Heaven's Trumpet - 6. The Universe Runs on Auxilary Power

[Chapter 6]

I absently chewed on a French fry lost in thought. It had been three days since the meeting with Early Dawn. My mind was restless with questions that sought answers. Could we get the third Key before the Unrelenting? Could we stop them from ending the universe? I swept back stray hair that fell on my face. Would I ever get a haircut?

An elbow jabbed into my rib and I glared at Kevin. “Can I help you?”

“For starters, you can stop looking like you’re trying to do mental math and pretend to be interested in what I’m saying.”

I dropped my fry and turned to him, leaning forward intently. “Oh please, I’m all ears now. Enlighten my day, oh bestest friend.”

Kevin looked me up and down. “Do I have to show you my pimp hand?” He tapped his finger against his chin thoughtfully. “You haven’t gone out and made me my money in a while, bitch.”

I sighed tiredly. “Kevin, we’ve talked about this. You aren’t a pimp and you have no hoes. Let. It. Go.”

“You take all the spice out of life,” Kevin pouted, staring sadly at his half eaten burger. “It’s my birthday so you’re supposed to be nice to me!”

I snorted. “I got you a nice gift, so that’s the best you’re going to get from me.”

“You’re such a bitch sometimes!” He laughed. “I don’t know why I put up with you. I swear as soon as the divorce is finalized I’m taking half of everything, and then from here on out it’s going to be easy living.”

I gaped at his wistful expression. “You’re an idiot.”

He scoffed at my comment and popped the collar of his polo. “Don’t hate the playa, baby. Hate the game.”

“Sometimes I wonder how you could possibly be real.”

“I’m just that awesome, huh?”

I rolled my eyes and muttered, “Yeah... awesome.”

Kevin grinned brightly. “That’s the respect I was looking for!” He hooked his arm around my shoulders. “I’m glad we get to hang out like this. It feels like it’s been forever since we’ve last chopped it up.”

That damn guilty feeling came again. It hadn’t diminished with time, in fact, it seemed hurt to feel worse than before. I wanted to tell him the truth so bad but I couldn’t. That same guilt may have contributed to me dragging Kevin off campus for a birthday lunch. It was a wing joint and not a restaurant uptown. I wasn’t rolling in money like the Monopoly Man.

Kevin wasn’t part of my secret world and it was going to stay that way. No matter how much I wished otherwise my destiny was to defend and protect. And most likely die doing so. I could never drag him into this part of my life with good conscious.

“I’m glad we got to do this too,” I agreed, smiling. “Are you doing the usual dinner with your parents tonight?”

He nodded. “Yeah. We’re going out to eat at my favorite restaurant-”

“The Sizzler,” I interrupted, my face clearing showing my disgust. “I still don’t see why that place is your favorite restaurant.”

Kevin stared at me horrified. “You cumbucket,” he said in an accusing whisper. “It’s the Sizzler! All you can eat, bro.”

I paused hoping there was more to it. “And?”

His eyes glazed over as he drifted into fantasy. “All that food. So delicious... You can eat all you want - get full, then just go back and get more... It’s like heaven.”

“Sounds like Jabba the Hutt’s wet dream or you know an episode of My 600-lb Life on TLC.”

He pulled a face and I gulped down the last of my water as the waitress came back to the table. She was dressed in a typical scanty outfit that was prevalent for girls that worked in a place specializing in wings. I didn’t want to come here but Kevin loved Wingstar. I think it was a straight guy thing. I secreted a glance at Kevin and he was ogling the girl’s breast that was one seam away from bursting out of her shirt.

The waitress batted her eyelashes and nibbled on a pen suggestively. “You boys need anything else?”

Kevin smiled slowly. I sighed. Here we go. She was just his type too. Big breast. Dark hair. Blue eyes. Kevin ran a hand through his hair and fixed her with a smoldering stare.

“I can do with your number for starters.” Kevin smiled charmingly and ran one hand through his hair. It was supposed to be suave. He looked like an anime character. I giggled.

She smiled like he was adorable. “How old are you anyway?”

“Eighteen and ready for some action, baby—”

I cleared my throat and smiled sweetly. “He’s seventeen. Totally not legal and we would like the check,” I read her name tag doodled with hot pink hearts. “Tracy.”

Tracy’s face suddenly brightened with surprise. “Oh! Let me guess,” she said, giving us a knowing look. “You’ll be on one check.”

“Yes,” I said slowly. Didn’t I just say that?

She nodded as if that confirmed some mental question. “You boys sure you wouldn’t like any dessert? It’ll be on the house since it’s your birthday. I can bring out two spoons and you can share.”

Kevin’s entire face brightened at the mention of free dessert. “How did you know we wanted to share a dessert?”

“You just look the type,” she replied, smiling. “I’ll have your check out in just a sec. You boys are too cute.”

I blanched and went into a sudden coughing fit. Kevin looked like he was close to jumping over the table to give me the Heimlich so I gave him a meaningful look. It was like seeing a caveman learning to use fire. I could see the mental wheels turning as the entire conversation went through his mind on rewind. Abruptly his face opened with surprise.

“It’s so not like that!” Kevin denied hastily. He was waving his arms for emphasis like a goddamn windmill. “We’re just friends.”

“Best friends,” I added quickly.

Tracy’s face fell and she tripped over her own words as she tried to apologize. It took her a couple of tries before she stammered off a heartfelt apology. We gave her a reassuring smile. She turned to leave and Kevin’s smile suddenly froze and he cocked his head, staring at her curiously.

“What do you mean, we ‘look the type’?” he asked.

