Orion's Children

by Rohan Moorthy

  Axedon International Spaceport

  Two days later, John and his team assembled at the Axedon International Spaceport, where Wildlife One had been moved back to from the Halo Airbase. With their cargo loaded and all fresh supplies checked out, they passed through two lines of military personnel, who stood on either side saluting them. Mike turned to Nigel as they walked towards the craft’s entrance, “So, you convinced Carmen to join us on Earth, eh?” he asked. “Oh, for sure, mate. Let’s just say that my argument was very convincing,” said Nigel grinning widely. “I’m sure it was,” said Mike slapping Nigel on his back. “She’ll be arranging her documents and should be in Australia by Christmas, this year. Then I’m going to show her all the great things about my home turf,” said Nigel. “Yeah, but didn’t you initially tell me that you were thinking of settling here?” asked Mike. “Oh well, I guess it’s a bit too hard for me to think of giving up the outback, just yet,” he said. “Wow, you’re a real gentleman, Nigel,” replied Mike as they entered Wildlife One and walked to the elevator.

  Raveena and Akira checked the onboard systems. “Great! All systems are a go and we have clearance from the control tower,” said Akira. They buckled in and began the countdown preparation. Ali checked his screens one last time before tapping his armlet and switching things off. With all animals on board and placed into their cryogenic state along with the DNA banks safely secured, he felt good and smiled as he looked out the window. “Right crew, we are ready to go,” said Raveena over the intercom. “It’s been a great trip. Here’s to seeing home again,” said Mike. “Yup!” said Ali. “It’s a good day for living!” he added.

  Axedon City Suburb

  Wildlife One soared into the air and as it left the spaceport, a stream of water guns and banners waved it goodbye as it disappeared into the sky. Buziba Chidi watched the screen at his home and saw the craft vanish into the horizon. He scrolled through the news reports for several more minutes before switching it off. He then walked to his large balcony, located outside the main hall and which overlooked a pine forest. “Enjoy your ride back home team Air Hawk. For, you have no idea what you carry with you,” he said. A pod hovered near him and projected an image. He touched several icons and pushed a button that said, “Confirmed.” Everything vanished and the screen turned black. The figure of a brown cobra then appeared, with its head raised and its hood spread wide. It was shown erect with its lower body coiled around a red pyramid. “Our independence from Earth is secured,” he said.

  ◆◆◆

  Part III

  THE PROTECTORS OF HUMANITY

  The Great Hall Of Records

  Below the Giza Plateau, Egypt

  Derek Riggs felt the last bit of plaster he was digging into give way above him. He immediately sprang to one side as a deluge of material came crashing down. A cloud dust spread around him and dimmed the lights near to him, in the tunnel he was standing in. The air mask he wore ensured that he would not be affected by any airborne material. He waited patiently for everything to settle and after a few minutes he raised his head and stared at the square stone slab above him. He then proceeded to place four small hover bots in each corner and touched a button on his armlet to activate them. They gently pressed against the slab, raising it a foot high and then placing it to one side on the floor of the chamber above him. The bots then flew back into a tray Derek placed on the ground. Once they were in, he stared through the hole and observed a web of blue lights that cut through the inky blackness above him. He felt a cool draft of air begin to pour into the tunnel and he relished its smooth caress against his skin. “Right time to begin,” he said as he lifted his left hand towards the opening and held out a hover pod. He removed his right glove and gently touched his thumb to one side of the pod and it sprang to life emitting a soft red light. The surface of the spherical object began to display smoky cloud effect, with swirls that moved in a clockwise direction. He felt it leave his palm and saw it rise up through the hole, while navigating its way through the blue streaks and ensuring that it did not come into contact with any of them. It ascended several feet up, till it was nothing more than a speck above him. The pod paused and then it began to beam back the surrounding space to the visual display on his armlet. He held his breath and watched with amazement as to what its infra-red camera showed.

