Rivalry (The Two Moons of Rehnor, Book 12)

by J. Naomi Ay

  As soon as I put the glasses on, the drone started to hum, and those tiny beetle wings began to vibrate. It started to rise a little bit in the room.

  “Let’s go outside," Etan said.

  Immediately, I glanced at the virtual off switch which caused the drone to drop on its legs and the wings to fold inward. Etan grabbed it and tucked it under his arm like a football.

  “Hey, that’s mine!” I snapped but he was already out the door.

  I grabbed the ball bags and my bat from under the bed, before bolting after him, only to meet Mom in the hallway.

  “What is that?” She demanded, snatching the glasses off my face.

  “Nothing. We're going to play ball. Can I have those back?"

  “What did your grandpa give you? Etan! Come back here. I want to see that.”

  The backdoor slammed as Etan dashed for it. I suspected he was headed to the park down the street, and either pretended to or really didn’t hear Mom call him back.

  “It’s just for playing ball,” I insisted, taking back the glasses and propping them on the top of my head. “You know how you’re always telling us to go outside, and play but we can’t get anyone to join us? This thing will do that. It’ll be the opposing team.”

  “Uh huh.”

  She looked like she didn’t believe me. Then, she started to make some noises about it being dangerous, and not appropriate for my age level. The Bengals must have scored just then or somebody had a good run because both Dad and Gramps started hollering, and Mom turned to see what was up. I took the opportunity to head out after my brother, racing down the back staircase, and out the mudroom door.

  “Zak!” I heard her yell even as the door slammed, blocking her voice, and setting me free.

  At the park, Etan was surrounded by a few of the neighborhood kids. A couple brought their mitts, and one guy brought a catcher's mask.

  “We’re all ready to start, Zak,” Etan told me proudly, the drone tucked safely beneath this arm, and away from prying fingers.

  We played three against three with the drone as the pitcher. I kept my glasses on so I could control the speed, and the curves. We started out with a slow pitch, but quickly decided that was way too easy. By the time we were at four innings, it was pitching at 70 mph.

  “Speed it up! Speed it up!” Etan called, bat ready at home plate.

  I was on second, and our neighbor, Jake was on third. Etan was a strong batter, especially for a kid who was only ten. I’d pitched to him many times, and I thought I was pretty fast. I looked at the beetle, then at the setting that controlled speed, blinking so it went up a notch. Etan could easily handle 80.

  As the drone hummed, then launched the ball, I was already half way to third. Jake was nearing home, and Etan was swinging wide. I heard a crack, I assumed the bat. I didn’t notice. I wasn’t looking. I had no idea how fast that pitch was thrown. I just figured I had set it right. I was too busy counting runs, and imagining myself sliding into home.

  I soared around third base, barely tapping it with a toe, and turned my sights on home, igniting the afterburners in my feet.

  It was then that I realized, everyone was crowded around home plate. Someone was screaming. Another kid was running away. Someone was starting CPR as my afterburners died. My feet dragged on the ground. I walked as if in slo-mo. Even though, I couldn’t see him, I knew Etan was dying there.

  Someone’s parent came running from down the street while I could barely lift one foot and then, place another on the ground. An ambulance came, sirens screaming, echoing in my head, which was somewhere lost in space.

  My mother was there.

  “You stay home,” she ordered.

  And then, I was all alone on the playground. Somehow, everyone was gone.

  As I sat down on homeplate, I noticed blood in the dirt by my shoe. There was some more splattered on the fence behind me. Even the bat had a blood dripping down it.

  Above the pitcher's mound, the drone was still hovering in midair, its left eye blinking green, waiting for instructions on what to do next. For the first time since all this began, I took off my glasses, and looked at the settings. It was my fault. I had killed my brother. With a blink of an eye, I had set it wrong.

  Instead of pitching at 70 MPH, Etan was beaned by a ball going a hundred more. It crashed into his head, crushing his skull, and sending shards into his brain, all because I had been too impatient to read directions.

