Light Masters chapters 1-3

CHAPTER 1

Joseph hesitated at the bottom of the steps. The tall administration building shimmered in the bright sun before him.

Why has the Galactic President summoned me? The thought circled repeatedly through Joseph's mind as he attacked the steps two at a time. What does El-Martin want with me?

Joseph moved with a quick easy stride. The large glass doors silently slid open. The lobby bristled with activity. Men and women hurriedly brushed past him, busy with their own tasks.

He waited impatiently for the elevator. The shiny silver doors mirrored Joseph's image. The ruddy, tanned face was finely chiseled, mouth firm, eyes bright. His chocolate brown suit fit his six feet six athletic frame perfectly.

The sound of shuffling feet and clicking heels was loud on the gleaming marble floor behind him.

Joseph unconsciously adjusted the sapphire blue sash around his waist, as bits of thoughts slipped and slid through his mind. The sash was the same color as the Bluestone of Power he wore in a ring on the middle finger of his right hand.

The express elevator had only one destination, El-Martin's office on the 91st floor.

A short, handsomely rounded man sat behind an imposing walnut desk. Impeccably dressed, his broad forehead accentuated a narrow face. Philip Haskins, secretary, was printed on the brass nameplate sitting prominently on the desk.

"Mr. Haskins, I'm Joseph of Miramar. I'm here for my two-thirty appointment," Joseph announced, breathing in the rich fragrance of polished wood.

"Have a seat. El-Martin will see you shortly," Haskins kindly spoke.

Joseph was a man of purpose. He knew how to make things happen. At the moment, he was baffled by this interview with the Galactic President.

Still, he confidently settled into the comfortable chair. Joseph possessed an assurance born from generations of men who had accepted leadership in a culture that demanded uprightness and wisdom.

Several magazines were neatly stacked on the table. Joseph picked one.

'Solar Systems of the Heimet Galaxy' was emblazoned on the cover. Flipping through it, he noticed an article on his solar system, Miramar.
He checked the clock. Two-twenty-one. Only six minutes had gone by.

'This will be a long wait,' Joseph muttered to himself, anxious to get back to work.
The secretary watched him, smiling.

Why is he smiling? Joseph wondered. Surely, he knows what the meeting is about; secretaries know everything. Should I ask? No, I'm sure he wouldn't tell me anyway.

Joseph's curiosity increased, as the minutes dripped by.

The tall ornate clock finally chimed two-thirty. Joseph looked up to admire the beautifully crafted timepiece.
"You may go in," Philip beckoned.

Boldly entering El-Martin's imposing office, Joseph smiled broadly. He had been impressed with the President's office when he visited, for the first time, eight years ago. It looked the same. Decorated in tans and browns, with touches of green. It invoked a comforting, earthiness. The light streaming through the enormous windows added a cheerful sunny feeling.

"Good to see you again," El-Martin rose in one fluid motion from behind a polished mahogany desk. He looked fit, a sense of purpose etched in his features. He was a powerful figure exuding confidence, his smile infectious. Coming around the desk, he emanated strength and wisdom with a benign illumination that was highly compelling.

El-Martin held out his hand. Their hands closed in a firm grip and President Martin asked, "How's your father?"

"He's doing well."

"Have a seat," the President nodded.

With Joseph seated, El-Martin pulled up a tan leather chair. Leaning back, fingers forming a pyramid, the Galactic President studied the young man sitting across from him.

El-Martin's gaze was so intuitive, so direct, Joseph felt an uncomfortable pressure at the base of his throat.

Silently the President nodded, as if satisfied, and leaned forward a little in his chair.

The meeting lasted an hour. El-Martin presented Joseph with a panorama of an exciting future, one full of adventure. El-Martin finished the interview by stating, "The decision is yours. I hope you will say yes."

Joseph's mouth was dry his throat tight. His thoughts were scattered in too many new directions.

El-Martin waited patiently, observing the conflicting emotions competing across Joseph's face
.
Joseph peered into his leader's steel grey eyes. His mind racing, his thoughts and ideas falling over each other as he wrestled with his response. "I know it is a great opportunity. It is also a giant leap into the unknown. I need time to think about it."

"Of course, but I need your decision as soon as possible." President Martin's deep voice was piercing, to the point, and without evasion. "To accept this assignment will require great faith. Faith in yourself and in the Light Master's program"

Leaving El-Martin's office, Joseph wondered; how can this be happening? What about my company and the tens of thousands of people I employ? What's to become of them, if I say yes?

