NEW ADVENTURES OF ISIS #4

THE NEW ADVENTURES OF ISIS #4 Over the past few months, since her previous adventure, Theresa Adams would be vastly relieved that Isis had kept her word, and not acted, without permission. This had allowed enough time to pass that the "strange woman, with the jewelry", would pass out of the headlines, and allow Theresa to return to her work, with translations. Although Theresa had been reading several articles, recently, about how low-income, dilapidated, housing, was being demolished, to make way for a new casino, and she was not happy, that people were losing the only "housing" that they had, she would resist calling upon Isis, for help. Besides, what could the ancient goddess do against city hall crews? Sure, Theresa was part of a group, calling for more accountability, from city hall, especially with the government announcing that $500 million was to be spent, on the new casino, at the same time that local populations were being told that there was no money to fix roads, bridges, or even sidewalks. No money, for public improvements, yet $500 million, for a casino? There was talk, of breaking into city hall, and stealing evidence, in order to coerce the city into making improvements, just as there was talk, of hacking city computers. There was even talk, of stealing construction materials, and making public repairs, without government permission. Theresa was opposed to each of these simply because her own background showed how badly things could turn out. Sure, Egypt had not been perfect either. Not all royalty had died, quietly, in their sleep. Many had been "assisted" by a variety of means. According to Adams family history, the ascention, to each throne, was not so simple, as western culture wanted the world to believe. Even the people, of Egypt, did not want the world to know how many battles had been fought, over thrones. How many battles had left the desert sands red, with blood, as heirs fought to keep royal rights, while others claimed to be more "qualified" to run the empire. Theresa's own parents had taught her about some of the blood, which Egypt had spilt, over the centuries. The cities, which had been wiped out, and families, which had been slain, just for being loyal to a ruler. Then, there was the modern world, where two world wars had done little more than to shift the balance of power about. How many people had died, just in the 20th century, and for what? Land? Religion? Government? What made Theresa sick, even today, was when she thought about the Middle East, and the peoples of Iraq, and Afghanistan. After centuries, of holy wars, then had come the years, of Soviet aggression. Not long after the Soviets realized that they could never "conquer" the Afghani's, then had come the continuing invasion, by the United States. For over 12 years, her kin had been working to free Afghanistan of the puppet government, imposed by America. Ofcourse, what good were revolvers, rifles, R.P.G.'s, and I.E.D.'s, against M1-A1 heavy battle tanks, Apache Attack Helicopters, and 50-caliber machine guns? All these centuries, and all this blood-shed. Theresa wept when she wondered where it would, all, end. Would her relatives ever be "free"? Ofcourse, when Theresa had tried being rational, and asking for peaceful intervention, she had been called a coward. Neither side wanted peace. All both sides cared about was killing one another. This is why, until the call came, Theresa had focused her attention on the translations, while monitoring the story, about low-income people being ordered out of their homes, and told to go "somewhere else", while bulldozers plowed out the housing. No one, either at university, nor in the city, was surprised when the housing came down, so easily. The managers had allowed the properties to deteriorate to such a point that even strong thunderstorms could have knocked the places down. What students, and the public, had found appalling was how the same city, which claimed there was no money, to re-hab the homes, was the exact same city, which "found" the $500 million, for the casino. Then came the "twist". The professor called Theresa to his office, one morning, and asked if she would like to do some consulting, with him. When she asked "Where?", the professor had said "Its at the construction site, for the casino. The crew says they have found something, but they dont know what to make of it." Although Theresa figured that this was just a gimmik, to try and grab some publicity, she agreed to join her mentor, in investigating the site. Who knows, maybe the contractors had found some evidence, that native Americans had lived in this area, as originally thought. What shocked both Theresa and the professor, was that, after he accepted the invitation, the two were informed that a helicopter was enroute, to collect them. When the professor asked the reason, he was told they would find out, later. An hour later, as the helicopter closed on the site, both passengers found out why they were being flown in. They could look down, from the helicopter, at the demonstrators, who were picketting the site. When the professor asked if that was the reason for the fly-in, all the "company man" would say was "You will see, soon enough". A few minutes later, the two saw what could not, possibly, be. After the helicopter set down, the financier came up to the pair, waived at what was before them, and said "This is why I asked you to come". There, standing before them, and huge enough to cover almost all of the lot, was a pyramid. An actual pyramid. When the professor asked where it came from, the professor, and Theresa, were taken to the security room, and shown video footage, from the night before, and that day. According to the footage, the pyramid had not been there, at 10 p.m., last night. It had "appearred", overnight. When Theresa asked if it was a hoax, maybe made of cardboard, the financier said "I wish it were that simple. If it were, I would have had it removed this morning." Upon closer examination, Theresa found an unusual cross between royal Egyptian, and religious Egyptian heiroglyths, on the pyramid. It was as if someone had created a brand new language, out of the previous languages. If so, why? What was the point? Officially, Egyptians had not started coming to the America's until the 1800's. There was no record, of any previous expeditions. More importantly, though, HOW had this thing been brought to this site, and erected, overnight? It was a historical fact that it would take even an experienced crew, with modern equipment, weeks, if not months, to build such a structure. If the video was to be believed, this thing had "appearred", overnight. It was the professor who, first, suspected a fraud, and suggested that Isis might shed some light on the subject. When Theresa asked "You suspect the financier? But, why?" The professor would point out that this project was being ridiculed, by the entire community. Why not try to generate sympathy, by claiming the site was tampered with? Theresa could see using graffitti, or vandalizing tools, or supplies, but to erect a pyramid? Wasn't that a bit "over-the-top"? The professor then slipped Theresa a note, asking to have Isis meet him close by, but out of sight. The professor thought that the priestess could shed some light, one way or the other, on this mystery. Not knowing she was being professionally surveilled, Theresa would go someplace where she thought she was alone, and spoke the words. When the light absorbed her, and Isis stepped forward, the surveillance master almost betrayed himself, as he looked upon the Amazonian woman. When Isis met with the professor, and was told what was found, Isis let the professor lead her to the pyramid. It was when he asked "Do you recognize this?", that another voice came up, saying "Yes, that is my question, as well". At the moment, when the two were turning, to see who was speaking, two pops sounded, and both Isis, and the professor, fell to the ground, as electric shocks stunned their muscles. Isis would pass out, as she recognized the weapons the men carried. While drifting in and out, of consciousness, Isis would hear voices saying "We have tried lasers, carbide bit drills, and so on, but no effect. That jewelry is not made of anything, of this Earth" Soon, Isis would feel herself being chained to a wall, while a voice said "make it tight. She has a reputation for breaking free". When Isis would say "Release me, I command you", the men, about her, would say "Not so fast. Lets have a chat, first". When Isis would say "I have nothing to say to you, mortal", the financier would say "Oh, really? I wonder what Theresa would have to say, about this?" When Isis would say "Do not threaten me, mortal", the financier would say "So, calling me a mortal. Tell me, does that mean you are IM-mortal?". Isis would say "I am eternal". The financier would say "I wonder if Theresa would say the same". After some more of this, Isis would ask "Just what is it that you want, mortal?", this is when the financier would say "I want you to transfer whatever you are, to one of MY workers. We will leave Theresa Adams, and her family, alone, IF you transfer her power over to one of my people". Isis would smile, and laugh, at this. When the financier would ask "Whats so funny?", Isis would proclaim "Only my true blood line can accept the power. It is foolish to try to seize what you can, never, have". After this, the financier would order Isis blood to be drawn. If she didn't give her power, willingly, it would be taken, forcably. The problem, with the blood test subjects, was the same, in every case. As the scientists had pointed out, Isis blood was not human. It was modified, to make her compatable, with Earths atmosphere, but not enough to make her human. Both male, and female, test subjects, suffered extremely adverse reactions, to injections, and there was no way to know why. As to the financiers hope, that sustained captivity, and even drug injections, would make Isis dissolve, leaving Theresa behind, to face him, was a failed hope. Isis stayed on. While test subjects were failing, Isis did ask a worker how they managed to erect a temple in a land her people had not, previously, visited. The worker brought in a scientist, with some scrolls, to see Isis. The scientist would show Isis the ancient documents, which showed that un-counted years ago, a settlement HAD been erected, on this site. As for how it was hidden, for so long, that was thought to be hidden in some text, on the document, which no one could read. When Isis would review the scroll, she realized just HOW the pyramid had arrived, overnight. Simple sorcery. Simple magic. She just wondered how long it would be before the people, of a foreign land, would realize that one of their pyramids was missing. The one thing Isis was confident of was that, so long as danger remained, she would remain, and Theresa Adams would be protected. Isis even smiled when she heard talk, fron beyond her cell, between the financier, and a doctor, who was giving Isis injections. As the financier would say "I dont care what it takes, put her under", the doctor would caution "We have given her enough, already, to kill ten people. She should not be alive" When the financier would say "Then, increase the dosage", the dotor would say "Sir, you dont understand. That woman is NOT human. We dont know what she is". When the financier would say "Details", the doctor would say "Facts". Isis was just happy to know that the professor, although heavily drugged, was not in any real danger. He was a victim of this, just as Theresa was. Isis just wondered how long it would be before both people were declared missing. Isis also wondered WHY the mortal would bother to "steal" a pyramid, and use it to block his own build site? Had that realy been his INTENT, or had he made an error, and was, now, hoping that Isis magic could "fix" the problem. Eventually, Isis would learn that the man had not intended for the pyramid to show up. While attempting what should have been a spell, to ward off the protesters, he had made a real mistake, in the translation, and ended with both protesters, AND the pyramid. When the doctor would admit, to Isis, "I know that you are not human, so, no threats. Just tell me. Do you know how to get rid of the pyramid?" Isis would say "No, I will not "get rid" of what has been stolen. I will only return it to its rightful owners". When the doctor asked "How?" Isis would say "Foolish mortal, do you not think that I know we are being observed? My price, for the information, is the release, of both the professor, and Theresa Adams, to safety." The doctor found this easy to agree to since he knew that the financier was rich enough to BUY "justice", and avoid prison. When Isis, the doctor, and the financier, as well as the professor, were standing before the pyramid, Isis looked upon the building, for a moment, as if pondering the mix of languages, on its facade. Was it really just graffitti? Upon closer examination, Isis realized what this pyramid was, and why it needed to be returned to its rightful place. When Isis closed her eyes, and began to concentrate, the financier asked the professor "What is she up to? A trap, perhaps?" The professor would whisper "Be silent! Isis is gathering her powers, to perform the requested task. Now, be silent!" (Isis would smile at the man, who dared reprimand a wealthy person) In time, her jewelry began to glow, brighter and brighter, then the jewelry would project an aura which would "consume" the pyramid. A short time later, the aura consumed the pyramid, then both vanished. After this, the professor went to Isis, asked her health, then suggested that the two leave the site. This is when the financier would say "Not so fast." as he levelled a fire-arm at the two. When the doctor said "We had a deal", a moment later, the doctor lay on the ground, a bullet in his chest. The financier then said "I WANT those powers. You wil give them to me, right NOW, or the professor dies". When Isis said "Very well, mortal", the professor would say "Dont do it. He wil kill you, anyway". The professor noticed how calm Isis was as she said "I think not". A short while later, while holding the med-team, at gun-point, as well, the man would demand that the sample, drawn from Isis be injected directly into his arm. When a technician warned against this, the tech saw the gun, aimed at them, and said "Very well". The tech then swabbed the financiers arm, and injected Isis blood, into his vein. Everyone then stood well back as, for a moment, the man said "Wow, I never felt so powerful, in my life", then, just as he was looking at Isis, and saying "As for you.." when a violent seizure overcame him, and everyone, including Isis, cleared the room, while the mans body went into even more violent spasms. He began destroying the room he was in. Moments later, the workers heard gagging sounds, and then a thunderous crash. When they re-entered the exam room, they found the mans body, lying, twisted in agony. But only for a moment. After that, storm clouds gathered overhead, the room went dark, and a mist surrounded the body which dissolved, with the mist. In the next moment, the storm clouds dissapated. When a tech asked Isis "What are you?" Isis would, only say "In time, you will learn". Later, Theresa Adams would consult, with the professor, about the bizarre happening. The professor would admit to being puzzled, by the entire situation. Neither of them could understand the rationale, behind the city's decision, either. After telling the displaced to, basically, "get lost", to make room for the casino, the city had, suddenly, decided to change its mind, and devote the "found money" to construction of replacement housing. Theresa Adams had to wonder how much this had to do with the kidnapping, and "enhanced interrogation", of Isis, as well as the illegal drugging, and shooting, of the professor. Was the city really just hoping to avoid negative publicity? That was the question.

