“Why not black?” Amanda asked quizzically.
“Green is the color of renewal.”
“Um, Regi, I just wanted to tell you – again – it’s been a most wonderful honeymoon.” She laughed. “A nine month honeymoon!”
“I was afraid you’d get sick of me.”
“No, never! I was counting the days!” She recollected her thoughts, snapshots of the various locales they’d visited passing through her mind. “Two hundred and six countries. Your magic made it perfect. No need to spend hours traveling!” She thought about how her unique experience as Supreme Liaison and her extensive travels would benefit her new upcoming job, effective tomorrow. Her appointment as head of UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Cultural, and Scientific Organization.
“I loved the ski slopes in Switzerland,” he said with a grin.
Amanda smiled. “We should’ve paid for the lift tickets.”
“Nah! We didn’t use it.”
“But they spent all that money grooming the trails for everyone.”
“So take me to court.”
Giggling, the two embraced briefly, and then parted.
A voice rang out from the heavens, “Indie passed on, at 7:06 a.m. Eastern Time today. She is bestowed with great honor by our lord Elsedor for her three years of exemplary service on the wizards’ council of North America. May she rest in peace.”
Sullenly, the couple mulled over their respective thoughts.
“Poor Indie,” Amanda said.
Regi shrugged. “She knew since her Awakening. We all know exactly when our time would be up.”
“Justica or you are next,” Amanda breathed. Her eyes sparkled with a sudden thought. “What about Demus?”
“As you said, he was born one year later than us, so he has another year to live.”
“Yes,” Amanda recalled. “He forged his own birth certificate before he found out he was a wizard. He admitted he did it so he could smuggle in beer and liquor from across the border, where the legal age was eighteen. He had absolutely no idea how lucky he was.” She started tracing the fingers on her hand. “Number one, he was born on April thirtieth, just like you three. He never knew anything about Elsedor’s birthday or anything at the time. Number two, he didn’t know that once he became twenty-seven, he was eligible to sit on the wizards’ council, and moreover, he was lucky that he chose to forge the right year. Number three, he had no anticipation he’d be called upon by the wizards to prove his birth date.”
Regi glowered at the memory of Demus. “You forget one thing. If Demus was honorable, he would’ve informed us all before he sat on the council.”
“I know,” Amanda said softly. She straightened her posture. “What if we’re wrong? What if Demus didn’t really forge his birth certificate, but he really is thirty today?”
“Amanda,” Regi said sadly, “if anything, it’d be torture for him. I feel sorry for him.”
“Why?”
“He has to live through the guilt of seeing his colleagues die. He has to survive for another year. Everyone thought that after they served together, they’d all die the same day. That’s part of the honor of wizards. Demus cheated fate. It will not be so kind to him.”
Amanda said nothing.
“He probably heard the news just now about Indie. He really liked her and admired her.” Regi sighed. “If anything, he’s probably devastated right now. There may be a chance of him going insane before his one extra year is out.”
“You think so?” Amanda asked breathlessly.
Regi nodded. “I don’t want to talk about him.”
The announcement came down from the sky: “I regret to inform you that Justica has ended her existence as a wizard, as of 7:15 a.m. Eastern Time today. She remained with her family and close friends in her home city of Oaxaca, Mexico, in a celebration of her life shortly before her passing. Elsedor blesses her. May she rest in peace.”
Amanda hugged Regi very tightly. “I’m scared, Regi.”
“So am I,” he admitted. “It now seems so real.”
“Regi, you can’t go! You can’t!”
“Amanda…”
She tugged at his arm. “Let’s go back to Emerana!”
“No, Amanda! We’ve tried already, a hundred times, to unlock the secrets of Elsedor.”
“His magic lived on past his death! We can find the key.” She leaned in close to him, her eyes pleading. “Please. Let’s not give up so easily. Just like when I played the game of Tetris with you.”
“Forget it!”
“And when I blasted these barrels away in the Donkey Kong game,” Amanda added. “Let me try again!”
Regi had an eerie look on his face. He grabbed her arms and shook her. “What?”
Amanda was confused. “What’s wrong, Regi? Let’s go!”
“You blew up these barrels?”
“Yes! Thanks to you!”
Regi staggered away, and covered his face. “I don’t believe it!”
“What?” Amanda quickly became pale.
“I had nothing to do with it! I thought you jumped over all the barrels!”
“Oh my God,” muttered Amanda as the revelation struck her.
Regi grabbed her hand and spun her around. “How did you do it, Amanda?”
“I… I just put my hand out like that, and they blew up.”
“That’s incredible! This is serious shit!” Regi gaped, and then stomped away. He turned back to her. “Is it possible you have some wizard powers?”
“But…” Amanda was confused, “I did the same thing in the Tetris game.”
“Completely different. I designed that game to respond to you. Indie would’ve never allowed you to borrow her magic.”
“Oh my God!” Amanda shrieked. Dread filled her. “Indie’s gone now! I’ll never find out!”
