Athena's Home, 1030 hours.
Athena had reached out her hand and waited for the girl known as Sineya to place her hand into hers. Once she did, Athena held on to the little girl gently and walked down the ramp. She then turned around and pressed the same button to retract the ramp back up. As they walked backwards, Sineya held on tight to Athena's left hand as she saw the ship simply vanish into thin air.
"Sorcery" said Sineya as she looked up at Athena with eyes full of fear. She had already started thinking about what her grandmother had told her, that if this person was a sorceress.. then she could be very evil. And having just seen a structure disappear into thin air made the native girl think that maybe her grandmother was right.
Sensing the girl's fear, Athena looked down before she crouched down to Sineya's eye level.
"Do not be concerned" said Athena as she pointed at the invisible ship, and then looked back and shook her hands and head, "it is completely safe. I keep it hidden from prying eyes so that the technology within cannot be abused."
Athena slowly felt the girl releasing her hold on her hand as she stepped back with fear still in her eyes. It was then the redhead realized that the girl could be thinking that the Gateship using its cloak could be seen as an unnatural act, especially to those unfamiliar with advanced technology.
"You must have been frightened after I shot those creatures as well" said Athena as she looked at the girl who was slowly inching away, "I wish Hera were here, she is much better at this than I."
Athena then slowly stood back up and placed her hand on her abdomen, and then her other hand to her mouth.
"Are you hungry?" asked Athena as she tried to describe what she was asking by using some form of sign language.
Sineya realized from the hand movements the woman was making that she wanted to know if Sineya had either eaten anything, or if she was hungry. Unsure of what to say, or do, especially since her grandmother said that any food offered to her by this stranger would most likely be poisoned.
"She will then use your body to conduct her evil spells" Sineya recalled her grandmother saying, "do not approach her, perhaps she was the one who let loose those blood demons on you so that she could gain your trust. Maybe she is the one responsible for them trying to attack our village."
"But Grandmother" Sineya had said, "she saved me, she had used a form of red light that turned the demon into dust. She then raised a silver barrier that allowed me to exit, but prevented me walking back through it."
"That is only through sorcery she is able to accomplish those feats" said the Grandmother, "I shall send word to the noble priests, they will speak to this sorceress and order her to leave this land."
"Grandmother" said Sineya, "I fear her…. but I also saw great kindness in her for what she did to me. I owe her for saving my life. Is that not the way of our people?"
"Sineya" said the Grandmother as she stood up and walked to Sineya, "I am concerned about your safety. This sorceress would seem to be able to control the natural world, which would be very dangerous for you. You have a destiny Sineya… the priests have said so. You must be kept safe."
"I do not like those priests" said Sineya, "they look at me as if they wish to harm me, they keep on saying that I have a destiny… but it is something I do not want. I do not want to be forced to…"
"My dear Sineya" said the Grandmother, "the priests have known about your destiny ever since you were born. I am sorry but there is no way to escape from it."
As she thought about the conversation she had with her grandmother, she was confused. Was she right that the woman in front of her was a sorceress? She had seen that structure vanish right before her eyes, and she had seen the woman talk to a strange terminal that floated in the air before that too simply vanished. Yes, she had reasons to fear her… but then Sineya remembered that this woman had saved her life as well. There was no indication that she had sent those demons after her, but then again… there was nothing to confirm that she hadn't. She had to take a leap of faith.
Seeing that Sineya was unsure about what to do, Athena asked her to wait by pointing at the ground and then ran as fast as she could back into her home. Opening a case, she took out a bar she had made using some nuts and berries she had discovered weeks ago. She bound the food together with a sweet syrup substance she made using the molecular assembler in the outpost. Grabbing a bar, she quickly ran back out to the girl who was looking back at her as she walked back. Sitting down in front of Sineya, she broke off a piece and bit into it. When Athena saw Sineya smiling, she broke off another piece and gave it to the girl who bit into in nervously.
"I think this is how my sister would have started contact with new tribes" said Athena as Sineya sat in front of her and took another small bite, and then smiled, "you would have liked her, little one."
Athena then pointed to Sineya, and made a motion with her fingers of someone walking… and then made a shape of a basic home using her hands. She smiled when she saw Sineya's eyes brightened up when she turned around and pointed to some hills in the distance.
"So your village is beyond those hills" said Athena as she looked at Sineya who turned back to face the redhead. Sineya then pointed at Athena, and then nodded at her home with a questionable look.
"No" said Athena as she looked around her surroundings, and then quickly got up and ran towards a thick branch that was lying on the ground. Grabbing the branch, she sat back down in front of Sineya and drew the point of origin for Atlantis.
Sineya then pointed at the symbol and looked at Athena confused.
"My home" said Athena, "Atlantis."
"Atlantis?" said Sineya as she looked at Athena.
"Yes" said Athena as she pointed up to the sky, "beyond the stars of this galaxy."
Sineya then looked up into the brightly lit sky, and then at Athena with confusion etched onto her face. She was wondering why the red haired woman in front of her was saying that she was from the sky.
"Yes, I…." said Athena as she stopped and looked behind Sineya. Standing up, she walked a few steps forwards and noticed a convey of people in colourful garb heading towards her home. Suddenly, she heard Sineya gasp and hold on tightly to her hand.
"It is them" said Sineya as she shook Athena's hand and pointed to the people who were walking closer and closer, "the priests have come."
Suddenly, there was a beep from Athena's home. Making sure that the people were still some distance away, she walked into the home with Sineya. Motioning to the young girl to sit down on a chair, Athena walked into another room that was connected by a hallway where the beeping sound was coining from. Activating the screen on the device that she had attached to the sensors in the outpost, she was able to tell exactly who was coming towards her home. All she could do now was frown as she walked back through the hallway back into the room where Sineya was sitting on the chair in fear.
"Do not be afraid, Sineya" said Athena calmly, "I will be outside to greet our guests."
As Athena turned around, she felt her hand being tightly gripped by Sineya who was shaking her head. The redhead saw her look out the door at the people who were almost at the entrance, and then at Athena before shaking her head again.
"It is alright" said Athena as she gave Sineya a smile, "you will be alright, if you wish… you may come with me. They will not harm you, I promise."
