“We will be reaching our chopper soon, which will take us towards the North of Dorenland. At the location we land, you will follow only my instructions, is that understood?” asked Kenneth. John nodded his head. “Good. I’m glad to know that. But tell me John, do you wonder how you survived the crash? By all laws of physics you should be dead by now,” said Kenneth. “I did think of that earlier but it doesn’t make any sense to me,” said John rubbing his forehead. “You were saved by the Assiross, John,” replied Kenneth. “A what?” asked John. “The Assiross, John, are a race of beings, who originally come from the Orion constellation. They are the co-creators, along with the Oakors, who biologically engineered human beings,” said Kenneth. John burst out laughing. “Good God, Mr. President, are you pulling my leg? I just survived a chopper crash, nearly got killed by a Tiger and you’ve got the nerve to dole out childish stories like this?” he said. Kenneth remained unfazed. “I am going to tell you something right now but you will not interrupt me. What I just said is true. True, as I am here before you in flesh and blood. Several of them were in the Amyrot Jungle earlier this evening and had a sacred fire lit, which was the blue light you saw. It is not like a regular fire and is used to call forth the protective spirits and divine energy of life that watches over all living beings. Having seen you fall from the sky, one of them directed a protective shield in your direction, which stopped your aircraft from being burnt to ashes,” said Kenneth. He paused and studied John’s expression. He continued “The many ancient cultures on Earth, be it Egyptian, Mayans, Indus Valley, Viking and countless others, all spoke of the Gods; beings of great ability and might who came from the stars and granted them their powers of knowledge, philosophy, architecture, spirituality and technology. These beings were of three races, which comprise of the Assiross, the Triadians and the Oakors. Each race belonged to a solar system that revolved around each of the three stars seen in the Orion constellation. These three races were the ones who travelled the galaxies and established civilisations across them. The universe as we know it, is a falsification. It teams with life and the many civilisations that exist, trade with one another in either economic terms or knowledge. You may think I’m joking but I assure that I am not. What I am about to show you, is the ultimate proof any person can hope to receive,” said Kenneth as he leaned back in his chair.
“I say this because when my team and I arrived on Greenleaf in 2064, the Assiross greeted us on our first night at Alita. They did so because our discovery of Greenleaf was due to them. They guided the White Ice spacecraft to find this planet as they knew our Earth needed support. More so, they have helped us shape and build our world here just as they helped our ancestor’s on Earth centuries ago. They have helped guide our way of life and made Axedon the grand city you see today. Where I am about to take you, is to the Assiross city of Roonbranook. There you will see the wonders of the universe that you never knew existed but which were kept hidden from humanity all this time…... since the conclusion of the great war of 11,500 B.C.,” said Kenneth. He lowered his eyes as he said the last words. John stared at him in astonishment! He just did not know how to respond to Kenneth. “We have reason to believe, that there may be some among our people who are loyal to the Triadians. We, of course, have never found any proof so far, but the people we met today, or beings rather, were senior leaders from Roonbranook who have confirmed our suspicions. Hence, the reason why we covered your tracks. Khalid and I are of the opinion, that some of our most high ranking officials may be siding with the Triadians, hence, we have to remain watchful.”
They travelled the rest of the way in silence till the Oryx came to a halt near a rise by the sea. They stepped out and boarded a chopper that was waiting for them. John glanced at his clock, which showed 3:40 a.m. He watched as the ground beneath them disappeared and the waves of the sea foamed and crashed under the moonlight. They followed the coastline for a short while before turning inland once again. He wrestled with the monologue Kenneth had shared and felt as if it were all a dream, that the stories Kenneth had just spoken of were mere fantasy. “No there is no such city. Kenneth must have lost his mind or something,” thought John.