NEW ADVENTURES OF ISIS #3

NEW ADVENTURES OF ISIS Having verified that the ancient painting was, safely, in the hands of the art restoration department, Theresa Adams would return to her own lab, where another, and most unusual slab, lay in wait. What made Theresa suspicious, of this slab, was that it was not really written in the ancient language. It appearred to be a more modern form, of the ancient writing. At one point, Theresa thought it looked as if it were written, by a modern hand. But, this was impossible. The ink was dated to pharonic times. For a moment, she thought she recognized the style of the writing, but, NO, that was impossible. Theresa Adams was not even BORN until the later 20th century. It couldn't be her handwriting. Still, the dean had asked her to work on the translation, in return for his continuing research, on the goddess. The deal was simple: the dean would track as many facts, as possible, about the goddess, Isis, in return for Theresa giving the translators a more active hand, with the Egyptian collection. More, than once, Theresa had been tempted to call upon the goddess, since Isis was much more fluent, in Egytian languages, than Theresa was. Finally, a break in the monotony came. The university was being allowed use of a highly compact, super-collission, device. Atleast, for a limited time, the university had access to the tech, for experiments. Although several departments wanted access, especially if "time travel" really became a possibility, the university regents declined such offers. A general memo was even sent out, dis-couraging talk about time experiments. There was never any intention of sending people into either the past, or the future. The priority goal would, at most, be to bring rocks, plants, and soil samples, from other times, for examination. (Provided the experiment worked, at all). As for Theresa, the regents made it clear that she was allowed access, due to her extensive knowledge, of the Egyptian language. Her knowledge might prove valuable, should any heiroglyths be recovered. Others were included, for similar reasons. This was no game, but serious research. Theresa was doubtful, of success, but, after spending months translating old tablets, she was ready for something new. During test number 300, though, something went terribly wrong. The device was supposed to send a simple rock into the distant past. Problem was, the device went into overload, and the automatic shutdowns failed. As a brilliant, white, light appearred, in the time/space portal, Theresa was ordered to cut the master breaker (Since she was closest to the breaker). As she turned toward the breaker, though, her co-workers watched, in shock, as Theresa was consumed by an "energy" ball of light. In response to this, someone threw a wrench at the master breaker, and cut the power. The lab was, then, plunged into total darkness, for a few moments, before the battery-powered emergency lights turned on. After this, a head count showed the lab down, by three members. Two of which would, soon, be found cowering just outside the lab door. The question, and the problem, was "What had happened to Theresa Adams?" When a thorough search, of the lab, turned up nothing, one of the techs recalled seeing Theresa advancing on the circuit breaker. After that, Theresa was gone. When the lab security tapes were reviewed, the team watched as Theresa "fell" into a brilliant light. This left the question of where/when had she gone? When the lead scientist saw everyone looking in his direction, he said "Dont look at me. The experiment was not supposed to contain a human element". Someone said "Guess what?". Somewhere, in the depths of time, Theresa found herself rocketting through a "tunnel" so slick that she felt like she was flying, at 100 miles per hour. Her thought was: "When/where will I land, if anywhere?" When an exit portal would open, it would, un-fortunately, open in the worst possible place. A palacial home, of the pharoah. What Theresa did not know was that, although her trip seemed to consume only moments of her time, in the outside world, it was quite different. To the Egyptian people, and to the goddess, Isis, herself, the portal would stand open, for hours, as the royal guards would come to shield the royal family, and servants. All-the-while, people would stare at the bright light, which had taken up residence, in their home. Isis, too, would attend the portal, as if drawn to whatever it might contain. Sometime after Isis showed up, Theresa would "fall" from the portal, onto the hard floor. At this point, Isis had only moments to react, as the palace guards moved in on the dis-oriented Theresa. Isis would have to scoop Theresa up, and soar to the sky, before the guards could react. Sometime later, back at Isis Egyptian home, Theresa's first questions were the obvious ones. Isis, however, did not understand why she was drawn to this mortal, until Theresa told the goddess about her family ancestry. Only then did the goddess understand. When Theresa looked about her, and realized she actually WAS in Egypt, she asked Isis, again, WHEN she was. If Isis was to be believed, then Theresa had travelled some 5,000, to 7,000 years, into the past. When Theresa pushed on some of the walls, hoping this was a bad joke, Isis watched, in calm tranquility. After Theresa threw a rock, at a wall section, then shouted "Leonard, you jerk. You weren't supposed to send a person. Stop this stupid joke". Isis asked who "Leonard" was. When Theresa tried to explain that Leonard was a computer programmer, and that HE was responsible for this mess, Isis could only say "We must find you a way back". This is when Theresa decided to try something. If it turned out that this was, all, a bad joke, Theresa would face "exposure", and ridicule. If not, maybe it could help. When Theresa called "Oh, mighty Isis" The call did not boom, with its normal, deep, bass, tint. Instead, it came out, normally, even as Isis said "I am here". Now, Theresa knew she was in way big trouble. She was WITH the LIVING goddess, and had no power to protect herself with. The mortal, and the goddess, then went on the "run", as Isis tried to find a place, in which to hide this "out of time" mortal. What made this so difficult was that, every time Isis found a spot, that damned, bright, light would appear, giving the duo away. Even worse was the fact that the two were being pursued, by palace guards. Isis was pretty sure of what they wanted, and it wasn't Theresa's autograph. After hours, of running, and hiding, Theresa was done for. She was tired, and hungry, and wanted to rest. This, ironically, is the moment when Theresa got the surprise of her day. Out of the pool of light came the dean, with a whimsical tone, as he said "We have been looking all over, for you. Are you ready to come home?" When Isis approached the dean, and asked "Who would you be, sir?" Theresa would say "This is the dean, of the university, where I study at". A moment later, another voice called out, asking "Dean, Are you there?". The dean responded with "Yes, I am here. Where else would I be?" The dean then turned to Theresa, who asked "Can you get me back?" The dean smiled as he said "Thats what we came for, after all.". A moment later, the light shifted a bit, then the voice said "We think we have it. Step on through". This would be Theresa's next big moment. Either she would return home, with the dean, or much worse. As they stepped up, to the light, Theresa felt herself tugged in, so she just let go, and "fell" into the "tunnel". Moments later, she was flung from the tunnel, again, but, this time, she hit a console. Then, she had hands helping her up. She was happiest, though, when she saw the deans face. When she asked the dean "How did you know where to look?", the dean showed Theresa an ancient text, about a mysterious visitor, who appearred, out of nowhere, then vanished, later. "It just made sense it was you", the dean said. Later, in a discreet location, the dean looked on, as Theresa uttered the call: "Oh, mighty Isis", and the call boomed like an overly-loud speaker, as the light consumed Theresa, and Isis emerged. Isis then told the dean "I want to thank you for helping save Theresa. She did not belong in my world. She is of this world" The dean would say "I was happy to be of service. I also want to thank YOU, for showing me where to look". Isis would respond in kind "Then, I too am happy to have been of service". With a quick observation, of the surroundings, and finding everything calm, Isis would sit on a chair, which the dean had provided for her use, and fade away, as Theresa returned. "Oh, mighty Isis", indeed.

NEW ADVENTURES OF ISIS #2

NEW ADVENTURES OF ISIS (PART 2) Prelude: At the dawn, of the twenty-first century, an American college student is required to come to terms with her Egyptian heritage. Theresa Adams will be compelled to accept the knowledge that she is the latest, direct, decendent, of the powerful, Egyptian, goddess: Isis In the weeks, and months, following her first encounter, with Isis, Theresa Adams has been trying to reconcile the seemingly double life, which she, now, finds herself living. Although attempting to concentrate on her studies, Theresa, frequently finds herself being side-tracked by the need to aid those in need. Theresa is also trying to accept, and understand, the terrible power, which comes from uttering those ominous words: "Oh, mighty Isis". Although Theresa has been willing herself to avoid trouble, whenever possible, to the point of immersing herself in her studies, and translations, to the exclusion of all else, it would seem that trouble was, at times, determined to find HER. As a result of this, and as a reminder to retain control, Theresa would begin keeping a scrap book, of Isis activities, whenever on the "loose". Fortunately, no major damage would be reported, to date, and Isis has even delivered a few bound criminals to the police. Theresa's concern, though is the potential consequences, should Isis lose control. After all, Isis is from a time when gods had no limitations. She is new to our world. Theresa's concerns, over Isis self control, though, would take a "back seat", when news would reach the university. News of a construction project, taking place in the Amazon rain forests. It would be of enough concern if construction material were rolling into the prehistoric jungles, but what really concerned Theresa was when she learned that high-power electronics were to be used, to clear a path, of sunlight, into the dark forests. When Theresa attempted to make her concerns known, to the dean, the dean would only respond " I KNOW you have had a very trying experience, recently, however, this project is for the improvement of the Amazonian economy". Theresa's thought was: "A four lane highway, leading from the coast, to where?" For some reason, Theresa felt that she understood the needs of the wildlife, and fauna, all of which would be destroyed, by the development. The question was: What about the home Isis once kept, in the Amazon? A "home away from home", in Egypt. If the maps Theresa was viewing were accurate, Isis home was right in the path of construction, raising the danger of discovery, and destruction. After sending dozens of e-mails, pleading for an end, to the construction, all of which were replied to with: "With apologies, there is nothing to be done", Theresa decided that she had to act, even if this meant doing what she hoped she would not have to do. Finding a place, where she hoped she was alone, and would not be seen, or heard, Theresa would utter those ominous words: "Oh, mighy Isis!" The light then consumed Theresa Adams, and dissolved, leaving Isis in her place. Returning to Theresa's room, Isis would find the clippings Theresa would have left for her. (Theresa had to leave the clippings since Isis was not computer literate, yet). When university staff observed Isis, in Theresa's quarters, and called campus security, every witness would report the same thing, about the incident. The woman, in the Egyptian clothing, and jewelry, moved with the grace of a gazelle, and the speed of a cheetah, as she eluded security, then surprise student, and staff, observers, when she would take flight, after saying "Oh, mighty Horace, I fly with thee". Observers would watch as the woman rose from the ground, and flew off, to the south. Unbeknownst to either Theresa, or Isis, when the dean heard the report, of the woman, with the jewelry, he would travel to the security monitoring center, where he would send copies, of the camera's footage to his office, showing where this "intruder" lady had come from. Once he forwarded the copies, he returned to his office, where he would review the materials. When Isis reached South America, she would see where, and what, the problem was. A large cargo plane was showing a light at the ground, and the light was burning a path through her beloved forest. Even from the distance, Isis could hear the cries, of the forest animals, as they ran, swam, jumped, or climbed, to escape the moving beam. In the beams wake, Isis could see the thick clouds, of dark smoke, from the scorched land. When Isis flew in, closer, she could see how wide the beam was, and how it cut a path wide enough that the forest could not close up, behind it. Isis would consider using lightning, to down the plane, but she knew how the mortals would view such a gesture. They would, just send another plane. Besides, as a goddess, Isis code of ethics denied her the right to take life, except to protect life. This is why she looked about, chose the most reflective material she could find, then moved into the path of the beam. As the forest filled with the screams, of panic, pain, and desperation, Isis would stand her ground, as she aimed the reflector at the source of the beam. Sure enough, the reflected beam disabled its own source, leaving the wounded plane to fly back to its base, bruised, but not destroyed. As Isis observed the damage, around her, and considered the healing, which would be necessary, she would look skyward in time to see men, dressed in black, or even in camoflauge, descending ropes, from something Theresa would have called "helicopters". The men would be foolish enough to think that they could take Isis, with brute force. Atleast the first five men thought so. When Isis tossed the men aside, effortlessly, four "pop-bangs" sounded, around her, as bola-nets covered her with metal mesh. To the mens surprise, though, Isis stood, tall, under a weight which would have brought down a hefty man. When Isis said "I command you, release me!", and the group commander said "I dont think so", the men watched, in dis-belief, as Isis jewelry glowed, brightly, then went dark, as the metal nets fell to the ground, as if cut by wire-cutters. Moments later, the group commander barked "tazer!", and Isis found herself buckling under the electric shock, as the hand-held device sent thousands of volts through wires, to the electrodes, adhering to Isis skin. The tazer controller would voice his dis-belief that it would take seven shocks to bring the strange lady down. Later, when Isis was strapped down, to a stretcher, and the team tried to remove her jewelry, the commando's found that the jewelry would not release. As a result, the woman, and her jewelry, would make the trip to the coast, while work got back on schedule, for clearing the jungle. When Isis arrived, at the medical center, staff would swear they put the strange lady into an observation cell, yet, when the interrogators arrived, all would be surprised to find the powerful woman gone. In her place was the docile form of Theresa Adams. Ofcourse, Theresa was questioned, about Isis escape, but, when Theresa said they wouldn't believe her, the interrogators said "Try me". When Theresa said "Alright, I AM her. I AM Isis. Or, atleast one of her descendents". To this, the interrogators just chuckled, saying "So you are. A small thing, like you, is going to take on my crack troops. What do you take me for, little missy?" When Theresa said "Its the truth", the interrogator just laughed, stood up, and turned to leave, telling Theresa "We will talk, again, when you become hungry, and thirsty. You Americans, always like to talk, more, when your bellies are empty, and your mouths are dry" then added "I will return, then". With that, Theresa was left alone, in the cell, wondering what to do, next. This is when she fell into another of those "fainting" spells she had been having, since meeting Isis. In what looked like ancient Egypt, Isis would appear, and ask Theresa "What is that device, which shocks like Poseidons lightning?" Once Theresa gaved Isis some details, including the name "Tazer", and Theresa told Isis what the device did to its victims, Isis knew to stay clear of the device. Now that Isis knew what she was up against, she directed Theresa to return, saying "You will know what to do". When Theresa awakened, and called out, the soldiers, and medical staff members, all would say that, as they heard the words, calling out, the entire building had shaken. As "Oh, mighty Isis!", boomed through the corridors, the guard, at the cell, would peak inside the cell, and watch as the light engulfed Theresa, then dissdolve, leaving Isis in the cell. When the guard opened the cell door, tazer in hand, Isis would smile at him, even as he aimed, and fired. By the time the electrodes fired, the cheetah-like speed, of the goddess, would sprint her out of harms way. The electrodes would fall, harmlessly, to the floor. Faster than the guard could comprehend, Isis was behind him, pinching his neck, and rendering him un-conscious. Although alarms would sound, and other guards would come running, weapons in hand, none were prepared for the goddesses incredible speed, or her strength. From windows, overlooking the hospital entrance, doctors, and nurses would watch, in stunned dis-belief, as the woman called out "Oh, mighty Horace, I fly with thee", then she would rise into the sky, and be away. Back, in the forest, another plane had been brought in, to continue the work, and it was burning its way into the jungle, and dangerously close to Isis "fortress". When Isis was spotted, the beam was shut off, and the plane turned