Once he thought his footing was secure, he brought his other foot forward. Unfortunately and because of his weakened state, his foot slipped. He tried to catch himself as his body began to roll down the steep slope. Excruciating pain reverberated throughout his body as his arms, legs, back, and head slammed against the rocky surface. The more he rolled, the faster he felt his descent. Flinging his right foot forward, he dug in his heel to try and stop his momentum. The velocity of his fall, however, caused his leg to lock up, sending him headlong into the cave wall.
He crashed face first into the hard, rocky surface, shattering the visor of his helmet. Shards of glass cut his face as precious oxygen rushed out of his suit. He continued to roll until he finally landed on soft, rotting foliage. The stench was unbearable as it permeated his senses. As a result of the fall, his energy was depleted. He felt his body on the verge of death. Then, without warning, his body began to seizure violently. As foam frothed from his mouth, he had the devastating realization that he was about to die.
Just before his spirit left its mortal shell, he saw the image of a stunning, dark-haired woman standing over him. She was the most exquisite woman he had ever laid eyes upon. Her blue eyes glowed as she kneeled down to examine him. Even though he had never believed in a God, he assumed that she was an angel sent to retrieve his spirit. Just before he fell into blackness, he thought he heard her say, “Dorange, welcome home.”
*****
Earth, Scott Air Force Base . . .
With a start, Adrian sat up, trying to get his bearings. The last thing he remembered was Jake saying they were entering Earth’s atmosphere without any fuel. Then the ship started to shake. He had no idea if they crashed or not. He felt hands grab his shoulders and heard a female voice he wasn’t familiar with. “You need to rest, Mr. Palmer.”
The hands pushed him back down into a soft bed, his head landing on a feather pillow. Once his vision cleared, the woman who had spoken to him was standing over him, smiling warmly. “You’re lucky, sir,” she said.
“Wh-what happened?”
“You crash landed not far from here. You suffered some major injuries. You were bleeding internally when we brought you in and rushed in for emergency surgery. You are stable now and your broken leg has been put into a cast, but you are going to need to rest for several days before the doc will release you.”
Adrian’s vision was beginning to clear, and he was able recognize that he was in a hospital bed within a recovery room, most likely the hospital at Scott Air Force Base. The woman, standing over him, was attractive, maybe in her mid-forties with brown hair and hazel eyes. He was still confused, however. “Doc? Wh-where’s everyone else? My family?”
“Ariauna suffered a concussion, but everyone else came out pretty well.”
“What about Calum?” he said with worry.
“The baby? Oh, he’s a strong one. He’s just fine. Now, no more questions, Mr. Palmer. I’ll inform General Peterson that you are awake.”
With that, the nurse turned and walked out of the room. After a few more minutes, he heard the door open. Anyta was the first to rush in, nearly knocking him off of the bed and hugging him in a giant bear hug. Adrian inhaled her fragrance. She had just showered and smelled wonderful. He, on the other hand, still felt filthy from the entire ordeal of escaping Terrest.
After a few kisses, Anyta pulled away and gave him an angry look, the kind of look he was always on the receiving end of whenever he annoyed his beautiful wife. With a slug to his shoulder, she said, “Don’t scare me like that ever again. You almost died.”
“Died?” Adrian questioned, confused.
“Yeah,” said Kevin as he made his way next to Anyta. He was followed by Kylee, Bantyr, and Lexis, as well as Ashley and General Peterson. “I swear you have more lives than a cat.”
“I think we’ve both had our fair share of survival stories,” replied Adrian with a chuckle.
After each one of his family members hugged him, Jake and Celeste walked in. Celeste held Calum snugly to her bosom. Adrian’s eyes lit up, stretching out his arms, even though it caused pain. “Let me see that wonderful grandson of mine.”
