# # #
Vatima Hansi careened the light-brown Hansa through the sharp bend of Knoll Way - the last stretch of the broad express of Dawn City’s western fringe. Knoll Way stretched out to the venerated expanse of Dove Grove, which had at its center the sparkling sapphires of Manu Square. Vatima knew the traffic on Dove Grove could be daunting most times. So she sped on in the face of light traffic, trying to make it to Almat’s home in good time.
Hansi Jnr and Pram guffawed at their mother’s excessive speed and how she had swerved the aerophibian through the sharp bend of Knoll Way.
Hansi Jnr gasped. “Mama, you must be daring to negotiate the bend that way without the Hansa’s roof on."
Pram had suppressed a yell as she held on to her seat for support at the rear. "Ma, that was dicey! A great stunt, eh?" she spluttered, searching for her estranged seat belt.
Manta made no comment. He did not mind the speed of the Hansa. It was fun to him.
Vatima glanced sideways at Hansi Jnr who sat stiffly next to her at the front. She chuckled at his expression of fear. A glimpse at the front viewfinder showed the furrows of tension on Pram’s dazed stare.
"All right, I’ll cut down the flow of compressed air to the cylinders and we will have it going easy," she assuaged.
As promised, the Hansa eased its propulsion to a slow run. The children brightened again, enjoying the scenic beauty as the trip went on.
“We'll be in Manu Square in less than six phantoms. Another half a phantom from there, we'll take a right turn that leads to Waadua Park. Straw Avenue is a little down Waadua Park,” Vatima announced.
“It’s still a long drive from here,” Hansi Jnr said.
"But it’s fun all the same," Vatima argued.
Pram theorised, "Dusk dulls every good intention."
“Dusk and intention did you say?” Vatima laughed. “Not with all these flaring streetlights and wholly amazing panorama. It feels like an elixir sometimes when it gets into your blood-stream. It rules your senses. No, it can’t be boring in Songhai unless you want it so. Too many bright aspects here that outshines the gloom of life.”
Look who is ranting about bright aspects of life or its elixir? The guffawing voice echoed in her head. Can’t you just tell them some simple stories of childhood and not confound the interpretation of life that you don’t seem to feel yourself?
"What bright points?” Manta asked towards the end of own revelry.
“The glitzy atmosphere of Waadua Park, or the razzle-dazzle of Manu Square for instance,” Vatima said. “Think about the other places we’ve visited before - the cool, exotic view of the waterfront, our mansion's knoll in Dawn City, everything about the city. So much mystique and elegance...." she trailed off, overtaking an egg-shaped red sports Tanyan in low run. She then went on with her argument, "Everything is just there for you to reach out to and make the most of it."
They got to Manu Square in silence and veered off to Waadua Park half a mile down the road. Sixty swirls in the second phase of the day, Vatima's time check showed.
Up in the sky, the golden glow of the yellow-ringed sun had dimmed in the clouds of early evening. Wistful, Vatima beckoned on the hazel light of the fast setting sun to tarry much longer so she could indulge the searing flames of her mind and the eager spirits of her children in Almat Bou's hospitality. Of course, she knew the sun’s dive over the horizon was irreversible and their visit will be short-lived.
She turned to the right, a slight distance down Waadua Park, and careened the Hansa on the flawless bitumen towards Straw Avenue.
"Fifteen poles down the road and we are at Almat’s,” Vatima announced, heedless of the portentous rhythms in the evening sky.
Chapter Ten
Numa’s enthusiasm had not waned even after four swirls of intense activities. This began with the swap of position between the Solar Dispenser and the fleet of space vessels leading to the safe rescue of the select humans. The fragile frame of the operation did not affect his psyche. He had started, however, to feel a surge of adrenalin with the gravity of the next move: the most dangerous phase of the operation. He became more attentive, reckoning with the two things important in any operation: clarity of vision and action. Numa cleared his head of any haze and saw to it the Guardians did their job well.
“All Guardians ensure absolute preparedness, give no room for slips. We are entering a precarious phase - the reshaping of Atlantis - and this demands that you’re alert and confident." Numa’s caution on the Command Module console echoed in all receiving consoles across the Universe.
