The overwhelming heat would have gotten to him to Nike on most days but not today. He stood next to the baobab tree as he watched Inyanga's car slowly crawled to a stop, its brakes squealed while doing so. Of all the mysteries that Nike had heard of in his short life, how Inyanga's car had worked for 40 years had to be up there. Three doors opened with much difficulty, the rust and lack of maintenance had taken its toll. Inyanga, Anan and Ayla stepped out and looked directly into Nike's eyes. Uncertainty hung in the air. Inyanga's hand was in his coat as he expected the unexpected. The other hand balled up into a fist.
"Aight, no bullshit. Did ya do it?" Inyanga's shout broke the silence. His fist tightened.
"No" replied Nike. He returned the gaze as good as they gave it to him. Ayla walked to Nike who then noticed the blood on her hands and on her jeans. His eyes quickly darted to Anan's who had some blood splatter on her forehead. His attention turned to Inyanga's white shoes which were absolutely drenched in blood. It suddenly clicked now.
"You're many things but you're not a murderer and a fucking terrible lair." Sighed Ayla as she hugged Nike tightly.
"Too.... tight. Too tight!" gasped Nike
"Hope I didn't hurt you." Apologized Ayla as she let go.
"I think the real question is …. tight are you okay?" Nike held her hands inspecting the now dry blood.
"It's not mine. It's all gone to hell. Things were weird to begin with when whatever fell through the sky did but it's gotten way worse." Explained Ayla. She dried her eyes delicately with the sleeves of her faded shirt.
"Then a day after we got a radio announcement directly from the King of the royal family himself."
"The King?" Nike raised an eyebrow.
"Yup, the same king from the royal family that's been shitin on us since day one. He says you and Mwene killed about 19 folks. Civvies and soldiers. Put a pretty price on ya heads too." Added Inyanga who walked towards Nike with Anan following closely behind.
"Citizenship to Arda. A billion credits as well training to the job to any profession there and a guaranteed job once that was done." related Anan.
"Shit."
"Shit indeed, however somethin' peculiar happened. People stormed all them Atlas towers tryin' to escape. Your news inspired insurrection rather than cooperation. At least in the rural areas."
"Then came the purges." Ayla let go of Nike's hands.
"What?" Nike's eyes widened
"Aye, shoot first no questions." Ayla walked away a bit. Her jaw clenched and face faced the ground.
"They got her folks. Luckily I got ther' in time. It wasn't pretty. Picked up Anan 'fore they got her." Recounted Inyanga.
Nike looked away into the distance. He noticed a multiple black smoke trail across the birdless horizon. It dawned on him what he was in. Terra had been nothing but a prison but people still managed. They found community with each other in the struggle but now it was different. They were fish in a barrel and the Ardan government had them in their sights with a stick of dynamite in their hands.
"Let's head inside" instructed Nike as he led everyone else towards the ship. He led them to the cockpit where they all explored the room except for Nike who beelined for the monitors at the left side of the room.
"Hang on, I recognise this ship" remarked Inyanga as he walked around the ship.
"You piloted this at basic?" Inquired Anan softly.
"Yes and no. I haven't been in a ship exactly like this but all aerial and spacecraft schematics share design elements with this" stated Inyanga as he inspected the seats.
"Wait, spacecraft? I thought they scarped the space program after the failed Odyssey? "asked Anan
"Officially anyways. They could have found something that would have undermined their position. Probably the same reason why they went after that pastor. He definitely knew something he wasn't supposed to." Answered Nike.
"Spot on." commented Inyanga.
"They killed him before we got to him." Said Nike as he shook his head.
"Surprise, surprise the government is tyrannical." Said Ayla flatly
"Hang on though." Inyanga bellowed out excitedly as he pushed Nike aside and started to type wildly on the keyboard. A holographic screen appeared with a 'searching' message on it.
"This is a little trick they taught me a while back. If this here ship is as decked out as I think it is then we should be able to get the…." He stopped himself as he triumphantly hit the enter key on the keyboard to tune into an Ardan news broadcast. Footage of men in white hazmat suits are seen using bulldozers and pushing piles of bodies into large mass graves. In the background piles of burning bodies filled up the entire screen.
