The vortex stopped and they reached their destination.
In front of them stood a great cavernous threshold, three hundred feet high and decorated with gold and silver. The entrance arched across in four directions. The ceilings were painted with scenes from the history and legends of Migra. Nikolas realized that this place was more than just a rich and palatial resort. It was the holiest of holies. The Mausoleum of the Anu-Sa-Rimh! This palace was a vacation home for the king on his sojourns to the sacred place.
Once they reached the gates, Anaxagoras left Alex"s body and Nick could see a shadowy mist. A dark cloak without a body formed. Then a black hand, gloved and armored with metal ringlets around the fingers appeared and motioned to come forward. Alex fell to the ground. "What the h.e.l.l?"
"Don"t worry." Nikolas rushed to his aid. "Everything"s alright."
"What"s happening? Is that, is that"
Anaxagoras said. "Welcome, Alexandros."
"What!" Alex said, getting to his feet.
"Alex, don"t worry." Nikolas kept his right hand on his left shoulder. "It"s going to be alright."
"Follow me." The cloaked figure glided to the gate, which was bound in iron and chained in t.i.tanium. There was a large lock with a complex key-hole to confuse even the best of locksmiths. Nikolas and Alex walked forward with caution.
Alex whispered, "How the h.e.l.l did we get here? And where"s everyone else?"
"They"re waiting. He brought us here alone. He wants us to see something."
Anaxagoras turned around. "You don"t realize your importance yet, Alexandros."
Alex felt a chill in his spine as the king spoke. But he gathered himself and said, "If you are real, why don"t you strike me down? Why do you hesitate? Is it out of weakness?"
Anaxagoras cackled. "Don"t challenge me with these petty taunts. If you really want me to prove it then, so be it." He brought his hand closer to his chest. A black mist formed around his hand which extended in a straight line and formed a thick ma.s.s that slowly turned into a sword which he pointed at Alex.
Alex backed away.
Nick materialized his own sword just like Anaxagoras had done. "Alex, stay back."
Anaxagoras glided swiftly towards Nick and threw him aside.
"Come with me, Alexandros." The king"s shadow covered him. "Come and I will show you your destiny!"
Alex stood his ground. "No!"
"You must!" The king"s voice hissed. "Isn"t that what the prophecy says?"
Nikolas jumped high into the air in an attempt to drive his sword into the king"s back but before he could, he was suspended by Anaxagoras"s will. The Dark King turned around and circled him.
"Tell me!" Alex shouted. "Why did you really bring us here?"
Nikolas took another stab at Anaxagoras and this time succeeded, driving his weapon deep into the king"s back. The king fell forward as if slain but then shot back up. He knocked Nikolas over and choked him without even touching him before throwing him towards Alex. The sword in Anaxagoras"s spine disappeared like vapor and his wound healed instantly.
"Enough of this!" Anaxagoras yelled. "I did not bring you here for this."
"It"s a trick, Alex," Nikolas said, coming in between the two Nyraxes. "Don"t listen to him."
"I know, Uncle Nick," Alex said patiently. He sidestepped to the left and faced Anaxagoras. "Alright then. If what you say is true, then show us."
"No!" Nick said. "We will not go with you!"
"But"
"He can"t be trusted!"
"This has gone on for far too long," said Anaxagoras, flinging his sword towards Nikolas. Alex yelled something in ancient Migritic and jumped to block Nick. Everything turned white and the light blazed once again, creating a rift between the Dark One and the two Rebels. Anaxagoras was pushed away by the light and suddenly, in a flash, everyone was back on the ship.
"What in the h.e.l.l?" shouted Jacque.
"What just happened?" asked Varenkoff. "Is everyone alright?"
The entire group on-board gave a curt nod.
"Uncle Nick, what just happened?" Alex said, hyperventilating.
"It was a thought, that"s all," Nikolas a.s.sured him. "Calm down." He touched Alex"s forehead and Alex slowed his breathing drastically.
"What do you mean it was a thought?" Alex asked.
"Anaxagoras had access to you, through your mind. He knows the truth, everything about you. I don"t know how though. I can"t see why he wouldn"t but..."
"What? Just explain it, please."
"I suppose Anaxagoras tracked us through the transference. It could be that he was waiting for such an opportunity."
"Why would he do that?"
