The Mamluks (The Mamluks Saga: Episode 1) (6 page)

Chapter 22

I was standing by my bed, rubbing my stomach. The thought of
being a mother was terrifying—especially in these circumstances. Even so, it
was
something to look forward to. And for the first time, I thought that maybe
I could find a place in this new world.

“Hello, Emily,” someone said from the entrance, turning me
around.

I smiled, realizing it was Bridget. “Oh, hey. How are you?”

“In a lot of pain.”

“That makes two of us.” I waved her inside. “Come in and
have a seat with me.”

I sat on the bed. Bridget limped over and sat beside me.

“How do you feel about all this?” she asked.

I waited a moment, staring into the hallway. “I’m afraid.”

“So am I.”

I looked at her, wondering. “Did your
mate
tell you
why?”

Bridget nodded sadly.

Sharing my worries with her made me feel a lot better. “I’m
really glad you stopped by. I get so lonely being in this room all day.”

“
I know.
It’s dreadful. I would rather be in fields
digging.”

We sat there all night, escaping our troubles with memories
and small talk. And later on, when the sky turned blue, we lay down and fell
asleep.

I dreamt about Andrew. We were walking down the Santa Monica
Pier at night. My hair was blowing in the wind, and Andrew was holding me from
behind. Then, he dropped something and went down to pick it up. But before
rising, he surprised me and pulled out a ring. He asked me to marry him. I said
yes.

Andrew jumped up and hugged me. He lifted me into his arms
and spun me around. Then he set me down and kneeled. I cried as he put the ring
on my finger. Finally, Andrew got up and tried to kiss me. But a thunderous
boom
shuddered through us, and we spun our heads up to look at the sky.

At first, I saw a bunch of lights in the distance. When they
got closer, I realized they were coming from a group of spaceships. Lasers came
out of the ships and blasted everything.

We dropped down, and Andrew covered me. A laser hit the
pier, and we fell into the water. But we kept falling, going deep under water.
Slowly, Andrew faded into the dark waters, and my ring came off.

I fell through the water and landed on a sandstone roof. I
was naked now, and Adomas was standing over me. He reached down and said,
“Get
up—Emily.”

Suddenly, I woke up to Bridget shaking me.

“Emily—wake up. Your servant brought us food.”

I sat up and saw Audrey setting a tray on the table by the
bed.

“My
servant
?” I said with a raspy voice.

“Yes. They assigned me to you,” Audrey said.

I sat there, staring at the food. Audrey left the room.
Bridget went to the tray and began to eat. I looked on in a daze.

“Emily?
Get up
.”

Part Two – Nine Months Later

Chapter 23

I was lying on my bed naked with a blanket tucked under my
head. Adomas was standing by the window with his arms crossed, looking at me
with a grave stare. Giedre, the Mamluk caregiver, was rubbing a soothing gel
all over my body.

“
Push
, Emily,” she said. “
Push
.”

I grabbed the sheets, closed my eyes and took a huge breath,
pushing hard as Giedre rubbed the gel between my legs. Slowly, I felt the
baby’s head come out. I kept pushing, and the sweat from my face was dripping
onto my lips. I opened my eyes and blew out in spurts, flinging the sweat to my
chest.

“I see your
spawn
, Emily. The birth is almost
complete,” Giedre said.

Finally, the baby came out, gradually releasing the pressure
on my body. And I blacked out.

It felt like seconds before I was up again. I saw Giedre
standing by the bed, cradling an enormous infant.

“It is a male,” Adomas said, smiling over the baby.

Giedre stepped forward and kneeled by me.

I cried tears of joy as I leaned over, staring at his
beautiful blue eyes. “He’s gorgeous.”

“You must name him, Emily,” Adomas said.

I looked up at him, surprised—assuming he would be more
controlling. “I’m not sure. I don’t know any Mamluk names.”

“Then he will have a human name.”

I looked down and studied our son long and hard as he
twitched in Giedre’s big hands. Finally, I shook my head. “No—I want him to
have a Mamluk name.”

Ironically, Adomas gave me a surprised look.