She looked at me and opened her mouth to explain herself. I shrugged apologetically and Kevin just stared at her with that frozen smile, waiting for an explanation. Her face turned red and she screamed something about the food being on the house before she darted off.

“Whoa! She can really move.”

Kevin shook off his curiosity and stood up. “Well if she says the meal is free, I for one want to vamanos before she changes her mind!”

I checked my watch. “We need to head back to school. Lunch is over in about six minutes.”

I threw down a five for a tip, then remembered that we did get all this food free and the poor girl almost died from embarrassment, so I added a ten. The heat immediately smacked us in the face as we left the air conditioned confines of the restaurant.

“Kevin, why are you looking at me like that?” I asked as we walked across the parking lot.

Those brown eyes were curious as they stared at me. “Why do you think she thought we were together? Do I look gay?”

“Yes,” I answered without hesitation. “You look really gay.”

He sulked all the way to the Blazer. “I knew it. It’s not the first time someone has thought we’re a couple. I mean. Even if I was gay you’re so not my type.”

I didn’t even know where to begin with this. “How do you even have a type? Something you want to tell me?” I looked at him shrewdly. “Now that I think about it there have been signs.”

“There have been no signs!” He climbed into the Blazer and glared at me. “I’m just saying if I was gay I would have guys lined up around the block waiting to tap this ass.”

Nausea threatened to bring up my lunch. “Can we please stop talking about this? Thinking about you having sex is disturbing on so many levels.”

“Hater,” he singsonged.

I punched him in the arm. “D bag.”

“Bitch.”

“Tool.”

He fumbled in his pocket and then tossed a rolled up dollar bill at me. I let it bounce off my chest and just stared at him. He crossed his arms and curled his lip up.

“There’s a dollar. Now go buy yourself a haircut. You look like the fucking white version of Aladdin.”

My hand flew to my hair and I gasped. “You are pure evil,” I whispered with dawning realization.

Kevin blew on his nails and then buffed them against his shirt. “And you’re so easy,” he replied smugly.

I didn’t justify that with a response. If I happened to turn the corner too fast when leaving the parking lot, causing Kevin’s head to slam against the passenger window – it was an accident. Clearly.

***

Why oh why did I register for Criminal Justice? I rolled my eyes. I knew the answer to that one. One too many CSI dramas had influenced that rash decision. Mr. Harrison was a great teacher, but his enthusiasm for the course overshadowed anything great about the class.

My eyes glazed over as he went into another tale from his youth about how hesinglehandedly tracked down the Crossword Killer. A notorious murderer from ten years ago, who was basically a watered down version of that killer from the Jake Gyllenhaal movie Zodiac. I tuned back in as he concluded his walk down memory lane that sounded like old episodes of Scooby Doo.

“And now before we get out of here I want you to break into pairs,” Mr. Harrison said much to everyone’s ritual groans. “I’ll ask that you do a report on a criminal case and what methods were used to solve it. I want it to be at least six pages, due one week from today. Now break into pairs.”

There was a swarm of activity as people migrated across the room to link up with their favorite person, or whoever they thought would get them the best grade. I kept in my seat and looked around. I didn’t really know anyone in this class. Since it was the last class of the day usually I zoned out and engaged the clock in a staring contest, willing it to go faster.

A grinning tanned face covered by wireframe glasses appeared in front of me like Houdini. Martin Hernandez - second in our graduating class and my biggest admirer, after my boyfriend of course. A spot that he was trying hard to earn back. His black hair was long and worn in tall gravity-defying spikes, that didn’t disguise the fact that he was short. He was cute but totally overeager.

I mustered up a small smile. “Hi, Martin.”

“Hey, you need a partner?” he asked in one breath. “We can work at my house if you want. My parents are hardly home, and you can finally check out my room.”

His room? Definitely has gotten bolder since the last time we’ve talked. “Uh, actually-” I tapped at my desk, a stilted nervous movement. “I already have a partner.”

Smooth move, Chad. Could I lie any worse than that?

Martin licked his lips seductively. Or well tried. The effect was lost as his tongue produced too much saliva, leaving a trail of slob that drooled down this chin. Gross! I couldn’t resist the shudder that shot through my body. Someone get this kid a paper towel.

“You, uh-” I pointed to this chin. “You got- something-”

Martin wiped at his chin with his finger and brought the digit to his mouth, licking the wet tip. The sunlight shined through the windows and glinted off his braces. Not sexy. Not sexy. Not sexy! The mantra screamed in my mind. He winked and it took divine intervention not to throw up in my mouth.

“So who’s your mysterious partner?” Martin was breathing ragged like an asthmatic. I’m almost positive it was his flirty voice. “I didn’t even see you move.”

Panic surged through me and I twisted quickly in my seat, pointing randomly to the first person I saw. Martin’s lips twisted in a sad frown as we both followed my finger. The finger that pointed to non-other than Isabella Graison, sister to Ian Graison, pain in my side, and all around bag of dicks. Someone up there really loved me. Yes, that was sarcastic.

“Ah, shit,” I murmured.

Martin huffed and walked off when I gave him an apologetic shrug. The redhead glanced up and pinned me with those penetrating green eyes as I approached. Wondering how many of these I was going to have to use today, I stapled a fake grin on my face.

“Hi, Isabella.” I took a seat next to her. “Do you want to be partners?”

She smiled shyly ducking her head, letting her silky hair curtain about her face. Wow. I hadn’t seen anyone this shy since Sixteen Candles. She grabbed a pen and quickly jotted down a note in loopy letters.

I can’t talk. I’m mute.

