He then observed the overhead display in the sleeping chamber. “Look at the time guys. It’s past midnight by Earth time. We should have landed several hours ago. Don’t you find that strange?” he said and pointed towards the display. The group searched each other and did in fact find that very odd. There was a bit of murmuring between them when they heard a loud thud. Everyone froze. They heard it again. “Ali what was that,” asked John. “I don’t know, let me search the exterior cameras,” said Ali as tapped at the visual display from his pod. “I can’t see anything unusual either outside or inside.” said Ali. Everyone gathered behind him and tried to see for themselves. Just then the entrance to the sleeping chamber exploded and the crew fell flat on the ground, covering their heads from the flying debris. “What the hell is going on?” yelled John. Within a minute they heard commands being shouted out as they were each picked up roughly by a series of armed TASNSA guards. The crew were initially too shocked to struggle and stared in deep bewilderment at the scene around them. They then each felt themselves being groped and patted down by several guards. “Get your hands off me!” screamed Akira coming to her senses. “You punk…” shouted Mike as he struggled with his assailants. “How dare you manhandle my team like…” said John as he was interrupted by the leader of the group. “Shut up! All of you! Or by god I will start firing,” the man yelled. Everyone in the space fell silent. Seeing everyone was paying attention he then spoke. “Wildlife One crew, my name is Captain Floyd Thompson, head of the TASNSA rescue team that has now boarded your craft. As per the United Nations Charter for Space Travel 2070, I hereby state that you are all under arrest,” he added with a deep growl.
United Nations North Atlantic Prison Facility
“What do you mean you don’t know about the threat to Earth and the New World Legionnaires demands?” said the interrogator slamming his hand on the steel table. “I have already told you like I said yesterday and I say again today, we haven’t the slightest clue how our ship was hijacked nor can I explain how the on-board video footage show Akira and Raveena at the flight controls when they were clearly asleep in the same chamber as us,” said John. “Mr. Stroff, we have gone over this a number of times with both your crew and you. You know what happened yesterday when your spacecraft approached Earth. You know the threat made by the New World Legionnaires from Greenleaf. You have also been briefed on the subsequent ratification by the Unites Nations, designating their planet as a free colony. You also know we heard both of your pilots’ voices on the monitors and there is plenty of camera footage to show that all of you were awake at that time and then returned to the sleeping chamber and snuck back into your sleeping pods, pretending to have awakened just when our rescue ship arrived. So, do you honestly expect us to believe that somehow your ship was compromised and the video footage tampered with? More importantly, Nigel Greenback could only have died by not being placed in his sleeping pod correctly. The corners report clearly shows he died from asphyxiation owing to the fact Ali Mehdi did not set the oxygen setting correctly,” said the second interrogator. “I find it interesting that you think, first of all that my crew and I were all foolish enough to do something like that. Even if we had tried to pull something like this off, we know as well as you do that there are cameras on-board. But more than that we have sat through repeated lie detector screenings and your other colleague who came in this morning must have informed you that we are in fact telling the truth,” said John. “Oh! I couldn’t care for those screenings at all. They are inconsequential as far as we are concerned. We know that we have enough proof to put you guys away for life and…” said the first interrogator before he noticed someone else walking in. “Good day boys, I’ll be taking things over from here,” said Derek Riggs as he flashed a peculiar shaped badge for both the officials to see. “Oh yes sir!” said the two men in unison as they rose and saluted him. They both glanced at John and left the room immediately.
