“We’ve been inside the sphere the whole time,” said Zoey. “Well, not literally. The computer within the sphere is sending electrical pulses to stimulate our brains, creating images and sensations much like a dream.”
“Weren’t you able to sense the computer, like you do most data?”
“That’s what’s so creepy, Sara. It’s so complex, this computer, that it’s almost human.”
“Then, what’s its purpose?” asked Sara. “Is there a way to ask it?”
“The A.I. seems damaged. Otherwise, it’s not very responsive.” Zoey looked up to the floating face. “Pull up system preferences.” Several windows appeared before Zoey. “Good news is it looks like it’s all in English. Bad news is I still can’t make out half the words.” Zoey flipped between the different windows. “It sustained a small amount of damage since its crash, and over time, age has been slowly eating away at the memory circuits.”
“So, it’s actually a lot like a human,” remarked Sara.
“Obviously, the A.I. was one of the first components to lose quality. Just skimming through the hard drive, there seems to be a just a ton of information in all sorts of formats.”
“Can you find out what has the most current time stamp on it?”
“As far as I can tell, it’s a movie file,” said Zoey. “It’s dated 2000 years into the future.”
“Play it.” Everything turned dark as the movie expanded and surrounded them.
A human face appeared, shrouded in shadows. “This message is for any who comes across this ark of human knowledge. The Earth has finally been destroyed through folly and pettiness. I have gathered all known knowledge of our race, so that you may learn from us and prevent the mistakes we made.” The screen erupted in static.
“The rest of the message seems to have been lost,” said Zoey as their surroundings returned to white. “Can this really be from the future?”
“If it was jettison into space, it could have been sucked into a wormhole or a black hole. Or…”
“Or what, Sara?”
“Or it is a time machine.”
“More like a time capsule. Like those old Voyager satellites they’d send out into space. What if it really does have the accumulated knowledge of the human race?”
“Then, we can’t let the Cabal get their hands on it.”
“Wait a minute,” said Zoey. “They’d have to have information on Zeitgeist.”
“This isn’t the time for personal vendettas,” remarked Sara. “I thought you were over him.”
“He’s just the person who experimented on me all those years ago. I can finally know more about him than just an alias.”
“No,” replied Sara. “This is forbidden information. We can’t risk learning about the future. I’m sorry, Zoey.” Sara closed her eyes and pushed the picture out in her mind. She soon felt the bite of the cold and heaviness of her many layers of clothing.
Sara opened her real eyes to find that stood exactly where they had been when Zoey had touched the Omnisphere. Quickly, Sara jerked Zoey away from the sphere. Zoey slowly came to, disoriented at first.
“You had no right,” she started, but her voice trailed off. “Where’s Lee?” Before Sara could respond, three armored men took them by surprised. In between the cracks in their white armor was a thick thermal material. Smooth helmets hid their faces. With guns thrust into their faces, Sara and Zoey were led back down to the altar room, where several more troops were waiting.
Lee was on his hands and feet, clutching his bleeding shoulder. The troopers shoved the women down next to him. “Well, well,” came a voice in their receivers. “Look who we ran into.” Zoey felt a chill run up her spine as she instantly recognized the voice belonging to none other than “Scarface.”
“Thanks for leading us straight to the sphere.” Came his gleeful voice.
“They snuck up on me,” said Lee. “I tried to fight them off, but they were too much for me.”
“It’s all right,” said Sara. To her captors, she asked, “What are you going to do with us?”
“I toyed with the idea of leaving you in one of the various traps set in this temple,” said Scarface. “But then, you’d escape. It’s your talents of getting out of trouble that made my boss pick you in the first place.” He snapped his fingers, and the troopers lined up behind their captives. “So, I thought a bullet to the back of the head would work just as well.”
The troopers, as one, took aim at Sara, Zoey, and Lee.
“Any last requests?”
