by Bob Cooper
“Are we glad to see you,” Dirk said.
Captain Ryan told them about the rescue plan and that Tim and Myra had escaped. His team captured the other guards and were in the process of interrogating them. They walked to the main room where they drank water to hydrate while the last of the gas left their bodies.
“Any news on the hostages from the lab?” Dirk asked.
“No word yet. As far as I know, there hasn’t been any ransom demand. Things are at a dangerous standstill.”
Captain Ryan questioned Acey and Hillary while Dirk listened. Raina walked out the door and down the hall into the communications room. She studied the complex maze of equipment as Aidan caught up with her.
“Obviously someone built this facility to study the artifact,” she said to him.
Aidan didn’t answer right away. He looked at the antiquated equipment.
“This stuff is at least fifty years old,” he finally replied.
“Then, these people must have had knowledge of the artifacts back then.”
“Let’s get out of this place and off this rock. This place freaks me out,” Raina said.
Acey explained everything to Captain Ryan except for the voices of the Guardians that Hillary heard and their interest in Hillary’s pregnancy. She also left out the fact that they were getting closer to opening up a container. But Captain Ryan was satisfied and needed to get back to Earth. He watched as Dirk lifted his cruiser safely off the small moon and into open space. Dirk signaled his good-bye and was on his way to Earth.
“We can’t go back to Earth—not yet,” Acey said. “Now that Hillary came up with the sequences that will open the containers, we need to study them further.”
“They also took an extreme interest in my pregnancy,” Hillary interjected.
“But why?” Aidan asked.
“Don’t know,” Acey said,” but I do know that Tim and Myra won’t leave us alone until they get what they want. I want to go back to Eris and see if we can’t get into one of those containers.”
“Why don’t we stay here and open the containers?” Raina asked.
“We’re not doing either. It’s much too dangerous,” Dirk said.
“Look, our only hope is to find out exactly why the “Righteous Way” wants these artifacts kept a secret. This will give us some leverage with them, especially if they know we would make this information available to everyone,” Acey said, trying to reason with Dirk.
“Or it will intensify their efforts to kill us,” Dirk shot back.
Hillary interrupted their conversation when she called out before slumping to the ground. Billy ran to hold her.
“They’re back. I hear them. I see them,” Hillary said, closing her eyes.
12
C aptain Ryan finished his briefing with the Citizen Guard Command and headed for his room on the ship for some much-needed R&R. Nothing had changed on Earth since his departure—the hostage situation had not been resolved, and no demands had been made. He was several hours from Earth and wanted to sleep.
“Captain Ryan, you are needed on the bridge,” the AI said.
“Damn! Now what?” he thought as he headed to the bridge. When he arrived, his entire crew was there.
“What’s this?” he asked.
Private Eloy stepped forward.
“Uh, well, we all want to show our appreciation for your courage during this last mission. Your bravery not only saved my life but the captives as well,” he said, extending his hand.
He looked around at all of them. Never had anyone said those words to him in his entire career with the Guard. Blushing, he shook Private Eloy’s hand. This mission gave him the confidence he had lacked and proved he was worthy of his command, a Captain in the Citizen Guard.
“Thank you very much. You are the finest team I have had the pleasure of working with.”
“Just one more thing, Captain,” Private Eloy said.
“What’s that?”
“Well, we thought you might want to brush up on jetpack landings, so we have something you might want to use.”
The Private handed him an old pair of anti-gravity boots with four metal springs attached.
Everyone laughed and clapped as the Captain inspected them.
“Thank you. I’ll make sure to take these next time I’m on a mission,” he said with a grin on his face. “Call me when we reach Earth,” he said, saluting them as he left the bridge.
***
Dirk watched Hillary as he relinquished the command of the ship to the AI. She was humming and swaying back and forth. Billy looked worried, but Acey knew this was typical when the “voices” were in her head.
“She’s alright. She’ll come to in a bit,” Acey assured him.
Hillary laid there panting and focused on everyone staring at her.
“The prophet must be consulted — the prophet must…. Must talk to the prophet,” she said, barely audible.
“Who is this prophet?” Acey asked.
Hillary didn’t answer and attempted to stand up. The dizziness was with her, and she fell backward, but Billy was there and eased back to the floor.
“We must talk to the prophet.”
They looked at each other, but no one understood. Billy gave her water to drink.
“Tell us who this prophet is,” he said gently.
“He can help us. He knows,” Hillary said.
“Who knows?” asked Raina.
Hillary looked at her and took another sip of water.
“Edgar Cayce knows. He can help us. The prophet can help us.”
“Anyone know this person?” Aidan asked.
Some shrugged their shoulders; others shook their heads.
“AI, who is Edgar Cayce?” Aidan asked.
“Edgar Cayce, born March 18, 1877, died January 3, 1945, was a mystic of twentieth-century Earth. Known as the “sleeping prophet,” he allegedly possessed the ability to answer questions on subjects as varied as healing, reincarnation, wars, Atlantis, and future events while in a trance.”