away, as the commando's prepared to subdue the woman, again. Although Isis stood her ground, she would not fall for the tazers, again. Her hearing located each unit, even as the commando leader said "Tazers". With a flash of speed, Isis eluded each of the tazers, as a few of the commandos accidentally tazered one another. When the commander drew his knife, and said "Okay, lady", then lunged at her, Isis just smiled, as she, effortlessly, flipped the man, while wrenching the knife from his hand, and throwing it away. When Isis heard the distinctive clicking, of weapons being cocked, her jewelry glowed, for a couple of seconds, then the commandos noticed that their weapons would not fire. When the men tried another tackle, Isis stepped aside, with grace, and let the men fall into one another. When the men realized that Isis could not be taken, by force, they took their leader, and withdrew. Once the men, and their machines, were gone, from the area, Isis would walk a short distance, into the jungle, and emerge on a patio. A patio which surrounded, and decorated, the home she had visited, so long ago. She was impressed at how well her followers had kept up the place, after she had been left inside the chamber. Inside one of the "derelict" buildings, Isis found what she considered to be the greatest treasure, of her life. A portrait of her father. She would need to arrange transport, of the painting, to the place where Theresa worked. If Theresa's memories were true, then modern mortals had ways of making the very old look new. All that Theresa knew was that a painting would appear, one day, in her lab, with a note, written in ancient Egytian. After reviewing the note, left with the painting, Theresa would answer the call, and report to the deans office. She just hoped Isis had done nothing very rash, during her freedom. After being shown into the deans office, Theresa noticed how the dean checked the door, windows, and so on, before sitting behind his desk, and, calmly, saying "Theresa, we need to talk. First, however, I have something to show you". When the dean opened up a computer file, marked "Security", Theresa was hoping she wouldn't see what she was about to see. Live, on video surveillance, Theresa could be seen, and heard, calling for Isis. The picture then flared, for a moment, as the light engulfed Theresa, then Isis emerged. Understanding that the dean had, already, viewed the material, Theresa sat back, looked at Isis, on the screen, then asked the dean "What do you want?" (She HOPED she would not have to "buy" his silence). When the dean said "Theresa, you mis-understand. It is not my intention, to blackmail you" When Theresa asked "Then, what?", the dean said "I want to help you. I want you to learn how to control this wonderful gift. Keep it from hurting anyone". As Theresa sat there, and said "Isis has not hurt anyone, yet", the dean walked past her, removed a volume from a shelf, then asked "Do you know who Isis was? Or is?" Theresa could only say "All I know is that she has been helpful, at times". When the dean asked "Do you know Isis history? Her past, as it were?" Theresa could only say "I know what I have read, and what I have been taught. Somehow, though, the Isis I am coming to know just doesn't fit the description we have, of her". The dean then handed Theresa the bound volume, indicated the tabs, on certain pages, then said "Read this, carefully. Then let me know if you have questions". When Theresa asked about the recording, the dean said not to worry. No one else need know. After leaving the deans office, with the volume, Theresa spent the next two days studying the contents, and trying to understand WHY she, of all people, had been chosen as Isis "vessel". According to the text, Isis was considered "evil", but only by those who opposed her. It seems that Isis had opposed several construction projects, which would have destroyed animal habitats. Isis also opposed some priests, whose greed knew no bounds. Finally, Theresa read how Isis opponents found some un-defined way, to trap the goddess. They had left her mortal form to perish, in the "fortress". None ever thought that, one day, Isis would return. Calling out, to the gods of the Egyptians, Isis asked to be freed of the mortal form. It seems the gods heard her prayers since, when the guards returned, to check her prison, they found her gown, but no body. According to the followers of Isis, though, the gods placed a condition upon Isis freedom. Isis was to remain in spirit form until another Egyptian, who was "pure of heart", called the goddess forth. When Theresa looked into her mirror, and asked "Isis, come to me", Isis face replaced her own, in the mirror. When Theresa asked "Is the volume true? Were you imprisoned, for battling the wicked?" Isis agreed. When Theresa asked "How did the dean know of the volume and the recording?", Isis said "I told him where to look, and what to look for. Take my advice, mortal, and do not follow my path, in acting, alone. Pride was my mistake, Pride that I thought I needed no one". When Theresa asked "But, WHY the dean?", Isis said "Wisdom, and experience. I have seen his heart, and it is as pure as your own. Together, we will make the world better". When Theresa returned the volume to the dean, and asked "Will you help me?", the dean agreed, but on condition that he be allowed to speak directly to the goddess. Hoping Isis was correct, in trusting the dean, Theresa took several steps back, then issued the command. The dean stood, spell-bound, as the light consumed Theresa, then dissolved, leaving Isis standing before the dean. When Isis saw the way the dean looked upon her, she asked "Do I appear so strange to one who has studied my history, so well?" The dean could only say "It is an honor to meet you", as he looked upon the goddess. When the dean asked if Isis powers were,truly "limited", Isis said "Only by need. I remain so long as I am needed". When the dean asked of Isis "Will you help me to help Theresa accept this gift?", Isis said "I will try. With your help, mortal, we may help one another". Isis then sat down, in a lounger, and complimented its softness. After that, she closed her eyes. The dean then watched as Isis dissolved, leaving Theresa behind. Later that day, the dean, and Theresa, saw the internet article, about the "trouble" in the Amazon jungle. They read about the army's plan to join the renewing effort, to continue the clearing work. When the dean said "We have work to do", Theresa was surprised when he turned to his books, and began reading. When Theresa asked "Why not just let Isis handle this, as she did, before?" The dean would say "There is a time, and a place, for action, and a time, and a place, for intelligence. Isis will need intelligence in order to combat the weapons of this new world of ours. The mind, Theresa. The most powerful weapon ever created". "Oh, mighty Isis"

MOON BASE

MOON BASE In all the years, of political budget-cutting, no one had stopped to realize just where the cuts would lead, and how much damage which a "leaner, meaner" economy would have, upon competition, both national and international. Prior to the decades, of budget cuts, consolidations, and just plain "corporate raiding", there had been hundreds, of smaller companies, all competing for the federal contracts. When Washington made the "fateful" choice, to reduce, or eliminate, funding, in support of industry, with the idea being that increased productivity, and ambition, through private funding, would lead to more innovation. Un-fortunately, the effect received was the opposite of what had been sought. Most competition was closed out, "merged", or just plain "swallowed up", by more aggressive competitiors. As a result, of this "leaner, meaner" private enterprise, the cost, of space components only INCREASED, since the former competition no longer existed. The most aggressive competitors knew they had Washington "over a barrel", and could force the feds to pay their price due to the fact that the new competitors were the "only game in town". Although the public would circulate petitions, to order Congress to not just design for space, but to design SAFELY, for space, the profit based companies responded to this by saying "No Problem". When updated bids were received, on space contracts, the price, per module, skyrocketted from $15 million, per module, for standard design, to a design estimate of $5 trillion, per module, for "safe" design. This left Congress to make the ugly decision, to remain with just "standard" design. To cover themselves, Congress would only say "We HOPE it will be enough". Soon after this decision was made, however, three, of the newest modules, on the International Space Station, buckled, due to "unknown" stresses. When ship-board computers warned of "un-inhabitable" status, on other modules, crews were shuttled, to the station, to investigate. The repair crews would be left to report, to Washington D.C., that the modules structural and safety, systems, and supports, had been shaved so thin that the crew was surprised that the modules hadn't buckled, on, or after, assembly. As for the reason for the buckling, it was ruled as the "freeze"\"thaw" cycle, caused by exposure to the sun. When repair patches failed to hold the modules together, the affected modules were jettisoned. While this was going on, in space, a massive, P.R. campaign was well underway, as the company highlighted the $25 million cost, of each module. The company would say that it could only do so much, with just $25 million. The public watched, on live television, as $25 million, in parts, was turned into space junk. This lead to a call, for increased safety, and would lead Congress to approve $50 million, for the next module. (It was hoped that this would translate into better construction). When the new module reached the I.S.S., in one piece, the station crew took no chances, with installation. The crew treated the module like a newborn baby, or like delicate china. Every, possible, precaution was taken, for a safe link up. What the station crew could not believe was how the vibrations, from their assembly tools, caused what one astronaut called "module collapse, similar to that of an empty can". While Washington D.C. rushed to investigate, the firm issued a press release, stating "We can only be expected to do so much, even with $50 million". In response, a crusading journalist would enlist a hacker, and the two penetrated the company's accounting files. The journalist would, then, publish an article, which described, item by item, how "much" the company had spent on sub-components. What made the company totally irate, though, was an entry, of $20 million, for an executive yacht, and $25 million, in "renovations", to a company executives estate. Although the company outright denied that either purchase was funded, with module money, when the company was served a court order, to account for spending, the company tried to cover itself, by divesting, thereby leaving the purchaser to re-pay the fed the $45 million. Congress asked to try financing the module, again, using private contractors, but public opinion polls showed that the public no-longer trusted the feds, in regards to the space station. This lead the White House to an original idea. Since the Moon had yet to be "stained", by profiteering, the president asked for just $100 million, for a shelter, to be placed on the moon. The president even suggested calling it "Camp Luna", after "Camp David", here on Earth. In an operation called "Camping Trip", the shelter would be delivered to the lunar surface, by a series of four rockets, with the crew riding a fifth rocket to the moon. The original plan was for the team to land near a crater, whose shadow would provide some protection from the dangers, of some radiation, meteors and so on, for the team, as the crew constructed the shelter. That WAS the original plan, anyway. As the rockets closed, on the lunar surface, however, something caused the guidance computers to shutdown, for over two minutes. After this, the computers re-booted as though nothing had happened. The problem, the crew noticed was that, somehow, during the shut-down, or the re-boot, the computers had re-computed the target landing zone, and was preparing to land on a plain, within a mile of a crescent overhang. It didn't seem to matter how many times the crew tried to re-boot the computers, the adjusted target remained the main target. When the crew tried to switch to manual control, the crafts systems failed to respond. The crew were just relieved that the actual landing went much better than expected. The normal jolt, of landing craft, would feel like nothing more than a bump. When the crew began un-packing the shelter, though, they ran into a problem, as they tried to set the foundation. The crew was surprised when their drills would not penetrate more than about a foot, of the lunar soil. When a crew-man brought out a shovel, and began to dig, it wasn't long before the shovel impacted a hard surface. Just as the crew were about to examine the surface, another crew-man came forward and began pointing to the nearby overhang, while saying "You better take a look at this". When the other crew-members looked on, towards the ridge, the combined, first, thought must have been "We must be imagining this". This is because, under the overhang, mostly covered, in lunar dust, was what appearred to be a group, of native American buildings, such as the cliff-dwelling Anasazi had used, thousands of years ago. When the mission commander decided to check out the alleged "buildings" (to make sure they were not just natural formations), the crew would assemble the two-seater lunar rover (To date, no one had, ever, explained why a rover never had more than two seats). The commander would, then, take the co-pilot with them, as they investigated the "illusion". When the two reached the "illusion", the buildings appearred to be even more Indian than before. Ofcourse, by appearances, the two were prepared to find the same mud- brick construction used on Earth, long ago. Had the co-pilot not bumped into a wall section, the report would have read "Natural formation, somewhat similar to Anasazi buildings, on Earth." After the co-pilot bumped the wall, though, the two astronauts noticed that a thick layer, of lunar dust, fell free of the building, exposing what appearred to be a machined, metal, wall. As the astronauts brushed away more lunar dust, NASA would find that it had a problem, which no one wanted to deal with. The problem only started with the touch-down being hundreds of miles off-course. Now, NASA had the extra problems, of soil, too hard to drill through, and, now, the rover team was sending back images which left mission control speechless. With the rovers camera on "Live Feed", the pilots cleared dust away from patches of walls, of multiple buildings, only to discover symbols, not in English, Russian, etc. Mission Control would be stumped, for hours, by the symbols, but only until a Native American intern saw some feed, and laughed at a monitor, as she said "Take a look. Anasazi writing, in outer space. How hokey can sci-fi get?" Three hours later, a tribal elder, who had made a deep study, of the Anasazi language, sat before a computer terminal, silently translating the words, on the feed, from the moon. Eventually, he rose, and asked "Is this a joke?". When asked "What do you mean? What does it say?", the elder read "Airlock for weapons storage". When asked about another set, of symbols, the elder laughed as he said "Main Administration". The elder then warned the staff "My people will not be pleased to learn that our noble heritage has been slandered, like this". When asked "What slander?", the elder said "I know you white men have been ridiculing the Anasazi, for centuries, claiming our Indian brothers were so-called "ancient astronauts", and, probably from another world. I, however, will take no part, in furthering your slander". On the live, moon, feed, a helmetted face would ask "What slander?". The elder looked at the screen, and the face asked "If you will just tell us how to enter these buildings, I promise we will trouble you, no further". When the elder asked "Do you read Anasazi?", the helmet said "No, but we can guess" To this, the elder said "Fools! My grand-son said the same thing, just before mixing two chemicals, and blowing himself to meet our ancesters. My daughter lives with the loss, everyday". When helmet asked "Then, what do we do?", the elder suggested "Return home, and leave the dead to rest in peace". When helmet called out "Asshole", the elder said something which no one, at Mission Control understood. He, then, said "A deal, then". When helmet said "Name it", the elder said "I have three students, good students, studying the Anasazi Tribe, under my tutelage. If you agree to leave Indian matters to the Indians, then my students will assist you". Even before helmet said "Agreed", Mission Control said "Done". Within twenty-four hours, "Camp Luna" crew had the shelter more-or-less built, with the corners held in place by boulders. During those same twenty-four hours, the elder kept his promise, and delivered the Anasazi students. To ensure their security, and safe arrival, the Secret Service had "gathered" the students, under a cover story, that someone wanted the students dead, after an "amazing find" the students had made. Once gathered, the students would be taken to an Air Force hangar, where they would be placed aboard a drab-looking, cargo, plane, which would be awaiting their arrival, with engines idling. Since every American knows what Air Force cargo planes look like, the plane needed no secrecy, to lift off, in total anonymity. No one paid any attention to the plane, not in the air, nor when it touched down, at Cape Canaveral. After all, most Florida residents are military retired, so, to them, it was just another cargo plane. Once at the cape, and inside the Kennedy Space Center, the students were in for a let-down. When the elder had spoken of needing "translators", the students had hoped this meant "code-breakers". They had hoped for something similar to cold war espionage, secrets, and so forth. The center staff noticed the students