Hey people
I got this inspiration from a book called "Skyship Academy," Nick James
I obviously changed a few things but I really enjoyed this story and enjoyed writing this.
As always thanks for reading...
A.D May XX
Changing Fate
Dein felt the
phone in his pocket vibrate, and a wall of panic hit him.
‘Jesse? What’s Wrong?’ he answered.
‘They’ve found me.’ Those four words made
Dein’s legs feel week, those four words were the reason he had fought so hard
to keep his brother at his side. He was already outdoors drenched in sweat from
the desert heat, when he began to run towards the controls, which would release
the Jet from underground. He knew that the others could not protect his
brother, he should have never agreed to leave him. Dein’s breath caught in his
throat as the thought about losing the only family he had left, and despite the
desert heat he felt cold.
‘Jesse, I’m coming. I promise I’m coming,’
he almost yelled. Panic was making him falter and Dein didn’t want to show his
brother how terrified he truly was. Dein started up the Na ST4, the aircraft he
had been granted from the military, and prayed it would be fast enough.
“I don’t know how long I can keep the
shield up,” came Jesse’s desperate voice from the phone that was placed precautions
on Dein’s lap.
“You can do it bud, just keep it up long
enough for me to come and help.” They should never be apart, how many times had
the two brothers been drilled that together they were stronger. One brother to
create the other to destroy; Dein was born to protect his brother that was his
function on this planet and it looked as though he had failed.
Jesse hadn’t
wanted to call his brother. He wanted to let Dein have a few months peace
without having to worry about his sibling. Yet when the red alarm had started
blaring at quarter past five in the morning, Jesse knew he was out of his
depth. He didn’t understand how they had found him so easily. The four of them,
Hale, Eve, Trent and himself where always careful, Dein had given painfully
clear instructions that if any harm came to Jesse they wouldn’t hear the end of
it. The military, what was left of them, had been protecting the two of
brothers from the Hydron Party for two years now, as they were Earth’s only
hope.
Earth had been on the path of destruction
for centuries when it finally happened. It wasn’t a slow process like all the
scientists had planned. No, the earth was hit by the Scarlet bombings. These
bombs destroyed most of the worlds population in seconds, leaving chaos and
death in their wake. Three decades later a planet that had once been green and
full of life, was now barley livable. The planet had been submerged in desert,
when the ozone layer had been destroyed. The only hope for salvation were two
orphan brothers who held the power to destroy the ones that believed the human
race had little to offer. With the papers splashed with death everyday, this
party believed that it was necessary to destroy the planet and start again with
the Hydron Party in command. They started a war that would leave the world
destroyed and unable to rebuild itself. They saw themselves as the beacon of
hope for humanity, as when the smoke cleared they would rebuild the world in
their own vision. The new age of Adam.
Jesse had been
best friends with Hale, Eve and Trent long before he had been re-united with
his brother all those years ago. They had stuck together, while the world burn
around them. Jesse had been too young to have been able to protect the people
he watched fall, but that did not stop the nightmares coming to haunt him at
night. The five of them had taken refuge with the military underground, in a base
that had been built around the same time of the Scarlet Bombings. We are the
only resistance left, most of humanity has fallen, the world has been taken
over by the Hydron party, and only small pockets of the resistance remain.
Jesse, as he sprinted down the metal
pavement in their unground home, could hear the Hydron soldiers trying to break
through his barrier. Every thump to the shield sent shivers up and down his
arms and spine. Jesse and Dein had become the slither of hope for the
resistance, they were the only chance left to turn the tables around. Therefore
as Jesse went to climb up the rigs, which would lead him to the chaos outside,
he was caught around the waist by their Captain, and flung over his shoulder.
“Jake put me down! I need to help them, I
don’t know -”
“Your brother gave me clear instructions,
Jesse, protect you at all costs. And letting you run into a battle with no
armor, is not likely for me to win any favors. Your friends are fine, they’re
in the panic room, which is exactly where you will be joining them. I need you
there -”
“Jake please, the barrier is going to
break. I can’t hold on for much longer. Without me you will fall-”
“Exactly, that is precisely why you are
going to stay underground where Ian and Jerard can keep an eye on you. Then you
will be –”
If
Jesse was being honest with himself he would not say the next moment was one of
his finest. He had always admired Jake, and with no father figure Jake had
stepped up and filled the role for both him and Dein. So when he used a
technique that their captain had taught him only a few days ago to get Jake on
the floor in a fetal position, he did not dwell on it long. Sprinting for the
rig again Jesse hauled himself to the surface. What he saw next made him catch
his breath. Thousands of Hydron worriers wearing the solid black uniforms that
defined them, stretched for miles around their fortress. Their guns pointing at
the transparent bubble that Jesse was struggling to keep up. He stood tall, the
only man surrounded by many. Suddenly an order was given to start shooting,
Jesse fell to his knees, as the bubble struggled to keep its shape.
