‘The location site was destroyed and all evidence contained within likewise lost or irreparably damaged. Egyptian forces did not detect the blast that destroyed the site due to the unusually powerful storm cell over the area at the time.’
‘Who fired the projectiles that destroyed the site?’ the officer demanded to know.
‘Either Egypt, and they’re lying about their lack of knowledge about what happened, or a third–party. We’re looking into it at the moment.’
‘ARIES?’ the officer asked briskly without looking up from his paperwork.
‘Shut down completely forty–eight hours ago,’ Foxx replied. ‘All staff have been reassigned, all projects closed and all agents suitably dealt with.’
Now, the officer looked up.
‘Completely?’
‘Completely,’ Foxx assured him. ‘The only agents outstanding from the list are Ethan Warner, Nicola Lopez and Joseph Hellerman. All three were at the site in Egypt when it was destroyed, and there have been no survivors reported as having been located at the site when it was searched this morning, local time after the storm blew through. Judging by the blast report and the extent of the damage to the site, it is believed that all three perished in the detonation.’
The officer nodded, satisfied.
‘What artefacts were recovered from ARIES?’
‘That is a list too long to recount here,’ Foxx replied. ‘However, their archives did reveal the extent of the knowledge they had acquired over the years and verified our need to shut the operation down as quickly as we did. They were close, sir. Very close.’
Foxx handed the officer a photograph. The vivid color image revealed an ancient skeleton, humanoid but taller and with a physiology far from human. Photographed inside a seven–thousand–year old tomb in southern Israel, the remains had been discovered several years before by a palaeontologist by the name of Doctor Lucy Morgan.
‘Where is Morgan now?’ the officer asked.
‘Unknown, but last seen in the company of Warner and Lopez. It is considered probable that she perished with them.’
‘And we possess these remains now?’
‘Yes sir,’ Foxx replied. ‘They are concealed at Wright Patterson Air Force Base along with all other artefacts located at the ARIES site, and are awaiting transportation. There is however one artefact that appears to be missing, something that we have images of but are unsure of its origin.’
Foxx handed another image to his commanding officer, this time of a strange metallic sphere contained within a small transparent chamber.
‘Data attached to the records suggests that this object was retrieved from the crash site of an artificial satellite code–named Black Knight. It was this recovery operation that convinced us that the DIA was getting too close to the truth and that we should take over.’
The officer nodded.
‘Is it possible that one of the agency’s staff could have smuggled this object out of the DIAC Building?’
Foxx thought for a moment. ‘Highly unlikely, but nothing is truly impossible. We should operate on the assumption that the sphere is in circulation somewhere.’
‘Jarvis,’ the officer growled. ‘He remains a loose end in the operation and one that we must close, Foxx, is that understood?’
‘Perfectly, sir.’
‘Good, then this brings the proceedings to an end. We will no longer have to concern ourselves with civilian DIA operatives within ARIES overreaching into our affairs. Focus your search now for Jarvis and his lackeys. They know the game they’re in and the risks they’re taking. Eliminate them as soon as you find them. Dismissed.’
Foxx stood, turned and marched from the office. He heard the sound of the file he had brought in with him being shredded even before he had closed the door.
*
Atlantic Ocean
Doug Jarvis stood on the deck of Garrett’s yacht and listened to the waves crashing against the vessel’s hull far below as it carved a path ever westward and away from Europe.
Out here, far from civilization, it was at least possible for him to feel comfortable again, to forget who he was and what he had become. Although he felt sure that he had never lost his humanity, he sometimes wondered what could have happened to the cheerful, wide–eyed with curiosity boy he had once been. In a world where the act of discovery was something not to be jubilantly shared with others but to be veiled and hidden even the purest of hearts could become twisted, poisoned by those who cared little for the future of mankind.