enthusiasm wain when the students realized that the job was just translating "standard" Anasazi into "standard" English. What concerned the students, though, were the references, such as "generators", "life support", and so on. For the students, though, even the key pad access codes were "no-brainers". Simple, mathematical, combinations. When the moon crew was back in space suits, and drove back to the "ruins", space com watched, live, as not only did the key pads still work, but that the "Jaws of Life" were not needed, to force the door, as the airlock door slid open, on its own. Although the air lock seemed large enough for as many as ten people, the pilot ordered that, as a precaution, only two at a time, should enter. The others would just stand back, away from the door, and listened. When the pilot shone his light around the space, the most he found was another key pad, and what looked like instructions, "painted" on the wall surface. When the students told the pilot what the chart said, the pilot entered the code, and was surprised when the outer door closed before the inner door opened. The pilot heard mission control say "You were in an airlock, what did you expect?" Once the door was closed, radio reception was reduced by 25%, it took the students longer to tell the pilot what to look for. The pilot though, was most relieved when his crew confirmed his own "feeling" about this place. Each of the astronauts felt that they were on the set, of a classic, science fiction, feature. With the students voices fading, on the radio, the pilot glimpsed into a side "chamber", then told the co-pilot "This looks similar to what either Life Support, or Engineering, does, on those science fiction shows does, doesn't it" Ofcourse, the pilot was quick to caution "Be careful. You know what happens, in the movies, when someone touches the wrong thing. Remember, this is life. No re-takes". When the crews own engineer entered the space, and agreed "This IS Engineering", the pilot asked "Should we try?" The engineers mistake was to say "As old as this place is? I would say minimal, to no danger." Still, the crew watched, CLOSELY, as she, cautiously, touched the "Start Up" switch. To the crews dis-belief, overhead "lights" came on, then dusty panels came to life. After the pilot verified that the co-pilot was, indeed, recording all which was happening, the pilot instructed the co-pilot to step outside of the airlock, and attempt to send any video collected, so far, to Earth. Five minutes later, the co-pilot returned to the group and, using a rectagular piece of hard material, he wrote some symbols, which he showed to the team, saying "We are to look for this". When the engineer asked "What is that?", the co-pilot said "The indians say it means Life Support". As the crew worked its way forward, they noticed that more, of the sections came to light, and, soon, there was no-longer any need for space-suit lights. In fact, the only reason why it took so long, to find the Life Support section was because the crew found several doors, with writing which was SIMILAR to the symbols, written on the surface of what the co-pilot carried. What concerned the crew most was that, when they entered the Life Support section, the crew found the section to be just as clean and sterile, as if the former owners had just stepped out, for coffee. To the engineers surprise, the atmosphere cycling system controls were remarkably similar to N.A.S.A. own systems (OR, should it be that our systems were similar to theirs?). Once the engineer activated the air cycling system, all of their suit monitors came to life, showing an increasingly oxygen-rich atmosphere. The pilot, though, showed due caution, in un-doing only his own helmet then taking a breath, and said "Its breathable. Its air". A short distance further on, the crew found what appearred to be a communications center. Creepy thing was, it looked just as clean as Life Support had been. The only difference was that, here, there was also a flashing light. After checking for traps, the engineer pressed the button, and mission control could be heard, from hidden speakers, calling out to the team. With no obvious microphones in sight, the engineer called out, to the air "Hello, Houston, do you hear me?" When command responded "Thank god. We thought the worst, when we lost your transmission. What is your status?" The pilot replied "We're in some sort of science complex. Oddly enough, power, life support, and communications, all seem to be operational. Just dont ask me how". With a few hours more searching, the crew found the mess hall, and also what seemed to be an armoury. No clue, about weapons except that the armoury seemed full of devices which seemed straight out of science fiction television. A further inspection, of the complex, provided the answer for why the crew had been unable to bolt down Camp Luna, on the surface. It would seem that science fiction would turn out to be less "fiction", than science (atleast as far as the moon went). According to some maps the crew found, it would seem that some, previous, group had hallowed out more than a quarter of the moons sub-surface, and built a gigantic, underground, complex, which was safe from radiation. This is why Camp Luna could not be anchored. The team had been trying to anchor the shelter to the roof of this place. The engineer also found the reason why the computers, on the lander, had "glitched". It would seem that this "base" was not as "dead" as people had thought. In fact, it would be found that most of the systems were, simply, in "Stand By" mode. The main computer stayed just enough "awake" to listen for a code. A command code which, ironically, turned out to be identical to the teams landing beacon. While most of the crew were trying to understand how the indians (a supposedly primitive people), had built such a place, there remained the question of "Could it be true? Could the Anasazi have been aliens?" After the team realized that Camp Luna could not be assembled, at this location, the team brought most of its supplies into the "base", and the co-pilot went searching, and found what might have been a hangar bay, of sorts. This was decided by the fact that the co-pilot found the huge airlock doors, as well as those oh-so-cool looking rovers. The co-pilot realized that, un-like "our" rovers, which are just four tires, mounted to a chassis, with two seats bolted on, these rovers appearred more tractor-like, and had enclosed cockpits. He realized that he was looking at a cross between a tank, and a pick-up truck. He doubted it had any speed, though, since it sat on tractor treads. When the co-pilot stepped up to a rover, wondering how the aliens entered, without any door handles, he was surprised when he heard a release, of compressed gas, then part of the shell slid back, giving him entry to a cockpit which basically, resembled a pick-up trucks interior. In fact, the only real differences were the extra buttons, and screens. When the co-pilot belted himself into the drivers seat, to experience the feeling, he was just a bit surprised when the shell slid back into place, and sealed with the same hiss. Then, to the co-pilots surprise, a screen came to life, with a word he didn't recognize, and something else, flashing, underneath. When the engineer came on the line, asking "what are you doing?", the co-pilot said "Just checking things out". By the time the pilot came on the line, joining the engineer in saying "Abort", the co-pilot responded "I dont know how. Besides, this stuff's been here for who knows how long. If it were evil, it would have destroyed us, before now". The co-pilot then ignored the cautions, and demands, over the radio, as the vehicle actually lifted OFF its tracks, which then folded into the crafts underbelly. As this was going on, he watched as the bay doors slid open. At this point, the co-pilot realized that he was riding on a cushion of some kind, and this was why he put the thing into what he hoped was "forward" gear, and put his foot on what he hoped was the accelerator. Seconds later, he zoomed out of the docking bay, at what seemed to be about 80 m.p.h.. This is when he realized that, whatever was powering this thing was, still going strong, even after god-knows-how-long. When the crew realized the man was joy-riding, they stopped sending abort orders, and replaced these with a request for information. As long as the man was out, in a general area, why not have him check on reports of water being scanned, by probe craft. Everyone had high hopes, for finding water, but only until the man reported more distressing news. His instruments verified what the base plans showed. The water Earth had been detecting was not from sub-surface lakes, or streams. The water had been seeping out, of the bases underground storage vats, for many years. When asked to measure the leakage, the man activated what he THOUGHT was a laser level/ruler. Moments after he thought that he was locking onto two points, for a ruler measure, the rover lurched, a bit, as the first, of two, laser beams shot forward, one at each of his selected targets. The co-pilot was, momentarily, thrilled, when he said "Hot damn, let those damn Ruskies try THAT!". This is when the engineer came onto the line, reminding the co-pilot that the Russians were, now, our allies. When the co-pilot recovered himself, he suggested "Enough excitement for one day. Permission to come home, before I destroy the moon". Back at the base, though, the co-pilot made a point of showing the rest of the team how much better this rover was, than their own was. As the man indicated, this rover had seating, for SIX people, inside an enclosed cockpit. Between that, and an cushioned ride, similar to shock absorbers, how could life, in space, be better? It would, soon, turn out to be a good idea that the team had moved their supplies out of the lander, and into the ancient base, when the Hubble telescope discovered a meteor "shower" headed for Earth, at incredible velocity. Once the rocks were "spotted", the I.S.S. TRIED to thrust itself out of the target area, but the rocks were just moving too fast. Ofcourse, this was bad news, for the lunar orbiter, as well, since it, too, was in the path of the storm. Worse, the orbiter was the lunar teams only ride home. Since the orbiter was so much smaller than the I.S.S., though, it could change its course, more rapidly, and move more freely. Still, the news wasn't good. Just a couple of solid strikes, on the docking ring and the hatch was reduced to scrap iron. Even if the LEM could launch, it would be un-able to dock with the orbiter. During the "shower", mission control had to cut its work-force in half, with one group remaining focused on the I.S.S., while the second group went into "emergency session", preparing a new flight to the moon. Cap com also understood why the orbiter pilot was silent, for so long, after being ORDERED to break lunar orbit, and come home, minus their crew. Although cap com knew that the pilot was no coward, and that he wouldn't have come home, except under ORDERS, the staff knew that the media would label the man a coward, for not staying in lunar orbit. During the "shower", while the lunar capsule was playing "Dodge Ball", with the rocks, the I.S.S. was taking one helluva beating. The moon, and Earth, watched this, via remote camera's. Meteors smashed into the station, causing damage which no one thought the station could survive. The view, from the moon, was even worse than the view, from Earth, since the moon has no atmosphere, and the camera angles are crystal clear, as boulders smashed, not just into the I.S.S. hull, but into its thrusters, as well. The lunar team watched, helplessly, as the meteors smashed the I.S.S. main thrusters to bits, with several explosions caused by ruptured fuel containers. By the time the meteor "shower" was passed, the I.S.S. looked less like a work-of-art space station, and more like a "mechanics special", on a used car lot. Less than 5% of the station remained habitable, after the strike, and NASA was, already, preparing a rescue mission. In the meantime station personnel were instructed to "patch what you can". On the moon, after a severe "dressing down", the co-pilot went looking for another of what was labelled, on the bases read outs, as a "storage room". This one, however, was larger, atleast on the map, than the one which had contained the rovers. When the co-pilot entered the space, what he saw was every kids science fiction dream come true. It was a cavernous hangar, and the co-pilot could see ships, the designs of which would "wow!" even the staff at the famous Skunkworks, in reverence. Some of the craft were small, two-seater, while others were large enough to, easily, be cargo haulers. A couple of days after the "shower", the co-pilot was considering taking one of the ships up, to the I.S.S., when the station crew was overheard calling Earth, reporting that its air supply was, nearly gone. A few hours later, though, a cargo flight was orbiting the station, which now found itself covered with patches. In fact, when pictures were sent to Earth, someone sent the station a return photo, labelled "My First Clunker", with the photo side-by-side with a picture of the station. The problem, with the stations repair patches was that they were never meant to hold the station together. As a result, it was not long before the stations emergency alarms activated, saying the station was in critical danger. On the ground, NASA was debating which crew to consider "expendable". The moon crew, with its alien base, or the crew, at the crumbling space station. On the moon, the co-pilot knew that, if he told his commander of his plans, the argument would have gone on, even as the space station crumbled into nothing. This is why the co-pilot told the crew nothing of his plan. The co-pilot walked into the bay, entered what he thought was a cargo ship, and HOPED it operated the same as the lunar rover did. When he strapped into the pilots chair, he was trying to think of HOW to program the ships computer to fly to the I.S.S. when a target grid came on-line, on a screen, and he HOPED the lettering meant "target locked into guidance", and not "target locked, for firing". When the co-pilot launched the ship into space, both the commander, and the engineer, logged in reprimands, on the mans dis-obedience, while HOPING that the "hot-shot" succeeded in helping the I.S.S. crew. For the I.S.S., and NASA, though, the presence, of an alien ship, on the space stations doorstep, was more than a little dis-concerting. Even if it was flown by a human. Thankfully, the ship was rigged with a generic docking collar, so all the station crew had to do was make an airlock accessable. Sure, the in-experienced pilot did ding the station a bit, but what was one to expect when using alien tech? With supplies, equipment, and personnel, rushed aboard the ship, the co-pilot eased the ship away from the crumbling station, and set a return course, for moon base. When the I.S.S. commander asked the reason, the co-pilot said he wasn't sure about landing alien tech, on U.S. soil. He was concerned that even the U.S. Air Force might attack. After a safe and sound, landing, on moon base, the camp Luna crew made their way to their LEM, to begin the countdown to take-off. Only one problem. Somehow, the batteries had been drained. The LEM was "dead" where it sat. No power for take-off. The engineer said it was just as well, since the LEM was not designed for re-entry. Without the command module, they were stuck on the moon. That is, until the co-pilot suggested "If we could contact mission control, and warn off the Air Force, I think I can fly that cargo ship right to the landing strip". The commander was thinking about the space shuttle, when he mentioned "We will only get one chance". The co-pilot doubted this, as he knew that the cargo ship had its own power source, just as the rover seemed to. As a result, the commander would inform mission control that the combined crews, of "Operation Cast-A-Way" were on their way home, and PLEASE, dont shoot at us. What amazed the pilots was not only how easily the ship performed in space, but how smooth the ride was, even through the atmosphere. The pilots would inform the ground that the ship drove like a small private, jet. During the descent, the students reviewed the visuals, of the ships flight panels, to find the landing gear. As the ship smoothly flew to the ground, the best the students could come up with was the reverse of the launch process. Sure, the ship had struts, but these were what it used, to sit in the moon base bay. How was the ship to land on these? The answer came 20 feet above the landing site, when the computer terminated horizontal thrust, leveled the craft out, then set the machine, neet as a pin, on the runway. To say that the landing left people speechless would be an understatement. No one had seen an actual alien ship land, in a public space, before. The very existance, of the ship, however, caused much alarm, in many sectors, even beyond the military. Suddenly, America had, in its grasp, what could only be defined as alien tech. The problem was that the very nature, of the tech, posed some very serious problems, for those assigned to research the ship. For one thing, none of the construction materials came close to resembling Earth materials. Whatever the ship was made of was so alien that the computers only spit out "Unknown" messages, again and again. After five days, of using every cutting device, known to man, a welding crew gave up, when they couldn't make a dent in the ships hull. Whatever that hull material was, it could, probably, resist the heat of the sun. As for its engine, and power source, both were beyond human understanding. Not dangerous, but well beyond us. When the moon base team was ready to return to the moon, and study the alien base, they ran into a snag, with the ships navigational computers. For some reason, the navigational computers were not accepting incoming data. When the co-pilot suggested taking the ship back to the moon, and was told "We dont know if its safe", the man retorted "So, its safe enough to fly to Earth, but not safe enough to fly back to the moon?" Three