The Deception

by Janet Shore

  With that, Maria entered the hut into the waiting arms of Frank. The two cried and hugged and did not notice that Colora had walked on out of sight. Hans hugged Frank also,

  “This is crazy, Frank.”

  Frank looked at him soberly,

  “This is not a dream or a myth or a fantasy. This is really happening to us. You should have seen that monster. It went for Maria. I tried to stop it but was slapped down with such force, that I thought my neck was broken and that I was dying from my injuries. Thank God that the Danali showed up. I don’t understand any of their advanced restorative powers, but it fixed me right up. If only they would share their technology, we could probably eliminate almost all disease on Earth.”

  Maria corrected Frank,

  “I think the monster was going for our son.”

  The war raged on. The moon shook. The Earth shook. Investigators from any resident nation on Earth where the Jazene crashed only found the wreckage of empty ships at the crash sites. The Jazene that survived the crashes had blended into the world population. Before they left their ship, they made sure that no dead bodies were found among the debris. In the end, the Danali were victorious. The Jazene were vanquished. The ship containing Maria made a slow entry into Earth’s atmosphere.

  Frank, Maria, and Hans entered another available jeep to tour the area. They spotted a now familiar white glow. Hans stopped the jeep atop a cliff overlooking a pasture. There were three beings walking along the pasture. One of them was Colora who had helped them earlier. The other two were humans. Frank guessed,

  “We must be over the drop off point that Colora mentioned for those two. He said that they would be dropped off before we were.”

  Hans picked up his binoculars to get a closer look,

  “The two humans standing with Colora appear to be wearing mohair jackets.”

  The glow became so bright that Maria, Frank, and Hans had to look away. When they looked back, the three had disappeared. The two humans were transported to Earth near the Syria zone held by their enemies. They approached the barrier that Major Baranov had attempted to breach. While they were still some miles to the south of the barrier a disheveled refugee named John walked up to them. One of the humans greeted the refugee,

  “How are you today, John?”

  Surprised, John responded,

  “How did you know my name?”

  “We know many things. We know that Syria and Egypt are devastated, deserted, and occupied. We know that we were taken up by the Danali long ago. We know we have just returned. We know what we were told aboard the ship. We know what we must do.”

  John hadn’t eaten in several days. He had plenty of water, just no food. He had wandered out of the Jordanian refugee camps because of the conditions there. Striking out on his own, his supplies soon dried up. He was hoping to make his way to the coast, perhaps Haifa.

  “Do you have any food?”

  The two looked at him carefully,

  “No we do not. We have just arrived. We are headed toward the barrier.”

  John warned,

  “I wouldn’t go there. You will be killed.”

  The two looked at each other and smiled,

  “We won’t be killed there. We need to talk to the Jazene holding the Damascus area.”

  John couldn’t understand. They had no weapons or supplies. They must be crazy, or at least crazier than he was,

  “Well, good luck.”

  The two walked on. Looking back they waved to John shouting,

  “Look over there!”

  John walked in the direction they pointed. He walked over a hill. The air held a familiar smell. Then, in the clearing on a rock he saw a pizza box. He opened the box. To his amazement, there was a large cheese pizza as fresh and warm as if it was just delivered. He ate his much needed meal wondering how it got there. There must be a town nearby.

  The Danali spaceship continued on toward Turkey. When it reached, Lake Hazar, it circled slowly around the lake mapping out the most uninhabited location near the lake that had a least a nine kilometer diameter. Maria, Hans, and Frank could feel their whole world shake as the giant ship slowed to hover over the perfect spot. The ship beamed the entire habitat into place next to Lake Hazar. Maria looked up through the now clear dome. Against the blue sky, she saw the giant ship ascend and recede straight up into the sky. Maria quickly reached for her communicator,

  “By the numbers, check in at once.”

  Very quickly, all of Maria’s team checked in. Everyone was alright. Everyone had their own story to tell of the odyssey that they just endured. Maria announced,

  “I’m going with Frank and Hans to check outside the dome.”

  The three of them piled into the jeep and drove to the airlock. Fiddling with the controls, they adjusted for the difference between the inside and outside pressures of the dome. On the moon, the difference was stark since the moon lacked an atmosphere. The adjustment for Earth was just a matter of convincing the air lock computer that the normal pressure readings on the outside of the airlock were not a mistake. Once accomplished, the airlock opened with considerable force. Air rushed in during the slight equalization of air pressure blowing the party back on their heels a few feet. Once the wind inrush subsided, Maria stepped outside. The air was fresh. She could smell the fresh water from the lake. It was beautiful blue water as far as the eye could see. The three of them walked out carefully and gazed back at the dome. The seals at the bottom were damaged beyond repair which meant that they could expect interaction between the inside and outside environments.

  Suddenly, they heard a noise in the sky and saw a Jazene spaceship out of control. The ship flew over their location wildly moving left and right. The impact of the crash several miles away was extremely loud. Frank exclaimed,

  “Let’s see where it crashed.”

