There was an odd silence after Aaron described his last moments with his son. He stared out the window of the diner, with a dozen straws pulled from the dispenser on the table and twisted and mangled beyond use in front of him. He wiped his eyes, and then turned to face me.
"The rest is history. We filed a Missing Person report to the police, knowing full well there was no way they could help us. Teachers and fellow students offered their condolences. My wife left and moved in with her mother and sister in Manila. And I, I still have the Gateway running. Listening."
I composed myself, and pressed for a few last questions. "You did get some messages from your son – what is he doing now?"
"Now?" Aaron takes in a deep breath. "I don't know. Dr. Sargath had built a scaled-down version of the Gateway so he could communicate with me. They sent two Morse-code transmissions: the first was of the information I just told you. The second was that it may be some time before there is a third. He's decided to take on the Brotherhood of the Good Book, and has joined a resistance movement co-founded by Dr. Sargath. He's... he's trying to save Rann from tyranny, it seems."
I take a moment to consider that, then decide I'll think more heavily on that later. "I'm sorry about your wife divorcing you over this. I don't believe it was your fault."
Aaron reanimates a bit in his reply. "No, to the contrary – I encouraged her to go. This whole thing was just too much for her. She had no animosity to me, to Alanna or Dr. Sargath, or to Adam. She was very proud of Adam, in fact. But the trauma of dealing with his loss, and the uncertainty of his fate, took its toll on her heart. What she needs is some time away, and quite frankly so do I. Like with my son, I am... listening... and waiting... for a signal."
It was past 2:00 PM, three hours since we first met, and the world seemed completely changed. The Gateway, Alanna & Dr. Sargath, Rann... it was a lot to swallow. As I was packing to go, I asked one last question – the question I really wanted to ask all this time: "Aaron, why did you want to tell *me* of all people this story?"
Aaron smiled. "Two reasons: first, I needed the council of an old friend. Someone who knows me too well to write me off as a crackpot. And second, I don't want this story to die with me. Use it – write it – whatever you want to do with it. It's yours; you have the rights, the patents, or whatever you need to do anything you please with it. Just don't let it die... because if it does, then it is like my son died for nothing in this world. Earth. His... his home."
I couldn't look at Aaron's face anymore. I hated to see him cry, and it looks like Aaron can't stop it from happening any longer. Telling that story must have been taxing, so I paid the bill and the tip, gave him my most sincerest goodbye, and rushed out to return my car rental and catch my flight home.
As I pulled out of the parking lot, I could still see Aaron staring out of the diner window. It was surreal to think that he could be staring at his son at this very moment – so close, yet so far apart. As I contemplated my options, my imagination began to wonder over that last image of Aaron and what might have been on his mind...
Adam Strange, cloaked, was staring into an alleyway, wondering if his parents were walking down that very way back on Earth. So close, he wondered, yet so far.
Alanna, also cloaked, but carrying a rifle, puts a gentle hand on Adam's shoulder. She can see how much he misses them – how much his mind still lives on Earth with his friends and family. She still feels guilty that Adam chose to stay for her, but they both know that she could never survive on Earth as anything more than a freak and an invalid. Here, on Rann, Adam Strange is a superhero.
They are soon met by an elderly man carrying a large satchel. They exchange some greetings, and the elderly man introduces them to the contents of his container: an old book.
"This is it, my young ones," the old man says to Adam and Alanna. "The last copy outside of the sacred halls of the Brotherhood of the Good Book. This book contains a first-hand account of the Rann-Thanagar War by one of the great Disciples. Many consider it apocryphal, but it may hold some of the answers you are seeking: answers about who the Thanagarians were, and where you may find a way to get to Thanagar."
Alanna takes the hands of the old scholar into hers, and she smiles. "Thank you – you don't know how much this means to us."
The old scholar blushes at the boldness of modern youth, but smiles back. "Well, it's about time the truth be told about what happened back then. About how the Brotherhood came to power, and at what cost-"
The old scholar's words are quickly drowned out by the roar of jetpacks. Within moments, the three of them are surrounded by Brothers of the Good Book. As Alanna and Adam brace for an attack, the Brothers brandish their rifles, with one of them holding up his hand for a pause. It is the same Brother that Alanna and Adam met back in the police station the first night Adam was on Rann, but with a prosthesis for a left hand from his first encounter with them and Adam's amazing but dirty knife.
"It's been a long time, Adam Strange. I knew you were the one trying to find the Lost Book – once I learned of its whereabouts, it was just a matter of time before you'd let your guard down to get it." Gesturing with a fake hand, the inquisitor motions for his fellow Brothers to arrest all three of them. "Please, don't resist arrest again – I made sure to have backup with me this time. You are outnumbered two to one – not even the great Adam Strange could take on those odds. I assure you you'll be given a fair and public trial for your crimes."
Adam Strange removes his signature bandana-sunglasses, and shakes his head in disagreement – a gesture the people of Rann were unsure of. "You still underestimate me. Back on my homeworld, I had a nickname: Keahi – 'The Fire'." With a smooth and practiced move, Adam produced a staff with soft ends, and with a simple press of a button the ends burst into flame. The Brothers all backed up and shielded their eyes as Adam began to spin the staff and move towards them.
The old scholar moved behind Alanna, who brought her rifle to bear against the mob of Brothers around her. She could see this was going to be a desperate fight, and maybe their last. But, so long as Adam is by her side, she will do everything she can to help the people of Rann to finally be rid of the oppression of the Brotherhood of the Good Book.
Wherever their adventures take them, Alanna and Adam Strange will face them, together.
To the End.