Renegade Rupture

by J. C. Fiske

  “It’s ok, honey, come on. Up you go,” Nora said.

  “I . . . he, he ran so fast! Don’t tell Daddy that I screamed, please?” Gisbo asked. Nora smiled and made a zip up motion across her mouth.

  “Never, ever tell!” Nora said, giggling.

  “Promise?” Gisbo asked.

  “Promise! Hey, look up there! Seems somebody wants to thank you, Gisbo,” Nora said, pointing up at the rocky incline. Gisbo followed her finger to see the white wolf standing tall and proud, its mane wafting in the breeze, watching them curiously as it howled. Gisbo smiled, and then found himself frowning.

  “He, he sounds so sad. Why is he sad, mommy? Why is he howling like that?” Gisbo asked.

  “He’s lonely. Being alone can make somebody very sad, Gisbo. You see, wolves travel in packs, families, but every once in a while, you come across one who left their pack to go through life alone,” Nora said.

  “Why do they do that, mom?” Gisbo asked.

  “Oh, there could be many reasons for that, Gisbo, but mostly it’s due to aggression from the pack’s leader, the Alpha, or from being picked on for being weak or different. It could be because of his color. I’ve never seen a white wolf in these parts. You’ll mostly find black or grey,” Nora said.

  “He doesn’t look very weak to me,” Gisbo said. Nora smiled.

  “No, no, he doesn’t, does he? The odds are against him, that’s for sure, but this one, he’s never given up. Look at him now. He’s beautiful, isn’t he? And strong!” Nora said.

  Gisbo smiled.

  “Gisbo, can you do me a favor?” Gisbo’s mom asked as she walked, still holding him.

  “What?” Gisbo asked.

  “Can you promise me that no matter what, even when things seem hopeless, when things get darkest, and they will, that you’ll stand strong, plant your feet, and never, ever give up?” Nora asked.

  “I promise, Mom,” Gisbo said.

  “I love you, sweetie, so much. Can you give mommy a kiss?” Nora asked. Gisbo wrapped his arms around his mom’s neck and kissed her gently on the cheek.

  “Boy, you’re getting heavy! Mommy’s got to put you down now, ok?” Nora said as she put her son down on his feet and held his hand. As they walked, Gisbo looked back to get one last look at the big, white wolf, but it was gone.

  After a little ways, mother and son came to their destination, a place just on the outskirts of Heaven’s Shelter, a place of solitude, of mourning, a hallowed place known to the Renegades as the Life End, where hundreds of small trees were planted in a perfect grid, each exactly seven feet apart.

  Gisbo and Nora walked through the tiny trees taking two lefts, then a right, and stopping in front of one of the smaller ones. Upon the tree was a plaque written in the same colorful, fiery letters as the “Welcome Home” sign to Heaven’s Shelter.

  “Mom? Where are we?” Gisbo asked, gazing about at the beautiful, multi-colored trees around him.

  “The Life End. This is where Renegades go when they . . .” Nora paused, “ . . . leave this world. Put your hood up, Gizzy, out of respect.”

  Gisbo obeyed and the two of them put the hoods attached to their ponchos up and knelt before the tree.

  “You mean, when people . . . die,” Gisbo said.

  “That’s right, dear. When a Renegade passes on, they are buried here, holding a seed, a special Naforian seed that grows overnight into an Evergrowth tree,” Nora said.

  “An . . . Evergrowth?” Gisbo asked.

  “Yes, the tree is unique in that it binds with the Renegade’s leftover essence and blooms into a beautiful reminder and representation of their life. Every Evergrowth tree is different. Some sprout flowers, some have different hues of bark, some are taller than others. Some are blue, some are pink . . . every tree represents how the person lived, how much they sacrificed, how much they loved, how much they gave, not how they died. Evergrowths are much more personal and beautiful than a simple, cold gravestone,” Nora said.

  “Whose tree is this, mom?” Gisbo asked.

  “Below this tree lays one of my dearest friends who has . . . passed from this world,” Nora said.

  “To . . . la . . . To . . . la. What does the sign say, mommy? I can’t read her name,” Gisbo said.

  “Are you giving up?” Nora asked.

  “I . . . no, I just,” Gisbo stammered.

  “Come on, you can do it, sound it out,” Nora said. Gisbo took a deep breath.

  “Too . . . la . . . Tula?” Gisbo asked.

  “Very good, honey! Keep going,” Nora said with a big, encouraging smile. Gisbo smiled in return and looked back at the fiery letters.