Jarvis held his hands behind his back and watched the waves flow by, as though time itself was leaving him behind. There was still so much to do and now so few who would wish to do it with him. Amber Ryan had not spoken to him since the drone’s missile had taken the lives of those closest to them all, and even Lillian Cruz seemed more distant than ever. Garrett was also becoming reclusive, as though for the first time he had come to realize just what a dangerous world he had entered, where the lives of individuals were so often sacrificed for the greater good of the mission. Ethan and the team had not been heard from for forty–eight hours, and the chances of them having escaped the tremendous blasts that had incinerated the Russian convoy were slim in the extreme.
He was looking into those waves when Lillian Cruz walked onto the deck to join him, staring out over the sun now descending toward a horizon slit by horizontal black gashes of distant stratus clouds gathering to the west.
‘It’s not your fault,’ she said simply. ‘You did what you had to do.’
Jarvis shrugged.
‘It’s not like I can walk up to Aisha and say; it’s your fault, you told me to do it.’
Lillian smiled softly as the wind whipped off the wild ocean and caressed her face.
‘She’s the one that can see into the future.’
‘It was still my decision.’
Lillian turned to him.
‘We all do what we do so that others don’t have to. It’s a weight on our shoulders but it shouldn’t be blood on our hands. We did our best and so did you.’
Jarvis managed a smile of gratitude that only lasted a moment as Amber Ryan’s voice cut into his ear.
‘You bastard.’
Jarvis sighed and turned wearily to face Amber, and was surprised to see her smiling at him.
‘You got away with it,’ she said. ‘Warner just called in. They made it.’
Jarvis gasped. ‘They didn’t.’
‘Lucy’s with them and they have something to show you.’
For the first time in what felt like a thousand years Jarvis felt tears spring unbidden into his eyes and he staggered sideways as one hand grabbed a safety rail for support. In an instant Lillian and Amber leaped forward and each took one of his arms.
Jarvis turned his head away from them, pain piercing the corners of his eyes and his chest fluttering as he replied in an unsteady voice.
‘I’ll be right there.’
The two women held him for a moment longer and then they moved away. Jarvis stood for a few moments and watched the sun setting in the distance, and then he gathered himself and turned as he walked toward the bridge.
Garrett and the rest of the team were waiting for him as he joined them, gathered around a large monitor that showed an image of Ethan Warner’s face looking back at them. Jarvis could see Lopez in the background, and then most important of all he saw his granddaughter.
‘Lucy,’ was all he could utter.
‘I’m fine,’ she called, apparently in perfect health and smiling as she waved at him. ‘Once again you have these two to thank for that, although I did save their assess once or twice myself!’
Ethan nodded.
‘We couldn’t have done it without her.’
‘Good to see you again, Ethan. Where are you?’ Jarvis asked. ‘Why didn’t you call in sooner?’
‘We decided to lay low until we could get a secure line to you, just in case we got bombed again,’ Lopez said hotly, her characteristic fiery Latino
temper once again to the fore.’
Jarvis nodded.
‘There was no other option. Since you disappeared, ARIERS has been totally shut down and Nellis has been reassigned,’ he informed them. ‘Several agents lost their lives due to the intelligence shake up and if I hadn’t split when I did I’d probably also have had a nasty accident.’
‘Which is what the DIA thinks happened to you in the desert,’ Amber said. ‘Right now the DIA believes that you’re dead.’
‘They went for it?’ Ethan asked.
‘Intelligence chatter suggests so, and we sure thought that you’d been hit,’ Garrett explained. ‘The DIA will probably be watching your families for a while in case you show up, but you’re no longer likely to be hunted. That means whatever you managed to retrieve from Egypt can be studied without interference.’
Jarvis looked expectantly at Lucy, and with her Hellerman held out a small object the size of a clenched fist.
‘We have new toys,’ Hellerman said. ‘This was found inside the tomb of an Egyptian scribe called Tjaneni who died thousands of years ago. It’s built from pure titanium, overlaid with gold.’
Jarvis leaned closer and saw that Hellerman was holding a beautifully formed Eye of Horus. Slowly, he opened it to reveal a perfectly spherical interior.
‘Guess what I think goes in here,’ Hellerman said.
Jarvis could already see that the spherical cavity was precisely the same size as the exotic liquid metal sphere Hellerman had taken with him when he had fled America.