I flashbacked to the times I had seen her before and realized with a jolt that I hadn’t ever seen her talk. As luck would have it. I knew sign language. I took ASL classes all through middle school. Admittedly for a purely selfish reason. And that reason was Zack Griffin, who was one of the hottest guys in school. He just happened to be deaf also. At least those classes weren’t a waste. I scored my first date and a whirlwind, month long relationship with Zack.

No problem - Do you still want to be partners? I signed with my hands.

It came back like riding a bicycle. I was banking on the chance that because of her disability that she knew sign language. Sure enough, my logic paid off because a brilliant smile lit her face before I finished the movement. She was beautiful. I was reminded strongly of her twin brother for a brief moment. Ian was just as gorgeous, that is until he opened his mouth.

I had no idea you could sign. Her hands moved rapidly reflecting the excitement she radiated. I would love to work with you.

“Cool.” I grinned. “So can I get your number and we can get in contact with later to discuss what we want to do?”

I would like that a lot. Isabella scribbled her number on a piece of paper. Text me later and we can go from there.

The bell rang signaling the end of school. I helped gather her stuff and she waited on me as I did the same, and together we left the classroom. We joined the crowd of people swarming the hallways. I caught sight of Ryan at the same time he saw me. He jogged over and unfortunately, Killian was right beside him, as always.

“Hey, Chad.” Ryan brushed his hair away from his forehead, a shy habit he did sometimes around new people. “Who’s your friend?”

I motioned at the girl standing next to me, wearing a polite smile. “Isabella. This is Ryan and Killian. Guys meet Isabella. She’s actually Ian’s sister.”

“Oh,” Killian said shortly. His tone said it all. He was not a fan.

He already didn’t like her just by association alone. I had to admit I didn’t blame him. Ian was an ass to the both of us. I’m all for holding a grudge, but Isabella was always smiling, so it was sort of hard to dislike her.

Isabella signed quickly much to the surprise of Ryan and Killian. “She says it’s nice to meet you,” I translated causing Ryan’s eyebrows to shoot into his hairline.

Ryan sent me an impressed look. “I didn’t know you knew sign language.”

Killian snorted, not at all surprised. “He learned in middle school and all for Zack Griffin. Chad pulled a Felicity, signed up for the same classes as the dude. Even learned ASL too just to get his attention.”

Of course, Killian knew that. A long time ago we used to be friends. Ryan chuckled at the story and I shrugged sheepishly. Hey. It worked. I landed my first date.

“Didn’t I tell you to stay away from my sister?”

I spun around and sure enough there was Ian and beside him was Adam. What the hell? I gave him a look that said exactly that. In return, I received an apologetic smile and shrug. I rolled my eyes. He was really too nice for his own good sometimes.

“So what level of hell do you wander from that lets you appear every time I’m near your sister?” I asked scathingly. “‘Cause I gotta tell you, LoJack has nothing on you.”

Ian grabbed Isabella’s hand and pulled her to his side. “My sister’s off limits to you. You don’t speak, think, or look at her,” Ian ordered, green eyes flashing with irritation.

I grabbed Adam’s hand and yanked him to my side much to his alarm. “I could say the same,” I hissed. “I told you my boyfriend was dead to you. For the record, you look like a grown up version of the redhead baby from Rugrats.”

“You smell like minimum wage.” Ian’s voice dripped with pure loathing.

Killian made a noise in the back of his throat. “You talk as if we like you and your opinion matters.”

“I forget your name.” Ian snapped his fingers as trying to jog his memory, then cocked his head. “Aren’t you the wannabe model?”

Killian cracked his knuckles, grinning savagely. “Oh, you’re just begging for this ass whooping. As one of my idols always says, auf wiedersehen-”

He cocked back his fist and my anxious grin fell when Ryan’s hand flashed through the air. He caught the fist that was about to make contact with Ian’s face. Oh damn.

Adam’s fingers wrapped around my wrist. “I think we better go.”

A crowd formed around us and I mimed to Isabella that I would call her. Adam and I followed behind Killian, who was being dragged down the hall by the hand, courtesy of Ryan.

“This isn’t over!” Ian yelled to our departing backs.

I shot him the finger. “This isn’t a Saturday morning cartoon, Megatron. Shut the hell up!”

Adam chuckled. “Nice one.” He wrapped his arm around my waist and squeezed. “Did I ever tell you that you’re sexy when you get jealous?”

I tried to hide my smile. “Once or twice.” I jabbed him in the ribs with my elbow. “Don’t you let that ginger make a move on you, or I’ll stop your heart. Not in a ha ha funny, joking kind of way. I will seriously stop your heart.”

Adam busted out laughing and kissed my cheek making my skin all tingly. He leaned in close so his breath tickled against my earlobe. “Darling, you talking all rough makes me all kinds of hot.”

I stopped in my tracks. “Seriously?”

His expression was heated. “Oh yeah.”

Barely registering we had stepped outside, I looked and saw the front of his slacks looked larger than normal. I swallowed heavily and promptly walked straight into a pole.

Way smooth, Summers. An echoing noise that was part ring and part buzz filled my head. I pouted at Adam who was trying and failing not to laugh. He helped me up and the persistent noise that I thought was just in my head wasn’t. It was coming from my back pocket. I pulled out the Nathaniel had given all of us.

It was a text message that said only two words:

Found it.

I looked up and the others had stopped where they stood in the parking lot, each had their own phones open reading the same message. I met Adam’s eyes. This was it.

I returned the phone to my pocket. “We’re on. Let’s go.”

***

We rushed to the Ruiz Estate, breaking so many traffic laws that I would have to pay my weight in fines if a cop stopped us. When the bad guys currently were winning in the race, and the prize was a weapon that causes the destruction of the universe, speed limit be damned.