  “Tula . . . Ta . . . Ta . . . row? Tula Taro?” Gisbo asked, biting his lower lip, hoping he was right. Nora moved in and planted a kiss on his forehead, causing him to beam.

  “Very, VERY good, Gisbo. Yes, her name is Tula Taro, and she, she was my very best friend,” Nora said. Gisbo looked from his mom back to the plaque.

  “You miss her, don’t you, Mommy?” Gisbo said.

  “Yes, very much,” Gisbo’s mom answered.

  “I . . .” Gisbo started when, to his left, he heard snow crunching and saw a man, ten trees down, dressed in an all white, long cloak that swept the snow as he walked, erasing any footprints, any reminder that he was even there. The man in white bore a large sword across his back and gave the Renegade salute to every tree he passed by thrusting a fist forward, raising two fingers to his forehead, laying it down, then stamping the same hand across his chest as he lowered into a bow.

  “Mommy? Who’s that man? What’s he doing?” Gisbo asked, tugging on his mom’s cloak.

  “That is the White Renegade,” Nora said.

  “The . . . White Renegade?” Gisbo asked.

  “Yes, he guards the Life End from morning ‘til nightfall, giving reverence to each life who has passed on with the traditional Renegade greeting and farewell,” Nora said.

  “Body, Mind, Heart,” Gisbo said as he too did the Renegade greeting and bowed with his eyes closed.

  “Yes, yes, Gisbo, just like that,” Nora said.

  “Mom?” Gisbo asked.

  “Yes?” Nora replied.

  “Um, I . . . nevermind,” Gisbo said.

  “What is it, honey?” Nora asked.

  “What happens when you . . . die?” Gisbo asked.

  “I don’t know, honey,” Nora said.

  “Does Dad know?” Gisbo asked. Nora smiled.

  “No, he doesn’t know either. In fact, nobody knows for sure,” Nora said. Gisbo’s gaze narrowed.

  “Nobody? How come?” Gisbo asked.

  “My, aren’t you just full of questions today,” Nora said.

  “I’m sorry,” Gisbo said.

  “No, no. Don’t ever be sorry for asking a question. Question everything, honey, all the time,” Nora said.

  “Everything? Even you and Daddy?” Gisbo asked.

  “Especially me! But even more so your daddy,” Nora said, winking. Gisbo giggled. “That’s what a Renegade does, Gisbo. Always question, especially those in charge, and even your most heartfelt feelings and opinions. Questioning others makes your mind strong. Belief in others makes your heart strong. Remember that,” Nora said.

  “I will, Mom,” Gisbo said.

  “Now, as for your question, it’s a good one, but you’ll only have the answer when it’s your turn to pass from this world. Everyone has to one day,” Nora said. Gisbo’s eyes brightened up at this.

  “Even . . . you and Dad?” Gisbo asked.

  “Yes, honey, even me and your dad,” Nora said. Suddenly, Gisbo’s lip quivered and tears sprang into the corners of his eyes. “Oh, oh, honey! No, no, don’t cry, come here.”

  Gisbo’s mother grabbed him and held his head against her chest.

  “Honey, me and your dad, we aren’t going anywhere for a very, very long time,” Nora said. Gisbo looked up into his mother’s eyes, eyes so much like her own.

  “You promise?” Gisbo asked.
r />   “Promise,” Nora said with a wink. Gisbo flashed a weak smile.

  “Dad, Dad told me that when people die, they go up to a very pretty place called the Heavens where beautiful people with wings called Seraphs fly and everyone lives happily ever after,” Gisbo said.

  “Is that so?” Nora asked.

  “But Daddy also told me that only boys fart and girls never do, but that’s not true! The other day I saw my teacher, old Miss Moreson, bend over to pick up her cane, and she blasted a good one! It was even bigger than one of Daddy’s!” Gisbo said. Nora erupted into laughter.

  “Your Daddy says lots of things, Gisbo. Sometimes he makes mistakes, it’s not his fault,” Nora said, wiping tears from her eyes.

  “Yesterday, Bill Diggin’s cat, Scoop, died. He told me that when things die, nothing happens, and they get planted and become trees and grass, but I don’t know. That’s different from what Daddy said,” Gisbo said.