Click Here to Go To The Next Chapter
Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
Way Out West: Comments on Chapter Eleven
One of the ideas I had for Sara and Zoey were for them to get mysteriously transported to the old West. There, our heroines would try and blend in, Zoey'd get framed for a murder, and Sara would save her from a lynch mob. Sounds fun, I know, but as a half developed idea, I saw the chance to use it during this serial. Unfortunately, using the whole story would take too long and distract from the main storyline. So, in the end, it's a very abbreviated version, a casual hop into another genre to throw readers off for a little bit. Maybe, someday, I'll have a chance to revisit the idea, but chances are...
Next week, we get back to the story proper, and the origins of the Omnisphere. Probably be a good thing to bring back some antagonists, too. Things get a little boring without some conflict...
Next week, we get back to the story proper, and the origins of the Omnisphere. Probably be a good thing to bring back some antagonists, too. Things get a little boring without some conflict...
Sunday, November 22, 2009
The Forbidden Temple of Khyber Gorah – Chapter Eleven: Sunset Software
Sara watched helplessly as the scruffy cowboy Rufus taunted Zoey into putting on the gun belt. His rough voice slowly counted to three. Just before he got to three, Sara dug her heel into the foot of the man holding her. She swung around and punched him firmly in the jaw, sending into a number of other cowboys. She kicked a chair; it slid right into Rufus. His gun was already out of the holster, but his aim went high, thanks to Sara’s intervention.
Even this moderate amount of provocation was enough for a bar fight to erupt. Sara took a swig from the class of milk she had before smashing it down onto one cowboy’s head as he started to draw his gun. The sheriff, attracted by the commotion, had just entered the saloon and was trying his best to stop the fighting.
Amid the chaos, Sara grabbed Zoey and together they found a rear exit out of the bar. As they scrambled out of the bar, Sara said, “Take that thing off right now!”
“Okay, okay,” said Zoey, removing the gun belt. “I know what you’re going to say, but, well, things just out of hand. One thing led to another…”
“You could have gotten yourself killed,” said Sara as she climbed one of the horses.
“I get it already,” replied Zoey following suit. They rode out of town in a hurry. Soon, they found themselves surrounded by rock croppings, each distinct and worn down by time. The sun was starting to dip behind one of these unique formations. They continued until Sara felt they were far enough from the town.
As they came to a stop, Zoey dismounted the horse. “So, what’s the plan?”
“Make camp for the night. In the morning, try and find another town.” Sara sighed. “I just wish I could understand what happened to us.”
“Well, like you always say, we can worry about that tomorrow.” The two women stood a moment and watched the descending sun. While both held trepidations about their current predicament, they put them aside to watch what they spent so little time to admire.
“What is that?” asked Sara. She pointed to the sunset as it shuddered and blurred. Digital artifacting and aliasing sped around them, literally eating away the ground they stood on. Slowly, the picturesque scene was gone, leaving the two women in a void of whiteness.
“That was unexpected,” quipped Zoey.
“There went the west,” said Sara. “Where are we?”
“May I be of assistance?” came a booming voice. Out of the white void came two teal-tinted eyes and a large mouth. They hung there before the two women as a surreal face. “You can search by category or just say the subject you’re interested in.”
“Who are you?” asked Sara.
“Question too broad. Please specify.”
“Where are we?”
“Location subjective. Unable to reply.”
Sara turned to Zoey. “This is getting us nowhere.”
“No,” said Zoey. “You’re just not asking the right question.” Addressing the face, Zoey asked, “What is your primary function?”
The face replied, “I am the user interface, allowing easy search through our 65 million terabytes of information. You can search by category or just say the subject you’re interested in.”
“Sara,” said Zoey. “I have a bad feeling about where we are.”
“And that is…?”
“That whole Wild West scenario was the most convincing virtual reality I’ve ever seen.”
“If it’s all a digital environment, how did we get here?”
“Remember when I touched the large sphere, you grabbed my arm. There was some kind of spark from the sphere. I think it went through both of us.”
“You’re saying we’re dead?”
“No, but I think it somehow connected our minds to the giant computer within that sphere. Maybe the electrical charge rode through our neural passageways to the part of the brain that controls dreams.”