He
wasn’t strong enough.
The thought made him stagger, he wouldn’t
be able to protect his family. And Yet Jesse knew that he would do everything
in his power to give them a few precious seconds to escape. He raised himself
to his feet, and lifted his palms to the sky pouring as much power into the
shield that he could muster. He felt it pour somewhere from deep within his
stomach, but it wasn’t an endless flow, he only had so much reserved without
his brother by his side. And as the guns kept firing the last of the power
seemed to ebaway. A loud crack, made Jesse look up, a fisher spiraled from the
top of the dome snaking its way to the bottom. It hurt, like his own flesh was
being cut to pieces. And then when
finally the fisher hit the dusty ground, the dome shattered. Pain burst through
Jesse, red hot pain filled him, twisting its way through his blood stream. He
heard someone screaming, someone saying his name over and over; but darkness
held her arms open for him, wanting him to fall into oblivion. Jesse was tired,
tired of being constantly afraid, tired of having to fight back, fight a force
that kept growing. The thought of oblivion’s comforting arms, made Jesse forget
about the world around him, he easily welcomed the comforting embrace of
darkness.
Jesse was not
welcomed by the oblivion he desired, no, colors and noise surrounded him, ass
he opened his eyes. He was no longer in the desert, but in a beautiful ornate
living room surrounded by many finely dressed people. He knew that no building
like this had survived the onslaught of time and suffering, this was no place
in his world. Huge windows surrounded the room and Jesse found his feet taking
him to one. He placed both hands slowly on the glass as he looked down to the
city bellow. It was bustling with people and life, as they went about their
daily routine, unafraid. Jesse stood there stunned, it was exactly how he had
imaged the world to look before the bombings. He could not look away, he didn’t
understand why everything looked so…normal? Someone laughed loudly, pulling him
back to the decorative silver and gold hall that was teaming with people and
music. He noticed a fire blazing in a hearth that took up most of the back
wall, it crackled and popped merrily accompanying the sound of laughter,
chatter and clinking of glasses. The room was filled with a warm inviting
atmosphere, unlike anything Jesse had ever experienced. And yet he felt
unsettled as though something was missing, but the room was filled with people
he cared about. He could see Hale, dressed in a pale blue floor-length gown. He
smiled to himself as he remembered an argument that they had once shared when
they were younger.
‘How do girls ever run if their wearing
skirts and dresses that long?’ she had asked, while looking at an ancient
magazines that they had found in a pile of rubbish. ‘I don’t ever want to wear
a dress,’ she had declared, before throwing the magazine to the floor. She
looked beautiful now, Jesse thought, as she giggled into her glass of
Champaign. Tent was wearing a black dinner jacket, and looked a lot older and
healthier than the last time Jesse had seen his best friend. He stood next to a
women who Jesse didn’t recognise, she had golden hair sweeping down her back.
She suddenly turned to look over her shoulder at him, smiling, and Jesse
realized who Trent’s companion was. Eva had grown out her short, cropped,
matted hair and now looked gorgeous, in a royal purple gown that flouted around
her slender figure when she moved. Everyone was older, Jesse grasped, and he
turned around to study his own figure in the reflection from the glass windows.
He too was wearing a back dinner jacket, but his hung from his too skinny
frame. He was hunched in on himself as though a burden had never truly been
lifted, but what was worse was how people avoided looking at him directly in
the eye, and shifted their posture when he came near. Jesse studied his face grimacing at how haggard
he had become, with big bruised bags under his eyes and golden stubble, which
was in need of a shave. His eyes looked haunted as they stared back at him, Jesse
stumbled back away from his refection, horrified. What had happened? And why
did he feel as though something was missing from himself, as though a limb had
been removed? He studied the crowd that would not meet his eyes, and realized
that he could not see his brother.
He ventured into the room looking
everywhere for Dein, people parted ways when he came close, subtly, as though
they had time to practice the art, and then he heard the convocation. A man
with deep blue eyes and a soft spoken voice stood next to a women equally
beautiful with flaming red hair brought into a regal bun, as she gossiped about
the gathering.
‘We are going to Dein SkyRen’s service
tomorrow. Can you believe it will be eight years since his death?-’ the man
nodded looking around at the other couples in the room seeming uninterested.
The women continued ‘Do you remember
that day? People try to forget, Harry, but I still see the crumbling cities
when I close my eyes. We owe a lot to the SkyRen brothers, the world would not
have been restored without them.’
‘Shh now Hanna, don’t let the Team here you
speak of Dein,’ he said slowly.
‘I know, but don’t you think its time they
move on?’ she looked around anxiously and whispered, ‘Especially Jesse SkyRen?