“Situation report. The bowels of Atlantis are in rapid swell due to Solar Dispenser’s dissipation. Seven humans and our Atlantis Guardian, Finia, are safe in the Lightship,” Numa elucidated. “All vessels to disengage from present anchor and find safer zones beyond the stratosphere.
“The axis of Atlantis has been programmed to tilt thirty micro-swirls from now, and we are not taking any chances. Also check the magnetic flux of your vessels since you are in the direct field of polarity and realign as the need arise. Blackhole will ensure overall harmony in the flux. Twenty-eight micro swirls to go. Begin countdown.”
Atlantis loomed large on the Disk Center’s monitors as a giant globe rotating around its axis. Ramune reckoned they would engage the globe in a high magnitude of toss in a couple of micro-swirls. Gripped by the rising tension, yet eager, he quietly followed the speed of the counter on the Command Module as other Guardians did. When it got to six, his lips started to move. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Zero!
“Tilt!" Numa bellowed at the last count, rotating a control knob on the Command Module mains anti-clockwise.
He observed the uncommon event. It seemed as if they had jerked vague strings tied to the revolving globe at the northern hemisphere, causing Atlantis to tilt a bit over the southern pole.
Grave silence lingered in the Disk Center as the Guardians continued with their fixed stares at the screens.
Numa’s excitement drew Hemse’s attention. Numa’s eyes were trained on the Command Module mains as he rotated the control knob further.
"It is fixed!' Numa declared with delight when he saw the lift of the northern hemisphere on the screen increase. He gazed away from the Command Module mains and faced his companions. “The energy we’ve pumped into the globe will take care of the recasting within a blink. When the chaos is over, we’ll lift the southern hemisphere to tally with the northern pole. Meanwhile, let’s relish in this beautiful moment. We are potters of this delicate globe now spinning before our hands covered in the cosmic clay."
The Guardians observed unusual crack-like signatures rear on the tilted globe in diverse meandering trails, deepening. These soon merged in six loops around Atlantis.
"See, the landmass known as Atlantis is cracking already like a hatching egg," Hemse spluttered.
Numa grunted with relief. "The very first molds of our recast!"
Under the watchful eyes of the Guardians, the six craggy loops continued to broaden in outlook and depth as Atlantis reshaped its landmass.
# # #
The check at the gate was brief. The courteous security man had been expecting them. He signalled to his team at the guard post and clicked the minute remote trigger of the huge grilles of the gate and the wheels complied, reeling inwards.
The Hansi family looked ahead gleefully, admiring the well-trimmed bed of azoras on both sides of the driveway. Incredible fountains rose and fell with great rhythm before their eyes. Beautiful statues dotted the stretch of marvellous lawns which sprawled about a hundred metres from the gate. Almat Bou’s magnificent mansion of Gothic pillars and porch sparkled at the end of the driveway.
Vatima waved to the security man’s salute and drove up the distance, sniffing the strong scent of roses, daisies and a mélange of flowers in the evening gush of fresh air. The crescent moon streamed down its light,
enhancing the rare neon lightings and security lamps around the vast yard.
Halfway up the driveway, the aerophibian Hansa shuddered and coughed in violent bouts to the right. It skidded off the driveway, bruising the bed of azoras as it was hit of a sudden by a tremor. Vatima almost swore as she struggled to put the Hansa under control.
"Good heavens!" she gasped. “It’s like Atlantis just sunk by a swirl.”
A lump in Hansi Jnr’s throat choked a scream. The rude shock petrified him just as it dazed Pram and Manta. They gaped at their mother.
"What do you think that was?" Manta managed to ask as Vatima got the Hansa convertible off the bed of azoras, revving the engine. "Is it the Hansa or Atlantis that quaked?"
Stunned, Vatima hands shuddered. "Atlantis no doubt," she answered, her eyes hooded with fear. "I had the Hansa in control – there’s no way it could have galloped like that," she explained further, struggling to calm her nerves.