  I screamed at the drone, and then, picked up the ball. I tossed it in the air, and slammed it as hard as I could with the bat. The ball hit the drone with a clanking noise, and ricocheted off. No damage was done at all.

  Now, I raced to the mound and pounded it with the bat. I don't know how many times I smashed that thing. It continued to blink, undented, unbroken, ready to kill someone else.

  That night, I lay in my bed and stared out the window at the stars. I was all alone in the house as my parents were at the hospital. My brother wasn't dead yet, but he might end up like a vegetable for life. Even if he recovered, he was never going to be like he was.

  "Please God," I whispered to the moon. "Take me instead of him. I'll do anything, anything at all. Please help my brother, Etan."

  Something happened then. Somebody arrived in my room. It was like a door had opened and let in a whole bunch of silver light. This guy walked through, and sat down on the floor, leaning back against the wall, and watching me. He lit up a cigarette and started to smoke right there in my room.

  "Who are you?" I cried, bolting up in bed.

  "A friend," he said, although I didn't really hear him say it. His voice seemed to be only in my head.

  "What do you want?" I was scared. It wasn't everyday some kid popped into your room. I grabbed the baseball bat which was lying on the floor right under the bed. "Get out!" I screamed, and waved it in the air.

  "I'm here to help you. You were asking for help, were you not?"

  Had I? I thought I was talking to God.

  "You never know who's going to answer God's calls," the kid replied.

  He blew a puff of cigarette smoke into my bedroom air. If my parents came home and smelled that stuff, they'd kill me for sure. I was already in enough trouble. I didn't need this strange kid causing more.

  "Who are you? How did you get in my room?"

  "It's complicated," the kid said. "That's the answer to both of your questions."

  "Well, tell me your name," I demanded, waving the bat again.

  "I have many names, but you can call me Arsan."

  Chapter 4

  Katie

  I was spending a lot of my time sitting around and surfing the web. The RV was parked in a lovely campground on the outskirts of the Black Eye Galaxy where it was temperate all day long, and at night, just a little bit chilly. I had an amazing view of the galaxy’s hot, blue young stars, and fluorescent, pink clouds of dust, as well as millions of comets that kept whizzing by. In the park, there was hot and cold running water, electricity, and a septic hookup in the camper. I had an excellent WIFI reception that was entirely free, so I was happy, and almost completely at home. Almost.

  "Where are you going?" I asked when he announced his intention to leave several weeks earlier.

  "I can't really explain," he replied. "And, actually, you don't want to know."

  "Will you come back?"

  He thought for a moment, his eyes flickering in the dark, the tip of his cigarette providing the only light. We were outside next to the firepit enjoying the peace and solitude, the fresh air, and the panorama of distant stars. However, the longer he paused on his answer, the more nervous I became.

  "Don't tell me," I began. "Not now."

  "I always come back, although I can't say when exactly it shall be. Just consider this another business trip. I have some issues I must take care of.”

  “Business trips are to places like Akron or Grand Rapids. If you get lucky, you get a convention in Las Vegas, not the bowels of Hell or wherever it is you go.”<
br />
  "I find little difference amongst all the places you have named." Then, he summoned his cane from Nowhere Land with a wave of his hand. “You shall be safe here alone on this moon. Whatever happens, I don't want you to leave. You must trust that I shall return as quickly as I can."

  "Alright. May I call the kids?"

  "No. Not yet. You shall know when it is time to do so."

  “What if I get lonely?”

  “You’ve got your Footbook group,” he snickered. “Alternatively, you might wish to acquire a dog.”

  “Great.” I held up my hands as if to weigh the alternatives. “My husband, the internet, or a canine.”

  “At least, you shall have a break from watching football.” He pulled himself to his feet, and tossed his burning cigarette into that same Nowhere Land where I imagined several decades’ worth of half-smoked butts lined the ground.

  "You're not going right this minute, are you?"

  "Actually, I am. In fact, I’m already late."

  "Well, wait another minute for me to run and get your cloak." I jumped from my chair intent on fetching his coat from the camper.