The doors to Operations opened quietly and we stepped into the room and instantly halted in our steps. Side by side at the sensor console was Nathaniel and Celeste. And the wizard and the angel were so caught up in each other that they didn’t notice our presence.

“I bet it takes them another four minutes until they notice we’re here,” Killian muttered, non-too quietly.

Nathaniel jumped as he turned around, but Celeste only smiled slightly. “You arrived sooner than predicted.”

Ryan chuckled. “These three drove like bats out of hell.”

“End of the world or speeding ticket…” Adam mimed weighing the options with his hands. “So what did you guys find out?”

“Please tell me it’s good news,” I interjected, as we crowded around the monitor along the wall.

Nathaniel beamed and his eyes were twinkling in excitement. “It’s very good news. I think we’ve actually found the Key of Power. From what Early Dawn told us we know it was last on Mars.”

I nodded. “Yeah, but if I remember right the Khanite Mars was destroyed. That whole colony is nothing but dust just like the rest of the planet.”

“I thought the same, but what if not all of it was destroyed?” Nathaniel posed forth.

Killian shook his head. “But wouldn’t NASA have found something by now if it was there?”

“Not necessarily.” Ryan shook his head. “They’ve only been sending probes and rovers to land on Mars for a relatively short amount of time.”

Celeste pressed one of the square crystalline keys on the console. “After scanning the planet with the long range sensors this was discovered.”

The flat glass monitor displayed a rough digital image of Mars. The planet rotated on its axis until it stopped, showing an unusual anomaly that was obviously unnatural. It was a dome or a bubble, a perfect half sphere that was giving off abnormal energy readings.

“What’s that?” I asked, pointing at the display. “It looks like a forcefield, but it’s way too small to fit the entire colony in there.”

Nathaniel clapped his hands together, smiling. “I believe when the Lords in Shadow attacked the city the shields failed, but for some reason this portion of the colony has since remained shielded.”

“The energy requirements to sustain a shield for this long are enormous,” Ryan deduced. “But with the right source, it can be done.”

Adam followed this train of thought. “That source could easily be the Key of Power if it’s tied into the shield grid.”

“Okay, cool,” I crossed my arms and leaned back against the table. “But how are we going to get there? I doubt that Killian’s Sun Rise technique can transport us all the way to Mars.”

That sure threw a wrench in their plans. Silence reigned for all of a moment before theories and suggestions exploded forth from everyone at once. Well except for Celeste who watched the proceedings with an enigmatic smile. It’s not like she was allowed to actively help.

Passive help was what her bosses, our bosses actually, had tasked of her. Sort of how Gandalf and the wizards in Middle Earth were sent by the powers to help the free-peoples, not by engaging Sauron with their power, but through rousing men and inspiring in them great courage. Great books and good movies, that could have been better if Orlando Bloom had gotten shirtless at some point…

“Do you have any suggestions, Chad?” Celeste asked, drawing the others attention on me.

No pressure.

“I don’t know. Are there any Star Dancers left? We could fly there.”

“The systems would have long ago automatically detected any ships on Earth capable of sublight speed.” Nathaniel paused for a long moment as he looked at me considerately. “However... You are another story.”

I blinked. “Come again?”

“You’ve used spells more than once that is capable of manipulating the natural energies of space and time. Like your Giga Annihilation Program or the Justice Apocalypse. Surely, you could utilize a spell that can get you to Mars.”

My mouth opened and then closed ready to deny that I couldn’t do it. But he had a point. In the past, I had used spells to manipulate space and time to create power the likes no one had ever seen. This was different. This wasn’t about taking power and channeling it to destroy or undo. I was going to have to play with space to bridge two points, which required greater finesse than the brute force that I usually employed when slinging magic.

“Can you do it?” Nathaniel asked.

“Hold on, I’m thinking,” I replied distantly. “I-I think so. Give me a minute. This is going to involve some thinking.”

And that was putting it lightly.

I sat down at the triangular conference table and willed the Videum Crystallus to appear. It materialized before me and I instantly flipped to the page on what humans would call quantum physics. Atlanteans used base eight math as opposed to base ten that humans commonly used, which if they did, then they would find a revolutionary way of calculating distance between points. I conjured a pen and paper and instantly began scribbling away, tuning out the world around me as my thoughts processed with a speed that was inhumanly possible.

Equations filled the page that would make little sense to even a rocket scientist. I actually didn’t have a spell already crafted for teleportation or transportation of any kind over such a long distance. There was never a need. Not with the starships the Atlanteans had. So I had to start from scratch.

All of our mass combined to travel from this point to 186 light-seconds away, the distance from Earth to Mars, would require approximately 21,475 solar watts. The energy demand was small, but it required teleporting. Statistically, the risks were greater to teleport than opening a portal. All it would take was one fatal mistake and our molecules would be scattered all across the Horsehead Nebula.

A portal was safer but it would require an energy demand of 39,292 solar watts per second. Safer all around but the power input was greater and more costly. I definitely couldn’t hold the portal open for long. That was a given. The universe wouldn’t like an artificial hole in it for very long. It would put a strain on me the likes of which I couldn’t guess, and when I couldn’t stand the force, the laws of quantum psychics would come into play and crush me with unforgiving efficiency.

I scribbled out an equation and wrote an infinity signal above the equals sign. I looked over the figures with a critical eye. Spellwork wasn’t all waving my hand and willing something to happen. When it came to messing with the very fabric of space then caution had to be ensured. Especially when it was my ass was on the line.

