Luminescence

Thirty-eight.

"Everybody take off once soldiers stop filling in through the doorways," I announce through the earpiece. "And for the love of God, if anyone sees Wes take off immediately. We don't want anymore accidents. Wes is already the biggest accident we've got."

I take final steps towards the large ship, and watch the last few ships fill up and take off.

"STOP!" A voice booms from behind me, making me purse my lips. Of course, it had to be him. "Do you have any idea what you are doing?" Wes exclaims, as I turn around to see his beet red face, boiling in pure anger. I wanted to laugh at the sight, but I kept it to myself. "You're committing high acts of treason by taking my army away. The Rebels will never win under the command of a stupid girl!" He roars.

"Treason? On who's order?" I furrow my eyebrows at him. "The Rebels never stood a chance under your command, Wes. This is a new day for all of us, one finally free of your God awful rule. I hope you know how it feels now. To have everything stripped away from you, forced to follow someone else's destiny. Because that's how all of us felt under your command. Maybe in your next life, if you even have one, don't be a such sexist bitch. Suck my nonexistent dick, you piece of shit!" I shout to him, sashaying and being sure to flip him off as soon as I was in safe territory.

But before the ship door closes behind me, I pull out my holophone to snap a picture of Wes' face. And oh my God, was I going to show Mara this later. Wes' jaw was hung agape, as his face was so angry you could see blotches of purple beginning to emerge.

As our ship leaves the walls of the Rebel base one last time, a wave of relief washes over me knowing we were able to complete phase one. Suddenly, cheers spread across our crowded ship.

"Phase one of evacuating the base, complete." A voice rings over our earpieces simultaneously. "But keep your heads up soldiers, this is only the beginning. For phase two you will be meeting your fellow Rebel soldiers from other districts. You will be divided into groups based on your soldier division, or what combat you specialize in. Each group will be assigned a commander who will give strategies on the field. According to sources, mutant soldiers will be arriving shortly to aid in our attack. Be sure to thank them. For years they have lived under constant attack, and today they are fighting with us under one purpose—to defeat the Plague."

Our whole command cabin erupts into even louder cheers once the announcement ends, as hope flourishes through all of us. In that moment, I knew God was with us. And he would be for this entire battle.

________

MARA

My foot taps lightly against the metal floor of our airship, as Lucy looks back to me with concerned eyes. Hudson, who was once pilot shifts to autopilot giving Lucy command of the ship as he walks back towards my seated position.

I give him a small smile, but it came out as more of a lip seizure. To say I was nervous was an understatement, as the uneasy feeling from yesterday had began to haunt me again. But this time it was heightened—leading me to believe there will be some type of outcome I won't like.

Hudson sits down next to me, entwining his fingers with mine and resting his head on my shoulder. Only momentarily do I forget the nerves in my chest, as the bond between us heightens.

"Hudson," I whisper to him as I look to Ryan, who was too busy indulging in his music with his headphones in. "I'm scared—"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence, Mara," he interrupts sternly. He takes his head off my shoulder before looking straight at my eyes. "What on Earth could you possibly be afraid of?" He questions and begins listing the possible answers. "Guns? You can easily dodge their bullets or even create force fields! Big space ships? Just blast a beam of energy at them! Or, I will gladly pull them down for you with my levitation powers." Hudson smirks. "I mean, what can't Mara survive? Besides my unconditional love, of course," he preaches, before I elbow him in the chest making him groan in pain. "Jeez woman, you're making me nervous now! I don't know if I'll be able to survive your violence for the rest of my life," he claims.

And after his long speech, a laugh finally escapes from my lips. I was so grateful for him. He knew how to cheer me up in the darkest of times, and who knew he had a comedic side to him?!

"There's the girl I love," he whispers, smiling to me, as he places a small peck on my lips. "Now, are you ready to kick some evil ass today? Because I sure know I am." He smirks, cracking his knuckles.

"Hey," Ryan exclaims as soon as Hudson finishes his sentence. "Keep the PDA to a minimum, please? I'm trying to listen to some Beyoncé here!"

Ah, Beyoncé. She was a music goddess to people over a century ago, and still is today. Her music will forever be iconic, alongside Rihanna as well.

Hudson gives my hand one last squeeze before standing up and flipping Ryan off playfully and walking back to the cockpit.

Ryan rolls his eyes. "Can't you at least try to control your anger issues?" He exclaims to Hudson as we simultaneously laugh.

"Only Mara can ease it," Hudson shouts back to us from the captain chair. "You're the reason it gets hectic, loser!"

"Jeez," Connor says over our earpieces. "You guys are going to kill each other before you even reach the safe zone!" He exclaims making us all laugh. "Just giving you all a heads up. Your coordinates are set to land in Sector 50, just outside of Sector 51 where the Capitol is located. The armies are all under an invisible shield in an open field. There, you will meet up with them and learn your strategies."

"Wait..." I say, not sure if I heard him right. "Armies?"

Everyone pauses to look at me.

"Mara," Hudson says. "You were part of the Rebel alliance for well over a month, and you had no clue there were other Rebel bases in other sectors?"

My face turns beet red in embarrassment. But at the same time, my heart lifted in spirit. There were more than just the Rebels located in Sector 41 that were willing to fight a common enemy. Fighting the Plague suddenly didn't seem too bad.

"You guys will do amazing," Priscilla says cheerily through the speakers. "And Mara, be sure to say hi to Elaine for me. Remember your training, all of you. And most importantly, may your heart be your spiritual guide. If for some crazy reason you find yourself losing, don't give up. Fight like your life depends on it. Nobody on Earth knows how much I care for you all. I will see you all by tomorrow once the Plague is defeated!"

Her earpiece connection shuts off, leaving us with nothing but silence and smiles as her words inspire us as usual.

"I sometimes wonder how that woman ended up being my grandmother," Hudson sighs, running a hand through his hair.

"I heard that, young man!" Priscilla shouts loudly through our earpieces making us jump. I could've sworn she almost broke my eardrum, as Hudson rubs his neck in shame. "Don't be surprised if you can't find your holophone... or whatever you call it when you get back!"

We all laugh, as Hudson continues flying the ship with embarrassment embedded in his face. And for the rest of the journey, Ryan blasted Crazy in Love by Beyoncé on the Bluetooth speakers to avoid Hudson and I's PDA.

I could come to the simple conclusion that Ryan was just jealous he didn't have a girlfriend.

_________

BIG things are coming...😳