days, of debate, later, and, while the human ship was, still, being fixed, on the launch-pad, the supplies were being loaded into the alien ship, for its return to the moon. With more specially trained people, and over six months worth of supplies, on-board, the ship would make remarkable time, back to the docking bay. Just a few hours. While, on Earth, the International Space Station was being "written off", due to repair cost estimates rising into the trillions of dollars, while replacement costs were rising into the hundreds of trillions, atleast, for the moon, there was better news. It would seem that some of the "specialists", whom the co-pilot had shuttled up, from Earth, had made some real progress in understanding the moon bases computers At the very least, the specialists were able to un-lock the passwords, to the memory archives. This would allow moon base personnel to gain a glimpse into the lives, and purpose, of the Anasazi, and, MAYBE, find an answer as to why the tribe seemed to "disappear", overnight. According to moon base computer records, "Earth" was a research outpost, while the moon was a combination supply depot, and administration center. It seems that those we called "Anasazi" were, in fact, scouts, sent by their home race, to observe life, both on Earth, and another, nearby, planet, by the name of Mars. According to base records, Mars, in the past, not only had an atmosphere, but was, culturally developed. Due to Mars already being populated, by intelligent beings, the Anasazi decided to be discreet, setting up only a small, observation, post, on the red planet. The record went on to "speak" of yet another planet, somewhere between the moon, and Mars. A planet whose races began waging campaigns of conquest against one another. Bloody battles, over such things as religion, and planetary resources. From their moon base, the Anasazi observed the escalating battles, as the opposing factions turned to newer, and deadlier, weapons, with which to attack one another. The Anasazi became terribly concerned when the planets opposing races each developed atomic bombs, but the call, to evacuate the area did not come until each, of the opposition groups, developed a weapon even worse than nuclear. Each of the races rushed to be the first to develop the new weapon, which was so powerful that it could, conceivably, destroy the entire planet. When the Anasazi realized the implications, of such weapons, this is when the Anasazi decided to evacuate their numbers, from the solar system. Thankfully, home world would send starships, and cargo ships, to assist the evacuation. Still, many would be sad to leave Earth, moon, and even Mars. (Only a small group would remain behind, to monitor, and record, how any battles turned out.) As was feared, though, when each of the races rushed to TEST their weapon, the stresses, on the planets crustal plates, was just far more than the surface could withstand. The resulting detonations not only caused the planet, itself, to explode, its shock-waves were so incredibly powerful that it ripped the atmosphere right off the Martian surface. In another direction, the same shock waves struck Uranus hard enough to turn the planet on its side. No one is certain of how the moon survived the detonation, being just a lump, of dead rock, in space, but it, somehow, bore the worst of the impact, while protecting a large portion of the Earths surface. As the "logs" concluded, the Anasazi departed the solar system, intentionally leaving moon base behind, as a "test" for "intelligent" life. If life found its way back to the moon, from Earth, a signal beacon would alert home-world. Shortly after the logs were concluded, sensors and scanners detected the lunar approach of a powered object. Whatever it was, it was, definitely, not of human design. Also, its flight path came not from Earth, but from outside the solar system. What concerned the team, most, was not only when the craft settled into lunar orbit, but when the best computers placed its design advancement at between thousands, and hundreds of thousands, of years beyond our current capabilities. It was, also not encouraging that the crafts power source registered as the same as that, which the moon base operated on, only far more powerful. The entire moon base crew then froze, in fright, when a light shimmered into existance, in a hallway, before the crew-men, then the light took on the most bizzarre form any crew member had ever seen. Standing before the Earth-people was a being, in the solid, muscular, stature, height, and facial appearance of an American Indian. The only difference was that the man was wearing a flight suit. When the man told the moon base staff "I come in response to the beacon. It was activated when you accessed the base computers. I have been assigned to transport a group, of volunteers to the current world of my people. There, you will learn more about us". When the expedition leader asked the man how far the volunteers would be going, the "indian" would only say "Not far. You will be able to return to the moon within one solar day". For the next six hours, the moon crew argued over which personnel would be most qualified to send on the "mission". The main problem, with this selection, was that EVERYONE was qualified. This is why the crew resorted to drawing lots. When the volunteer "team" joined the indian, on his ship, the astro-physicist, soon, realized that he recognized none of the ships "controls" (If controls is what they were). During the trip, although the speed, of the ship, SHOULD have crushed the team flat, they were amazed to feel almost NO inertial stress. Upon arrival, at their destination, the explorers found what they never expected. Although the indians ship was advanced beyond belief, the explorers found themselves on a planet, rich in beauty, and full of plant and animal life. The natural beauty was beyond comprehension. The indian lead the team down a path, and into a tall building, made of (crystal?). Inside was a wide, tall, lobby and, at the end oposite the entry, there was a set of tall, double, doors. When the indian opened these doors, and gestured the team inside, the team found themselves facing another group, of tribal elders. These elders, though, sat at a conference table, with a tall, stained-glass, window, behind them. What baffled the team, though, was how the elders were dressed, in traditional, indian, dress. There was nothing "high-tech", about them. When the elders saw how baffled the team was, the councils "medicine man" said "Let me explain what you see. We are not as we appear. What you see is for your benefit. You see, we abandoned the physical body, many years in the past. At this time, we have re-taken human form so that you may be at ease." When one of the team came forward, saying "I am an astro-physicist, so I am trained for anything you can show me" When the council cautioned against this, and the fool said "Bring it on", the council, politely, said "Very well". A moment later, the remainder of the team watched as the fool covered his eyes, and screamed at something only he seemed to be able to see. To the remainder of the team, the elders, of the council, never changed appearance. When another team member asked where the people had gone to, for thousands of years, after leaving the Earth, an elder said "After we departed what you call Earth, we decided to leave a test behind. A test designed to show us when you had matured enough, for peaceful interractions. That test was what you call Moon Base. In time, we came to understand that we could move about, from place to place, by thinking about it. Soon, we were able to move, from planet to planet, in the same manner. Although our people no-longer needed ships, to carry us from place to place, we retained our fleets due to the fact that we, often, traded with tribes, which could not travel as we did. This is yet another reason why this warrior was sent, with a ship, to bring you to us. Although the warrior could have made the trip, without the ship, this would have been impossible for you" When the team asked to see what the indians had achieved, the council elder said "You are not ready. You are still too young a race. In time, and when you are ready, you will join us." the elder said, then added "provided you do not destroy yourselves, first". With these sobering thoughts in mind, the team would return to the ship, for return transit to the moon. The fool would be levitated back to the ship, and placed in storage, since his mind was closed down to all outside stimuli. The rest of the team would wonder what the man had seen, but they recalled the elders warning. "We are not as we appear. Our appearance is for your benefit". What had the man seen, which turned him into a "vegetable"? Upon return to the moon, the man was transferred from storage to a cargo ship, to be taken to Earth, for care. The last anyone knew of him, the man was locked away, and totally un-responsive. With the aid of the human indian, students, the warrior/pilot assisted the humans with making Moon Base fully operational. Before he departed, though, he was found gazing upon Mars, and observers would suggest that he was weeping. Whether he was sad that the planet had died, or whether he had lost someone, on the red planet, it was impossible to tell. All the team could see was that the man was grief-stricken, as if remembering a Mars which was, once, alive, with life. In the years following the warrior-pilots departure, the U.N. would vote to have the world bank approve funds, for a replacement International Space Station. There would, however, be a severe condition placed upon project funding. ALL funds were to go directly for two sources, and nowhere else. 1) Material, with which to construct the station 2) Paying the work-force, which constructed the parts and assembled the station Ofcourse, corporate management cried "FOUL!", most loudly, when they learned that no money could be used for any other reason. The worst corporations even refused to take part in the construction. As a result, the first 75 modules, and five million photovoltaics (solar panels), would be stamped with European manufacturers seals. With corporate profiteering side-lined, modules might, still, cost $10-$25 million, but quality and safety, skyrocketted. Eventually, N.A.S.A. would convince the corporations to return to the space program, after the space station out-grew the output, of four, oxygen-generation, stations. Thanks to Earth's Bio-Domes 1 & 2, it was easy to design a set of green-houses, full of oxygen-generating plants. At about this same time, the U.N. called a halt, to construction, after the 80th module, as the station was growing so large that Earth's magnetic field was noticing the stations presence. Having planned for such a possibility, the E.S.A. had designed the new station, with powerful rocket thrusters. Sure, the station would, never move, with the grace of a ballet dancer, however, with the new thrusters, the station could move much like an aircraft carrier. In order to compensate for the ever-increasing size, of the station, (Now, 1/16th the size of the moon), the I.S.S. would be moved to an orbit exactly opposite the moon, in orbit. From that time forward, Earth would have no less than two satellites. One, natural, One man-made. Over the next ten years, Earth companies would study the alien cargo ships and, in time, we would learn how to replicate the ships, including the power source, leading to a new age of Single-Stage-To-Orbit vehicles. These advancements would allow the I.S.S. to become large enough to qualify as a planet. Ofcourse, as life continued to branch into space, the need, for life support, would become the most massive part of mission-critical status, of station operations. In fact, gardening would come to rank just below executive station command, in importance. This would happen even as a bold engineer would design the first "exo-planet". An ever-expanding ball, whose layer after layer would be used as greenhouses. In time, this would become Earth's third moon, as the "race" to expand the station, kept pace with the race to provide life support. The I.S.S. would be declared "complete" after the final sections, consisting of a manufacturing center, a processing center, and no less than five ship launch pads, were added. It would be another fifty years before life support would, fully, catch up with station demands. By this time though, man would have begun moving on, in search of new worlds to colonize, even as we drained the Earth dry. When the decision was made, that man would leave Earth, period, it was at a time when moon base had ceased its function, as a research center, and had become a maintenance center, for equipment awaiting repairs. The base, ofcourse, would have been expanded, by human hands, using newly developed materials, similar to the original materials. Beyond moon base, though, the concern was that the space agency only wanted to build another space station. Another orbital habitat. This is when a group, calling itself "The Journey" began rallying support for the construction of a planetoid, similar to the Star Wars Death Star. No one took the group seriously, until "The Journey" secured enough funding, to build a very small base, at the edge of the Kyper Belt. Like moon base, this base would be built underground, however, once people realized that "The Journey" was serious, construction funds began flowing in. It would be slow-going, at first, since the construction crews needed to work on both building the assembly base, AND start the "foundation", of the planetoid. The original, sphere, design was only to be about 2-5 miles in diameter. If successful, then more spheres, in larger sizes, could be constructed, later. Even with Earth's population under severe check, under internationall law, man was, still, draining its resources, and the push for space was urgent. After several meetings, with the design staff, and wealthy backers, the original plan, for the station/ship, would be expanded, first to two hundred miles, then to two THOUSAND miles. The promise was that, when this ship left, another ship would start construction. Upon its launch, the personnel, on the assembly meteor, looked on, in amazement, as the "ship" moved, slowly, away. There was even a celebration, prior to launch, of the station/ship, with a showing of the original "Star Wars". For days, thereafter, though, the station/ship could still be seen, as it grew smaller, as it left the solar system. It would be a full week before the ship vanished from sight. While "The Journey" continued building these sphere's, the U.N. did approve another space station. This one, to orbit Mars. The goal was to learn if Mars could be "terra-formed". Back on Earth, though, another, religious, war was brewing. This time, it would be between those who wanted to take their futures to the stars, versus those who felt that "The LORD will provide". The United Nations would "strike a compromise", between the "devoted", and the "non-believers". The compromise was that, as man branched out, into space, the land, left on Earth, would become the property of the "devoted". For some reason, though, the "devoted" never thought that the rest of humanity would leave them behind, all alone. The United Nations even "packed up", and, after its advisors confirmed that the "devoted" had been educated in the basic skills, for survival, even the advisors joined the U.N., in departing the planet. Since the "devoted" had resisted the offers, to teach the use, of sub-space radio, which the rest, of the fleet used, routinely, by the time the S.O.S. calls were received, by the outgoing ship, via carrier wave radio, the ships captain would remind the General Assembly that the message was over two years old. Whatever the reason, for the call, for help, it was about eighteen months too late, for the ship to take any action. When the station/ship met up, with other station/ships, which had, by that time, received the call, as well, the captains had to remind their staffs that the message was, already, multiple years old. Besides, the message was less than cryptic: "S.O.S. Send help immediately. Urgent" Even if the station/ships did respond, what good would it do, to arrive, years late? When the suggestion was made, to send just a couple, of the new fighter craft, back to the planet, this begged the question of "What if it is a trap?" Lose two good fighters, over a distress call? Besides, the "devoted" had been given plenty of chances, and choices. The "devoted" had made the decision to stay on Earth. They had decided their fate. No one could be blamed if the "devoted" did not survive. Epilogue: In the 1,000 years, since Earth has been evacuated, there have been many suggestions made, about re-visiting the old planet. Many of these suggestions would be made, based upon faint messages, calling out, and asking "Is anyone out there?" Without the threats, of useless wars, hanging over the peoples heads, several colonies would have perfected warp drive, and began negotiating "non-aggression" treaties, with other colonies. When, at the 1,000 year mark, the messages changed from "Is anyone out there?", and to "Can anyone hear me?" the human alliance would decide that it was, probably, safe to send a recon team, just to look into the situation. When the recon unit reached Earth, a few hours after departure, from the new home world, the unit was not surprised to find not a sign of intelligent, human, life. In fact, all that was left, on Earth, was plant, and animal, life, and some sort of primate. In a cave, lit with what looked like ceremonial candles, the recon team found a sort-of journal, wherein someone had written that, during the "final days", the "devoted" had, allegedy, turned on one another. Maybe for food, or mating. Who knew? The journal said that the message, which brought the explorers back to Earth, was a final warning, about the dangers of radical-ism. No one was to know that the writer had used the transmitter, or that there were only the "ghosts", left, to "guard" the secrets. The planet was going "back to the ancestors". What the team could not read, clearly, was the final passage. Was it: "God be with you"?