The chopper sailed the skies for forty minutes till finally it touched down on a mountain top. Everyone got down and John saw a thick layer of mist hovering just beneath them, which extended quite a ways towards the horizon. He glanced up and saw the brilliant constellations of stars above. The granite mountain top they stood on shimmered underneath them. John turned to Kenneth to ask him what they were meant to do next but decided not to. At that moment, a ray of white light penetrated the mist cover and went straight up to the sky. John stood there transfixed, as the rest of the mist lit up into bright white and parted revealing the secret scene beneath. There, before them, stood a city that was structured in a star shape formation, where at each point there stood a large pyramid with complicated graphic art spread across its entire surface, though none of the pyramids had the same external art. Rows of trees and landscaped garden terraces appeared to decorate each side. As he looked closer, he noticed that this particular patch of land rose higher over the coastline, with the sea below.
Towards the left he could see the white sandy beach that curved and merged with a mountain range that stretched out and abruptly ended in the sea. Turning the other way, he saw a mountainous coastline towards his right but then his attention was arrested by the structure he saw at the farthest point of the star formation, opposite to where they stood. From its large base, the tower curved upwards towards the sky. The height of it was astounding. John saw the sharp contrast of the white petal structure as it moved along with it. It gave the appearance of a lotus flower opening up. He quickly looked at the centre of the complex and saw a large circular courtyard with an Egyptian eye symbol across it. At four points in the circle, he could just about make out four giant statues but could not discern what they were. John looked at the whole city again and was astonished by how large and breath-taking it was. There were rows of smaller buildings that surrounded the space of the Egyptian eye with a larger garden terraced circle that was built around them. He then noticed a bright blue light that emanated from just below them and peering downwards he saw a large crystal structure that appeared to rotate. “My God, Mr. President! I am sorry for doubting you earlier…this is unbelievable,” stammered John. “Don’t be, John,” replied Kenneth. Suddenly the structures lit up and the colours that shone forth from each building, as well as the garden dazzled the senses. While John marvelled at this profound light show, a hovering object appeared above them and cast a red light across each of the team members on the mountain. John felt a warm tingle move across his body. The object remained there for a barley a minute and then flew back down towards the large eye in the centre. John squinted his eyes to see what would happen next. He then saw the Egyptian eye turn a bright yellow and then a burst of light as bright as the sun come forth, which blinded him. He turned to cover himself but it was too late.
Hangar 18
Nigel paced the hangar rapidly. He finally stopped by the entry way and stared outside. The clouds from the storm were passing away and he watched the wet tarmac glistening with the rays of the morning sun. It had taken the team 12 hours, more than double the regular time, to return to the Halo air base. Though they all had had very little sleep, they refused to head back to the hotel and chose to remain in Hangar 18 till word came back about the rescue mission. The other members rested in the office space above. Mike was sprawled across the sofa and was munching on a sandwich. Raveena was preparing some coffee for everyone, while Ali and Akira kept checking the latest rescue report and images streaming in. So far nothing concrete had been reported. Paulo stood by the office doorway and looked out towards the whole space below him. He watched Nigel as he resumed his pacing and grew a bit alarmed as he saw Nigel move towards one of the parked helicopters. “Nigel, what the hell do you think you’re doing?” Paulo called out. “What does it look like I’m doing? I’m goi
ng to head off and find John. These bungling idiots here haven’t a clue as to what they are doing,” said Nigel as he began to start the mobile platform the chopper was placed on in order to move it outside.
Paulo came running down the stairs and grabbed his arm. “You will do no such thing, Nigel. Please, we have to remember that the Greenleaf authorities are doing everything they can. They have rules that we need to follow…,” said Paulo as Nigel cut him off. “Oh yes rules, right! To hell with their rules and protocols, mate. This outbacker is taking matters into his own hands. And get your hand off me,” said Nigel as he brushed Paulo aside. “Nigel, don’t be foolish. You know the Amyrot Jungle is extensive and where are you going to start looking? The Greenleaf people have scoured the area, from where John’s last signal was reported. Plus, they have a much larger team already looking for him,” said Paulo, getting irritated with Nigel. “Well, they don’t have me, mate. I’m gonna find him…,” said Nigel. “Do you think that you’re the only one who cares? We all do but we have respect for the procedures laid down by our hosts. So stop your hero drive and stay with the rest of us. We can do more together, than being off on our own,” said Paulo trying to pull Nigel back. The other members began to hear the commotion and came out as Paulo kept struggling with Nigel. “Let go of me, mate or I swear I’ll knock your block off!” said Nigel, pulling at Paulo’s hands. “Nigel, stop what you’re doing right now!” yelled Raveena. Adrian, who had till this point been in the washroom downstairs, stepped outside to see Paulo struggling with Nigel and then noticed the chopper making its way out of the hangar. He ran up to the mobile platform to begin switching it off. “Oye! Adrian, stop that,” said Nigel as he broke free from Paulo. He pushed Adrian aside from the control panel.
