by Mikayla Lane
“What can you tell me?” he finally asked.
Tristan laughed and clapped a hand on Mikal’s shoulder.
“Now that’s the right question,” Tristan said before he looked out over the mountains. “I can tell you that you need to go back and work this through with our brothers. When you figure it out, you will be led where you are meant to be.”
“What about Haruki?” Mikal asked.
“You need to leave him to the fate that has found him and trust it is the right thing. You will know when to go to him,” Tristan said with a smile. “This is an exciting time for you and our brothers. Don’t let fear stop you from discovering that which you are meant to find.”
Mikal sighed and nodded his head. He’d already figured out that this was going to be one of the most important things they’d ever discovered. His cells trembled with anticipation, waiting for something momentous to happen.
“Father is awakening, and he can’t find you here, or he will interfere. Trust me, we don’t want him interfering. Go, and know I’ll be making sure everything happens as it’s meant to,” Tristan warned before the landscape changed back to his room in Dillon.
Mikal stared down at his young brother and hugged him again before he tucked him back into bed and disappeared. When Grai stood in the doorway moments later the only thing he saw was Tristan sleeping peacefully.
He walked around the room, looking for a toy or whatever could have awakened him. When he didn’t find anything, he gently kissed Tristan’s head and slipped quietly from the room.
Chapter Nine
Haruki entered the chamber Deanna discovered, moved down the tunnel and relaxed as the door slid open at the end. He had known it would, but the sighs of relief from Deanna and everyone behind them flooded him with confidence.
Haruki could feel Deanna tense the closer they got to the chamber where Dale had disappeared, and gently squeezed her hand. He tried to slip it from hers, intending to go in the room first to prove to her it was still safe and was surprised when she only clutched him tighter and shook her head.
“I go with you this time,” she whispered, her voice shaking a little.
Haruki grinned at her courage and lengthened his stride at the last moment to step across the threshold before Deanna. She hopped in beside him as the automated voice echoed around the chamber.
“Welcome, Dranovian and mate. Please remain within the anteroom while your cell structure is imprinted.”
Haruki looked at the expectant faces in the tunnel right outside the door.
“It’s welcoming Deanna and me, and talking about imprinting my cell structure,” Haruki interpreted for them.
Deanna gasped, and her hand trembled in his when a soft blue light erupted from the pedestals. The four lines of laser-like beams twirled around them in a dizzying display for a moment before disappearing.
“Imprinting is complete. Access to central systems is granted. Confirmation of Dranovian presence will be sent to the Dawn Commander. Notification of systems access will be sent to the Dawn commander. The Talunaha is now online and under the command of Haruki Akiro Sotanara T’Alq.”
Haruki struggled to understand what the automated voice meant and was stunned when the four pedestals around the chamber lit up from within in a muted white light. Moments later, lines of symbols began scrolling across the tops.
What the hell is a Dawn Commander, a Talunaha, and what did I just do, Haruki wondered as he moved to the closest pedestal to get a better look at what was on them.
“How did it know your name?” Deanna whispered as she looked at the podium. “Can you read that?”
Haruki was also wondering how it knew his first name, his hybrid father’s surname, and Grai’s as well. As he stared down at the symbols scrolling on the pedestal, he noted that they were shifting and transforming into words the longer he looked at it.
“Can you read it?” Haruki whispered to Deanna, wondering if she could read the words that now appeared to be in English.
“No, it’s in the same language that’s in the rest of this place,” Deanna said, looking at him strangely.
Haruki gently squeezed her hand and smiled down at her to help ease the fear and concern he could feel emanating from her.
“I can read it, but don’t understand it. It looks like systems information of some kind,” Haruki explained as he tried to read the quickly moving data.
Deanna went to the next pedestal, keeping hold of his hand until their arms were stretched out as she peered at the information scrolling on the other screen.
“I can’t be sure, but this looks different than what’s on that one,” she said, noticing a difference in the structure and spacing of the symbols on this podium.
Haruki moved to her side and placed his arm around her shoulders as he looked at the data scrolling on the pedestal. He controlled his shock at the names, dates of birth, and other personal information on his brothers.
Hell, even we don’t know some of their birthdays, he thought in astonishment.
Several of his brothers, like Chris, had lost their parents at very young ages, and they’d always guessed at the birthdays based on how old they appeared to be at the time they were found by Grai. The birthdates scrolling by were not the ones they’d made up, but looked as valid as his own.
Other names scrolled down the screen, and Haruki struggled to memorize them, unwilling to let anyone know that this was a list of the Dranovians on the planet, including his newly born nephews, Christopher and Thrane.
He looked at the expectant faces in the hallway and cleared his throat.
“It appears to be the names of people. I’m assuming they may have built this place or ran it,” he lied with a shrug before quickly moving to another pedestal.
“What happens when you touch one of the tops?” someone shouted from the tunnel.
“Yeah, can you interact with them?” someone added.
Haruki looked down at Deanna and shrugged, curious what she thought of the idea. He grinned when she shrugged back.
