by Kip Hartzell
“Some of our dig sights have revealed as much, but no physical evidence of your people exists, just idols and drawings.”
“Our physical make up, and this planet’s dynamics, cause our remains to decompose rather quickly. Not much is left behind, but our deeds.”
“That is important to you?”
“The very essence of who we are.”
Jay stopped to look around at such a diverse group. Marveling at how they got along with each other. He hoped someday his own people could do the same.
“Shall we get something to eat?”
“Sounds good, but I want a more in depth tour, later.”
“I would be happy to accommodate.”
Chapter Nineteen: Endeavor
“You’re late,” Rhe-A said, from the shuttle hatch. She was dressed in a light blue button up collared shirt with dark blue slacks. Her hair was pulled back into a bun, much like the way Jay first saw her at his Grandfather’s front door, minus the blond hair.
Aidan and Jay stopped laughing as a result of her voice. “I didn’t know we were on a specific time schedule, it’s a day off.”
She looked perturbed as Jay looked at Aidan, and then started snickering. “What’s so humorous?”
“Aidan was just telling me about some of your adventures.”
“I don’t remember them being-funny,” she said, putting her hand on her hip.
Aidan got serious, while waving goodbye to Jay, or was it a good luck wave, Jay thought.
“I guess you don’t remember anything about fashion either,” Jay said, climbing aboard and sitting in the co-pilot’s seat.
Rhe-A looked down at herself, rolled her eyes and, went to the pilot’s seat to begin plotting their course. “Where to?” she said, looking over at him.
“I had better check in at the hotel. I’ll think of something after that.”
“This haphazard way of going about life is very disturbing.”
“Nice touch on toning down the blue eyes, genetics?”
“No, coronal overlapping computer membranes.”
Jay looked confused. “Contact lenses?”
“Not as effective as a handheld, but effective enough for our purpose.” She reached over and waved a hand over a crystal. His face appeared on the forward screen. She moved her eyes back and forth, mesmerizing Jay by the act.
“Whoa, can I have some?”
“You’re already dangerous enough with the crude technology you have, no.”
“Can I fly, then?”
“No.”
“Can I-”
“No!”
“This is starting out to be the worst vacation, ever.”
“It’s not a vacation,” she said, as she set the shuttle on its course. It moved silently through the tunnel, vanishing as it exited. “It’s a break from a stressful situation.”
“That is the definition of a vacation. Well, if you’re going to hang with me, you’re going to have to be more like Rhea Wilkenson. She was fun, and I liked her.” Jay thought he saw her nostrils flare, while making more adjustments.
She paused. “I will endeavor to find her. We have arrived.”
“Good, I’ll meet you in the hold, I’ll be the one in the taxi. Oh, I’m driving.”
The taxi was moving at a high rate of speed into a rising sun. Jay noticed the air-conditioning worked very well for such an old rust bucket. Making a corner, the sunlight moved across the dashboard giving off a strange blue hue. His distraction caused him to slightly drift into the oncoming lane. He shifted back and slowed down.
Before Rhe-A could make a comment, Jay said, “Two people in the front of a taxi is a little suspicious, maybe we should rent something else? Probably a commonly used car for the area.”
Rhe-A touched the dash and a 3-D display appeared. Jay just looked back and forth several times. “Computer, list most common vehicles sold in Greece in the last ten years.” The display only responded with data. “Looks like the Toyota Yaris.” She moved some astral symbols around and the car began metamorphosing into the car displayed on the dash.
He let off the accelerator as the interior began to change. He held onto the steering wheel with one hand, while holding up the other. “What the hell-”
“Superconductive autonomous memory metal poly-carbon Nano molecules. Quite flexible and programmable.” She smiled. “You don’t think we would trust ourselves to your crude tech, do you?”
“Actually,” Jay said, marveling at the new smelling interior, “I think it’s cool.” He began waving his hand across the display, searching the car models. “We need a four door, and red. That one, a Mercedes S series.”