Just then a voice called out near them. “Is there a problem here?” Everyone turned to see Toby Mackinrow standing near them with several of his police constables. “Oh, no problem whatsoever,” said Paulo as he straightened himself out. “Hmm, I see. Well since you’re all here I think we can speak. As you are aware, our rescue teams have surveyed much of the area from where we last picked up John Stroff’s helicopter signal.” As he spoke Toby moved his eyes across each member. He paused for a second as he observed Mike walking down the stairs towards them. “I wanted to inform you that the remains of his chopper have just been found,” said Toby. Quite a few gasped upon hearing that sentence. “But the thing is, we found his shoe prints in the damp soil heading southward, which we place at around at 10:50 p.m. last night,” said Toby. Nigel let out a laugh. “Ah! Well, that’s good news. Old Johnny boy must have recovered and walked away then. He’s on his way home. Come on then, let’s go look for him…,” said Nigel, who began to take a few steps forward but stopped as Toby raised his hand. “No, Mr. Greenback, you are not going anywhere. Nor is anyone else here for that matter. What you fail to understand, is that the area in which he crashed is a known Tiger habitat. While there have never been any instances of a person being killed by one, there is a likely chance Mr. Stroff may have become the first…,” said Toby as Mike interjected, “That can’t be true.” “It’s highly possible, Mr. Johnson, as the team found an extensive number of tiger paw marks around the craft. More so, the tracks follow Mr. Stroff’s into the hills,” said Toby as he raised his hand again for everyone to remain silent. “We couldn’t find any trace after that…,” he added. “What! No signs of a struggle or anything? Come on man, John must have been armed and stunned the damn brute with his gun and taken off. You aren’t looking hard enough,” said Nigel. “We are and please learn to appreciate our efforts in this matter, Mr. Greenback,” retorted Toby. “Then let us come along. Mike, Adrian and I know tracking like the back of our hand. We can do this…,” said Nigel. “No. You will do no such thing. You are to remain here or at your hotel. No one leaves,” said Toby. “And, Mr. Greenback, let this morning’s attempt to ride a solo search effort, not be repeated,” said Toby as he glared back at Nigel. “Oh! Don’t you worry about that, mate,” said Nigel as he returned the stare and laughed a bit. “Lousy paper pusher…” whispered Nigel as he watched the police escort depart from the scene.
◆◆◆
The Assiross
Roonbranook
John awoke to the sound of crashing waves. As his vision became clearer, he sat up and noticed that he was in a room, which was luxuriously decorated. The floor was of a highly polished jet black stone and the walls were beautifully inlaid with designs that resembled ancient Egyptian and Greek mythology. He turned toward the windows and gazed out at the limitless expanse of the sea. He breathed in the salt air and enjoyed the feeling of the cool wind brushing against his face. “Ah, I see you’re awake, John,” said Kenneth coming into the room. “Good morning, Mr. President. Do you mind telling me where we are exactly?” asked John. Just then he heard a loud whizzing sound and turned back just in time to see a large grey and black coloured spacecraft emerge from beneath the dark blue sea and shoot off into to sky. He leapt up from the bed and dashed to one of the windows, holding its frame tight in his hands. John let out a gasp and turned back to see Kenneth smiling at him. “We’re at Roonbranook, home of the Assiross, here on Greenleaf. You’re at one of the human guest houses they have here. The others from my team are here as well. Come, you must get ready. It’s nearly 11:00 a.m. and we have a lot to cover today before we head back to Axedon. The bathroom is towards your right and brunch is in the main pantry. I’ll be waiting for you there,” said Kenneth as he walked to the door. “Wait! Mr. President, what do you mean human guest houses?” asked John. Kenneth emitted a slight laugh. “Oh, you’ll see,” he said and closed the door behind him.