Sineya felt Athena gently pulling at her. Shaking her head, she then saw the redhead crouch down and gently caress her cheek… just the way her mother used to all those years ago. She then looked into the eyes of Athena's eyes and just had a feeling that the women in front of her meant no harm to her. That if the people coming tried to do anything, Athena would protect her. So, slowly she got off her seat and walked out the door with Athena.
Once they reached the outside, Sineya stepped back slightly and stood behind Athena's leg as her head peeked out. Athena had her arms folded on her chest as she looked at the colourfully dressed people who stopped a few steps away from Athena and Sineya.
"Greetings, Sineya" said a man in purple, who had on a red headdress as he smiled at Sineya who shrunk back behind Athena. He then looked at Athena and bowed his head down slightly, "greetings stranger, I am known as Zan. I have come at the request of the…."
"Let us get the introductions of the way. I am Athena Ren of Atlantis, and I know you recognize my language" said Athena as she glowered at Zan and the others behind him, "and I know exactly who you people are."
Athena saw the three men and two women looking at each other as they spoke in whispers. She then saw Zan nodding his head before turning back to face Athena.
"Yes, as I said earlier my name is Zan" he said as Sineya looked on in surprise at how well the man spoke Athena's language, "our people had not realized the Alterra had returned."
"And my people never realized that the mystic factions of the Furlings still remained on Earth" said Athena as she continued to glare at Zan and the others before she spoke again with sarcasm dripping with every word she spoke, "tricked any other race in opening gateways to unsavoury dimensions for your own power?"
"That incident occurred millions of years ago" said another man standing next to Zan, "and if I have read our historical texts correctly, your people had as much to do with it… if not more."
"Yes" said Athena, "I have read our historical texts as well, and yes we have many things to answer for… but we would never have opened that gateway if we had known that all your people wanted was a new power source. A new way to practise your mystics. I do not know what happened in the intervening years after Atlantis left this world, but I think I faced an example last night."
"Yes" said Zan as he looked at Sineya, "the girl informed her grandmother of that event, and she informed us. She had said that a red haired sorceress was nearby."
"There is no sorcery" said Athena, "just technology, or has the mystic sect of the Furlings forgotten that they have similar levels of technology as us."
"We do not answer to the Central Authority" said Zan, "they have wiped their hands of us long ago, however it has been us who have beaten back the spread of these creatures… the protection of this world millennia after your people left, have fallen to us… our blood has been spilt more than you will ever know."
"All due to your own trickery" said Athena, "fitting that you should be the ones to clean up your mess."
"Why you…" said a woman as she stepped forward.
"You used the technology of my people to open the gateway" said Athena as she glared at the woman, "and then used your mystics to keep it open… you had permanently bonded the gateway to the Earth. I read the studies that were done at that time… the records still exist in Atlantis, and every Lantean knows the danger enough to not try it again. The only way to shut that gateway down now, would be to use the Earth itself to block it."
"You have no right to…" said another man as Athena turned around and gently pushed Sineya back into the home.
"Leave this place" said Athena as she glanced backwards, "I will bring Sineya home."
"Sineya has a destiny" said Zan, "her fate had been sealed the moment she was born."
"There is no such thing as destiny" said Athena as she turned around and walked towards the five of the Furlings, "no destiny.. no fate. I remember the stories that were told about your sect. Extreme devotion to rituals, to destiny, to fate and to prophesy. As if everything is set to a fine marked string, life is never like that."
"Like your people's devotion to free will?" asked Zan, "what has that gotten you? How do you know that returning to this world was not already pre-planned?"
"Because if we start believe everything is destiny, or fate, or prophesy" said Athena, "then we cease even trying to live; we expect everything to work just as it is written in prophesy… you take free will out of the equation."
"You cannot stand between destiny" said Zan, "it will happen, whether you want to or not, it will happen. There is a prophesy by the Powers…."
"Powers?" said Athena.
"The Powers that Be" said Zan, "beings that would guide the chosen champions of this world and…."
"Of course" said Athena sarcastically, "that's where you are mistaken, the Ascended cannot interfere in this plane of existence."
"It is said that they moved into another dimension" smiled Zan, "away from your Ascended beings, the same ones who believe in free will so ardently, that they would never interfere even if the planet were to burn."
"Perhaps it was for the best" said Athena as she thought about what she wanted to do to her genetically engineered clones if she had been allowed to continue, "whatever happens, will happen…. It is no one's right to change that. It took me some time to realize that."
She then looked at Zan and the others and frowned at them.
"Perhaps these Powers of yours inhabit a different dimension" said Athena, "away from the eyes of the ascended, but that does not mean that they are right. It does not mean that prophesy has to be followed."
"That is blasphemy" said the man standing to the right of Zan, "and…"
"Their prophecy is true" said Zan as he put his hand up to silence the man, "as I was saying, a great warrior will be born … and she will be the one who will be given the will, and the strength to defeat the monsters that lie in the darkness… she will be the one who will prevent the spread of evil in this world."
"And you believe this girl of prophesy is Sineya?" said Athena as she looked at Zan, and then the others.
"We know she is" replied Zan, "she was born under a special star that fell from the heavens, she is the one. She will save this world."
"Even if that is true, that will be her choice" said Athena, "she will make that choice, not me, not you… not her grandmother. Only Sineya will decide Sineya's fate as you so like to put it."
"You have seen the creatures have you not?" asked the second woman, "they are known as vampires. They feed on the blood of men, women and children killing them, or turning them into one of their own. And they are not the only horrors that lay in the darkness… there are so many monstrosities in this world that it is impossible to count. Demons, vampires, monsters, and some that are older than us…. They came through the doorway soon after your people left this world, they have occupied this planet for millennia. They made it their kingdom. When humans evolved, our people returned and we taught the natives advanced mystics and with our help drove many back… and killed even more. But despite all of that, many still remain.. and they have infected many of the natives. Beings like those vampires are only half breeds, some of the pure bloods still exist. We need Sineya… she's the only one who can beat them back… she's the only one who can fight."
"Then you and your people fight them" said Athena as she pointed at the five of them, "if my people can fight a race that feeds on life forces of humans, leaving them into dried out husks; then you can fight these creatures as well."
"We have" said Zan, "and we have lost many. The split with the Central Authority has left us with very few pure mystics. The others have gone out to the stars, they want nothing to do with us."
"Too bad" said Athena.