“Why not? We’re already in here. Personally, I want to touch everything!” she said, sliding her arm around his waist and squeezing him in excitement.
Haruki felt his breath leave his lungs at the trust shining in her eyes, and he used his arm around her shoulders to pull her closer as he held his palm over the next pedestal. He held it suspended for a moment, giving her a chance to change her mind.
“Do it,” she whispered.
With only a brief look at the information scrolling on it, Haruki stared into Deanna’s eyes as he placed his palm flat on the top of the pedestal. Everyone gasped in awe at the laser-like 3D display that appeared around the chamber.
“Oh, it’s beautiful,” Deanna whispered as she reached out a hand and touched one of the planets that surrounded them.
Her hand glided through the image, and she laughed in surprise as she tapped another one of the planets suspended in the air around them.
“What is it? Is it another galaxy?” someone whispered from the tunnel.
Haruki finally looked down at the pedestal and the data that stopped scrolling when he placed his hand on it.
“It’s saying something about Tri-worlds,” he said as he looked at the three planets in the chamber. “I think it must be who built this place and where they came from.”
“Aliens! I knew it was alien!” Dog muttered with a grin while several others nodded their heads in agreement.
Haruki took his palm off the podium, and the planetary display disappeared. There were groans of disappointment until he moved over to the next pedestal. He briefly glanced down at the information before placing his hand on it.
A large 3D display of the pyramid appeared in the center of the chamber like the planetary one had, and he stared at the image.
“There’s another chamber through that wall over there,” Dog said as he pointed to the area opposite Haruki and Deanna.
Haruki saw it as well and nodded.
“It looks like it leads down into the bottom where there are more chambers,” Haruki agreed as he turned to the wall, wondering why it hadn’t opened for him already.
“So you have systems data, which I’m assuming is the power in this place,” Dog said as he scratched his chin. “There’s also personnel and planetary information, so it would make sense that one of them is about the pyramid.”
Haruki placed a palm on the wall and looked around for a way to open it.
“Yeah, but how do we get in?” he wondered aloud.
“Does the information on the pedestal tell you?” Deanna asked as she looked at it, even though she couldn’t read it.
Haruki moved back over to the pedestal and leaned over Deanna, letting his chest brush the back of her head. He smothered a sigh when she shivered slightly and moved closer to him. He didn’t realize how grateful she was for his body heat.
She had been freezing since they’d come back into the pyramid and between the lack of sleep, lack of food and an overabundance of fear and excitement, she was on an emotional and physical ledge. The only thing that seemed stable, safe, and real was Haruki.
No matter how hard Deanna had initially tried to fight it when she found out he was an alien, or part alien, she kept finding herself right back by his side. Now, none of it mattered to her because she knew that Mike’s mercenaries would eventually break in and kill them.
Now I just want to spend what little life we have left, figuring this place out together, she thought.
“Hey, we’re going to be OK. I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” Haruki whispered.
Deanna looked up in surprise, wondering if he’d read her mind.
Haruki saw the shock and fear in her eyes, sifted her energy and leaned closer.
“You haven’t stopped trembling since we came in here, and I know you’re not afraid of this place. You’re too brave for that,” he explained, seeing the relief flash in her eyes at his simple explanation.
Deanna chuckled nervously.
“For a minute there I was worried that you’d read my mind,” she whispered, blushing a little from the admission.
“I can’t read minds,” Haruki assured her and gave into his desire to pull her back against his chest and hug her.
He didn’t want to scare her and let go quickly before trying to concentrate on the information that was on the pedestal in front of them. He smiled down at her when she cuddled close to his side and put her arm around his waist. He settled his arm gently across her shoulders and studied the data.
“There should be a door . . .” he muttered, trying to swipe the pedestal to scroll the data.
“Let me see,” Dog said as he crossed the threshold and stood beside Deanna.
Gasps were heard from the tunnel as everyone stared in amazement at Dog, waiting for him to disappear the way that Dale had.
“Unauthorized entry has been detected in the anteroom. Security measures will be taken unless access is granted by . . .” the automated voice paused for a moment. “Haruki Akiro Sotanara T’Alq.”
“I give access! I give access!” Haruki yelled out as he turned to push Dog from the room, refusing to allow the man to be harmed.
Dog fought him, struggling to stay inside the chamber to look at the pedestals.
“I’m going to die one way or another today! At least let me see this before I go!” Dog argued, his eyes pleading with Haruki to give him this.
“Give him access! I give permission for him to be in here!” Haruki yelled out to the chamber, hoping whatever was behind the voice would understand and not harm the man.
Deanna gasped as Dog’s body began to bubble like Dale’s did before he disappeared. She reached out for Dog, hoping to save him when it suddenly stopped, and he appeared fine again.
“Access has been granted to Marquis “Big Dog” Donald Washington,” the voice echoed around the chamber.
A collective sigh of relief went up in the room and the tunnel when they head Dog’s name. Dog was so happy he hugged Haruki real quick before stepping back.
“Donald?” someone in the tunnel asked.
“How did it know his name and his nickname?” someone else whispered in shock.
“Thank you,” Dog said.