Sara took a moment to digest this. “Instead of goggles or headsets, the sphere is using our mind’s eye to display its information.”
“Something like that, possibly,” replied Zoey. “That would make it the most sophisticated computer that ever existed.”
“True, but it’s been hidden away in the temple for centuries, at least. Who made it?”
“Let’s ask it.”
“Hold it, Zoey. Then all this time…?”
“We never went anywhere. We’ve been inside the sphere the whole time.”
Click Here to Go To The Next Chapter
Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.
Even this moderate amount of provocation was enough for a bar fight to erupt. Sara took a swig from the class of milk she had before smashing it down onto one cowboy’s head as he started to draw his gun. The sheriff, attracted by the commotion, had just entered the saloon and was trying his best to stop the fighting.
Amid the chaos, Sara grabbed Zoey and together they found a rear exit out of the bar. As they scrambled out of the bar, Sara said, “Take that thing off right now!”
“Okay, okay,” said Zoey, removing the gun belt. “I know what you’re going to say, but, well, things just out of hand. One thing led to another…”
“You could have gotten yourself killed,” said Sara as she climbed one of the horses.
“I get it already,” replied Zoey following suit. They rode out of town in a hurry. Soon, they found themselves surrounded by rock croppings, each distinct and worn down by time. The sun was starting to dip behind one of these unique formations. They continued until Sara felt they were far enough from the town.
As they came to a stop, Zoey dismounted the horse. “So, what’s the plan?”
“Make camp for the night. In the morning, try and find another town.” Sara sighed. “I just wish I could understand what happened to us.”
“Well, like you always say, we can worry about that tomorrow.” The two women stood a moment and watched the descending sun. While both held trepidations about their current predicament, they put them aside to watch what they spent so little time to admire.
“What is that?” asked Sara. She pointed to the sunset as it shuddered and blurred. Digital artifacting and aliasing sped around them, literally eating away the ground they stood on. Slowly, the picturesque scene was gone, leaving the two women in a void of whiteness.
“That was unexpected,” quipped Zoey.
“There went the west,” said Sara. “Where are we?”
“May I be of assistance?” came a booming voice. Out of the white void came two teal-tinted eyes and a large mouth. They hung there before the two women as a surreal face. “You can search by category or just say the subject you’re interested in.”
“Who are you?” asked Sara.
“Question too broad. Please specify.”
“Where are we?”
“Location subjective. Unable to reply.”
Sara turned to Zoey. “This is getting us nowhere.”
“No,” said Zoey. “You’re just not asking the right question.” Addressing the face, Zoey asked, “What is your primary function?”
The face replied, “I am the user interface, allowing easy search through our 65 million terabytes of information. You can search by category or just say the subject you’re interested in.”
“Sara,” said Zoey. “I have a bad feeling about where we are.”
“And that is…?”
“That whole Wild West scenario was the most convincing virtual reality I’ve ever seen.”
“If it’s all a digital environment, how did we get here?”
“Remember when I touched the large sphere, you grabbed my arm. There was some kind of spark from the sphere. I think it went through both of us.”
“You’re saying we’re dead?”
“No, but I think it somehow connected our minds to the giant computer within that sphere. Maybe the electrical charge rode through our neural passageways to the part of the brain that controls dreams.”
Sara took a moment to digest this. “Instead of goggles or headsets, the sphere is using our mind’s eye to display its information.”
“Something like that, possibly,” replied Zoey. “That would make it the most sophisticated computer that ever existed.”
“True, but it’s been hidden away in the temple for centuries, at least. Who made it?”
“Let’s ask it.”
“Hold it, Zoey. Then all this time…?”
“We never went anywhere. We’ve been inside the sphere the whole time.”
Click Here to Go To The Next Chapter
Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
"Gomen Na"
I apologize for the lack of a chapter this week, but a lousy cold has been keeping me down these last couple days. I appreciate your patience, and prepare for the next chapter this Sunday.