His mind was a battleground of questions, and uncertainties. Yet, he was infused with an eagerness that seemed to overwhelm all his other thoughts.

Certain events mold a man, change his vision, and challenge his character. The key is to know which events to embrace, and which to reject. Joseph faced that kind of choice now.

CHAPTER 2

Teleporting to the patio outside his home, Joseph's mind shifted to his wife, Rachel.  How will she react to the offer?

Suddenly his thoughts strayed.  Gazing up, his silver-grey eyes scanned the majestic peaks of the Sawtooth Mountains. He paused engulfed by the beauty. "Old Rocky Top, I would miss you," Joseph whispered to his favorite mountain. The brilliant sun reflected off the mountain's snowy summit, creating patterns of silvery blue. A pleasant tingling spread over his face. Joseph closed his eyes and let the sunlight blur warmly through his lids.

His mind drifted to the first time he beheld the magnificent mountain range.  He felt the sensations of that moment return, bringing an overpowering sense of joy. The area was a wilderness. It seemed so old, so enduring, yet, beautiful. He instantly fell in love with it. Making inquiries, Joseph made an offer to purchase the whole region, mountains, valley, lakes, everything. Now he was being asked to leave this lovely refuge.

Joseph's eyes wondered to the flower beds surrounding the patio. How often had he come home to see Racheal, her long ebony hair shimmering in the sunlight, as she plunged her trowel into the rich soil? She loved flowers, especially roses, red roses.

Rachel was the love of his life. She was intelligent, vivacious, very impetuous, and most important, she believed in him. Joseph loved the way Rachel ignited a spark that touched his inner spirit. Just being near her made him feel complete.

Their mansion, recently completed, was the home of their dreams. Their estate covered the whole valley, sixty miles long, fifteen miles at its widest. They were living their dream.
Do I want to leave my valley, my home? He pondered reflectively. If I accept the President's proposal, many of our plans will be forfeited. Will Rachel object? Will she resent being asked to leave our new home, her friends, her family, this beautiful valley?

The yellow glow shining through the window was inviting. It sent a pulse of warmth through his veins.

Reaching for the sliding door, a thought caught Joseph off guard. How do I tell Rachel? Where do I begin?

He opened the door. "Hon?" Joseph telepathically reached out.

"I'm here, in the library," Rachel answered, delighted.

Slowly walking through their home, Joseph noticed the painting displaying three sailboats skimming across a beautiful cove. They had purchased the picture because Rachel loved the sea. On the other wall was a mountain scene done in lavender hues. Joseph loved the mountains. Their home had been designed and decorated with the things they loved. How could he ask Racheal to leave everything behind?

When Joseph entered the library, his eyes drifted to the wall, lined with the books he had so carefully collected. Then to the couch, facing the fireplace, where he and Racheal spent so many hours talking and dreaming. The faint smell of cedar smoke, still lingered in the air.

Racheal cheerfully welcomed the man she loved. She glowed as Joseph's arms reached out to her.

Instead of a warm, loving embrace, her husband gently brushed her dark hair from her shoulders and lightly kissed her cheek. The engaging grin that perpetually played at the corners of his mouth was missing.

Rachel's smile quickly faded, replaced by a troubled frown.

A peck on the cheek? What's up? Instinctively she knew something was wrong. Searching his face, she noticed lines creasing his forehead. Lines she had not seen before.

Joseph was concentrating on how to tell her.  How can I rationally explain to Rachel what El-Martin offered? Joseph struggled to decipher what was hidden in his own heart. He was a man of action. This indecision annoyed him.

"Joe, what's the matter?" Rachel's slender body tensed, her face shadowed with concern. She had never seen her husband so restrained.

Running fingers through his light brown hair, Joseph shook his head, as if trying to rid it of cobwebs. He had been on an adrenaline high. Now he felt exhausted. His heart filled with conflicting emotions. His meeting with El-Martin had drained him

Rachel frowned, alarmed by her husband's behavior.

"Let's go out on the patio," Joseph suggested. He needed time to organize his thoughts.           Joseph gazed at the snow topped mountains from the patio. Suddenly two white swans skimmed the edge of the lake and skidded into the water.