RELIC HUNTER UNDERSEA COLONY

G-R-O-A-N!!!! The sound, of metal, and stone, grinding, filled the air with a pitch, so loud, that Amanda, and her team, had to cover their ears, and hope that the vocal assault would end, soon. The sound reverberated off of every nearby wall surface, and seemed even louder than the loudest, acid rock concert ever played. The sound assaulted the ear-drums, and soldiers, and civilian, did anything they could, to block out the deafening sound. Eventually, though, after what seemed like an "eternity", the sound faded, and the question of "What was that?", was left to be answered... Amanda Fox had just been re-starting her survey, of the ancient tunnels system, when the call had come in. Amanda Fox, and her army unit, were recalled, to the university, where Amanda would meet up with both Sydney, and Nigel. When Amanda would ask "What is this about? Why were we recalled?", Syd would have to say "I have no idea. No one has told us anything, either." As Amanda, Syd, and Nigel, caught up, on recent activities, the army commander would come to tell Amanda "The unit has been recalled, for re-arming. It seems that your "little modification", of the C-4 has caught someones attention. I am to give a briefing, in the morning, about alternative uses, of C-4." When Amanda asked "Am I being assigned another unit?", the commander smiled as he said "Not on your life. We have been committed to you. As long as there are tunnels to be found, and charted, we will be by your side." Shortly after this meeting, Amanda and Syd would be called to the chancellors office, where they would meet with university faculty, and with members of the Joint Chiefs. To Amandas annoyance, the subject, of the meeting, was to be "Atlantis". That lousy, undersea, colony. To hear the Joint Chiefs tell it "This colony, whether or not it was Atlantis, seems to be a real target, for enemy forces. So far, we have detected atleast ten different operations, which will, soon, be focusing their efforts on the region you have been studying." When Amanda said "But, there's nothing there. Just old buildings, and bases, for something. Whatever was there is long gone." When the general said "I understand that, and I believe you, when you say the place is a derelict. The problem is that OTHERS do not believe it is derelict. They believe that there are, in fact, weapons, and power sources, which can be used against America." When Amanda said "Fine, we will start on it right AFTER we finish with the tunnels survey", the general said "I am afraid that you dont understand. The Joint Chiefs have decided that an ancient bunker is not as important as a relic, as the possible location, of advanced weaponry, in the undersea colony. We MUST be sure that ANY remaining weaponry is the property of America." When Amanda asked "And, what kind of evidence will prove to you that the ancients left nothing, of value, behind?", the general said "Prove that there is nothing left, but stone, dirt, and sand. No tech, of any kind. Prove that there are NO weapons, which could be used, to attack America, and the Joint Chiefs will allow you to return to cataloging your caves, or tunnels." After the meeting, Amanda would ask Syd her thoughts, and all Syd could say was "As long as I have known him, the general has kept his word. If he says that proof will get you "off the hook", then proof is what we need to provide." When Amanda asked "But, HOW do I provide proof that something doesn't exist? Even if I send back photo's, of empty weapons racks, what is to keep the Pentagon from saying that we just moved the weapons, to make the place APPEAR deserted?" Syd would say "Let me think on that". Later, in the arms, of her army commander lover, Syd would pose the same question "How do we convince the Joint Chiefs that the undersea colony poses no danger?" The man gave her the same answer. The next day, while a smiling, Sydney Fox would return to her office, a smiling, army commander, would pose the question, to his unit. "HOW do we convince the Pentagon that the sub-sea colony is harmless?" That question would slow the writing, of the units report, on the effectiveness, of C-4, when used in tiny amounts. The unit was charged with creating a report, on how effective the explosive would be, if used, in various shapes. As a result, the professional soldiers would spend their day molding the explosives into a wide variety, of shapes, and sizes, then using detonators. In one, whacky, test, the explosive was flattened out, into a long ribbon, then applied to a boulder, which was placed blocking the entrance to a building. With the explosive flattened, and squeezed into the crevice, of the boulder, the detonator was set off. With the force of the blast directed inward, the boulder cracked, and fell to pieces, which were, easily, pushed aside. The test proved that Amanda Fox was right. C-4 could be useful, and not just destructive. One lieutenant thought it was funny how easy it was, to prove the value, of an explosive, yet how hard it was, to prove that a location, thousands of years old, was worthless. After days, of conversations, with his fellow members, of the Joint Chiefs of staff, the general issued the orders. As Amanda Fox, and her miltary escort, set off, on the latest, side, mission, Amanda made a point of sending Syd and Nigel a message, which said: "Sorry, change of plans. Will be awhile before I come home. Love you" After this, it was back to puzzles, charts, legends, and rumors, as the relic hunter, and the U.S. army, tried to be first to find the secret tunnels which, supposedly, lead to "Atlantis". Just two weeks into the search, though, and just as the Pentagon was "barking" for results, word came in, from some intelligence operatives. So far, the militants had discovered THREE sub-surface, tunnels. In each case, though, after travelling an extensive distance, underground, the groups had faced cave ins. The militants stupidity, however, was in carrying blocks, of C-4 explosives, instead of digging tools. In atleast one cave-in, an agent suggested moving stones, by hand, in case of tunnel leakage. At the suggestion, the agent was thrown aside, and called "coward", as the explosive bricks were packed into the debris. When the agent saw how much of the explosive that the militants were prepared to use, the agent did, in fact, run away The agent knew what was coming, with the fools using as much as half a case, of C-4, on the obstruction. Sure, the resulting explosion dis-placed the debris, most efficiently. What the militants never counted upon, though, was the "blow-back" effect. The concussion wave, which bombarded the tunnel, knocking the militants flat, like rag dolls. Most would be knocked out, cold, either by the blast, or the concussion wave, which hurtled several, of the militants bodies through the tunnel, where objects, such as protruding rocks, ripped hurtling bodies to pieces. The only reason why the agent survived was because he had been running away, before the blast was set off. When the rumbling, and shaking, reached his position, the agent dove to the floor, laying flat, and facing the exit. Although the concussion, from the blast, pushed the agent 100 feet forward, the man remained flat, on the floor, knowing what was coming, next. And he was right. With so much explosive being used, the agent knew that the rumbing sound meant that he was about to take an extra "bath", that day. His timing had to be right. If he was too soon, or too late, the water would crush him, under its titanic force. This is why he waited until the water sounded "just right". When it did, he lept, as though off of a diving board. If he was right, he would land in the middle of the water, which would not only push him to the surface, but it would insulate him from potential hazzards. Instead of mental calculations, the agent let his "animal instincts" tell him when to leap. Sure enough, "nature" was right, and the man landed, dead center, of the wave. Now, all he had to do was let the water carry him to the surface. That, and be ready to jump free, of the wave, within ten feet of breaching the surface. Any point, beyond this, and injury, or death, were real possibilities. As the agent rode the wave, he wondered HOW he would explain being the only survivor, of the patrol. If he reported his calculations, to the militant commanders, he would be "exposed" (seeing as how the other soldiers were not really intelligent) IF he reported that the debris looked "dangerous", he would be labelled a "coward". The agents only chance, to avoid interrogation, and execution, was to hope to be thrown clear, of the surface, then to "fade away" from the area. What the agent could not know was that, in the other two tunnels, which the militants were exploring, C-4 had caused the same effect. The militants leader was furious that three tunels had not only been flooded, but that geysers now, shot, from previously-concealled locations. The leader might have thought that C-4 was the "great leveller", but even he was not smart enough to understand how DEADLY that using too much, of the explosive, could be. The leader would be even more furious, when ALL three sites had agents reporting "Tunnel flooded. No access this point". As Amanda Fox had pointed out, this meant that the militants were, still, looking, for the colony, just as Amanda Fox, and the U.S. army were. When Amanda Fox reported this, to the Pentagon, though, she received no reply. When Amanda Fox began receiving the reports, of the flooded tunnels, and with "intelligence" claiming these were suspected traps, it would be Amanda Fox who would ask "What is this, about C-4 being used?" When a lieutenant said "Ma'am, it seems that a semi, full of the explosive, was delivered, to the militants, then cut into three units. Each militant patrol carried a unit, to clear any obstacles they might encounter in the tunnels." Now Amanda understood. It wasn't "ancient booby traps". It was modern day stupidity. About two hours after this, an agent, dressed in a lady's dress, reported in. "Command, Agent ( ), site ( ), reporting. Militants enncountered cave in, in tunnel, about ten miles from shore. My suggestion to move barrier, by hand, rejected. Militants packed the debris with so much C-4 that they could have blown up the White House, with that much explosive, if they had wanted to. When I ran, I got far enough away from the explosion, to be spared the blast effect. After that, I rode a wave, of water, at maybe 80 miles per hour, out of the tunnnel. After reaching the surface, the wave did not dissipate, for 100 feet, in height, so I dove clear, once I saw the surface, and landed in the deep end of a local hotel pool. At present, I am waiting for clothing to dry, and awaiting instructions" When asked "Any other survivors?" The agent said "I doubt it. Tha Atlantic Ocean was not kind to us". Our commander said "Roger that. Report in as soon as you are able to" (No one dared make jokes, about the fact that the man was wearing a BORROWED, womans dress). Now Amanda Fox had a clearer picture, of what was hapening. Ancient drawings, combined with a lack of patience, were causing serious loss of life. People were dying because a commander did not want to wait for shovels, to dig holes. This realization would work, easily, into Amanda Foxes plans. While the militia was using standard, block, C-4, Amanda FOX had requested more of a "variety-pack", of the explosive. Her supply, of the explosive, would be re-shaped into sticks which were more "chewinng gum" shaped, and sized for door locks, and other, tight spaces. IF Amanda Fox used the explosive, she would use just enough to "loosen things up". Still, although she might have solved one problem, Amanda had not solved the main problem, yet. Amanda Fox had to give the ancients their "due". For supposedly "barbaric, cave, men", the ancients had done themselves proud, in disguising the entrances, to their colony. Although the Pentagon accepted the fact the the militants were blowing themselves up, and flooding tunnels, this did not lessen the pressure, on Amanda Foxes team, to produce results. Like Amanda Fox told the Pentagon, most, of what she was working with, was old rumors, annd hand-written drawings" When a Pentagon representative asked about the so-called "energy weapons", which were fabled, to protect the island nation, Amanda Fox would remind the Pentagon that fables held that Nazca, Peru, had been a planetary space port, as well. When the Pentagon reminded Amanda Fox that Nazca, Peru remained "under investigation", Amanda Fox would say that her team was doing their best. There were just so many legends, and so many rumors, to check out. The worst part, though, was how often Atlantis maps criss-crossed Roman maps. Since the Romans came along, well AFTER Atlantis, Amanda's unit wondered if the Romans had found, and just "re-purposed" Atlantian equipment? Ofcourse, all of this was "possible". The question was "proving it". So far, there was nothing to prove. Un-like the militants, who had, somehow, found three entrances, that the military knew of, Amanda Foxes own unit had no such luck. It was not until another, deep, agent, also embedded, with the militants, reported in, that Amanda Fox found out the source, of the militants information. The agent reported that "enhanced interrogation", of Vatican-trained personnel, was the source, of the information. Amanda Fox did not need to be clairvoyant, to know what would happen, if she, a relic hunter, contacted the Vatican. In the past, while on other "hunts", trails had lead to Vatican City. Each time Amanda Fox had applied for permission, to visit, the question had been the same: "Do you believe in God?" Each time Amanda Fox would tell Vatican reps "I am doing scientific research. Religion has no part in this". As a result, all requests were denied. On her last attempt, Amanda Fox had "recruited" a Roman-Catholic church member, given them a clear set of guidelines, of what to look for, them sent them into the church. The church sent the member back, with a message "Nice try, but Vatican records are for the faithful, ONLY" Now, Amanda Fox KNEW that the Vatican had the information, which she needed. The question was "HOW to get the information?" When a soldier suggested "commandeering" a priest, an officer said "Its not our job, to interrogate". The soldier then suggested an armful of "truth serum". The officer then said "If word gets out...", and the soldiers knew that, with America's low-approval rating, in the world, at that time, if it was learned that the U.S. army had kidnapped, and interrogated, a priest, "old Glory" would not be worth the fabric it was printed on. As a result, the undercover agent was told not to report even suggesting that priests might be tortured. Forty-eight hours later, the strain, of looking at millenia-old drawings, was showing, on the soldiers faces, when the agent next reported in. The "evidence" pointed to the conclusion that the Vatican KNEW of yet ANOTHER tunnel. Onne which had been bricked off, centuries ago, after the church realized that it had an intact tunnel. Telling no one, of the find, the church secured the land, which housed the tunnel, and built a church, on the land, to obscure the tunnnel entrancce. From the "testimony", of the "prisoner", the only way into the tunnel, was via some old crypts, which were built beneath an old church. Amanda Fox knew, from experience, that church crypts are "open" only to the families, of the deceased, and to church staff. Amanda Fox also knew that, to prevent grave-robbery, most churches had thick, iron, gates, and locks, protecting the crypts. Devices which only a howitzer might penetrate. The possibility, of gaining access, this way, was next to impossible. The problem was that the priest had told his captors that the crypt had been built on the highest part of the tunnel. This way, no one would question the churches authority. For Amanda Fox, this meant her team would have to penetrate a Catholic church, break into its crypt, then find another tunnel, which lead from the church, out, under the ocean. When a soldier asked how difficult it could be, to penetrate a church, Amanda Fox used the White House as a comparison. Amanda would say "Try attacking the White House, with your automatic weapons, annd see how far you get" Amanda Fox was no stranger to the passion, with which the Catholic church guarded its secrets. Although the agent reported that the priest died, under "enhanced interrogation", without revealling either the name, or location, of the church, in question, Amanda Fox realized that the church would have to be along the Atlantic coastline. This revelation turned a list, of thousands, of churches, into a list, of barely a dozen churches. When Amanda Fox checked the approximate dating information, of the churches, the list dwindled to just six churches. When the agent reported "Just before the priest died, he asked for forgiveness" When asked what name, the agent gave a name, and this is when thew puzzle-pieces began to "fall into place". The NAME the priest had used was the patron saint, of Forgiveness. This saint was connected to only one church, at the time, and location, in question. Using the most intricate plan