The Uprising

by L. J. Suarez

  “Yeah, it’s me.”

  Sarah hadn’t aged a day. She looked just as he remembered her. “How… How can you be here? You… You…”

  “Died?” Sarah finished. “Technically, I did. But part of me lived on. In here. And here.” She pointed to Aaron’s forehead and then his heart as she spoke.

  Aaron was filled with so many questions, he didn’t know where to begin. Before he could open his mouth, Sarah gazed at the ocean. “Remember this spot?”

  Aaron indeed knew this beach quite well. “Fort Tilden. This is where I popped ya the question.”

  Sarah giggled. “You were trying so hard to act cool. But I knew you were a nervous wreck inside.”

  “Can ya blame me? I was about to ask the most beautiful girl to be with me for the long haul.”

  “I’m glad you did. To me, you’ll always be that guy from Gainesville that I fell for.”

  Aaron reached out his hand and grabbed onto hers.

  “I miss you,” Sarah said.

  He let a tear flow from his eye. “You have no idea…how much I…” Aaron nearly choked on his words. He cleared his throat. “It’s been so long. But all that matters is that we’re together now. There’s no other place I’d rather be.”

  Sarah’s angelic smile fell. “You can’t stay here.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You have to go back.”

  “Why? I wanna be here with you.”

  “You will, but not now. Mace needs you, now more than ever.”

  “Mace can take care of himself. There’s nothing else for me to teach him that he doesn’t know already.”

  “He’s grown to be a good man. A strong man, like his dad. But he still needs your wisdom. Your guidance. There’s still work left for you to do.”

  Sarah planted her lips on Aaron’s and held there for a long moment. He placed his hand on Sarah’s soft cheek as they stared into each other eyes for the last time. “We will see each other again.” Sarah said with certainty.

  Even though Aaron didn’t want to admit it, Sarah was right. He couldn’t stay. Mace would need him to help guide their people toward whatever the future held.

  “Good bye, Sarah.”

  * * *

  When Aaron opened his eyes again, Sarah and Fort Tilden were gone. He found himself lying on a patient bed wearing a white, two-piece gown. Hovering nearby was a medical drone. The chrome-covered, floating machine waved its claw-like arms over Aaron’s chest while making various electric sounds.

  Mace stood beside his bed, his face revealing a sense of relief that his father had awakened. “Welcome back.”

  “Where…am I?”

  “At the Science Institute.”

  Aaron attempted to speak again, but was too weak to let out a word.

  “Save your strength. You’re gonna be fine.”

  The drone twisted around to Mace and spoke in a synthesized voice. “His brain trauma, along with the rest of his internal injuries, have been successfully repaired. It is recommended that he remain in the medical bay for one more day before he can be released.”

  “Thanks,” Mace said.

  Aaron smiled as he looked up at Mace. “Hey, champ.”

  “How do you feel?”

  “Not too bad, if this bucket of bolts would stop probing me. So damn invasive.”

  “It’s just doing its job, Dad.”

  “How long have I been out?”

  Mace paused before saying, “Two weeks.”

  Aaron rubbed his temple. “Jesus, that’s a hell of a long nap.”

  “No kidding. You had us all worried there for a second.”

  Aaron noticed Mace was wearing full-on battle gear with parts of the fabric torn open, especially around his chest and abdomen area. Parts of his face was covered with scratches along with a bruised eye like he had been in a fight. “You look terrible.”

  Mace chuckled. “It’s a rough few weeks.”

  “What did I miss while I was out?”

  Mace dodged his question, and instead asked. “Do you remember anything of what happened at the border?”

  “I remember talking to Ionne. Heard a loud explosion, then the next thing I know, I ended up here.” He stopped short before continuing, unsure whether to disclosure what he had experienced. Mace had a right to know. Aaron gave the med drone an annoyed stare. “Give us a moment.”

  “Certainly.” The drone complied and hovered away to the other end of the room.

  Aaron then said. “I saw Mom. Right before I woke up here.”

  Mace’s face was blank, clearly unsure how to take what Aaron had just dropped.

  “We were at Fort Tilden, where I proposed to her. She looked so beautiful—so at peace.” He shook his head. “I dunno…maybe I hallucinated the whole thing. But it felt very real to me.”

  Mace wiped a tear from his eye. He went on to explain to Aaron everything that had transpired while he was asleep, from the attack they waged on Empyreum, Bishop and Reed’s betrayal and all the way up to the point of Empyreum nearly being obliterated by a nuclear blast.

  Aaron remained silent after Mace finished, trying to get his head around everything he had just heard.

  “I’m sorry, Dad. I messed up—let ya down. It was my fault that things got so out of control. I let my beef with the Monads get the best of me, and allowed Reed and Bishop to use me in their scheme to plot their revenge. I should’ve been stronger.”

  Aaron shook his head. “Don’t beat yourself up so much, kid. We all make mistakes.”

  “It’s not as simple as that. I nearly got us all killed.”

  “But you didn’t. You learned from your mistakes and made it right at the exact moment you needed to. That’s what counts. You got me to the Monads in the nick of time. You saved my life. You saved us all. I know for a fact that your mom is very proud of the man you turned out to be. So am I.” Aaron took a firm hold of Mace’s hand who smiled warmly at him.

