After Impact: After Impact Trilogy, Book 1

by Stark, Nicole

  Viggo’s face lit up.

  “Thank you for gracing me with your presence!” Viggo said. After a moment he added, “I am so sorry I failed you. However, I did not tell the President anything about you.”

  “Very good. I knew you wouldn’t. You are very loyal,” the visitor reassured.

  “Thank you, your grace. You are most gracious,” Viggo said with relief.

  “Don’t speak of it. You have served me well.”

  “The world will remember me won’t they? I will be famous, like you said?” Viggo asked.

  “Famous,” the figure repeated. “By the way, I brought you some bread. I had to pay the guard extra for this,” the cloaked figure said handing him some bread through a small hole in the glass.

  “Thank you,” Viggo said, biting off a piece of bread and quickly chewing it. “You wouldn’t believe the food they serve to prisoners here. Absolutely disgusting. I almost feel sorry for the lower classes.”

  “Are our final plans in order?” The figure asked.

  “Yes. Everything is just as you said. The President does not suspect a thing.”

  “Continue to eat. Your reward will be even greater if you pull this off,” the figure said, walking away.

  Once Ilium returned to his dorm, Avalon brought him some warm soup. Avalon had never entered his dorm before.

  He was allowed to live alone until the full 5000 members awakened as courtesy for being the physician. What Avalon didn’t know was what a penchant he had for ancient books and movies.

  Ilium had an excellent drawing ability, and his room was lined with pictures of elves and beings from the Lord of the Rings and intricate maps of make believe worlds. Her fingers ran across the covers of some old books. He must have smuggled these in undetected somehow. Ilium, you sly dog. Avalon opened the dusty books, letting out a plum of dust into the air. She sniffled a few times and ran her hands across the wrinkled yellow pages. Nothing could compare to the unique feel of ancient paper.

  His appearance had changed slightly since he returned. His bright eyes still remained, but the rest of his appearance bore little to the boyish mid-westerner Avalon had first met. Where his face was once a tad pudgy, now stood sharp lines.

  Ilium chuckled. “Isn’t this interesting. Now you are feeding me.”

  Avalon smiled. Inside, Ilium was the same as always. “I thought I’d lost you. Forever,” her voice shook as she said the word forever.

  Ilium stood up and took her hands into his. He gingerly placed his hands around her slender waist. Then he tilted her chin, which was pointing down, up towards his face. Avalon was once again taken aback by how the boyish Ilium had been replaced with a more chiseled version. Gently, he removed a strand of hair which slipped from her ponytail, and placed it behind her ear. Then he leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on her cheek.

  “You don’t ever have to worry about that again.”

  Avalon tried to hide her disappointment that the kiss had not landed on her lips and instead began to pepper him with questions. “So tell me, what was it like out there? Is it totally desolate like my father projected? Or is there some tiny piece of green that managed to survive?”

  Ilium lowered his eyes. “Everything is destroyed. There is nothing but a sea of red dust. I didn’t see a speck of water anywhere, or any trees. I honestly don’t know if we can terraform.” After he said that, once again, the image of the dark complexioned man came to his mind. Ilium considered whether or not to tell Avalon about his strange encounter with the man on the outside, but instead he chopped it up to a hallucination as a result of a near death experience and decided to keep it to himself.

  “I know it looks bad. But my father predicted that the air should at least be breathable by the time the countdown clock finishes. I am sure that given enough time, we can make it work outside,” Avalon said.

  Avalon hugged Ilium which he returned. Still, he was slightly unsettled that he hallucinated a strange man instead of life at the orphanage, or Avalon.

  “Rest up,” she said, about to swipe her wrist across the door. That’s when Ilium grabbed her wrist softly from behind, and turned her towards him. Avalon’s body buzzed with electricity and warmth as she inhaled Ilium’s scent. Wrapped in his embrace, she listened to his heartbeat like it was the hottest soundtrack of the summer.