"As you can see here the death toll has been pretty high. The military suggests that the casualties easily number in the millions. This is a terrorist attack of unprecedented magnitude that has managed to partially destroy the 5 layers of Paradise. It's perpetrators none other than once revered explorer and researcher Ranulph Brown and his two accomplices Mwene Brown, his son, and Nike Alexandros." Reported the newscaster.
"Wait what? "exclaimed Nike
Footage of an enormous Atlas tower, impossibly large pillar that held the layers in place, was surrounded by military and tanks. The ground was muddy and oxblood red.
"This Atlas tower, a historic and engineering achievement, was the scene of the bloodiest clash riot between civilians and government authorities for over a thousand years. Insurrectionists attempted to storm the tower in order to travel to the upper layers and spread their message but were violently thwarted. The military are said to have lost a thousand personnel in the riots. The story is the same for the other eleven…."
Ayla shut off the broadcast and looked at Nike dead in the eye.
"I'm ready to leave now so where's Mwene?"
Mwene sat on a bench, reading a newspaper. A purple cap shielded him from the oppressively hot Zuva light. The town was busy. People, who were usually smiling and greeted each other on the streets, did not even acknowledge the existence of others. The heavy military presence definitely didn't help. Tanks, patrolling soldiers and 4x4's roamed the streets and roads.
Searching for an excuse to exercise force.
Searching for him.
A man with a yellow cap and well-kept bearded sat next to him.
"Your beard looks hideous." Pointed out Mwene as he continued to look at his newspaper.
"Piss off" snapped Pablo as he lit a cigarette. They sat in silence for a minute. Neither of them looked at each other directly. Pablo's eyes darted around the town expecting the worst. Mwene did the same.
"I'm sorry about your mom. She was a good woman. Too pure for this world."
"I know."
"Look, we're blood. Day ones. I want the best for you but..."
"But what?" interrupted Mwene
"What's your plan?"
"I told you that time at your birthday party but you told me to stop taking baby shots and just dive into it like it was a pool full of liquor."
Pablo sat and thought about it for a moment. Mwene looked around and started to notice just how deserted and unusually quiet the park was now. There were no civilian or military personnel in sight.
"And I thought I talked mad when drunk." Laughed Pablo. His face quickly became stern again.
"Listen we all dream and that's good and all but reality grounds us. He's gone. You're not your past. There's nothing out there but pain, disappointment and hopelessness. Your mother wouldn't have wanted that. Don't be a prisoner to your nostalgia" Stated Pablo as he looked directly at Mwene who was still hidden behind his newspaper.
"This is my decision." Replied Mwene.
"Is this what you want or what you've convinced yourself to know man? Think." Pleaded Pablo.
"We're done." Mwene said as he put down the newspaper preparing to walk away.
"Hang on." blurted Pablo and he put a hand on his thigh. Mwene looked at him and noticed the desperation in his eyes. Something was off. A breeze gently rustled the leaves on the trees close to them. Pablo calmed himself and began to look for something in his coat.
"You know my mom told me in another lifetime your folks would have called you Israel. Seems fitting." Said Pablo calmly
"Wait what does that mean?"
"Look" Pablo showed a polaroid picture of his fiancé and kid. Their grass green eyes and perfect smiles caught Mwene's attention.
"They're gonna miss you. I'm gonna miss you." Pablo turned the photo around to reveal some writing.
"They've got my family. I'm sorry cous."
The breeze stopped. Mwene's heartbeat filled his ears. He looked just beyond Pablo and noticed a parked 4x4 with its window partially open. Its interior was dark except for a small glint. Mwene looked at Pablo whose smile belied his true intentions. Before Mwene could react Pablo's head just exploded. His blood and brain matter hit his eyes and tinted his vision red. He felt the bullet hit him square between the eyes and knock him backwards into a familiar unconscious abyss.