"Athena" said Zan as he stepped forward while Sineya hugged Athena's waist tightly, "these creatures have murdered fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and so many others. We have done everything to stop them.. you have to understand. Sineya is the one… give her to us so that we may help her embrace her destiny."
Athena looked down at the ten year old girl who was holding on tightly to the redhead's waist.
"No" said Athena as she looked up at Zan.
"Have you lost anyone close to you in the fight with these beings from your home?" asked one of the two women.
"Does it matter?" asked Athena.
"Please" said the women again, "have you lost anyone? Have you lost family?"
"My sister" said Athena, "her life was taken in front of my eyes."
"I am sorry" said the woman as she stepped forward, "five days ago, we were at another village the day after it was attacked by demons. In a village of seventy people, only two survived… two young boys. They told us that the demons murdered everyone, and the only reason they survived was because their older sister hid them in an underground chamber in their home. The two boys peeked through the opening on the floor as they witnessed their father, mother and then their sister ripped apart and eaten by these demons."
"If Sineya does not come with us" said the other woman, "then things like this would happen again, there are very few of us left.. and not many among the natives who can perform mystics. We need Sineya to balance the scales. The Powers demand it."
"If they so demand it" said Athena, "let them do it themselves. I'd like to see your Powers openly demand things of lower beings."
"There are areas where they can manifest" said a woman.
"Yes" said Athena as she turned around with a hand on Sineya's back, "I would suspect they could, as I suspect any of the Ascended could as well. Areas where they can act unseen by each other, but I have no intention of meeting any of these Powers. I intend to live my life, and then die in peace. I intend to be with my sister, and my mother. Now please leave."
"You are making a mistake" said another man.
"Sineya" said Athena as she crouched down, placed a hand on her shoulder and pointed a finger at her, "would you like to go with these people?"
Athena pointed at the Furlings, and then at herself. She was hoping against hope that Sineya would understand what she was trying to say. She could have asked the Furlings to translate for her… but she had no clue if they would translate accurately.
"Sineya" said Zan, "this woman does not know the way of this world. Her people left this planet to ruin millennia ago, and we have been fixing their mistakes ever since. It is because of her that your parents are dead, it is because of her people that these creatures have come to this land. Come with us, embrace your destiny. We will train you, watch over you. Your grandmother has already given her blessing, do you not want to make her proud?"
"I can see from your eyes that you wish me harm, and that you lie" said Sineya as she held on to Athena much tighter, "this woman has frightened me with her abilities, but then I do not see the intent to harm me as I see in you. I wish to stay."
"Sineya!" said another man, "you will come with us….."
"Lower your voice" said Athena as she stood protectively in front of Sineya, "I do not know what you told the child, but she obviously does not have any intention of leaving with you. Now please leave, I will not ask again."
"Athena" said one of the women, "please understand, there are not many of us left in this world. If Sineya refuses to come with us, then this world will be overrun with those creatures. Will you not give us some weapons with which to fight? It may not be Sineya, but anything… any weapon will do."
Sighing Athena rubbed her temples as she looked at the group in front of her.
"Before we evacuated Atlantis" said Athena with a frown as she shook her head and put her hands on her hips, "I had a proposal to create genetically engineered living weapons that would be able to defeat the Wraith with a ninety nine percent kill rate. But it was rejected due to it being considered an act of genocide, especially since any Lantean with the correct code could remotely wipe them out from anywhere in Pegasus thanks to a genetically implanted self destruct code."
"Living weapons?" asked Zan as he took a few steps forward, his face showing his sudden interest, "what do you mean?"
"Men and women who have had their abilities enhanced to super-human levels" said Athena, "and genetic memory that contains various armed, and unarmed combat; as well as accelerated healing."
Athena saw that the group looked at each other excitedly and whispered to each other. After Zan nodded his head, he turned back towards Athena.
"And you will give us these weapons?" asked Zan.
"Yes, but without the self destruct command in their genetic code" said Athena, "they will be able to live their lives should they defeat these creatures. They will have what I originally did not want them to have; free will."
"And payment?" asked Zan.
"Your people will leave Sineya alone" said Athena as she looked down at the girl, "do we have an agreement?"
"We will require many of your weapons" said Zan as he turned around to consult with the people with him.
In the meantime, Athena crouched down and smiled at Sineya.
"You… teach…?" asked Athena as she pointed at Sineya, then made movements with her hands as if one was talking to the other, and then pointed at herself. Athena was hopeful that the girl would understand what she was trying to convey. The redhead then smiled when Sineya nodded her head smiling.
"Athena" said Zan as he turned around.
Athena smiled at Sineya before she stood up and turned towards the man who had the end of his staff resting on the ground.
"We would require many of these weapons" said Zan, "there are numerous creatures all around the planet. I believe that thirty thousand would suffice. That should be enough to get rid of these undead creatures, and hellspawns."
"Thirty thousand" whistled Athena, "that would take at most five years."
"Five years?" asked Zan, "that would be too long and…"
"I have to build the cloning tanks in the outposts in this continent" said Athena, "as well as in the two outposts in the large continent in the Western hemisphere of this planet, including the one near the location the first gateway is located. That would take me at least two years to set up, and once that is done you would have seven thousand five hundred fully matured clones every three months."
"Very well" said Zan, "we expect delivery of those weapons as they are completed."
"All I need is a location" said Athena, "I will beam them there, then it would be up to you to convince them to help you."
"But…" said a woman.
"They will have free will" said Athena, "that has already been agreed upon. The ultimate decision to help you will be theirs."
"No matter" said Zan nodding his head, "we will convince them successfully."
"Very well" said Athena as she turned around and gently pushed Sineya into the home, before taking a backwards glance, "now if you do not mind."
"We will take our leave" said Zan as he bowed his head slightly before Athena closed the door to her home. Zan then gave a wide smile and turned, before he started to walked towards Sineya's village.
"Zan" said the man who was walking next to him. He looked at the older man confused as to why he was smiling, "we were unsuccessful, the prophesy needs to be fulfilled… how can you be so happy?"
"The Powers have given us a fool" said Zan once he was out of earshot, "Athena and her weapons are perfect."
"I know what you intend to do" said the woman as she nodded her head, "use the powers of the weapons, and strengthen the demon to unimaginable levels."