  “You were what I thought about when I was outside. When I thought I was going to die. Every step I took, I took for you,” Ilium said as he pressed his lips against Avalon’s.

  That’s when Avalon’s smartwatch buzzed.

  “Who is it?” Ilium asked with irritation.

  Avalon paused. “Brody.”

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Ilium and Avalon stared at the smartwatch in disbelief.

  “How could it be?” Avalon asked.

  “Answer it,” Ilium said without hesitation.

  Avalon answered the phone.

  “Hey guys! What’s happening?” a voice said.

  Avalon shook. She knew the voice was Brody’s. Still it could be a sick trick played by Viggo. Trust no one.

  “Fine. How are you?” she asked.

  “Man, I am much better now I am over this virus thing. You guys wouldn’t believe what happened to me! Ilium gave me some shot, which he thought would make me better, but it didn’t help. So a few hours later, I flatlined.”

  “That must have been a terrible experience,” Avalon said calmly.

  “Not really. Because the weirdest part is I woke up.”

  “What do you mean, you woke up?” Ilium asked.

  “I woke up. After waking up, I feel super strong. I tried it out, and I can lift stuff I could never dream of before.”

  Avalon wanted to hang up the phone, sure it was some bot Viggo programmed to talk to her realistically until then she remembered Dexter. Dexter said the virus killed him. But then he mutated. He became something else. Could this be the case also with Brody?

  “Brody, where are you? We want to meet you?” Avalon asked.

  “I’m right outside guys,” Brody answered.

  Avalon looked at Ilium. Ilium nodded his head to say it was okay to open the door, while he hid by the side, ready to pounce if anything should happen.

  Avalon opened the door. Broad shoulders and an even broader smile greeted her. It was Brody alright.

  “Brody!” Avalon screamed as she hugged him. Instantly, all of her feelings of unease disappeared.

  However, Ilium wasn’t so sure. He stood still in the corner and merely watched, his gaze guarded and analytical.

  “What’s the matter Ilium? Don’t recognize me?”

  Ilium didn’t move a muscle.

  “It’s him,” Avalon said, hoping Ilium would say something back to Brody.

  “Darn right, it’s me! Who else could it be?” Brody chuckled.

  “Anyone,” Ilium answered through clenched teeth.

  Brody looked dead at Ilium. “You have a right to be cautious. Some weird, freaky, unpleasant stuff has been going on in this place.”

  Ilium nodded in acknowledgment.

  “I really appreciate how hard you two worked trying to save me from the virus too. I hate it didn’t work, as I can tell it caused you stress. But something else happened instead. Something wonderful. And as a result, I am stronger now. Stronger than I ever was before.”

  Avalon nodded her head, but Ilium wasn’t so convinced.

  “Who else knows you are alive now?” Ilium asked.

  “Nobody. I came straight to you guys.”

  “Good,” Avalon said. “Keep it that way for now.”

  “Where do I go?” he asked.

  Avalon and Ilium exchanged glances. “The storage room for now.”

  Brody nodded. “We will let you know when it is safe to let others know,” Avalon said.

  Around 1200 hours, the President sent a wallscreen message throughout the habitat calling for everyone to assemble in the cafeteria for Viggo’s sentencing. In lieu of his hurried decision with Ilium,
the President wanted to follow the rulebook with Viggo.

  Everyone obliged, as that was around normal lunch times, and everyone obeyed the President.

  “I am hungry, so I hope he gets this over with,” Skylar said.

  Avalon rolled her eyes as she entered the cafeteria. Skylar was begging for someone to just punch her in the face and shut her up. But Avalon’s excitement over Brody overwhelmed Skylar’s ability to get under her skin.

  The room had been rearranged to better resemble a courtroom setting. The President sat behind a large wooden desk a few yards in front of Viggo. The jury, as it were, consisted of the six Council members who sat to the side of the President. The President ordered everyone to sit down and serve as witnesses to the trial.

  Viggo stood before the President to hear his sentencing. Two guards flanked his sides in case he tried anything, despite his hands and feet being shackled.

