He felt the middle of his back heat up and a certain pressure in between his eyebrows, just where the ridge of the nose began. He kept himself straight. He knew if he didn’t adhere to Nick’s words, there would be deadly consequences. A swirling energy revolved around him and a white light engulfed him. He felt lighter. His uncle’s voice echoed in his mind, “Alex, we have just begun. Now, like in the ship, your body is going to levitate. When that happens, don’t move an inch; don’t bend your spine. When the energy reaches your brain, you will feel pain. It will intensify, but only for some time. Then you will feel new, different.”
“Okay. I won’t move.” Alex’s body levitated and he felt the light in him radiate outwards, just like it had on the ship. A feeling of calm and a sense of oneness with the universe washed over him. He lost the ego, but not his individuality. He heard that low buzz in his ears and it became unbearable. “Concentrate,”he told himself, “I have to concentrate!”And then he felt it, the fluid of bliss and the cosmic power rushing into his brain and he knew nothing, felt nothing, and thought nothing. He was lost to his self, to his identity, individuality, and to his name. He felt nothing; there was no black, no white, no color, no sound, no senses, no feeling, no emotions, no reason, no duality, no singularity even. It just was.
John wanted to see her before he left. He sat in the room alone. His hope remained intact, even though thoughts of finality tried to seep in and diminish his spirit. In the end he knew she would live. He wouldn’t allow her to die!
As he observed his mom’s face, he thought of old times, long gone. Times were rough during the war, but at least Miriam and Aidan were alive. During those days, they were fighting for something they believed in. He knew it would happen again but these soldiers were young and inexperienced. He sighed as he gathered his thoughts. He wasn’t afraid or unsure of his men’s competence and skill. He was unsure of himself.
Although he had kept up his sword fighting as a recreation it had been a long time since he had fought. He had no idea what the Earth would be like and he wondered whether the vampires were up to mischief. He just hoped that everything would go to plan and that Alex would be safe.
There was a knock on the door, disturbing his flow of thought. Richard came in. “You ready?” Richard’s face seemed grave and suddenly a little old.
“Yeah. You okay?”
Richard smiled, “Yeah, of course.”
“Sit down.” John’s attention shifted to Richard who was now seated. “So what do you think?” His face creased with lines of worry and fear.
“You mean about this war?”
“No, about this particular battle. The war will come in time; the real war will come soon. You know this is only the beginning.”
“Above all, it’s Alex’s safety. Everything else will fall into place.”
“I hope so,” John said, once again looking at his mother. Her face was tired and lethargic, as if all the life had been sucked from it. The life supply systems and heart monitor remained normal. At least physically she remained intact. John knew she struggled for her life, but he intuited that there was more to it.
“Trust me,” Richard put his hand on John’s shoulder. “Everything will be fine.”
“Yeah,” he said. “Let’s go.”
They exited the hospital, where the crowds began to disperse. They cheered as they saw John and he smiled at them. He and Richard went into the limousine and the vehicle sped off to the Main Hangar, where everyone would be assembling and getting their supplies, arms, ammunition, swords, and space fighters ready.
The Hangar remained a restricted section of Regnum where only those with access cards could enter. These access cards could be issued only to those in power, and all official military personnel. The Hangar was located on top of the Regnum, outside the glass containment. Alongside it were two more hangars, where civilian spaceships and tourist cruisers were located. These were used for those who wanted to take a fifteen day cruise of the Regnum, orbiting the man-made planet. The third hangar was used for scientists who would send satellites and unmanned ships to monitor the Regnum from afar. They did this for their own personal researches and for communicating to the military about its position.
The Main Hangar could hold two thousand fighters, four hundred space tanks (which held a thousand ships at a time and three hundred thousand men), and eight hundred transport tankers (which were used as larger fighters and transportation for soldiers who had to go from one area to another) at a time. There were many more fighters kept in storage in the lower levels of the Hangar. If needed, they could be quickly transported by large cargo elevators.
John and Richard left the limo and took a lone elevator located in the middle of the Regnum and thirty kilometers from Central Square. Here too access cards needed to be used in order to enter. The elevator looked like a large metal rod that extended upwards to the outside of the Regnum like a spinal cord. They arrived there at 4:55. A soldier saluted them and escorted them into a large skyscraper, towering four hundred feet in the air, above the glass like an antennae. Here all the administrative work of the army, navy, and air force was collected, distributed and dealt with. Two soldiers with guns slung over their backs led them to the elevator which took them all the way to the twenty seventh and top floor. From there, they were further escorted up the stairs, to the terrace. The terrace was contained within a glass oxygen bubble. There, a private space-jet waited for them and took them to the Main Hangar. This was one of two ways to get the hangar. The other, slower way was through the Fortress, a large base protected by heavily armed guards and surrounded by an electric barbed wire fence. The guards opened the gates to let in cargo and military trucks. These transports would pass through a tunnel, one and a half kilometers from the entrance that would lead them to the lower levels of the Hangar. This base and the skyscraper were part of a huge complex dealing only with the armed forces.
As soon as they stepped out of the jet they were saluted and greeted by the five generals and their respective soldiers, along with Commander Lord and his pilots.
“At ease!” John said firmly. “Gather around fellows. In a few minutes from now, we will embark on a course for Earth. Many of you haven’t ever been there before. Nevertheless, you must know and realize it to be your home. Take this as your first of many exoduses, back to the promised realm. You will fight those who took our rightful place from us, and I urge, nay, I command you to show no mercy!
“Don’t be afraid. Remember that your fight will never go in vain, for we are the righteous. Our fight is not a fight of force but a war for life itself. We struggle for our rights, and we shall have them! I swear to you we shall have them!
“Now, lift your swords with me,” a sword was given to John, “and swear an oath along with me.” They all lifted their swords. “I swear by this sacred weapon, and by the blood that it defends, that I will never let this fall from my hands, until I am dead, or until I have returned from promised victory. Never shall I go against my people in times of war or peace, and I shall respect the ancient traditions of war, battle ethics, and will not falter in the eyes of my enemy. So help me God!