by Brad Stucki
The screen above flickered to life. There was an image of a lone planet sitting in the darkness of space. It zoomed rapidly out to a larger view until a whole galaxy sprang into view. Javin glanced as Sauros. His mouth was open, amazed at the visuals. Cleary he'd never seen anything like it. Javin had, though he couldn't associate a memory with it.
Javin knew he'd seen a planet, then a galaxy. The image continued to expand until there were multiple galaxies being shown in a rapidly growing diorama.
Then the image growth slowed and seven points of light grew across the screen, then red lines connected them forming a complex pattern that seemed ordered in some way. Then the thought occurred to Javin he was again looking at some sort of matrix. A circuit of intertwined points that caused something to happen.
He continued to watch as the points all glowed, and the intersecting lines also glowed as if energy were flowing from the points, all interconnected and then a flash brightened the screen as the circuit activated. The light diminished and Javin could see that the intersecting lines had formed some sort of giant portal, the center of which was completely black. It reminded him of . . .
Javin felt a hand grasp his arm, bringing him out of his thoughts and his eyes away from the screen. He was startled and didn't realize how rapt he'd become.
Manos was standing behind he and Sauros and had taken hold of both their arms.
"Come, you must see this." Manos stepped back and gestured for both he and Sauros to follow him to another of the work stations in the room.
Javin almost protested, but the look in Manos' eyes stopped him. He glanced at Sauros who shrugged, took one more look at the view screen above. The image they'd seen was gone and now other images were flashing across the screen so rapidly they were an indecipherable blur.
They followed Manus to the other screen. An image showed on the screen mounted on the wall above. This one wasn't so large, but it appeared to function much the same. There was a smaller crystal embedded in the table top. It was glowing.
Javin glanced at the image on the screen. It was a jungle setting, but clearly showing a close up of some crops. The image shifted and another image displayed, this time just jungle, but the plant variety and colors seemed familiar. The image shifted again, this time a showcase of an enclave with people milling around, seemingly in a daze. It was like they were all in a trance. Javin recognized the enclave. It was the one where they'd spent some time. It was Kokos' and Manos' enclave.
Clearly the people were still under Nemesis' influence. He'd done something with the Articles of Power which had brought them so deeply under his influence they didn't appear able to think or act much for themselves.
Again the image switched. This showed another view of the crops. Javin noticed the difference. The plants were all wilting, leaning and drooping though full of ripened fruit.
"Do you see it?" Manos asked.
"Yes," Javin said. Sauros nodded.
"The plants are dying." Manos confirmed. "No one is harvesting the fruit."
Javin was silent, thinking what this might mean.
"The plants never die," Manos said, seeing he needed to explain more. "They go through a fallow period to regenerate after yielding fruit. But they never die. If the plants all die, my people will starve! There won't be time to regrow from striplings in order to keep the food supply stable.
"We need to figure out why the plants are dying." Manos looked back at the view screen. "We need to make sure the fruit is harvested and properly stored so it will last and provide food until we can learn what is happening!
"Why aren't the planters and stewards doing this? Why are they ignoring what is happening? Do you know why?"
Javin was afraid he did. He just didn't know what he could do about it.
Chapter 24
Javin turned back to look at Kokos still seated, rapt, at the Archive work station. Her head was bowed and the screen overhead was flashing images even more rapidly than before. Her posture was tight, rigid, though she didn't seem in any distress.
He didn't want to stop her. What she was doing was critical, though this was an emergency too.
"We only have days at most!" Manos was saying. "Do you know what is causing this? Do you know what we can do?"
Javin turned back to look at him then at Sauros. "Any ideas?"
Sauros stood silent for a moment then, "We must do what we came here to do -- capture Nemesis and retrieve the Articles of Power."
"Who is this Nemesis?" Manos asked.
Sauros answered. "He is not of your world, and he came here with two Articles of great power he is using to affect the vegetation and enthrall your people. I believe you have been spared this control because you were sheltered in the temple, and now in the Archive."
"Then you're right. We must capture this Nemesis and stop what he is doing and free my people. It is clear something is wrong with them and keeping them from doing exactly what needs to be done.
"The stewards of the planting are wise. They would be doing everything possible to protect my people's food supply."
Javin's mind was racing. He agreed on 'what' they should do. It was the 'how' that caused the problem. How could they find Nemesis? That was the whole problem from the moment they got here. They weren't any closer to solving it even though they'd made progress in other areas, such as being in the 'Archive' and getting information.
Again he turned back and stared at Kokos. He saw how her face was focused in concentration . . . and an idea struck him.
"I know how we can find Nemesis!" Javin blurted out.
Sauros' eyes danced and his mouth split into a grin showing all his carnivorous fangs.
Chapter 25
Javin, Sauros and Manos stood in the portal room facing the inert gateway.
Manos looked anxious. "Are you sure there is nothing I can do to assist? If there are any of my people where you are going, I am well known because of my father. I can be of help in smoothing any difficulties. I hate to just wait here. I am also a trained warrior. There will be fighting unless I miss my guess. You could use me. You are only two after all."
