A New Genesis: The Eternal Menace, #1

© 2016 by Robert S. Gill

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There’s a slippery beam we walk on every moment we breathe. Over our left shoulder, evil taunts us with its empty promises. Over our right shoulder, good whispers hopeful wishes. At times we lose balance, slipping into the wrong choice. When we struggle to recognize our right from our left, we face an enemy we can’t beat ...

THE ETERNAL MENACE

A NEW GENESIS

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Robert S. Gill

CONTENTS

COPYRIGHT

TITLE

CHAPTER 1: THE MEDALLION

CHAPTER 2: AWAY TO MOUNT EMBOR

CHAPTER 3: FROM THE PAST

CHAPTER 4: BLUE

CHAPTER 5: PINK

CHAPTER 6: EGGPLANT

1

THE MEDALLION

The moon cast its bright, white gaze over a vast land where a simple ranch lay lonesome. Any other night this ranch wouldn’t make a sound. But on this night, the chickens tried to break from their coops and the horses assaulted the stables.

Dirt mashed and collected on the bottoms of boots pounding the ground. Holding pistols and submachine guns, an army marched up the tiring hills leading to the ranch.

Vicious stallions pulled a carriage amongst the soldiers. Inside sat a man. Though concealed by shadow, the whites of his predatory glare stood out.

At the top of the hills, the first building in sight was the main house. Inside the basement, a Caucasian man leaned over the armrest of a tattered loveseat, peeking under a young woman’s dress while her right foot rested on top of one of the back cushions and the heel of her left foot rested on the floor. Push, young girl, push, he urged the girl as she screamed at the top of her lungs, her dark hair soaked and her bronze skin glistening from excessive sweat.

A newborn baby cried just as loud, lying on a dusty dresser right by her head.

The man brushed his brittle, gray hair away from his face and then looked up as if someone had suddenly approached from behind. They’re here, he said in a shallow breath. "Stay silent. You don’t want him to hear you."

I can’t stay silent! she moaned, with her brown eyes squinted and her thin lips puckered, taking deep breaths in and out.

This is the worse timing. Don’t worry, I’ll handle them, he said to her right before he ran up a short flight of stairs. He bolted out of the basement through a secret door in the floorboard. He shut the door and pulled a large rug, with a table on top of it, over the door.

The man didn’t sweat or shake at all. He knew they would find him. He also knew he had to be brave, whether he was ready or not. But when he crept over to the curtains and opened the center slit just enough to allow one of his eyes to examine the front yard, his heart began palpitating.

He wondered where his foe had even found these soulless, scowling killers in tattered casual wear.

Stop, came a shout from the carriage. The leader stepped out onto the crisp lawn. The soldiers spread apart as he made his way to the front of the pack.

A silhouette was all the old man saw. The long ears that pointed outwards like knives confirmed the leader’s identity as he stopped about twenty feet from the door. He lifted his right hand with his index finger and thumb close together. A small, bright light formed between the tips, about two millimeters in mass. He took the index finger and flicked the tiny ball of light toward the door.

The door exploded upon impact. Luckily the old man ducked for cover as soon as he recognized the attack. He got up and ran to the center of the room as a thin cloud of smoke rushed in from the doorway. He planted his right foot to the rear in a firm battle stance. Then he said under his breath, Come in and get killed if you want to.

The leader pointed to four soldiers and signaled for them to blitz the abode.

The soldiers charged through the doorway. They started attacking with kicks and punches. The old man dodged their attacks and countered with hooks to the jaws, jabs to the stomachs, and uppercuts that sent the soldiers flying around the room.

They all fell unconscious as fourteen more soldiers burst through the windows and rushed through the doorway. In unison, they fired their weapons at the target. The old man ran to a counter in the kitchen area and jumped behind it. For a few seconds, rapid fire ripped through the furniture and walls.

One of the soldiers inched toward the kitchen with his gun angled for a nice blind shot. He opened fire behind the counter, but when he checked to claim his prized kill, his prize was gone.