Monday, November 09, 2009
Clone Wars on DVD
If you've been following my blog, and there's a good chance you're not, then you'd know I've been watching the new animated Star Wars series. While it may not be considered groundbreaking, most of the episodes are good, and a few are even great. Now, the first season is on dvd, and color me impressed.
First of all, the case is designed to be a book. The 4 dvds are encased on the inside of the front and back cover. Inbetween are 68 pages of sketches from the design team. (Old Timers out there may remember when dvds first came out and they all had booklets to make you feel like it was worth moving over to dvd.)
Along with that, each episode is now presented in a wider aspect ratio, offering more picture and a more theatrical look. A few of the episodes are extended, "director's cut." There is a short featurette for each episode, delving into the thought process behind that episode. The only problem is I haven't seen (or heard) any thing about the voice actors in the series or the music. (Yet. I haven't watched all the featurettes.)
Overall, there's a lot for a set that runs for only $30. I'm impressed by the effort Lucasfilm put into this release. If only Lucas had put that much effort into the prequels...
First of all, the case is designed to be a book. The 4 dvds are encased on the inside of the front and back cover. Inbetween are 68 pages of sketches from the design team. (Old Timers out there may remember when dvds first came out and they all had booklets to make you feel like it was worth moving over to dvd.)
Along with that, each episode is now presented in a wider aspect ratio, offering more picture and a more theatrical look. A few of the episodes are extended, "director's cut." There is a short featurette for each episode, delving into the thought process behind that episode. The only problem is I haven't seen (or heard) any thing about the voice actors in the series or the music. (Yet. I haven't watched all the featurettes.)
Overall, there's a lot for a set that runs for only $30. I'm impressed by the effort Lucasfilm put into this release. If only Lucas had put that much effort into the prequels...
Sunday, November 08, 2009
The Forbidden Temple of Khyber Gorah – Chapter Ten: Wild, Wild West
Zoey couldn’t believe the heat beating down on her. Just moments earlier, she had been worried about freezing to death under several layers of clothing. Sara grabbed a hold of her arm and jerked her close to a large boulder.
“What’s the idea?” asked Zoey. Sara said nothing as the stagecoach ran straight past them. Sara pointed to its undercarriage. There was a man working his way between the coach’s spinning wheels. As he reaches the end of the coach, he gracefully pulled himself up onto the back of the coach. Sara and Zoey watched as he climbed across the roof and snatched the reins from the dead driver.
After stopping the stagecoach, he climbed off and introduced himself to Sara and Zoey. This daredevil wore shirt with fringes and a white hat on his head. There was a gun on his right hip, but its handle was pointed forward, indicating that he was left-handed. “The name’s Whitaker,” he drawled. “But everyone calls me Buddy.”
“That was pretty impressive. You ever do that before?” asked Zoey.
“Sure. All the time. You not from around here?”
“That’s an understatement,” said Zoey.
“We’d appreciate it if you gave us a ride to town,” said Sara.
“Of course, ma’am,” said Whitaker. He helped them into the coach. The women introduced themselves to the two other passengers, Mr. and Mrs. Williams from back east. As Whitaker started them on their way, Sara and Zoey conferred with each other.
“Okay, so this looks pretty convincing,” said Zoey.
“But we’ve been fooled before,” replied Sara.
“So, time travel?”
“If that were the case, why were our jackets not transferred also? Or any of our clothes for that matter?”
“Wormhole?”
“I’d certainly remember traveling in a tunnel of unstable spacetime,” remarked Sara.
“Instant matter transportation? No, those always give me a headache.”
“Virtual reality?” asked Sara.
“Pretty realistic if it was,” replied Zoey. “Hallucination?”
“Shared hallucinations are pretty rare.”
“A dream?”
“Which one of us is dreaming?”
“So, not a dream, not a hoax. What is it?”
Mr. and Mrs. Williams looked at each other. Neither had a clue what the two women were talking about.
The stagecoach soon arrived the small town of Patterson Valley. Whitaker helped them off the stage. The two women still had no clue as to their current predicament.
“Let’s head over to the saloon to mull things over,” said Sara.