“We are supposed to be inconspicuous.”
“Oh, right.” He waved a hand and chose a white one.
Rhe-A shook her head as the car began to change. She was surprised at how fast Jay caught on to the technology. She stored it away for future reference.
Jay pulled up to the hotel valet. “I might as well check in, since the institute is paying. It’s got two beds. You can stay with me, or get your own room.”
“I was asked to keep an eye on you, proceed.”
Jay handed the valet something that looked like a key, and headed into the hotel lobby. He was given a room on the fourth floor, where he was told most of his group was assigned. He nodded, and was off to the elevator. They were alone in the elevator, when he said, “We’ll check out the room, and then see if we can find Shell. She’s still not answering her cell phone. The desk clerk said she checked in yesterday, and hasn’t checked out.”
They silently walked down the hallway reading the numbers. Jay stopped and inserted the key card. He stepped in, followed by Rhe-A. Flicking on the lights, he said, “Which bed you want?”
“I’ll take the one closest to the window. I always had a room with a window on Atlantis.”
Jay threw his bag on his bed. Rhe-A set her bag down, and then went to open the curtains.
Jay didn’t want to interrupt her nostalgia, but could feel something was wrong. “Uh, you can use the bathroom first.”
“Unnecessary, I’m ready to go-sightseeing.”
“Alright, I’ll use it.”
Soon, they were wandering the hallway, until they came to Shelly ‘s room. Jay knocked lightly at first, and then he pounded on it. Nothing. Rhe-A stepped up and stared at the door handle, and with her telekinetic ability, opened the door from the inside.
“Damn, you’ve got to teach me that trick.”
“It’s not a trick. It’s a mental-”
“Shell!” Jay stepped passed a perturbed Rhe-A, and into the room. “Shell!” Nothing.
Rhe-A closed the door, while Jay checked the bathroom. He then looked around the room, and then under the bed. The room was ransacked and cluttered. “Well, she was either on a bender, or practicing for a cage match.”
Rhe-A took off her silver bracelet, and held it out. It stayed eye level, and began to spin, faster and faster, until it looked like a sphere.
“What’s that?”
“Right now, it’s scanning the room.” It slightly changed colors. “Project,” she said, confidently.
The room slightly darkened, as the door sprang open to let a running woman into the room. Jay leaped out of the way as the apparition ran through him and began rifling through ghostly cloths.
“Stop,” Rhe-A calmly said. The scene froze. “Is this your colleague?”
Shelly was distressed. Her tan pant-suit was smudged and wrinkled. Her blonde hair was disheveled, and he thought she might have lost some weight. “Yes, Shelly Masters.”
“Confirmed,” Rhe-A stated, as she studied the phantom readouts just below the sphere.
“How’s this possible?”
“The sensor array detects everything, from DNA, pheromones, and body excretions, light, sound, and temperature echoes. Measures the rate of decay, while the computer ties into your crude network system to fill in sequences of events. Simple.”
“Oh, yah, sim
ple.” Jay rolled his eyes, and looked back at the Shelly projection.
“Continue,” Rhe-A said.
The scene showed the hotel door slowly open as Shelly took her cloths from the drawers and tossed them at the open bag. A man strolled in, Jay recognized him immediately. The scene skipped a little, then hesitated.
“Professor Snodgrass, the dig sights lead archeologist,” Jay informed her.
The scene continued with Shelly looking up to see him. “Professor, how did you get in here?” Her voice was like an echo.
“The door was open, my Dear.” His voice had the same echo, but much deeper. She looked confused. “Where are, you going? The sight will be open in a week.”
“I, uh, have business to attend to state side.”
“Does it have anything to do with the artifact you found?”
“What artifact?” She stopped throwing things around.
“Ah, Miss Masters, don’t play coy.” His attitude took on a menacing tone. “The one you stole from the dig sight. I know you have it. I can feel it.”
Jay and Rhe-A moved around to face the phantom Professor. He held out his hand and a piece of metal ripped out of her jacket breast pocket, and flew across the room. “Stop!” The metal piece halted in midair in front of Jay.