Celeste handed Calum, still swaddled in his blue blanket, to him. He looked at the miracle he held in his arms. Calum’s eyes sparkled brightly like reflections from a crystal blue lagoon. Adrian’s heart swelled with joy as his grandson stared into his eyes. Tears began to stream from his eyes. Never in his life had he felt so at peace and comforted. Everyone in the room could feel it too. They all knew that the baby Adrian held in his arms was truly the chosen one. Although Calum was barely a week old, he had an aura about him, a semblance that radiated peace and love.
“Is this truly the comforter that I hold in my arms?” Adrian asked in reverence.
No one said a word. Then Calum looked at him, right to his very soul, and gave Adrian one of purest and warmest smiles he had ever beheld.
“Did you see that?” Adrian asked with delight, looking at Celeste. “He’s only a week old and smiling already.”
With tears streaming down her face, Celeste nodded and smiled.
“Gosh, I haven’t even gotten a smile yet,” Jake said.
Everyone in the room laughed.
As Adrian handed Calum back to his mother, a voice echoed near the doorway. “He is the one.”
Adrian’s family parted as John the Beloved walked slowly toward Celeste. Stretching out his arms, he asked, “May I?”
“With pleasure,” Celeste replied, giving John the child.
John stared into the infant’s face for what seemed like hours. Tears formed in John’s eyes. “You have no idea how long I have waited for this moment, for the comforter to come forth in physical form.” He paused for a few seconds and then continued to speak prophetically as if he was blessing the baby. “This child will one day grow to become one of the greatest warriors of the human race. He will free countless souls from oppression and unite two worlds and two peoples.”
Again, he paused and looked at Adrian. “Isn’t it ironic that the soul to inhabit this body is the comforter, the bringer of peace and love, but will one day become a warrior for righteousness and an example of everything our Father in Heaven represents? Perhaps he needs these virtues of peace, love, and comfort infused into his very being as a foundation for the type of man he must become in order to face the evil that is coming.”
After John’s prophetic words, not one person said anything. They all just stared at the child he held in his arms in wonderment and quiet reverence.
*****
Once again, Jake and his family were gathered in a conference room. Lately, it seemed that they were always meeting to discuss the next plan of attack in their battle against the Gnols. This time was different, however. This particular meeting was one that John had organized. The meeting was to serve two purposes. First, the base’s doctors were going to explain to everyone the difference between the transfigured bodies of John, Jake, and Celeste. Since their arrival back on Earth, Jake and Celeste graciously allowed the doctors to poke and prod them. They even allowed Calum to be tested. After all, he was the first offspring of transfigured parents, at least the first that anyone was aware of. John, too, had given them permission to run tests on him. The second purpose was to discuss a new technology Earth developed after the initial Gnol attack to prevent the alien race from reading human minds.
Jake looked around the room as he levitated two metal balls a few inches above his hand. The balls spun around and orbited one another in perfect harmony. It was a habit he picked up whenever he was nervous, soon after honing his newfound abilities. He sat next to his wife as she held Calum in her lap. Calum sat still, wide-eyed, staring in amazement at the hovering balls. John sat at one end of the table, discussing something quietly with the lead doctor of the team that performed the tests. Adrian sat at the end opposite from John, with Anyta next to him. Kylee sat next to her, staring at the hovering balls as well. But her expression wasn’t one of wonderm
ent. It was a look of concern as if she didn’t trust or even feared her brother’s newfound powers. Bantyr and Lexis sat opposite from Jake and Celeste, each one staring in awe as well.
After seeing their expressions, Jake quickly gathered the balls in his hand and placed them in his pocket. Calum then reached out a tiny hand, imitating the motions his father used to levitate the balls. Jake was stunned. “Are you seeing this?” he asked Celeste.
Celeste nodded her head with a look of surprise on her face as well. She was about to respond when John stood. “Okay. Are we ready?” he said as he walked to the front of the room behind where Adrian sat. He turned on the large computer monitor on the wall and then turned to face everyone. He looked at Jake and Celeste. “Thanks for meeting with us today. I know all of you are curious about the miraculous rise of Jake and Celeste. Some of you even have questions as to my anatomy and how it was possible for me to stay alive on Earth for over two thousand years.”