  The gigantic chamber above him was exquisitely decorated with ancient Egyptian graphics and a peculiar form of hieroglyphics. The vivid colours and sharpness of the lines were unlike anything he had ever seen before. He zoomed in for a closer look and noticed that the huge surface of the walls near the ceiling were inlaid with gold, silver and precious jewels. He turned the holographic icons on his armlet to rotate the pod. He moved it forward and surveyed the entire chamber, which was a rectangular design and supported on its two longer sides by 15 gigantic pillars, inlaid with sculptures and precious gems. The shorter ends of the chamber had a total of eight pillars with a doorway located behind each side. He tapped an icon and the pod flew forward till it floated above the object he sought, which was an intricately designed stone container or a Hogam Box on the far side of the chamber, away from where he was. It was placed just before one set of the eight pillars. He observed the two cream coloured statues of Anubis placed on either side of it. The statues were enormous, with both reaching a height of 70 feet and the stone box itself measuring a height of 40 feet. Spread across its front surface were a bizarre set of image patterns that combined Egyptian and Oakorian text. Derek carefully lowered the pod down to the front of the box, where he saw the image of the all Seeing Eye.

  He stopped it at this point, just above the centre from where the streaks of blue light were being emitted across every part of the chamber. Satisfied with its position he then looked at his watch. “11:59 p.m.….and midnight,” said Derek and he saw the blue streaks go off. He quickly lowered the pod till it was balanced straight in front of the all Seeing Eye image and with another tap of his armlet the pod emitted a set of red lights onto it. He held his breath and checked his watch again. “12:00 a.m…..12:01 a.m.,” he said and immediately above him in the chamber, a great flash of light erupted. It blinded him temporarily and he crouched down once more, while listening carefully for a noise he hoped he would not have to hear. Nothing happened and he stood up straight and smiled emphatically. There above him, through the hole, he could see the grandeur of the chamber’s roof as it glistened in all its glory. He marvelled at it for a minute and spoke into his armlet. “Gentlemen. Get ready to bring the key in,” he said. At an area near the south-western border of Egypt, Nadal Oberoi and Riza Ali embraced each other and broke into smiles upon hearing Derek’s words. They signalled for their crew to assemble. One of the sentry’s tapped at a console he held and within seconds a large black container placed behind the group levitated a foot off the ground as they waited for the next part of the operation to begin. They all stood in the main room of a pyramid, which was barren and contained no hieroglyphics, statues or carvings of any kind. It stood at a height of 90 feet and owing to debates about its age, experts had chosen to name it after the Pharaoh of the first ancient Egyptian dynasty, Narmer. However, since its discovery in 2025 there had not been any real interest in further analysing it by mainstream Egyptologists. The area surrounding the pyramid was barren and nothing of significance had been unearthed in the years since, which left many academic scholars to wrongly label it as a store house for food grains and arms needed by patrolling Egyptian soldiers. However, the Guardians of Symoor, knew exactly what its real purpose was.

  Derek caught hold of both sides of the opening above him and raised himself up. It was a tight squeeze but he managed to get through and placed himself on his knees at first. He then stood and looked in wonder at the magnificence of the chamber. In 13,700 years he was the first being to re-enter the Great Hall of Records. It lay 2,101 feet below the Sphinx and the Giza plateau in Egypt untouched and unknown for centuries to the most of the outside world. Derek could not help but remi
nd himself of the depth of the Hall’s location and the current year. He turned slowly while looking at the artwork on the ceiling as well as the brilliance of the pillars that spread around him, their gigantic scale dwarfing him in their presence. He shifted his attention to the great statues of Anubis and as he stood against them he couldn’t help but feel inspired by their colossal size. He rubbed his hand against of one of the statues’ legs and was amazed at how smooth and cool the stone felt beneath his skin. He then stepped towards his left and observed both the doors on either side of the hall. The one behind the statues he would be opening with his team and the other would have to wait until John Stroff’s ship returned to Earth in a month’s time. He felt a surge of excitement race through his veins. He could hardly wait for that one to be opened as it contained the key to Earth’s ultimate protection.

