FIERY ILLUSIONS (Keeper of the Emerald Book 2)

by B. C. Harris

  On a large piece of paper that Jamie brought, we drew a map of the interior of the Colosseum.

  A huge bonus for us was that we were able to communicate with my mother. At first, she couldn’t understand how a tiny fly buzzing around her ear could sound like me, but she soon realized that it was actually me speaking through the mechanical fly.

  My mother told us that the prison outbreak a few days ago was orchestrated by followers of Santtonnice. She said she was taken out of the prison before the blast occurred. She didn’t know anything about the hostage situation in the house near the prison. She also told us she had seen the tall woman, who we call the Stalker, inside the Colosseum.

  We were able to use the nano-drone to communicate with Radwin and Squirt. Michael assured them that we would find a way for them to escape.

  Based on additional computer records we retrieved inside the Colosseum, we learned that all the people that Santtonnice healed during the past few weeks were actors who were his followers. All of them faked their illnesses.

  We were also able to verify that Santtonnice intended to use the emerald to begin his rein of terror by causing the eruption of the supervolcano near Pompeii.

  After this, Santtonnice planned to use the emerald to cause the eruption of volcanoes across the globe. In addition, he was going to use the emerald to create a shield of energy to form a protective dome around the seven time capsules on the stage.

  Panic would grip the world, but the worst would follow. As the atmosphere filled with smoke, ash and poisonous gases from the volcanoes, precious sunlight would be blocked from reaching the earth. Within weeks, life across the planet would begin to perish. Water everywhere would become polluted.

  A slow horrible death would creep across our planet eventually annihilating mankind and all major forms of life. Without any sunlight reaching the earth, a new ice age would begin. In the years that followed, evolution would start all over again, as it did millions of years ago.

  Santtonnice and six of his most trusted followers, safe in their time capsules, planned to hibernate until long after the new ice age had disappeared.

  When Santtonnice and his followers finally emerged from their cocoons, they would find themselves in a new virgin world. They would enter a new Garden of Eden.

  Santtonnice and his followers would rule the world as they started a new civilization.

  After a great deal of discussion, we came up with a plan to stop Santtonnice.

  Earlier, Jamie researched the exact time that the sun would be setting in Rome today. It’s now one hour before the sunset.

  It’s time for me to go to the Colosseum.

  - 62 -

  THE BEGINNING OF THE END

  A solemn procession walks across the floor of the Colosseum towards the stepped pyramid in the center of the cavernous space.

  I look at the thousands and thousands of people who are packed into this historical structure. In their rapturous state, they have no idea of the impending doom.

  I’m standing on the floor of the Colosseum not too far away from the stairs that I assume the procession will mount. On either side of me are two burly guards to ensure that I don’t move. I’m dressed in a floor-length silk white dress. Although I still have my emerald, it was made clear to me that if I don’t give it to Santtonnice at the expected moment in the ceremony, my mother would be killed instantly. Santtonnice told me that once he has the emerald, my mother and I would be reunited with my father. What he doesn’t know is that I’m aware of his real plans to sacrifice me after I’ve given him my emerald.

  Near the head of the procession, Santtonnice looks like a Roman emperor. He’s dressed in flowing white robes trimmed in gold, reminding me of the pictures we viewed in Mr. Kraviak’s history class when we learning about the Romans.

  Various assistants walk behind Santtonnice followed by two tall women. They look like Roman goddesses. It’s my mother and the Stalker. If I didn’t know better, it would be easy to think that my mother and the Stalker are twins.

  Behind the two women are another group who are dressed like priests and their attendants. There are several muscular men within this group who I guess are there to ensure that I follow the directions I have been given.

  As I look once again at the massive crowd jammed into the Colosseum, I know that Drew and Jasmin are somewhere in the crowd.

  Earlier, I used my emerald to transport Drew and Jasmin into the huge crowd that was waiting to enter the Colosseum. Drew and Jasmin even have fake sun god tattoos on their ring fingers.

