Daniel shook his head, "I don"t believe this; none of it. You betrayed us once, and we cannot trust you again."
"Then as a token of my allegiance, as a sign of my redemption, let me tell you who Alex really is."
"Alex? So that is his name," Daniel reflected. He wanted to know more, and Nick sensed this.
"He is the Falsifier. He is both human and vampire," Nikolas said, maintaining a strained eye contact with his son.
"Hmm," Daniel said with nonchalance, not wanting to believe what his father had said. "Only the blood tests will prove that."
"And," Nick said, "He is the direct heir of Argos I."
"What do you mean?" Daniel said, "That"s impossible."
"Do you know the real reason why Anaxagoras cast his son out of the Nyrax Dynasty?"
"No!" He couldn"t believe what his father had just said; he didn"t want to. "Do you mean...?"
"Yes," Nikolas smiled, "Alex is Aidan"s son, born of a human mother, who is...was Howe"s sister."
"Then, that means..." Daniel"s eyes widened, the whites contrasting with the dark crimson, "No...no, it can"t be." He looked at Nikolas, who was laughing at the shock on his face. "Well, if the scans show that what you say is right, then I will immediately tell the council that your true allegiance is to Lord Anaxagoras."
"Daniel," sighed Nikolas, "You think I don"t see what you"re doing? You want power! They want power, Erik wants power; all of us want power over the king. I"m right, aren"t I? Listen to me. Like I said, my allegiance is not to the king. The truth is...it"s to myself."
"I have only one objective and that"s to do the bidding of Anaxagoras."
"I know...I know what you"re saying is just for your own benefit. You"re waiting for the right time and so am I. You went away from me and Aidan. You left us all and made your own plans. Then you joined him and are now waiting. You"ve been waiting a long time for your opportunity. Now, my son, with Aidan dead and Anaxagoras far away, is the time to overcome this rule. We can join forces and create our own dynasty: the Gareng Dynasty!"
"What!" Daniel jumped off his chair. "How can you say that? That"s treason."
"Calm down. If you think I don"t know that you want power, then you"re mistaken."
"Get out! How dare you- I can"t have any of this."
Nikolas smiled and walked calmly out of the office.
As soon as John walked downstairs to keep his friend and mother company and get ready for the meeting with the Senate, the doorbell rang. A butler answered it and led the guest into the living room. It was Angel. Helen got up and welcomed her. "Oh Angel, what a pleasant surprise!"
"h.e.l.lo, Mrs. Howe," she smiled at Grandma Howe and hugged her, "Are you okay?"
"I"m fine, my girl. The question is: how are you? Is everything okay?"
Angel sighed, "I really don"t know," her eyes watered up, and Mrs. Howe embraced her once again.
John smiled at Angel, "Hi Angel. How are things?"
"Okay, I guess." She said, trying to be optimistic. "Any news about Alex?"
"He"s fine," John said as he gave her a quick hug. "Um, you know Mr. Bacon, right?"
"Oh yes, of course," she shook Richard"s hand, "How do you do?"
"Fine. Thanks." Richard gave her a warm look.
"Your paper on the Political System of the Pre-WWIII era was excellent," Angel said, trying to make light conversation as they sat down.
"I"m glad you think so," Richard said, "Not everyone agrees on it, though."
Grandma Howe went to the kitchen to fix up some tea for John and Angel.
"Oh, wait Mrs. Howe, let me help you."
"It"s alright, Angel. Stay here and I"ll be back in a sec."
"No, Mom. It"s okay," added John, "We won"t be here for long. We have to get back to the Senate."
His mother ignored him saying, "Your work can wait. Besides, we have visitors and I don"t want them leaving without any refreshment." She left them and could be heard calling one of the maids to come and help her.
"So, what brings you here?" John said as Helen walked out of the room.
"I needed to talk to you about Alex, Mr. Howe. I"m really worried about him."
"So are we," John said. "But don"t worry too much. Everything"s going to be fine."
"I saw the news and my parents are a little apprehensive."
"This is only temporary," said John. "I"m only doing it for Alex; I want him back and this is the best option we have. Don"t worry about politics, Angel. These things happen every ten years or so."
"Mr. Howe, if I don"t get married to Alex, it will be bad for everyone."
"What do you mean?"
Mrs. Howe came back with four cups of tea and a plate full of scones and biscuits.
"Mom! There"s no need"
She shushed him and sat down, taking her own cup of tea.
John smiled and shook his head, sipping his cup. He sighed and sat back, more relaxed. "Now, Angel, what do you mean by all this?"
"I need to tell you...alone." She said, eyeing Richard. "It"s a family thing."
Richard cleared his throat and finished his cup of tea. "Thanks, Mrs. Howe, for the tea." He got up and walked to the door, as the butler opened it for him. "I"ll be waiting in the car."
