Max Arena Read online

‘Yeah, seems like it.’

  ‘You know that’s a hell of a nice thing Abdullah did, giving you those blokes to keep your family safe. He didn’t have to.’

  ‘It’s business for him,’ Kris shot back. ‘He even said it himself. He needs me to not be worried about other stuff, so I can stay focused on Max’s training. That’s all.’

  Elsa carefully regarded her friend. ‘Maybe, but a less nice person wouldn’t have cared at all. I think he’s genuinely a good bloke and here to help.’

  Kris looked away.

  ‘Okay, let’s drop it,’ Elsa added, ‘but be warned, I’m a serial nagger for helping people get through issues. You can’t hide from me for long.’

  Kris looked up and finally smiled, nodding. ‘I can see that.’

  Elsa gave Kris a shrewd look and then jumped down from the crate. Turning to start walking out, she called out, ‘Don’t be late for dinner tonight. Max is spilling the beans on everything and I know you’ll want to hear it straight up.’

  Kris’ face perked up and she got to her feet. ‘You mean…’

  ‘Everything!’ Elsa called back.

  Kris froze, her mind already doing cartwheels on what she might learn tonight.

  Elsa reached the top of the ramp and stopped. Turning back she looked at Kris, her eyes soft. ‘I meant what I said the other day,’ she added. Kris looked back up at her. ‘I’m here for you and when the time comes, I’m going to need you too. Abdullah’s a good man and I think you agree with me. Time could be real short, Kris. Don’t waste it being afraid and angry.’

  Kris dropped her gaze from Elsa’s, her instant excitement melting completely away. Silence suddenly gripped her. Elsa kept her gaze on Kris, wordlessly pleading for her friend to acknowledge the pain she was feeling. The silence grew thin and tense.

  ‘I’ll see you tonight,’ Elsa finally said and turned down the ramp and out onto the lawn. Inside the trailer, Kris remained transfixed. Physically, she was standing alone with no one else in the trailer, but in her mind, she was utterly alone with no other soul on earth. Deep inside Kris’ head, the buzzing had kicked into action and she could feel her finger tips trembling. Suddenly, it became very, very dark inside the confines of the trailer and her knees started to shake.

  9pm, 12th July (later that night). The Truth

  Max stood in front of the high-mantled, stone fireplace and cast his gaze around the expansive living room. The broad, plush room had enough space and comfort to accommodate at least twenty people or more. However, tonight there were only five and he held centre stage.

  Then Peter walked in through the main door to make it six. Pulling the door closed behind him, Peter locked it and pocketed the key in his jeans. Turning to Max, he said, ‘The room’s secure.’

  Max nodded and Peter moved a little further into the room, standing at ease with all of the room’s occupants in front of him, squarely in his forward field of vision. Instinctively, Peter’s eyes flicked from window to window.

  Meanwhile, all other eyes in the room locked onto Max. One by one, he scanned the faces of everyone present. Elsa sat at one end of the central couch, her eyes bright and perky, letting him know she was there to support him if needed. Max winked at her.

  Then to Kris at the other end of the couch, who was anything but perky. Since their morning training session, her mood had turned very gloomy and now she sat scrunched into the corner of the vast, leather upholstery, her feet pulled up and her eyes sunken. Something had happened and Max immediately felt an unbidden emotion rise within himself. Compassion and it was strange because he had never felt it before for anyone other than Elsa or their children.

  Acknowledging the new sensation, Max stored it away and slid his gaze sideways to where Sheikh Abdullah sat in a separate armchair, his robes elegantly draped all around. In the uneven, slightly hooded light of the room, his pristine white attire radiated a gentle glow, making him appear preternatural. The aura suited him. Despite the good vibes Max was getting from the man, Abdullah remained mysterious. Seemingly trustworthy, but mysterious nonetheless.

  Then, rotating his head back the other way, Max found Joe standing not far from him, leaning against the edge of the fireplace mantle. In Joe’s mouth was a pipe, unlit, but perched between his lips just like he was puffing away on it. The pipe looked right at home on him and if this had been anywhere else in a normal world, Joe could have been anyone’s grandfather, older, wiser and more care free, but this was not a normal world and Max knew Joe was far from care free.