From the opposite corner of the room, the old man started attacking the soldiers. Gunfire went blazing all over the house as he dodged the bullets, moving with lightning quickness to strike his enemies.

In the basement, the girl covered the baby’s mouth as well as her own and flinched as a few of the bullets ripped through the basement and missed them by inches.

Outside, the leader watched the flickering gunfire excite the living room. He waved for more soldiers to rush in.

Doing flips off of the walls and over furniture, the old man’s movement prevented the soldiers from aiming a direct hit at him. One of the soldiers took a hit in the back from friendly fire. The injured soldier grimaced while he dropped to one knee and then fell to the ground. The soldier that shot him ran to his side as the old man continued to beat the snot out of the others.

As more troops poured through the door to surround him, the old fighter placed himself in front of them all. He opened his palms, brought his elbows back, lifted his left knee, and then slammed his foot on the ground and pushed the air with his palms.

A powerful burst of energy obliterated his entire front wall. It also sent all of the troops that were in the house on a free flight to another country.

The leader and the remaining soldiers braced and protected themselves from the debris until they could only watch the defeated soldiers get carried away.

The vibrations from the blast shook the whole house. Dust and dirt fell from the basement ceiling. Shhhh. Please, the girl whispered as the baby’s muffled cries grew louder.

Upstairs, the fighter relaxed a bit. But to his misfortune, he noticed that the table and rug covering the trap door had went out with the soldiers. It was too late to try and cover it again since the army leader had stepped through the gape.

As the light hit his smooth, green skin, his fine, thin, translucent fur shifted with the night breeze. He wore a green camouflage uniform with black stripes, with the sleeves torn off at the shoulders, and large dark-red stains leaked from the tears. His eyes pierced the old man’s. Where is she? the leader asked.

She’s with Goopa. You can’t steal her away from him.

Do you really believe that? Besides, I’ve already been to the mountain, so give me what I came here for!

You’ll never have the girl, the fighter roared.

You know it’s not the girl I want. He raised his hand. We can do this the easy way, Master Otem, and you show my troops where to find her, or I could destroy this whole ranch. That includes you and those two distractions.

Do what you must, Kizm. She’s not here. Otem’s eyes never gave into Kizm’s. The silence in the room sent chills down the soldiers’ backs. They’d heard stories about Kizm’s days training under Otem and they knew that if a fight broke out the power of their physical energies alone would crush every lowly soldier in that room.

So be it. Kizm pointed all over the ranch and shouted, Find the girl and torch the place!

The troops scattered all over the ranch, searching and wrecking any area they found. A few soldiers stayed inside and searched the rooms of the house. One of the soldiers began tossing furniture around, looking for hiding places. The trap door was built to blend in with the floor pattern. It was difficult to see with the naked eye. All Otem could do was hope that no one would notice it.

I can tell you’re getting scared, Otem said to Kizm.

Master Otem, I’m far from scared. But I do feel that I should get rid of any threat that stands in my way. Now I’ll tell you once again, either tell me where the girl is or suffer the consequences.

Otem raised his knee and brought his elbows back to do another wave.

In two quick leaps, Kizm grasped Otem’s throat and lifted him off of the ground. I won’t play this game with you. You’ll force me to have to snap your neck! Kizm grit his teeth as he spat out his words.

Otem began slipping away into unconsciousness as burbles seeped from his throat. Then ... THUMP THUMP THOOM overpowered the whooshing sound in his ears.

I found something, a soldier yelled.

Kizm dropped Otem and approached the soldier. Otem gasped for air on his knees. The soldier removed his foot from the spot on the floor he had just stomped and then pried around the floorboard with a knife until he managed to open the trap door. Kizm took the lead down the stairs.

One of the most important lessons Kizm learned from Otem and his other teachers was the art of making an enemy feel overconfident, so every step had to be a cautious one, since a booby-trap could end the search in any second. His eyes scanned the room; they immediately locked onto the loveseat.

He still has this raggedy thing? Kizm spent so many nights sleeping on that couch when it was on Mount Embor. It even still had the huge K he cut into the center back cushion. But this was no time for nostalgia. Everything in the room, from dusty chests to dusty dressers had no signs of prints or any tampering. Even so, he ordered the soldier to search everything.