“Great. I’m sure we’ll stay out of trouble there,” remarked Zoey. The saloon was as loud and bustling as any western movie Zoey had ever seen. Sara led her to the bar and told her, “Stay here while order something to drink. Keep to yourself, and they won’t bother you.”
Zoey tried to do just that, when someone shouted, “Hey!” Zoey ignored it at first, but it continued. “Hey, woman!” Zoey turned and saw the voice was coming from a particularly scruffy-looking cowboy. “Wha’cha doing here?”
“Excuse me?” asked Zoey, indignantly. “I have every right to be as you.”
“Naw, I mean why ain’t ya on the stage, enterainin’ us men.” This was met with guffaws from his friends.
“I’m not here for your entertainment,” shot back Zoey.
“Yer a real firecracker,” replied Rufus, the cowboy. “How about you prove it?”
Sara was returning with a glass of milk and a bottle of sarsaparilla. She saw the man taunting Zoey, but before she could do anything, one of the cowboys grabbed her to make sure she didn’t interrupt their fun.
“Sure,” said Zoey. “What did you have in mind?”
“You’re big talk. I reckon you can’t handle a gun like me,” said Rufus.
“Try me.” Rufus tossed her a spare gun belt. Zoey caught and started to put it on. It was at this time that Zoey started to think about the situation she had just gotten herself into. Sure, she had mouthed off to the rude cowboy, but she knew next to nothing about guns, and now she let him talk her into his challenge.
The other cowboys cleared away from the two of them, circling them as to make sure not to miss anything. “Let’s see who’s got the better draw, little girl?” said Rufus. “Count of three.”
“One.” Zoey could see Sara behind the cowboy, still held by one of his minions.
“Two.” Rufus flashed an uneven row of teeth under unruly whiskers.
“Three.” There was a loud gunshot that reverberated the saloon.
Click Here to Go To The Next Chapter
Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.
“What’s the idea?” asked Zoey. Sara said nothing as the stagecoach ran straight past them. Sara pointed to its undercarriage. There was a man working his way between the coach’s spinning wheels. As he reaches the end of the coach, he gracefully pulled himself up onto the back of the coach. Sara and Zoey watched as he climbed across the roof and snatched the reins from the dead driver.
After stopping the stagecoach, he climbed off and introduced himself to Sara and Zoey. This daredevil wore shirt with fringes and a white hat on his head. There was a gun on his right hip, but its handle was pointed forward, indicating that he was left-handed. “The name’s Whitaker,” he drawled. “But everyone calls me Buddy.”
“That was pretty impressive. You ever do that before?” asked Zoey.
“Sure. All the time. You not from around here?”
“That’s an understatement,” said Zoey.
“We’d appreciate it if you gave us a ride to town,” said Sara.
“Of course, ma’am,” said Whitaker. He helped them into the coach. The women introduced themselves to the two other passengers, Mr. and Mrs. Williams from back east. As Whitaker started them on their way, Sara and Zoey conferred with each other.
“Okay, so this looks pretty convincing,” said Zoey.
“But we’ve been fooled before,” replied Sara.
“So, time travel?”
“If that were the case, why were our jackets not transferred also? Or any of our clothes for that matter?”
“Wormhole?”
“I’d certainly remember traveling in a tunnel of unstable spacetime,” remarked Sara.
“Instant matter transportation? No, those always give me a headache.”
“Virtual reality?” asked Sara.
“Pretty realistic if it was,” replied Zoey. “Hallucination?”
“Shared hallucinations are pretty rare.”
“A dream?”
“Which one of us is dreaming?”
“So, not a dream, not a hoax. What is it?”
Mr. and Mrs. Williams looked at each other. Neither had a clue what the two women were talking about.
The stagecoach soon arrived the small town of Patterson Valley. Whitaker helped them off the stage. The two women still had no clue as to their current predicament.
“Let’s head over to the saloon to mull things over,” said Sara.
“Great. I’m sure we’ll stay out of trouble there,” remarked Zoey. The saloon was as loud and bustling as any western movie Zoey had ever seen. Sara led her to the bar and told her, “Stay here while order something to drink. Keep to yourself, and they won’t bother you.”