John nodded and said, "It won"t take long."
"Sure," said Richard. He left the Estate and waited for John outside.
"So, what"s this big thing?" asked Mrs. Howe, "I hope things are fine between you and Alex."
"Everything"s fine. I love Alex very much and want to marry him and like I told you..." she looked at John, "I have to marry him and no one else." But she stopped, her eyes moving rapidly as she pondered on what to say next.
"Well?" John and Helen said.
"I"m pregnant."
Mrs. Howe coughed uncontrollably, choking on her tea. "What did you say?"
"Calm down, Mom," said John. He called one of the butlers, "Charles! Charles!"
The butler rushed in, "Yes, Mr. Howe?"
"Get some water! Can"t you see her coughing?" The butler ran out quickly, fetched some water and served it to Mrs. Howe.
She drank it and after a few moments was fine. Finally, she sighed and said, "How do you know? Are you sure?"
"Yes, Mrs. Howe. I"m sorry if you"re hurt about it. I want you to know that even if I wasn"t pregnant, I would still marry Alex."
"I know," said Mrs. Howe, composing herself, "I"m not hurt; it"s just a bit of a shock to me...to us," she said, turning to John, who seemed not to have heard because he was lost in his own thoughts. "Isn"t that right, John?"
"What?" John shook out of his own thoughts on the situation. How could Alex impregnate someone if he was a vampire? "Right...yes... well, Angel...I"m not angry about the situation, just amazed."
"Amazed?" Angel said, smiling, "I don"t quite understand."
"I mean." He got a hold of himself, "I"m surprised by it. I don"t have a problem. Just don"t tell anyone else, alright?"
"Of course not," Angel said.
"Did Alex tell you anything important in the afternoon, Angel?" he asked her.
"Well, I don"t suppose so. No, not really. Why?"
"No, it"s fine. He"ll tell you when he can and when he"s ready. Soon enough everyone"s going to know."
Angel seemed confused by this statement. "Alright, Mr. Howe. So, I guess I"ll be leaving." The three of them stood up together. Angel hugged both of them, thanked them for the tea and left reluctantly.
"Well, what do you think?" John asked his mother.
"About what?" Helen said.
"Angel"s situation."
"Whatever it is, John, I have always accepted Angel as my granddaughter. I"m happy that they will have a child, but I would have preferred it if they were married first." She sighed.
"I have my mind on something else," said John. "The fact that Angel is going to have a baby and that it"s Alex"s is something I don"t understand. Alex"s genes, I"m sure, are dominated by vampiric DNA, and yet he is able to procreate. It doesn"t make sense." He walked towards the hallway and to the door. He turned to his mother and hugged her. "But, it"s a good thing, I guess. The vamps down there are going to find out soon and they"re probably going to take advantage of it. By now, they must have found out his true lineage and who he really is. It"s bound to come out, and it"s safer for him. It gives him a sort of protection, on top of the protection that he has from Nikolas."
"What about him and the others? Are you going to make sure they get in?"
"One way or another I"ll make sure of it," John said and left.
This day was like a dream and yet so real. After listening to Nikolas"s story about what his father had told Uncle John, his mind was dazed and tired. Hearing about his father made him feel happy and proud. He imagined what it must have been like for Uncle John, on that cold frosty night, to have known about the initiation. Alex was sure that it must have been like how he felt now, knowing that his time would come soon. This would be so beneficial for the Human Race. Nikolas must have known that it would be the secret weapon to defeat the vampires. If only they had used it earlier, none of this would have happened. They would all be on Earth and everything would be alright. But, alas, it was not to be! And Alex understood that his father knew it and accepted that it was meant to be this way so that the prophecies could be fulfilled.
He couldn"t sleep. He was paranoid that they might kill him while he slept. He sat on a chair, staring at the door and broke out into a sweat. He was inside the Earth"s crust now, and it felt wrong. He would rather have stayed above, where he could see more of his home planet. He wanted to know exactly what was going on. Why did Daniel react the way he did and who was the other man? It was puzzling to see this cousin of his so happy and welcoming. Daniel had spoken incessantly about the grandeur of the Earth and other matters ranging from history to science. Alex had noticed, however, that he never made eye contact with him.
Sleep grew heavier by the minute. He felt suffocated and frustrated that he couldn"t know what was going on. He was curious to know more about the Earth, his heritage, and ultimately his final destiny. He also worried about Angel and wanted to know when exactly John would come to rescue him. He got up from the chair and lied down on the bed. He closed his eyes and slowly let his mind relax. In a few seconds, he fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.