possible, Amanda Fox, and her army unit, packed their supllies, and headed for the church. As Amanda had hoped they would, the unit arrived at the church, during the pre-dawn hours of the morning. Since no one dared de-file a church, in Europe, the unit entered the church, silently, after hiding their gear. Slipping in, quiet as mice, the unit found the resident priest and slipped him enough "sleeping" mixture to keep him under, for twenty-four hours. After that, the unit "borrowed" the priests keys, travelled to the crypt and, as Amanda had guessed, found another, iron, gate (No doubt, to keep the curious OUT of the tunnel) After trying several keys, before finding the right one, the unit then proceeded down the tunnel, until they reached the room, where the surface tunnel connected with what they HOPED would be the sub-ocean tunnel. Again, the unit faced a carved door, made of solid iron. A soldier would remark "They REALLY wanted to keep someone OUT, or in" With four keys, on the ring, and three locks, so far, Amanda wondered what the final door would be like. Would it be a strong, rigid, gate, as the first ones were, or would it be a door, as the third had been? All that the soldiers could be sure of was that someone had been down here, in the tunnel, during the past one hundred years. This was evident by the repair work, which had been done, to the tunnel, over the centuries. What the soldiers found "creepy" was how "modern" some sections, of the tunnel seemed. In one section, for example, five hundred feet in length, the tunnel was lined with marble slabs, and what looked like wall, light, sconces. Beyond this, the unit found some stairs, made of stone slabs. When a point of light was seen, from above, and ocean waves were heard, the soldiers went up to investigate. Twenty minutes later, the soldiers reported back, finding what had seemed, to them, to be a watch-tower, on the beach, of an off-shore island. There was even a wharf, if such a thing could be made of stone. Maybe, it was a dock? After a certain amount of time, the units timer went off, and they headed back to the church, having taken a GPS fix, on their location, from the "look-out tower". When they returned to the church the priest was just waking up. Amanda handed him back his keys, while the soldiers thanked him for his "cooperation". The next day, troop transports landed the unit on the off-shore island, where they found the tower nested among some tall tree's. Perfect camoflauge, if one did not know where to look. Back inside the tunnel, the team found more sections, of polished marble, and some signs, in a language few had seen, before, and none could, actually, read. Some soldiers called it the "Portal Language" since the portal was the first place the unit had seen the language, in writing. None knew what the signs meant. After what would seem like days. of walking, coming to surface islands, just long enough to relieve themselves, the unit was beginning to wonder if they were walking to America, under the ocean. This is when they came to a gallery, which none had dared dream could exist. What Amanda Fox soon realized, as she, and her unit, looked down, upon the contents, of the gallery, was that, even from this low height, the lay out seemed incredibly small. When Amanda found a walkway, around the model, and walked a very short distance, including down some primitive, stone, steps, was that, when she reached "ground level", she noticed that, among the models, the tallest ones barely reached her knee caps. The rest were little more than ankle height. What amazed the relic hunter, most, though, was the precision, with which the model was constructed. despite the age, of the model, the detail would impress even modern architects. As Amanda Fox walked among the "mini-buildings", she noticed some items, which did not seem to belong. Strange features, which seemed to resemble compact versions, of modern super-coliders. And just WHAT were those barrel-shaped things, on the tiny, swivel, mounts? Fearing she might damage the model, Amanda Fox carefully re-traced her steps, and re-joined the soldiers. At about his time, when one soldier said "Looks ike the model sets my kids, and their friends, play with" while another soldier said "If I didn't know better, I would say this is a 3-D version, of a city lay-out plan." When a soldier said "You're full of it. Maps are flap, made of paper, and labelled as to what city they represent." Amanda ended the discussion, saying "It could be either. Question is: If it IS a childs playtoy, then WHY is it so detailed?" A short time later, a scout returned to the group, reporting having found even MORE tunnel space. When the group walked another couple of miles, they fund a surrisingly LARGE shaft, which seemed to lead to the surface. This shaft, though, was large enough for the whole group to climb, at once. They would find out the reason, for this size, when they reached the surface. At the top of this "cylinder" was a stone roof, to which was attached the remains of a pully system. The unit also found two enormous, doors, set into tracks. When the doors were pulled aside, though, the unit found itself face-to-face with two, LARGE diameter, tree trunks. When a soldier asked "Why build doors which will be blocked by tree's?" Amanda Fox would reply "I would speculate that the tower was here, first, and the tree's grew up, around it." When the unit moved past the tree's, and into the open, they looked UP, to see another look out platform, above the top of the shaft tunnel. Then the unit found what they never would have expected to find. A slab, of volcanic rock, big enough to land four freight helicopters on, with room to spare, for off-loading. When a soldier suggested that those, who used the tunnels, must have been in excellent physical condition, to walk so far, carrying such items, Amanda would indicate that she was un-sure that the ancients had "carried" this equipment. When Amanda Fox issued another order, for equipment, command verified "You want wheeled vehicles?" When Amanda verified the order, including making sure that all items were sized to fit the doorway of a small hangar." When command said "The order will take 48 hours", Amanda accepted the information. And why not. After all their work, the unit deserved a chance to rest up. Sure, the assignment was no stress, on nerves or supplies, but the unit was spending so much time, just walking, that the members were sure they were shedding some pounds. Now, they would have two days, to rest up, in the beautiful tropics. The main topic, of discussion, though, remained that of what they would find at the end of the tunnel, not to mention HOW to get the supplies past the tree's, and into the shaft. As for where the tunnel led, the team wondered if it would be a "paradise", of gold, and ivory, maybe even ultra-high technology? Or, would it be just a cavern, like the miniature, which they had observed? For Amanda Fox, though, the thought was why the ancients would build the models, in the first place, if the place was not important. As for the question, of how to move supplies past the tree's, and into the shaft, it would seem that, while investigating the pulley system, a soldier had found a lever, which did not seemed to have a function. It was not attached to the pulley system, or anything that the soldier could see. When the soldier cranked the lever around, to observe what it operated, a loud GROAN! filled the shaft, and echoed across the island. Still, since the tower didn't crumble, the man turned the wheel a few more times. When all the tower did was groan, some more, the soldier gave up, and went to the doors, expecting to have to climb around the tree's, again. To his surprise, though, the tower no-longer faced the tree's. Now, the tower "faced" the beach, and was about 15 degrees off to the side of the stone slab. The soldier found their team mates looking at them, as if to ask "HOW did you do that?" When the soldier showed Amanda Fox the lever, then showed the unit commander, it was the unit commander who cranked the lever first one was, then the other. This is when Amanda Fox, who had been watching the opening, said "Ofcourse! Its just like those mechanisms, which turn observatories, to face the stars! This must have been their version of a supply depot!" When a soldier asked "Why on a rotating base?" Amanda would say "Which is easier? Moving obstructions, from the entrance, or moving the entrance?" Although the promised forty-eight hours, turned into a week, the unit was not complaining. A week, of sun-light, and sandy beaches. What could be better? During this break, though, a message came in, saying that the militants had just slaughtered a town on command orders, since the mapped entrance was so vague, that it could have been any, of a dozen buildings, and locals refused to divulge the location. When federal re-supply arrived, at the island, it would take another two days, to move the supplies into the tunnel, then build the vehicles, which would carry the unit. In order to reduce the risk, to soldiers health, the gasoline engines were replaced with a long distance fuel cell. The unit was back on the job, only now, they were mobile. Thank Goodness, for the extra carts, the army had sent along. Now, the unit looked more like a convoy. Still, it would not be too much longer before Amanda Foxes modified C-4 would come into use. A boulder, from an ancient cave-in, was blocking the pasageway, so the convoy backed away, to a safe distance, and planted several sticks, of Amanda's "chewinng gum" sized C-4 into any cracks, and crevices, on the boulder. Then came the moment of truth. When the unit commander pressed the detonator switch, he expected a devastating ROAR!,, maybe even a cloud, of choking dust. He expected this since this is how C-4 normally worked. In the tunnel, though, the soldier was surprised to hear only a soft "thump", followed by a light raising, of dust particles. When the unit returned to the obstruction, to check the obstacle, and the cave, the unit, still seeing the obstacle, in place, were about to tell Amanda Fox that her experiment was a failure. That is, until Amanda reached for a piece, of rock, took it in hand, and asked "This thing is, still, heavy. Would someone lend me a hand?" To the units surprise, the explosive HAD worked. The boulder had been carved into pieces, which could be moved aside. Best of all, the tunnel was un-damaged. It seems that the boulder absorbed ALL of the shock. Maybe a mile beyond the first boulder, a second boulder stood in the units path. Not long after this second boulder was "blown" out of the way, a scout reported, from the rear. The militants had found the tunnel, as well, and they had enough C-4 bricks planted, to bring down five, city. blocks. When the army commander said "Can't risk it", then ordered the unit back to the supply tower, the group was shocked to learned that the militants, somehow, knew about this, as well. This was proven by the way the soldiers, and Amanda Fox, had to "skirt" the opening, on their way back to shore. As they reached the shore-line, and began finding bricks, of the explosive, all over the walls, one soldier let out a curse before another voice, from down the tunnel, towards the shore, said "That is correct. You are our prisoners and, if you try to escape, we will blow up this tunnel, and let you drown." The militants greatest mistake was in having fanatical, yet un- -trained, "soldiers". When the leader said "I will, now, fire a burst, down the hole, to show you my intentions. Any blood will NOT be on my hands" He forgot to tell his un-disciplined "soldiers" that only one shot was to be fired down the hole. Before the commander knew it, he had a dozen weapons, all firing at once, more or less, down the hole. The U.S army commander realized, as did his unit, that the "soldiers" were firing, "blind", since almost none of the round even came close. While the militants continued their fire, the American commander gave his unit a visual order: "Single shot only. Once their weapons are empty, sniper fire." To the militant commanders horror, the last thing he would see, after his "soldiers" began emptying their weapons, was the short burst, of return fire, from the Americans. "Damn!" He thought, "they were good" even as each American shot took out a militant, and the body count began to grow, until even the militant commander went down. A moment later, a voice rang down, to the Americans: "You have murdered my commander. Since I have no other orders, I will allow you to leave the tunnel, with no harm to you. Just go, and take your blood-lust with you". (The Army commander knew this "soldier" was not trained, since he did not even say "Throw down your weapons") When Amanda Fox and the U.S. army, emerged from the tunnel, they saw the reason why the militant was allowing them to leave. He had only two men still alive, and both were injured. Since this was not a "Search-and-Destroy" mission, though, the Americans just walked past the militants, and headed for the surface. The group was just past the crypts, and on their way, to the priests quarters, when they recoginzed the sound, of C-4 going off. This is when the commander said "Run!", and the unit dashed up, through the church, and dove to the side of the building, just before another blast, of water, ripped the front of this church, off, as well. When the unit commander checked in, via radio, after searching everyone, on his team, just as a precaution, then asking base "How did they find us?" All base could come up with was "You know, America is not the only nation, which monitors world communications" For the next church, Amanda Fox decided upon a different tact. Instead of sneaking in, stealing keys, then sneaking into passages, Amanda Fox suggested asking for the local priests aid. Although the unit entered the church, after dark, to avoid being noticed, when Amanda Fox, and her team, found the priest, he was bound, and gagged. After promising not to shoot the priest, Amanda Fox asked the priest for his keys, to the crypt, the priest looked at the Americans weapons, and indicated the keys. The army commander then left the teams medic to see to the priest, while the rest of the soldiers went to the crypt. When the group came to the iron gate, which blocked the way, to the tunnel, and Amanda realized what the priest had meant when he shook his head, when asked about the crypt, and the tunnel. The man had meant "Is forbidden. No one may go beyond the gate. Not even me". That is until the army commander removed a block, of C-4 from his vest, and, politely, said "Your choice, father. You can open the gate, let us pass, and keep the gate, for future use, or..." The priest knew what "Or" meant, so, he indicated the key, and the unit opened the gate, knowing that the U.S. Army soldiers COULD be just as lethal as those who had come, earlier, bound, and gagged, him. The priest would try to caution the group "Those, who have gone ahead of you have no problem with violence. Be on your guard". With keys in hand, and a medic left, to see to the priests bindings, and injuries, the U.S. army soldiers would pass the gates, and down, into the tunnels, where atleast one soldier would say "I feel like we have been here, before." Actually, after searching so many tunnels, the entire TEAM felt like they had been here, before. It would take hours to catch up, to the militants, but, when they did, the soldiers almost wished they hadn't. This is because of what the soldiers found the militants doing. Another, large, boulder, had collapsed, centuries ago. Problem was that these fools were preparing to use no less than six, full, bricks, of C-4 , to blow it. Even the army commander knew what would happen, if the trigger, on so much explosive, was detonated. This is the reason why the commander gave the hand-signal for "sniper" fire, and a "shhh" signal. Amanda Fox watched as the soldiers, silently, attached suppressors to their weapons. A moment later, seven, "puh" sounds barely were heard, before the militants were taken down. After the U.S army commander checked the explosives, and deemed them to be of good quality, he added them to the teams "reserve", of explosives, then replaced the bricks with Amanda Foxes "chewing gum", and repeated the process, from the previous tunnel. It was just a wild guess, however, when Amanda Fox asked if it was strange that, after travelling, so far, in this tunnel, that the rear scout had reported no one following the unit? The commander would suppose that the militants probably thought their comrades had succeeded, in the tunnels, and were on their way to the "treasure". When Amanda Fox asked "What happens when they dont report in?" The army commander said "I doubt they even have a call in schedule. After all, you heard the young man, when we exited the previous tunnel. Without his unit commander, the man had no directions. I doubt there is even much of a chain of command." All Amanda Fox would say was "I hope you are right". Turns out, the commander was right. He was, also, more careful, when ordering supplies, at their next surfacing, for re-supply. The good news was that, this time, the re-supply tower was not blocked by tree's, but it was inside