"For one thing, you"ve been initiated into a brotherhood that hasn"t existed since the Great Revolution against the Markian Empire. This is a secret way of sending forth pure energy to the initiate, so that he will be recharged to "fight the good fight." It was started first by Fabian II who was the harbinger of the Revolution. It was later continued and handed down to various commanders by King Argos I. This brotherhood is called the Knights of the Elders."
"Who?"
"The Elders were the Twelve Councilmen who created the entire planet of Migra. I mean," Nikolas smiled, "Literally created Migra, and possibly all the other planets of that system."
"You mean they were like G.o.ds."
"Well, in one respect, you could say so. They came to create a perfect society. We were their lab-rats. They had this desire to create us and just went away. The very first people of our race were known as the Elemnauri. It is said that they were in tune with the elements of the universe and harnessed immense powers of both creation and destruction. They were even able to create their own mini-universes. They were in contact with the Elders and their race for three and a half trillion years until finally relations collapsed and war broke out. Eventually, according to the ancient tablets called the Stones of Revelations, the Elder Race was cast away, never to return. By that time, our distant ancestors had learned much and became very advanced until eight hundred billion years later their DNA was polluted by the curse of the Red Serpent."
Alex, dazed by this knowledge, tried to make sense of what Nikolas told him. How old was his heritage? As far as he knew, his human ancestry could have stretched out for some ten million years. But the ancestors on this other side of his family went back trillions of years! "Okay," he said, "so that still doesn"t explain how we got there and what happened."
"The story"s going to have to wait," said Jacque. "We"re ready to land."
"This is one for the history books," John said to Richard, outside the Great Hall where the Senate met.
"Are you sure you know what you"re doing?" asked Richard. "It will be the very thing you"d be fighting against them."
"I"m doing it for Alex. I"ve got to. Besides, I am not doing it permanently."
"But it"s treason to declare yourself all-powerful and create a dictatorship. It"s going to turn into anarchy sooner or later. You know this."
"And that"s what I plan for," John smiled.
"What?" Richard asked, wiping the sweat from his forehead with his handkerchief.
John winced as another wave of stomach acid burnt his throat. The corner of Richard"s mouth went up, "The old ulcer still bothering you?"
John sighed, "Just when there"s pressure."
"So that"s most of the time," said Richard.
John forced a weak chuckle. He changed the subject, "You are going to see great things happen in the coming months." He banged on the great doors with all his might. A man from inside the Hall opened the doors.
"What is the meaning of all this noise...oh! Leader Howe, it"s you, is it? Sir, what is it that you want? We are in the middle of a very important decision."
"Senator Gars, I"m sorry to interrupt, but I have a very important issue to bring up."
"And what might that be?" asked the Senator, raising his brow.
"Excuse me, will you?" John said as if he were in the middle of a conversation at a dinner party. He took Bacon aside and said, "Go and bring every d.a.m.n reporter you know. If Jarad wants a fight, he can have it! We are doing exactly what we shouldn"t." Richard did as he was told and John turned back to Senator Gars. Senator Gars was a short old man with a little white hair around the sides and the back of his head but none on top. He had an extravagant mustache and its tips almost touched the base of his ears. He wore small spectacles for his even smaller eyes. "Senator, this pressing issue is of the utmost importance. If I may, I wish to speak immediately."
Senator Gars examined John up and down in a peculiar manner. He looked back at the Senators, who were listening or rather pretending to listen to a tall, slender old man named Senator Greenfield. Greenfield was a great orator and was at that point discussing the issue of the security of Regnum. Without further ado, John pushed past Gars, letting himself inside.
With a loud booming voice he said, "Senators of the Great Hall! Senators! My dear Senators." There was a great amount of commotion, shouting and whispering. "Please, Senators of Regnum!" His voice was also drowned out by the constant hammering of the gavel by the General Speaker, retired Lieutenant Kenneth Lylock. At the podium Greenfield was still trying to discuss his plans on what he called the State Security Bill. But by now no one was paying any attention.
"Order!" John yelled. He smiled a toothy grin. "Order is my command, Senators, and that is what we shall have!" Slowly, as the voices died down, he walked up the stairs towards Senator Greenfield and said, "Excuse me, but would you please allow me to speak?" He completely ignored Lylock who continued to bang his gavel. In some ways, John blamed the Lieutenant for the loss of the War. He had failed the Vatican Mission. He was reluctant to have Lylock as a Senator but democracy had been the order of the day. Not anymore, however.