  They went inside the dome to get a motorcycle with a sidecar. They had to take the rig apart to get it through the airlock. After reassembly, they started down and up the rough terrain toward the crash site. As they arrived at the crash, they saw the butchered remains of the Jazene craft. A horrible familiar shriek drew their attention to the right of the crash about a hundred yards. It was the same reptilian creature that was in the medical clinic when Maria gave birth on the moon. The creature recognized Maria, and started to close the distance between them rapidly. Maria screamed in horror,

  “Let’s get back to the dome!”

  The three jumped backed into the scooter gunning it hard. The red dragon reptile turned toward Lake Hazar. Using a device which it wore as an ornamental bracer, it sucked a huge volume of water out of the lake and into the sky in an arch designed to water bomb the three fleeing team members. As the motorcycle headed on a downhill grade, a large volume of water crashed behind them. The ensuing flood chased them, threatening to smash and drown them against the terrain. The ground shook throwing them off of the cycle, out of the sidecar, tumbling over the rocks. They landed hard. Frank groaned as if he might have broken a bone. Maria rushed to his side. Blood was running down her leg. Hans was unconscious about fifty yards away. Just then, a huge earthquake occurred caused either from the landing of the dome, or from the crashing of the Jazene ship, or from the huge impact of the water, or from the moon’s radical tidal shifts, or a combination of these factors. A deep fissure opened between Maria, Frank, and Hans and the oncoming tsunami. In the distance, the hellish screech of the reptilian creature could clearly be heard. The water poured into the fissure saving them from certain death. Maria looked up to see that the rest of the team had come to their rescue. Dr. Warwick performed as much triage as he could at the site. The dragon screamed.

  Frank had a compound fracture of his left arm and was bleeding heavily. Dr. Warwick needed to set the bone temporarily and stop the bleeding with a tourniquet. With expert skill, he stopped the bleeding. Looking at Frank, he said,

  “This is going to hurt.”

  Frank readied himself. With a sudden snap, Dr. Warwick s
et the bone. Frank screamed louder than the dragon. Quickly, Dr. Warwick placed a temporary splint fastening it tightly. The white bandages turned light brown from the dried blood. Frank barely managed to say with a groan, “Thanks, doc!”

  The rest of the care would have to occur at the medical clinic. The rescue cycles and their victims made it safely back inside the dome.

  Chapter VII

  Pedro Sanchez opened his briefcase, pulled out a computer generated report, and presented the updated information to General Arnold and Major Sanders,

  “Gentlemen, international sovereignty is collapsing. The United States is still intact, but almost a fourth of the globe has been affected. Regional powers have taken the opportunity to turn humanitarian effort into invasion and occupation. The Jazene presence in Syria and Egypt has set a bad example for the world. The hyperinflation in these areas has made even the most basic of necessities unaffordable. The death toll is more than a billion people. Many have starved to death. The cleanup of the rubble and the burying of the dead are constantly being interrupted by disturbances caused by changes in the tidal forces from the moon. The frequency of space debris and meteorites hitting populated areas has grown, compounding the cleanup effort, and aiding those forces with unscrupulous agendas.”

  Major Sanders muttered something under his breath. General Arnold heard part of it,

  “Four? What did you say?”

  Major Sanders looked up at the general,

  “Nothing”

  Pedro continued,

  “In some places, fires are ranging out of control. It is estimated that global deforestation has exceeded thirty percent. This will have a long lasting impact on the available oxygen. Without sufficient oxygen, growth will be stunted, breathing will be more difficult, and those animals, fish, birds, and reptiles that thrive in oxygen starved environments will dominate their habitats. We could see distortions in their populations. We will probably lose some species entirely. Oxygen is not the only problem. Over a third of the global fresh water sources are polluted. This factor is greatly contributing to the overall death statistics right now. Supply chains worldwide have been disrupted. On the high seas, the shipping industry and the navies of the world have lost a large portion of their fleets due to the dangerous conditions caused by the tidal forces of the moon. Those ships were not built to withstand the violence of the current distortions. Walls of water have been sinking large ships in minutes. The dead sea life floating on the surface has become a large problem for those ships still at sea. Volcanic activity is at record levels due to the radical plate shifting. The ash clouds have greatly diminished the available sunlight further damaging the Earth’s plant life, and interfering in both normal and rescue human activity.”

  General Arnold rubbed his neck,

  “That is an excellent summary of the state of things. Do you have anything else?”

  Pedro shuffled his papers,

  “Yes, but it is not confirmed. Dr. Jenner at the Exoplanet Institute received a communication from the Jazene expressing that they have monitored the ongoing devastation from the war, and from the meteor strikes, and would like to help repopulate the Earth’s depleted resources including animal and plant life.”

  The general turned toward Pedro,

  “Exactly how do they propose to do that?”

  Pedro closed his notebook,

  “There is no further information at this time.”

  The Jazene activities, largely undetectable by humanity were occurring underground. Syria and Egypt held many labs in their secure zones. Also, in remote places on Earth, the Jazene had landed and secured additional areas. The digging and building technology was rapid, and already a secret network of bio-genetic labs were working on a variety of life forms both plant and animal that fit their picture of what must be done to restore and improve the biosphere of the Earth given the devastation. The Danali came to know precisely what the clandestine labs were producing.