  As well, I brought two more nano-drones, about the size of small birds, into the Colosseum.

  In addition to the nano-drones, Jasmin is the eyes and ears for Jamie and Michael who are back in the deserted office overlooking the Colosseum. It was decided that I wouldn’t have any surveillance equipment on me in case it was discovered and traced back to Jamie and Michael’s location.

  The two new nano-drones, that we have nicknamed the birds for the obvious reason of looking exactly like two small birds, have powerful lasers built into them that can cut through metal or be used as weapons if required.

  Across from me is a wooden platform with several TV cameras and a range of other communications equipment to broadcast what is happening inside the Colosseum to the world.

  Drew’s job is to sabotage this equipment. We decided that we might be able to stop some panic around the globe by preventing the broadcast of the event inside the Colosseum. This would also stop the world from seeing my attempts to kill Santtonnice with my emerald.

  The procession is approaching the first stair, Drew’s cue to begin his plan of action.

  Drew has what could be best described as a magnetic bomb. When Drew throws the bomb into the area of the broadcast platform, the bomb will emit magnetic waves that are both silent and invisible. The magnetic waves will destroy the electronic circuitry in the cameras and other equipment. The bomb is a gift from Michael, or perhaps more accurately from his parents.

  Beside the broadcast platform is a big box, about the size of a large refrigerator. I don’t remember seeing this box when I first came into the Colosseum. There’s a black curtain draped over it. Perhaps it’s a large spotlight that’s waiting to be used in the ceremony, but something inside tells me it has far more significance.

  Suddenly, I notice a minor commotion in the area of the TV cameras. The crew is rushing around the platform as they check the cameras.

  I smile. Drew has done his part.

  My mother is now close enough to see me. Her eyes are full of tears. Will this be the last time we ever see each other?

  Suddenly my mother’s face fills with fear.

  “Emily!”

  - 63 -

  THE WEDDING CEREMONY

  The back of my head is throbbing with pain. My mother’s scream must have been an attempt to warn me that someone was about to hit me from behind.

  I feel a hard surface underneath me as though I’m lying on a rock. My arms are bound beside me. My legs are tied to something. I can’t move.

  Santtonnice is standing a few steps away from me. I gasp. He’s wearing the emerald necklace around his neck. After I was knocked out, he must have taken it from me.

  “I am the Alpha and Omega,” Santtonnice boasts, his voice echoing throughout the Colosseum.

  Am I on an altar? I think so. I push and pull but I can’t break free. Am I about to be sacrificed?

  I can’t find my mother. Has Santtonnice already killer her?

  The Stalker is now standing beside Santtonnice.

  He continues, “I am who is and who was and who is to come. I am the Almighty.”

  I hear a collective gasp throughout the arena.

  Santtonnice raises one of his hands.

  The massive canvas tent that was covering the interior of the Colosseum is torn away, revealing a sky streaked with brilliant orange and reds from the setting sun.

  The audience cheers.

  Has Jasmin told Jamie and
Michael what has happened to me?

  Santtonnice raises his other hand. A burst of light, like fireworks, leaps from his hand.

  Seven balls of fire shoot into the sky.

  The audience gasps.

  When the balls of fire vanish, Santtonnice turns to an ornate table nearby.

  On the elaborate table are seven candlesticks, the flames from the candles leaping upwards.

  I keep tugging, trying to free myself, but it’s no use; I’m bound too tight.

  “Fear not. I am the first and also the last,” the evil voice of Santtonnice continues. “I have the keys of death and of eternal life. From my hand came seven stars representing seven tribes. There are seven seals that need to be opened. The opening of each seal will prepare the world for my glory.”

  A little beyond a massive throne on the platform, I see my mother. Thank God she’s still alive. Two female attendants, dressed like Roman slaves, are standing on either side of her, helping to prevent her from collapsing.

  Santtonnice, clothed in white robes, is bathed in a brilliant light that seems to be radiating from him.