  ‘The floor is yours’, Max,’ Joe said, removing his pipe for a moment.

  Max nodded and stole a few extra moments to convince himself his first words were the right ones.

  ‘Okay,’ he started. ‘I promised you all the truth and that’s exactly what you’re going to get, from start to finish. Unfortunately, I’m no Abdullah or Joe when it comes to telling stories, so if you’re looking for clever words or turns of phrase for effect, get ready to be disappointed, but be rest assured that what I’m about to tell you is true. Absolutely true. It might get weird and over the top, but every word is real. I don’t tell lies. I never have and I’m not about to start.’

  Max paused and silent expectation flowed back at him.

  ‘Good,’ Max continued. ‘Now fortunately, I don’t have to start by convincing you that aliens exist. Macktidas has done that for me, so that’s one bullet dodged, but now I do have to give you the second big punch line. I’m half alien too.’

  Max paused again as he rescanned all the faces in the room. To everyone’s credit, no one blinked or budged. No one even uttered a sound. It was as though he had just spoken the most mundane comment in the world.

  ‘Well,’ Max added, ‘that went down a lot easier than I figured it would.’

  ‘To be fair to you, Max,’ Joe said quietly, ‘the possibility of you having extra terrestrial genetics is a notion we have all entertained quite strongly since this affair began. Let’s consider the facts. You are being hunted by an alien warlord and your physical prowess is to be perfectly blunt, superhuman. However, despite our growing suspicions of your heritage, thank you for sharing it openly. Now, please, go on when you are ready?’

  Max nodded and looked down at the ground as he realised his naivety. He would not underestimate his new friends again. He then flicked his gaze up to Elsa who nodded back at him, urging him to continue. That was all he needed.

  ‘Okay, moving along then,’ Max continued. ‘Let’s start with some facts. I don’t know who my father is, but he was human. It was my mother who was the alien. She was Nar'gellan to be exact and it’s the Nar'gellans that are threatening to wipe us out. That big ugly one we all saw on the TV two weeks ago, that’s Macktidas and he’s the king or ruler or general or whatever he calls himself, but he’s in charge and he wants me.’

  ‘Why?’ Kris asked suddenly, instantly dragging all eyes in the room onto her sullen face.

  Max paused in response, not because he was unsure of how to answer, but now as Kris looked directly back at him, he saw full on the darkening shadows around her eyes, evidencing the deep depths of her internal pain. Something was torturing Kris and it wounded Max to see it, but this was not the time or the place to deal with it. Instead, Max quelled his concerns and vowed to make amends as soon as the spotlight shifted from himself.

  ‘Because I’m the last link to the previous royal family that Macktidas murdered to gain control of the Nar’gellan race,’ Max replied. ‘While I’m alive, Macktidas can’t claim full leadership.’

  ‘So, not only are you half alien, but you’re also some sort of alien prince or something?’ Kris pushed.

  ‘Yes,’ Max said directly. ‘My mother was the queen and her partner was the king. They had three offspring. Two males and a female, but Macktidas killed them all to gain the throne. Everyone except my mother’

  ‘And I assume she survived by escaping to Earth?’ Joe asked.

  ‘Yes,’ Max answered, turning his gaze to him. ‘She r
an hard and fast and came here, knowing she needed to give birth to a new heir to keep the blood line alive. If she died without another child, Macktidas would become the undisputed ruler of the Nar'gellans and nothing could stop him from unleashing death on countless innocent races across the universe.’

  ‘Why?’ Kris asked. ‘Why does he want to just kill everyone?’

  This time Max paused to consider what to say next.

  ‘I will tell you what I know,’ he answered, ‘and by that I mean I will tell you everything that my mother told me, but I don’t have all the details, so I’ll do the best I can.’

  Kris nodded.