"Yes" said Zan as the other two men realized what their leader was saying and nodded their heads as well in agreement, "the prophesy will be fulfilled. Sineya will still be the saviour of this world; she will fulfil her destiny… that same destiny that has already been decided for her. She will be the perfect weapon against the darkness."
Sunnydale Outpost, five years later; 10,000 years ago.
It had been five years since the mystic sect of the Furlings came to Athena's home. During that time, Sineya had been staying both in her village during the night with her grandmother and the other villagers, whereas in the day she would teach Athena the proper way to gather nuts, berries and other food that she either didn't know was close by, or whether it was edible or not. She even showed Athena the proper way to trap animals that existed in the nearby plains and taught her the language of her people. Sineya was impressed that the redhead was able to pick up the language quickly for a newcomer to this land. In return, Athena taught Sineya the Lantean language and helped the girl's village as much as she could, particularly in medicine and defence from various demons and monsters.
The native girl had told Athena her story, that her parents were killed by demons when they went to another village to trade goods and food; leaving her with her father's mother. She told Athena that ever since then; her grandmother had been the one looking after her. Then on her sixth birthday, the same people that Athena had met came to her village. They told her grandmother that Sineya was a very special girl, that the Powers had deemed her to be one of their great champions. Ever since that day, Sineya was groomed for her destiny by her grandmother under instructions from those priests. She was also never allowed to leave the village in the event that she would be taken by the various demons and vampires that roamed the plains. She admitted to Athena that she had left her village at night numerous times before that night when she met the redhead, that she had always been chased by demons… and that her grandmother would always scold her when she came back to the village where the men would kill he demons who were chasing Sineya before they could even enter the village.
There were times when the demons and vampires would attack Athena's home directly and when they did, they were met with the impregnable shield. As the shield stopped all outside attacks, Athena would shoot the vampires and the various demons that came after her and Sineya dead with her plasma weapon.
It was a few days after their initial meeting that Sineya found that she had nothing to fear from Athena. She had introduced Athena to her grandmother who despite all outward appearances, was extremely suspicious of the red haired woman. Sineya told Athena that her grandmother still suspected that Athena was a sorceress because of her red hair to which Athena tried to suppress her laughter. Eventually, Athena and Sineya's relationship became closer and closer. She cared for the young girl deeply, and protected her… making sure that the Furlings didn't change their minds and take her away in the middle of the night while she was staying with her grandmother.
Now, as the deadline for the final batch of clones loomed, Athena had been working into the afternoon, Athena was working was what would be later known as the Sunnydale Outpost on the final seven thousand and five hundred genetically engineered clones. Just before she was to input the final command to transporters to beam the clones from all four outposts that contained the cloning tanks, she discovered a problem with one thousand of the clones in the outpost she was currently in. Making a decision to send the final batch minus the one thousand clones… Athena pressed a button on the console as six thousand and five hundred of the clones were transported to the location that the Furlings had given her.
She then pressed another column on the console as the screen changed the view to the map of the Earth. Athena pressed another column as the view zoomed in to a section of the earth that was about five hours away from Sineya's village; it was a new area that was given to her by the Furling mystics. Sighing, Athena saw the large orange blip that indicated the clones were beamed safely to their destination.
"They reached the area safely" said Athena to herself as she pressed another column down and changed the view to a DNA sequence of the remaining clones that showed as defective. As she looked at the monitor, she felt a cold wind brush against her cheek. Turning around, she scanned her immediate area with her eyes and stepped away from the console.
"Hello?" asked Athena as she looked around and another gust of wind went by; brushing her cheek lightly, "Hera? Mother? Is it you?"
Athena was confused, she was sure that all other ways to enter the outpost had been disabled. The control console on the surface, as well as the consoles that control entry into the other outposts, required a specific gene that the Lanteans carried so there was no way for any Furling to enter. Shaking her head, Athena walked back to the console when she heard a voice behind her.
"Athena."
"Sineya?" said Athena as she looked around the large laboratory, "Sineya."
It was then Athena started to get a dull ache in her heart, so she rushed back to the console and lowered another column and watched as one at the far end of the console rose up. Pushing that column down, Athena changed the screen again to show the area where she had sent her clones earlier. Where there was a large blip, there was now nothing.
"This cannot be" said Athena to herself, "the clones have a marker in their bodies that last for a few hours after the cloning process. A by-product of the cloning process, I should be able to see them.. where are they?"
Zooming out from that one location, Athena scanned the entire planet but they were nowhere to be found. Pushing that to the back of her mind, Athena became increasingly worried about Sineya so she quickly secured her work before heading back to the adjoining room with the teleportation device that transported her to the surface. She then ran into the Gateship and flew all the way to Sineya's village expecting the worst. Just as the ship took off, Athena never saw the bright white pulsing light behind her; as the light slowly dimmed, it revealed a brown haired woman in a silver and cream coloured sleeveless dress who watched as the red-haired woman flew off into the distance before activating the ship's cloak.
"I am sorry, my sister" said Hera to herself as she looked off into the distance, "I am so sorry."
Hera then turned around and looked out towards the area of the gateway that her ancestors had created with the help of the Furlings.
'I sense it' thought Hera to herself, 'the darkness grows. I can sense it creeping out of the Earth, out of the gateway between multiple dimensions.'
She then looked back at the direction the Gateship had flown and gave a sad smile.
Uncharted Region, five hours away from Sineya's village; 1500 hours.
Sineya woke up with a start. She had been sleeping in her grandmother's home when she felt someone grabbing her off her bed. She recalled struggling as she was picked up with one strong arm, and then she felt another arm place a cloth over her mouth and nose. The last thing she remembered before her eyes closed was the fumes coming off the piece of cloth, and her grandmother standing at the doorway. Sineya's last conscious act was to reach out with her hand to her grandmother. She knew that the old woman had taken one step forward before she stopped and stepped back again, looking at the young girl with sadness in her eyes.
'She still believes' thought Sineya to herself as her eyes closed and she lost conciousness.
Waking up on a hard surface, Sineya looked at her surroundings with concern etched on her face. She knew that she was in some kind of a chamber with what seemed to be three tunnels. She could see light coming from one of the tunnels and guessed that it would be the way out of this chamber. She could smell the dankness of her surroundings and could hear water dripping in the distance. Sineya then looked around again as the room was suddenly lit as torches that hung on the walls caught fire by themselves. Looking closely, Sineya could make out strange symbols in red that were painted on the walls of the chamber and then she heard footsteps. She slowly stood up but her hands felt heavy. Looking down at her hands, she panicked when she saw dull, metallic manacles on both of her wrists; and the manacles themselves were connected by a chain to the floor of the chamber.
