"Ruby? James?" Elle Franklin searched the Hilton for them. Room to room. Down corridors. The Lab. The basement bathing area. Beyond those she had not explored. They had been so busy the last few weeks there had been no time to discover new things. Something they really should have done long ago. In a starship the size of three football fields there was most likely tons of things good and bad hidden away.
Reaching the Armory she finally finds James . He was tinkering on the drones. What few were left in the fleet. He was listening to his IPod he figured out how to charge. Oblivious to anything around him. His dog Xander at his feet.
Fidgeting in the doorway Elle chose to hold off spooking the kid and do a bit of first hand inspecting. She had been here only once before in preparation to battle the Vampires. Humming a tune under her breath she grew nosey over some drawings on paper. Going so far as to sift through each. Her eye brow peaks at the artwork of superhero costumes. She had to grin at her own outfit. It looked pretty risquΓ©. Her given hero name was Gemini. Intrigued she looks at others before noticing a piece of paper on a notebook. Recognizing the handwriting she reads the note. Her eyes bulging at Ruby's words. It was pretty obvious that James had overlooked it.
"Oh boy." She grits her teeth then carries the notebook over to James. Xander demanding attention from her by nuzzling her leg. She pets the dog quickly then tosses the notebook in front of James on the desk he was working on. Startling him he looks over at her before turning his music off.
"What?"
"Read the note. This could be bad."
He does and drops his jaw. Without a word he leaps from his stool and charges out into the hallway. She followed him briskly. Watching as he felt about on the wall of the ship.
"The portal was right here. It's solid right now though." His face growing pale. He mumbles his concern away from Elle yet she heard him but said nothing. His murmured word was simple enough, "Mom?"
Regardless of his bravado Elle decided on her own course of action. Hugging James from behind. She could feel his shivering. He merely palmed the wall as if listening for a heartbeat. The alloy wall was cool and menacing. Not good.
"We'll find her. We have more pressing worries I think." She expresses with a deep inhale, "Gaicazar senses something coming. I think we should prepare. Bunker down if necessary."
"My belly hurts." He rubs it with a wince. As he does his hand glows ever so slightly. Lifting it from his stomach he watches the letters O and K light up. His opposite hand then adds fuel with I and M.
Elle is shown with a thin smile yet a creased brow. Her eyes tremor, "IM OK. At least we know something. Thank God for that."
"Yeah!" He ponders, "I'm thankful."
Up from the depths rose enough Militants to start a small battle. Hordakian soldiers sent to the surface world to obtain young James Ian Pryce. He and Colonel Ruby Goddard. As per the command of Orin Ridge. Orin Ridge the true flesh and blood version. Whom left his cloned body in his place on the Ganthorian home world alongside his cloned wife and child. An existence he deemed necessary until he could achieve his goal. Namely to see the face of God.
Quite old he knew his time was running out. There was hopes that he could replace the reign of DNA that carried forth through billions of years. The DNA that reset James Ian Pryce every 33 years unless he was killed before then. In his place would always be an heir. As if destiny knew his fate before hand.
Puzzles followed along the way. As certain incarnations of James lived longer than age 33. Those who somehow gained longer lifespans due to some magical anomaly. These enigmas made Orin Ridge want to know the truth. He wanted to find a way to live forever. Without doing it as a clone. Yet another strange factor arose of late. Under normal circumstances each incarnation could not live alongside another version. Unless of course one was destined to perish. Then a new life would already be in progress. As one dies another is born moments later.
Now, here in Pangaea things worked differently. This was the beginning of time. As the Ganthorian scientists predicted this was why more than one version could co-exist. Because the first reflection had not occurred. A time where things followed no true path. Opportunity.
As the Hordakian brigade careened in and around large cave systems on their Technorides. Two man gravity cycles surrounded by a transparent bubble as protection from outside harm. Under ordinary circumstances all things electrical would succumb to the atmospheric disturbances of this new world. However, this band of aliens joined with the turncoat Ganthorians had planned ahead. Their ship and all technological devices were designed to overcome any unknown forces plaguing them. This was how their Ganthorian ship managed to enter the cave system without damage and difficulty.
Bright lights used on the Technorides allowed them to navigate the caverns. It was a slow process but they managed. Having been here for months now gave them time to know their surroundings. The journey to the surface was fairly simple. The cave openings well hidden by fallen ships and mountainous sand dunes. The disguise simple. The exit dramatic.
Zipping high out into the air the train of Technorides roared out into the desert. Their bearings marked by dedicated instruments. Twelve rides in all soared across the lonely desert floor. Their target a mere 18 miles away. Weapons ready for anything. Their mission was simple. They had no doubt that they would be successful. Their allegiance to Orin Ridge would not find failure.
Vibrations humming off their rides leaving behind an unexpected result. The sands of the dune partially covering the cave entrance giving way to years of build up. From the highest point of the dune a lengthy avalanche of granules reveals what appears like a steeple. Further erosion goes deeper. Adjoining the cavern opening in the ground was a well placed Pyramid. One long buried. It's peak capturing the sun's rays for the first time in an unknown amount of years. Here where time was indecipherable. Feeling the heat of the sun the peak's golden exterior glows. Energy needed. Energy supplied.
Five miles below the Ganthorian Hilton.
Madigan Ridge in her ghostly state crept from rock formations, hugging the wall as camouflage. Her intangible state consuming the color of her life fiber suit into a blending of surroundings. She approached the second Ganthorian vessel astonished by its full power. How could that be possible? Around the ship stood a barricade of Hordakians. All wielding weapons that looked menacing. They appeared ready for anything. Getting past them might prove hazardous even in her spirit form. She had no choice. She would need to try something that spooked even her. Going under ground. Knowing full well her deceased body was long buried it gave her a bit of claustrophobia while burrowing through solid rock. Not only that she was required to calculate distance so that she would not emerge right under their boots. One mistake might get her captured.