Rated for language.
Only Shadows Ahead
Chapter Two
Blissful peace.
Serenity.
Beauty.
The sights and sounds of the rainforest were calming. Lush green and sparkling blue; intermingling with the infinite spectrum of colours present within her beloved world. They delighted her. Even after her thousand-odd years of service within this realm, the turquoise waters of Hope Island's cove still took her breath away.
For a moment Gaia felt a momentary flash of anger. A brief, disconcerting feeling: especially given the fact that spirits were meant to remain detached from human emotion. Her job was to monitor and guide, but remain detached from the nastier side of the human condition.
But it was hard, and it was getting harder.
She simply didn't understand this race. The inhabitants of Earth were driven by the tangible need to conquer. The inability to accept differences of both opinion and colour was becoming more and more noticeable as the years passed. Men and women driven by their desire for material possessions and wealth… who would tread on their own mothers in order to achieve their goal. Selfishness. Egocentricity. Weakness.
Gaia had cried, observing the damage inflicted by such humans during her time as Earth's guardian.
Emperors.
Dictators.
Tsars.
Fuhrers.
The balance was so fragile.
It had always been there - those misshapen seeds that had continued to twist and grow within the hearts of those who lacked compassion and empathy. She had watched that seed take hold of some truly frightening individuals during her time here.
Gaia's patience had worn thin with the evolution of warfare. From the swords and bayonets of yesteryear to semi-automatic rifles and weapons of mass destruction. The citizen's of Earth were gifted at coming up with new and inventive ways of obliterating one another.
The elders had advised her to walk away years ago, to effectively wipe her hands of them. Humans were a lost cause, a liability.
They are destined to destroy themselves. Stop delaying the inevitable.
But regardless of those opinions, Gaia couldn't bring herself to leave. She had five extremely valuable reasons to stay. Those reasons were quite simply the light within her darkening world and she focused all her love and positive energy toward them.
Kwame, with his quiet determination and innate sense of social justice. He knew first hand the complexities of greed and segregation. A natural born leader whose compassion was matched only by his kindness.
Wheeler, who was once a mere boy with a temperament as combustable as his element. However he had grown into a man who demonstrated the courage and confidence required in spades. His integrity was matched only by his outlandish sense of humour. And when he spoke, people listened…
Linka, Gaia's headstrong and intellectually curious recruit. Having experienced a relatively sheltered life, the self-reflective blonde often found herself well outside the confines of her comfort zone. But her logic and deductive skills were on point and her empathy towards others was a prized trait.
Gi, short on name yet big on personality. Diplomatic yet impulsive at times, her love of the water was at the forefront of her thoughts and it drove her to continue educating people. Enlightening people to conserve and protect the oceans for generations to come.
Ma-Ti, who had been so young but had already lived a life many adults would struggle to cope with. In Gaia's opinion, his power was also the most difficult to wield. Heart had the tendency to drain the bearer but also gave unlimited access to human mind.
The flip side of the coin was the fact that in the wrong hands, Heart had the capacity to allow access to thoughts meant to remain hidden. It had the ability to compromise homes, government departments. Bank vaults. But Ma-Ti was a worthy recipient. He was nothing if not kind and true. Resilient and honest to a fault.
Her five Planeteers, fighting a never-ending uphill battle. Greed and power seemed to sprout like cancer, and unfortunately the environment seemed to suffer for it. But they persevered, fixated on the greater good.
They were her children. She'd nurtured them; instilled wisdom and bred leadership. They were quite simply the light of her life. The life she led, but the life she would eventually have to leave behind. Her reluctance was palpable, but Gaia's departure from this world was long overdue.
The elders were putting their proverbial foot down. Gaia could feel herself fading, feel her connection to the earth becoming less tangible as the years went by. The elder's call was stronger now, but Gaia was resolute in the knowledge that she would fight them every step of the way. Change was coming and it was unsettling, to say the least.
Her children would need her, the five of them. There were plans afoot. Those twisted seeds that emerged in the most dangerous of individuals were currently causing unrest in someone else, someone who already displayed a frightening disregard for others. Someone whose ability to rationalise was almost non-existent.
Gaia moved through the island restlessly; her bare feet treading the sand towards the Crystal Chamber. She entered and waved her hand. The screen flickered to life and her Planeteers soon appeared.
They seemed to have just finished setting up a camp under the shadows of a rapidly-setting sun. Frozen terrain surrounded them and they were rugged up in heavy snow-gear; their wind-swept faces showing signs of fatigue.
Dinner was underway. As per usual, their nightly entertainment came in the form of their mischievous Fire Planeteer. Gaia smiled, her eyes following Wheeler as he trudged up an icy embankment; a mischievous look on his face as he dragged a single air mattress to the top. He gave the thumbs-up sign and dropped down onto his knees, launching the mattress forwards and beginning the descent towards camp.