A humming sound kept popping in my mind. I snapped out of my trance realizing that Adam sat next to me, softly trailing his fingers down my forearm with soft touches. The sound was his absent minded humming as he stared far off, lost in thought. I glanced around and saw everyone else engaged in their own private conversations. How long had I been working? I glanced at my watch. It had been half an hour. Damn. I grabbed Adam’s hand during one of his fleeting passes, startling him out of his thoughts.

“What are you humming, loverboy?” I asked curiously. “It’s pretty.”

Adam blinked bringing the world back into focus. “Oh, hey.” He rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish smile. “I don’t know really. It’s just a lullaby my mom used to sing to me when I was little.”

“So does it have any words?”

He grinned and jostled his shoulder against mine. “Always trying to hear me sing, huh babe?”

“You got me,” I admitted with a shrug. “So what’s it called? I definitely want you to sing it. I love your voice.”

Adam thought for a moment. “I think it’s called Descent of Entropy.” He licked his lips and took a breath and sang, “Save me from the creature’s blight. Stars are fading but hope is bright. Hear the melody of holy bell. Chase back this endless dark with light,” He kissed my fingertips and whispered the last bit in a melody, “protect us from the descent of entropy.”

I grinned and glanced away as he tangled his fingers with mine. I felt eyes watching us. Not us. Celeste’s stare wasn’t on me at all. Her eyes were trained on Adam and him only.

Nathaniel touched her shoulder, trying to get her attention. “Celeste, are you okay?”

Her expression was one of utter calm but her eyes were unreadable. “Sorry, I apologize but I must leave. I shall return later.”

She disappeared in a swirl of golden light leaving a frowning Nathaniel staring at the space she once occupied. I shrugged and went back to the equations. Everything appeared to check out.

“I did it,” I announced.

They scrambled over to me. I leaned back and waited for the questions as Nathaniel and Ryan went over my calculations.

“So you plan to open a portal?” Ryan asked, studying the formula with a critical eye.

“It will take more energy than a teleport, but it’s ninety percent safer than teleporting.”

“I don’t understand.” Killian pinned with a confused expression. “You’ve opened portals to the Ever After before. Why is this one different?”

“The walls between our universe and the pocket universe that is the Ever After were thin and easy to cross through, especially since we created the barrier in the first place. Basically, I had the backdoor password.” I explained patiently. “To open the barrier I basically punched a hole in reality between our two universes. This isn’t the same thing.”

“I get it. You’re not folding space, but funneling through it,” Killian said, surprising us all. “You’re traveling through subspace, like a wormhole.” He smirked. “What? I pay attention sometimes.”

Kudos to him. The less I had to explain the better. “So everything savvy?” I asked.

“Excellent work, Chad.” Nathaniel’s voice was full of approval. “I’m really impressed.”

“I aim to please.” I was oddly touched that he was proud of me. “So let’s get this show on the road. I want to get this Key before the bad guys huff and puff and blow our house down.”

Adam groaned. “Nice metaphor for the universe going boom, baby.”

We stood up in one fluid motion and our clothes faded into our Chosen uniforms before we completed the movement. Ryan and Killian transformed within the blink of an eye, leaving Solaris and the Executioner in their stead.

“Do your stuff, Warlock,” The Executioner said.

I stepped away from them and closed my eyes. Exhaling slowly I centered myself, then raised my arms and poured power into the air before me. Space shuddered at my touch as I willed it to part. It resisted but eventually bowed under the power that I bled out, followed by an energy pulse that jumped from my palms.

The pulse interacted with the exotic power I flooded the space with. The air began to twist, shining with a violet radiance that bathed the room as subspace visibly distorted under my efforts. Concentrating on the points in space for our destination, I twisted my fingers willing the distortion to stabilize before anchoring it off on both sides.

I dropped my hands and looked the portal over with a sharp eye. The violet portal shimmered and looked like a cylindrical whirlpool laying on its side. I could feel it as a dim echo in the back of my mind, feeding me coordinates and power emissions.

“It’s ready.” I waved at the portal triumphantly. “Tah dah!”

“Nicely done,” Nathaniel said. “I’ll stay here and watch for any activity on the Unrelenting. Good luck, boys.”

Together as one, we stepped through the portal. Violet and sea green light met in a clash of color that eclipsed my vision. It lasted for a long moment until it vanished and my boot clad feet sunk into red, lifeless dirt.

We made it. I closed the portal with a thought and felt its connection vanish from my mind. We silently looked around the dead planet. Derelict ruins surrounded us. They were still intact but had gone to seed after all these years of neglect. It reminded me vaguely of ancient Greece. The force shield may have protected this portion of the Khanite Mars, the rest of the colony hadn’t fared as well.

Craters from the bombs explosions covered a majority of the Martian surface. This city had lasted for weeks against the siege but the strength of numbers overwhelmed their mighty defenses. All that was last of the once great colony was a few scattered crumbling structures that existed within this force shield.

I had visited the Khanite Mars once. I knew that over that crest of hill was the great canyon Valles Marineris, more impressive than even the Grand Canyon. Even from here I could see the ice capped peaks of Olympus Mons, the now dormant volcano, which once provided the geothermal energy that powered the city. Visions of crystal lakes and bustling streets danced across my memory.

“Warlock?”

I blinked and it was gone.

“Yeah,” I said turning to Omega.

He grabbed my hand and squeezed it once before letting go. “You okay?”

“I will be,” I answered truthfully, turning to the large building that once was the city council. It was a shadow of its former self like everything else. “If I remember right there was at least three weapon lockers underground through here. They should still be intact. The engineers would have built them at least half a mile deep.”

“I think that’ll be the best place to start,” The Executioner agreed. “If the Key of Power is in one of those vaults then there is no way that I would be able to detect it up by a scan.”