  In Syria, the two humans they dropped off approached the barrier shield. The humans had been abducted in the ancient of times, had their fair share of genetic augmentation, and were given letter designations as names, “L” and “N”. “M” and others were still aboard the Danali ships. L and N arrived at the barrier. Where Major Baranov failed, L and N had more advanced tools. L pulled out what appeared to be a staff of some sort. The point of the staff cut through the barrier without a problem but before they could step through, the barrier quickly filled the opening. L and N temporarily walked away toward a position that had been staked out by the Russian Major and his forces. They were looking for a mineral that was indigenous to the foothills of the mountains in southern Syria.

  The Major addressed them in Russian,

  “Halt. This is a restricted area. Do not advance further or we will open fire.”

  L replied in Russian,

  “We are only looking for a mineral to help us penetrate the Jazene barrier. I would expect that you would be interested in our success.”

  Major Baranov reasoned that such a reply could not be true. He believed that these two were morphed forms of the Jazene. He gave the order, “Fire.”

  Bullets and large artillery rounds headed straight for L and N. They opened their mouths and fire that was hotter than a normal flame thrower shot out toward the approaching rounds. All of the rounds disintegrated in a huge explosion between the two groups. No one was harmed. Major Baranov’s suspicions were partially supported. These two could not be completely human and probably were from inside the fortified barrier around the Damascus area.

  L shouted,

  “That was a warning. You will be destroyed if you attack us again.”

  Major Baranov ordered his forces back to the north steering clear of these two. L and N continued to search until they found an outcrop of limestone and basalt in a concave bare section of a hill otherwise covered in greenery. L commented,

  “This may do nicely if we rearrange these two minerals into the particular molecular shape needed to modulate our cutting. Then, as we cut, this mineral will spread out from the cut to hold back the barrier filling.”

  N held the minerals that L carved out of the hill. When they had gathered enough, they held the lot in their four hands cupping above and below. Both looked skyward, closing their eyes. Their hands began to glow as the minerals rearranged themselves into their desired configuration. L took the finished stone and attached it to the end of his staff. The two then returned to the barrier. They cut through with ease. The mineral encrusted the opening holding back the force of barrier backfilling. They walked through with an outward air flow as the barometric pressure inside and out equalized.

  N sniffed the air,

  “There are pathogens in here. We have just let them escape to the outside air. There will be many more dead from this plague.”

  L exclaimed,

  “What are they doing in here?”

  They hadn’t wandered far before they encountered the Jazene in their natural ethereal form. Both sides drew their weapons. One of the leaders of the Jazene effort in Syria shouted,

  “Wait! Stand down.”

  He hurried toward L and N apologizing,

  “Excuse our haste. I know we are at war. I propose a truce so that I can show you what we are trying to do here.”

  L looked at N,

  “Proceed.”

  The strange group entered a bubble transport that flew them to an underground entrance right outside the urban edge of Damascus. A round door plate in the ground slid open as their transport entered from the light into darkness. Soon, L and N heard insect-like noises, and other strange unidentifiable sounds. The transport stopped a mile below the surface at one of the labs. The leader explained,

  “My name is unpronounceable but you can call me, Major. We learned from our encounter with the Russians that it is a common designation for one in authority.”

  They entered the lab where there were many Jazene working with augmenting insects. Major explained,


  “Here we are trying to improve the insects in such a way as to benefit the Earth when we repopulate the depleted species.”

  L spoke up,

  “Do not lie to us major. We opened your barrier and unleashed a pathogen. Just that little contamination will poison the waters beyond the effects of the war and the meteors. It will cause diseases and sores amongst the remnant now clutching to life. They are desperate for food. These experiments of yours are not misguided by your ignorance of what Earth wants and needs. I can see that you have an agenda that you are covering up. You cannot withhold the truth from us.”

  Major’s disposition turned decidedly unfriendly,

  “Take them into custody. I want to see if we can apply that new bio-material inside their bodies.”

  The guards nearby started to accost L and N. They opened their mouths. The entire lab room was destroyed by fire. No Jazene in the room including the Major was left alive. The insects under experiment were scorched hulls. Their exoskeletons were putrid. The cages and lab equipment were fuming slags of metal. L and N stood amongst the flames. L raised his staff. Above their heads a cylindrical shaft to the surface formed and they rose through it to escape the underground horror. Once above the ground they kept going up until the tip of the staff breached the top of the barrier. More pathogens escaped as they flew south into Haifa. Many people were amazed as these two landed from the air without any jetpacks or parasails. A crowd surrounded the two. They explained what they had seen. They projected that the Jazene labs would infect the Earth in an effort to subjugate it. Many in the crowd used communication devices to live stream their message to the world. After Haifa, the two spread this message of coming destruction from city to city in the area. For the skeptical hearing the message in the far flung reaches of the world, L had a way to make the urgency of the matter more real. Whenever the message was received skeptically, wherever that person was on Earth, L’s staff automatically materialized a smaller version of the horrors from the underground labs directly to the skeptic’s location so that they could see for themselves. Those plagued by the examples of the truth of the message blamed the messenger. Worldwide animosity towards the two grew as these examples and their effects became more numerous.