Gaia grinned. Their actions seemed to mirror the complex nature of their personalities.
Kwame; standing with his hands on his hips, bellowing at the American to be careful as the makeshift sled picked up speed.
Ma-Ti; roaring with laughter and encouraging his team-mate, diving out of the way as the flash of red hair hurtled past them.
Wheeler; face-planting in the snow and rolling over as the mattress hit a bank.
Gi; running and collapsing beside him, giggling and reaching for the inflatable, intent on giving it a go herself.
Linka; standing off to one side and observing them all with a familiar mixture of amusement and concern.
Gaia's will became iron-clad. Resolute. She would remain here until the Elders dragged her away forcibly, kicking and screaming.
There were plans afoot and they would need more courage and guidance then ever before. Waving her hand, the screen went blank and she turned away. She closed her eyes and sent forth positive affirmations to her children.
The lab was well equipped - with high tech processors, monitors and surveillance cameras designed to record the moment of triumph. The moment when three years of blood, sweat and tears would finally amount to something.
Barbara Blight refused to deal with possibilities. Maybe was simply not part of her vocabulary. Blight dealt only with black and white: she either would succeed with her latest experiment, or she wouldn't.
The Doctor was brilliant, with an IQ of 160 and the cold, cunning and emotionless personality of those with sociopathic tendencies. At the end of the day, however, all of this was irrelevant. When she chose to put her head and heart towards something, she followed it through until she saw results.
This particular experiment was currently the bane of her existence, however. Even with MAL's analytical mind focusing on the programming side of things, it kept failing. Four times, to be exact.
For the life of her, she couldn't work out why… and the knowledge that the answer was alluding her pissed Blight off immensely.
She stood in the centre of the lab, her hands on her hips and chewing her lip thoughtfully. Quantum mechanics. Wormholes. Einstein-Rosen bridges. All fancy names for the age-old fascination with time-travel. The ultimate purpose? Moving from point 'A' to point 'B' with all particles and body parts intact and in good working order. No heads on backwards. No disappearing between dimensions, floating in limbo for the rest of eternity.
Of course, the research documented were simply theories written by men long since dead… And MAL had hacked into secret US government documents detailing the failed attempts to create wormholes. Blight had managed to pull it all together and drawn her own conclusions, but the gravitational field had remained elusive…
Elusive until Zarm had dropped some valuable equations into her lap, before being banished permanently to wherever the heck he'd come from in the first place. The equations had given her a tangible clue.
The Doctor had spent three years toiling away quietly, financed by a private corporation that looked good on paper but had connections with a certain man with a preference for safari suits. Dr Blight sniffed.
The things we do for funding.
A monitor blinked to life and she turned, fixing her stare on the green, back-lit face looking back at her.
"I think we're ready, Doctor."
"Get your gigabytes in gear, then. Fire it up, MAL baby."
"As you wish…"
Dr Blight took a step back, placing her safety goggles over her eyes as she craned her face upwards. A telescopic lens descended from the ceiling, pointing downwards towards a round reflective surface fixed to the floor. She stepped back, well away from the device as a mechanical whirring noise started up. It vibrated and hissed as it gained power, causing the metal tables to bounce and clamour with the strong vibrations.
"All signs are go, Doctor."
"Do it."
A beam of light issued from the lens, followed by a loud crack. The Doctor flinched, diving for cover as the shockwave caught her unprepared. The air seemed to shimmer at the drop point before fizzling out completely, leaving a smoky haze in it's wake.
"Fuck. Did it work?"
MAL disappeared from the monitor for a moment, leaving his creator sprawled beside a refrigerator and looking uncharacteristically flustered. She pushed herself to her feet, checking her reflection against the stainless steel surface.
"Doctor?"
"Well?" Blight turned and crossed her arms. She already knew the answer but wanted confirmation. "Did it work?
"It didn't hold. No connection appears to have been made."
Blight swore under her breath, slamming her fist into the steel surface. Frustration coursed through her, causing the blood vessels in her temple to throb. She could already feel a headache coming on.
"Re-calibrate the system and review the video feed," she barked, turning on her heels and stalking towards the lab entrance. "I need to consider my God-damn options."
"Yes, Doctor Blight."
MAL watched her go, knowing she would head straight for the drink cabinet in the living area. The computer program retreated from the monitor again, travelling through electrical circuits until the video mainframe was accessed. The feeds started spilling onto the screen and MAL entered playback mode.
The lights switched off in the lab as the video flickered at high speed, casting a cold glow over the room as MAL analysed the footage. It flickered throughout the night, long after Barbara Blight had passed out in bed, having consoled herself with a tall bottle of vodka.