Sineya tried to break the chain by pulling on it with her other arm, but she couldn't do anything.
"That will not work, little one" said Zan as he walked into the chamber with two of his compatriots, "the time for the prophesy to be fulfilled is almost upon us."
"No" said Sineya shaking her head, "you promised… you promised Athena that nothing would happen to me."
"The prophesy will be fulfilled" said another man as the three of them walked towards Sineya, "you are central to that prophesy. Athena's intervention was timely, she provided us with the tools we required to strengthen your power a thousand fold."
"No" said Sineya, "I do not want anything to do with your prophesy… I make my own destiny."
"Be proud, child" said the third man, "you will bring about order that this world has never seen… you will bring light into the world, you will use the darkness to your advantage, you will be the ultimate weapon for good."
"The prophesy of the Slayer that has been handed down to the pure mystics of the Furlings. The prophesy handed down to us by the Powers of the chosen champion" said Zan as he walked towards Sineya, "you should thank Athena, without her intervention of the clones with their superior attributes… and especially their genetic memory of combat, we would have taken you away a long time ago."
"No" said a shocked Sineya as she took a step back, "I wish to be free, I do not want this."
"What you want, is not what the world needs" said the second man, "the world needs a saviour to protect it… and you will be that saviour. You will have the power of thousands, the power to defeat any demon.. any vampire. The power to protect the innocent."
"You will be alone" said Zan, "because that is the way that you will fight the best… alone. Nothing to distract you, nothing to tie you down… you will be a force of nature unequal to anything on this Earth."
"Athena" said Sineya, "my grandmother… what of them? I do not wish to leave them alone. Let me go, I must go to them… I love them.. let me go now!"
"Silence!" said another man as Zan put his hand up to silence him.
"Athena will join you shortly" said Zan, "she will see what her weapons have wrought. A weapon created from other weapons. She will see firsthand the creation of a new warrior."
Zan then nodded at the man to his right as he took out a small box from inside his robe. As the other two started to flank Sineya, the three of them started to chant in an unknown language. Sineya then felt a force push her down onto her knees and force her head up.
"Please" said Sineya as she looked at the man kneel down in front of her, "please do not do this."
Sineya saw the man keep on chanting in that unknown language as he opened the top of the box, and put three fingers inside. Her eyes widened as be brought his fingers out covered in some sort of a white paste. Unable to move or run away, Sineya had tears fall down her face as the man kept on chanting while using his fingers to smear the white paste onto her face.
Uncharted Region, 1545 hours.
It had taken not more than mere minutes for Athena to travel from the outpost to Sineya's village at full acceleration. Pushing the Gateship, Athena landed close to the village and got out of the vessel before running into the village. Just as she entered it, Athena noticed a change in the mood as some of the children avoided her while some of the men and women looked at her with what seemed like regret before going into their homes.
'Something is wrong' though Athena to herself as she walked towards Sineya's home where she stayed with her grandmother. The villagers were aware of who Athena was, they found out the same time as Sineya's grandmother and as expected, there were some who were amazed and there were some who feared that red haired woman. Eventually, despite their individual feelings about Athena, everyone in the village knew that Athena cared about Sineya as much as the young girl's grandmother did.
"Athena" said Sineya's grandmother as she stood at the entrance to her home.
"Where is Sineya?" asked Athena as she stopped a few steps away from the grandmother, "and I would ask you tell the truth."
"The priests have taken her to fulfil her destiny" said the grandmother as she looked at Athena who had her hands rolled into fists.
"What?" said Athena as she stepped back, "where are they? I had an agreement with them that Sineya would be left alone."
"I am her grandmother, woman!" she told Athena as she raised her voice at the redhead, "I miss her terribly, but she has a destiny that is waiting for her…. the priests will…."
"Did she go willingly?" asked Athena through gritted teeth as she interfered with what the grandmother was saying, "did she go willingly!?"
"She is fulfilling her destiny" said the grandmother, "there is nothing I could do to stop it, it is going to happen.. she will create a safe world and…"
"My people should have never recreated life in this galaxy" said Athena to the surprise of the grandmother as she turned and walked away, but not before glancing back, "if I am able to retrieve Sineya in time, she will leave this planet with me. If you had not been so insistent on destiny and prophesy, you would have seen that Sineya is a very intelligent young woman who would have been able to carve a future for herself. Eventually I could have taken her to see my father and the Council of my people. They would have allowed her into one of our places of knowledge….. but now, if those mystics succeed in their plans there is no way to know what may happen. You may have just doomed your grand-daughter."
As Athena took off running towards the Gateship, the grandmother could only look at the retreating redhead as she tried her best not to breakdown.. especially with the other villagers slowly coming out of their homes.
'She spoke highly of you' though the Grandmother to herself, 'she thinks of you like a she would a mother, and I know how intelligent she can be. But it is her destiny that matters, her destiny had been written long ago. I am sorry.'
Athena boarded the Gateship and closed the rear hatch before flying full speed towards the area where the signal from the clones had vanished. The redhead knew that there was only one reason for the signal to vanish, and that is if the clones were killed. She kicked herself mentally when she wondered to herself if this was the first time, and if the same thing had happened to the other clones that she had sent the Furlings.
"I never checked" said Athena to herself, "I never checked, I should have done something earlier… what have I done?"
Flying the Gateship over a grassy plain, Athena noticed a rocky outcrop which was the location of the earlier blip. With a worried expression on her face, Athena landed the vessel and cautiously walked out with a tan coloured pack that she had wrapped across her chest. Looking around, she could only see grassland as far as the eyes could see. Turning to the rocky outcrop, she noticed an entrance and with a frown walked towards it. The closer she got to the entrance, the more of a sense of dread she felt in her heart. Once she reached the entrance, she realized that it was the mouth of a cave.
Walking slowly into the entrance, she was surrounded by darkness. She could hear water dripping in the distance and a sound like someone crying.