From the podium, John looked out at the entire hall. It stretched out like a large auditorium, with all one hundred and forty one senators sitting down, looking suspiciously at John. "Senators, ladies and gentlemen, I have an important announcement to make. Very soon, the one who tried to a.s.sa.s.sinate the good Council member General Jarad Hameed will walk into this room and try to attack me in the name of freedom and democracy and he will say he is doing it for the good of Regnum. The truth of the matter, my dear people, is this person will be an ally of Hameed. He and Jarad are planning a coup and they are going to declare themselves the de facto government and out of that Jarad will declare himself Dictator of Regnum. In an instant, democracy, our one ideal since the Dawn of Man, will fall forever. If a dictator were to rise to power today, then it would spell the end of the human race.
"Let me add something here: I am implying one thing and one thing only. If Jarad Hameed takes over, he will be ruthless. He wants power and that"s it. He doesn"t care whether Regnum is safe or not. You have heard the rumors about the other Council Members and what you hear is true. They all want me out. But I will not go out without a fight.
"They will all be coming soon, and the truth will be out. I am not here for any personal gain. Except of course the personal safety and rescue of my nephew, Alexander."
At this, Lylock said, "But General Howe. Is it not true that you allowed him to be captured? Now there is talk of your secret alliance with the vampires."
"That"s not true. I am a friend to all except the Vampiric Regime. I spoke to Nikolas and that was all. He ensured the safety of my nephew...for some time. Until then, we must act. This is an ultimatum! Don"t you see it? The vamps want war! They want to eradicate us."
"Then why didn"t they do it before the signing of the Treaty?" asked Senator Julia D"Luca, a close a.s.sociate of Jarad during the time of the de facto government constructed in the first days of the Regnum.
"Because they have what they want!" John said.
"What do you mean?" asked Senator Gars. The other senators started speaking in hushed whispers amongst themselves.
John paused for some time. He didn"t know what to say or rather how to say it. If he told everyone the truth, how would they react? Would they allow him emergency powers and permit another war to take place? It was inevitable but no one seemed to be bothered.
"Please, let me explain..." he gestured for silence and slowly the voices lowered and died down. "There is something that has been hidden from everyone. No one knows about this. Both vampires and humans alike have speculated on the war that is to come. Am I not right?" He was trying to buy time, so that the secret of his nephew"s true heritage would not come out before the media or the opposition stormed in.
"How can you talk about a coming war, when there have been no rumors of it?" asked another senator, from far off. His face was hidden by the wave of senators ahead of him.
"It is obvious," responded John. "No political a.n.a.lyst or government official needs to tell the people. It"s in the air and it will come whether we want it or not, whether we prepare for it or not."
"So what are you proposing?" Gars asked. "And you still have not told us about this thing the vampires have?"
"It"s my nephew. They wanted my nephew. What I am proposing"
The media stormed in. d.a.m.n it! If they only came a little earlier. d.a.m.n it! If they only came a little earlier. They started asking questions and cameras flew around everywhere either recording the situation or taking photographs. They started asking questions and cameras flew around everywhere either recording the situation or taking photographs.
"Settle down!" yelled Lylock, once again taking the lead. Along with the media were Richard and the other Council members. "Please settle down! Who gave you permission to come in here?"
Suddenly, vast numbers of people charged inside repeatedly chanting, "We want John!"
"This has gone far enough!" Gars yelled. The other senators, who had already stood up when the media burst in, tried to leave the room. They wanted nothing to do with a political controversy that could potentially damage their own image.
John took control of the situation by gesturing for silence. "People of the Earth," at this many of them yelled gleefully, "please cooperate with me and the others here." Now was the chance. He only had to wait for the culprit who had attacked Jarad. He knew he would come and even though he took a big risk it was still a calculated one. The people calmed down and waited for John to speak. "You have been deceived. That is the truth. I have some things I want to share with you as well. Firstly, I was not behind the attack on Councilman Hameed. It may sound strange but the truth is that it was preplanned by Jarad himself and these people here." He pointed at the other Council members. All heads turned to see who the culprits were. They looked at each other in surprise as if they didn"t know what was going on.
