It had been six days since the Battle of the Sands and the end of the former Commander Rogers, the current incarnation of an ageless and selfish man named Abel Hargrove. Communities of regular humans worked alongside their superhuman neighbors to exterminate the remaining zombie hordes. There were over three billion zombies left, even after the war. It was a necessarily slow and arduous process to cull the undead. Luckily, the vast majority of the remaining infected were typical zombies. They weren’t the weapons of war created in Hargrove’s labs located all over the world.

Those first few days were strenuous for Reece. There was a lot of celebrating which involved a lot of drinking. Inhibitions were lowered and everyone felt like letting loose. By the sixth day, Reece called for a breather. The battle was won, but there was still much to do. None of it was getting done with all the distractions and revelry.

Reece pried himself out from between the female Pasha and Taela, the Adaro princess. Looking back at the two beautiful women nestled in his bunk, Reece couldn’t help but worry about the pair of hornet’s nests he had just drunkenly kicked. He had no idea how this would affect his relationships with Pasha or Aika. Nor did he know how things were going to play out with the princess. Deciding to leave it alone for the time being, Reece got up and took a walk on deck.

As the early morning light glinted off the waves, he felt a presence next to him. Looking over, Aika was walking beside him, her belly bulging with his child. This was the first time Reece had a minute alone with her. He looked at her knowingly, fixing his eyes on hers as he gently rubbed her belly. She smiled at him, a tear rolling down her eye. They were aboard the carrier, headed back to Madagascar to pick up the displaced members of New Hope to return them home. The last few days went by in a blur. For Reece, he was glad to finally have a moment to slow down and talk to Aika, a woman he loved and the future mother of his child.

“This is amazing, babe,” he smiled. “I can’t tell you how overjoyed I am.”

“As am I,” she whispered, overcome with emotion. “We owe Karina a great debt.”

“She’s one of a kind, huh?” asked Reece with a smile.

“One of a kind,” agreed Aika. “Did you know she’s always wanted children? Countless decades. It’s simply impossible for us to fathom. It’s strange. Regenesis not only made her human again but healed her as well. I heard that a few other vampires were also turned back to humans but most remained as they were.”

“When she’s ready,” agreed Reece. “I’ll give her as many children as she desires. After everything, I can barely wait to see both of you as mothers. I have no doubt you’ll be wonderful. Speaking of which,” continued Reece, standing straight and taking a breath as he changed the subject. “We may have a solution to our repopulation problem. Cyrene showed me these seeds and gave me the instructions to grow them. By her account, they should be able to reverse the effects of the haze and make the men of this world fertile again.”

“Well, we’ll have to put them to good use then,” replied Aika, giving Reece a wink and a half smile. “You’re certainly doing your part, but we need many more fertile men to repopulate.”

Aika stopped and put her hand on Reece’s forearm. “I’m glad you and Pasha found each other. She’s fancied you for years, you know. I don’t know how or when Taela snuck into your bed last night but it’s clear she’s in love with you too. You’ll have to be careful with that one.”

“Yeah, I’m not sure how she got there either,” replied Reece, relieved that Aika seemed okay with everything. “And I’m surprised about Pasha. I thought you two..”

“Hah, you thought wrong, Mr. Danielson,” chuckled Aika. “And remember this, if your child growing in my belly wasn’t slowing me down so much, Taela never would have taken my spot. Once I recover from the birth, I’m going to wear you out. Be ready.”

“Oh, I can’t wait,” said Reece, giving Aika a big grin. “I have a feeling we’re going to have a lot of kids.”

“We will indeed,” smiled Aika before her look turned melancholy. “I just hope those seeds work and we can give that gift back to the rest of humanity. By the way, how are things progressing?”

“The seeds? Cyrene already planted some here. Ciera has been tending to them. Cyrene took the rest with her in her travels. Oh, she brought Chippo with her. Whatever else Regenesis did, bringing Chippo back to life was awesome. I love that little guy. To say he was ecstatic would be an understatement. Now that he has a second chance at life, he went with Cyrene to try and find more of his kind.”

“As for Cyrene,” continued Reece. “She plans on spreading the seeds far and wide, giving instructions for their care as she goes. Then she and Chippo will meet back up with us in New Hope. I think the effects of the haze will be a memory before too long, but it’ll take years at least before everyone is treated.”

“Even with only five million people left on the planet?” asked Aika, narrowing her eyes.