  Derek then inspected the pod and saw that it was holding fine. The stone box it was facing acted as an internal alarm system and if it detected any non-Oakor or Assiross beings entering the chamber it would electrocute them. Or if it felt the chamber was under attack it was designed to collapse on itself thereby destroying everything it contained. He recalled also how the pod that disabled it had been designed from the blueprints found in the Nantweet scrolls. The Assiross had passed along instructions through the Endanmo the previous year, for the Guardians of Symoor to finally access and read through the scrolls that had been placed in a secure location under the ruins of Angkor centuries ago. Being one of four inner council Purple Knights, Derek had been selected to undertake the task of retrieving them, working through their instructions and finally using that knowledge to access the Great Hall itself. The tunnel he had emerged from had been the only access route that would allow him to enter the hall. It had been built as a secret entry point, with a series of sensors spread throughout its length. The scrolls had laid out detailed instructions as to where to access the tunnel, which was within the main Giza pyramid, as well as how to bypass the tunnel sensors and how to design the disabling pod for the Hogam box. In fact, the only time the system could be disabled was once a year, during the first week of August at midnight. Among other things, the scrolls also stated that any more than one person entering the tunnel, would trigger the alarm system in the Great Hall, which would cause the former to be filled with a poisonous vapour. Derek stared in awe at the feat of engineering of the Hogam Box and contemplated how this alarm system could function without the need for any external power source for all these years. He planned to one day pry it open to see how it worked exactly. But for now that would have to wait. He also thought back to the year 1995, when several members from the Defenders of Amanora had tried to enter the smaller chambers located above the one he stood in. When Egyptologists had discovered the chambers in the early 1990’s, it had caught the attention of both the Guardians of Symoor and the Defenders of Amanora. However, the Endanmo had cautioned the Symoor members to not enter those chambers but to wait for further instructions. The Amanonra members on the other hand, jumped at the chance and attempted to enter it. Unknown to them a similar Hogam box was in place and once it detected non-Oakor beings, it collapsed on itself, effectively destroying everything and in the process caused a series of tremors that shook the Sphinx above it. When the Egyptian government were informed of the incident, they effectively banned any further exploration activities in the immediate area surrounding the Sphinx. This remained firmly in place over the next 106 years that followed.

  Derek checked the time and walked back towards the Hogam Box and stood in front of the all Seeing Eye. Next he took out a neatly wrapped bundle from one of his breast pockets and undid the string. He then took the two dark coloured jewels that it contained and placed them each in two slots located on other either side of the all Seeing Eye image. A beam of white light emanated from the two slots and soon the symbols on the box began to light up. A few seconds later a beam of green sapphire coloured light emanated from the all Seeing Eye and spread in a fan formation halting at the center of the Hall. He then observed two large pillars emerge from beneath the floor and rise to a height of 40 feet. At the top of each pillar a bright flame of greenish light emerged and each of their sides glowed vibrantly in the same colour. The light from each pillar spread and connected with the other thus forming a large square screen. Derek smiled to himself as he observed the whole scene before him. He touched his ear piece and spoke, “All set Nadal?” “Oh yes Derek, we can see the gateway now,” said Nadal as he stepped forward towards the massive translucent screen that had appeared in front of their group in the Narmer Pyramid. He turned to look at Razia, who nodded and taking a deep breath Nadal walked into it. Just as if it were like entering the door way of a house, Nadal stared in amazement as he found himself inside the Great Hall of Records and saw Derek standing there in front of him. He gasped. “My god, it works,” he said. Derek smiled and nodded his head. Nadal checked himself and turned back through the gateway to see Razia and the rest of the team still waiting at the Narmer Pyramid. “It works my friends, let’s be off,” said Nadal as he gestured towards them and stepped back into the hall. Within a short while the entire group entered along with the black container and gazed around in wonder at what they saw. “Derek it’s beautiful. This form of lighting in particular is incredible,” said Razia. “Oh yes, atmosphere lighting. Powered by Kryon rods placed in each pillar. They can power an entire city without the need of any distribution channels. But most of all they can last for 25,000 years and never dim in their capacity to generate light throughout that time,” said Derek. “As the Nantweet scrolls directed us, the pod worked and the lights came on as soon as I switched the Hogam Box off,” he added pointing to the place where it lay between the two statues. “Gorgeous craftsmanship I might add,” said Nadal rubbing his against one of the statues.