John watched the two men leave and then looked at Derek. “Mr. Stroff first please accept my apologies for any inconvenience caused to your crew and you,” said Derek as he pulled a chair from the side wall and seated himself on the opposite side of the table. He then lifted both his legs and placed them on the left corner of the table and crossed them. “And you are?” asked John. Derek stared at him for a few seconds without saying anything and then smiled broadly. He pulled out a packet of cigarettes from his shirt pocket and offered it to John. John shook his head and Derek pulled one stick out and lit it. He leaned backwards still feeling John’s gaze on him. “I’m the person Gyordina wanted you to meet upon your return to Earth Mr. Stroff,” said Derek. John’s eyes widened and he asked very slowly, “So I can trust you then and perhaps speak freely?” “Oh yes! No one’s listening, it’s just you and me,” said Derek. John looked carefully at this heavily built man draped in a cream shirt, khaki trouser and patent leather boots. He then glanced at his short brown hair and larger than life sideburns. “I don’t know your name,” said John. Derek pulled his legs off the table, leaned forward and extended his hand. “Ah where are my manners. My name is Derek Riggs and I am a Purple Knight with the Guardians of Symoor. You’re completely safe now and need not worry about a thing,” said Derek. He further added, “Your cargo on board Wildlife One has been safely transported to the zoological parks as was previously planned. Apart from that I know you’d be wondering about them and I can assure you that each of your crew members have been freed, all charges dropped and have been escorted to their homes. To add, all negative press stories surrounding your ship and you have been…well let’s just say that your reputation is in no danger or being destroyed in anyway,” said Derek. John didn’t say anything. “Well I can see how grateful you are and I am glad for that,” said Derek with a laugh. “Now if you’ll follow me I’ll get you home. Your wife and son I am sure are anxious to meet you. Also, I’ll be at your house to pick you up tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m.,” he added and leaned back once again. “You brought us a little present and I think it’s only fair that you get to see what it is for,” said Derek. “I think I’ve had enough of this. I’ve done my part. I just want to be left in peace,” said John. “You will be Mr. Stroff. You will be. But before I let you go there are some loose ends we need to tie up. Nothing that would take too long. Oh and yes before I forget, I did receive word from General Ansari on Greenleaf that your comrade Nigel Greenback is alive and well and safely with him over there,” said Derek. John stared in amazement. “But Nigel was lying dead on our ship, how could he be on Greenleaf?” asked John. “Oh that’s the beauty of it Mr. Stroff. May I call you John? Right well John, Nigel never boarded Wildlife One with your crew and you earlier this year. What you had with you on your ship was a clone of him. Well, more than one actually. The one you saw in the sleeping pod was placed there by a second one, which retrieved it from the cargo bay. As to the second clone, it was the one that we assume operated your ship, placed the web of death above the Earth and then mysteriously disappeared just as the TASNSA team arrived to arrest all of you. Speaking of which, the video footage that seems to incriminate your team and you was fabricated and we have given our report to the TASNSA heads, so no worries there,” said Derek as he blew a puff smoke in the air. He turned away for a second and then spoke very slowly. “But I am deeply saddened to tell you that apart from the threat made to Earth and the takeover by the New World Legionnaire’s on Greenleaf, there was also an attack carried out by the Triadians on Roonbranook and the remaining colonies of the Assiross,” he said as he drew in another breath from his cigarette. “The whole Assiross race has been annihilated,” said Derek. John’s eyes went very wide and he shrugged his shoulders. He was about to speak, when Derek raised his hand to stop him. “No need to say anything. Right now, if you’ll follow me and I won’t ask a third time, I’ll take you home,” said Derek rising from his chair.
◆◆◆
The Chamber Of Giants
Egypt
A small meteor shower flashed b
y against the blackened night sky. There was no breeze blowing and the temperature was unbearably hot. John pulled at his collar a bit and reset the controls for his clothing to reduce the heat around his body. He saw the silhouette of several Symoor sentries standing just below the top of the sand dunes surrounding the Pyramid of Narmer. Ahead of him, walking into the pyramid were Derek along with two of his people, Nadal and Razia and behind them was the giant box from Wildlife One being towed on a large levitation platform. John followed them in and saw a series of orange flare lights glowing in different corners and he gazed around at the surrounding walls. He was confused by how barren this structure was and wondered why it was designed so. John watched as Derek tapped at the controls on his armlet and pretty soon he saw a green flash and then a wide translucent screen appeared in front of them. Derek turned and gestured for his crew to move forward and John stared in amazement as they along with the box disappeared into the screen. “Well John you coming?” said Derek gesturing to him. John nodded and walked to where Derek stood. He saw Derek disappear into the screen and could not help but feel even more apprehensive. “It’s alright Mr. Stroff. It’s perfectly safe I assure you,” said Nadal placing his hand on John’s left shoulder. John smiled and holding his breath, walked into the green haze very quickly. He then felt something pull at his arm and quickly opened his eyes. He was then mystified to see the hall he was standing in. “Magnificent isn’t it!” said Derek watching him. “It is indeed. And we are exactly under the Sphinx in Egypt as you said?” asked John. “Oh yes. You just covered several hundred miles in a few seconds. Not bad for ancient technology eh?” said Derek with a wide grin. “Indeed!” said John.