“Yeah, even so,” replied Reece. “It’ll be three months before the first crop is ready to harvest. It has to be done carefully. It’s an exacting process. Over-harvesting led to this plant species becoming extinct in the first place.”

“Well, I guess it is what it is,” said Aika. “And what do you make of the reports Angel keeps hearing about over the radio?”

“Are you talking about the sightings?” asked Reece. “Creatures of folklore, legends, myths, and faerie tales? ”

“Yeah, that…” said Aika. “I have a suspicion it also has to do with Regenesis. We know it activated latent DNA aboard the space station just from being close to it, probably some residual bleeding out of energy. Now, all that energy has been released into the world. Maybe some of the plants and animals have latent DNA strains. That same energy may have activated them too.”

“Yeah,” agreed Reece. “I had the same thought. This new world may be very different from the old one. There will probably be new dangers and opportunities in the times to come. We’ll have to be vigilant as we continue to deal with the remains of Commander Roger’s army and the rest of the undead. I wish there were something we could do to bring those unfortunate people back from undeath.”

“I know,” sighed Aika. “But the Oracle was clear. No wiggle room to interpret her words. The only thing we can do for the infected is to purify their bodies in flame. Anything less, and we risk spreading the infection. It’s not viral, fungal, or anything natural. Well, not completely, anyhow. We know the Commander derived the infection from the nightcore’s bleed-over, but what they did to corrupt the pure mana seems to have died with Aldo. Unless we find his notes, some writings that may have survived the destruction of the Zhengzhou, or the ground-based labs, we’ll never know.”

“Well, hopefully, it won’t matter,” whispered Reece. “For now, let me just lie next to you.”

Aika opened her arm up to Reece, and he scooched up next to her, lying his head on her massive belly. He enjoyed feeling the kick of his child, wishing he hadn’t missed this part with his other children. After numerous kicks, each making him smile bigger, Reece drifted off.

The dream came rushing in, seemingly desperate to impart its truths upon Reece. It was the first such dream before the final confrontation with the commander and his armies. So, it was a bit unexpected. Reece found himself on a small boat, floating in the middle of a tranquil lake surrounded by tall trees, both evergreens and old oaks. The sky was deep blue with a few wispy clouds here and there. The sun felt warm on his face and arms, offset slightly by the breeze blowing across the lake. The wood of the old boat quietly creaked as the vessels bobbed subtly on the waves, barely more than ripples.

“I must say, dear boy… you did good,” came a gravelly voice from off to his side. “I had my doubts, but the aspects of love and renewal were quite convincing.”

Reece quickly turned to take in the appearance of the unknown man. He was old and wiry but had a sparkle about him that spoke of strength, vigor, agelessness, and wisdom. A long thin beard dripped from his chin; his sun-scorched face was lined with a thousand tiny wrinkles. Despite that, his blue eyes twinkled with a glimmer he had only seen in the eyes of the other aspects that Reece had encountered, marking this man as one.

“Who are you?” asked Reece, his curiosity getting the better of him.

“Oh, who… little ole’ me?” answered the man cryptically. “You’ll find out soon enough. I must hand it to you; I thought this world was doomed and ready to be remade into something better. You showed me that wasn’t the case, that the right people with the right motivations could change the outcome of even the most well-thought-out plans. Well, that’s okay. It keeps things interesting. This planet had gotten boring a long time ago. I guess I shouldn’t have taken it for granted that my followers could handle things.”

“Wait, okay…seriously, who are you?” cut in Reece, an icy chill running up and down his spine.

“What? You haven’t guessed? Pity… ” replied the man. “I was hoping for some sport once I’ve returned. Oh well. If I were you, I wouldn’t rest on my laurels, as you humans say… I’ll be seeing you soon, my dear boy. And in all seriousness, good luck. You’re going to need it.”

Reece woke with a start, a cold sweat dripping down his face as the mad cackling of the man dwindled into silence. His movements must have woken Aika because he felt her move underneath him. She placed her hand on his cheek.

“What is it?” she asked.

“I don’t know for sure,” answered Reece, “But we’re going to have to be ready for anything. I have a bad feeling that something is coming, something ancient and powerful. And to stop it, it’s gonna take everything we have.”

“You too, huh?” said Aika. “Relax for a moment. I didn’t want to bring it up, but several of us have gotten the same feeling. At first, we blew it off, thinking it was merely the thought of the other shoe dropping. You know, that feeling you get when things are too calm, especially after so many horrible experiences.”

“So, what do you think now?” asked Reece.