I glanced at Giedre. “What do you think?”

She looked up at Adomas, like she was asking for approval.
He gave her a nod. Giedre flashed a warm smile. She kindly looked down at the
baby and watched him for a moment.

“
Juozas
.”

I pondered the name for a second, nodding. “I like it.”

Adomas stepped forward and kneeled. “
Juozas
—my
spawn.”

Chapter 24

By destroying William Mulholland's water system, the Mamluks
had turned Los Angeles into a desert again. During our travels, we managed to
find some food and supplies in the scattered rubble throughout the land. But
now, even that recourse had dried up.

We were on a mountain, far from any Mamluk activity. I woke
up and found Madison spitting a dead squirrel and setting it over an open fire.
I coughed and wheezed as I sat up, crawling to her.

“Good morning,” I said with a scratchy voice.

“Hey,” she said miserably, taking a seat by the fire.

Afterward, Robert came back with a rusted bucket of water
from the drying creek at the bottom of the mountain. He set it down on the
fire, next to the roasting squirrel. We waited a while until the squirrel
looked ready.

Robert grabbed the sweater I had gotten in the sewers and
used it to take the spit off the fire. Lastly, he took the bucket of boiling
water off the fire and put it next to the spit. We waited a little while longer
until everything cooled down.

After eating, we passed the bucket around and took a swig.
The water tasted like rubber. But by now I was used to it. I coughed hard,
feeling intense pressure in my face. My condition was getting worse by the day.
And Madison and Robert weren’t far behind. Sadly, I finally realized a terrible
truth.
We were dying—slowly.
Even without asking, I knew that they felt
it, too. Still, I was happy knowing that we would at least be dying free.

Robert exhaled. “I need to ask you two something—
something
I’ve never talked about before.”

“Sure,” I said.

“Go ahead,” Madison said.

Robert took a moment before continuing. “I don’t know if
either of you believe in God, but I do. And, I wanted you to know I’ve been
praying for us.”

I nodded. “I believe in God.”

Madison shook her head. “I don’t.”

“And that’s fine, Madison. But I would really appreciate
sharing prayer with both of you,” he went on. “You don’t have to say it with me
or anything. It would just make me feel better—knowing our time on Earth may be
coming to an end.”

“I wouldn’t mind,” I said.

Madison shrugged. “It’s all right with me.”

Robert got closer and took our hands. Then he closed his eyes
and bowed his head.

“Dear, God. I ask that you watch over my friends and I
during this difficult time. Give us peace in our final days—and bless those who
are suffering as slaves. In Christ's name we pray, Amen.”

Chapter 25

Adomas took me and Juozas to a ship parked outside the
building I had been living in. It was a fancy looking aircraft, too—unlike the
ones the soldiers used. When we got close, Adomas lifted his arm and pressed a
button on his device. A ramp popped out, and he allowed me to go in first.

I walked up the ramp and looked around. There were huge
cushioned seats built into the walls, and handles right above them—like the
ones you would find on a subway. We took a seat near the front of the ship.
There was a soldier operating the controls inside a narrow cockpit.

Adomas grabbed a handle. Then, he grabbed the one above me
with his other hand and moved it down a few levels so I could reach it. I
pressed Juozas into my chest hard and took hold of the handle with my other
hand.

“We are ready, Soldier,” Adomas called out.

The pilot took off shortly after. Minutes later, we landed,
and the ramp opened up. There was a deafening celebration going on outside.
Adomas stood up and put his hand out toward the uproar. “For you, Emily.”

I moved ahead in a daze and cautiously walked down the ramp,
holding Juozas tight. There were thousands of soldiers standing in parallel
lines, dancing and throwing their hands in the air while reciting a phrase. I
listened carefully, looking from side to side in total confusion.

“We have birth—here on Earth—we have birth—here on
Earth!”

When I got to the end of the line, I came upon an enormous,
beautifully crafted sandstone building. The steps were long and wide, with
giant pillars going across that supported the upper levels.