  Santtonnice begins to speak again.

  The crowd immediately hushes.

  “I see a door opening to heaven. I see another throne that is bathed in a Holy green light. I see an endless crystal wall coming to greet us.”

  Thousands of people in the crowd are falling to their knees in worship.

  Santtonnice holds the emerald high above his head.

  As he speaks, a rapid succession of lightning bolts leap from the emerald, followed by the deafening roar of thunder, making it impossible to hear what he’s saying.

  As the thunder finally subsides, there’s a muffled crying throughout the Colosseum. I’m not sure whether it’s fear or wonder that has gripped the crowd. Perhaps it’s a bit of each.

  Santtonnice raises his hands to silence the huge crowd. An eerie stillness descends immediately.

  I wonder if Squirt and Radwin are now free. Part of our plan had been for one of the birds to use its laser to open the prison cell and cage where they were being kept.

  “Holy, Holy, Holy,” Santtonnice states, his voice becoming hypnotic. “I am the Lord of all gods. I am the Almighty. I am the light of the world.”

  Santtonnice shouts, “Abruellum, Pompeii!”

  Suddenly a burst of lightning, larger than thousands of normal bolts, leaps across the sky.

  He continues, “The first seal is now open.”

  Throughout the Colosseum, people are moaning in reverence, or is it an instinctive awareness that death is about to descend on them?

  A small bird flies past my head. It’s one of Michael’s small drones.

  For several minutes an incredible roar of thunder shakes the Colosseum as though it’s trying to pry it from the earth.

  The end of the world is beginning.

  Santtonnice has just sent a massive charge of energy causing the super volcano that is underground near Pompeii to erupt.

  Even though Pompeii is more than one-hundred and fifty miles from Rome, the earth begins to tremble underneath me. I visualize the earth around Pompeii cracking apart as a massive volcano begins to spew its violence. I imagine the skies filling with flames and smoke and lethal gases.

  As the walls of the Colosseum begin to sway, panic grips the masses.

  Part of a wall in the Colosseum begins to crumble. People start to rush mindlessly into each other like a frantic herd of helpless animals trapped in a slaughter house.

  Suddenly one of my arms is free. The mini-drone must have cut the ropes.

  As more and more of the Colosseum begins to rip apart, Santtonnice continues, “From the seven tribes, a new nation shall arise, a nation that will usher in the Kingdom of God here on earth.”

  He takes the hand of the tall woman who is standing beside him and raises it.

  “Holy is the mother of our people. Holy is her name. She now joins me as the true God. She is now one as I am one. Let us rejoice and celebrate this marriage. Blessed are they those who have witnessed this union.”

  My other arm is free. As I sit up, I notice a one of the small drones moving near my feet. Can it cut the ropes binding my feet in time to save me?

  A horrifying roar grows out of the earth.

  The far wall of the Colosseum is raining down on the frantic mass of innocent people trying to escape. It’s as though an angry beast is tearing the earth apart.

  “Behold, a great earthquake will arrive,” Santtonnice shouts. “The sun will become black. The moon will be like blood. The sky will vanish like a scroll being rolled up. Every mountain and island will be removed from its place. People everywhere will pray for deliverance. They will cry for me to hide them. The great day of wrath has come. For a thousand years the earth will be silent as though it has been dropped into a bottomless pit. Then after another thousand years will come a new Garden of Eden. In this paradise there will be no need for a sun because I will be its light. Death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, for all these former things will have passed.”

  One of my legs is free.

  Santtonnice continues to rant, unaware that I’m almost free. “And in the days to come, people will seek death, but not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.”

  My other leg comes free.

  I look at my mother. She is terrified. The two women who were once helping her have been replaced by two muscular guards who are tightly gripping her arms.

  I wonder where Drew and Jasmin are. Looking towards the broadcast platform, the black shroud that was covering the box beside it is now gone. It’s a cage. Its door is open. The cage is lined with mirrors.