"We need you here," Javin reassured. "It is critical someone stand guard over Kokos. She is getting vital information and is helpless while gathering it." He rested a hand on Manos' shoulder.
"Once she has completed retrieval of the knowledge we seek, you both should go back to your people and see if there's a way you can break the spell they're under. There's no guarantee we'll succeeded in our mission."
Manos looked back and forth between Javin and Sauros then nodded, turned and went back into the main room where Kokos was still totally subsumed in her connection with the Archive work station. She'd not given any evidence of noticing anything going on around her.
Javin knew from his 'memory' of how to access the Archive, Kokos was pulling down knowledge, downloading it, so to speak, into her mind. He hoped she was being careful. The information was so vast, if she pulled too much it might cause her harm.
Javin and Sauros stared at the gateway. The tall arch sat totally inert. Javin looked at Sauros, who nodded. Javin figured he 'sensed' what he intended. It would have flowed through the connection they'd developed through the crystals and which had been heightened by the sharing, even though they had not shared directly. That was the odd thing. But Javin pushed that question aside. It wasn't the time. There was so much he was pushing away, waiting for a better time.
"Okay," Javin spoke aloud just to be sure. "Remember how we 'think' of where we want to go in order to activate the gateway?"
Sauros nodded again. Javin could tell he was getting more excited at taking some direct action.
"I'm hoping that if we just 'think' of having the gateway take us to Nemesis, or at least to the closest gateway to where he is, it will do the rest. The only problem is we're assuming Nemesis is using the gateways, or that the gateways can at least 'sense' Nemesis when he is close enough.
"If it doesn't work . . . well, I hope we end u
p somewhere nice."
"It has always worked in the past," Sauros said, and then he put a hand on Javin's shoulder. "You know we will more than likely walk into a trap Nemesis has set. He is no fool and knows we seek him. He probably knows more about what is happening in our worlds and these gateways than we."
"The thought crossed my mind," Javin said. "I figured we go through armed and ready -- and with a little 'protection' in place --" Javin brushed his own arm, indicating to Sauros the unseen masking and shielding they had maintained to keep them hidden from Nemesis' searching. It was providing them with an effortless and, as near as they could tell, an impenetrable armor.
"Hopefully we'll be set against whatever comes."
Sauros tilted his head and stared at Javin, a dubious look crossing his features.
"One can always hope." Javin smiled.
"I'm ready." Sauros said moving to stand directly in front of the archway. He pulled the meter-long knife he carried from its scabbard and held it loosely. Clearly he was intending to go through first. Javin wanted to argue, but he knew it was an argument he wouldn't win.
Javin drew his own, shorter knife, closed his eyes and focused on his great desire to be taken to wherever Nemesis was.
There was a 'pop!' and Javin opened his eyes to see that the archway had activated. Inside the frame was a roiling opaqueness which swirled and darkened until it turned black. It was ready to take them wherever they were going. Javin hoped this worked.
Sauros looked at him, nodded and stepped through. Javin stepped into the darkness right behind.
The trip was short. Javin stepped through the receiving archway ready for anything. He was a bit surprised to find himself standing in the main chamber of the temple. Sauros was standing a bit ahead of him, gazing around the room. Javin could 'feel' his senses spreading outward, detecting any sign of others. There was none. Then it hit Javin.
"We are back where we started," he said to Sauros. "We're back from the temple where we left. The portal from the Archive is only a one-way portal programmed to return us from where we came."
Sauros came to stand by Javin, though continuing to scan the room for any surprises.
"It does look like where we came from, however, all the main chambers look alike," Sauros said.
"Yes, but note the configuration of the slabs. They are the same as how we left them."
"If you say," Sauros said. "I'm afraid I did not pay attention to their positions."
"It's the slabs that form a circuit. They somehow create coordinates for where the portal takes you. I'm guessing that since there were no slabs in the Archive, the gateway there is only a simple receiver and sender, programmed to send you back from where you came."
Sauros nodded absently, still scanning. Javin laughed. "Still humoring me, acknowledging that I'm speaking, but you don't have a clue what I'm talking about?"
Again Sauros nodded, this time he looked at Javin with a smile.
"Well, this time, let's do the same thing. There are slabs here that can form a circuit. Let's think of getting to Nemesis and try it again."
Sauros took up position in front of the gateway, blocking Javin's access. Javin didn't argue. Instead he 'thought' about being taken to Nemesis.
The slabs started to move. Javin nodded to himself. The gateway activated and Sauros looked once at Javin then stepped through. Javin followed closely behind.
Chapter 26
Nemesis was standing over the pedestal ready to activate the 1st Article of Power. He wanted to test it more and perhaps again explore its depth of power. There wasn't much he could do but keep testing until he gained more experience and mastery. He supposed he could go looking for the 3rd Article. He thought he might reason out where it was. Nemesis had been pouring over the memories from that pathetic Pontu' gi he'd drained on the last world, paying particular attention to why he'd decided to go into the 'Transit' realm where Nemesis had captured him. There had to be a reason he was there.