"He"s wrong," burst out Scott, a portly man with a large double chin that stretched down to his chest. He looked ferociously at John and shook with anger, his large fleshy facial skin flapping about. "We have no connection with this so-called coup! We have no affiliations with Jarad. We only want what he wants..."
"...and that"s power!" John yelled out. "That"s the truth. By the way," he smirked, "I never mentioned anything about a coup when you were here. Somebody else is in on this." He stayed silent, while all eyes were on the Councilmen.
Someone from the crowd yelled out, "Down with Jarad and the Council! Elect John as the Supreme Leader of the Regnum!" Everyone in the crowd agreed and kept yelling out remarks like, "Kill them!" "Make them suffer!" "Get Jarad and hang him for his treason!" Some of the crowd began to attack the Council Members, pulling them by the collar and trying to strangulate them.
But John said, "Don"t! Please, don"t." At once his order was obeyed. "If we attack them, we will be no better! We must have a peaceful transition if we are to succeed."
"Peaceful transition?" asked Senator Blake, a very influential man not only in the government but also in the business world as one of the richest stockholders in the market. "What kind of transition are you talking about?"
"First of all..." John paused and gesture for Richard. He whispered, "Get the guards. We will need them soon." Richard nodded and ran outside the Great Hall. "Of course, we must do what is best for all of us, Senator Blake. We must have action. We must have responsiveness, urgency, and above all, total control of our ideals! I am doing this for democracy, for the people and ultimately for our existence."
Blake laughed. "Existence? We are alive-"
"Not for long," John said, "if the vampires have their way. They will be coming to get us soon. Before that happens we must prepare for the inevitable: War. Are you with me?" he asked the crowd. They roared affirmations. John looked each Senator in the eye. He knew he would win and they knew it too. "Now, I will ask the Senate to give me emergency executive powers to deal with the situation we are about to be in. I ask them to hereby close the session by electing me Supreme Leader of all Regnum, in total control of all aspects of the Regnum, including the Senate, the Judiciary, and the other sub-aspects of the political body of the State. Is that agreed?" Shouts erupted from the crowd, but none from the Senate.
Lylock spoke, "John, you are asking for exactly what you are speaking against!"
"Don"t say anything to me, Lylock, you traitor!"
"What"s the meaning of this?" Lylock shouted.
"I know you"re the one who"s been letting the Council in on what"s happening. Isn"t it so?"
"How can you be so sure?" asked Senator Donaldson, sitting in the front row and looking at John with his forest green eyes. His face showed a deep seriousness, but not out of dislike for John. Instead he looked curious and supportive. "What makes you think you can be a good leader?"
"You are going too far with this and you are going to kill us all!" Senator Blythe said, sitting right next to Donaldson. Her face cringed in anger and repulse. "Jarad was right!"
The crowd became agitated and moved closer and closer towards the Senate.
"Wait!" John yelled. Again the noise died down, this time at once. "You don"t believe me, right?" He directed the question to the Senate. "Then, search him!" A group of thirty officer guards arrived. "Guards, search Senator Lylock for any communication devices!" Two guards ran up the stairs and followed John"s command. They found an earpiece and a wireless microphone on the old senator"s watch. "There you go. Is there any other proof you need?" The senators remained silent and looked at Lylock with disgust and shock. "Take him away and arrest him and those four," he pointed to the Councilmen, "for treason." Six more guards broke ranks from their formation and arrested the others. John looked at the senators. "Is there anything else that you need before you pa.s.s this bill?"
Someone from the throng of people yelled out in pain. A masked man jumped in with a plasma handgun, running and pushing his way through the crowd. He quickly aimed at John and fired. The General instinctively ducked and the bullet missed him by a few inches and blew a hole in the wall behind him. Immediately, the people disarmed the man and attacked him. They unmasked him. "Behold!" yelled John. "The man who attempted to a.s.sa.s.sinate Jarad. Ha.s.san Hameed, his own son! Guards take him away." Three more guards ran to arrest Ha.s.san but the crowd didn"t allow it and started beating the man senselessly. John ordered them to stop but they continued to vent their suppressed anger and confusion on the a.s.sa.s.sin. John yelled out, "Citizens, there is no need to make him suffer! He has been through enough, like you all! Let the guards take him and let true justice take its course." Finally the crowd obeyed him. The guards took Ha.s.san and arrested him, escorting him outside to join the Council Members and Lylock.