The noon sun touched his skin gently as John followed the team outside after a rather satisfying meal. He stared in wonder at the colossal size of one of the pyramids, which at such close quarters was a marvel to behold. Compared to it, their guest house was a miniature model. As his gaze drifted from one structure to the next, his eyes caught sight of an exotic flock of giant birds, which soon flew over them and towards another pyramid on the opposite side. “What birds are they?” asked John. “Oh, they are Frittajay’s. Not native to Greenleaf mind you. They originally belong to the Assiross’ home solar system,” said General Ansari. “Oh! I see,” said John. The team proceeded along the pathway to the base of the large lotus-like building. Its petal shape was pure white, while the tower structure at its centre was an emerald blue and stretched upward, high into the sky. After scanning it for another minute, John turned his attention back to the pyramids and noted their exquisite colours and patterns, spread across their respective surfaces. He then glanced at the wall of mountains in the distance and tried to locate the spot that they had stood on top of a few hours earlier. With curiosity getting the better of him, he asked one of the team members for their armlet. The group paused to watch him. After placing it on his left hand, he asked the member to help him find an application that could measure the height of the structures around. He team member chuckled and assisted John by pointing his hand first at the mountain range first, which displayed a height of 3,122 feet. Satisfied, John then moved his hand towards the nearest pyramid and the armlet showed that it stood at a height of 2,500 feet. He did the same with the Lotus structure, which came up with a reading of 3,900 feet. John squinted as he tried to look at the top of it. “Shall we, John?” said Kenneth. “Yes Mr. President. Sorry, do lead the way,” said John as he handed back the armlet to the team member. The group continued walking till they were at the base of the Lotus structure.
Once there and without the slightest word or movement by the team, the wall magically opened to let them in. John stared at this engineering marvel as he entered. The air inside felt so pure and the smell reminded him of sandalwood. They proceeded to what looked like a long transport tube and upon nearing it, its outer skin became transparent and parted away revealing a platform for them to stand on. John followed the team cautiously on to it. The next instant he was lifted up as it moved upw
ard along the tube. He grabbed the arm of one of the members next to him. “Wow! Sorry about that,” said John as he steadied himself. “Uh, just a question, mind telling me where are we heading towards?” he asked. “Patience, John, patience,” replied Kenneth smiling.
Soon, the giant platform that they stood on stopped and one side of the tube opened, revealing a stunning scene. John stood frozen and had to be helped forward as he gazed at what was the most elaborate control centre he had ever seen. He felt his breath grow shorter as he stared in amazement at the giant beings, who were spread across this particular area. He felt dwarfed, gazing up at them for they were nothing less than 20 feet in height. Though most surprising to him was that they resembled human beings. Their skin complexion was a very light beige and they each had a very robust outer appearance. Their chiselled features and well styled hair gave them a godlike quality. There was something richly beautiful about them and they moved with a delicateness and rhythm that seemed hypnotic. But the most striking feature he noticed was that their eyes contained no pupils and instead emitted a soft whitish glow. After gazing at them some more, John observed a ghost like shape around each of their heads. The women wore greyish outfits with white sleeveless jackets, while the men wore black outfits with red sleeveless jackets. They did not seem to care for the human visitors who had just made an entry and continued with their business as usual. “My God!” said John. The room itself appeared to be a vast observatory, which had multiple screens and large displays spread across its centre. He also noticed that the ceiling above was covered with changing maps of various star constellations and galaxies, where parts were being magnified and minimised in quick bursts. Kenneth let John take it all in, before he spoke. “My dear John allow me to present to you Vithree Gyordina,” said Kenneth as he directed John’s gaze to the group of giants standing to their right. Having been so distracted with the sights around him, John had failed to observe the small group that had walked up to them.
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