We walked down what once used to a be bustling pavilion. In the back of my mind, I could remember the noise that once filled the walkways. They followed me to the ruined building that once housed was the city’s government. The doors were gone and the Executioner made quick work of clearing the entryway of debris. He tossed a column the size of a tree over his shoulder like a javelin. I shot a look at Killian staring openly at his boyfriend’s biceps.

We passed through shadow entrance hall and into the atrium. It looked like a mausoleum. The ceiling was an aerial ocean of darkness that made the enormous room bigger than it was. I could hardly make out anything in the dark space but a light wasn’t needed here. This was only a stop on the way.

“Please let this work,” I murmured. Holding out my hand above the floor I said, “Code zeta emergency. Sanctuary protocol.”

Then from somewhere, from the deepest depths to the highest heights, was the faraway sound of a series of tumblers unlocking. The floor rumbled and Solaris made a noise of unease. When it did, there was a low grinding noise, and then what appeared to be a solid piece of the stone floor began to run down, slowly lowering into the floor like a door on a hinge. In seconds, an opening with enough space for us to walk three across formed in the stone, and stairs led down into the darkness.

I buffed my nails against my cloak. “Look at me, I’m practically Indiana Jones.”

“Only gayer,” Solaris said.

“Bonus,” I said. “All of you, follow me.”

Prince Emrys’ lilting accent slipped into my voice for a moment. Something about being here was shaking loose a few cobwebs from my memory. The stairs led down at a steady angle. The Executioner took point with Solaris beside him. Adam was at the rear and I was in the middle.

Crystal globes set in the walls began to glow faint blue as we passed. They were about the size of softballs, set at eye level -- some glowed feebly, others shattered and a lot of them didn’t turn on at all.

“They’re reacting to the ambient spell woven into our suits,” I said.

Even if all the crystal globes were lit at full power there wasn't much to see anyway. The walls, steps, and ceiling were all made of the same polished marble, heavy and unadorned with no sign of cutting or separation. It was as if the entire place was crafted from a single piece of stone. Aside from the glowing gems, the only breaks in the monotony were jagged cracks and the occasional pile of dust. Not the most reassuring sight when you’re somewhere underground and going deeper, but the further we went, the less apparent the damage became.

The chamber at the bottom was a welcome sight. It was a wide room with only a massive set of double silver doors of metal with the constellation of the milky way as their only adornment.

“I got this.” The Executioner was tapping away at his phone. He was plowing through enormous amounts of code with lightning speed.

The Executioner had to do a manual bypass on the door’s sensor since it was shot to shit, but it didn’t delay us any longer than three minutes. The inside didn’t get much better. The doors opened and we stepped into an enormous circular room about the size of an aircraft hanger, occupied by metal boxes and crates. It was gloomy and barely lit as the environmental systems operated at minimum efficiency to conserve power.

“This must have been a bomb shelter,” Omega assumed, going through what looked like fancy crates. Whatever was inside was long since going to ruin.

“I’ve linked up with the network of the building and pulled up its schematics,” The Executioner said. He pressed something and a nearby door opened with a hiss and he jerked a thumb. “This way.”

The corridor was dimly lit by the crystal gems as the rest complex. Nothing jumped out from the corners and it was quiet except for our quiet chatter. We turned right at a junction and then found the way blocked by a collapsed ceiling. A twisted mess of steel and rock cut off further crossing. We stopped and frowned at the sight.

“I guess we should have made a left,” Solaris deadpanned.

The Executioner chuckled. “Nice deduction.”

We backtracked and then made a left at the junction this time. The hallways were in good shape considering the circumstances. There were only minor structural damage and little debris that got knocked loose during the nuking of the surface. Twenty minutes of walking and we finally came to our destination.

In front of us was a huge hunk of shiny tritium, a metal that was stronger than steel and made Adamantium look like aluminum foil. The slab of metal was held closed by six diesel sized bolts. This vault could withstand direct fire well into the triple-digit megaton range of explosives.

The trick was the metallurgists worked the metal so that it was able to absorb all vibrations and kinetic energy directed at it. The energy was then stored within the bonds that made up the substance, resulting in the metal becoming tougher with the more energy is absorbed. It had only been recently developed before the Fall, as the metal came from a planet beyond the Sol System.

“I recognize this,” The Executioner muttered. He sighed in defeat and his shoulders slumped. “There’s no way we’re breaking down this door.”

We had come too far to be stopped by a freaking door. No matter how big and tough. “What do we have to do to open this thing?” I stepped closer toward the vault.

A black panel on the tritium door flared with an undulating Atlantean script. “Stat-e des-gnation... input- authoritttion.”

The disembodied voice stuttered and cut off.

Omega frowned at the door. “Malfunction?”

“Damn it!” I snapped. “This is unfuckingbelievable!” I turned to the Executioner. “Can you fix it?”

The Executioner already had his phone out and was tapping away at the screen. “There’s no way I could fix it. The AI’s data is corrupted and without it online and fully functional, then there is no way we can get into the vault.”

I rubbed my chin, thinking. An idea was forming. It was there but just out of my reach. I focused on the fogged thought and it cleared with an abrupt clarity.

“Executioner, link up with the database back on Earth,” I ordered, going with my gut. “The Atlantis network is trashed, the core is long gone. However, the database should still hold the memory of the core from its last system data save."

The Executioner's eyes lit up, as he rapidly typed away. “I think I know where you’re going with this.”

“I don’t.” Solaris frowned. “If you’re thinking about sending the database AI against this defense AI, then you’re high. The defense AI, raggedy as it is, its protocols would rip through the database AI and fry that phone.”