"Sineya?" said Athena as she reached for the pack. She felt for a tube-like object and took it out of the pack, and pressed a button on one end as a bright beam of light came out the other end. Athena then swept her surroundings with the light as she carefully moved towards that sound, even almost slipping on some moss at one point. She walked on until she found a small path that took her deeper into the cave. Turning around and shining the light behind her, Athena knew that she was very far away from the entrance as all she saw was darkness…. even with the light in her hand. Turning around again, she continued to walk towards the sound of crying until she reached three tunnels.
"This is strange" said Athena as the crying suddenly stopped. She then swept the area in front of her with the light when a very pungent smell wafted into her nostrils from the leftmost tunnel. It was a smell that she was familiar with, the same smell she had encountered when she carried Hera's desiccated body back to Atlantis; the smell of death. Curious about what had caused the smell, and worried about a possible Wraith presence on the planet… Athena covered her nose as the smell got worse and worse the deeper she walked into that particular tunnel. Eventually, Athena reached a fairly spacious ledge at the end of the tunnel. Walking onto it carefully, Athena shone her light and walked to the edge. It was when she shone the light over the edge did she get the greatest shock of her life. Thousands of bodies were piled one of top of another on the floor below. Shining the light across the bodies, she looked on with her mouth opened and eyes wide open when she realized that they were the clones that she had given the mystics. She saw the light reflected off their dead eyes as they looked accusingly back up at her.
"No" said Athena as she stepped backwards in shock, "no, this… no… I… I.. how…."
"Athena"
The redhead turned around angrily, only to be struck down by a staff across her face. The last thing she saw before her eyes closed was Zan looking down at her.
What felt like hours to Athena, it had only been twenty minutes when the redhead woke up laying on a floor on what looked like a different ledge. She could smell the wet moss that was along the cave wall as she slowly put her hands on the floor some that she could slowly get up. It was then she noticed the manacles on her wrists, and the thick chains that connected each of the wrists to the wall.
"Athena Ren" said another familiar voice as Athena turned around only to see Zan walking towards her from a tunnel. He was soon followed by the two men who had visited her at her home, and three women she did not know.
"Zan" said Athena as she walked towards the Furling mystic, "what is the meaning of this deception? I gave you the clones to fight a war, and what I just saw…. They were all dead, how? I did not see any damage or injuries, they just….."
"Silence" said the man who stood next to Zan, "you will be silent, woman."
"You gave them free will" said another man, "they did not want to fight, we had told them what we expected of them…. Some wanted to help us, but the others did not. They wished to live a peaceful life."
"Then that was their prerogative" replied Athena, "I gave then that ability…. So what happened?"
"We needed all their power to fuel the demon" said Zan, "all that power would have made the demon so powerful that it would be able to protect this world without any intervention from your people, or the Central Authority."
"What have you done?" asked Athena in shock, "you took Sineya? We had an agreement! That she would be kept away from you… "
"Silence!" shouted Zan as he quickly calmed down and walked towards Athena, "you have helped us create destiny this day, you should be proud."
"Look upon what you have provided us, Athena" said the man to the left of Zan as he clapped his hands and a light from the floor below shone brightly.
Athena walked over to the drop off with the group of men beside her and looked at the dazed faces below who looked back at her. She could see that all of them had been stripped of their clothes and were chained to the floor in very short links that had no room for any slack, unlike the chains that were around Athena's hands. She could see that there were more people but because the chain holding her had no more slack, she couldn't move step forwards anymore.
"Thank you, Athena" said another man as he, Zan and the women walked down a hidden stairway to the floor below, "you have helped to bring light and order upon this world."
"No" said Athena as she turned towards the man, "not like this, they were created to fight in a war. But I made it so that it would be their decision to fight… but this…. This is.."
Suddenly, Athena heard the sounds of men and women screaming from the bottom of the cave and since the chains around her wrists had no more slack, she was unable to take a good look at what was going on. All she could hear were the horrible screams as she got onto the cave floor, closed her eyes and put her hands over her ears to stop hearing the sounds.
Then just as it had begun, the screams ended. The lives of the six thousand five hundred clones that Athena had delivered to their needless deaths were extinguished.
"No" said Athena to herself as she knelt on the ground in shock, "what have I done? What have I done?"
She then heard footsteps coming up the hidden stairs as she saw Zan walk up first carrying a rectangular box, and behind him was one of his men, and followed by the women. As they reached the ledge, he turned around and ordered the women to get the cleaners and throw the bodies away and then burn everything.
"You people will not get away with this" said Athena, "you are forcing a prophesy on an innocent, is that what your so called Powers wanted? I gave you weapons to fight those creatures, I knew that some would not join your cause, but even those that did would have been enough. You did not have to murder each and every one of them."
"Is that not what you would have done?" asked Zan as he tilted his head and looked at Athena, "is that not what you would have done to protect your people?"
"Yes" said Athena, "but I was stopped. I originally never wanted them to have free will… I wanted them to follow my orders to the letter. Destroy the Wraith before they destroy my civilization. And then I intended to kill them without the clones knowing about it. But it was my father who told me what a genocide of two races would have brought, he told me why the Council never wanted these kinds of weapons, and you just committed that same act. They were created by my hands! Because of you I have their blood on my hands!"
"For the greater good" said Zan who nodded at his compatriot, "now we will take you to Sineya so that you could say your final goodbyes. We wish for you to see what you have helped us create… a weapon that this world has never seen before."
Athena noticed one of the men step behind her as he held her head while another one pressed a piece of cloth over her mouth and a few seconds later, she felt the man behind her releasing her head as she fell onto the floor.
Unknown Cave, five minutes later.
As Athena remained consciousness again, the first things she felt were the manacles on her wrists. Opening her eyes slowly, she found herself in a large well lit chamber with strange pattern drawn on the walls. She saw that the light was from ten torches that were burning on the walls of the chamber. It was then that she heard a whimper. Looking at the middle of the room, she saw a female form that was lying down in the foetal position in the middle of a circular symbol on the floor.
"Sineya" said Athena as she stood up slowly and walked towards the girl, "Sineya."
"Athena" said Sineya as she turned back and looked at the redhead in surprise, "they have brought you here as well?"
"What have they done?" asked Athena as she saw the young girl stand up. She then saw the chains that tied both of Sineya's wrists to the floor. Looking back at her own chains, they were attached to the wall. Shaking her head, Athena then noticed the dried white paint on Sineya's face.