“You don’t have to yell,” Rhe-A said, while moving closer to the object.
The picture was sketchy, somewhat incomplete, blurry.”
“That’s Atlantean tech,” Jay said. “I found one similar to it at the dig sight.”
“Interesting, the man shows Atlantean abilities. Much more advanced than Cousin hybrids. It wouldn’t be the first time we encountered a rogue Atlantean. Continue.”
The Professor caught it, and smiled as he raised the other hand, looking at an empty palm.
“Stop!”
“You still don’t have to yell. It can hear you at your lowest breath.”
“Oh, yah, sorry, over stimulated cortex, remember. Look at his face, there.” He saw a double image around the eyes, they were black holes, not to be stared into, or your soul would be sucked into them. Jay stumbled backward. At that distance, he could see the whole person was a double image. The eyes were like two teardrops pointing at each other, and his skin was bloodless gray. “He’s a Destroyer.”
Rhe-A came around to look at it from Jay’s point of view. “How can you tell?”
“You don’t see it?”
“No, I see what should be there. What is he looking at in his empty hand?”
“an instrument, I think. Apparently, the computer doesn’t recognize or register its properties.” Jay stared into space for a few seconds. “I’ve seen them before. When I was younger, and as recently as just before Gramps, ah, John Rodgers died. I never knew what I was looking at.”
“Interesting, they are still after agoam crystals to stay grounded in our universe. Agoam crystals have been lost all over the world since Atlantis’s exodus. Cousins find them from time to time, and blend them into more natural objects, jewelry, weapons, clothing, and so forth. They can be dangerous to many hybrids, having unpredictable effects on them. Mostly, not good affects.”
Jay looked at his watch. “How long ago did all this happen?”
“Four point two-three hours ago,”
“Continue,” Jay said.
The recording started as if never interrupted. The Professor smiled as he examined the piece. “How did you find this?”
“I... I just found it.”
“No one, just finds these objects. Come with me Miss Masters.”
“No,” she said, a little frightened.
He approached her, took her sternly and looked in her eyes. “Yes, my Dear, you want to come with me.”
Shelly calmed down and stared back. Jay could see she was falling into a trance. Then, she blinked twice, and then slapped the Professor hard, while making a run for it. He was stunned for a second, but was able to catch her before she got to the door. He pulled out a hand gun from his jacket pocket, and put it in her face. She stopped struggling.
“Now, come with me, or I will kill you.”
She nodded her head. He quickly frisked her, and found her cell phone. He tossed it in the toilet, and motioned her out of the door.
Jay started to follow, almost forgetting he had to open the door, first. Rhe-A snatched the bracelet from the air, slipped it on, and followed him out into the hallway. They watched the specters walk down to the elevator. The elevator doors opened for real and let people out, only to have them walk through the apparitions. The two couples didn’t even acknowledge any of the scene, and strolled on by.
“Let me guess, we’re the only ones who can see this?”
“Precisely.” She smiled a rare smile, and stepped into the elevator.
“Who are You?” asked Shelly of the past.
“Why, I am Professor Snodgrass.”
“No, you’re not. You have the artifact, now, let me go!”
“I can’t do that. My benefactor has taken an interest in you, and wishes to meet you. Now, come along, be nice, and I won’t be forced to hurt you.” The elevator door opened, and he patted the weapon under his jacket.
She complied, but with a little more confidence than before. Jay knew that look, she was planning something. They made their way outside as the ghost called for his ride. A black, American made, SUV drove up. Shelly took off running. The Professor waved a hand and launched her into a post. She crumpled to the ground.
“It’s alright, Folks,” the Professor said in Greek, to a growing crowd. “I’m taking her to the hospital.” He picked her up with little effort for an old man. He laid her down in the back seat. He quickly got in the passenger front side, and they sped away.
