by J. N. Chaney
Legion pressed harder into the medallion on my necklace that I never took off. Not understanding why his attack wasn’t working, frustration took over. Legion screamed in rage. I pointed the flamethrower at his face and point blank pulled the trigger.
Left hand carrying the fuel canister and right hand on the trigger, I moved off him. I burned his body along with the foliage around the base of the lightning stone.
Those infected that still fought our forces screamed in pain. Howls the likes of which I had never heard before rose to the sky above.
I ignored it all. I burned the blackest parts of the tainted shrubbery around me first.
Stacy and Dama, in the last two working suits, joined me a moment later. It seemed they had dispatched the infected power armor suit and were ready to lend a hand with their own flamethrowers.
Together, we burned the virus infected plants at the base of the lightning stone then began to move outward.
There were reports coming in from all over the battlefield that we had won. The infected still fighting slumped to the ground, writhing in pain then falling motionless. The few that had been infected but not killed yet by Legion, like Ricky, Boss Creed, and Arun, were healed, coming back to themselves as the brain of the virus was killed.
More and more of our own entered the spore-filled section of the jungle, lighting it on fire with flamethrowers and incendiary grenades.
Not only cheers rose from the survivors but sobs for those we’d lost. I couldn’t let my mind think about all those who gave their lives for us to have this moment, not yet, not until it was done for good.
We spent the rest of the day going through the jungle, burning anything that remotely resembled a tainted shrub.
Dark smoke touched the sky as large portions of the jungle were lit on fire. Cleanup crews would have to go in tomorrow and the day after and the day after that to make sure Legion was truly gone forever, but what we did that day felt like a start.
“I don’t think the other spores can live without the ones you killed at the base,” Dama said, joining my side as I worked on turning another black bush into ash. “He’s dead. You killed the brain where he first went into hiding. The rest will die on their own.”
“Yeah, well, you never can be too careful, right?” I said, pumping more flames into the brush. It was a liberating and cleansing feeling to burn them. I felt like I could never stop, that we might never be clean from the virus.
“Dean!” It was Ricky, shouting at me as he came to me at a dead run. His lip was split from where Jezra had knocked him out. Despite that, he had the dopiest grin on his face. “Arun, she’s okay. She’s healed.”
I took off my own helmet, letting the bucket rest by my side. Sweat dropped from my face. Although I was beyond tired, I managed a smile.
“I’m happy for you, buddy. You should go see her,” I said. “Go. We can manage here.”
Ricky wrapped me in a hug, trying to hide his tears, but I saw them anyway. He released me without a word and ran off toward the Orion. I hoped he had a future with Arun. It seemed so, but we could talk about it later, or whenever he wanted.
“You’re bleeding on your neck there,” Stacy said, coming toward me in her suit. She opened the center chest door and jumped down. “Are you hurt?”
I reached up to my neck where Legion had tried his last attempt at taking my life. My fingers came back sticky with blood. It was barely a scratch. I reached into the armor over my chest and pulled out the medallion that hung around my neck.
It felt like a lifetime ago that my wife had given the token to me. It had saved my life more than once, I thought. For all of its wear and tear, there was not a mark on it. For one of the few times I could remember, I thought about my wife, my first love, with a smile and a heart not full of anger but gratefulness. Grateful for the time I got to spend with her, the gift she had given me, and the place I was now, which would not have been possible without her brief presence in my life.
“You okay?” Stacy asked, lifting an eyebrow in question. “You sure Legion didn’t hit you in the head or something?”
“I’m fine,” I said, looking around at familiar faces who began to gather. Elon, Tong, John, Boss Creed, Jezra, they were all there. We were all tired and dead on our feet but not broken. We were victorious.
“You did it,” Jezra said. “You fulfilled the prophecy, Chosen One.”
“We did it,” I said, looking between Dama’s power armor suit and Jezra. “And maybe we accomplished more than just killing Legion today.”
“I think so,” Dama said, opening her power unit and stepping to the ground below. She extended a hand to Jezra. “It’s not going to be easy, but I think we can build on what was done here.”
“I agree,” Jezra said, accepting her hand with a smile.
“I think we could all use a break.” Dama released Jezra’s hand and wiped a forearm across her sweaty brow. “My people are on their way, trekking through a mountain pass. Our craft was doing runs there, carrying them the rest of the way back and forth. Since the battle has been won, I told them we needed warriors ready to help rather than more power armor units. They should be here soon.”
“Thank you,” Tong said with large mesmerized eyes. “Thank you for holding true to your word.”
“Of course,” Dama said with a smile. “They will bring supplies and aid with the dead on both sides of the confrontation.”
I hadn’t thought about that. I knew there would be our own dead to bury, but I didn’t think about what it meant to bury those infected by Legion. Since we killed him, those who had been infected and were already dead carried no trace of the sinister virus.
Human, Rung, Remboshi, and alien animals alike were dead. Any sign of the virus had seeped out of their orifices to the jungle floor. Legion was gone, and with him any sign he had existed in his hosts.