  * * *

  Med Bay 2 was filled with even more human and Monad patients than Bay 1, where Aaron was being treated.

  Over the last twenty-fours, after the war in Empyreum’s streets had ceased, the staff at the Institute had been treating the wounded from the conflict. Mace was fortunate to have only sustained a few bruises and scratches. Not bad for someone who was nearly vaporized in a nuclear blast. The Monads confirmed that the radiation from the fallout was at a safe distance from Empyreum and posed no threat to the population.

  Mace made his way through rows of open patient beds until he found Ava lying on the last one. She was speaking to one of the med technicians, and still had some of her battle gear on as she was being examined. Her face brightened when she saw him standing in front of the bed. The tech left them both alone.

  “How you holding up?” Mace said.

  She nodded. “I’m good. How’s Aaron?”

  “Recovering. They patched up his injuries, and he should be up on his feet by tomorrow.”

  “That’s good.” She hesitated, then said, “I’m sorry about what happened to Kora. I had no idea you two were close. You never talked about her before.”

  “I know. It was a long time ago. We were both kids when we first met at school. Didn’t want to admit it at the time, but I kind of had a boyhood crush on her.”

  “Did you love her?”

  Mace paused a moment, not sure how to answer. “Yeah, I suppose I did,” he finally said. “It was the first time I’d had those kinds of feelings for anyone. Never thought it would be with someone who wasn’t human.”

  Ava smiled as she lowered her head.

  With the tip of his finger, Mace lifted her chin up before he continued. “I almost forgot what it felt like after living in the Outlands for so long. Until I met you.”

  Ava’s face brightened. “When the doctors were treating some of my injuries, they made a…discovery.”

  “What kind?” Mace said, his curiosity piqued.

  “Something wonderful.”

  Ava
nervously turned to the Monad technician standing by her side. With a wave of his hand, a digital screen appeared a few feet above Ava’s stomach. The image was of a fetus, well past eight weeks of development. Its tiny head and two arms protruded from its center, while the legs were folded inward.

  “Doctors say it’s a girl.”

  Mace was bewildered as he watched the arms start to move around.

  “What do you think?” she said with a grin.

  Mace turned to Ava and looked at her with a wide-eyed grin. “I think we’re gonna need a bigger place.”

  Chapter 45

  Mace couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt this anxious.

  Living in the Outlands had hardened him to the point of near fearlessness. But today was a different story, as his sweaty palms would tell. The enormous doors before Mace slid open as he, along with Aaron and Ionne, made their way inside the main chamber of the Inner Council hall. Hovering several feet from the marble floor was the bench where the rest of the council members were situated with Councilor Saavi seated in the middle. Instead of taking her place with the other councilors, Ionne had decided to stand by Mace and Aaron during this most important moment. The three stood over the Inner Council emblem, which still shone in its bronze tone.

  “My fellow councilors,” Ionne addressed them. “I come here to present to you someone we all know. Who was once a resident of our city, and is today the leader of the human settlement of New Lazarus. He has requested an audience with this council.”

  “May he step forward, then,” Saavi said.

  Ionne moved to the side as Aaron, clean-shaven—which made his wrinkled cheeks more noticeable—and wearing a fresh, dark colored outfit, stepped forward with ease. He did not look like someone who not long ago was close to death.

  “The last time I stood in this chamber, my arms were restrained as I was being sentenced to the Outlands for the rest of my life. Glad to see y’all are more welcoming of me this time.”

  A few grins escaped some of the councilor members’ faces seated at the bench.

  “Councilor Saavi and fellow council leaders, I come here today because of the fragile history our peoples share. Since I was first created at the Science Institute over three decades ago, there have been certain Monads who were troubled by my mere existence, to put it lightly. They feared what I represented, and the damage I could bring to your society if more humans were brought back. On more than one occasion, these individuals went to great lengths to see that I and others like me were eradicated just so they could protect your way of life. But what transpired during these last few weeks has proven that perhaps their fears were not entirely unfounded. Both sides have gone to great lengths to kill each other, all because of fear. I played a part in the problem when I decided that it would be best that our people should be isolated in our own little corner of the world. At the time, I thought I was doing the right thing by keeping us away from you and avoiding any more future bloodshed. All it did was create unnecessary hardship for my people, and many deaths.”

  Mace noticed Aaron choke on those last words, but he quickly recovered.

  “I was wrong. The tensions between us never seized. It only grew. It was a mistake to have severed ties between us. All it did is make us weaker. I realize now that we are stronger together. Mutual cooperation is the only way for our peoples to co-exist peacefully, and end our long-lasting conflict. The fighting stops today. I speak on behalf of all the remaining humans still left: we extend our hand in friendship, and offer a lasting peace. Put the bad blood in the past, and start a new future—together.”

  All the councilors whispered to each other. Once the rushed tones settled, Saavi stared at Aaron until she rose from her seat. She stepped onto a platform off to the side of the bench and lowered down to the ground level. Mace and Aaron both looked up as the massive Monad leader approached them.