How can I ask Racheal to leave all of this? Joseph wondered.

He took a deep breath and began."The Universal Galactic Council wants me to become a Royal Master," Joseph quietly informed his wife.

An expression of confusion, fleeting as a cloud, drifted across Rachel's face. "Galactic Council? Royal Master?" she stammered, baffled. "What are you talking about?"

"They want me to become a Royal Master, like my father," Joseph gently replied.

"Your dad's the leader of one of the five kingdoms in our galaxy," Rachel declared, mystified. "Do they want you to take his place? Why that's - that's incredible. What would you do with your business?"

"Dad's not stepping down, nor is he going anyplace," Joseph shook his head. "They want us to go," he softly spoke as he gazed into her troubled green eyes.

"Where do they want us to go?"

"To help build the new galaxy."

Gently putting his arms around his wife, he drew her close. "I love you, you know," he whispered, fighting to control his raspy voice. "El-Martin has asked us to join the expedition to build the new Milky Way Galaxy.  He has asked me to become one of the four Royal Masters leading the expedition."

A shiver raced through Rachel, Joseph's words were said so casually.

She stiffened and pulled away a little. Rachel gasped, "Royal Master? A leader in a new galaxy?" Her emotions climbing higher with each passing moment. How she desperately hoped he would laugh and tell her he was teasing.

Joseph could only nod, as he looked deeply into her eyes.

Rachel's heart fluttered with alarm.

She drew a breath as if to say something, then decided she didn't trust herself

Her dismay lasted only a moment, before questions began to roar through her mind like a storm. To become a Royal Master? To lead an expedition?  Starting my family in the middle of nowhere?  How would this affect our marriage? Raising children on the edge of the universe?


Her mind was a whirl. Her hands fluttered as if trying to grab hold of her thoughts and place them in some sort of order.

                   Joseph searched his wife's face.  He knew, there was a touch of steel behind those gorgeous green eyes.



Chapter 3

The sheer magnitude of El-Martin's challenge had set Joseph's adrenaline flowing. The idea of leading a voyage to create a new galaxy was breathtaking enough to overwhelm him. Yet, he felt a deep sense of rightness about it.

"I have always been confident; I could build planets. I watched dad do it many times". Joseph admitted boyishly "Imagine, managing an organization that will build millions of solar systems! It makes all my previous endeavors seem like child's play. So many people would be depending on me,"

Rachel gazed at her husband, a faint, amused smile tugged at her lips. Instead of bragging about an offer of galactic leadership, Joseph is anxious about all the people who would follow him into an unknown void.

Joseph swallowed with some difficulty. "Things are really going great. Our company is booming. The question is: Do we want to give up everything and start all over?"

Eight years ago, Joseph boldly set out to build a merchant trading empire. Through hard work, a pleasant personality and great connections, Joseph was now an ultra-wealthy businessman. One of the richest and most influential men in the Heimet Galaxy and only thirty-two years old.

Now he was being asked to sacrifice everything, to be part of a new galaxy in the vast wilderness of space.

"There's more," He steadied his voice with effort.

"More?" Her eyebrows rose speculatively
.
Nodding, Joseph continued. "This will be a special expedition, not like when our parents left to build the Heimet Galaxy. We're to be the vanguard of what will eventually be a cluster of twenty-four galaxies. We will be the first to colonize the sector. If we succeed, the other galaxies will be built later."

"You make it sound ominous," her words tumbled out.

"We would be traveling a hundred times farther, into the vast emptiness of unexplored darkness. Past the outer edges of known space. Anything can happen out there and no one will be close enough to help."

"Oh, My!" Rachel gasp, her pulse quickening
.
"It's not as bad as I made it sound," Joseph paused, angry with himself for upsetting her. "Traveling so far into the outer reaches of space has been done before. Every time a new cluster is scheduled, they must travel far enough so the gravitational pull, of the new galaxies, don't disrupt the older ones."

Suddenly a series of pictures, flashed through Joseph's mind, like a nightmare photo album. Years ago, he had viewed a documentary about the destruction of the Tympani galaxy. The Dark Kingdom's attack on the fledgling galaxy was well documented. The vivid images had been shocking, mind-boggling, in their foulness.  For an instant, he relived the experience with disturbing clarity.