The limo flew into the air to avoid street traffic. John and Richard were told to be in the Senate Hall by 8:00 pm and they wanted to be on time. Right now, John"s watch read 7:45. "d.a.m.n it! I don"t want to be late, Bill," he said to the chauffeur.
"Relax, John," Richard said, laying his head back and sighing. "I know things will work out for us."
"Yeah, I hope." He folded his legs and sat back.
"Is everything okay? Did that girl say something?"
"No, nothing important. Just something between her and Alex."
"I hope everything"s fine."
"Yeah, everything"s alright. I"m just nervous, that"s all. There"s still a chance that they might not"
"We"ll be fine, John. The Senate will have to give you emergency powers. The vampires are going to send an ultimatum and we will send them one of our own."
"Will our boys be ready?" John shook his head. "I"m not sure they will."
"We"ll give them time. When the Senate hears of the ultimatum, they"ll know it"s come to war, and they"ll have no choice but to elect you Supreme Leader."
They arrived at five to eight and stepped out of the limo. "Wait here, Bill," John said.
"Yes, Mr. Howe," said Bill.
John and Richard walked up the ma.s.sive stairs to the Headquarters and entered a lobby. A different receptionist from the one they encountered earlier smiled and said, "Sir, the Senate is waiting for you, in there." She pointed to the Great Hall.
"Thanks," said John. As they approached the entrance to the hall, they saw two guards outside. For a moment John was scared that they were there to take him away. "I have come to meet the Senate. Let me in," he said, trying to hide his fears. The guards opened the ma.s.sive double door.
Once again, Senator Gars greeted them. "It is time, Leader Howe," he said. He led them inside the Great Hall silently as the others watched their movements. John stepped up to the podium, and observed the faces of each member of the Senate. There was nothing he could read from them. No news reporters stood by to cover the story. The Senate did not want any more publicity and so strict orders had been given to ban reporters from the Headquarters. They were also not allowed anywhere near John"s Estate, nor the Regnum Central area.
John spoke: "Senators of Regnum, I have come now to hear your voices and to act on your behalf." A feeling of anxiety crept up his spine when he scanned their faces; he was afraid they might not be with him. Had they perhaps planned to throw him in prison? If they had, there would be n.o.body to protect him. Despite these thoughts, he continued. "Whatever it may be, let it be heard and let it be followed."
Senator Blake stood up and said, "From hereon, the Council has been disintegrated. A majority of the votes dictates that all the members, excluding Richard Bacon, shall be detained for further hearing on the accusations put forth by General John Benjamin Howe. They will be tried and the court hearings will be overlooked by the Justices of the Supreme Court." He read from a scroll, "You, John Benjamin Howe III, General of the Army of Earth and Council Leader, have hereby been appointed Supreme Leader of all Regnum. From now on, after this appointment, the Senate, the Judiciary, and all other governmental bodies will be under your command, for the good of all Regnum. You will be responsible for implementing the return of human life on Earth. Richard Bacon, you have been appointed Vice-Chancellor of the Leadership of Regnum." Blake rolled up the parchment and said on behalf of his fellow senators, "However, before we grant both of you these posts, we have a question to ask you." All eyes were on them like predators.
"And that is?" asked John.
"What is your plan for the next year, in terms of this coming war? What will be the fate of the Rebels, if you are to bring them here, and why, more importantly, did they take Alexander Howe, your nephew?"
"Well, let me begin, Senators, by thanking all of you for your decision. I a.s.sure you that you have made the right choice in appointing me Supreme Leader with Richard Bacon on my side as Vice-Chancellor. I promise you as I have promised myself and the people of Regnum that soon we shall be the People of the Earth once again! I love the Earth, as much as anyone else does. It belongs to me, you, and to all of us. We are its children and we have been banished against our will. I do not propose that we cooperate with the vampires and let them stay on the Earth, for they will not accept it. Therefore, I say we take what is ours by force. We must train our men to fight in battle, on land, in air, and by sea. We must destroy them and reclaim our home. I propose a mission, firstly to rescue my nephew, Alexander. I admit I allowed it to happen because I knew he would be in safe hands. The Rebel known as General Nikolas Gareng is a very close friend of mine, and before taking away my nephew, he gave me a message." John took out the canister and the scroll.
"Nikolas," he continued, "has promised me that Alex will be safe with him and the other Rebels. They have become stronger since the last time we met them, and now they will be our greatest ally. If you did not notice, they were covered in silver at the time of the kidnapping. This shows that the Vampire Government is preparing by testing on the Rebels for immunity against silver, so that they can defeat us in this war to come. We too must prepare, and with the Rebels on our side, with their enhanced powers, we will be unstoppable. I suspect tomorrow we will receive an ultimatum, for we have breached clause 108765. In return we will send them an ultimatum: give us Alex, or it shall come to war!