  “When people can’t know something, they come up with different beliefs, and that’s ok. Being different makes us who we are. Some believe that nothing happens, others believe that you are reborn into something else, some believe that you go up to the Heavens, and others, well, don’t believe in anything at all,” Nora said. “That’s what freedom is, Gisbo. If there was one right path for everyone, everyone would be on it. We as Renegades do not need anyone to tell us what to do. We make our own path. Nobody needs someone else to tell them what to do, and how to live, not even me, ”

  “Mom?” Gisbo asked.

  “Yes, honey?” Nora answered.

  “What do you believe?” Gisbo asked. Nora smiled.

  “Hm, that’s a good question. Well, you remember that wolf we just saw? All by himself?” Nora asked.

  Gisbo nodded.

  “I like to believe that we didn’t come across that wolf on accident. We saved that wolf’s life today for a purpose, and the tracks that we made in the snow are the same tracks we make across each other’s lives and hearts. I like to believe that nothing happens by mistake, that we are all part of a big picture, a big plan, and that everything happens for a reason. While we may not know that reason now, one day we’ll be told by something or someone that is beyond all of us. I say that I like to believe that because, while I’m not sure it’s true, it gives me hope, and hope is something that makes tomorrow come,” Nora said.

  “I hope Daddy’s right. I’d love to meet a Seraph one day. Maybe he can teach me how to fly like Daddy,” Gisbo said.

  “Daddy can teach you to fly like Daddy, when you’re old enough,” Nora said. “Now, let mommy say a quick prayer and say happy birthday to Tula, and we can go back and make some lunch, ok?”

  “Ok, can I pray too?” Gisbo asked.

  “Of course,” Nora said. She watched her son lower his head and fold his little hands. She smiled and, before praying for her friend, she prayed to IAM and thanked him for such a wonderful, kind little boy.

  Upon finishing, hand in hand, Gisbo and his mother began to walk out of the cemetery when someone blocked their way.

  Face down in the snow, the White Renegade lay, bleeding from his side. Gisbo froze in place, horrified by what he saw, until his mother swept him off his feet into her arms.

  “Mom? Mommy, what’s . . .” Gisbo started. Nora clasped a hand over his mouth to silence him. She looked all about and listened for anything upon the air. She closed her eyes, letting her instinct take over as she held Gisbo with one arm, clasped her hand over the sheath of her Sorwhip, and unfurled it, letting it drape across the snow. She hovered her mouth over Gisbo’s ear and whispered softly.

  “Gisbo, honey, stay quiet. Don’t mutter a sound. Nod if you understand,” Nora whispered. Gisbo nodded.

  “No matter what happens, just know that I . . .” Nora started when suddenly there was a scream and a flash of red.

  Gisbo was thrust back to reality. He stood in the Life End, toward the center, where the tallest tree of all, with thick, blue bark and light blue flowers that glowed and pulsated, now stood, and the name “Barbara McCarley” was etched across a plaque in fiery words.

  “You ok, son?” a voice asked from behind. Gisbo turned to see the White Renegade walking about the grounds without a drop of red on his clean uniform. Gisbo had no idea who was behind the garb. It wasn’t proper for the one on duty to reveal his identity in such a holy place.

  “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Gisbo said.

  No, you’re not, a dark voice said within Gisbo’s mind.

  “She saved us all. Honor her sacrifice, be proud of her, celebrate her life, not in mourning, but in joy,” the White Renegade said as he gave a bow in Gisbo’s direction. Gisbo returned the Renegade greeting and watched the White Renegade continue his rounds.

  Easy for him to say, she wasn’t a part of his family, the dark voice snapped. Gisbo winced and grabbed at his forehead as a sharp pain pierced it. Gisbo cursed and pulled his hand from his forehead, revealing a thick, black smudge.

  The Drakeness, the voices . . . they were getting worse . . .

  “Shut up, just shut up!” Gisbo muttered as he placed a hand over his aunt’s plaque, let out a heavy sigh, and made his way back to Heaven’s Shelter.

  Chapter Two: Strife Invasion

  “There you are! Everyone’s been looking for you,” Nina said. Gisbo, sitting on the bottom step of his and Rolce’s tree house, looked up, then back down at the ground.

  Nina sat down beside him and wrapped a warm hand around his newly tattooed arm.

  “They’re beautiful, Gisbo. Who did them?” Nina asked.

  “Falcon,” Gisbo said.

  “Very sexy,” Nina said, smiling. Gisbo grunted in reply.

  “Is, is everything ok? All your friends are celebrating their new Renegade status in the courtyard. They’ve all been asking for you. Don’t you want to join them?” Nina asked.

