Sacrifices

by Alan D Jones

Chapter 19 - Sisterhood

  July, 1981 - North Hudson Bay, Canada

  Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

  Gabriella, a loving soul, always hoped for more. Gabby, as she was often called, had been born to a preacher and a nurse. Looking after others was in her blood. As a little girl, she often tended to calves and foals. But, she was truly joyful when her mother allowed her to accompany her on visits to the sick.

  Gabriella’s mother, Alejanda, was a strikingly beautiful woman. She had passed on her good looks to her one, and only, daughter. Alejanda was a loving and forgiving woman and had little tolerance for meanness. She was unafraid to call out a bully when she saw one, be it a child or a government official. Gabby’s father, Jorge, was a big man of six foot two. He was a gentle giant who was always willing to help others, even those who didn’t seem to deserve his help. Although he stood in a pulpit on Sundays, most days he could be found under a car or truck working as the village mechanic. At night, after everyone else was asleep, Gabriella enjoyed sitting in her father’s shop while he made late night repairs. It wasn’t until she was older that she realized that most men could not pick up an engine block with their bare hands. Though there were few frills in Gabriella’s house, she had all that she needed and she loved her parents dearly. Still, there was one thing she always hoped for: a little sister. She often asked her parents for one. Then, one week her parents took her with them to a church conference in a large city and her hope was granted. That was when she met Ruth Ann.

  Gabriella’s and Ruth’s fathers had known each other for years and had worked together often. They didn’t typically bring their families to these conferences unless it was driving distance, but this time they did. Meeting Ruth and her sisters had been planned although the girls didn’t know it at the time. At the large circular table in the basement of an old country church, Gabriella had been seated next to Ruth. The two of them hit it off instantly. They talked incessantly that very first meeting, so much so that neither of them finished their dinners. That week, the little girls spent every day together. Gabriella’s English was not so good although it was better than her French. Ruth’s French was better than her Spanish although she mastered neither. Still, the two of them managed to communicate. After a full day of playing together, Gabriella began to see that Ruth was extremely shy around others. This made Gabriella love Ruth all the more.

  Ruth viewed Gabriella as everything she wish she could be – beautiful, strong, and confident. Ruth was small and slight of build for her age. Many people mistook her for the youngest of the sisters. People constantly commented about how strikingly beautiful Cil, Deborah and Sarah were. They called Ruth cute. Ruth’s siblings always operated in a sphere of complete confidence, but she seldom did. Ruth saw in Gabriella all the things she did not see in herself.

  Gabriella saw Ruth for the beautiful person that she was. Behind those glasses, she saw a sister in spirit. Gabriella saw her goodness, her kindness, and her willingness to forgive. She also saw a quiet resolve that was so much like her own. She quickly came to realize that with sisters who were larger than life, like Ruth’s, it would be easy for one’s light to be hidden.

  In addition to her primary gift of inhuman skill and strength like her daddy, Gabriella also possessed the gift of encouragement. It was a gift that she shared freely with Ruth. Early on, this put her in direct conflict with Deborah. Deborah was often critical of Ruth Ann. Deborah thought her criticisms helped to toughen Ruthie; she used harsh words to make her stronger. Gabriella saw a sapling that needed nurturing and room to grow among the redwoods.

  As Gabriella grew into womanhood she saw less of her American sisters. When she did see the sisters, it was typically assignment related. When she was nineteen, Gabby started going out with Rob’s Special Forces buddy Big Mike. By that time, at thirty years old, he was divorced with two kids. They didn’t publicize it, but everyone knew about their relationship except Jorge. When Big Mike showed up at Gabby’s college graduation with flowers, Jorge finally figured it out. Mike wasn’t a Circle Knight, but he had a little something extra in his DNA. That made him a real beast in the field.

  The inter-racial nature of Mike and Gabby’s relationship proved vexing for the more intolerant they encountered when not in Latin America. Their relationship withstood that challenge, but the distance was more challenging. The final hurdle, which severed their relationship the year before, was children. Gabriella wanted to get married and have children. Mike already had two kids who he seldom got to see. He couldn’t see how the two of them could actually raise children unless they quit the very thing they were called to do in this life. They hadn’t seen each other in the year since they split until she arrived shipside aboard the central command vessel of the force gathering to stop the Omni Portal. Mike met her in the galley once he found out she was aboard. He hugged her for a long time telling her how sorry he was to hear about her mother, father, and other family members who had been slaughtered in the raid. She was grateful that he understood her need to compartmentalize all of that until this battle was over. There would be time for grieving over many things, but this was not the time. The two of them left much unsaid, but the look on his face told her that he regretted walking away from the best thing he ever had in his life. For the girl who had always hoped for more, his realization was not unexpected.

  The next morning aboard a northbound freighter in the Hudson Bay, as Gabby offered her morning devotion to the sounds of shells exploding in the distance, she thought of her father and mother and how they died. The pain threatened to take her breath away. She focused, instead, on how they had lived and was inspired to push on. Her thoughts then turned to Ruth. She thought not of the earliest days when they first met, nor the later days when they battled side by side against the darkness. She recalled the day her sister came to live with her. Rob and his crew brought Ruth Ann and her sisters to Gabby’s town. She remembered the girl with the pink ribbon in her hair stepping off her plane clutching a Raggedy Ann doll. Ruth screamed when she saw Gabriella. For security purposes, Rob had not told the girls exactly where they were going when they left Atlanta. Gabriella offered to share her room with little Ruth Ann and, finally, her prayers were answered. She had a sister.