I grinned. “That’s why I’m not sending the database AI against the vault AI.” The Executioner looked up and sent me a quick nod. “I’m sending the Atlantis Core AI against this piece of shit.”

“Accessing command core protocols from backup within the database,” the Executioner said, keying in a command sequence. “Core AI is isolated. Kernel coming online... now.”

A light fell from the ceiling in a flickering white beam of meandering script and code. It wavered and twisted, taking form into the shape of a man dressed in long elaborate robes of a priest of They Above All. He had long hair tied back, and his transparent body wavered slightly before resolving itself. His emotionless face looked up from the ground.

“Atlantis Command Core, online,” the data-hologram announced. “Unfolding higher logic command core… Done. Polling memory core… Error. Rerouting from Terra Outpost Sigma-Seven-Gamma… Done. Updating system events-” the man stopped, looking up with equal concern and confusion. “This is disconcerting.”

I shared a glance with the other Chosen at his last sentence. He must have come across the gap in his event logs. The man studied us one by one.

“I have analyzed your magical field and life force.” The man trained a pensive stare on us. “Am I correct to state that you are the Chosen? Yet, you all are much younger than you should be.”

“You would be correct,” Omega said.

The hologram folded his hands before him. “Logic states that a reincarnation event must have occurred.” He looked at me and I nodded. “My prince, my event logs appear to be… out of date.”

“About 15,000 years or so,” I muttered.

The hologram nodded. “It would appear to be so. I cannot seem to access the Atlantis network. All ports to the city appear to be offline. My capabilities in the current system are rather limited than my normal functionality. May I inquire as to the current state of affairs?”

“The Executioner can fill you in.” I gestured to the taller figure.

The AI bowed his head and holographic script flashed into existence around his body in a circular track, as the event logs from the Executioner’s phone link wrote themselves into his faster than light data banks. Several moments later, the script faded away and he looked up.

“The situation is much more distressing than I first perceived,” the hologram said softly. “I am sorry for your loss, my prince. Your father and brother were a treasure and a light among your people. How can I be of service, your Grace?”

I smiled sadly. There was only an old pain at the thought of my old family. “Thank you. You can do us the biggest favor by opening this vault.”

The hologram turned and looked intently at the door. “Mars special weapons locker 11X0, high level encryption, with a triple lockout password. The defense AI’s entire mainframe is corrupted. It will take approximately 12 minutes to work around the systems defensive protocols lest it perceives me at threat, and turns its defenses onto you.”

“And we definitely don’t want that,” Solaris agreed wholeheartedly.

The digital man faced the door to the vault and pointed his arm at the unmovable slab of metal. Winding script circled his hand and he held that pose.

Omega slipped his hand into mine. He was staring in amazement. “You’re really stepping up today. I’m proud of you.”

“I used to be surprised by it, but I’m starting to get the hang of leading. Maybe that’s the trick,” I said softly. “With the more confidence I gain, the more my instincts of being commander come out.”

“You might be on to something.” Omega pressed a soft kiss against my forehead.

It was a tiny kiss but it made me tingle all over. I was so gone for this boy. I looked up at him and his eyes stared into mine, silently communicating his feelings. I hoped that he could see even half of what I saw in his eyes.

I guess it worked because he smiled brilliantly and quietly whispered, “I love you.”

“That’s funny,” I whispered back, teasingly. “‘Cause I love you back.”

Solaris cleared his throat. “I hope you two don’t think this about to turn into a make out party… if so, then you got another thing coming to you.”

I turned a scowl on him. “And we were doing so good today too. We almost made it through the whole day without insulting each other. Do you want to have a go?”

“Please not now.” The Executioner pleaded.

“Why not?” Solaris whined, or it sounded like a whine to my ears. “He’s practically begging for it.”

I wasn’t begging for anything! “Listen up, nightlight. This is how it’s going to go down-”

Omega slammed his lips against mine. He weaved his fingers into my hair and automatically my arms tightened around him possessively, squeezing him so close I’m sure he could barely breathe. Warmth flooded through me and my heart skipped and stuttered. And it hurt and felt so good in the best way.

When Omega broke away he let out a shaky breath, sliding his arms around my shoulders. He rested his forehead against mine, slowly regaining his composure before he said, “I knew that would shut you up.”

“I won’t hold it against you,” I replied dazed, and all sorts of giddy.

“That was kind of hot,” The Executioner said faintly, surprising us all. Solaris made a face and slapped him on the arm. “What? It was.”

Solaris shook his head, crossing his arms with a sulking frown. “Traitor.”

“Not hotter than you of course,” conceded the champion of soul, poking Solaris in the side.

A warm smile spread across Solaris’ face. “I knew I kept you around for a reason.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Are you two trying to steal our cute couple moment?”

Omega chuckled. “Remember, baby, sharing is caring.”

Pouting, I mumbled, “I remember.”

I straightened suddenly as an abnormal whirling noise echoed in the air. The outer ring of the gigantic vault door began to widen while other sections simultaneously pulled away into the armored wall around it. We faced the unlocking door, waiting with eagerness as the last of the vault either fell into the wall or swung away from us. It was finally time. There was one more final click, and the blast door opened revealing the inner contents.

“Operation complete.” The digital man reported, dropping his extended pose. “I have successfully neutralized the defensive AI. One moment while I retrieve a manifest of the vault contents.” He stared far off for a long moment. “Done. I have determined there are two hundred and twenty one cataloged items on file; Items of substance, twelve Jacketed Nano-Antimatter Gauss Cannons, forty five G60 Neutrino Ion warheads, fifteen…”

“We get the drift,” I said weakly, cutting off the AI.

