Into the Fire Part II: To End All Wars (Universe in Flames Book 10)

by Christian Kallias

  Their fight against Spectre Arakan had been a total disaster. Even together they hadn’t managed to make a dent, and they almost got themselves killed no matter how powerful Argos felt now that he could reach his Ultra Fury form.

  “Are you insane?!” shouted Chris. “You’ll destroy the room, if not the ship, if you keep pushing that gravity engine outside of its specifications.”

  Chris walked toward the emergency stop button.

  “Don’t!” said Argos. “Just let me be, please.”

  Chris punched the button without the slightest hesitation, but nothing happened. He hit the button multiple times, to no avail.

  “You’ve disabled it, haven’t you?”

  But Argos had already turned his back and was painfully kicking and punching nothing but air, perspiring more than any being ought to be able to, trying to acclimate to the Titan-crushing gravity field.

  “Two can play at that game,” said Chris.

  Soon the gravity returned to normal, and Argos finished his current combo so fast that he looked and moved like a tornado.

  “What did you do?!” he complained.

  “I found the override, and I turned the machine off.”

  “I sometimes forget that, like your father, you can take control of machinery.”

  “And perhaps if you weren’t obstinately training way beyond this machine’s safety limits, I would try and teach you that skill, like you taught me to heal.”

  “I need to get stronger, not talk to computers.”

  “It’s a skill that can save your life.”

  “Not against Spectre Arakan.”

  “Uncle, please; can you just for a second stop, so we can talk. I feel how angry you are, and I think it will do us both good.”

  Argos hated keeping his nephew at a distance, but he realized during the fight that Chris almost died. While Chris had decided to stay back on his own, Argos felt responsible for Chris’ safety. If he had died, Argos wasn’t sure how he would have dealt with that loss. Even though Chris was Chase’s son, he was the warmest and closest person in Argos’ heart. He could not live with himself if anything happened to him. So as much as he hated pushing his nephew away, right now he didn’t know how to deal with the situation and was too focused on becoming powerful enough never to feel helpless like he had when they fought Spectre Arakan.

  “There’s nothing to discuss, Chris. We need to train. So, either step in and spar with me or go away.”

  Chris’ eyes were moist.

  Very well, be that way, said Chris mentally, reactivating the machine at 500Gs and reprogramming it on-the-fly to refuse a higher setting. “See ya, I guess.”

  With his back turned, Argos waited for Chris to exit the cargo bay before letting a single tear travel down his cheek. He wiped it off and looked at it before smudging it between his fingers. Soon, Argos resumed his training.

  Thor entered the mess hall and saw Poseidon alone at a far table, away from the crew members. He walked to the table, and when the Olympian didn’t acknowledge his presence, he sat opposite him.

  Poseidon briefly raised his head toward Thor but didn’t say a word.

  “Mind if I sit here?” asked Thor, tentatively.

  “Is that the Asgardian way to ask permission after the fact?”

  “No, but it didn’t seem like you wanted me here, so I thought I’d make that decision for you.”

  “If you know I want to be alone, why are you here?”

  “I wanted to check on you. Chase told me you got out of your regen tank a couple of hours ago.”

  “Hmm. I’d rather be alone.”

  “And yet, I can tell that you have things to say.”

  Poseidon shot a cold look at the Asgardian.

  “Look,” continued Thor. “We’re all rattled by what happened; you’re not alone in this; you have friends.”

  “Friends? If they have one iota of sense, they’d blame me for Oryn’s death, and they’d be right to do so.”

  “You can’t be serious?”

  Poseidon tensed his hands into fists.

  “I should have protected her; I shouldn’t have let Spectre Arakan claim her soul!”

  “But you did protect her; that’s why your body was shattered, and it’s a miracle you survived.”

  Poseidon looked away.

  “I wish I hadn’t.”

  “That’s crazy talk. There’s nothing any of us could have done, and you know it. The Ultra Furies were overpowered and barely survived, so why do you feel you failed?”

  “I let my niece, the daughter of my brother, perish. He sacrificed his life to save me, and I couldn’t even protect his daughter.”

  “Again, nobody could have.”

  “I don’t expect you to understand.”

  “Oh, but I do understand, and I’m sorry for your loss, Poseidon. But we need to grieve and move forward. I didn’t know Oryn well, but I don’t think she’d want you to blame yourself for her death.”

  “We will never know now, will we?”

  “You never know.”

  “That thing swallowed her soul; that alone should tell us how outclassed we are. It’s just a matter of time before we follow in her footsteps.”

  “Speak for yourself, Poseidon. I have no intention of allowing my soul to be stolen, not before it’s time for it to go to Valhalla.”

  “Good for you, and you may soon get your wish granted. There’s no way we’re defeating that— thing.”

  “Let’s talk about that for a minute.”

  Poseidon smashed his fist on the table, attracting everyone’s attention.

  “I said I don’t want to talk; go away!”

  “I will soon, but first, you’ll listen to what I have to say. Oryn’s death isn’t your fault; it’s none of our faults. There was no way for us to know that killing Arakan would unleash such a powerful enemy in his stead. But, we’re going to have to deal with that creature, nonetheless. And while you’re no good to anybody in your current state of mind, if you love your niece, even just a little, you owe it to her to get over her death and do whatever it takes to make sure nobody else suffers the same fate.”