  "Katie," he grabbed my arm, "I shan’t need anything to wear."

  "But, you'll be cold. Akron is miserable this time of year."

  "Akron would be lovely compared to what I am about to endure. Goodbye, Milaka MaKani, my love. You be good." He said this sternly, as if implying that I would be anything but good, as if I might somehow get myself in trouble out here on the edge of the galaxy, light years from everyone and everything I've ever known.

  "I promise," I promised, wrapping my arms around his neck to kiss him goodbye. Despite how many years had passed, and all that had happened between us, when he kissed me, he still managed to turn my heart and spine into a puddle of melted butter. “Be careful," I cautioned, refusing to let him go.

  “I always am.”

  Then, he was gone, disappearing from my arms into that nowhere land, a trick he explained as casually as metaphysically stepping through dimensions.

  "Normal, ordinary people don't metaphysically step through dimensions," I yelled to the empty air. "Of course, normal, ordinary people aren't called upon to go save the universe every other week."

  Now, more than eight weeks had passed without a call, text, or email, not that I expected to hear from him. Nowhere Land didn’t exactly have a cell tower, and he was notorious for long silences, purposely keeping me in the dark. Still, I was growing quite lonely with only my virtual Footbook friends to keep me company.

  I considered using the solitude to sit down and write my memoirs, and in fact, tried several times to type them out. Unfortunately, I never got past the first page or two. My story begins when I was nine and this odd boy appears in my room. Who would ever believe that? They'd think I was completely nuts. I'd think I was completely nuts, and frankly, I probably was.

  Instead, I bagged the memoirs and started a garden behind the RV. I had some onions and potatoes that had sprouted. The nearest store was several miles away, and the fresh produce was overpriced. I could also grow flowers and take pictures for my virtual girlfriends. That would keep me busy, I told myself. Although, growing potatoes hardly made up for my husband's absence.

  "Are you planning on staying a while?" the Camp Host asked when he discovered me tilling the dirt in a section behind my camper. The whole area had been grass, but as far as I could tell, there weren't any regulations prohibiting gardens.

  I glanced up from my shovel, and while wiping the sweat from my brow, appraisingly gazed at the man who spoke to me in English. He was tall, and kind of skinny, also stooped shouldered as if he was embarrassed by his height. His hair was a salt and pepper gray buzz cut which made him appear around my age. His voice was nasally, and he rapidly blinked as he waited for my response as if he was nervous around me or just others in general.

  "Yes, I think so. I plan to be here for several more months at least."

  "I trust when you get ready to depart, you'll return the grounds to their proper form. Intergalactic Campground Regulation 14-C-32 requires that all visitors restore their site to the natural environs."

  "I will," I assured him. "I'll replant the grass, and you'll never know I was ever here. I'll also make certain we remove all of our trash per Intergalactic Campground Regulation 15-F-47."

  He smiled broadly, his eyebrows flying up in surprise. Clearly, meeting a woman who could cite Intergalactic Campground Regulation Code was something he hadn't anticipated.

  "Well," he chuckled a little, a half-coughing, half-snorting sound involving his clogged nasal passages.

  "Have a good day." I smiled and offered a little wave. "I'm super busy. I've got to get the plot ready for tomato plants before summer comes along."

  "You look a bit familiar."

  Not taking the hint, he took a step closer and into the mud which I had just turned up.

  "Oh!" I gasped, and pointed at his boot.

  "Good gracious!" He cried, and quickly jumped from the garden. Stomping his foot heavily, he tried to shake the mud free. Unfortunately, all it did was scatter the thick, red clay across what remained of the grass. "It seems I have destroyed even more lawn in the process." Now, he knelt down, and attempted to pick up the clumps of clay. After two tries which served only to mash it further into lawn, he gave up. "I will assist you to restore this area when the time comes," he declared. "Unless you would like for me to repair the grass now? I've got some seeds in my camper. I'll go fetch them and sow them. It will take me only a minute or two."