  In the habitat, defense attorneys did not exist. Each individual represented themselves. However, the rule of innocent until proven guilty still prevailed.

  “Viggo. You have been charged with committing multiple atrocious acts against the members of this habitat. Tell me, what do you plea?” The President asked.

  “Not guilty.”

  “I figured you would say that, although I hoped you would plead guilty so I might exercise mercy upon you. Despite everything, you truly were a brilliant scientist.”

  “Thank you. I would just like to say that one day you all will realize my greatness. I am not guilty of maliciously killing anyone. What I did was all for the betterment of our species. Some people had to be sacrificed for the greater good of the many. This is an unfortunate truth. However, to categorize me as a monster is a heinous malapropism. I know you are going to cast me out, no matter what I say. But I do want to leave you with the words of Niccolo Machiavelli.”

  The President listened in silence.

  “There is nothing more difficult, to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things.”

  Silence followed briefly before Brody yelled, “Boo!”

  The President allowed the audience to continue booing for a minute before he waved his hands in the air to silence them.

  “By the power vested in me as President of this habitat, you, Viggo, are sentenced to expulsion from the habitat for your repeated and egregious cri—”

  The entire habitat began to shake, cutting off The President mid-sentence.

  Avalon’s eyes widened with horror as she stared at Viggo who only smirked as the second shake caused him to fall to his knees.

  “You did this!” she yelled.

  “Yes, I did. I planted a series of explosives which are currently detonating!”

  Avalon opened her mouth to speak again when she was deafened by the sound of another explosion. Several ceiling tiles crashed to the ground while exposed air ducts dangled hazardously. The lights flickered off and on. Shards of metal flew towards Avalon who shielded her face with her arm. Her arm stung as blood trickled from it and tiny shards of metal stuck in her hair, lightly pricking her scalp.

  Viggo ran to the exit, but Avalon tried to block him despite her injury. Ilium beat her to the punch and rammed into him full force. Ilium sat on top of Viggo, wrapping his legs around the latter’s midsection, pinning him down to the ground. Viggo squirmed to get loose as Ilium fought to hold his arms down. Viggo continued to bite and buck against him.

  “Are you okay?” Ilium asked Avalon.

  “Yeah, just a cut on my arm,” she replied.

  A guard yelled out, “Children of Ash” before rushing towards Ilium when Avalon spotted a piece of fallen metal swinging low like a pendulum from the ceiling. Grabbing it, she ran towards the guard, her boots crunching on shattered metal and glass, and slammed it as hard as she could into the back of the guard’s skull.

  “Thanks,” Ilium said without taking his eyes or arms off of Viggo.

  Avalon nodded, despite her lightheaded sensation. She tore at her left pants leg and ripped it. Wrapping a piece of it around her arm to stop the bleeding.

  Another explosion erupted, and Viggo used the shock to arch his back and push off from underneath Ilium. Avalon ran towards Viggo and swung the metal she held as hard as she could.

  It missed.

  Viggo darted passed Ilium and ran through the cafeteria door. Ilium and Avalon followed him, but Viggo had already entered the air lock. Viggo waved goodbye and without any proper suiting stepped outside. Viggo is crazier than I realized.

  Avalon caught her breath, and looked at Ilium as the habitat floor kept quaking.

  “The explosions,” she yelled over the deafening noise, “I think they wiped out the oxygen generator.”

  “That’s not the only thing they wiped out,” Ilium yelled as several warning lights flickered and the AI kept saying, “Warning. Oxygen levels low. Warning, Water levels low. Warning, Atmosphere rapidly changing inside.”

  Avalon and Ilium ran back to the cafeteria. Chaos abounded as people hunched under tables and bled out from their wounds.

  “What on earth are we going to do?” Avalon asked Ilium with tears in her eyes.

  The President walked over to her and held her. Avalon shook away from the President.

  “Don’t you dare touch me! This is all your fault! All of this is your fault. If you had only been more observant. You were the one who let that crazy Viggo in the habitat when it should have been my father!” she yelled.