“Quick, before I go,” Regi shouted. He ran over to a tree stump in the meadow. “See, a real tree stump, not formed by magic,” he declared, pointing at it. Desperately, he looked around for something on the ground. He found it. Placing a stone, about two inches in diameter, onto the stump, he said, “Now, a real stone. No magic.” He ran back to her.
Crouching behind her, he said, “Now, what I want you to do, is use your magic to knock that stone off the stump.”
“My magic?”
Regi nodded.
“How?”
“Just hold your hand out there and wish for the stone to be knocked off.”
Amanda did so. Nothing happened.
Regi exhaled. “Okay, try closing your eyes and really focus. Imagine the stone in your mind. Imagine it falling off.”
His wife closed her eyes, grunted, and exclaimed. She opened her eyes. The stone sat passively on the stump with not a care in the world.
Regi’s tone took on urgency. “Okay, now inflame your passions. Think that this stone is the only thing that will keep me alive.”
“Whoa. That I can do.”
With a much more concerted effort, taking longer than a minute, Amanda groaned with passion, shrieking at times. Before she opened her eyes, she dreaded the answer as she asked, “Nothing?”
“Nothing,” said a frustrated Regi, crossing his arms as he stood behind her.
At her wits’ end, Amanda shoved Regi. “Come on, Elsedor’s place now!”
“No.”
“What’s wrong with you?” Amanda screamed. “Don’t you want to live?”
Regi’s face appeared resolute. “I do want to live. With you. Just the way it should be. In peace, just the two of us together. Not rushing around on a hare-brained scheme.”
Utterly dejected, Amanda lay her head against Regi’s chest. “What if I find out after…”
“Stop it, Amanda. You’re driving me crazy.”
“You drive me crazy every day. And I love it.”
“Oh, Amanda!” They passionately kissed, so aroused that they nearly lost their balance among the bumpy grassy terrain. Abruptly, Amanda’s eyes perceived a glow from Regi’s
body. “Oh my God,” she said. “Regi! It’s starting now!”
The Luminescence.
Regi had only sixty seconds left to live.
He would, for those sixty seconds, became a phantasm… the last stage a wizard underwent before exiting the world.
Regi groaned in deep agony. Pain pervaded every cell of his body. He felt like collapsing, but he had to remain strong. Every cell of him appeared as gold-infused crystal, so that there was no longer any normal color on him. It appeared that a monochrome plastic mold had been made from his body, down to the exact detail, but the effect looked even more realistic. There was no doubt there still was a living, breathing being.
“Regi!” Amanda screamed, and grabbed him.
“Must…” Regi whimpered, “…go back…” Instantly, they materialized in Amanda’s new spacious San Francisco home. During The Luminescence, a wizard had only one magic trick left, and Regi wanted to ensure that Amanda would be safe when he died.
“Regi, I love you!” Amanda sobbed, tears spurting out.
“I love you…” Regi grunted as he experienced stabbing pain all over, “I’ll always love you to…” He moaned. “…to the end of your life.”
“I love you. I love you. I love you, my Regi.” Amanda wasn’t sure how many seconds were left. “I love you. I love you. I love…”
That second, Regi vanished.
“…you.”
Amanda broke down and sobbed her heart out.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
One year, nine months post-end of Liberators Era
One year since Regi’s death
Amanda’s executive assistant knocked on the solid oak door of Amanda’s two-unit office.
“Come in,” Amanda said.
The executive assistant, exhibiting an apologetic expression right from the start, held up her hands in front of her, as if she felt she would have to physically defend herself. “Amanda, Tanzania’s foreign minister insists on a conference call with you this afternoon.”
“No,” Amanda said abruptly.
“He says he’s outraged at the delays. I’m sorry, but I told him your schedule was clear today. He insists.”
“You know that I specifically asked for my schedule to be free today because it’s a very important personal day for me,” Amanda said brusquely.
“I know, I know,” the executive assistant said. “Very well, I’ll tell him.”
“Just tell him I may be called away to a funeral this afternoon. Just make it up. He’ll understand.”
The employee held up an okay sign as she gently closed the door. “That’s perfect, thank you.”
Leaning back in her plush chair, Amanda sighed.
She was the Director-General of UNESCO, and had been since her appointment a year ago. For one year now. She’d been in charge of UNESCO, working at headquarters in Paris, France. The capital of France and its vast cultural, educational, political, and economic clout had made it the perfect place for Amanda to cope with her profound grief over Regi’s death.
She reflected on the events that had transpired since her last day as Supreme Liaison for the Liberators.
There was that nine-month honeymoon with Regi, which during that time consumed her every waking moment. At times, Amanda was thoroughly physically and mentally exhausted, but the knowledge that every passing day was one day less in Regi’s short remaining lifespan propelled her to keep going, to savour every sound, smell, touch, and sight.
Then, as she’d planned, she started her new job as Director-General the day after Regi’s death. She knew she’d fall apart in pieces after losing him, and for now, the best way to cope was to throw herself into this prestigious job. At times, though, Amanda would burst into tears, even in the middle of committee meetings as startled delegates looked on, and then retreat for a five-minute break.