As much as I wanted to fall down and sleep for a week, the dead had earned their rest first. We aided the Rung and Remboshi in creating great pyres for them. Burning the dead warriors was a tradition that both races still used in wartime conflicts. We used trees and shrubs in the jungle that had already been cut down with the weapons fire. The charred foliage served to help as well as we created the great square pyres.
True to her word, the Rung had come to our aid and sooner than I expected. Not power armor units but rather twenty Rung were dropped off with a range of supplies from water to food and medical stuffs that were badly needed.
How twenty Rung fit in the ship at all was a mystery. They had to be packed in tighter than a human piloting one of their power units.
We ate in shifts, getting rest where we had to and pressing on doggedly where we could. It was somber work. There was some talking but not much. Most of us were lost to his or her own thoughts as we carried the bodies of our comrades.
True, I hadn’t known most of them, but they still meant something to me. We were warriors on the same side of the final confrontation with Legion and that would always mean something to me.
By the time we were done, the suns had set. The giant moon shone high overhead amongst a myriad of twinkling stars. We were all beyond exhausted. But with the help of the Rung and the craft that dropped off another three runs of warriors to help, we did it.
We stood battle weary and near exhausted in the darkness. Stacy was on my right, along with Elon and Arun, the latter having insisted she was better once the Legion virus left her. She still looked weak, but Ricky stood on her other side, ready to support her if needed.
Dama, Tong, and Jezra were on my left with Boss Creed and John. Mutt came up beside me, nuzzling my hand for his scratches. No matter how tired I was, I could still manage a few pets for him.
The Rung passed out torches, enough to light the many pyres in front of us.
“The events that have taken place on Genesis are ones I wish none of us had to live through,” Jezra said, taking a step forward. “But live through them we have, and I would submit to you that we are better f
or it. Mistakes have been made in the past, mistakes that we will be doomed to repeat if we do not learn and grow. Grow not only on our own but together, Remboshi, Rung, and human alike. Moving forward, let us show kindness and caring toward all living things, not just those that are most like us, but those who look for acceptance and love. We, the Remboshi, officially greet our new friends, the humans who have landed here on our planet, and our old friends, the Rung, with whom we are now reunited.”
Jezra motioned with an open hand to Dama, who also walked forward with torch in hand.
“Let us always remember this day and those who sacrificed everything so we might have a tomorrow,” Dama said in a loud voice. “Legion is gone, but the shadow he casts will forever be on us unless we stand together. Those who gave their lives today demand that we are better in the future. We owe them that much. From this day on, we honor our dead who have fought so furiously against our common enemy by forming a new alliance with our newfound friends and those with whom we are reconciled.”
Dama and Jezra looked over to me.
I didn’t expect to have to say anything. I was given a torch, but I had imagined it was only to light a pyre, not to speak. I also didn’t think I would be the one to talk for the humans. I thought perhaps Elon would have that job. He was much more eloquent than I was.
Stacy nudged me forward.
I walked to join Dama and Jezra in front of everyone, thinking about what I should say but not feeling I had something worthy enough for the moment.
My hand instinctively went to the medallion on my throat. The same one that had saved my life hours before.
“I don’t know if the perfect words exist for this moment,” I said out loud. My mind ran over the many people we’d lost and Lou once more. “But a friend would say that we are right where we are supposed to be. We can’t change the past, but we can decide the future. Let’s make decisions now that honor the many that fell here today. Let’s also remember those from the planet Earth that we have left behind in our previous lives, both dead and alive, and those fallen friends that did not survive our landing on our new home, Genesis.”
A pause of silence ensued, then all those carrying torches slowly walked over to the pyres and pressed the burning flames into the brush. Crackling flames began to spread, slowly raising smoke to the open sky above. We stepped back in a moment of silence, remembering those who were gone, those we would never see again.
“You okay?” Stacy asked as I took my place beside her. She slipped her hand into my own. It felt comforting and right, and it was something I wanted to keep doing for a long time.
“Yeah,” I said, looking over to her while I squeezed her hand. “Yeah I think I am.”
“We’ll be okay,” Stacy said with resolve. “There’s a mountain of work to do in front of us, but we’ll be okay.”
24
“You look good,” I told Arun the next day. There hadn’t been a lot of time for chit chat after the ceremony. We’d all been dead on our feet. I had enough in me for a quick shower and then I fell into a coma. Now we were gathered in Arun’s tent for a meeting.
Arun smiled up at me, her bright blue eyes back to their normal color. She was a bit thinner and weaker than she had been before the Legion virus entered her body, but that was nothing a few weeks of regular food and rest couldn’t fix. I was so relieved to see her up and around and looking at peace and well-rested.
We stood in the tent with Ricky and Elon as more city leaders, as well as Jezra, Tong, and Dama, entered. We all gazed at each other, smiling for a few moments. There were no words to say right away.
“Thank you,” Arun said with a genuine smile. “Thank you for everything.”
“I don’t know if I had a choice,” I said, pointing to Jezra with a thumb. “She kind of put the title of Chosen One on me without consulting me first.”