He turned to gaze upon the Hogam box and the two statues of Anubis. “Inspiring!” he said to himself and began to walk up to them. “Uh Mr. Stroff this way,” called Razia. John stopped and turned around to follow the group walking in the opposite direction. “All fine outside there boys?” asked Derek speaking into his armlet. “Yes, all well sir. Satellite images don’t show any hostile movement. We are good to go!” replied one of the Symoor sentries. “Good! Opening Jackal trap now,” said Derek. He lifted the key that had been given to John by Gyordina and both Razia and he as before, stepped on the hover platform, which rose up to a height of 15 feet. They both slipped the key into the lock and turned it clockwise. The familiar click was heard and immediately the door opened. As it slid up into the ceiling, the group once more took in the sights of this new space. There before them, placed along the sides of the two longer walls lay six giant cryogenic capsules each, which appeared filled with an opaque white liquid. Towards the center of the room lay three larger ones with one placed ahead of the other two. The walls of the room were embellished with depictions of Oakorian scenes along with carvings of various texts spelt out in the native Oakor language of Halfecki. No Egyptian Hieroglyphics were to be seen here. This space didn’t seem to contain anything else, but on moving into it Derek observed another doorway at the far end of the room. “That would be their preparation room,” he said. “Whose preparation room?” asked John coming up beside him. “John allow me to introduce to you the last remaining Oakors left in existence. The center capsule you can see ahead of the other two contains his highness Kina Ferox, the King of the Oakorian race. All of them have been in a state of suspended animation for around 13,700 years. While I told you what the other side of this Great Hall of Records contains, this portion was created at the time when the Great War was still raging and his highness was advised by his court to seek shelter and retreat to this underground layer and remain frozen along with several of his most trusted soldiers, so that when the time was right he could exact his revenge the right way. The spiritual sages at the Oakorian capital had understood from their meditation sessions of tapping into the Oamic Hall that this should be the course to follow. They foresaw the coming defeat and hence informed Ferox and his court. With the help of the Assiross, the Hall was sealed permanently, with the former taking the key and equipment needed for Ferox’s awakening with them to Roonbranook. For accessing the other side, well all of that was safely hidden under the ruins of Angkor like I told you. But coming back to the main point at hand, given the way the hall is designed, no one could either find or detect it for all these centuries,” said Derek.
John watched as the rest of the crew opened the giant box from Wildlife One to reveal a series of oval shaped objects, which were marked by a series of rectangular patterns imprinted on one side of them. These patterns soon came alive in a shade of yellow. Each crew member placed them in a slot at the base of each capsule. As they did so they could hear a whoosh sound being emitted. “These are the unlocking mechanisms for the capsules. Once everything is in place, I’ll be using this device to set the right combination to open things up,” said Derek holding a peculiar silver object in his hand that looked more like a giant needle of sorts. “I took this out earlier, when we were inspecting the box while you were being interrogated,” said Derek. John did not say anything. He turned back and continued to watch the crew place each oval into each capsule. “I’m sure you’ve got more questions on your mind. Anything I can help with?” asked Derek. “Yes, tell me something, you just said the Assiross took away one key and left another here on Earth. As we both know that they are…sorry I mean were so technologically advanced, why didn’t they just teleport the key they had to you or give it to the Endanmo to hand over on their behalf?” said John. “Sure. Makes sense. But to start with, teleporting the key wouldn’t have worked as we don’t have the corresponding equipment here on Earth and as you know the Assiross along with the Triadians are forbidden from coming here. But you may well wonder how is that these two races continued to correspond with their followers here? As during any conflict, every group finds a way and knows the necessity of staying in touch with their allies behind enemy lines. They have been very discreet about it. But just as we know the Triadians speak with the Defenders of Amanora, they too know we speak with the Assiross. Neither would betray the other as then everyone would be in deep trouble with the Astra Regime. It is a funny arrangement I’ll agree, with plenty of contradictions but that’s how things are. More so, the Endanmo over time realised, who was on the right and in the end sided with the Guardians of Symoor,” said Derek.
