Chapter Twenty-Four: Epilogue
May 14, 2016. Former BAINE Headquarters.
In the wake of the attack by the Children of Homeworld, BAINE had had a hard time recuperating from the damages. Not only had much damage been done to the facility itself, but one glaring weakness in their defenses had now been realized: their enemies now knew where the headquarters was. And even though they had survived this attack, the Children of Homeworld were still out there. Not to mention, Mr. Echo was unaccounted for.
Director Mills had survived his fall. Thanks to being quickly taken to the infirmary to be treated, his injuries were not fatal. However, he had landed on his back, causing immense damage to his spine. From the waist down, he was completely paralyzed.
Mills had always been a fighter. Despite his near-fatal fall, critical nerve damage, and being unconscious for over a day on top of that, he still insisted on returning to his position as normal, despite the urgings of his caregivers.
"In times like these, we need all capable hands at their station," he had told them. "And though my legs may be failing me, I assure you, these hands are still quite capable."
Despite the pain doing so caused him, Mills was adamant that he give an address to the soldiers of BAINE. The way he saw it, he was still alive, and therefore, acting leader of this branch of the organization. His condition aside, he felt he still had a duty to all the agents working for him. It took some convincing, but his doctors eventually agreed to let him give a speech.
The soldiers and workers all gathered in the central pavilion, Mills was wheeled onto the raised platform at the room's front. Many, if not all, of the people were surprised to see him recovered so soon. Mostly, though, people were just relieved that he was alright, James most of all. The Director began to speak:
"I understand that there have been some rumors going around regarding myself," he said. "Rumors that I tragically lost my life in the battle against the Children. I come here today to tell you that these rumors...are absolutely true. As you can see, I am no longer with us." Light laughter among the audience. "All joking aside, we have recently been through quite an ordeal. This was not an easy battle. But, despite the hardship, we managed to pull through once again! And I have each and every one of you to thank for that! We never could have pulled through without the bravery, tenacity, and loyalty shown by every single man and woman present here today!
I know many of you are exhausted. I myself am quite fatigued. But as much as I'm certain we all would like to rest, we still have work to do. As I am sure many of you are aware, we are no longer safe now that the Children of Homeworld know our location. Although we won this most recent battle, we may not be so lucky should another like it come to our doorstep in the future. I believe we have only one choice: we must relocate. Move the base somewhere free from those who would seek to destroy us. We have no idea what the Children of Homeworld could be planning, nor what other enemies might benefit from their knowledge.
We will take a day or so to select a location to form our new base, but until then, prepare yourselves. The Cluster may have been halted, but we now know that Homeworld has renewed interest in our planet. It is not only our fellow humans we must be wary of. We must be prepared in the event that Homeworld, or some other great threat, decides to make itself known. But, knowing all of you, I am confident that no matter what comes our way, we will fight to the last to defend our home from those who would attempt to take it from us."
Deep underground, in the lowest levels of the soon-to-be abandoned BAINE headquarters, two figures walked down a dimly-lit hallway. Daniel strolled with purpose, while Gina examined the information on a tablet she held, relaying it to her former Captain.
"So, we did a little digging on this guy," she said. "Apparently, his name is Aster White. He inherited control of the Children of Homeworld from his father, who inherited it from his mother, and so on and so forth. It's apparently been going on like this for several generations."
"'Aster White', huh?" Daniel mused. "Seems like he was really born into this life."
"Literally," said Gina. "Also, his parents are named Nova and Proxima White, so I can't help but think someone changed their name somewhere along the line…"
At the end of the hallway was a set of double doors, which the two of them were let into by a guard. Inside this room was none other than the Radiant One himself, contained behind a glass barrier. His multicolored robes had been swapped out for a black jumpsuit. As soon as the agents walked into the room, he made his displeasure clear by glaring up at them.
Daniel approached the glass. "Mr. White?" he said. "Or do you prefer to go by Aster?"
"I prefer to go by the Radiant One," the prisoner replied. "My rightful title."