Kizm made his way to the short hallway ahead. He kicked open the first door on the right. A bathroom. He kicked open the door to the left. A shabby room stacked full with farming magazines. Only two doors left. Kick. Kick. Nothing useful in either room, not even a touch of suspicious hiding spots.

Kizm turned to walk away when his heart skipped a beat. The far wall. The far wall had something. He could feel a presence but the feeling would fade in and out. But it was just a wall? That vent, he whispered. Without hesitation, he went to the wall and ripped the human-sized vent cover out. He bent over to peer inside and smiled.

Sweat beaded down the girl’s washed-out face. You found me, she exhaled in a faint breath. Only the vent walls and her scrunched position prevented her from falling over.

I sure did. Now come with me. I’ll show you to your new home.

There’s nothing here, sir, the soldier announced.

Don’t worry about it, Kizm answered. This will be good enough. He extended his hand to the girl. Are you ready?

No, she breathed.

Kizm’s eyebrows scrunched together. No?

No, she breathed a little louder. Then a faint moan caught their attention. The girl’s eyes widened. Kizm scoffed at her and then slammed the vent cover back in place. Nooooo, she screamed.

The moan was never-ending. It came from one of the rooms. He stepped toward the bathroom, where the sound grew louder. He lifted the toilet seat. Nothing was there, not even water. As he lifted the top off of the back of the toilet, the moans became cries. He gently grabbed the baby, gazing into its eyes. This was all he needed. No need to stick around.

Let’s go, said Kizm. The soldier followed him up the stairs. Look what I found, he boasted, dangling the baby like a brand new toy as he passed by Otem.

The old man stared at the baby and exhaled, No.

Kizm exited through the giant gape and shouted, Burn it all! His soldiers left the house and grabbed a bunch of torches from the carriage.

It took soldiers lighting and throwing torches into the house to break Otem from his helpless daze. He got up and charged at the soldiers. Then some kind of energy ripped a small hole through his right shoulder and blasted him backwards, causing him to roll across the room.

With two fingers pointed in Otem’s direction, Kizm lowered his hand and shouted, Let’s go! We’ve been here too long. The last torch bearer tossed his flame through the gape. The rug ignited. All of the soldiers surrounded the carriage with quickness as it turned around, and the small army went away like nothing had happened.

Otem ignored the inferno in his shoulder, picked himself up, and staggered to the basement before the inferno around him could consume them both.

He rushed to the girl, who was lying halfway out of the vent motionless. He cradled her and then took her upstairs.

Flames covered every direction. He could hear the roof cracking, so he escaped through the gape just in time to avoid its collapse.

He took her far away from the fire and placed her on the ground. By this time, the baby was ready to slide out. Otem continued where he’d left off, urging her to push, but the young woman could barely stay conscious. Finally, after twelve more minutes of labor pains, the girl’s first son was born. With nothing around to use, Otem removed his shirt to wrap the baby in. The girl gave a slight smile right before falling unresponsive.

Otem placed the baby on the ground. He placed two fingers where the woman’s neck met her collarbone. He didn’t feel anything, so he took the other hand and held her left wrist while also putting his ear to her chest. After about half a minute he looked at the girl and sighed. Get your rest, he said. It’s been a long eight days. Otem picked up the baby and sat to watch his home burn.

As the years passed by, Otem and the girl raised the boy. Together, they spent countless days rebuilding the ranch piece by piece with the help of people who lived in the town less than a mile away.

Four years after the ranch burned, the boy’s mother was stricken by a mysterious illness. Neither medicine nor magic could heal her body. Otem and the boy sat by her side for two months talking, smiling, and acting like nothing was wrong, even though her son was too young to understand. One day she opened her mouth and nothing came out. The boy sat by her deathbed, still expecting her to speak. Otem took him by the hand and led him out of the room.

Seven years after that ...