  “Well let’s not waste any time, we have to be done and out of here before 4:00 a.m. As planned, Razia have the team take care of sealing the lid on to the underground tunnel, while the three of us make our way to the storage chamber,” said Derek. Nadal and Razia nodded and instructed the rest of the crew to finish their work. After a few minutes, the two of them followed Derek to the doorway behind the statues. Razia took the black container console from one of the sentries and pressed a button for it to open. After a series of hissing sounds the container’s door opened and the team went in to begin retrieving their gear. Razia carefully lifted up the twin blade type key, which was of the same design as the one John had been given by the Assiross, from the table it rested on. However, unlike the one on-board Wildlife One, this key had been built on Earth, once more according to instructions laid out in the Nantweet scrolls. Derek and Razia then stood on a specialised hovercraft that rose in the air and raised them to a height of 15 feet. Once there they gazed at the open slot and pushed the key in and turned it clockwise once all the way around. They soon heard a series of clicks and the doorway opened revealing a breath-taking scene. Derek and Razia lowered the vehicle and stepped off of it to gaze at the sights before them.

  In front of the group lay an enormous space, where the roof further rose by about 20 feet. A majestic stairway with a robust dark wood banister lay in front of them and descended downwards to a floor level that was 100 feet below from where they stood. The chamber stretched forward into the distance by about 3,500 feet. After pausing to observe things, Nadal then sent forth two drones, which began to survey the area. Shaped as a rectangle as well, this chamber had along its longer walls, a series of statues depicting various beings from the Oakors and Assiross races built to a height of 80 feet. Each was vividly decorated in a variety of colours along with various stone accessories. They each held enormous stone tablets that detailed the origins and history of their respective cultures. Nadal admired the artistic writing on one of the tablets his drones stopped near to. Further, each of the statues had a soft yellow light that fell on it from above, which created an interesting silhouette. Plus, each statue stood partially inside a hollowed out section
in the side walls with perfectly symmetrical columns between them.

  Nadal handed Derek and Razia their vision glasses, which allowed them to see the objects in the distance. Towards the very end of the chamber was situated a Mayan styled pyramid made from solid blocks of green stone and inlaid with what appeared to be gold and silver trimmings and ornaments. They noticed that it held at its apex a circular metallic looking ball, which rotated and kept flashing several Oakorian symbols in different shades of blue, red and green. Derek looked down and saw a variety of stone store houses that were situated on either side of the hall stretching all the way to the pyramid. He knew that they contained vast quantities of precious jewels, gold, silver and platinum. The pyramid itself contained a complete store house of documents from the time the Assiross and Oakors landed on Earth in the distant past, to ancient maps and galactic navigational charts, to a complete run down on the secrets of life as discovered from the Oamic Hall. In fact, Derek recalled that a small room within contained the last remaining Philosopher Stones, which were a total of 12. Each record had several copies made individually of papyrus, stone, clay, cloth and an unknown paper material that apparently glowed with an olive green tinge. He then let his gaze settle on the center, where he saw an all Seeing Eye constructed at the bottom of a large circular pool of water. Surrounding it was another larger pool, which a series of white and pink flowers. Derek recognised them as Oakorian Lotus flowers. He gasped slightly recalling their many features. The air they were breathing, was in fact being produced by that cluster of plants. Even greater, they had the ability to lower the temperature of an area to a very cool degree and were said to have tremendous healing properties. He stared in wonder and then let his eyes trail towards the right side of the pool, where there was a large square opening in the floor, which he knew led to another hall underneath that was twice the size of this one and which contained a variety of construction, transport and medical equipment to the left side, five deep space travel spacecraft placed along the center, a range of biological and chemical units, which contained scientific equipment, placed towards the distant right side. Along the rest of the space were storehouses of food, art, pottery, musical instruments, books and finally servers, which housed large amounts of video and audio data dating from the Great War all the way to the modern era of the 22nd century. This latter feat was made possible by a camouflaged satellite, built by the Assiross, which continuously orbited the Earth. Finally just below doorway, where the team stood, on either side of the steps leading down to the floor below were contained a series of tombs of the greatest rulers and nobles from Veeronia as well as key pioneers from the Assiross and Oakor races. This purpose was to ensure that none of their bodies were desecrated by tomb thieves or by the Defenders of Amanora.