  ‘A long time ago, the Nar'gellans were enslaved and after many generations, they fought their way out of captivity to gain existence in their own right. Their fight from slavery was credited to one family and that family’s blood line has remained intact and on the throne until my family was murdered. Over the centuries, the Nar'gellan race prospered, mainly as a military force for hire helping other enslaved and captive races gain freedom. It all sounds very noble and all, but considering what I knew of my mother and her nature, I believe it. She was as noble a creature as you’ll ever find. Anyway, the Nar’gellans were happy doing what they did, but Macktidas is a war monger and he knew that the Nar'gellan species had evolved to be a fighting force in the universe and that if he usurped power, nothing would stand in his way for ultimate power. You’ve all seen the videos of his foot soldiers attacking me, so I guess you can imagine what a whole army of millions of them would be like? ’

  ‘If they’re anything like you,’ Joe said, ‘then yes, my imagination can easily conjure up an all conquering race.’

  A few nods around the room added support to Joe’s words.

  ‘From what my mother told me,’ Max continued, ‘Macktidas’ only desire in life is to fight, kill and dominate everything and now that he’s got a whole race of elite warriors at his bidding, he can waltz around the universe doing exactly that, plundering as he goes. God knows how many beings and entire races he’s killed off in the thirty plus years he’s been in charge and now he’s lining up humanity as his next target.’

  Joe took his pipe from his mouth and spoke again. ‘Max, you speak of your parents in past tense,’ he said, ‘and there is certainly no trace of either your mother or father in the civil records, so…’

  ‘Where are they?’ Max interrupted.

  ‘Yes,’ Joe replied carefully. ‘Where are they?’

  Max mused for a moment as his mother’s face filled his mind. It had been several years since he had seen her.

  ‘She’s gone,’ Max finally said as he shifted his gaze from space back to the Prime Minister’s face, ‘and probably dead. She up and left me five years ago and I haven’t seen or heard from her since.’

  ‘Why do you think she has passed away?’

  ‘She told me when she left that Macktidas was getting closer and she had to take his attention away from me, so she took off, hoping to distract Macktidas. Now that he’s found me, I figure Macktidas found her first, got my location out of her and probably killed her as soon as he could. I couldn’t imagine Macktidas being merciful.’

  Joe nodded and placed his pipe back between his teeth. ‘And your father?’ Joe asked.

  ‘No idea,’ Max shot straight back as he looked down at his feet. ‘Never met him and my mother never spoke of him either, except to say that she was thankful for all he had given her and that I would never know him.’

  ‘Why?’ Kris asked. ‘Why couldn’t you ever meet him? Did your mother and him break up?’

  ‘No. They were never together,’ Max said, looking up to Kris. ‘When my mother escaped from Macktidas, she came to Earth in Nar’gellan form knowing she had to find a mate and bear a child, but in her alien form, that was never going to work out. So, how she did it, I don’t really know, but she changed her appearance to look human. I think she had some sort of biogenetic drug that transformed her somehow on the outside, but inside she was still all Nar’gellan. Like I said, I don’t really know how she did it, but she did and she landed a mate as well. My father and then she left him. Straight away. She got what she needed and was always thankful for it, but she didn’t need him and as it turns out, I didn’t either.’

  ‘That explains a good many things about our situation,’ Joe said as he removed his pipe from his mouth and inspected the polished wooden surface, rubbing the bowl with his thumb. ‘Your story is indeed truly remarkable and I thank you for sharing it with us. However, if you will allow me to strike off on a tangent for a moment, may I ask a question regarding the duels?’

  Max nodded once and Joe returned the gesture.

  ‘If Macktidas wants to assure undisputed claim to the throne, then I imagine he will want to kill you with his bare hands? Is that a fair assumption?’

  Max nodded.

  Joe paused and slowly spun his pipe in his hand as he pondered. ‘That being the case, why then has Macktidas demanded three bouts? Which bout would he enter because if he enters the first and loses, why conduct the remaining bouts and then on the other hand, if Macktidas waits till either the second or third bouts, he runs the risk of you being killed by someone or something else before he gets the chance, which would defeat his purpose of killing you himself. The logic escapes me.’

  ‘This is really only a guess, Joe,’ Max replied, ‘but I expect Macktidas to save himself for the third bout because that’s how I would do it. He’ll probably watch the first two bouts to identify my strengths and weaknesses and then exploit them in the third bout. Macktidas also knows I’m half Nar'gellan and I doubt he’ll underestimate me because of that fact alone. After all, he did see me beat up a lot of his lackeys, so he knows I’ve got some skills. He’ll probably also place opponents in the first two bouts with different skill sets to make sure he gets a rounded look at what I’m capable of and ensure he doesn’t miss anything for when it’s his turn to come at me.’

