Verron – Birth of a Nation
BOOK 1
Epilogue
1724 Earth Year/23987 Monolaya Year:
Twenty-five-year-old Layla looks up to admire the beauty of the noon-day sun as it glimmers through the 500 feet of ocean above the dome, silhouetting the thousands of fish as they swim in the clear blue ocean. She enjoys her daily break from the high stress of her work as a Genetic Scientist while she heads home to have lunch with her mother; taking in the beauty of the city she calls home. The wonders of her underwater world never cease to amaze her. Most residents simply take their lives for granted in the capital city of the planet Monolaya, after all they have lived like this for tens of thousands of years and changes are very slow. But being the daughter of the Chancellor of this underwater world, Layla knows just what goes into maintaining this city of wonder. The original dome was put in place over 10,000 years ago and now contains many buildings over 700 feet high, overhead railways and busy city streets. Dozens of other domes have been added over the centuries making Moyana the largest city on the planet of Monolaya; with over 6 million residents.
Layla gets plenty of admiring looks as she walks briskly along her five city block path for home. At an even five feet in height and 100 pounds, dark red (almost auburn) hair and sparkling green eyes, combined with a winning smile and personality, everyone along her path quickly offers a smile and friendly words as she passes by. She paused a moment to speak to a couple of little girls playing catch on the sidewalk when she feels the underwater city shake and hears a loud rubble. Her first instinct is to think it’s an earthquake and that it will have little effect on the earthquake-proof city. Then there is an explosion and a bright light directly above the city dome and she notices cracks begin to form and water begin to drip from the dome high above. Soon there are many more explosions as she races for home through the crowded streets filled with terrified people looking towards the ocean above.
The Chancellor’s Palace covers an entire city block only five blocks from the Moyana Medical Center where Layla is employed. She covered those five blocks in record time as she headed for the heart of the city and her home. As she enters the Chancellor’s residence in the huge government compound, her mother and father are waiting for her and start racing her toward a secret underwater tunnel to an escape ship two thousand feet below the surface. She is trying to ask questions as the three of them hurry down the elevators and tunnels that lead to the unwater launch site. Layla had been through this routine hundreds of times over her 25 years, as a drill for emergency procedures, but it all seemed so surreal with the city collapsing above and the tunnel lights beginning to falter. She boards the ship and begins to prep for flight just like she had over and over again while practicing for future disasters, as her parents left to go get others who were supposed to go with them in the only escape vessel on Monolaya. Layla is prepping the reactors and double checking the preflight instruments as she watches through the windshield of the ships command deck. She is suddenly knocked off her feet by a nearby blinding explosion. She quickly regains her position just in time to observe another direct hit on the spot where her parents are frantically attempting to help others escape, completely destroying the underwater escape tunnel, along with her parents and friends, closing off any chance of escape for those left behind. Layla, through heavy tears, prepares to use the ship computer to fly her to the predetermined destination. She has no idea where she is going or when she will arrive, she only knows that this ship carries all the vital technology and building material to protect her race from extinction. Part of the technology she is carrying is the necessary DNA needed to clone 1000 people and the cloning chambers to do 100 of them at a time, along with downloads of each person’s neurological waves and thought patterns that would enable the clones to possess every thought and every memory of that individual from the time of recording all the way back to their earliest childhood memory. The ship also contained computer files of Monolaya technology.