The hologram tapered off his report and bowed. “As you wish, my prince.”

We gazed around the massive vault, taking in the enormity of it all with wide eyed wonder. Lined against the walls were racks of weapons the likes I’ve never seen, except for on the Syfy Channel.

“Why didn’t they use any of this stuff?” Solaris ran a finger over a deadly looking gunsword.

The Executioner shook his head sadly. “They didn’t have time. The Lords in Shadow attacked them as quickly as they lay siege to Atlantis.”

I turned to the digital man who stood patiently at my side. “Is there any chance we can upgrade ourselves offensively as well as defensively while we’re here?”

“Your defensive abilities can be upgraded simply if the data is correct,” stated the hologram, striding forward.

His holographic robes swished with his movement. He closed his eyes and from the floor raised a pedestal.

We gathered around it as the AI motioned toward the devices on top of the pedestal. “Here you will find Occisor Bracelets. By will and motion, the device activates a shield that will protect a user up to a minute and a half. They exhaust a lot of power and are not rechargarable. These particular models have a one time use.”

They all took one except for me. I only raised my eyebrow. “Please. I’ve been casting shield spells since I was first chosen.”

“Affirmative.” The AI nodded agreeing with me. “Your celestial abilities far exceed most of the capabilities of the weaponry contained here, and some are insufficient for brief engagements. However… there are some weapons that fit the criteria. One dual bladed, Black Iron ax. Two tachyon-pulse cannons. Three Coldfire adamant blades…”

The Executioner grinned like a kid at a candy store. I guess weapons turned him on. “I think this Black Iron ax is just what papa was looking for. If I remember right, this baby can easily cut through anything made of iron. And it absorbs bioelectrical energy from its wielder, and when it stores enough in its buffer it unleashes it in a blast.”

“Are you going to marry it now?” I said laughing as he picked up the sleek ax, waving it around in a fancy martial arts move that was right out of an anime. It was made of a polished red metal and reminded me of the Scythe from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The Executioner twirled it around, smirking. “Maybe?”

“I had to go and fall in love with the weapons happy one,” Solaris said fondly, slapping on a silver Occisor Bracelet.

This was all well and good, but we did come here for something. I looked around the room and found a door. The keypad on it was slagged, but that didn’t mean much when I had the command core AI of Atlantis at my side.

“Lan,” I said, tapering off. Lan. Where did that come from? Then it came to me like a stroke of lightning. “Lan? That’s your name right?”

The AI nodded, pleased. “That is correct, your Highness. I take it the reincarnation affected your memories?”

“Everything is coming back to us slowly.” Omega looked up from examining a pair of golden armored vests. “Sometimes an event can trigger a memory. Like when he called you Lan. Now I remember all the times you were there for us in the past.”

“I’m glad that your memories are not permanently damaged, Chosen Omega,” said the digital hologram.

I pointed to the door before me. “Can you open the door, Lan?”

Lan closed his eyes and when he opened them the doors opened with a soft hiss. I had to give it to him. He was damn good. Of course, it was expected. He was the holographic manifestation of the entire Atlantis network. I stepped into the room and immediately lights turned on from the gems inset near the ceiling. It was a gigantic square room with teal walls and a brown console rested in the center.

“This room must have been shielded.” The Executioner studied the readings on his phone. “Now I’m suddenly picking up insanely high energy readings.”

“Definitely the Key of Power I would guess.” Solaris stepped into the room.

“You’re attempting to gather the three Keys?” Lan stared at us dismayed. “Has the vile forces of darkness become so strong?”

My head snapped around. “You know what Heaven’s Trumpet is?”

“Affirmative,” confirmed the holographic man. “Heaven’s Trumpet is the most powerful weapon known in existence. It was created after the Last Great War. When the three Keys are brought together Heaven’s Trumpet is summoned and the universe will thus end.”

“That’s so dumb!” Solaris snapped, glowering at Lan. “Who and why create something so fucking dangerous.”

“Heaven’s Trumpet was created by They Above All,” the AI reported, causing us to gasp in surprise.

I shook my head. “That’s impossible! Why would they create something so horrible?”

Lan’s face was solemn as he answered, “When the suffering of all sentient life by the forces of evil is so great, so unbearable, that there is no hope or rescue, then Heaven’s Trumpet is to be used.”

“Mutually assured destruction,” Omega whispered, clutching tightly to my hand.

Looking around at their grim faces, I dropped Omega’s hand and stepped forward. “Humanity won’t suffer on my watch. I’m taking the Key of Power and we’re getting the hell out of here.”

I briskly walked to the console and keyed in the royal override code on the keypad. The top of the console retracted, and from its inside ascended a beautiful diamond the size of a baseball. I reached for the blood red gem.

“I’ll be taking that.”

The unfamiliar voice startled us and we instinctively moved into defensive stances. In the doorway of the room beyond was over a dozen men, and standing before the gray garbed individuals was a smirking man with pitch black hair. His skin was deathly pale, hell red eyes were slitted like a feline and he grinned showing fanged teeth. He wore a scarlet robe with a black mantle with arcane symbols stitched in gold.

“Oh, I suppose a show of force is needed,” said the figure, as if it were a second thought.

He thrust out his hand and an invisible pulse rippled through the air and caught Solaris head on. He hurtled back and slammed against the wall as if hit by a truck.

The being laughed. “Now, as I was saying. I’ll be taking the Key.”

My hair moved in a sudden breeze as I charged up my magic. I glared at the laughing man. “If you want it, Count Dracula. Then you’ll have to come and get it.”

He shrugged. “My pleasure.”

There was a deafening boom.

Everything turned white.