Suddenly, everyone stopped. I turned and looked around. They
were all staring at me. And from behind, I heard someone approaching. I turned
back around and looked up the steps. There was a Mamluk standing at the top,
staring at me with a smile. As she walked down the steps, I studied her
closely. She had long, salt and pepper hair. But her face looked as young as
mine. She was wearing a hooded blue cloak that showed her arms, revealing a
device, and some strange sandals.

I trembled as she got close, thinking she was going to take
Juozas from me. Finally, she moved off the steps and stopped in front of me. I
blinked nervously as I stood under her shadow.

“Emily of Earth. I am Dalia, Ruler of all Mamluks.”

I was surprised to hear this, having thought Adomas was
their leader.

“You were chosen to birth the spawn of our Champion.” She
paused and caringly glanced at Adomas. “Now, you bear the responsibility of
nurturing his spawn into a worthy successor.”

My heart rate increased dramatically. I exhaled and propped
Juozas up a little.

“Do you accept this responsibility?”

I glanced at Adomas. “Yes, I do.”

Dalia flashed a loving smile. And right after, along with
Adomas and all the soldiers, she kneeled and bowed her head. It was a
breathtaking experience—looking around at all these astonishing
creatures—bowing to little old me.

“
Whoa
,” I huffed out, getting teary eyed.

After a few seconds, Dalia lifted while everyone else stayed
down. She revealed a shiny, off-white marble that was linked to a golden
necklace. Dalia opened the necklace and put it on me.

“
Soon
—you will become one with our greatest power.”

I looked down and checked the marble. There was something
moving inside it. I narrowed my eyes and touched it.

“
Wow
. Thank you.”

Dalia put her hand out and said, “Rise.”

The crowd leaped up and went back to dancing and cheering.

Dalia reached out to Adomas.“My Champion.” Then she looked
at me “Come, Emily.”

We went to the top of the steps and faced the crowd. I
couldn’t help but smile as I watched them dance around. Feeling greatly
welcomed and overjoyed, I looked at Juozas and whispered,
“We have birth.
Here on Earth.”

Chapter 26

It was still early in the day. But I was exhausted. I went
to my usual spot and tried to get some sleep. Madison was sitting by the fire.
Robert was organizing a pile of brushwood.

My eyes began to flicker. Then, I saw Madison shaking,
looking behind me like something was about to kill me.

“Look out!”

I quickly turned my head and saw a mountain lion running at
me. It pounced on me and went for my neck. Robert came out of nowhere and
tackled it off me. I staggered to my feet and helped him fight it off.

Still, the lion was relentless. It came right at us, leaping
through the air and knocking us to the ground. Madison kicked the fire at the
lion, but that didn’t scare it off. She picked up a stick from the pile of
brushwood and swiped at the lion. But it ignored her and kept attacking me and
Robert.

Madison hit the lion hard and it finally turned around.
Robert and I were scratched up and bleeding now. We struggled to our feet and
went after the lion. It jumped on Madison and pinned her to the ground. She
dropped the stick and I quickly picked it up.

I swung at the lion wildly, trying to scare it away. But it
wasn’t working. Robert tried to grab the lion’s head, but it was too fast.
Still, that move got it away from Madison. She got up, and we charged the lion
as a group. It backed up and carefully stalked us.

Seconds later, the lion rushed ahead and leaped through the
air. We met it head on and went to the ground. Madison and I tried to hold the
lion down while Robert tried to grab its head. But it was able to break free.

We staggered to our feet, bleeding, taking huge breaths. The
lion came at us again. We kicked at it and made loud noises. Then, we waved our
arms high over our heads and screamed. The lion paused and growled, swiping at
us.

We moved toward it, keeping our arms up, screaming at it.
The lion backed away a little as we got closer. We stomped the ground, eying
the relentless beast. And finally, it ran off.

Still, we stood our ground and waited a moment. When the
adrenaline wore off, I collapsed. Robert fell to his knees and checked the
gashes on his arms. Madison stumbled to the ground and took a deep breath.

“I think we should find a new home,” I wheezed, feeling the
wound on my neck.

Robert and Madison nodded together and said,
“Yeah.”