"Athena" said Sineya as tears started to form in her eyes, "I am sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry for" said Athena, "this is my fault, I should have taken you off this world… I should have done something to protect you."
"It is not your right to protect her" said Zan as he and the two men from earlier walked into the chamber, "I see you have learnt the language of Sineya's people."
Athena saw Zan smile as the two other men flanked Sineya as she looked at them in panic, and then at the redhead.
"Let her go" said Athena, "let her go, you have no right to do this…. You…"
It was then that Athena stumbled back as Zan gave Athena a sharp slap with the back of his hands.
"The great Alterra" said Zan, "the ones who never left their descendants anything to protect this world from the creatures of the night, the creatures of the darkness… you dare lecture us? We who would protect this world by handing down power to the humans to protect themselves?"
"You can give them power, you can give them knowledge" said Athena as she stared at Zan, "but without understanding… all of that is meaningless. One day the humans; the descendants of my race will gain the understanding to use the power that we have left them.. but that will be long after I have died and turned to dust."
"Do you not see Sineya" said Zan as he turned around, "her people refuse to help, the Powers have granted us a vision of a great warrior… the ultimate weapon to protect this planet from the encroaching darkness. And you are that weapon, the first of many… the first of a line of Slayers. What happens from now on, it is all on her."
"Athena" said Sineya shaking her head as the two men started to chant in a strange language and hitting the floor of the chamber with their staffs, "I am frightened. I…"
"Do not be frightened" said Athena softly, "I am here, I am here.. look at me."
Athena had no choice but to calm down the girl. She had already tried to pull the chain from the wall but it was impossible. The truth was that no matter how much she wanted to help Sineya, there was nothing she could do. Athena then turned to Zan who had the same rectangular box in his hand; smiling at Athena he lay in on the floor close to Sineya and then walked back to Athena.
"We tamed a demon" said Zan as he looked at the shocked face of Athena, "a lower demon that was born in the shadows between the worlds. We captured it, tamed it and now it does our bidding. It was powerful by the time we had tamed it but because of the clones you provided us, it had gained unimaginable power."
"What?" said Athena in shock, "what are you saying? No…. you used the demon to absorb the life forces of the clones. Absorb their enhanced abilities, their healing… their genetic memory… no…."
"Yes" said Zan, "the demon is powerful now, more powerful than even we could dream of. And it will live within Sineya who, using that enormous reserve of powers the demon collected, will be powerful enough to protect this world."
"No" said Athena shaking her head, "no."
"Athena" said Sineya, "I am frightened.. please… I am so frightened."
"No" said Athena as she looked at Sineya who looked behind her, and then at the man across from her to her right and then back at Athena again, "she is innocent."
"The women would be much easier to train" said Zan as he leaned into Athena, "much easier to control. That is something we wish."
Smiling again, Zan then walked to the box and opened it. He then stood across to the left of Sineya. He then looked back at Athena to make sure that she could see the weapon that she had a hand in creating. He then turned back to Sineya and started chanting as he tapped the floor of the chamber with his staff.
Athena looked on as a cold breeze hit her cheeks as what looked like a black liquid spiral out of the now opened box. Athena watched in terror as it flew in one area bordered by the staffs of the mystics in front of her. She looked on as it changed form mid-air and twisted itself around before flying around Sineya and then high up into the air.
"Sineya" said Athena, "I am sorry, I am unable to do anything… please forgive me."
Sineya could see the terror in Athena's eyes. The redhead had told her how she had witnessed the loss of her sister, Hera… that a creature had drained the life force of the young woman in front of Athena's eyes. Then she felt a chill as the demon flew down towards her and just missed her and caressed her exposed waist, and then flew around her and caressed her thighs and back.
Closing her eyes in fear, Sineya could only pray that she wouldn't feel pain.. that her parents would be alright wherever they were, that her grandmother would be safe, and that Athena would be able to forgive herself. Slowly standing confidently, fighting every instinct in her body that told her to run… to fear what was going to happen to her. She opened her eyes and looked directly at Athena who looked back at her while shaking her head. Sineya couldn't hear anything except for the sound of her own heart beating but she knew that Athena was shouting something at her, she could see the red haired woman who came from another world beyond the stars of this galaxy crying for her.
'I love you' thought Sineya to herself as she looked up and saw the black liquid fly up high into the air as it just stayed there, like a poisonous creature that was ready to strike. And Sineya knew that it would strike… I would strike her in a few moments.
Looking back at the red head, Sineya suddenly felt the world stop around her. All the priests had stopped moving, even the black liquid had stopped. And then Sineya felt it, it was a gentle warmth that spread throughout her body…. it was as if she was at peace with what was going to happen.
"I am sorry" said an unfamiliar voice as Sineya saw a bright white light appear from the ceiling above and slowly floated down to the surface of the chamber. Sineya saw the tentacle-like formations of ight that trailed behind the pulsing white as it slowly dimmed to reveal a tall brown haired woman in a silver dress, "I know you can understand my speech."
"Yes" said Sineya as she looked on, "you are one of the Powers?"
"No" said Hera, "I am Athena's sister, one of the ascended."
"Hera" said Sineya, "Athena has spoken lovingly of you."
"Yes" said Hera as she crouched down and caressed Athena's cheek, "my sister did her best, but ultimately she was betrayed."
"You could have stopped this" said Sineya.
"No" said Hera as she stood up and turned around, walking towards Sineya, "I am forbidden from interfering. Athena needed to see what would have happened if she created the weapons for the Furlings. She had to make a choice, and now she knows that she made the wrong one. She will learn from that with the knowledge that you had to be sacrificed at the whim of these men who followed an obscure prophesy. It is all too late now. Even if they wished to stop, they would not be able to."
"Why have you come?" asked Sineya, "if not to help me or Athena, why have you come?"
"To make you one promise" said Hera, "I do not know if you will remember this conversation once the demon takes hold of you… but I will promise you that you will be ascended. When you die, you will gain a place among the ascended beings for your sacrifice today. I know that does not justify what will happen to you… but I hope you will take comfort in that."
"It was fate, was it not?" asked Sineya, "that this happen to me?"
"Fate is what you make" said Hera as she looked at the three men, "they forced a fate on you, and for that I am sorry that we are unable to help you."