"Right, right. Anyways, I was wondering if you would be willing to answer a few questions."
Aster looked around at his surroundings. "I feel like I have no choice."
"I'll take that as a yes," said Daniel. "Now, from our research, we were able to find that you aren't alone in leading the Children. You have help from the four Archons. Could you tell us a bit more about them?"
"I would be happy to," said Aster, much to Daniel and Gina's surprise. "I may lead the Children, but my Archons lead the people. With their help, I am able to control the people of this world socially, economically, politically, and martially. Each one of them is a figure of quite high stature, I can assure you."
"I see," said Daniel. "And what about Mr. Echo? What can you tell us about him? Do you happen to know where he is now?"
"We did not keep tabs on Mr. Echo," he replied. "Although he was our ally, we were long aware that he worked outside of our order, as a non-believer. Mr. Echo was merely an opportunist, looking to gain something through our efforts. But, as we also had something to gain from the partnership, we went along with it regardless."
Gine stepped forward. "And can you tell us where the 'Sanctum Adamantum' is located?" she asked.
"This, alas, I cannot do," he said. "The Sanctum Adamantum is the most sacred site to our order. To reveal its location to an outsider is tantamount to heresy. To willingly give away such information would surely bring down the Diamonds' wrath."
"Hate to break it to you, buddy, but the Diamonds aren't bringing much of anything," said Daniel. "The Crystal Gems put the kibosh on the Cluster. And as for your order...well, look where being pious got you."
Aster laughed, standing up. "I truly pity non-believers such as yourself. How must it feel to be so blind to the true nature of this universe? To be truly ignorant of the blessings we have been given, and to squander them when given the chance. You, and your Crystal Gem allies, stand in the way of true salvation."
"Again with this preachy stuff!" said Daniel. "You know, pal, if the Diamonds cared about us so much, maybe they wouldn't have planted a doomsday device in the middle of our planet!"
"But of course the Diamonds don't care about us," Aster replied. "We are but lowly organics. But this is the very reason why we must worship them! We must gain their favor if we are to be saved from the darkness of a cold, uncaring universe."
"Riiight. Well, I think we'll take our chances with the Crystal Gems anyway," Daniel said. "But, it was good talking to you. Don't get too comfortable in there, we're moving in a few days."
"You truly know nothing," Aster said as Daniel and Gina turned to leave. "Gemkind is the sole beacon of light in this universe! There are dark terrors out there, Captain, and without the Diamonds' protection, they will eat us alive! You must repent!" The doors closed behind them, shutting out Aster's mad rambling.
The Sanctum Adamantum.
"The attack has failed," said the yellow Archon. "We have yet to hear from the Radiant One. Mr. Echo has disappeared. BAINE has won, and the Cluster has been disabled. It's over."
All four of the Archons sat around the table, the shock of the Children's defeat still fresh in their minds. WIthout the Radiant One to guide them, they were at a loss as to how to proceed.
"That settles it," said the white Archon. "We must choose a new Radiant One."
"And I am somehow the one who doubts him?" said the blue Archon. "Until we are absolutely certain that he has died, Aster White will remain the Radiant One!"
"And without the guidance of a Radiant One, how do you propose we proceed?" asked the white Archon. When the blue Archon was unable to answer, he nodded. "Indeed."
"All we can do now is go back into hiding," said the yellow Archon. "This may have been a defeat, but I assure you, it is a temporary one. Once the Diamonds return for real-which I have faith that they will-we will reunite. But until then, we will have to lay low."
"Very well," said the blue Archon. All four of them stood up. Gentlemen...I look forward to our next meeting.
The four of them bowed to one another, before going their separate ways. The pink Archon, who had been quiet for the whole meeting, paid special attention to make sure he was alone. Only when he was absolutely certain that nobody else was present in the room did he make his next move.
He brought his hand up to his ear, activating some kind of earpiece. "This is Agent Janus reporting to Xevel High Command," he said in a hushed voice. "The Cluster has been...postponed. It's now or never…"