  Gabriella heard a helicopter landing on the flight deck above her. She had a pretty good idea of who might be coming aboard. Gabriella scampered up the stairs outside her cabin to the flight deck. She saw the copter. The door was open and, after a couple of military types exited it, Gabriella saw them: Cil, Deborah, Sarah and, lastly, Ruth. The sisters were all dressed in form fitting white body suits and wearing matching white ski jackets. Gabriella could see Ruth with her single pink lock, looking around, searching, so she raised her own hands and waved at the sisters. When Ruth saw her, she smiled and returned Gabriella’s wave from across the deck. Ruth pointed out Gabriella to her sisters and they all began to head over. Her sisters were intercepted by Navy brass, but Ruth pushed through them towards Gabriella. As they drew close, tears flooded each of their eyes.

  Ruth reached out to hug Gabriella, “You’re alive! You’re alive!”

  Ruth and her sisters knew that Gabriella was not among the dead in the village from the attack, but they’d not heard anything about her whereabouts. The sisters had heard through Circle back channels that Gabriella was unharmed. Even though Circle Knight protocol dictates going to silent when an attempt is made on your life, they had been concerned.

  Ruth took a breath, “Gabby, I’m so sorry about your parents, so very sorry. We came as soon as we got the call, but we were too late.”

  Still embracing, Gabriella answered her back, “Oh, I know. I was on a mission when it happened.”

  As the other sisters arrived and hugged her, Gabriella broke down in tears. Somehow being with them and the common bond they shared, allowed her to feel comfortable enou
gh to let go. When they told Gabriella about Miss Elizabeth, the only mother the Ruth and her sisters had ever known, the five women began to cry again.

  Just as quickly as they released their emotions, the ladies pulled themselves together and followed their escort to a briefing room. They listened as the Special Forces operative explained the battle plan. Everyone in the room knew that the leaders of the world, the people to whom these officers reported, had hoped that the Circle Knight Elders themselves would join the battle, but they had declined. Instead, they communicated a list of Circle Knight resources who would be made available.

  An armada of warships from around the world that had been decommissioned had been assembled. These off the book ships had been retrofitted with the latest weapons. Only the command ship carried meta-humans like the guys in Rob’s unit and Circle Knights like the sisters. Most of the crews on the other ships had little idea of the nature of the enemy they were bombarding. Everything remained compartmentalized. Everyone involved knew only as much as needed to perform their jobs. Even those who knew, didn’t fully understand or, in some cases, believe what they’d been told about these special resources. Only select leaders around the world have been aware of these demigods since the dawn of recorded history.

  The battle plan, in short, was to blend all available meta-human resources in with the infantry assault forces, with the exception of the four sisters. These forces would engage the enemy from the west and push towards the Omni Portal while heavy ship artillery rained down on the forces of darkness from the south. When the enemy’s attention was drawn to the west and south, the sisters would establish a beachhead on the eastern shore and drive towards the Omni Portal located on the southeast shore. None of the women were happy about Gabriella being assigned to the western front, but those were the orders from the Circle Knight Elders. The thought was that Gabriella’s talents could easily blend in with the other ground forces, which would maximize her effectiveness. Whereas whenever the sisters entered the fray, there’d be no hiding their presence.

  When the briefing was over, Deborah reached out to grab Gabriella’s hand.

  Deborah pulled her close and whispered in her ear, “Come with us.” And as they began to walk Deborah said, “By the way, you were right about Willy. I knew he was a bum, but I wanted him so much.”

  Gabriella winced, “Oh, I’m sorry.”

  “Oh, don’t be. As usual, I had to learn the hard way. I should have known that when even Ruth Ann spoke against him, I should have run. So, being rid of him, in no way hurts my heart in the way that my foolishness has hurt my family.”

  Sarah heard her sister’s words as they walked through the corridor and reached over to comfort her.

  Deborah continued, “Yeah, there are a few things we need to update you on.”

  The women retreated to Cil’s cabin. The five of them chatted as they recalled their lives with Gabriella’s parents, Rob, Miss Elizabeth and Elisa. They also realized that their season of loss still might not be over. In fact, each of them knew that this battle would indeed be the middle passage of their generation.

  Finally, came the knock on the door that each of them expected. The seaman said that it was time for Gabriella to join her western flank team for departure.

  Deborah told him, “Just a minute, please?”

  The women joined hands and formed a circle for a quick prayer.

  When they finished, Ruth hugged Gabriella for a long moment and pleaded into her ear, “Gabby, please be careful.”

  Gabriella whispered back to her, “Have faith. God has made you for such a day as this.”

  Ruth smiled as her sisters stepped in to hug Gabriella as well.

  Gabriella stepped into the corridor to join her escort.

  When the door closed, Ruth burst into tears. Ruth had never exhibited even a hint of a sixth sense like Cil and Deborah. Yet, her heart grieved for Gabriella.

  THE BOOK OF

  ZI