“Where’s our-” The car screeched to a halt in front of him. Jay ran around to the driver’s side, open door, and hopped in. Taking control, he said, “Which way?”
Rhe-A quickly transferred the data to the car. A specter of a car appeared up ahead. Jay pulled in behind it, trying not run into the real cars speeding passed.
“Can we speed this up, Shell could be dying,” Jay said, as he switched lanes, making someone very angry.
“He’s actually going very slow.”
“Probably trying not to draw attention to himself.”
She motioned with her hand, and the black car sped away. Jay pursued.
“I admit, at first,” Rhe-A started, I was going to download as much information as possible to the local authorities, and let them handle the situation. Staying away from the Destroyers, and their Hagha’Kyum henchmen, has been a long-used strategy.”
“What changed your mind?” Jay asked, changing lanes to follow the ghost car.
“The way she resisted the mind influence. Curiosity, of how she came by the Atlantean tech. Also, your affection for her.”
Jay couldn’t tell if she was jealous, or concerned about his feelings. “Do you suspect her of being an Atlantean?”
“Atlantean, a hybrid, such as yourself, or a Temporal Dissociated Atlantean. I need a closer examination.”
He dodged a few cars, noticing the traffic lights were turning green as he approached. He surmised, Rhe-A had something to do with that, along with no police in the area. The phantom car soon turned off onto a road blocked by an orange barrier, with the words in Greek and English, stating, no entry. Jay quickly went around, and followed the car to an abandoned factory. It stopped in front, allowing the Professor to pick up Shelly and carry her inside. The SUV sped around to the back of the building.
“Sensors indicate three humanoids on the fourth floor on the south-east corner and some odd readings. We may want to call for assistance from Chrysalis.”
“There’s no time to wait. We have to save her, now.”
“I’m reading one humanoid in severe distress. I concur with your assumption. I will send a message.”
Jay started to get out, but Rhe-A grabbed his arm. “This vehicle is equipped with gravity, and anti-gravity generators, alo
ng with a cloak. We should move to the South-East corner fourth floor, and enter from there. Initiate cloak.”
The Mercedes-like car shimmered out of existence. Jay sent it to its destination. “I want this car. All we need are masks and capes to save the world.” He actually heard her laugh as the building’s fourth floor window came alongside the car.
“It’s not a car, and be careful what you wish for.”
The large window had been knocked out a long time ago, leaving shards of glass on the seal and floor. Rhe-A reached into the center console and took out another bracelet and handed it to Jay.
“Here’s yours, it’s not quite as sophisticated, but it does have a personal cloak.” She quickly showed him how to use it, and then reached in and pulled out two SP-10’s. “Here, hold this.” Jay took hold of the pistol. It fit as though it was made for his hand. Rhe-A tapped a small crystal, and Jay felt an almost unnoticeable tingle. “There, it is set for only you. Just don’t shoot me. It works just like one of your modern hand guns. Do you know how to use one of those?”
“Yah, Gramps taught me,” he said, nervously waving it about.
She grabbed his arm. “Put it away, and don’t use it unless there is no other choice.”
“Understood,” he responded, trying to get his emotions in check.
The car door blended away, allowing them to step on the window seal, and into the empty room. Rhe-A examined the handheld, while moving through a hallway, leaving only wisps of swirling dust near her feet. They heard the talking, before they got to the large room. Jay recognized the Professor’s voice, as he spoke to two other people. At the far end of the room, Shelly sat tied to a chair with her head slumped forward. The Professor creature stood over her talking to a subordinate.
Moving up closer, Rhe-A spoke to Jay mentally, “Move around the other side of the room. As soon as they leave, we’ll get her out of here. Simple, quick, and no bloodshed. Understood?”
“Understood...wait, are you in my head?”
“Yes, and it’s chaotic and cramped in here. Be prepared to move quickly.”
“How did I know not to speak out loud?”
“A mental incursion results in a mental response, just as if I verbally spoke to you, you would verbally speak back to me. Now, do as I said. Move to the doorway on the far side of the room.”