Zoey tried to do just that, when someone shouted, “Hey!” Zoey ignored it at first, but it continued. “Hey, woman!” Zoey turned and saw the voice was coming from a particularly scruffy-looking cowboy. “Wha’cha doing here?”
“Excuse me?” asked Zoey, indignantly. “I have every right to be as you.”
“Naw, I mean why ain’t ya on the stage, enterainin’ us men.” This was met with guffaws from his friends.
“I’m not here for your entertainment,” shot back Zoey.
“Yer a real firecracker,” replied Rufus, the cowboy. “How about you prove it?”
Sara was returning with a glass of milk and a bottle of sarsaparilla. She saw the man taunting Zoey, but before she could do anything, one of the cowboys grabbed her to make sure she didn’t interrupt their fun.
“Sure,” said Zoey. “What did you have in mind?”
“You’re big talk. I reckon you can’t handle a gun like me,” said Rufus.
“Try me.” Rufus tossed her a spare gun belt. Zoey caught and started to put it on. It was at this time that Zoey started to think about the situation she had just gotten herself into. Sure, she had mouthed off to the rude cowboy, but she knew next to nothing about guns, and now she let him talk her into his challenge.
The other cowboys cleared away from the two of them, circling them as to make sure not to miss anything. “Let’s see who’s got the better draw, little girl?” said Rufus. “Count of three.”
“One.” Zoey could see Sara behind the cowboy, still held by one of his minions.
“Two.” Rufus flashed an uneven row of teeth under unruly whiskers.
“Three.” There was a loud gunshot that reverberated the saloon.
Click Here to Go To The Next Chapter
Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.
Sunday, November 01, 2009
The Forbidden Temple of Khyber Gorah – Chapter Nine: The Omnisphere
Zoey Walker could feel herself falling but there was little that she could do to stop it. She watched as fragments from the bridge danced around her, sharing her fate. She reached out, trying to grab anything that might slow her decent. To her surprise, her hand grabbed onto the left slope. Zoey gritted her teeth as the rocks bit into her fingers.
Fortunately, a small outcrop of rocks was large enough to support her weight and stop her decent. For a moment, Zoey didn’t know what to think. She just held onto the rock face with all her might and said a small prayer. When she got her breath back, she slowly took a look around. The two sides of the chasm tapered inwardly, allowing Zoey her chance to grab onto the wall.
“Sara!” shouted Zoey. “Sara!” There was no response.
Zoey started to become aware of the coldness around her. She was far away from the heaters up on the surface and was beginning to feel the sub-zero temperature even through her multiple layers of clothing. She quickly put on all of her equipment. She then looked at her right hand, the same hand that had initially slowed her descent. Her fingers had only minor cuts, but the glove was ripped up and would not give her hand proper protection. She shoved her exposed hand into her jacket.
Gaining a little confidence in her precarious predicament, Zoey started to sidle across the edge of the wall, hoping to find a way back up. While this did not look like a promising prospect, she did find a large pipe sticking out of the wall. Cautiously lowering herself, Zoey planted her feet on top of the pipe. Slowly, she walked across to the end of the pipe. She lowered herself into the pipe. The pipe itself was large enough for her to fit into as long as she remained on her hands and knees.
Zoey had no idea where the pipe went to, but wherever it was, it had to be better than where she was now. The pipe sloped upwards but luckily there was only snow and no ice lining the pipe. After what felt like twenty minutes later, the pipe ended at a long shaft that was at least twice as tall as Zoey was. Pushing her back against the shaft, Zoey used her legs to push her way up the shaft. Her large boots gave her a firm grip against the stony surface of the shaft.
“Ow!” said Zoey as her head unexpectedly hit something. The shaft had ended abruptly, something which Zoey couldn’t see in the pitch black darkness of the shaft. Zoey carefully examined the ceiling with her free hand. She could feel her legs start to tire as she felt what seemed to be a small hinge. Her right hand, still safe within her thick coat, removed a hidden section of her specialized belt. Junior gave her this belt which contained a small piece of explosive material, just enough to unhinge most doors.