  “Nah,” Gisbo said as he rose to his feet and stretched.

  “Gisbo, you can talk to me, you know. I’m here for you,” Nina said.

  “Yeah,” Gisbo said as he began walking up the steps.

  “Yeah? What is ‘yeah’ supposed to . . .” Nina started.

  “Everything’s fine!” Gisbo snapped. “All right? OK? Is that what you wanna hear? Jeesh, quit with the damn nagging and just leave me the hell alone! Cripes!”

  Nina sat there, eyes watering up, and immediately Gisbo palmed his face.

  “I’m . . . I’m sorry. I don’t know where that came from,” Gisbo said as he sat back down, feeling his blood boil for no reason. In fact, his rage had never been worse, and it downright scared him. Nina grabbed Gisbo’s hand and began to massage it.

  “It’s your aunt, isn’t it?” Nina asked.

  “I don’t know,” Gisbo said.

  “Yes, you do. Now talk to me, let it out,” Nina said. “I, I care about you, a lot.”

  She doesn’t care about you, a fierce voice snapped. Gisbo grabbed at his forehead and winced.

  “Gisbo?” Nina asked, genuine worry to her voice.

  “It’s nothing, just a headache,” Gisbo said. Nina looked skeptical.

  “Honestly! It’s just a headache, promise. Now let’s go get some food or something before Grandfield and Groggo’s fat asses eat everything,” Gisbo said, forcing a smile. Nina accepted the answer, smiled in return, and hand in hand, the two of them began to walk towards the courtyard. Suddenly, Gisbo froze.

  “What’s wrong?” Nina asked.

  “Something’s wrong . . .” Gisbo said.

  “What is it?” Nina whispered.

  “Sorry, must have been nothing. Let’s . . .” Gisbo started when a yellow-eyed, black wolf pounced out of the bushes and lunged toward Gisbo, its fangs bared. Gisbo instinctively leapt in front of Nina to defend her and a white blur leapt to defend them.

  Fao charged and met the black wolf in mid-air. They both went down in a snarling tornado of growls, yips, and flashes of teeth and claws.

  “Fao! Hey! HEY! Get off of her!” Gisbo yelle
d. Before he could do anything, a familiar voice halted him.

  “RAZ! RAZGUL! GET BACK HERE, DAMN IT!” the voice yelled. Immediately, the black wolf halted its attack and backed away, whimpering and clearly frightened by the voice. The speaker leapt into the clearing and halted beside his wolf.

  “You . . .” Gisbo mouthed.

  Malik Strife’s jaw dropped. Never had Gisbo seen the boy so shocked. In fact, he looked downright scared. The Strife prince’s lower lip trembled and he did his best to say something, anything, but he was interrupted by three loud trumpet blasts from the courtyard, a signal that Gisbo never thought he’d actually hear.

  “That’s an invasion signal! Heaven’s Shelter is being invaded by the Strifes!” Gisbo said as he pulled out his two Tantos and ignited his Flarian essence. Fao ran to his side, ready for action.

  “Get ready for a world of hurt, assface!” Gisbo said, pointing an enflamed Tanto at one of his most hated enemies. Malik looked from Gisbo to Nina and took off running back from where he came.

  Gisbo was stunned. He never expected Malik to ever turn his back from a fight. Even so, the shock didn’t last long.

  “Oh, no, you don’t! NOT THIS TIME! Fao, stay with Nina, protect her! Nina, stay close behind me; we’ve got to get to the courtyard!” Gisbo said.

  “I . . .” Nina started when the trumpet sounded again.

  “What the hell is going on? COME ON!” Gisbo yelled and he, Nina, and Fao entered the forest chasing Malik.

  “That bastard, he’s gonna pay for what he did to Kinny! Never in my life have I ever wanted to . . . Grah! Come on, Nina! We’ve got to hurry!” Gisbo yelled, looking over his shoulder.

  “Gisbo! Gisbo, wait!” Nina said.

  “Forget it. Fao! Stay with her! I’m going on ahead,” Gisbo ordered as he pushed his Flarian powers into overdrive, activating and controlling his adrenaline and re-directing as much as possible into his leg muscles.

  That bastard! That’s it, that’s the reason. He knew he couldn’t take on me and Nina together, so he booked it! I’ll kill him! I’LL KILL HIM! Gisbo thought as he took chase.

  Yes! Kill him! TEAR OUT HIS VOICEBOX! KILL! A fierce voice spoke up.