“We must seek him. We must learn from him,” Hillary said, sounding spookier than before.
“Approaching Earth’s orbit. Please secure yourself,” the AI blurted.
***
Tim and Myra landed on Earth. They were smuggled to a safe house after hiding out in the asteroid belt. They were now known criminals and wanted for kidnapping and a host of other crimes. Tim watched Myra as she anxiously waited for the call. Failure was not an option for them. They were handpicked because of their dedication to the cause.
The com link buzzed and the monitor displayed his picture. Tim looked at Myra as she walked to the chair in front of the monitor. She always kept her cool in these situations, but Tim could see a nervous twitch developing in her left eye. Sitting with her hands folded, she addressed him.
“It is an honor to meet with you, Sir,” she said, making direct eye contact with him.
He picked up a folder and flipped through the pages before he looked up at her.
“I see you allowed them to escape, and the fiasco at the lab is continuing with no end in sight.”
“Yes, Sir, but not before we extracted valuable information,” she said in her defense.
Tim watched Myra’s twitch become more pronounced.
“What is this information?”
“We believe that the pregnant woman is indeed carrying the Star Child,” she said, hoping to mitigate her circumstance.
“And how do you know this?”
“The mother displays all the signs—she demonstrates enhanced psychic abilities, including telepathic and intuitive linking with others. But most of all, the fetus has a high percentage of Junk DNA, which we believe is encoded with the genetic material we are seeking.”
The monitor went blank, and communication was interrupted. Myra, looking puzzled, turned and looked at Tim. He was about to check out the communications equipment when he returned to the screen.
“Extract the child. If she is a Sta
r Child with these “gifts”, she will be invaluable to our cause. This time, make sure all of the mother’s associates are eliminated. And resolve that situation at the lab immediately. Do not fail me again,” he said.
The monitor went dead before Myra could respond. Her folded hands loosened and she slumped down in the chair, breathing a sigh of relief.
“Contact what’s left of your team and have them find the mother and the others. We need to conclude this mission as soon as possible,” she said, walking into the other room.
***
Dirk landed the ship without incident. Captain Ryan met them at the hangar as they disembarked. He had a contingent of officers with him.
“Hello again,” he said.
Acey studied the officers and knew this wasn’t a welcoming party.
“There have been some developments while we were gone that I need to talk to you about,” Captain Ryan said, ushering them into the transport.
“What developments?” Dirk asked as they were quickly whisked away.
“First of all, you are all in danger. I have assigned these officers to guard you—specifically Acey and Hillary.”
“It’s about the artifacts, isn’t it?” Raina asked in frustration.
“Yes, it seems that the “Righteous Way” does not want these artifacts Ms. Saunders found to be disclosed,” Captain Ryan said.
“But it was only a matter of time before the world would know what these artifacts were all about. General Coburn and IIA were planning to make public their findings,” Dirk said.
“There are factions in the IIA we suspect to be part of the “Righteous Way”. That’s why she was assassinated and why the lab was destroyed.”
Dirk shook his head and sat back in his seat.
“How close was the lab team in finding out the functions of these artifacts?” Acey asked.
“We don’t really know,” Captain Ryan replied.
“Blair confided in me that they were ready to make their findings public. She asked if I would help when the time came," Dirk said.
"Why didn't you say something to us?" Acey asked.
"Because I didn't know what they wanted me to do, and she asked me to keep it under wraps until further notice."
"Where are the hostages now? Have they been freed?" Hillary asked as the transport entered the secured underground parking area.
"Well, I was getting to that. But first, let's head to the debriefing room, and then I'll let you know their status," Captain Ryan said.
Walking through a checkpoint, they were all cleared. They entered an elevator, which took them down another fourteen floors before stopping. When the doors opened, an armed security team met them and ushered them to the debriefing room. They then immediately took up guard outside as Captain Ryan closed the door. The room smelled musty as if it were the last room to get fresh air piped in from above. It had several monitors; one displayed serene pictures of some exotic island location, and the others were not on.
"Please have a seat,” Captain Ryan said, “AI, run the hostage footage from yesterday."
The second monitor sprang to life with pictures of a dingy room with seven people huddled in the corner. A masked and hooded person dragged one of them to a small table where several lights lit up her face."
"That's Norma!" Dirk shouted, walking around to the monitor.
Except for a bloodied bandage on her right arm, she appeared to be alright.
"We are all in relatively good health. I have been instructed to give their one and only demand. They want money and a starship to guarantee our safe release. If you don't comply, we will be executed," she said weeping.
The screen went blank. “We’re trying to resolve this without any more loss of life,”Captain Ryan said.
“That’s not all they want,” Hillary said. “They want my baby.”