“You could say that,” Bantyr replied with a nervous laugh.
John smiled and nodded toward the doctor standing at the back of the room. “Doctor Strong, I give you the floor.”
Doctor Jonathan Strong, dressed in his white lab coat over a blue dress shirt with a tie and black dress slacks, made his way to the monitor and picked up the remote. He seemed slightly nervous as he turned to face everyone. Sweat glistened off of his forehead. He had a full head of gray hair, giving him a distinguished and wise look. He was a tall, slender man as well. “Thanks for meeting here today,” he said with a deep but raspy voice. “And thank you, Jake, Celeste, and John, for letting my nurses and doctor poke and prod you.”
“Not a problem, Doc,” Jake responded. “What did you find?”
“Well, it’s not every day that you come across a two-thousand-year-old prophet and two people who have come back from the dead, let alone coming back with powers and abilities that defy description. Needless to say, a lot of people are uncomfortable and need to understand what you are . . . exactly.”
“And what do people think we are exactly, doctor?” Celeste asked, her voice suggesting a hint of resentment.
Doctor Strong shuffled his feet nervously. “Please, I mean no disrespect, Celeste. . . . But, like a lot of other people on Earth, I lost my family and a lot of friends when the Gnols attacked. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever witness an advanced human species attack Earth, especially with telekinetic and telepathic abilities.”
“Yes, I understand that, doctor, but not all Gnols are monsters and not every person that comes back from the dead, or has the ability to live for over two thousand years wants to destroy mankind,” Celeste said.
“Yes, I know that now, especially after getting to know you, Jake, and John better,” Doctor Strong said, his demeanor relaxing as Celeste smiled warmly toward him. He then continued as he pressed some buttons on the remote control. “What we have found is fascinating.”
The monitor sprang to life, and a video representing red blood cells appeared on the screen. The cells were active. “This is a video taken from our lab’s microscopes. The blood is from a cancer-stricken mouse. This is one of the experiments we conducted from the blood taken from the three of you.”
Doctor Strong played the video and everyone watched as a sample of blood from one of the three transfigured beings entered the picture. “We injected this sample with the blood from John. We didn’t do anything to alter the blood and nothing was added.”
Everyone watched in amazement as the bright, glowing gold blood from John was infused into the mouse’s blood. Doctor Strong pointed at the blood cells within John’s blood. “This is the primary difference between mortal, and I guess I could say, your immortal blood,” he said, pointing at a cell. “These cells are gold in color and radiate a magnificent light. They are really beautiful to look at. Mortal beings have two types of blood cells within their blood - red blood cells and white blood cells. Red blood cells contain hemoglobin and are responsible for carrying oxygen and other vital life-giving properties to the other cells in our bodies. White blood cells are responsible for fighting disease and foreign substances within mortal bodies.
“What’s interesting,” Doctor Strong continued, “is that John’s blood only has one type of blood cell. What we discovered was that your blood cells serve both purposes.” He then chuckled as he spoke. “Another difference, however, is that these blood cells can repair and revitalize every damaged cell, every ailment, and everything found wrong with mortal bodies. . . Here, watch,” he said, pointing at one of the gold blood cells.
The video continued to play as a glowing gold blood cell consumed a red blood cell. “This red cell is cancerous,” Doctor Strong reiterated. “One of John’s cells completely consumed the diseased cell and replaced it.” He then turned and, with bright eyes, looked at Jake and Celeste. “This is what happened to your dead bodies after they were infused with the juices from the fruit of the Tree of Life from Gnolom. It took some time for the juices to replace the bone marrow within your bodies. Once it had taken effect, your new bone marrow produced this new kind of blood, repairing every damaged cell in your dead bodies, and well . . . bringing you back to life. . . . Here, watch,” Doctor Strong said as the video continued to play.