‘You’d better get out here as soon as you can,’ Jarvis said. ‘We’ll arrange flights on private aircraft for you, and you’ll transfer off part way to avoid customs.’
Ethan nodded and checked the laptop he was using.
‘Our connection won’t last much longer before we have to move again,’ he said. ‘We’ll be in touch in precisely twelve hours. Be ready, because Lucy here has translated what our ancient Egyptian friends believed to literally be the Word of God.’
Jarvis leaned closer to the screen. ‘What does it say?’
For the first time since he had employed Ethan and Nicola, it was she who got the last word in.
‘You’re going to have to see that to believe it.’
***
LI
Ilsa de Culebra,
Bahamas
Ethan stepped off the deck of a small fishing boat and onto the enormous white yacht’s stern, the warm Caribbean sun glistening off crystalline blue waters all around. He turned, and with Lopez helped Elena onto the deck as from inside the yacht he saw familiar faces approaching them.
‘About time!’ Garrett said cheerfully as he shook Ethan’s hand, and then looked at Elena. ‘Welcome aboard, Elena.’
The girl smiled briefly, shyly, and stayed close to Lopez.
Rhys Garrett’s yacht was anchored a hundred meters off a tiny uninhabited atoll called Cayo Tiburon, nestled in the heart of the British Virgin Islands. Ethan, Lopez and the rest of the team had travelled via a private vessel across the Atlantic, staying well clear of the Mediterranean to ensure that no links at all could be made between them and Garrett should the DIA spot them on their travels.
They had then jumped ship off the coast of Brazil and travelled north on one of Garrett’s hired yachts before transferring to a flying boat that had landed in Antigua. Finally, the anonymous little fishing vessel had transported them across to Garrett’s yacht.
Garrett turned to Hellerman.
‘The Eye,’ he said. ‘Do you really think it links up with the artefact you found on the Black Knight?’
Hellerman nodded as he fished the beautifully crafted golden icon from his jacket, the object glinting in the sunlight. ‘It’s a perfect fit for the sphere.’
Jarvis walked out from the yacht’s interior into the sunshine, and instantly Lucy dashed across to him and threw her arms about his neck. For the first time in a long time, Ethan was reminded that Jarvis too was a human being, and that Lucy held him in high regard.
‘Is mom okay?’ Lucy asked Jarvis.
‘She’s fine,’ Jarvis promised, ‘I didn’t tell her anything and now I don’t have to.’
Jarvis looked at the icon Hellerman was holding.
‘We don’t know what’s going to happen when you try to put that sphere inside,’ he warned.
‘There’s only one way to find out,’ Lopez said as she grabbed the icon from Hellerman and tossed it to Jarvis. ‘Shall we?’
Jarvis appeared amused by Lopez’s business–like attitude as he turned and walked into the yacht. Ethan followed, and found himself walking alongside Elena as the other oracles joined them with Aisha at their head. In sharp contrast to how they had been found, the girls now looked refreshed, glowing with youth and vitality as they broke ranks and rushed to Elena’s side in a group hug. Ethan saw Elena’s caution melt away as she was held by the other girls, and she looked up in Ethan’s general direction.
‘We owe you our lives,’ Elena said to him as they walked.
‘We’re even,’ Ethan replied. ‘And at least now you can live without having the Russians breathing down your necks. I’m sure Garrett will be able to pull some strings and get you citizenship and a new life far from Syria.’
Elena nodded.
‘He will.’
Ethan looked down at her as a supernatural chill rippled up his spine. ‘Do you see everything?’
‘I see enough,’ she replied, and for the first time Ethan saw her smile as she glanced briefly in the direction of his voice. ‘Enough to know we’re in safe hands here, with all of you.’
Ethan glanced over his shoulder. ‘I’m not sure; have you ever seen Nicola drive?’
‘Can it, Warner,’ Lopez shot back.
Jarvis led them through the huge yacht to a lounge near the bow which was lined with deep cream carpets and vast leather couches, immense oval portholes looking out over the ocean outside.