  Thor could tell he had struck a chord.

  “Are you finished?” said Poseidon, coldly.

  Thor got up from his chair and pushed it back in place under the table.

  “As a matter of fact, I am. I’ll be training on deck seven, cargo bay three, in case you need to blow off some steam. I know I do.”

  Thor walked away without saying another word.

  Chase couldn’t sleep. Sarah had her arm against his bare chest. He envied her ability to sleep soundly. Chase couldn’t remember the last time he had a good night’s sleep. His brain simply refused to shut down and kept him awake until his body was too tired, at which point, he would fade away for an hour or two and then wake up, more often than not from a nightmare that reflected how precarious life was and what his subconscious was feeling.

  When it wasn’t the Earth being destroyed to the sound of billions of voices crying out before the end, it was someone close to him that got hurt, or worse, killed. These nightmares snapped Chase out of sleep with such violence that the resulting shot of adrenaline would prevent him from relaxing.

  Usually, his movements would wake up his beloved, but this time it didn’t, which was good because this particular nightmare had been about her. In the nightmare, Sarah was mortally wounded during a battle against Spectre Arakan. Chase knew very well that there was no way he could shield Sarah from the events that needed to unfold next.

  His last attempt at doing so had put her right in the path of danger, even before their mission to Erevos had even started. He couldn’t know or predict what would happen, and he needed to accept some of Aphroditis’ last words, no matter how painful they were. She had told him that he would need to detach himself emotionally from the ones he loved and accept that they could become casualties before this war was over. But how could he do that?

  How could he deta
ch from Sarah, Chris, or even Argos? They were his family; how could he not do everything in his power to try and protect them? And perhaps that’s not what Aphroditis meant, as she knew very well Chase would try and protect those that mattered the most to him.

  Somehow, Oryn’s death put into perspective what his aunt tried to tell him before the mission to Erevos. No matter how much Chase wanted to avoid casualties, there would be unpredictable events that would make it impossible for him to prevent death. That had happened before; to Fillio, Saroudis, and now Oryn as well. Chase now understood that trying to avoid these deaths would paralyze him from doing what needed to be done.

  Even his short talk with Yanis had given him food for thought. They were at a turning point in this war. What the Earth Alliance was willing to do would determine the fate of trillions of souls. He had to include everyone while looking at the bigger picture, not just those he loved. The risk that things could get out of control and impact an entire universe was too high.

  Oryn had perished, and while Chase still blamed himself for it, he also knew that her determination in her last moment held a fundamental lesson for him. No matter how strong Arakan was, her unwavering determination trumped the fact that she probably wasn’t powerful enough to defeat her former father.

  Poseidon had helped, but perhaps that was destiny making sure the right ally was placed in her path for her to accomplish the one task she wanted more than anything, even at the cost of her own life. She had succeeded in her quest; she had disconnected herself emotionally from those around her and achieved her goal, no matter what stood in her way, and that included Chase’s orders not to engage Arakan on this mission.

  Chase wondered if he could do that, and realized, on some level, that what he thought of as recklessness and a wild-card attitude on the part of Oryn, had, in fact, been an act of tremendous courage and determination; one he needed to learn from, instead of just grieving her passing and second-guessing himself.

  2

  “You look like shit,” joked Daniel.

  “Why, thank you,” answered Chase with a forced smile.

  “Still having trouble sleeping?”

  “Yeah, but at least I think I’m learning some valuable lessons.”

  Daniel’s eyes widened.

  “Now you’ve got my attention and curiosity firing on all cylinders; please, pray tell.”

  “Well, for one, I can’t control everything around me.”

  Daniel chuckled and joined his hands together, looking upward.

  “As the human’s say, hallelujah! About freaking time, Chase. You’re not responsible for anything bad that has happened since the moment the Zarlack started destroying our ships by the hundreds. And, it’s about damn time that you realize that you need to give yourself a break. In fact, pat yourself on the back from time to time. I know that’s a little insensitive since we’ve just lost Oryn, but we’ve achieved our goal. Everyone else returned from the mission, and the ship is currently heading toward the one weapon that can finally end this war. In my book, this is a win and not a small one.”

  “I know, and I agree.”

  Daniel pinched himself. “Nope, I’m awake alright. Well, good bro; we can’t afford any hesitation anymore. Oryn would be proud of you.”

  Oryn’s death was still fresh, and the mention of her hurt Chase’s heart. But he had to admit that her passing had allowed him to see things from a different point of view. And, while he was grateful to Daniel for saying so, he knew Zeus wouldn’t see it that way.

  “I don’t think Zeus would agree.”

  Daniel’s expression hardened.

  “He wouldn’t, Chase; she was his daughter. He’s been blaming himself for not being able to rescue her from Erevos for ten thousand years. In fact, he blamed almost everyone for his pain; even you were a recipient of his hatred not so long ago. And, then, when he finally gets her back, he is killed by Arakan; and before anyone has the time to digest that colossal blow, she gets killed.