Hansi Jnr mustered some courage to speak after he had overcome the shock. "Does this happen often?"
Vatima shook her head, reassuring him. "I can’t recall any."
"Creepy, isn’t it?” Pram squirmed. “Very uncanny this quake or whatever it is.”
"Let’s forget the incident," Vatima entreated. "I don’t think that little freak of nature will reoccur. Is anyone hurt?"
"No one is hurt," Manta said. "Just the jolt, that’s all."
"All right children, we’ll get along with our fun trip. We can’t allow a slight tremor from God knows where to scare us silly, right? Almat Bou will be waiting - they must have seen us through the short-circuit cameras," Vatima cooed in a bid to cheer her kids’ stunned minds.
Vatima revved the engine one more time and engaged the Hansa on the glide. Another sinking shudder, graver than the first, rocked the Hansa at that moment and made it careen in a zigzag on the driveway. The shrill screams of the children in the combined impact of the swerve of the Hansa and the sinking motion of Atlantis rent the air. They held on fast to their seats in sharp reflexes and escaped being flung off the Hansa’s open roof.
The Hansis could hear the loud crash of cars plying the avenue close to the security post, which caused complete disarray there as the guards fled towards the mansion for safety. They could also hear the crash of more cars into various gates or the giant palm trees that lined the avenue. This made the Hansis squirm with fear.
Ahead of the Hansis, Almat and husband had rushed out to the porch of their mansion to ascertain what caused the wanton noise in the neighborhood. A thundering, unnerving crash nearby, about four hundred phantoms north of their residence, shattered their calm.
Just as they got to the porch, the couple saw the crash of one of the wonderful towers of Straw Avenue by the quake, devastating a number of buildings around it. In the large yard, beautiful fountains and statues had fallen too. Pandemonium took over as their nerves wracked without end.
Not until Almat’s shout pierced Vatima’s stunned mind, she sat behind the Hansa’s controls wide-eyed like a petrified goddess of an unknown time.
"Vatima, get the kids out of the car and run up here fast!" she heard Almat howl in from the front porch.
"Hurry! Hurry!" Bou, Almat’s husband, shrieked close to his wife. In a state of panic of their own, they felt more concerned about their guests now caught in the swirling storm outside.
Vatima shoved the door of the Hansa on her side open and jumped out ordering her children, "Come. Jump.”
Hansi Jnr sprang out of the front seat and sprinted toward Bou and his wife as nimble as a cat. Pram followed next in a frog-like leap. Manta delayed by half a swirl. He observed briefly the fleeing security team and the general commotion in the yard. The snarl of his mother who had begun to run ahead got him chasing after the rest of the family. The horror, however, had taken full shape.
A third jolt flung Hansi Jnr prostrate on the bed of azoras on the left. Pram’s large gown caught and tripped her over. She screamed in agony as she landed on her back. Manta slipped and fell, landing with his buttocks on the driveway, writhing from the pain. Vatima staggered, then crashed headlong but managed to land on her right side, bruising her ribs, spraining an ankle. Pain seared through her like wild flames.
The third jolt on Atlantis swept the running security team off their feet too. They collided with one another and fell to the ground on both sides of the driveway screaming and cursing. The solid foundation of Almat and Bou’s marble mansion fluttered like bird's feathers lost in a storm.
Bou Tarama, a square-shouldered, tall man with round crystal eyes which reddened now in hysteria, broke into a run down the porch in pink slacks, light brown sport jacket and snickers, towards Vatima and her kids. A rumbling sound from the eastern horizon stung his ears in deafening resonance and caused him to freeze a few steps away from Hansi Jnr now struggling to get out of the grip of the clump of azoras.
In the faint light of dusk, everyone in the vast yard in different expressions of pain, looked in the direction of the rumble but could not make out what it was. A flash of lightning accompanied by a strident clap of thunder struck across the evening sky.
The horizon brightened up for a moment and they saw the cascade of a truly huge splash of water, a deluge from the Deemen Sea, roaring and rolling across the city. It headed their way, burying every object in its course.