She pushed the explosive out of the top of her coat and patiently set it up on the hinge. She then slid down the shaft and waited for it to blow. Surprisingly, the explosion was quiet. The lid came falling down, followed by a pile of snow. With her way unblocked, Zoey slowly climbed back up the shaft. As she pulled herself out of the hole, she thought she hear some voices. She briefly saw two figures enter a door behind a large altar covered in ice.
She looked back down at the hole she had just climbed out of. It must have been a trapdoor at one time. She quietly walked by the sleeping creature and followed the elusive figures into the next room. There, Lee and Sara stood at the top of the stairs, unaware of the falling panel of spikes, but Zoey, still at the bottom of the stairs, could see the shaft above their head.
“Look out!” shouted Zoey. Sara reacted instantly, pushing Lee and herself against the wall, letting the panel of spikes landed harmlessly in the middle of where they were standing.
“Zoey! You’re alive!” said Sara as Zoey made her way up the stairs. “Thanks for saving us.”
“It’s all in a day’s work, right?” replied Zoey.
“How did you get back up here?” asked Sara.
“Time for that later,” said Lee, as he managed to open the next door. “Whatever it is we came here for, it should be in the next room.”
Lee was not wrong in his assumption. There, in the middle of the room, was a large sphere, twice as tall as a human. Its surface was smooth with an oily texture to it. It was the only object not covered in ice or snow. The reason became apparent as they approached the alien object.
“It’s radiating heat,” said Lee.
“But what is it?” asked Zoey turning to Sara.
“I’m not sure,” replied Sara. “But don’t go near it.”
“It’s amazing,” said Lee. “There’s no seams, joints, or hinges. It’s one solid object.”
Zoey heard something neither of the others could. It was there, a mere whisper, familiar to her like a forgotten song. Her enhanced mind latched onto something underneath the surface of this mysterious sphere.
“It’s a computer,” said Zoey. “I don’t know what it’s for, but it’s some kind of computer.” Without thinking about it, Zoey reached out to the sphere, focusing on its strange music.
“Don’t!” said Sara, grabbing Zoey by the arm as Zoey’s fingers brushed the surface of the sphere. There was a blinding light and a rush of warmth greeting them.
Sara and Zoey opened their eyes, only to find themselves lying on the ground. As they slowly got up, they realized that all of their winter gear was gone. This was not so much bad news since they were now in the middle of a desert.
“What happened to us?” asked Zoey.
“You touched the sphere,” said Sara.
“How was I going to know that it’d do this to us?”
“Plenty of time to worry later,” said Sara. “We need to find some civilization.”
“How about that?” asked Zoey, pointing at a stagecoach coming towards them.
“Works for me.” They started to wave and shout at it.
It continued coming towards them, but showed no signs of slowing. “What’s wrong with them?” asked Zoey.
Sara didn’t have time to respond as the stagecoach barreled straight towards them. Little did they know that the driver was dead.
Click Here to Go To The Next Chapter
Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.
Fortunately, a small outcrop of rocks was large enough to support her weight and stop her decent. For a moment, Zoey didn’t know what to think. She just held onto the rock face with all her might and said a small prayer. When she got her breath back, she slowly took a look around. The two sides of the chasm tapered inwardly, allowing Zoey her chance to grab onto the wall.
“Sara!” shouted Zoey. “Sara!” There was no response.
Zoey started to become aware of the coldness around her. She was far away from the heaters up on the surface and was beginning to feel the sub-zero temperature even through her multiple layers of clothing. She quickly put on all of her equipment. She then looked at her right hand, the same hand that had initially slowed her descent. Her fingers had only minor cuts, but the glove was ripped up and would not give her hand proper protection. She shoved her exposed hand into her jacket.
