"I have an idea," I said, my mind sparked with bright illumination. "I can get us transportation, and I can ride my longboard to get us to our flat."
"Who do you know?" Rambo asked.
"This girl with a Rexi. It's fast, and it can take you and Karina and I can take the babies," I told Rambo. "Hologram, get me the brunette I met at Knox."
My hologram dialed the brunette and her face came up in front of me in media. "Hey...interested. What's going on?"
"I need a ride and for that, we should keep in touch," I told her. She smiled, and looked bashful and looked to the ground. I smiled back, and sincerely told her. "It's to help someone."
"I like you. What was your name again?" she said. "Kylie. That's mine."
"Jake. Jake O'Connor," I told her, with my smile still here.
"Okay. Where are you?" Kylie asked, her brows scrunched.
"I'm at a run down place. I'll give you the address," I told her, and gave her the number of the house and the street in Five Points, Denver.
"I can meet you there, and I'll bring my longboard so I can get home. My Rexi is trained, and she can get home on her own. She's programmed and fast. So make sure you know how to ride," Kylie said.
"Did you tell her that I'll be riding?" Rambo asked.
"Yeah, my friend will ride, and this sweet little girl with him," I told Kylie in all honesty.
"Not a problem. I'll give you some treats for my Rexi to eat when you get to the destination, and you can feed it to her. Then you have to push the button on her necklace and she's going to run to me," Kylie told me. "This better be for a good cause."
"It is," I said. "Hey, I promise we will be in touch. I mean it."
"I know," Kylie smiled. "I know you're a good guy."
"Thank you, Kylie."
Rambo and I waited for twenty minutes, and packed all of our stuff and woke up Karina, and swaddled the babies. I placed Boris and Betina inside my shoulder pack and let them sleep inside, and swung my shoulder pack on my chest. Rambo made a belt with some of the towels I had for Karina, to cover her wound so the impact of riding won't harm her.
Kylie arrived with her Rexi, a short haired animal with powerful legs as if a medium sized bear with defined muscles was in front of me. "This is Smily, and she's docile, and loves to run," Kylie said, as she jumped off her Rexie's back. Smily almost purred and licked Kylie's hand. I caressed her forehead, and she pushed against my palm and kissed me. "She's so lovely," Kylie said, and hugged Smily. "Just let her follow you, Jake, and she'll know where to go, unless you're riding. Then, it's like riding a horse."
"I have a longboard, and as long as Smily can see me, we're good," I said.
Rambo walked from behind me, and offered a handshake. "Rambo, nice to meet you," he said.
"Kylie, and I guess you're riding my Smily?" Kylie asked.
"Yes, and this is Karina," Rambo said, showing Karina behind him, standing with a belt made of a towel.
Karina waved, and said, "Thank you for helping me."
"What happened to you? You looked hurt," Kylie asked, pointing to the towel around her waist.
"Yeah, it's The New Order men," Karina said.
"The New Order men? Jake, what's going on?" Kylie said, her face aghast.
"Promise me you're not one of Giuseppe Baptiste's fan," I said.
"Promise, but why her?" Kylie asked.
"I don't know...I need to get home, as soon as possible, before they find her," I told Kylie.
"Take Smily, and do the treats," Kylie said, handing me a few cubes of Smily's treats. "She'll be fine. It's legal." Kylie turned to Rambo and Karina and said, "Hold on tight."
"I will," Karina said.
Smily was sitting with her paws on the ground and her hind legs behind her relaxed. Rambo got on first, and Karina sat in front of Rambo.
"Rambo, hold the saddle, and Karina, hold her necklace," Kylie said, showing Karina to hold on. "Now go."
I got on my longboard and took off, as Smily quickly followed.
"I will call," I told Kylie. She nodded and waved her goodbye.
Kylie was right, Smily was very fast as she followed me on the longboard only yards behind. She jumped over puddles, and rounded street corners as Rambo and Karina held on tight. Smily paced me and we passed neighborhoods avoiding Colfax and attention.