With a heavy heart she realizes she is destined to be the only one who escapes the bombardment from above. Suddenly she hears a familiar voice on the ship’s communication link, her cousin and lifelong friend Donarius. He is commanding a squad of Fighter escorts that will protect her ship during departure. Layla activates the launch system and is pushed hard against the pilot’s seat as the ship pushes upwards through the water at over 500 mph, leaping to Mach 5 and accelerating continuously as it breaks the surface into the open sky. Before her eyes, her cousin and his squad of Fighters engage in a life and death battle with dozens of enemy Fighters determined to destroy her and the escape vessel. The battle rages as she prays for a way of escape and watches one Fighter after another give their life in defense of her. The escape ship hits an altitude of 200 miles above Monolaya where it is safe to kick on the warp drive reactors. While she is preparing for warp-speed, alarms begin to sound the signal for incoming enemy missiles. The shields are already activated but Layla attempts to make a quick maneuver to avoid the impact and launches dozens of decoy drones. Most of the incoming missiles are diverted but a moment later the ship is struck by several missiles that made it through. In a panic, as she listens to the status report from the ships computer, she learns that the missiles have knocked out her warp drive and landing thrusters. Layla knows she must escape and her only hope is that the ships Light Speed capabilities have not been destroyed as well. The computer confirms the ship is still capable of 8000 L.S. (Light Speed). Layla makes certain the computer is properly set and places herself in the hibernation chambers to prepare for the long flight and heavy acceleration ahead. As soon as she is safely contained in the chamber, the computer pushes the ship to its limit of acceleration, leaving the attacking Fighters and her home of Monolaya far behind. The last words she hears before going into a cryogenic sleep were, “Monolaya has been destroyed.” She wondered if her tears would freeze to her face as she slowly drifted out of consciousness. The ships computer worked continually with the self-healing metal and self-repairing ship components of the Monolaya designed ship in an attempt to make the repairs and get back to warp speed as Layla slept, she was the only survivor of Monolaya, now traveling light-years from her home. The ships computer finally gave up the attempted repairs after trying for almost 100 years. The damage was just too severe for inflight regeneration.
Chapter 1
State of Georgia - 2015:
Paul Verron is attempting to eat his once a month piece of real chicken in the Georgia State Prison chow hall as a riot breaks out and inmates and officers are being shanked. The CERT team fires tear gas into the chow hall to break it up and then starts sending those not involved back to their cells for mandatory lockdown. Paul quickly grabs his and three other pieces of chicken and stuffs them in his jacket inside smuggler pocket. Paul and his cell-mate Harold are nauseous from the tear gas and hungry because they never got to eat. While pilfering through their locker to see if there is anything to munch on, Paul produces his much prized possessions from the coats inside pocket. Even with a bit of lint from the coats liner, the chicken is a treat. Harold asks Paul jokingly, “I’ll bet you’re going to miss all this drama, aren’t you?” Paul’s only reply is, “One and a wake-up.”
The two of them are soon talking about the things they’ve missed since being locked-up and the dreams of what they will do when they get out. Harold then asks, “Are you still planning to be a preacher when you get out? A lot of guys give it lip service and never open their Bible again after they leave.” Paul lets him know, “I want to do whatever God has planned for me and I will go wherever God wants me to go – all I re
ally want to do is make a difference, no matter what my future holds.” He then adds, “Besides, I’m not so sure the world is ready for a preacher like me. I still think of God as a lot bigger than most people and refuse to put Him in a box.” Harold replies, “You aren’t going to start with all that alien stuff again are you?” Paul smiles and says, “You know what I believe. I just think God created a lot more than this one little planet and the creatures on it. How can you look at this galaxy with its billions of stars and then realize that there are literally billions of galaxies, some even bigger than this one, and think there isn’t more out there than we can even begin to imagine. I would never preach it from the pulpit, but I believe with all my heart that God has created so much more than us.”
The next morning Paul packs his Bible and photo album, along with a few dozen songs he wrote and gives everything else in his locker to Harold. It was hard to be friendly with the officers as they processed his paperwork for release, especially the head of the CERT team, who was being his usual rude and obnoxious self, right to the very end. He couldn’t hold back the tears as he stepped out the prison gate unshackled for the first time in 12 years. His 83 year-old mother and his brother were there to greet him in a tearful reunion. He climbed into the front seat by his brother Kary a free man, holding everything he owned in a small box placed on his lap. He was about to begin a new life with $25.00 and the clothes on his back. Everything else had been lost, including his wife, his home and any chance of a relationship with his children or grandchildren. He was more blessed than most, he thought, he was old enough to draw his social security and he had been offered a spare room at his brother’s home. Paul had friends who got out and were literally living under a bridge. After 12 years of prison food, Paul couldn’t wait for his first meal in the free world. They drove by dozens of fast food places and restaurants but Paul knew exactly what he wanted and had waited this long for it, he could wait a few more miles if he had too.
It was an hour later when he saw the sign, Sonny’s Barbeque exit 143. His mouth began to water at the thought of some BBQ Pork. Pork had been banned from the menu of the Georgia Prison system because of the strong political pull of the Muslim community. BBQ pork was not only something Paul loved to eat; it was also something he had been denied for 12 years. They were the first customers in the restaurant that morning; Chopped BBQ pork, extra crispy fries, baked-beans, garlic toast and a large Diet Coke. As Paul ate he shed tears of joy as he tried to accept the fact that he really was free at last.