  "It’s alright," I insisted. "I'll just use this as additional garden space. In the meantime I need to finish my prep work while it's still light."

  "Are you certain?" He persisted.

  "Completely."

  I was serious about getting this finished before it became too dark, as I needed to head into town on my bike. I had a long list of supplies, and I wanted to pick up some seeds to plant. I was also getting a little annoyed with his company.

  "Thanks...uh..."

  "Dave."

  He stuck out his hand.

  "Dave," I repeated. "See you around. Okay? Bye bye!"

  "Okay."

  He didn’t move but instead, continued to stare at me with narrow eyes.

  I started to get nervous although I had nothing to be afraid of. In two years of traveling, only rarely did anyone even suspect who I was.

  At the outset of our adventure, I had dyed my hair red, as a small attempt at a disguise. On top of that, I was looking younger whether from the fresh air or lack of stress. I was working out daily again, with less aches and pains than I had in twenty years.

  Senya had said we were rising again like a phoenix. I didn't know if I'd have carried it that far. I, certainly, was no authority on avian transformations.

  He, however, was going through some kind of rebirth. Up until the explosion of Lumineria III, he had been looking and acting younger than he had in years. He had less lines in his face, and his hair was once again more black than silver. In addition, he was out hunting every day, and as far as I could tell, doing most of it from the sky.

  The destruction of Lumineria III had changed him though. In the two week aftermath, it was as if he was being dragged down into a hole. His leg throbbed constantly, so much so, he was back to walking with a cane, and some mornings, he could barely get out of bed.

  “They don't fear me anymore,” he complained while I dutifully massaged menthol gel on his thigh where the muscles were knotted up into hard lumps.

  “You still terrify me,” I replied. “See how I'm trembling with fear at your awesomeness?"

  "You are not funny."

  “Yes, I am, and I thought you always hated how everyone had a heart attack at the mere mention of your name?”

  “It did help to keep them all in line. Ow! Why must you push there so hard?”

  "You’re lucky I can still push there at all. What did you expect anyway? We’re out here in the middle of nowhere and no
body even knows that you’re alive.”

  “Evil wouldn’t have been so bold if I was there. He has done this to draw me out.”

  “Sure. Whatever you say. Evil. He wouldn't happen to be your twin brother, now would he, Harvey?”

  “Go ahead and laugh, Anne,” he sighed as I put the tube of gel away, and made a mental note to pick up another one next time I went to town. “Lest I accuse you of having an evil twin named Katie.”

  “Don’t get snippy with me. Is there any place else you'd like me to rub you?"

  “Not with menthol covering your hands.”

  “My hands are very hot, so hot they might cause you to launch another nuclear explosion.”

  “I didn't launch the last one," he snapped angrily. "Leave me alone to wallow in my misery, and think on what I should do before it becomes too late.”

  Although, I wasn't thrilled by it, I wasn't hugely surprised when he left the following day. Peace in the universe, and other important stuff somehow always came before me. Now, I was alone, here in this distant corner of the galaxy, a thousand lightyears from the borders of the Empire, and everyone I'd ever known, except for...well...Dave.

  "What's your name?" Dave asked still not moving from my garden. "You look so familiar. I am certain I have seen you somewhere before. In fact, I feel as if I know you. Did you attend the Spaceforce Academy by chance? I had the distinction of attending at the same time as the famous Katie Golden."

  "What?"

  I dropped my shovel, and then, quickly bent down to hide my face while fumbling with the handle as if I couldn't quite grasp it. He had to be Dave Northgate. I knew his face was familiar. What kind of luck was this that on the outskirts of the galaxy, I run into a guy who had followed me around like a puppy when I was school?

  "I did, as a matter of fact,” Dave continued, oblivious to my rising distress. “Of course, there were three thousand four hundred and twenty-seven other cadets at the time. Eleven point five percent of them would eventually drop out. However, Katie was in my class, and I'm proud to say, she was a friend of mine. We even had a tiny, little tete a tete."