Ethan couldn’t help but marvel at the splendor surrounding them as Jarvis walked to the center of the lounge and Ethan noticed a rectangular, transparent box on a glass table between the couches. Inside the box was suspended the bizarre, revolving ball of liquid metal that Lopez and he had found in Antarctica on a previous mission, one that had cost the life of an FBI Agent and close friend.
Mitchell closed the door behind them, sealing them from the staff on the rest of the yacht as Garrett used a remote control to close blinds on the oval portholes, the sunlight streaming into the room muted to a soft glow.
‘You got any idea how to go about this?’ Jarvis asked Hellerman.
‘As a matter of fact, I know precisely what to do.’
‘How?’ Garrett asked.
Doctor Lucy Morgan stepped forward with a laptop computer and set it on the desk alongside the magnetic chamber containing the sphere. The screen lit up, and Jarvis gasped as he saw an image of the corpse of Tjaneni before him.
From where he stood Ethan could see the complex tattoos that covered the Egyptian scribe’s body, and across his chest the Eye of Horus, it’s center directly over his heart.
‘Wow, he got seriously inked,’ Garrett exclaimed.
‘Tjaneni’s body was literally covered from head to foot with these tattoos,’ Lucy explained. ‘With the exception of the Eye of Horus, everything else is a mess and makes no sense. That is, until you use the writing on the wrappings and the tablets found inside the Ark to decode them.’
Jarvis frowned. ‘I thought the tablets were lost with the Russians?’
Lucy nodded with a bright smile. ‘And that is where being a scientist and diligent recorder of evidence comes in.’
Lucy changed the image of the corpse on the laptop screen to one of the tablets that the Russians had stolen from the tomb in Egypt. Although not a perfect image, Lucy had been able to surreptitiously photograph the tablets as they were removed by the Russians from Tjaneni’s tomb.
‘Hellerman was able to use graphics packages to enhance the image enough that w
e could read the Sumerian and hieroglyphic instructions, which were then used to decode the information contained on Tjaneni’s body. What is says is pretty startling.’
Lucy stood back as Hellerman stepped forward and took the Eye of Horus icon from Jarvis. He moved across to the magnetic chamber as he opened the icon in his hand and held it inverted over the magnetic chamber, just inches above the lid.
Then, with one hand, he unclipped the chamber lid and flipped it off.
Ethan saw the sphere of liquid metal drop for an instant, and then as though drawn by some incredibly powerful force it shot up out of the chamber and slammed directly into the icon with enough force to drive Hellerman’s arm upward.
The icon slammed shut in Hellerman’s hand and he was hurled a pace backward as he released the icon in shock. The golden Eye of Horus reached head height and stopped, hovering in the air before them.
A silence pervaded the room.
‘Now what?’ Lopez asked.
Before anybody could reply, Ethan saw a dim glow begin to appear inside the icon’s eye, like a point of starlight in an otherwise immensely dark universe. Slowly the light began to burn more brightly, shimmering with iridescent colors that began to flicker around the room.
‘What’s it doing?’ Garrett asked, suddenly nervous.
Ethan realized that despite his own concerns he was more relaxed than Garrett. Over the years he and Lopez had witnessed so many extraordinary things that unless the Eye of Horus was about to disintegrate the yacht and everybody in it, they were likely in no danger at all.
He glanced to his right and to his amazement he saw Elena watching the light and smiling broadly. Beyond her, the other oracles were likewise smiling.
‘What is it, Elena?’ he asked.
Elena replied softly as though entranced by the spectacle, and almost before she spoke Ethan realized that she shouldn’t even be aware that the icon was hovering in mid–air or emitting light at all.
‘I can see it,’ she said.
Ethan turned as from the Eye of Horus emerged tiny specks of light, glowing orbs that expanded away from the hovering artefact to fill the room. He saw them shimmer and rotate as they moved, passing through objects and out the other side as though the light that they consisted of was both solid and vacuous at the same time.
The Genesis Cypher (Warner & Lopez Book 6) Page 33