  “On behalf of the Inner Council and every Monad in Gaia…we would be delighted to accept your hand in friendship and build a long-lasting peace.” She extended her hand toward Aaron. He studied it for a moment. “A human tradition to signify a new relationship, I believe.” A wide smile formed across her mouth. Mace watched as his father took Saavi’s hand, and the two held onto each other’s palms for a long moment as the councilors began to clap in celebration.

  Ionne gave Mace a proud nod as she took in the historic moment.

  Mace turned to Aaron and said in a low voice, “Good speech.”

  Aaron smirked. “Thanks. Didn’t even have to rehearse it.”

  Chapter 46

  Damn, it’s good to be home.

  Mace took in a long breath of the chilled morning air as he strolled across New Lazarus’s courtyard. All around him were settlers with buckets and new slabs of logs in hand.

  Repairs to the settlement were well underway in the aftermath of the Empyreum security forces’ invasion. The Inner Council offered assistance in the rebuilding of New Lazarus as part of the new relations both races had formed. Initially, the Inner Council were willing to relocate the human settlers to a habitable planet where they can have a fresh start in a new world. Aaron declined their proposal and reminded them that Earth was as much their planet as it was the Monad’s; and they were willing to share it. Instead, the settlers graciously accepted Monad replicator units to produce any items they needed at will, making their lives in the Outlands less desperate.

  Ava waved at him from a distance while she conversed with a Monad engineer.

  Mace returned her wave and grinned as he gazed at her swollen belly that was starting to show. He looked forward to their future together, with their creation that was on the way. He continued down the path and spotted Aaron and Ionne standing together at the hill, overseeing the settlement. After hiking up the hill, he joined them as they stood before Sarah’s grave, heads bowed. A group of lilies were planted by the burial. Her favorite flower.

  Aaron sensed Mace’s presence. “I was showing Ionne the view from up here.”

  They were silent for a moment until Ionne turned to face the view of New Lazarus below. “You were right, Aaron. Sarah would have loved the scenery from this location.”

  Mace moved with Ionne and Aaron to the edge of the hill. He didn’t say anything as he watched another Monad airship come in for a landing by the courtyard. It was most likely carrying more materials and supplies for the reconstruction project. He could see some of the settlers on top of the structures putting up new roofs, while others were replacing walls with the Monads’ assistance.

  “It’s surreal, isn’t it?” Aaron said, addressing no one in particular. “Humans and Monads working together instead of fighting one another. I honestly didn’t think I’d see this again.”

  “I only hope this truce lasts,” Ionne added.

  Aaron grinned. “My hunch tells me it will.” He turned to Mace. “You know, everything that’s happened left me thinking it’s time for me to hang up my hat.”

  Mace arched a brow. “What do you mean?”

  “I’ve decided to step down as leader of the Committee. And I’m passing the torch over to you.”

  Mace failed to hide the astonished expression on his face. He softened. “Are you sure you wanna do this? I’m not sure I’m cut out to be a leader.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong. You learned from your mistake when it counted, and did what was right. You were even willing to sacrifice your own life, for god’s sake. If that ain’t leadership material, then I don’t know what the hell is. Whatcha think, Doc?”

  Ionne cast a wide grin. “I know how you are feeling, Mace. When the Inner Council selected me as director of the Science Institute after Kieran’s passing, I too had doubts whether I could succeed him. But he saw something within me that I failed to see for myself. I know that if he were here now and saw this thriving village with thousands of humans living in it, he would be most pleased by what we have accomplished. I cannot think of anyone better to lead humanity forward.”

  Aaron a
dded, “Besides, it’ll give me time to work on the garden. Play with my future granddaughter. I think I’ll enjoy the retirement life.” He patted Mace on the back. “Don’t worry, I still be standing over your shoulder and telling you what to do.”

  Mace stayed silent as he looked out into the horizon as the rays of dawn cast over the settlement. The miniature figures that made up its residents could be seen putting up fresh panels of the new west wall. Mace never saw himself being a leader of anything. He saw himself as a warrior first, being on the front lines and doing whatever he needed to protect his home and the people in it. But if his father and Ionne had this much faith in him, then there was no reason he couldn’t do both. He’d do his damnedest to protect at all costs, and create a better world for his new family. Most of all, he’d make his mother proud.

  “So? What do ya say, champ?” Aaron asked.

  A grin tugged at the corner of Mace’s lips. “Why the hell not?”

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  Books by L.J. Suarez

  THE ANCESTOR TRILOGY

  The Ancestor

  The Shadow Order

  The Uprising

  STANDALONES

  Redemption Alley

  About the Author

  L.J. Suarez writes fast-paced stories with plenty of unexpected twists and features relatable characters constantly thrust into extraordinary situations. He was born and raised in South Florida by Cuban parents and has a strong connection to his Latin roots that has shaped who he is today.

  You can join L.J.’s exclusive Facebook group, “L.J. Suarez’s Relentless Readers,” where you can connect with him directly as well as keep up to date on the latest news and discussions. Get a free copy of Emergence, the prequel to the Ancestor trilogy, by signing up for his newsletter at www.ljsuarez.com.