  “That is true. But now, allow me to control the people. You have shouldered a responsibility which wasn’t yours.”

  “Because you failed to shoulder it,” Avalon spat.

  “I admit.... I have failed you in the past. But you must trust me now,” he said.

  “Trust you? After all of these innocent people died, whose deaths could have been prevented had you been more vigilant?” Avalon screams. “Those in the cryochambers who will never awaken? Those who were taken for experiments like Michelle?”

  The President’s eyes flickered with anger but gave way to sorrow.

  Avalon clenched her jaw. She had more to say, but chose not to because her words were having an effect on him. Despite her feelings towards him, he possessed some undeniable tactical survival techniques due to his age alone. A few minutes passed as everyone held their breath to see if another explosive was going to go off.

  It didn’t.

  Her shoulders slowly relaxed. But then she remembered something. Why was that guard about to strike Ilium? Viggo kept saying he wasn’t alone……Since he was in the holding cell for so long, who helped to plant the bombs?

  Out of the corner of her eye, Avalon began scanning the room for culprits. Whoever it was, would have probably tried to leave the room, or they would not be as shocked as the others. Avalon carefully glanced at Skylar. She was in a corner sobbing, so it wasn’t her. Next, she looked at Raleigh who was in obvious shock. Plus, it just didn’t fit her profile. Her mind flew to Kael, but he wouldn’t do such a thing, not after saving her from Viggo and helping to get Ilium back inside. No…it has to be. Her eyebrows lifted as she locked eyes with Elena. Normally cool and collected, Elena was sweaty. Abnormally so.

  As they locked eyes, Elena started to open her mouth, but began to ran instead. One of the good guards tried to grab her arm, but they weren’t fast enough. Elena fell to the ground.

  To her shock, Dexter appeared in the room, struck her in a pressure point and then disappeared.

  “Good job Avalon,” the President said.

  “It wasn’t me. It was Dexter,” Avalon said.

  “Dexter,” various voices repeated.

  “I will explain later,” Avalon said as she rushed to Elena.

  Avalon shook her awake. “Elena? Why would you help Viggo? Did you know what he was doing?”

  Elena maintained a hard face. Full of envy and vengeance. “You wouldn’t understand. All of your life people have said you
were special, pretty, etc. Some of us weren’t told that, despite our talents. Viggo offered to help change that. To give me something to make me special. I thought Kael would…” her bottom lip trembled.

  “No, Elena. I won’t ever take you back. Especially after this,” Kael said.

  Elena’s face darkened.

  “Please, tell us more,” Avalon pleaded.

  But Elena remained silent.

  The Council member who did all the speaking caused Elena’s smartwatch to send a small pulse of pain to her. As her face contorted, Avalon looked at the Council member and shook her head.

  “Let’s not use force. Either she tells or she doesn’t,” Avalon said.

  The Council member said nothing while quietly contemplating whether or not to continue with another pain cycle. Then he lowered his hand to his side.

  One shot was enough as Elena opened her mouth to speak again. “We are called the Children of the Ash, and Viggo promised that I would be special one day,” and then Elena’s eyes closed as she drifted asleep.

  “Great. Just great,” Ilium said, shaking his head.

  One of the guards placed cuffs around Elena’s arms.

  “Anyone else involved with Viggo, Elena or these Children of the Ash?”

  No one else moved.

  Avalon turned to Ilium with wide eyes. “Brody!”

  Chapter Twenty Six

  The ventilation systems were shut down. Everyone stood still in the eerie silence that followed the violent quakes. The clock still had seven months left before the outside world would be deemed safe to breathe via its algorithms. Yet, the habitat was completely and utterly destroyed.

  “I’m going to go get him,” Ilium said.

  “No, it’s too dangerous!” Avalon said.

  “Brody is dead! What are you two talking about?” Xin and Skylar asked.

  “He is not dead. He is alive,” Avalon said. A hush fell over the habitat.