Gaining a little confidence in her precarious predicament, Zoey started to sidle across the edge of the wall, hoping to find a way back up. While this did not look like a promising prospect, she did find a large pipe sticking out of the wall. Cautiously lowering herself, Zoey planted her feet on top of the pipe. Slowly, she walked across to the end of the pipe. She lowered herself into the pipe. The pipe itself was large enough for her to fit into as long as she remained on her hands and knees.
Zoey had no idea where the pipe went to, but wherever it was, it had to be better than where she was now. The pipe sloped upwards but luckily there was only snow and no ice lining the pipe. After what felt like twenty minutes later, the pipe ended at a long shaft that was at least twice as tall as Zoey was. Pushing her back against the shaft, Zoey used her legs to push her way up the shaft. Her large boots gave her a firm grip against the stony surface of the shaft.
“Ow!” said Zoey as her head unexpectedly hit something. The shaft had ended abruptly, something which Zoey couldn’t see in the pitch black darkness of the shaft. Zoey carefully examined the ceiling with her free hand. She could feel her legs start to tire as she felt what seemed to be a small hinge. Her right hand, still safe within her thick coat, removed a hidden section of her specialized belt. Junior gave her this belt which contained a small piece of explosive material, just enough to unhinge most doors.
She pushed the explosive out of the top of her coat and patiently set it up on the hinge. She then slid down the shaft and waited for it to blow. Surprisingly, the explosion was quiet. The lid came falling down, followed by a pile of snow. With her way unblocked, Zoey slowly climbed back up the shaft. As she pulled herself out of the hole, she thought she hear some voices. She briefly saw two figures enter a door behind a large altar covered in ice.
She looked back down at the hole she had just climbed out of. It must have been a trapdoor at one time. She quietly walked by the sleeping creature and followed the elusive figures into the next room. There, Lee and Sara stood at the top of the stairs, unaware of the falling panel of spikes, but Zoey, still at the bottom of the stairs, could see the shaft above their head.
“Look out!” shouted Zoey. Sara reacted instantly, pushing Lee and herself against the wall, letting the panel of spikes landed harmlessly in the middle of where they were standing.
“Zoey! You’re alive!” said Sara as Zoey made her way up the stairs. “Thanks for saving us.”
“It’s all in a day’s work, right?” replied Zoey.
“How did you get back up here?” asked Sara.
“Time for that later,” said Lee, as he managed to open the next door. “Whatever it is we came here for, it should be in the next room.”
Lee was not wrong in his assumption. There, in the middle of the room, was a large sphere, twice as tall as a human. Its surface was smooth with an oily texture to it. It was the only object not covered in ice or snow. The reason became apparent as they approached the alien object.
“It’s radiating heat,” said Lee.
“But what is it?” asked Zoey turning to Sara.
“I’m not sure,” replied Sara. “But don’t go near it.”
“It’s amazing,” said Lee. “There’s no seams, joints, or hinges. It’s one solid object.”
Zoey heard something neither of the others could. It was there, a mere whisper, familiar to her like a forgotten song. Her enhanced mind latched onto something underneath the surface of this mysterious sphere.
“It’s a computer,” said Zoey. “I don’t know what it’s for, but it’s some kind of computer.” Without thinking about it, Zoey reached out to the sphere, focusing on its strange music.
“Don’t!” said Sara, grabbing Zoey by the arm as Zoey’s fingers brushed the surface of the sphere. There was a blinding light and a rush of warmth greeting them.
Sara and Zoey opened their eyes, only to find themselves lying on the ground. As they slowly got up, they realized that all of their winter gear was gone. This was not so much bad news since they were now in the middle of a desert.
“What happened to us?” asked Zoey.
“You touched the sphere,” said Sara.
“How was I going to know that it’d do this to us?”
“Plenty of time to worry later,” said Sara. “We need to find some civilization.”
“How about that?” asked Zoey, pointing at a stagecoach coming towards them.
“Works for me.” They started to wave and shout at it.
It continued coming towards them, but showed no signs of slowing. “What’s wrong with them?” asked Zoey.
Sara didn’t have time to respond as the stagecoach barreled straight towards them. Little did they know that the driver was dead.
Click Here to Go To The Next Chapter
Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)