“No, thank you,” Haruki replied then turned to the pedestal with the pyramid information on it. “This says something about a portal. I’m not sure if that means it’s through that door or what. Can you make sense of the diagram?”
“There’s a diagram?” Tom Chitone asked in awe.
“Oh yeah. This is incredible,” Dog said with a wide-eyed look at the pedestal. “Anyone bring a camera?”
There was a loud rustling in the tunnel as everyone looked for one. Since cell phones didn’t work there, no one had one handy, except Haruki who pulled his burner phone from his pocket and handed it to Dog.
Dog quickly took a series of pictures of the pedestal and moved over to the doorway to show it to Tom.
“See here? It looks like it’s noting the direction of the energy flow from the bottom up,” Dog said as he and Tom studied the pictures on the phone.
So many of the others in the tunnel pressed up against Tom to try to see the pictures and eventually pushed him into the chamber along with Dog.
“Unauthorized entry has been detected in the anteroom. Security measures will be taken unless access is granted by Haruki Akiro Sotanara T’Alq.” The automated voice said.
“I give access!” Haruki shouted again. “Let him in here! His name is Tom Chitone! Give Tom Chitone access to the anteroom!”
“Access has been granted to Thomas Gabriel Chitone,” the voice echoed around the chamber.
Haruki glanced at the others in the tunnel who were looking at Tom and Dog with eagerness, and he worried that someone else would get pushed inside.
“There isn’t enough room in here for everyone,” Haruki muttered as he looked around the chamber and at the number of people remaining in the tunnel.
“I still want to know how it knows who we are,” someone said, and several others nodded their heads in agreement.
Deanna gently squeezed Haruki’s hand to get his attention.
“It appears to respond to your voice commands. Maybe you can ask it questions,” she suggested.
“You are brilliant,” Haruki said, placing a light kiss on her temple before looking around the chamber. “Can you speak directly to me?”
Everyone was quiet as they waited to see if the pyramid could interact with them in real time.
After a minute of silence, Dog turned to Haruki.
“Maybe it doesn’t know you’re talking to it and not us?” he suggested.
“What do I call it? Uh, computer can you speak to me?” Haruki asked and shrugged his shoulders when he was met with silence.
“Is it the Dawn Commander?” Deanna asked him.
“No, it said it was notifying the Dawn Commander that access was given to me,” Haruki said with a shake of his head.
“Maybe that’s who you need to talk to then?” Dog suggested.
“I don’t know what a Dawn Commander is,” Haruki admitted. “We could be phoning home to something more dangerous than Mike and his buddies.”
“Considering where we are, do you really think anyone is more dangerous to us than Mike right now?” Tom replied, his expression showing how serious he was.
Murmurs of agreement resounded in the tunnel.
“So you call some alien commander light years away in another galaxy? By the time he gets here to do something about it, we’ll be long dead anyway,” someone shouted from the back of the tunnel.
Murmurs of agreement quickly followed.
“Unless this thing is a vortex or portal and that’s where Dale was sent. You really want to take that leap before we even know what we’re dealing with?” Haruki replied, thinking they needed to put the brakes on calling anyone. Mikal was going to be his first choice anyway.
“Do we have the luxury of the time to
keep guessing?” Dog countered.
Haruki rubbed a hand over his face in frustration. He felt like he was being backed into a corner and wasn’t sure how to get himself out now.
He looked around at the eager and excited faces of the people who’d put their whole life into this place, and he shook his head at the knowledge that their lives would end here as well. He looked down at Dog.
“Go get whatever tools, cameras or machines you need and bring them in here. Then you and Tom need to pick those who need to be in here to help you. We can’t let it get too crowded since we have no idea if there’s a limit on how many I can give permission to,” Haruki suggested, hoping it would placate them.
There were a dozen grunts and groans of frustration and Tom turned back to the pedestal while Dog shook his head. Haruki could feel the disappointed and angry energy hit him like a brick, but he didn’t understand why they felt that way.
“Boy, you’re a damn fool,” Dog snapped, his black eyes blazing. “We’re all standing here, giving our lives for you and this place, and you’re acting like it ain’t nothing to you.”
Haruki looked shocked and opened his mouth to speak when Dog stood toe to toe with him and looked in his eyes.
“You listen to me, there ain’t one of us that don’t know you aren’t from around here. At least not fully. We’re scientists, veterans, and skilled men, not some idiots off a street corner,” Dog said between gritted teeth.
“Damn straight!” someone shouted from the back of the tunnel.
“Tell it like it is Dog!” another added, while murmurs erupted in the tunnel.
Dog turned at the shouts of support and agreement from the others and nodded his head before looking back at Haruki.
“We all know we aren’t getting out of here alive. Now you and our girl might, but the rest of us . . . we don’t stand a chance. Your secrets and the secrets of this place will die with us. We’re the last thing you need to be worried about right now. Time and Mike are the enemies here. So getting thrown through a portal or annihilated by some giant alien commander . . . bring it on. Beats a bullet to the back of the head any day,” Dog said, his voice shaking with emotion.