She ruminated about the unique, one-time experience that had catapulted her into the top position at UNESCO – the stint as Supreme Liaison for the Liberators, with responsibility for the North America continent.
The legacy of the Liberators continued to spark intense and mixed public reaction, even to this day. Amanda had to address these probing questions from time to time, even in her new job, from emissaries, diplomats, presidents, monarchs, clergymen, and directors. She continued to read newspaper and highly regarded blog articles about the political and economic reforms left behind by the Liberators. Amanda only cared about her own assessment of the controversial legacy – after all, she herself handled the job and had day-to-day interaction with the Liberators.
She noted, dejectedly, that no country had decided to unite with another in a bid to erase unnecessary political borders. Under the Liberators, there were only the five continents as geopolitical regimes, and Amanda strongly felt that allowed for more exchange of ideas, trade, and values.
However, there was huge progress on other fronts.
All the countries in the world – save for a few holdouts like tiny Andorra – had seen the immense benefits of the bitcoin economy, salivating at the superior ease of money flow, ability to collect data on practically every transaction of value, and the openness of opportunity for all. Yes, Amanda recalled, the International Protocol on the Bitcoin Currency had been signed a mere two months ago. Every country in the world was now trading in just one currency, the whole world over, and posting live data of every transaction – all under codified categories of commerce, charity, and government, for anyone on Earth to immediately access. The severe recession, the Great Blight that had predated the Liberators, was a distant memory now, with all countries in the world chugging full steam ahead. Amanda knew the good times wouldn’t last forever, but the immediate availability of data, all around the world, enabled much more powerful agility for policy makers to tap into.
The collapse of governments all around the world during the Liberators era – at the municipal, state, and federal levels – forced citizens to re-examine their priorities, and to demand flattening of several layers of governance, as well as disengagement from overlapping circles of social programs.
For example, in the United States, the voters overwhelmingly endorsed the power of the Senate to govern the country, with the President as the 101st Senator, elected by the Senate itself. The House of Representatives had been abolished. Terms were now five years, greatly depleting the resources of political action committees, lobbyists, and political parties, which all had thrived on the hyper-active and highly partisan two-year, continuous political cycle. And it wasn’t just the United States. Other countries abolished the concept of state or provincial governments, reasoning that – in the urban era – large cities or municipal districts were much closer to the voters and could be entrusted with senior government responsibility.
To the intense dismay of libertarians in the United States, the Internal Revenue Service was open again for business one month after Liberator rule.
Both the deposed former President Arthur K. Walker, who had headed a corrupt and deeply unpopular administration, and the highly excitable President of Patriots Everywhere United, Jake Faulkner, ran for the newly reformed Senate, and won election as Senators. Both failed, however, to become President of the United States. That task fell to a long-term Senator, Christine Schnurr, who became the first female President of the United States.
There were other minor, but highly important, tangible benefits of the Liberators’ rule. All politicians, charity governors, government administrators, and lobbyists were required to post all expenses – which were captured anyway by the bitcoin economy – publicly on the Internet, accessible by anyone, anytime, anywhere. It was a new era of transparency and access, with open source solicitation from the public on how to improve government spending. One senior citizen even browsed through the land registry office expenditures and pointed out that calculators could easily be purchased at the next door discount store for $1.49 each less – and the manager responsible publicly apologized and thanked the lady; such an exchange was positivel
y broadcast the same evening on the national news.
With a shake of her head, Amanda suddenly shifted back to reality, in her office. For the umpteenth time, she thought of Regi and how she’d lost him only a year ago. Perhaps she should take the afternoon off and go for a stroll in the Latin Quarter, painful as it might be. Given her sorrow, it might be better to distract herself through her growing pile of paperwork.
Her nerves tightened.
Demus.
Today was also the day he was supposed to die. She wondered where he was, and if she’d ever see him again.
As if fate was reading her thoughts, three wizards materialized in front of her.
The one in the middle was Demus.
“Demus!” Amanda cried out, aghast at the sight of him. He was a very changed person. Where he had once been a confident, slim, and athletic wizard, his appearance now told a different story. Although his clothes – he no longer wore a red shirt, having been kicked off the wizards’ council – were in prime condition, he himself was not. He had lost about twenty pounds, appearing gaunt. Dark circles surrounded his eyes and his cheeks seemed hollowed out. Although he had carefully shaved this morning, for this, his day of death – his skin was pallid. His eyes – oh, his eyes! – seemed haunted, troubled, and showed that he was no longer sure of himself.
Amanda recoiled at the sight.
A sudden energy enveloped him, once he saw the object of his longing. “Good morning, Amanda.”
She thought she saw a trace of the smile he used to have. Despite her severe misgivings concerning Demus, she felt sorry for him; wanted to hold his hand and tell him everything was all right.
“Demus.” Amanda breathed out, as if afraid to say anything more.
“Allow me to introduce two very fine wizards,” Demus said, glancing back and forth between the wizards on either side of him. “Sheila and Brandon, two of the wizards on council for North America. I’m sure you remember that council.” He chuckled, almost looking as if the gesture would cause him to cough. Then he hastily added, “They’re twins.”
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