***
Stryker looked behind him as he left the public transportation vehicle and stepped on to the cracked, uneven pavement. The earlier rain brought the rancid smell of rotting food and sewage overflowing from the street drains. Not many people around, he thought, checking his watch. It was before midnight, and his body felt the aches and pains caused by the dampness. He should be sleeping like everyone else, but here he was, walking down some rat-infested alley in the worst part of the city.
Turning down the next street, he checked to see if anyone was following him. “Nobody would dare be walking at this time of the night in this shit hole,” he softly said to himself. The building stood tightly between a tavern and a vacant hotel. As he approached the main entrance, several people staggered out of the bar and into his path. He waited for the raucous group to pass and walked down the street before stepping in front of the retinal scan security screen.
The reddish light flashed, and the door strained to open, stopping about halfway. He squeezed through and took the urine-soaked elevator up to the sixth floor. Once there, he almost stumbled over a female, passed out with assorted drug paraphernalia around her. Tiptoeing around her, he found apartment 602. The door opened before he had a chance to knock.
“You sure couldn’t have picked a more disgusting place to stay,” he said, walking into the tiny studio apartment.
“This is temporary until the heat dies down,” Tim said.
“Well, you might be here for a while then. You are all over the news.”
“You let us worry about that,” Myra interjected.
“So what do you have for me?” Stryker asked.
“We know that there will be protection assigned to Hillary. We need you to find vulnerabilities so that we can capture her again. After that, you will assist Tim and his team in eliminating the others,” Myra said.
“Is this going to be your contact point?” he asked.
“No. We will contact you when we find another place. Until then, do not contact us again. Is that clear?” Tim asked.
Stryker shook his head in affirmation as Tim briefed him on the failed kidnapping mission. They didn’t say why Hillary was so important to them, and when he asked, they told him he didn’t need to know. Clenching his teeth for fear of saying something to agitate them, he decided not to push the issue at least, not now. Instead, he listened politely and left.
***
Raina contacted Aidan early the following morning and made arrangements to meet him at her office. When she arrived, Robert was waiting for her in the conference room.
“Thank god you’re safe!” he said, hugging her.
Before they could catch up, Aidan arrived.
“While you guys were away, I worked on the case trying to move it forward. After your disappearance, I talked with the Brothers, and they’re not sure they want to proceed. They’re very concerned with everyone’s safety,” Robert said.
Aidan listened intently, wondering why he was asked to be at this meeting.
“I thought that might be their reaction. But I believe the best protection for all of us is to shed as much light as possible on the artifacts and expose the “Righteous Way” to the public,” Raina said, looking at Aidan.
“I agree bringing this to the people will give the “Righteous Way” something else to deal with, but I’m not sure Acey and Hillary will agree,” Aidan said.
“That’s where you come in. I would like you to convince them to go public with this. I will talk to Dirk and get his concurrence,” Raina said.
Aidan gave her a concerned look.
“Why don’t you talk to her? You’re her sister,” he argued.
“Because given your history with her, I believe you have a better chance of persuading her than me.”
“She won’t even talk to me. The whole time we were captured, she hardly said anything to me.”
“Then here’s your opportunity to fix that. I am swamped, and as my PI, I need you to do this.”
Aidan stared at Robert, who kept as non-committal as he could.
“I won’t promise anything, but I’ll try,” Aidan said, walking out of the meeting
shaking his head.
“Why did you do that? You could have easily talked with Acey,” Robert said.
“I know, but for Acey’s sake, she needs to get some resolution from this relationship with Aidan.”
“Maybe so, but forcing the situation could be a disaster,” he said.
“You may be right, but I have a strong feeling it will all work out well. We’ll wait and see.”
13
A idan wandered down the street and found a bench next to the public gardens. The strong smell of Jasmine filled the air as he watched the fiery-red plumes of the Ocotillo sway gently. This is where he and Acey had sat and talked for hours. It was his favorite spot in the whole city. Not much changed here. He reached into his pocket and brought out a crumpled envelope containing a letter. This mode of hand-written communication was available, and he relished the feel of a tangible item in his hands instead of cold digital content displayed on some monitor. He held the letter close to his chest as if to assimilate the words into his soul. Staring at the crude drawing of a man and a little girl holding hands in front of a gravesite brought tears to his eyes. He reread the accompanying short letter:
Dear Aidan
I hope that everything is well with you and that you are now settled. I’ve enclosed a picture that Annie wanted you to have. She asks for you constantly. You need to take her since I’m no longer in good health and able to care for her. Please let me know when and where you will pick her up. I wish you good fortune in your future endeavors, and please keep in touch.
Love You,
Aunt Rose
***
Acey stepped out of the black land cruiser as Dirk approached. Normally she’d walk, but the security detail wouldn’t allow it. An agent accompanied her to the entrance of the Astro-Archeology building where Dirk caught up to her.
“I’ve notified Bressa Cobashi about what we need, and she agreed to provide it for us,” Acey said, getting right down to business.