It took several months of searching for a job before Paul finally found one. Trying to get hired as a felon was difficult and even tougher when you’re 63 years-old. Paul spent his days searching for a job, his early mornings working out in a local gym, his evenings going for long walks. He managed to find a church that would allow him to be an active part of their music ministry and sang with the praise and worship team every Sunday morning. His credit was such a mess he had to get a co-signer for almost everything he bought. He picked some household item to buy each month to prepare his self for the day he would have a place of his own; one month a printer to go with his donated laptop, the next a TV, he finally broke down and got a smart phone and soon realized it was a lot smarter than he was. He had to gradually rebuild his wardrobe and prayed that God would one day help him to stand on his own two feet without the help of so many caring family members. Finally he got a breakthrough. One of his old customers in Mississippi needed someone to manage their paint line. Paul had been selling and installing paint systems for over 25 years and was a perfect fit for the job. He hated to leave his family and his church, but he knew he desperately needed to get on with his life. He packed everything he owned into a Kia Soul, still in his mother’s name, and headed for his new life in Mississippi.
Chapter 2
State of Mississippi - 2017:
Paul had a great day at work on the powder-coating line at Viking Range. He got out of the plant in just enough time to clean-up and grab a bite to eat before he had to head out again for a Wednesday evening drive from Greenwood, MS to Cleveland, MS to preach the last day of a revival. It had been a short four-day revival and in the small community of Cleveland, the crowds had been a bit small, but Paul knew that several lives had been changed during those four days and one of them was his own. Paul felt like he always got more out of preaching than the people he preached to. The gift offering for his four days was $500. After giving 10% for a tithe he would put the rest in the bank and save it for a new computer he had been hoping to own one day. It was late by the time he left the church and began traveling north on highway 278 toward home. In the pouring rain and almost home to his trailer in Alligator, Mississippi, he noticed a rain soaked hitchhiker. He rarely makes a habit of picking up strangers, but this man looked beyond miserable as he stood there, obviously soaked to the bone, that Paul quickly pulled over and honked his horn for the man climb in. The waterlogged man looked to be about 10 or 15 years younger than Paul’s 65 years and claimed he was on his way to Tunica. Paul looked the harmless looking man over and offers to drive him all the way if he can stop by his trailer till the rain slacks off. It was a slow drive up the rain soaked highway, but they soon left the main highway and began to make their way down a pitted dirt road toward Paul’s trailer home. Once inside, Paul offered his guest some dry clothes and something to eat.
The man, named Zimuel, tells Paul, “I appreciate the offer of the clothes, but that isn’t necessary. I am so glad you stopped. This would have been a long walk and I’m not so certain I could have found this place so well hidden down these dirt roads.” Paul gives him a questioning look, and the man continues, “I’ve travelled a long way to find you, it would have been a shame to get lost when I am so close.” Paul laughs and smiles and says, “You are out on a night like this, hitchhiking through nowhere Mississippi looking for me? You must be even more pathetic than you look in those wet clothes. No offence.” Zimuel answers, “None taken. But none the less I was sent to look for you. As hard as it may be to believe this, because I’m having a hard time believing it myself, I have a message from God.” Paul laughs and asks if he’s crazy. Zimuel answers, “Probably, but I’m still obedient.” “And what is this message you have for me”, Paul asks. Zimuel puts on a more serious face and says, “You’re the one who, for the past 15 years, has been telling God you’d go wherever He wants you to go and that you really want to make a difference and that you believe He is much bigger than others believe Him to be. In fact you keep saying there has got to be more life in this universe than the creatures on Earth.” Paul is staring with his mouth open at this man he’s never seen, telling him his most private thoughts. In fact, thoughts he had never shared with anyone but Harold and prayers to God. Paul asks, “Did Harold put you up to this?” Zimuel says with a still serious expression, “I don’t believe God’s name is Harold.”
Paul sits down hard on the sofa and looks at Zimuel and asks, “OK, so what is this message?” Zimuel clears his throat and says, “God is going to answer your prayers and give you a task that will not only make a difference but will impact the entire universe. You see, there really are other living beings besides the ones on Earth and before very long they are going to be in a lot of trouble. God has chosen you to unite and lead both humans and nonhumans in what will decide the fate of all sentient beings in the Universe.” Paul smiles and says, “Now I know you are definitely crazy. Maybe I should drive you all the way to Memphis to find a nice mental hospital. First of all, why would God choose me when there are millions of people who are already proven and successful leaders? And second, why should I believe you, when there’s always someone saying they have a word from God, and most are just expressions of their own imaginations?”