Do you believe the legend that the brothers were linked? I heard that it was
destined for Dein to give his life for his brother, there was nothing anyone
could have done.’ Harry seemed not to be listening, as though he heard the
words too many times before. But Jesse shuffled closer trying to catch anything
this women would say. ‘Its so heroic, I knew Dein, not well of course but he
was in the line - ’ and then her eyes
met Jesse’s and she recoiled.
‘Jesse, I’m sorry-,’ but he didn’t stay to
listen to her rambling apology. He shoved past guest, the room didn’t feel
welcoming anymore, he had to get away. It was stifling, he felt as though he
would suffocate. His brother was dead. Dein was dead and it was all Jesse’s
fault. His brother had always been far too protective, but Jesse never truly
believed he would give his life for him. The battle was won, but he’d lost his
brother, he was alone. Jesse stumbled through the gold and silver double doors
and found himself in a silent corridor, lit only by the flickering light of
candles hanging in intervals down the long dark passageway. He stopped, and
slid down the wall until he was curled on the floor trying to contain the grief
at the news of his brothers death. He tried to breath through lungs that seemed
to constrict, as his sobs broke through the eerily silent corridor.
Then his head
exploded with pain, as images flashed through his mind. Both himself and Dein were
on top of a building in a place Jesse easily recognized as San Francisco, by
the faded red bridge that connected one side of the city to the other. The
place was covered in the desert sand that had engulfed the world long ago, and
from their advantage point Jesse could see that most of the buildings had collapsed.
The city was uncanny, as smog rolled below in the deserted streets creating
disconcerting shapes of the faces of the dead. The wind howled like a wailing
mother through the alleyways making Jesse’s hair on the back of his neck stand
on end.
‘There coming’ Dein whispered, ‘Get ready.’
Jesse tensed ready to fight, as the rhythmical
drumbeat of thousands of feet hitting concrete was heard.
The images
blurred and the scene shifted again. Jesse saw the team fighting an onslaught
of warriors that never seemed to end. The two brothers were still on top of the
building shooting into the fray below. Jesse’s arms ached and he moved
sluggishly to pull another arrow from his back, his brother looked over concern
written on his face, but Jesse shrugged and kept firing. That was when he
realized he was not in control of his actions, he was watching the fight, but
his limbs were moving beyond his control. Time seemed to speed up as more and
more worriers fell. But then everything changed as he watched Hale drop to her
knees, clutching her side in obvious pain. He instinctively went to go down the
building to help her, but strong arms wrapped tightly around his mid drift.
“Jesse no! Stay up here with me-’
‘Dein let go! Its Hale!’
‘I know, I know, but sometimes-’
‘No!’
Jesse made to leap down the fire exit, but
Dein caught him around the ankle, and he fell to the floor. Instantly Dein
pinned Jesse’s body down to the gravel holding him with his weight, tiny stones
dug into Jesse’s cheek, as he struggled to lift his older brother’s weight off
him. The boys struggled with one another fighting and grabbing at each others
clothing and hair.
‘Dein, you do not have to look after me.
Let. Go!’
‘You’re my brother, you’re my
responsibility.’
‘I was fine before you found me! And I’ll
be fine without you, I don’t need you Dein!’
He saw his brother visibly recoil, and open
his mouth to reply. Jesse wanted to apologies feeling guilt churning in his
stomach, to say of course he needed his brother, they were nothing without each
other. However before he could utter a word the sound of a helicraft made them
both pause. Dein, who still had Jesse pinned to the floor looked at the
helicopter, begging it to be Captain Jack. But as the Hydron Sign came into
view, Dein shoved his little brothers head to the floor, covering his body, as
the bullets were fired.
Jesse was covered in his brothers blood and
tears were streaming down his dirt encrusted face, leaving rivulets of water. He
sat hunched in on himself in the aircraft, trying to stay away from everyone’s
pitting stares and their comforting hands. He didn’t want to be comforted, all
he saw were his brothers lifeless eyes every time he closed his own. It was his
fault that Dein was dead and Jesse knew it should have been him. He was the one
who made the mistake to move from his position, how many times had Dein told
him that if you have orders, follow them.
The battle was won the others kept telling
him, but all Jesse heard was a faint ringing in his head, as he replayed the
last hour again in his mind. He wanted to escape, he needed to change the past,
he could not let his brother die.
He squeezed his eyes shut imaging his
brothers voice, ‘Jesse, Jesse wake up, Jesse I need you to open your eyes now.’
He didn’t want to, he didn’t want to see his brother’s limp body again.
‘Jesse please open your eyes.’ His brother implored,
sounding desperate. He didn’t want to upset his brother anymore, he’d
disappointed him enough. Therefore Jesse slowly prized his glued eyelids open,
and realised he was back in the present with Dein’s face anxiously bending over
him. He lay on a moldy sofa as he finally grasped why he had seen the images of
the future, he was supposed to change their roles. Some other force wanted
Jesse to protect his brother and he would comply willingly, he would never see
Dein’s lifeless form again.