“Personally,” answered Aika. “I think it’s the aspects warning us that the fight isn’t over. After all, we know the commander didn’t do this without help. He mentioned his own god, after all. And something powerful locked all those aspects away, destroying or subjugating others, right? Seems too big for Rogers, err… Abel…whatever. No. There had to be something else orchestrating those events, but you know what?”

“What’s that?” asked Reece.

“For the first time in the history of humanity, we are all on the same page, and we are forewarned,” stated Aika. “And nothing brings humanity together like a shared external threat. We didn’t tell you this before, but while you were stuck in the antechamber in China, Karina had diverted us to the Oracle of Delphi before flying the Phoenix to Korea to face off against the commander there.”

“Luckily, though the small coven of Lilitu sorceresses had hidden for fifteen hundred years, Karina knew how to find them. What they told us… was… enlightening. Suffice it to say that while their words described a future that cannot be undone, a little creative interpretation allowed us to circumvent the worst of the news.”

“That may explain why we were acting strangely towards you, you know… the names of your children, the timing of things, such as stripping the commander of his powers… some of the conversations we had with you. It was all because we knew things. Things that, if you knew them too, would make the bad things come true. Now that you know, perhaps it’s time to visit them. They may have the answers to our current dilemma.”

“Um…okay… that’s a lot to process. So, uh… if that’s all true,” stammered Reece, “then we have a fighting chance. However, this force, this intelligence, is old, experienced, cunning, and a trickster. It’ll seek to turn us against one another.”

“True,” nodded Aika. “But we already know that don’t we? So, we can prepare for it and remain vigilant against it.”

“Okay then,” answered Reece, sitting up. “I guess it’s time to get back to work.”

“After you, lover,” smiled Aika.

“Sounds good,” stated Reece. “Let’s go and see what new miracles this world has to offer. No trickster god is going to take this world from our children. After all, this time, the world has us. And we won’t fight fair.”

“I like it,” replied Aika, smiling at Reece.

Making their way above deck, Reece led Aika, her big belly forcing her to waddle beside him. Once they walked onto the carrier’s deck, Reece knew something was up. Everyone had gathered on the starboard side of the vessel. Dozens of people were looking over the railing, talking, and whispering excitedly among each other. Reece recognized Bjorn and Karina from across the way. No one seemed upset or scared. A salty breeze carried snippets of the group’s conversations over to where Aika and Reece had just emerged, but nothing helpful in solving the sudden mystery. Shrugging, the pair made their way over to the larger group to discover what was happening.

Looking over the railing, the realization of how the world was changing suddenly struck home. Below them, frolicking in the water, was a pair of serpentine forms. They bore four clawed legs, which they had hugged tightly against their flanks. They also sported a head that could only be described as dragon-like. Where they came from, Reece hadn’t a clue. Yet, they glided through the water like they were born to it.

Far above the water and in the distance, Reece could barely make out a flock of what he had first thought were massive birds. They quickly drew closer and even flew over the carrier. That’s when Reece realized these creatures were no mere birds. With the head, wings, and forelegs of a stork, they also bore the body and hindquarters of a cheetah. Since they were still near the African coast, he figured they must have come from there. Reece barely had time to process what he saw before they flew off toward the coast.

Adding to the surreal scene was an island, moving slowly… but moving through the water. Reece watched as the enormous turtle’s head swung back and forth while its webbed claws paddled through the ocean next to the carrier. The island shell of the turtle had dirt, trees, and plants covering it, meaning that it had been there all along, undiscovered. It returned to life when the massive amount of mana was released from the nightcore. Reece looked on in wonder as the water dragons swam near the gargantuan turtle, close but giving it space.

Upon the dirt, rocks, and actual trees of the turtle island, nearly the same length as the carrier, rested a flock of small bird-like creatures, though they had the bodies of what appeared to be large cats. From what Reece could tell, they resembled the griffons of mythology. Reece couldn’t help but shake his head and smile. The rumors were true. Here they were, creatures straight from myth, resting upon the enormous shell of a giant sea turtle, another creature of legend, while water dragons played in the waters around them. It was all the evidence they needed that the world’s ecology had undergone a tremendous change and would likely never be the same again.

“Hey, Karina,” said Reece. “Do you think this trickster god has ever met a Kraken?”

“I’m not sure,” she smiled mischievously. “But I have a feeling that if he decides to show up, he certainly will.”

“Yeah,” sighed Reece. “I was thinking the same thing.”