Seconds elapsed before Bou, Almat, and Vatima got over their initial fears and mustered courage to run for their lives. Several other sinking quakes of Atlantis flung them in different directions. The deluge had now encroached onto the easternmost lawns of the Bous’ mansion.
Fear held Vatima like a vice. She could not grapple with it in spite of her attempts to be free. She sensed death closing in on her and her children. She ran with the last ounce of energy left in her towards Hansi Jnr who limped along the driveway. She began to scream, "PRAM, MANTA, RUN! DON’T GIVE UP!”
After a few limps, Hansi Jnr stopped. The pain in his legs paralyzed him. He crouched close to the clump of azoras, frightened and deafened by the sound of roaring around him. His lungs burned for lack of air.
Vatima made it to his side despite the seething pressure of the run caused by her failing breath and the tight gown she wore. She dragged him toward the house.
Manta had somehow regained strength. He defied the inertia of the quakes and searched for Pram ahead of him. He found Pram in pain amidst some fallen statues, writhing and confused, unable to run.
Manta shoved Pram on, unmindful of her agony. Together they ran helter-skelter towards the mansion yet to collapse.
The sight of the rumbling water few phantoms ahead cut short Bou’s intent of giving a helping hand to Hansi Jnr. He retreated as fast as he could back to the porch along with Almat who had come after him. At the porch now they gasped and rooted for the rest to make it to the mansion. The devious roll of water splashed against the scampering humans and those on the porch, scattering them like herds of sheep without shepherd as it rolled violently westward.
Vatima lost hold of Hansi Jnr in the dangerous splash of water - mother and son flying in different directions. She cried out and tried to swim toward him, but he rode the crest of another tide away from her, choking, coughing, and thrashing out in the flood enfeebled by its force.
"JUNIOR!” Vatima shrieked as she made frantic effort to keep her body afloat, searching as well for Pram and Manta in her choking glance. Tears streamed down her eyes, washed off again by another splash. This must be a nightmare, soon it’ll be over, she thought, consoling herself.
When Vatima saw Pram's drowning throes few strokes away from her, almost to the end of the western edge of the flooded yard, she felt the nostalgia of death in the girl’s stifled screams and could not bear the pain of irredeemable loss.
She kicked, clutched and thrashed out in hysteria, shrieking "Pram, no!" whenever her head rose above water, but the succ
essive waves denied her every opportunity to save her daughter. Another higher wave rolled over all of them as Atlantis sank further.
Buried in the crushing wave, she almost could see the fangs of death beckon on her. She began to struggle for her life instead, her loving children - two sons and a daughter - momentarily erased from her memory. One last thought flashed in her drowning mind as she sank - perhaps this is the penance for my debauchery in Manu Square.
A swirl later, Songhai and its glamor existed nowhere else but beneath a virile sea. Atlantis, indeed, was never the same again.
# # #
From the point of view of the Guardians, Atlantis was a boiled egg with shell cracking into six parts. Thin sheaths at the crack points like some reliable cell membrane held it from total disintegration.
Despite the relentless widening of the cracks’, the imperceptible sheaths bridged the gaps and held Atlantis in place. Occasioned by random shifts of tectonic plates within Atlantis’ crust, the downward trend at times affected the poles.
While some parts caved in, other areas bulged out to keep the balance in check. The tilt of the northern pole perhaps, or the emergence of new blocs, reversed the current of the Deemen Sea in the opposite direction - southward. The reversed current raged and surged onto a massive landmass which sank.
Emptying turbulent content into the new hollow, the place where the sea once occupied, drained itself. It rose as a wet bloc of undulating landmass with streams of water linking the wider expanse. The bloc that sank bore the seeds of humanity.
The Guardians could not help but feel sympathy for the ill-fate of Atlanteans as they watched them fight the bounds of despair and fear and fail to outsmart the besieging water.
Their lack of options of escape touched Tonka Manu’s heart too. It stirred in him a tinge of emotion over their wrestle with fate till the spasms of inevitable death lulled their efforts. Their listless surrender to overwhelming water haunted his thought.
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