  “Woe to the earth and sea,” Santtonnice shouts. “A beast will be shrouded in darkness. As the sun is now dying in the west, the earth will perish. But salvation will come. As surely as the sun will rise again in the east, I will return. The light of all lights will show the way. A new world, free of suffering and pain, will arise from the ashes. The sun is now entering our temple.”

  A brilliant ray of sun has come through one of the entrances of the Colosseum. Like a slithering snake, it’s slowly making its way towards us. When it reaches the altar where I’m sitting, Santtonnice intends to sacrifice me.

  Santtonnice is oblivious to the reality that the Colosseum is collapsing around him. Thousands of people are being crushed by the falling stones.

  Santtonnice points to the heavens and says, “It’s time to open the other seals of Heaven.”

  He’s about to unleash the power of the emerald causing the eruption of other volcanoes around the world. He must be stopped.

  Unexpectedly, Santtonnice turns towards me.

  “As the sun now sets,” Santtonnice continues as he moves towards me like a ferocious animal stalking its prey, “the blood of an innocent will appease the gods. As the great Abraham was asked by God to sacrifice his own son, I will now sacrifice my daughter.”

  Daughter? I gag. Then I remember. If Santtonnice is living in my father’s body, I am his daughter in a perverted kind of way.

  His eyes are like burning coals of fire as he walks towards me.

  There is something flashing in his hand. It’s a huge knife. The razor-sharp blade looks like it’s dripping in blood as it catches a reflection from the setting sun.

  I remember hearing about some ancient civilizations where the the high priests cut the hearts out of their sacrificial victims while they were still breathing. I can’t bear the thought.

  “Help!” I scream.

  - 64 -

  FIGHT TO THE DEATH

  Santtonnice raises his knife.

  I’m frantic.

  Suddenly, someone flies through the air smashing into Santtonnice.

  It’s Drew.

  The knife falls to the floor.

  Santtonnice and Drew struggle against each other.

  “Korabellum!” Santtonnice shouts.

  A bolt of en
ergy grips Drew, lifting him off the floor.

  As Santtonnice waves his hands in the air, Drew twists and turns helplessly as though he’s an injured bird trying to reach safety.

  Santtonnice smashes his hands downwards.

  I cringe as Drew crashes into the floor.

  Santtonnice turns back to me, his eyes ablaze with an evil desire to kill me.

  The Stalker, who has been silent during everything that has happened so far, dives for the knife. At the same moment, Jasmin appears out of nowhere, knocking the woman to the ground.

  Although the Stalker manages to get her hands on the knife first, Jasmin rolls away from her, spins in the air and kicks the knife out of her hands.

  Santtonnice smirks as he turns towards me.

  I shout, “Abruella, Santtonnice.”

  Even though the emerald is in Santtonnice’s hands, a small flash of lightning jumps from it knocking him backwards.”

  “Abruella,” I yell again as Santtonnice mumbles some words I don’t recognize.

  Nothing happens. This time, there’s no burst of energy from the emerald although it’s glowing brightly.

  An evil laugh resonates from Santtonnice, piercing through me.

  Jasmin and the tall woman are battering each other with kicks and punches. It’s obvious that Jasmin is not the only one who has studied karate.

  Out of the confusion, a bizarre shape launches itself at Santtonnice.

  It looks like a huge spider. It must be my father.

  Santtonnice and my father tumble to the floor, lashing out at each other with venomous hatred.

  Claws from my father’s pincer-like hands dig into Santtonnice’s face.

  Santtonnice screams, but manages to knock my father away with the help of two of his guards.

  Suddenly, my father is pinned to the floor by the guards. Santtonnice raises the emerald to destroy my father.

  A flash of purple leaps at Santtonnice.

  It’s Squirt.

  Although Santtonnice easily knocks Squirt away, a small bird flies near the monster’s head. Before Santtonnice can react, the nano-drone fires a laser beam directly into one of his eyes. He screams as he falls backwards in pain.