“You always had a choice,” Jezra reminded me with a roll of her eyes. “You chose to take a stand. However, I’m very glad that you did.”
“I had a choice in all of this?” I asked incredulously. “It sure didn’t seem that way when you were in the middle of explaining the prophecy. It sounded more like a ‘you broke it and now you’re buying it’ kind of deal.”
“I am unfamiliar with this rule of breaking and buying,” Jezra said, scratching the bottom of her chin. Her eyes twinkled. “But you were the right human for the job, of that I am certain.”
“No denying that,” Ricky said, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Legion chose the wrong humans to mess with.”
Nods of agreement were traded around the room before Elon took the reins of the meeting in hand. It was my hope that he was taking over leadership permanently, along with Arun when she was back to one hundred percent, and that my duties as the Chosen One were at an end. I liked staying in the background, coming to the front if it was life and death, but I was definitely not a leader type of guy.
“I’m sure you all have a list of duties you must attend to, so I’ll try and make this meeting as short as possible,” Elon began. “Our wounded should be cared for first and foremost, and a new way of life established for our three communities to coexist. After this is set up, I’d like to form a coalition of our three races. The future is bright if we stand together.”
“Agreed,” Dama said. “My people will offer any aid they can while we move back to the surface.”
“Likewise, I have spoken to our greater counsel and the Remboshi are eager to move toward peace,” Jezra added. “The gestures of the Rung offering aid and relief have been exactly what they needed to bury past hurts and look toward working side by side.”
Smiles and nods were received by all those in the tent as we all reflected on how we’d gotten to this point in time and the work that was still to be done.
“Once this is all done,” I said, clearing my throat. “I mean, once we’re back on our feet, can I request from the Rung that we are able to look at their craft? I believe that with our combined knowledge, we might be able to get that ship flying in space.”
“Eager to leave us so soon?” Tong asked, disappointed.
“Who said anything about leaving you?” I asked him. “Why don’t you come with us?”
Tong’s eyes brightened at the possibility of exploring other worlds, but I thought that some of that was his enjoyment of being with his new friends. I had developed a fondness for him as well.
“Any knowledge we possess is yours,” Dama agreed. “With the three of our combined resources, I do believe this will usher in a new era of science and technology that will bring our planet on the cutting edge.”
The tent erupted in several more, smaller conversations as details were laid out and plans were set in motion. The Rung and Remboshi would both be departing soon to set in place their own communities now that Legion was no more.
I wasn’t needed at the moment, and to be honest, I could use a break. I also had other “business” to attend to. I walked outside the tent, feeling the suns’ warm rays against my face.
“Come on,” Stacy said, taking my hand and pulling me along with her. She led me to the wall and up the steel steps. I didn’t complain. Why would I? Life was starting to come together, to have more meaning than it did when I was the “Chosen One.” Now, my big concern was being the chosen one of the woman next to me, as corny as that might sound.
We moved along the wall to the spot over the front gates, gazing off into the clear blue sky. It was beautiful here in a way I had never appreciated before. The suns were brilliant in the sky, casting shadows in two different directions as one sun was slightly behind the other in rising and setting. There were two shadows of each of us of different sizes, the big ones and the smaller ones clasping hands in the middle.
“You really think we can get off this rock?” Stacy asked now, turning and taking both my hands in hers. “I mean, you think there’s really a chance we can get back to Earth?”
“We won’t know unless we try,” I said, leaning toward her. Stacy
was always beautiful, but the way the sunlight caught her hair now practically lit it ablaze with beauty. I pressed my lips against hers and gave myself away to the lightheaded feeling of euphoric joy that I was feeling.
I didn’t want to let her go, but I knew we had time together now—plenty of time to walk in the sun with her, to explore this world and others.
Stacy didn’t move to end the kiss either.
When it did end, I opened my eyes. Stacy’s were just opening, a silly grin on her lips.
“I was wondering if you were going to do that,” Stacy said, biting her lower lip. “I guess the cat’s out of the bag now. We’re officially official.”
“I guess so,” I said with a heavy sigh as I teased her. “I should warn you, I’m not great with people. I’m kind of a hothead, and there was this prophecy about me.”
“Just shut up and kiss me again,” Stacy said with a laugh as she pulled me in close.
For the second time that day, I didn’t pull away.
Epilogue
Five Years Later
Years of dedicated hard work had been put into the launch. After dozens of failures, we had managed to launch unmanned ships into space. Now, for the first time, we had achieved a manned launch. It was both exciting and frightening at the same time.
I stood looking out of the front window of the ship in awe. The stars around Genesis twinkled brightly, reminding me of the view from earth.
I looked back down at the tiny oval-shaped planet. What had been my prison at first now seemed like home. We had made it such through our trials and tribulations, joys and successes. It had been a journey unlike any other that any of us had ever experienced. In the last five years, there had been hardship and not everyone had adapted well to the life as we learned a new way of living. We had lost a few colonists to natural causes and some not, but in true circle of life tradition, we had several new colonists to celebrate, including one born to Stacy and me.