  “We have to put ourselves in his shoes, really. He’s going to be angry and perhaps even lash out at you for some time. It’s best you don’t take it personally; I know it’s easier said than done, but we need to let Zeus grieve on his own terms. At least you guys aren’t on the same plane of existence, so perhaps you should give him some air and not return there for a while.”

  While Chase wanted to try and have a discussion in which they could revere Oryn’s life the way she deserved, he understood that as a father, Zeus would mourn her passing and that it would take time. Even more so since they had been robbed of the opportunity to say goodbye in the Underworld because of the Spectre.

  “Yeah, I— I’m not going back to the Underworld anytime soon, not if I can prevent it, anyway.”

  “We’ll get through this, Chase, together. And if some of us have to die to defeat the Furies, well, that’s destiny. But, it’s our choice, and I’m glad you’re willing to accept that.”

  As for destiny, I wouldn’t go that far. . .I wonder what mine has in store for me at the end of all this.

  Chase was getting out of the shower when he received an incoming holo-transmission from Athena’s ship. Before answering, he quickly dried himself off by powering up his aura and got dressed.

  “Hello, Mother,” said Chase hesitantly. “How are the repairs on your ship going?”

  “Slowly. The damage from that spider ship is extensive.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that; would you like me to teleport Yanis over to try and help with your repairs?”

  “That won’t be necessary, Chase, but thank you. I do have a favor to ask, however.”

  “Sure, what can I do for you?”

  “I’d like to come on board the Victory.”

  With everything that had happened, Chase had forgotten that his parents were currently on separate ships, and they hadn’t seen each other in a very long time. Ten thousand years for Athena, and while it had been just a fraction of that time for Menelas, years of torture must have felt similarly long for Chase’s father.

  “Of course; I should have thought of it, you must be dying to see Menelas.”

  “We sure have to talk,” said Athena rather coldly.

  Chase could detect bitterness and even a bit of anger in his mother’s thoughts at the moment, but he had enough on his own plate to worry about.

  “I’m on my way.”

  “Thanks, Son.”

  Chase teleported to the Olympian ship and returned to the Victory bringing Athena to the front door of Menelas’ quarters.

  “Want me to come in with you?” inquired Chase.

  “Normally I would, but, after all this time…”

  “Say no more; I’ll leave the two of you to your privacy.”

  “Thank you, Chase.”

  Chase walked away as Athena took a long, deep breath before ringing the doorbell controls.

  Menelas couldn’t believe his eyes when the doors split open. His heart beat hard in his chest, and his mouth became dry. There stood the woman he loved more than life itself. Even though she was ten thousand years older, she didn’t look a day over what she had been when he last saw her.

  “Please,” he said, gesturing to Athena. “Come in.”

  Athena took three steps inside Menelas’ quarters as the doors shut with a whooshing sound.

  Before he could say anything, Athena violently slapped him.

  “Ten thousand years!” she screamed. “You promised you’d come back!”

  Menelas held his reddened cheek and smiled. “You sure haven’t lost your temper, and it’s good to see you too, love.”

  Athena’s eyes watered.

  “I’m sorry,” he continued. “I wanted to get back to you, more than anything. But things didn’t go according to plan. I was supp—”

  But before he could finish his plea, Athena took him in her arms and kissed him passionately. They kissed for minutes, and Menelas felt warmth and love engulf his entire being. They both allowed themselves to be lost in the mo
ment and wished it would never end. When their lips finally parted, Athena whispered in his ear.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” she said, her voice trembling.

  “I’ve missed you too. I— I didn’t think I’d ever see you again. In fact, I thought I’d die of old age or that Arakan would just get tired and execute me.”

  Athena’s eyes filled with sorrow.

  “I’m sorry you had to go through that, but what were you thinking? In fact, what were you doing on Erevos? Last we talked, you were returning from that secret mission you couldn’t tell me anything about.”

  “It’s a long story.”

  “I’m not going anywhere.”

  Menelas nodded and gestured Athena to take a seat on the nearby couch.

  “Can I get you anything?” he inquired once she was comfortably seated.

  “I’m alright. I just want to understand what possessed you to go back to Erevos and get trapped. I have mourned yo—”

  But tears overcame Athena, and she sobbed uncontrollably.

  Menelas tried embracing her in a hug, but she didn’t let him.

  “Please, understand, I thought you were gone, I— I didn’t know what to do, and because of the secrecy of our relationship, I didn’t have anyone to talk to about it. I’m still mad you abandoned me.”

  “Fair enough, but surely Zeus told you some of what had transpired?”

  Athena shook her head.

  “What? That can’t be. If he didn’t tell you, then...”

  That’s when Menelas fully understood all the implications as well as anger he had detected in Athena when she slapped him earlier.

  “Zeus didn’t tell anyone about trapping the Furies into an alternate dimension?”

  “No, as far as we knew, the pilots of the soul ships made a successful attack run on Erevos, and we were told that the planet had been destroyed.”

  “That two-faced, overly proud son of a—” said Menelas before catching himself.

  More tears were traveling down Athena’s cheeks.