“But what I’m not able to get is couldn’t the Oakors or the Assiross have known much earlier what Amanora was planning?” said John. “Maybe they did and I’m sorry I can’t fully answer that. But like all good beings, they too must have not believed that an all-out war would occur or that the Triadians and their allies would go to such lengths,” said Derek. John paused for a moment and then finally asked, “Tell me, what does the all Seeing Eye represent?” “That’s a good question. It means that we are watching you or that humanity should never feel alone. It’s actually an ancient symbol created by the Assiross. They intended it as a reminder to be placed on ancient monuments, records and even currency to assure people that they are never alone in the universe nor unprotected. But let me add that it also refers to the Kaivoo satellite that still orbits the Earth. It’s a giant and intricately designed cylinder shaped object that is meant to provide a protective shield across the entire world. It is powered by what are known as Agovon crystals. My team and I retrieved the last one on Earth that was till now hidden away here in the Great Hall. When the Great War broke out, the Flaleems and Novongs had tried to steal the one that was in the Kaivoo, but their attempts were foiled by the Assiross army, who destroyed it. The reason for it was because if the crystal fell into the formers hands then were certain to use it for destructive purposes, namely ripping apart the whole planet,” said Derek as John stared at him. He continued. “There were only two crystals on Earth, as Agovons themselves are very rare in this galaxy. All three races as a part of their interstellar travel were also trying to locate more sources from where the crystal could be mined. It is so far, considered to be the most powerful energy source there is. So you now know why each race ha
d a reason for wanting more of them. With the destruction of the first crystal the Kaivoo was naturally out of function and so, the same Assiross army switched it to invisibility mode, so it would remain undetected all these centuries,” said Derek. “Also, stepping back to the question you asked about the all Seeing Eye, the Triadians and their allies’ use a symbol of a Cobra with its hood fully exposed coiled around a red pyramid. The Cobra is meant to depict their strength and ability, while the pyramid is meant to show how they are the supreme gatekeepers of wisdom and power. Personally if you ask me I think it only shows what a bunch of cowards they really are. It’s clear as day that they were jealous of the capabilities of the Oakors in particular and this is just their way of showing that they can be top dogs as well,” said Derek spitting a bit. “Derek we’re ready,” said Razia. “Great! Let’s get started,” said Derek.
Everyone gathered behind Derek and he looked over the space carefully. He then tapped his thumb three times against the device he held and then pressed down on it firmly. John noticed a streak of light move up and down along its surface. He then saw each of the ovals flickering brightly and turning a deep yellow. On cue each of the capsules started to change and the once opaque white turned to a smoky grey. John then realised that they were filled with gas and not liquid as he had originally thought. After a few seconds, the exteriors of the capsules began to descend into the floor and the smoky gas began to spread around. The crew then heard a loud suction noise and the vapours began to disappear into the floor. When the haze cleared within a minute, they could make out the outline of the giants standing in front of them. The 15 beings were draped in white, a sort of peculiar hospital robe like outfit. They then heard the giants make a few sounds and then begin to speak in their foreign tongue. The beings near the front then noticed the small humans standing by the doorway. King Ferox, the tallest of the group, walked forward and gazed down upon them. Derek took a step forward and bowing his head, he stretched his arms outward and began to speak in fluent Halfecki. The alien listened carefully and after a few minutes it smiled. Ferox nodded and turned gesturing for the rest of his people to walk to the next chamber. Derek and the rest watched them pass through the opposite doorway till it shut after the last one entered. “Well I guess that went well,” said John. Derek nodded and then walked towards the box from Wildlife One and pulled out another device, which he placed on the floor. He then tapped across its surface and soon a giant holographic map appeared. He then moved his fingers across the device’s surface, which then showed several arrow markings at a particular location on the display. Derek then tapped the device once again, which then began to glow red. “Right! Let’s be on our way back to our headquarters. John we’ll dropping you home of course,” said Derek. “What, we are leaving now? Aren’t we going to wait for the Oakors to return,” said John. “They are getting ready. The giant map you see over there will show them where they need to come. And don’t worry they have several ships of their own in the Hall on the other side. They’ll know where to find us,” said Derek smiling. The crew and he then began packing up their gear, while John continued to stare at the doorway on the other side of the chamber.
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