"Please watch over Athena" said Sineya as she looked at the redhead.
"I always have" replied Hera as she started to glow white before she floated up through the ceiling, "And I always will. Farewell, Sineya of the Plains. May you fare well against the darkness."
Then everything started moving again as Sineya heard the priests chanting, and she looked up at the black liquid that was poised to strike.
"Athena" said Sineya as she looked into the eyes of the redhead, "goodbye."
"No!" shouted Athena as the black liquid darted into Sineya's body as the entire chamber started to shake. Athena looked on horrified as Sineya gave out a bloodcurdling scream that reverberated throughout the walls of the chamber. She saw the girl rise into the air and was held in place by the chains as the black liquid poured in and out of her body. The liquid then twisted in the air as it dove back into Sineya followed by another bloodcurdling scream. And all Athena could do was look on.
She heard the screams from Sineya getting louder and louder until she stopped and landed on her feet. Athena watched in shock as Sineya's entire body language changed, she saw the look in her eyes… the innocence had been completely stripped away, now it was more the look a predator gives its prey. Sineya then stiffened again as she screamed out loud as a black energy wave emanated from her and pushed back everyone in the room. The last thing Athena saw after she was smashed against the wall was a growl from Sineya as she crouched down on all fours as she stared at Athena. Then the chamber started to shake again, and large pieces started to fall into the chamber… followed by numerous screams as the men ran through a tunnel leaving Sineya and Athena alone in the collapsing chamber.
Current location of Glastonbury Tor, at that same time.
Moros had built a small encampment for himself, Janus, Melia and Ganos. The structures were similar to what Athena had made for her home with all the similar security features. Moros had been in his room when the main door opened and he heard Janus shout for him.
"What is it Janus?" asked Moros as he walked out of his room with a book in his hand, "I have not aged that much that you be required to shout my name when it pleases you."
"Moros" said Janus, "I was performing maintenance on our Gateships when sensors detected a massive energy spike close to Athena's location."
"What?" said Moros as he dropped the book and walked towards the younger man, "have you contacted Athena?"
"I have contacted her at her home, but there was no response" said Janus, "I have contacted her via her Gateship but again, she did not answer."
"Where is her ship?" asked Moros with concern in his eyes for his daughter as he and Janus walked out of the large encampment with Janus and headed towards the Gateship.
"It is close to a village" said Janus, "we can be there in under ten minutes."
"Do it" said Moros nodding his head as Janus took the pilots seat and closed the ramp at the rear of the ship. He then flew the Gateship at an incredible rate of speed into orbit before turning the ship back to the coordinates of Athena's ship and shot back into the atmosphere until the ship was speeding so fast that all the natives could see in the sky was a brown blur.
"Scans show that her ship is just ahead and…." said Janus as he looked at the holographic HUD.
"Seismic activity" said Moros, "the land near the ship…"
"It is sinking" said Janus as he increased the speed of the Gateship until they reach the other vessel. Flying over the surrounding area, the both of them saw the land behind some rock formations sink down until it formed a small crater.
"Land" said Moros, "find me Athena's life signs."
Moros was out of the ship even before the ramp hit the ground. He ran towards the ship, only to find it empty. Worried about what may have happened to his daughter, he ran out of Athena's ship and scanned the surrounding areas.
"Moros" said Janus as he walked out of the other ship, "I have her life signs, she is coming from that rock outcrop."
The both of them ran towards the outcrop and stopped when they saw a blast of dust that just exploded through the opening.
"Janus?" shouted Moros as he looked back, "where is she?"
"She is coming" said Janus as he looked at his life-signs detector, "she is…."
"Athena" said Janus as he saw a dark skinned woman who had her face painted with what had seemed like white paint run out of the opening carrying a dust covered and bleeding Athena from the opening.
"Moros" whispered Janus as he looked at the woman who was cautiously walking towards them, "in my haste, I have not brought any weapons."
"No" said Moros as he looked back at Janus, "there will be no need of weapons."
Moros then cautiously walked towards Sineya as he put his hands out, as if to tell her that he meant her no harm.
"Have you saved my daughter?" asked Moros, "can you understand me?"
Moros saw that the woman, who he thought could not be more than fifteen years old, was struggling to speak.
"Mo…. Mother" said Sineya as she looked at Athena and then at Moros before she crouched down and gently put her on the ground before she stepped back and looked at the redhead who lay on the ground with her eyes closed.
It was then that Moros and Janus rushed forward and saw a large gash on her forehead, cuts on her cheek, and arms. They then saw the manacles and part of a chain that seemed to have been torn off from the rest of it. Looking up at the woman in front of him, Moros saw numerous wounds that had already started to heal as well as the same manacles and part of a chain that was dangling from each wrist.
"Come with us" said Moros as he gently picked up Athena after making sure that she was not bleeding internally or had any broken bones, "you are injured as well, and you saved my daughter… It is the least that I could do for you."
Moros then heard the woman growl as she turned to the left and crouched down and looked into the distance. The both of them then saw Sineya run off faster than they were aware any human could be capable.
As Moros and Janus were watching Sineya run off, they failed to see Athena open her eyes a little. She saw Sineya running into the distance as she raised her hand and called for her softly.
"Sineya" whispered Athena, "come back."
Even so far away, Sineya had heard what Athena had said. But she couldn't go back, she couldn't go back to her life and she knew that now. All she had now were predatory instincts, she didn't feel like a human… she didn't feel anything… just a growing bloodlust for creatures that exist in the darkness. The first to encounter her wrath was a demon that had been tracking the seismic activity; she lunged at it before she beat in to an inch of its life. Leaning down, she then twisted the demon's head and ripped it off before screaming into the air. Almost immediately, the bloodlust grew again…. She would find the vampires, the demons and the monsters and slay them for harming the innocent. As she ran on the plains, she could hear the wings of the ships extend as they took off high into the air. She stopped as she looked up at the two ships head out into orbit, and then she ran again.
Now, Sineya only had the hunt to live for, she had the kill. She would never again be controlled; she would do everything by herself.
'I live in the action of death itself' thought Sineya as she ran through the grasslands and stopped when she sensed six demons running towards a village close by. Changing her direction, she ran as fast as she could, 'I am the blood cry, I am the penetrating wound, I am destruction itself; Absolute and alone for all time. I am the Slayer."
TBC