  ‘Those are interesting assumptions,’ Joe returned, ‘and you seem sure of yourself in making them. Without being disrespectful, why so assertive?’

  ‘Like I said, that’s how I would do it.’

  Joe nodded slowly, falling quiet as he carefully replaced his pipe between his lips.

  ‘And if you do win,’ Kris started, ‘and Macktidas is dead, do you really think his aliens will leave us alone?’

  ‘Yes,’ Max replied quickly and firmly. ‘My mother taught me that a Nar’gellan’s word is unbreakable. They may love to fight, but if nothing else, they’re honourable, and that means Macktidas too. If a Nar’gellan makes a promise or a pact, it’s a locked in deal, so do I think they will leave us alone if I win? Yes. Absolutely.’

  ‘Again, if you do win,’ Joe asked, his piercing eyes squinting, ‘do you imagine that opens the door for you to reclaim the Nar'gellan throne for your bloodline? Would you become king?’

  ‘I doubt it. I can’t imagine the Nar’gellans want a half-breed on the throne, but then again, it doesn’t matter. I don’t want it. My family is here and I’m not going anywhere,’ Max said, looking to Elsa who smiled in return.

  Silence settled in the room. Max waited for more questions. The distant chop-chop of a helicopter sounded through the thick glass of the windows and French doors. The silence grew.

  ‘Well, that’s the whole story,’ Max finally said. ‘It’s not a lot of words, but it is the story of my life. It’s why I’m here and what my destiny is and for what it’s worth, I’m sorry you’ve all been dragged into this. If I could do this my way, I’d tell Macktidas there’s only one duel. Me and him and the winner gets to stay alive and leave everyone else and everything else out of it. None of you deserve to be part of this. This whole thing is personal and that’s how it should have stayed.’

  ‘Yeah, well, it didn’t turn out that way did it?’ Kris said evenly without raising her gaze from the ground.

  This time silence smothered the room. Elsa bowed her head and fidgeted her fingers in her l
ap. Joe flicked a glance across the room to Abdullah, who snapped his own hazel eyes up towards his before latching them onto Kris’. At the back of the couch, Peter took a single step forward to where Kris sat, his own eyes lasered onto the back of Kris’ head. Max broke the pause.

  ‘No, it did not turn out that way, Kris,’ he started, ‘and like I said, if…’

  ‘There’s no “ifs”, Max,’ Kris shot back, her tone notching up and her face coming back up to look squarely at him. ‘There’s only now and there’s only reality and we have to deal with it.’

  Silence again. Peter took another step forwards and looked up to Max, who shook his head once, short and sharp. Peter nodded and settled in place. Max spoke again.

  ‘What exactly do you mean by that, Kris?’ he asked.

  ‘It means, I could sit here and whinge that we're all going to die because of you, couldn't I? I could blame you and your alien family for all this and that my family is in danger because of you. That would be easy and then we can all get angry that the rest of us don't deserve this mess and that you should just run off and sort this thing out yourself and let the rest of us live in peace. We could all do that couldn’t we and that would be fair, except it isn’t fair, is it?’

  Another pause.

  Max gently pushed on. ‘If that's not fair, Kris, then what is?’ he asked carefully.

  'None of this. None of this is fair. It's all about as unfair as it gets,' Kris grated out, her face crunching even more tightly into a frown as she shook her head, her blonde hair flailing about. 'The reality is that none of this is your fault. It’s not anybody’s fault and we've got to stop looking for someone to blame. I've got to stop looking for someone to blame.'

  At these last words, Elsa's head lifted and she slowly turned her gaze sideways to look at her new friend on the opposite end of the couch. Kris was now hunched right over, her arms folded firm against her chest and her knees up hard, her eyes shut tight as angst ratcheted across her face. Elsa looked up to Max and found him looking right back at her. He sharply shook his head, suggesting she not slide across to comfort Kris yet. This had to play out.