watching us in silence. I stood before The Elder and extended my right hand in order to receive the necklace. Still convinced of my unworthiness, The Elder stared at my open palm for a few moments before extending his hand and dropping the surprisingly cold necklace into my hand. My heartbeat quickened as I held the necklace in front of my face and marveled at the unfamiliar symbols that covered the beautifully crafted silver charm.

“That is The Mark of Eden,” The Elder said. “Once you challenge The Greater, you must press the button in the center of The Mark and present it to him in order to authenticate your right to seek the Crown.”

“Thank you,” I replied, nodding as I looked up at him.

“Your gratitude is misplaced, boy,” The Elder scoffed. “It is only because we have no other choice that I have given you this right—but know this, the path you seek will likely end in your demise.”

“What makes you so certain that I’ll fail?” I asked, as his disapproving glares started to take a toll on my confidence.

“You will fail, Adam, The Reaper, because you think you’re invincible...As if nothing could stop you… but you are wrong. For the blood of the Goddess courses through the veins of your enemy. Tread lightly Reaper… for when you face The Greater… you face the Son of Eden.”

The room fell silent as he finished his statement and continued to beam his disapproving glare at me for a few uncomfortable moments. I frankly didn’t know how to respond. On one hand, I was still pissed that The Elder was being such a jerk about his complete lack of faith in me but on the other hand he still had given me the right to challenge this Darius, The Greater, guy. At the end of the day, he had given me the chance to possibly save our world from impending doom, so despite his crabby attitude, I forced myself to remain thankful for the opportunity. Director Wells and I both watched in silence as The Elder finally turned and exited the room.

“So, what now?” I asked as I looked to Wells.

“Now that you have The Mark, we just need to locate The Greater. He’ll have no choice but to accept your challenge; however, the challenge has to be made in person,” Wells replied.

“Any idea of where this guy’s hiding?” I asked.

“We’re working on it. The Greater is just as hard to find as The Righteous and even if we do find him, I’ll be honest with you, sport, there’s no guarantee that you can win by yourself. Your combat skills have come a long way through your training with Ace but this guy is the real deal, and he’s also The Righteous’ only son so I don’t expect him to take too kindly to you trying to knock off his dad. I’m not doubting you, Reaper, but I want to be realistic. I can’t have you walking into this thing thinking it’s going to be a cake walk, okay?”

“Yeah, I got it,” I said flatly, trying to mask my disdain for the doubt that he was trying desperately to hide.