Zimuel smiled at the comment, and replied, “As a matter of fact there are others where I come from that also thought I was crazy, that is until God gave several of them the exact same message. I was chosen by the Council of Elders to come get you and convince y
ou that what I am about to tell you is true and that God really did ask for you. I guess it’s sort of like the David thing, everyone thought his older brothers should be King, but God looked at the heart and not the outward appearance. If I went by sight instead of faith I’d have picked someone else too.” Zimuel chuckled. “Now let me show you a few things that may convince you that I’m not just a crazy hitch-hiker you per chance picked up.” Zimuel holds up his hand and a ball of fire about the size of a golf ball appears. As he opens the front door the blowing rain sweeps into the living room soaking the carpeted floor, he then throws the fireball at a soaking wet dead oak tree along the fence line of the pasture next door. As it leaves his hands the flame grows larger and larger and completely engulfs the sixty foot tall tree. In a split second the entire tree is gone. Zimuel then closes the door and waves his hands over the rain soaked carpet. Water begins to rise from the floor forming in a round shape the size of a small cantaloupe. He then does the same thing to his water soaked clothes; all the dampness being added to a floating ball. As it hovers above the floor it suddenly turns into a ball of solid ice, it then floats slowly to the kitchen sink and gently lowers into the sink turning once again to water. Paul bends down to feel the perfectly dry carpet in front of the door and looks long and hard at the now dry hitchhiker. He shakes his head and smiles saying, “Well you’ve got my attention, what is it exactly that you’ve been sent to tell me?”
As Zimuel sits down on the old blue recliner, Paul realizes that both he and Zimuel are completely dry. Zimuel begins, “This may take a little time to explain, it’s a very long story.” Paul nods his OK and sits back down on the sofa and replies, “I never want to hurry God, so take your time.” Zimuel clears his throat and quotes, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” – God didn’t just create this one little planet, he created billions of galaxies with billions of stars and billions of solar systems. It would be easier to count all the grains of sand on Earth than to count all the planets and stars in the Universe. The account of God’s creation of Earth in Genesis, along with Adam and Eve, the fall, and the flood is a very true and accurate description of just what God did on Earth. But, there are other living creatures in the universe that were here long before man inhabited Earth. People on Earth want to try and make it all make sense and I’ll tell you right now they are wasting their time trying to figure out God. He does what He wants the way He wants and when He wants to do it and never will anyone comprehend it. You see my planet is about 50,000 light years away; a few galaxies over in what you call Draco Dwarf. Of course we can cover that distance considerably faster, but that’s another story. Now where was I? Oh, yes, our people were in the space age, travelling at light speed, back when Earth was still in the Stone Age and trying to figure out how to make fire. You see, Earth was a nice little plant in the beginning, but there were no humans living there. Oh, there was life and some of it fairly intelligent, but definitely not human. We checked it out when the dinosaurs were roaming the Earth and saw that it was a beautiful place but not easily inhabited by humans; without killing off the current residents. We collected a few specimens for further study and decided to leave it alone. However, there are other sentient beings in the solar system that are not air breathers and considered Earth as useless as we humans would some desert planet. These non-human life forms used Earth as target practice for their kinetic weapons. Even millions of years ago their technology was advanced enough to retrieve a very large asteroid from the asteroid-belt and move it at hundreds of thousands of miles per hour with a controlled trajectory. Since Earth was useless to them, it became a target. That asteroid was so large and hit with such force that it completely shattered the Earth, destroying every living creature on it. The ground split open, volcanoes erupted, continents disappeared, there was mass flooding and the sky was so filled with toxic fumes and volcanic ash that the sun no longer could be seen. Earth truly was “dark and without form.” God was a little more than upset, so He decided to show the entire universe just how incredible He is. Like it says in Genesis, He took a totally lifeless and useless planet that others thought they had destroyed and in six days turned it into the most beautiful and desirable planet in the galaxy, complete with the human race and every animal in existence on Earth today.”
Verron: Birth of a Nation: Book One (Verron Series 1) Page 1