a forest, on an inhabited island. Instead of giving command coordinates, which the militants could hone in on, the army commander suggested dropping the supplies at (name of island mountain). No one, except the natives, some visitors, and geographers, would know what the location meant. If the militants used, specific, grid locations, then they would have no idea where the supplies were being delivered. With overnight air-drops, from high-flying planes (so as not to rouse the natives) the U.S. army re-supplied the team, which, then, headed back underground. After assembling their replacement transports, the team drove on, for a few miles, before reaching the next hazzard. Just a few strips, of C-4, though, moved the barrier, quietly, and safely. A couple of more barriers, of fallen rock, which Amanda Fox judged had happened, over the course of countless centuries, required very little C-4, and just a few hours, of lifting, and lowering. Then came something even Amanda Fox had not counted upon. Since the unit was so deep, under the Atantic Ocean, Amanda knew what she had to do, when she found the wall, in front of the unit, sealed. She took video of the whole chamber, then sent it back, with a soldier, to the closest "watch tower", and transmitted it back to university, where, hopefully, Sydney Fox, and Nigel Bailey, could figure out what all the drawings, and the sealed, cave entrance, meant. When Neither Syd, nor Nigel, could come up with an answer, they went to their friend, the Professor Wellington Johnston. The same man who helped decode the pillars, and save the people, at the portal. Professor Wellington Johnston, otherwise known as "Atantis Johnston". A man whose passion, for the lost continent, had, nearly, cost him his tenure, more than once. Now, his help was needed, just as it had been needed, at the portal. Still, he had agreed to help, since Syd had made a point of reporting that she was not sure that the travellers could have been saved, if not for the professor. When Wellington Johnston saw the video, he printed out as much as he could, especially of the pictographs, which he said were key to the puzzle. Once he had the photo's all laid out, on his desk, Professor Johnston seemed abe to "read" the message, as easily as most people read cheap novels. As he pointed out, though, some of the drawings were just to make the painting look random. Still, he recited what was read-able. "Beyond the passage door lay the "Dragons Breath", which was the first, of three challenges, which the worthy must face, to move into the chamber of the ancient ones" After that, the professor showed how the paintings showed people progressing, through a passage, to reach an "inner sanctum". The problem was to know which code to enter, so that the wall, before the explorers would allow them passage. When Syd asked "Where would you enter a code, anyway? I dont even see a panel" Professor Johnston would say "It is right there, before your eyes" Still, Syd did not see it. A couple of hours, of translations, later, and Professor Johnston wrote out the code, cautioning care, as the tunnel was "booby-trapped". When Syd would ask "You mentioned something called "Demons, or Dragons, Breath. What does that mean?" Professor Johnston said "More than likely, a test, of some kind. Probably involves extreme heat" Back at the tunnel, Anamda Fox looked at the wall. With the recording in hand, and following Professor Johnstons directions, Amanda Fox was surprised at how long it took her to find the "keypad". In fact, she only found it because the rock was more well-defined, from usage, than the walls, around it. What made the keypad look strange was the fact that it really did not resemble a keypad. In fact, it almost perfectly, resembled the rock, around it. When Amanda Fox pressed the stone, in the order Professor Johnston had indicated, though, the wall, before the unit, slid into the wall, revealing a passageway, beyond. This is when the army commander cautioned Amanda to replay the message, again. In the message, when asked what "Dragons", or "Demons" Breath could mean, Professor Johnston had said "I cannot say, for certain. Not absoutely, but I woud think it refers to some sort of trap. Like a burglar alarm". When, in the message, Syd had asked "What KIND of alarm?" Professor Johnston woud guess "I would say that, due to the reference, that it implies something regarding either fire, or tremendous heat. Un-fortunately, the text does not go into much detail. It is like trying to shut off a car alarm, just by knowing what TYPE of alarm it is", "But, not the actual code" Syd would add. "Precisely" The professor would add. The only difference is that, with an alarm, all one has to fear is noise, the the on-coming police. With this device, I have no clue as to what to tell them to expect" Syd would take over the message, telling the unit "This is as far as we can take you. The rest is up to your judgement." As a result, down, in the tunnel, the army commander would ask "Who is up for it?" When two, of his lieutenants, woud agree to be the ones to go, first, then ask Amanda Fox "What are dragons, and demons, best known for?" Amanda Fox would say "To the best of my knowedge, they are fire-breathers. intense heat, like...STEAM!" then she would say "Ofcourse", then ask the units sargeant "Are there any vocanic islands, in this area?" When the sargeant would say "Ofcourse. Plenty of them." Amanda would tell the soldiers "Volcanoes mean huge amounts of trapped steam. heat from the magma". When the soldier would say "Okay", Amanda would suggest "Treat this like a live fire exercise. The ones you enjoy discussing. Only this time, its not bullets. Its volcanie steam" When the soldier said "So, the solution is to crawl" Moments later, wearing nothing but their clothes, the soldiers woud crawl through the taller than human height doorway, and inch their way to whatever was before them. About twenty minutes later, the soldiers called back "We're through. What do we look for, to shut off the sprayers?" Amanda called back "Look for a lever, or an odd-colored rock. Something which has seen use." When the call came, five minutes later, of "Roger that. Found it", this was followed by a sound, like something shifting, somewhere nearby. Then came the "All clear, proceed" call. When the group followed, Amanda Fox was amazed at how the steam, from the volcano, had been vented, to flow across this path. The ancients were, indeed, an intelligent race. Even Amanda Fox never would have thought of using red hot volcanic steam, as an intruder alarm. Beyond the steam section, though, the unit found what were, probably, the remains, of the second, two, traps. The problem was that time, and the elements, had taken their tolls, and reduced the traps to mere rust patterns, on the floor. Beyond this, though, lay the answers, to a great, many questions. Inside a vast, volcanic, bubble, lay a city of such a size that it could, easily, be any modern city. Except ofcourse, for the complete lack of life. When the unit saw things, which resembled skyscrapers, and other wonders, they had to wonder just what they were looking at. When more supplies arrived, there was a message, as well. It seems that the militants thought their unit was, still, on schedule, and working towards its goal. There was no radio chatter, between the militant commander, and their men. Amanda's army commander would say "I told you. They had no chain of command. Unless someone reports the teams death, or capture, they think the mission is proceeding". With U.S army mobile radar, delivered to the site, the idea was to map this place, end to end, and give the Pentagon a general map, of the lay out, while the soldiers patrolled, on foot. The problem, with this place, was its SIZE. Its was, without a doubt, taller than New York City, and wider than anything they had seen, before. The teams geologist would estimate that the crus, of the dome, must be miles thick, in order not to have collapsed, under the weight of the Atlantic Ocean. The geologist, then, shared an un-certain observation, which they wanted Amanda Fox to verify. Looking up, at the high ceiling, with binoculars, the soldier asked Amanda what she saw. When she asked "Layers upon layers, of sediment?" The soldier said "Thats what I thought. The question is "How did it get so high, and what supported it?"" Amanda had no ready answer, either. The rest of the unit was finding things they could not explain, either. Things which LOOKED like tram tracks, and building doors, which had no handles. When a soldier blew dirt away from the edge of a door, they found more of the "portal language". When another soldier bumped a wall section, and layers of dust fell away, the material, underneath, looked brand new. When the unit commander asked "What do you think? Some kind of abandoned, movie, set?" All that Amanda Fox could ask was "UNDER the Atanitc Ocean?" Hours later, while the unit was trying to turn their finds into a report, which the Pentagon would accept, while wondering just HOW supposed "cave-men" could have built the tall buildings, in this place and, equally important question was, where did they all go?" This is when they heard an ear-wrenching sound. G-R-O-A-N!!!! This would be followed by a high-pitched, whinning, sound, which would sound like a generator, or a jet engine, coming up to speed. When the unit would grab weapons, and head off, in the direction, which they thought the sounds were coming from, they would walk a couple of miles before coming upon something, which few, except Amanda Fox, recognized. Due to her years of study, of various real, and supposed, sources, of energy, Amanda Fox had been surprised to learn that the ancients had been making great strides, in energy production. She had even found references to places like the one she was, currently, looking at. But, how was it possible? Sure, the place might LOOK like a modern super-collider, but it was many times smaller. Besides, where would the ancients find the power, to start such a device? All the unit knew was that their patrol man would report seeing a "glow", inside the building and, when he went inside, to investigate, he found a light, glowing, on a surface. Thinking it might be a light switch, he held his hand just over the switch. He swore he never touched it. As the unit examined this bizzarre place, which seemed identical to modern control rooms, they saw lights come on, in buildings, around the area. Then, a panel, in this room, came to life, but, dag-nab-it! The content, of the display, was in that same, ancient language. When the unit commander would ask "Didn't these people ever learn to speak English?" His unit suppressed a chuckle, as Amanda Fox would suggest "I doubt that English was even created, when this place was in operation". All that anyone could be certain of was that fact that this place was inhabited, at one time, and, somehow, its power source, was, still, in operation. About a week later, while, still, trying to compose a report, which the Pentagon would, actually, believe, the unit found an enormous base, with a bottom, and sides, three feet thick, and which appearred to have power lines flowing to it. Whatever it was, it was HUGE. When a Star Wars fan, among the units members, suggested "What about an Ion cannon?", the unit commander said "No more science fiction movies, for you, until further notice". Athough the unit found more of the "small" buildings, with the glowing lights, the commanders orders were clear. "Dont touch ANY-thing, until Dr. Fox gives the okay. I dont care how pretty it is, or how curious you are" By the time the unit received its recall, they estimated that they MIGHT have charted a full one quarter of this place. They knew why they were being recalled. It was because their reports were less of "Here's the facts, Jack!", and more of "It is possible that this might have been". Still, the unit members would be happy to be back in the sun, again. Back among the living. Amanda's own de-briefing would be the fastest, since she was not military. Her report would be taken, and filed, under "Highly Classified", then she would be allowed time to relax, while the team went through the normal, military, de-briefing. While her team was being questioned, Amanda Fox would take some sketches, and head off, to see a man she knew. A man who worked with special effects, all the time. Reginald was a "free-lance" special effects worker, whom studios called in, when they needed effects which were both spectacular, and believeable. That was Reginalds "bread-and-butter". He designed effects which COULD exist, in scence fiction. This is why Amanda came to him. He had done some work, for her, before. When Amanda showed Reginald her drawings, and he saw the scale, of the units, he told her "If you think these were for statues, then you are wrong. Statue would only need to move in a circle. According to your drawings, these are swivel mounts." When Amanda would say "I just need to know what these things might have held, at one time.." Reginald said "Give me a couple of days." Over those next two days, while her military escort was packing ammunition, and explosives, for their return to the undersea place, Amanda would return to Reginald, hoping her friend would provide her with some pictures, which she could show to the joint chiefs. Pictures which would show that this place was NO threat, to the world. What she got was the opposite. When Amanda saw the pictures, of guns, which could fire, deep into space, she said "NO!, Reginald, I did not want guns!" When Reginald said "I am sorry, but the platforms you showed me, are near-replicas, of modern-day gun platforms. I checked over a dozen sources." When Amanda asked "Are you sure?" Reginald would say "Amanda, give me some credit. Were it not for the fact that you claim these platforms are made of some sort of marble, not the normal metals, which batte ships are made of, I would stake my entire future that I am right." When Amanda would go to face the Joint Chiefs, with her findings, to date, she would start out with "To date, our findings do NOT show any military activity, of any kind. All that we have found are what appear to be sections, of a city. Building material unknown, at this point. Computers are still trying to identify the materials. There would, also, seem to be some items which resemble modern power plants, but these are not as-yet verified." When the chairman would ask "Doctor Fox, HAVE you found any WEAPONS, such as those, which our enemies seek?" Amanda would have to say "No, sir. No weapons, of any kind, have been found, on-site" When asked "How long do you expect your survey to take?" Amanda would say "I realy have no idea. The place is HUGE. The builders must have been highly competent" She would be asked "And that does not alarm you? That ancient peoples have our same level of technology?" Amanda would ask "Why should I be alarmed? We have found no dangers." When asked "What about the "Demons Breath" trap, at the entryway?" Amanda Fox would ask "What about your armed guards, outside these doors?" When asked "What is this question, in your report, about the roof of this place. You imply that it was formed, of some other material, which was, then, covered? Why is this?" Amanda Fox would clarify, "Gentlemen, what my report states is that, at one time, there was some type of enclosure, over this place, which failed, probably long after the place was shut down. By the time the original enclosure failed, a new enclosure had formed, OVER the original enclosure" When asked "An enclosure strong enough to hold out the Atlantic Ocean?" Amanda would say "Yes, that strong" Amanda understood why her military escort was happy to be away from the interrogations, once she was away, as well. She also understood why the soldiers would not say a thing, while on the base. No telling WHO might be listening to their conversations. No sense giving the "enemy" ammunition. Funny thing was, two days later, the whole unit would laugh, when word came down that the Pentagon had issued orders that the colony be depth charged.. Amanda, and her escorts, could only think "Fools! If the Atlantic Ocean had not squashed the place, by now, what good would depth charges, and missiles, do?" It would not be until after some frog-men, who were monitoring the site, saw the complete lack of effect, that six missiles, and twelve depth charges, had made, that the "Cease Fire" order was given. The Pentagon decided that it would be best just to close the location, cover the entrance, with more cement, and rebar, and move on, secure in the fact that there were no weapons, for anyone to find. Professor Wellington Johnston would be the most dis-appointed, with the decision, to re-close the colony. He had hoped to visit, himself, and not just via camcorder data. Syd would console him with a dinner. Amanda, and her escort, would be returned to their primary mission. The endless seeking out, of tunnels, to that blasted, ancient, bunker. For some reason, the Pentagon wanted to be sure that these places were kept sealed up, tight. WHY was anyones guess. After all, these places had been abandoned, for centuries. It wasn't like a group, like Al-Qaida, had just stepped out, yesterday.