He remembered the petrifying corpses of terribly deformed dark creatures. The images generated feelings he could not define. No dictionary contained words to describe his horror. Now, those grisly images returned, with a vengeance, popping uncontrolled into his consciousness. Something squirmed in his chest. Joseph felt a deep pain all the way to the bone marrow.

His expression became grim, with the terrible pain, as the pictures scrolled through Joseph's mind, unbidden.

Rachel wondered what could cause Joseph such sudden anguish.

Then Rachel remembered seeing the same documentary, and a jolt of sharp pain stabbed her heart. She recalled that two planets had been whisked away. The inhabitants never to be seen or heard of since. The memory brought her close to tears.

Rachel averted her eyes and breathed a fragile sigh.

Clearing her throat, she rubbed at the corner of her eye.

The couple fell silent as if listening together for some haunting sound that was not there.

Joseph knew the bizarre film had been real. Yet, he still struggled to comprehend such evil. The memory of that documentary left him breathless for a moment. He tried to swallow realizing his vocal cords hurt.

He had to thrust those images from his mind, if he was to move forward.

Quietly Joseph shrugged, trying to make it appear nonchalant.

Not sure what else to say, Joseph sought to change the subject. "Let's talk about El-Matins' proposal over dinner."

Glad to have something to do, Rachel hurried to the cooler, and returned with a plate holding two thick steaks. Taking the dish, Joseph opened the grill. Turning the switch, he carefully placed their favorite steaks where the infrared rays would cook them to perfection. Rachel had sliced a green pepper and filled each half with steaming rice, spiced just the way Joseph loved.

Placing the two peppers next to the steaks, Joseph thought: how I wish life was this simple.

"I'll get the salad." Rachel had never felt like this before, but then again, she had never been asked to pack up and pioneer the depths of outer darkness.

After a few minutes, Joseph picked up a long fork and flipped the steaks. The aroma and sizzle made his mouth water. With the steaks, lightly charred, Joseph tried to lighten the atmosphere by announcing, "Just the way we like them." he forced a grin.

Rachel smiled as she set the table. She knew her husband was trying desperately to brighten the evening. It was these little acts of thoughtfulness that endeared Joseph to her. Returning to the kitchen, she picked up the crystal bowl with her special salad and brought it to the patio table.

It was a delicious dinner and helped bridge the silence that enveloped them until they could rationally discuss the offer. Once they began talking, the words poured out. Discussing options, considering possibilities, it felt good to talk. They only wished they knew more about what to expect.

Their conversation continued long into the evening.

Awakening more tired than when she went to sleep, Rachel showered in silence. Dressing, she slowly made her way to the kitchen where she busied herself fixing breakfast. Long waves of ebony hair tumbled around her face and shoulders.

"Ah, something smells yummy," Joseph teased. The delectable aroma of waffles and maple syrup was delightful.

Wrapping his long arms around her, he planted a kiss that almost swept Rachel off her feet.

Rachel looked up at her husband. Catching her breath, she asked what was on both their minds. "What are we going to do?"

"I'm not sure," Joseph hesitated. "They need an answer soon. It's an honor, really. I think I'll spend the day with dad. Maybe he can tell me more about becoming a Royal Master. There is so much I don't know. How about dinner tonight at Frannie's Restaurant? You love the view overlooking the bay. We'll have to arrive when the moon is on the horizon."

"Sounds great," Rachel whispered. With his arms around her, she felt secure, even traveling to Chaos didn't seem so horrible. "I think I'll spend the day with mother. Promise you won't make a decision until we get together."

"Promise."

Rachel always considered Joseph her rock. She enjoyed his enthusiasm. He was so daring and willing to compete against the large, galactic trading companies. His passion to be the best excited her. Rachel had discovered another side of Joseph. He was strong, with a streak of humility that often surprised her. She remembered the night he proposed. His hands trembled as he wrapped her hand in his. This time it was his voice that shook when he suggested they leave their home and family for a greater mission.

Even though Joseph had trained his whole life to become a Royal Master, she recognized his inner struggles. Unlike Rachel, Joseph was never rash or impetuous. He was always governed by his convictions. She knew, he would calculate every detail before deciding.  Once the decision was final, he would put his whole heart into the project. He did not know how to do something half way.

It was not logical for the Galactic Committee to offer Joseph this assignment. He had a thriving business and he was still very young. Yet, Racheal felt a goodness, a rightness to the offer that she could not explain.