No threats had come about since the ranch was destroyed. The town nearby had grown a bit. Everyone had a satellite dish decorating the bountiful gardens in their backyards. The ranch was bigger, with more cows, goats, horses, and pigs. The chicken coop sat to the right side of the house. The barns, pig pen, and everything else were in rows behind the house, instead of spread out. They didn’t live in the middle of nowhere, but it was pretty close; surrounded by green hills, large acres of flat land, and woods in the distance. The ranch and the town were isolated from most of the South African civilization, with a dirt road that led from the left side of the house, down through the town, and out to wherever a person dreamt to travel.

The boy had grown to be healthy and energetic. He performed his favorite activity: chasing the chickens around—even though he was a constant failure at the task. He dove for one of the chickens and landed flat on his face. Dirt colored the front of his dark, wild, bushy hair. Get back here! Empty handed, he picked himself up and brushed off the dirt that matched his skin.

Kwon, a voice yelled to him. He turned around to see Otem’s top half poking out of the front doorway. Hurry and get those chickens put up. Supper will be ready in a few minutes.

Okay, Kwon shouted back, pulled his pants up, and focused on his targets. Playtime is over. It’s time for you chickens to go back to your coop so you can lay some eggs and do whatever else you do. He charged at the chickens one by one. With every single chicken, he fell on his face over and over again. Eventually, he just gave up like always and went in the house shaking his head.

Otem stirred steaming pots on the stove.

Grandpa, I’m sorry, but I can’t do it. Those chickens are too fast. Kwon plopped on the sofa near the entrance with a lazy dive.

You should’ve trained last week like I told you to, Otem snapped. Otem told Kwon so many times not to let the chickens out if he can’t put them back on his own. Always, he had to waste time finishing what Kwon started. Go wash up. Otem walked to the front door. He jabbed Kwon with a look so stern it forced Kwon to turn his head to avoid eye contact. It reminded Kwon of how soft his behind has become since his head is so hard. Don’t touch those pots until you clean your hands!

As soon as Otem went outside, Kwon made his way over to the stove. He had to stand on the tips of his toes just to lift the lid of one of the pots to take a peek at what was giving off that aroma of cinnamon and honey in the air. The steam smacked his forehead, which cause him to jerk back and slam the top back on the pot.

I thought I told you not to touch those pots until you washed your hands? Startled, Kwon whipped his head around to see Otem standing at the door. Now, you couldn’t have gotten cleaned up that fast.

Kwon frowned. There’s no way you could’ve put those chickens in the coop that quick.

Oh, really? Otem smirked. Go outside and look.

Kwon went to the door and poked his head out. No chickens were in sight. He stepped all the way out and saw that they were put away neatly in the coop.  Something wasn’t right, though. He’d only been alone for about eleven seconds before his grandpa came back inside. He looked at Otem, who was whistling while he set the table for dinner. He wondered how a man who always takes hundreds of thousands of hours to set a table for two people could put the chickens away in a matter of seconds. Kwon took another bewildered look at the coop and then went back inside.

Later that night, a half-eaten honey-glazed ham sat in the center of the dining table next to two large bowls of steamed vegetables: four-cheese broccoli and cinnamon carrots touched with sugar and melted creamy butter. Kwon inhaled his food while his attention was engulfed in one of Otem’s stories.

We were stuck in a cave, moments from death. The ceiling was falling apart. Large chunks of stone smashed the ground around us. We thought it was the end for sure. That is until Goopa crawled through a small opening in the wall where light peeked through. He managed to find a vine and pulled me up through an opening at the top just seconds before the cave collapsed.

What happened to the bracelet? Kwon asked.

The scientists got away with it. Somehow another man got a hold of it, but before he figured out how to use it, Goopa and I stole it from him. Then we put it in a safe place.

I don’t get it. What was so special about a blue gemstone bracelet?

It was one-of-a-kind, handcrafted by a shaman. A lot of people were after it. Otem glanced at his wrist watch. Well, anyway, you should be getting to bed. We’re going to visit your mother’s grave tomorrow. Otem got up from the table.

Okay. Do you need help with the dishes?

No, I’m fine.

Kwon got up from the table as