Nemesis used that Transit realm to travel. He didn't need to use the portal like Javin and his ilk. Instead his Masters had taught him how to travel simply by using his innate abilities of transferring between places by adjusting to a place's harmonic resonance. Having the Gestalt Crystal had made it easier as he'd grown accustomed to its use.
"No," Nemesis said aloud. If he went in search of the 3rd Article, he'd be gone when his trap for Javin and his pet warrior was sprung. He truly expected them any time. Indeed, he was surprised it was taking them this long. But he was grateful. It had allowed him time to use the 2nd Article to gather warriors from the closest enclave and set them around the pyramid and in the portal room.
Because Javin and his friends had somehow learned to make themselves invisible to his followers, Nemesis had created a connection with his guards such that whenever they felt anything amiss, even the slightest bit of confusion, Nemesis would feel it, and he could then come immediately where they were and capture them.
With the powers of the Articles at his disposal, he would surely be able to overpower them. He wasn't sure what powers Javin had, but Nemesis would be able to draw enough from the 1st Article of Power to bind them with a shielded web like he'd been able to bind Chahzuu, the leader of those Pontu' gi he'd been able to enslave for a time. Then Javin and his friend would be at his mercy. He'd drain him dry, get every stitch of knowledge he had before having to hand him over to his Masters.
He was angry he couldn't just kill Javin and be done with it. Not that he was anxious to obey his Masters at this point, but because there was something important about Javin to his Masters, Nemesis needed to know what it was. Then he could kill him if he wanted. His control of, and use of the Articles of Power was giving Nemesis some ideas of his own as to what would be the grand plan. First, he needed more information. Then he needed the 3rd Article of Power.
With those things, Nemesis would then be ready to make his own demands of his Masters. They would no longer be Masters, but servants.
Yes, things were set.
Nemesis reached out and began to activate the 1st Article of Power, could feel its energy building, then in the back of his mind, he 'felt' the guards in the gateway room starting to get confused.
"This is it!" Nemesis picked up the 1st Article of Power and put it in his pouch, sitting next to the 2nd Article of Power. He quickly wondered whether having one of the articles activated, coming in contact with the other would do anything to making them join. Too late to worry about that. There wasn't an immediate reaction at least, and he maintained contact with the 1st Article, continuing to gather its power while he quickly left the pedestal room, walked down the hallway and swung the doorway into the portal room all the while building the amount of power he was channeling through the 1st Article of Power. In the back of his mind, he felt a faint resonance from what he knew was the 2nd Article of Power resonating with the energy build up of the 1st. Nothing seemed dangerous. It actually felt . . . harmonious . . . complementary. It was a subtle rapturous feeling Nemesis had to force himself to ignore so he could take care of the matter at hand.
Immediately he saw Javin and his pet Sauros moving into the room from the portal, weapons in hand. They were facing the guards who could see them, but because of however Javin and his friend were shielding themselves, they couldn't 'see' them. Nemesis would wonder about that dichotomy later. For now he needed to gain control, and fast.
"You're looking for me?" he said, strolling forward, and at the same time warping a web of constricting power tightly around Javin and his friend so they couldn't move. Nemesis cinched it tight and thickened it, hoping it would be enough of a barrier to seal them off from using any powers of their own -- whatever powers they might be. Now came the test.
Nemesis moved down into the center of the room, moving around to face Javin while at the same time maintaining a distance. Nemesis continued to maintain his hold on the 1st Article of Power, channeling its energy into maintaining the shielding and the constricting web of power.
He watched as Javin and Sauros both were tensing their muscles, particularly the lion man. Still they couldn't move. It was holding them. Nemesis continued to watch them closely as his guards turned towards him, questioning.
Nemesis ignored the guards and continued his focus on Javin and Sauros. He had guessed what would come next, and sure enough, he could feel it through the web of power. They were both drawing on their own powers, reaching for their gestalt crystals to try and force their way through the web holding them. They pushed, they tried to tear and bore away, but as Nemesis maintained hold on the far greater power of the 1st Article, their efforts were puny in comparison. Nemesis laughed, feeling relief. Then something caught him off guard.
He 'sensed' Javin trying to teleport himself. It was clear it was an instinctual move because he had none of the finesse of a more controlled action, but still, he was trying to escape by 'moving' in the way Nemesis moved – without a portal.
Nemesis tensed, wondering if Javin would succeed. Then he 'felt' Sauros trying the same thing, an edge of desperation in both of them. This was interesting. Did they both know how to move? Nemesis decided he would probe them a bit, and send out tendrils of awareness to brush against the shielding around them, seeing if he could 'feel' anything through it. What he felt amazed him. There was a definite connection between the two. They could 'feel' what each other was thinking.
Nemesis tried to tie into that, but he met a barrier against it. It wasn't necessarily his web of power holding them, but another barrier. Something he couldn't identify. He could sense their bond, but he couldn't pierce it. Well he'd figure that out later. His web was holding, and try as they might; Javin and Sauros were truly captured. Nemesis realized he'd been holding his breath and let it out in a slight sigh of relief. It had worked! He had them now and would be able to drain them.