By the time we arrived at Capitol Hill, it was dusk, and the solar lights were on, but building lights were off.
I stopped in front of my Father's flat and Rambo quickly got off with Karina, and Boris and Betina were still fast asleep, enjoying the ride as if flying inside a contraption. I gave Smily her treats and pushed the button on her necklace and as a Rexi should, she took off to find Kylie's home.
We ran upstairs to my flat and pushed the bell to get inside.
"Dad, it's me," I pushed the button in front of our door.
The door unlocked, and my Father opened the door. "Did you see anyone behind you?"
"No, actually we took and didn't look back," I told him.
"Mr. O'Connor, I'm Rambo, and this is Karina," Rambo said, behind me, and pushing Karina to the front of me.
"Come in, let's eat dinner," my Father said.
We came in, and my Father was cooking, and the pot was boiling.
"Karina, sit down at the dinner table, and tell me what happened," my Dad said. "Have a cup of water, first."
I took off my shoulder bag, and placed Boris and Betina on the sofa. They were fussy, and stretching their arms and legs.
My Father went to the refrigerator and took a still water bottle, and offered it to Karina. Karina took it to the dinner table and sat down. "Thank you, Mr. O'Connor," she said. She opened the bottle and drank the water.
"Why do you think they did this to you?" my Father asked, not wasting anytime.
"My parents were the last descendants of the Ting Dynasty, and we were annihilated, and we escaped only to lose my parents in the journey, and I was lost," Karina told my Father.
"Were your parent's killed?" Rambo asked. "We can try to find them."
"I believe they were killed by The New Order, because they don't want another royal dynasty than Giuseppe Baptiste," Karina said.
"Baptiste doens't like royal families, and he destroyed them because he believed in one leader, without ties to a lineage," Rambo said.
"Royals are symbols of family values and family traditions, and it is okay. There are so many Royal Families in the world before Baptiste came to power. They were a symbol of family heritage and kinship amongst the different nations in the world, usually alongside humanitarian efforts, in once accord to help with alliances and ties between countries and represent kinship amongst men and women. Baptiste didn't believe in all that. Since Baptiste came into power, there are barely any organizations who cared for the poor and indigent, and everyone bowed to Baptiste because he wanted to be the authority although he preaches solidarity amongst working men and women. Why do you think there are so many vulnerables and homeless populations in Denver?" my Father said. "So, why do you think they hurt you, Karina."
"My parents said The New Order men wanted connections through geneaology and spiritual favors," Karina said, her face in grim silence looking to the ground.
"I think it's because The New Order men wants control, and they want to own lives, and feel like they have ownership over souls," I told my Father. "That's how you control someone isn't?"
"She's twelve!" Rambo said. "She barely knows directions to Knox. How much ownership did they think they wanted?"
"I know my directions," Karina said.
"Sorry, but still...," Rambo said.
"They couldn't just build a website and write a manifesto to feel powerful?" Karina asked.
"Websites? Who has one of those these days?" Rambo said. He shook his head and asked Karina,"What do you know about manifesto?"
"When my parents were with me, they told me that The New Order had a manifesto, and they hated the power of good, tradition, families, and the idea of heritage and a royal lineage and birthrights. They hated first families, royal families, presidents and people of influence. They wanted to create their own powerful regime," Karina said. "Where they said everyone is of equal values, but the truth is, Baptiste is the sole authoritarian, and his men abuse their powers and they use violence. I think he feels superior as a human being and his ideas are based on racial supremacy, and that's why he wanted to have The New Order Regime."
The lights shut off, and the stove turned off. The whole room became dark. I opened the curtains to our windows and looked outside to find the buildings lights were off, far into the distance. The only lights visible were the street lights with swift shadows passing of people running on the streets.
"What's going on?" I asked.
All of the sudden, the whole entire world felt dark.
Just write.