The red, cancerous blood cells of the mouse were consumed by the gold blood cells within the blood sample.
“Amazing,” Anyta said, intrigued because of her newfound interest in medicine. “What happened to the mouse?”
“Well, he was cancer free after we injected him with the blood. In fact, the serum revitalized every cell within his body, making him stronger and faster.”
“Oh, great. Now we have super mice running around the lab,” Bantyr jested.
Everyone chuckled with Bantyr’s warped sense of humor, causing Doctor Strong to relax even more. “Yes, but John didn’t think it was a good idea for our subjects to be kept alive, so . . .”
“So you killed them,” Lexis stated with shock.
Doctor Strong was about to respond, but John beat him to it. “Yes, Lexis, I ordered that the mice be taken care of in order to see exactly how far their limits were. Needless to say, it’s not easy to kill a transfigured being.”
“Yes,” Doctor Strong reiterated. “In our experiments, we used every imaginable way to try and kill the super mice, as you so eloquently call them, Bantyr. We burned them. We froze them. We even injected them with deadly viruses and bacteria. We even went so far as to cut off their limbs. . . .”
“And . . .” Anyta said impatiently.
“And in every test, their bodies regenerated, even so far as growing new arms and legs.”
“So, how did you finally kill them?” Anyta asked.
“The only way the mice didn’t come back from the dead was after we decapitated them. It seems once you separate the mind from the body, the miracle blood ceases to do its work.”
“So,” Kylee interjected with a serious expression glossed over her face, “what about Jake, Celeste, and John? Are they immortal?”
Doctor Strong looked at his three subjects with admiration. “Yes and no. Prior to the Gnols attacking, I was not religious man. But since the attack and with everything going on in the world, I’ve studied the scriptures more. Using my expertise and from what I’ve learned about transfigured beings in the scriptures, I believe that John, Jake, and Celeste are transfigured. Like Moses of old. Now it looks as if there is a scientific explanation for it.”
“But we can die?” Celeste asked.
“Yes. As far as we discovered, decapitation is the only way.”
“Well, we better keep our heads about us, then,” Jake said with a chuckle, causing everyone else to laugh. Even Kylee got a giggle out of Jake’s humor. Jake smiled toward his sister, hoping that she would warm up to him and his newfound powers.
After everyone laughed, Adrian, who had been listening quietly the entire time, finally spoke. “What about their powers? Their gold, glowing blood still does not expl
ain how they are able to . . . well, do the things they are capable of.”
“I believe it does, Adrian,” Doctor Strong said. “Since their blood is able to regenerate every cell within their bodies, it has essentially unlocked dormant parts of their brains and bodies. Their entire DNA structure is now completely infused with the God Gene, the genetic marker of the Gnols. Celeste’s enhanced powers came more quickly because she already possessed the marker. Jake’s abilities came slower because it took time for his body to change his DNA. In fact, Jake is more of a Gnol now than a human from Earth. The juice from that fruit that you found on Gnolom is the key to unlocking our full human potential.”
Doctor Strong paused and pulled out a syringe full of the gold, glowing substance. He held it up for everyone to see, which caused everyone to squint because of its brightness. “This serum, derived from John’s, Jake’s, and Celeste’s blood, is now the key to curing every ailment known to mankind.”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to start mass producing the stuff?” Jake questioned with apprehension.
“No, not at all,” John interjected. That syringe right there is the only one left, and it is going to be locked away for a very long time. Mankind simply isn’t ready for what that serum is capable of.”
Celeste nodded her agreement as she leaned down and kissed Calum’s head. Sitting comfortably in his mother’s lap, it almost seemed as if he was listening intently to the entire conversation. Jake noticed the concern in her eyes for their son. “What about Calum?” she asked. “I was pregnant before I died, and lost that baby. After Jake and I came back, Calum was conceived. Why does he bleed red?”
Worlds Without End: The Prophecy (Book 3) Page 16
