Chuck vs The Wayward Legionnaire
Book 2: Water.
Chapter 4: Sunken City/ Time for a plan….
07th May. 2010. Southeast of Corsica, Unknown. 02.00CET
The captain of the FAC 33 double checked his co-ordinates on his Sat Link, he needn't have worried, within moments of arriving the sea churned as the massive superstructure of Station X rose from beneath the waves.
His surface radar also pinged with the arrival of the other patrol boats, from this moment on they were committed to the plan, this would be the last time in his lifetime that he would be topside, he looked around himself at the starry night, taking it all in, the salt in the air, the sounds of the surface, his only disappointment was his steering, it had still remained sluggish.
He frowned, that damn wreckage, some must have caught on the underside of the boat, he'd need to arrange an inspection, as he watched the massive outer doors opened revealing the mooring stations inside for the boats, the Russian submarine was still in its berth all these months later, he supposed that in the new world it might still have a purpose.
As he received a signal to enter from the dock master, he was surprised to find his controls were responding normally again, whatever it was must have shaken itself loose during the stop. No matter, he moved to his berth and watched as his men moored the boat securely.
They disembarked, he checked the hull, some markings were there as he expected but no debris, he sighed in relief, Mr. Lasky was a hard taskmaster and he preferred to stay on his good side. A klaxon sounded and he watched as the doors slowly closed, over an intercom, orders sounded for all staff to report to the main conference hall, he found his pulse had quickened, Lord Autokhthon had summoned them, at last….
….
The dock area swiftly emptied, the maintenance crew assigned to the docking area were the last to leave, the dock master did a slow inspection of the area to ensure all was secure and that there were no stragglers, satisfied, she turned and exited the area herself, dogging the hatch as she left.
For long moments only the low hum of machinery and the steady dripping of water could be heard, then in a darkened corner of the docking area bubbles slowly rose to the surface, then a rubber encased head, it swivelled to take in the area, finding they were alone they took a small waterproof flashlight off a utility belt and setting it to pulse mode held it under the water.
In moments six other heads popped up, threading water they silently made their way to a platform, quickly they exited the water and moved quickly into a shadowy area, they found some lockers and quickly stowed their rebreathers, one of them peeled off and went straight to the closed hatch.
A grunt of effort could be heard, but the hatch remained defiantly shut, there was a low whistle from another of the figures, they had found the air conditioning ducts, a quick search of the area and they discovered the maintenance crews tool sets, after they selected some heavy wrenches as makeshift weaponry, they went back to the ducts, there was a hushed conversation, but in moments they had entered the opening, sealing it behind them, and silence once again reigned in the area.
…
Donning his robe, the being known as Lord Autokhthon exited the chamber, behind him the unconscious figure of Carina Miller, rivulets of blood slid down a shapely leg to drip unto the metal deck.
He could afford to wait, she was the one running out of time not him, he was impressed by her resilience though, no matter, soon Dr. Shiva would arrive and perform the implantation, that would make his guest more … compliant.
He made his way to his control room, it was time to address his Chosen, their journey to this waypoint was almost complete, the new world began in approximately 29 hours from now. He was almost giddy with excitement.
He entered the chamber and went to his seat, he reached for the console and began the process of placing the image filter online, most of his people had never seen his true form, that had been a step he had taken care of when the changes first began to manifest...not everyone was as accepting as his elite, and that was only after their conditioning, that's why only they ran his operations here and at Atlantis, the true scope of his plans he had hidden, only a few knew his endgame.
There was a loud ringing from the intercom system, the crew of the undersea station stopped in their tracks, a melodic chiming sound radiated through the structure, almost as one they turned to their workstations and switched on their screens, around their necks a small trident shaped pendant could be seen, it glowed a bright blue and pulsated softly in time with the sound.
The screens filled with the image of a handsome man, he had the classic Mediterranean look, black hair, olive, tanned complexion, white teeth in a perfect smile, his voice was deep and resonant, and the crew relaxed and smiled at his appearance.
Back at his console, a webbed hand moved across the console, he studied readouts that showed he had their full attention, they were his. All of them. He began his speech.
"My friends, at long last our plan nears fruition, for years with your help I have assembled those that have shown the greatest promise to help accomplish our great goal, a new kingdom far from the tyranny of the modern world.
Our …. leaders…. could never understand the scope of our grand design and left unchecked they would derail it, forcing us to live by their ways, ways that we have seen fail time after time.
As a younger man I tried to use my influence and wealth to steer humanity to a better path, we all did, we participated, we voted for social changes that were promised and never came, they only lied to us and increased their overspending on their Military-industrial complexes, all the while trying to convince us that their different political ideologies were the best, threatening our lives, squandering our resources, killing our planet. The rich grew richer, and the poor grew poorer, believe me, they'll never change.
Well, no more. Now it is we who are prepared for change, with the wisdom provided to me by our Lord Poseidon, he has led us to this forgotten outpost, lost to antiquity, found only by his grace, he entrusted to me the task of rebuilding his … kingdom. This Atlantis, our new Atlantis!
But with all births, there is pain, and tomorrow the surface world will know fire hotter than the forges of Hephaestus. We have taken from them their nuclear 'fire' and now like Prometheus, we will use it to return them to primordial ash, their world will burn as we shelter in Atlantis awaiting the day when we will emerge in our new form, once again, in the waters of our origin, at one with our world and nature.
For now, we must be on guard, the agents of Harpocrates are everywhere, spying for their overlords, their warlords, the followers of Ares. One last push my friends and then we can reap the rewards from a God that has never let us down, ALL HAIL POSEIDON!"
As one the assembled crew stood and shouted back, "ALL HAIL POSEIDON!"
Onscreen the man smiled and cut the transmission, in his chambers, Mr. Lasky joined him, "My Lord, the satellite has been activated, the remaining staff are responding to the mind link, Dr. Nu has reported one hundred percent pick up, they're all coming."
"Excellent, Mr. Lasky, the ships are ready at the embarkation points?"
"Yes, Lord Autokhthon, as soon as they're filled with the Chosen, they will sail, arrival time will be just after detonation."
Autokhthon studied his console, it was a momentous occasion, he pressed a button and from the surface a key arose, he studied it for a second or two, taking it, he turned to a cabinet console, there was a slot, he placed the key inside and turned it, the cabinet lit up, a timer appeared, the displayed numbers counting backwards, it had begun….
…
In a remote corner of the undersea base a sentry's fallen body lay in the corner of a room, seven men were crowded around the console screen in shock as they digested the speech they had just heard.
Turning to Robie, Sean, Erik and the rest met his stunned expression with their own, "Well, this is another fine mess you've gotten us into…"
….
07th May. 2010. A1 Motorway, Naples area. 03:35am CET.
Sitting in their car, two Italian officers of the Polizia di Stato (State Police) Al Petrosino and Ennio Baresi felt their bewilderment rise as the increase in road traffic for this time of night started to make them distinctly uneasy, it had almost turned into a procession at this point.
Baresi had enough, he started his Alfa Romeo 159 and shot forward, siren blaring, lights flashing he pulled across the laneway effectively blocking all traffic, His partner shot him a look, "Baresi, they're not breaking any law…"
"Screw that Al, did you see they're all driving Callidis company cars, something is going on….", his partner nodded, "… and I mean to find out what, so game face on partner…" He grabbed his hat and flashlight and headed for the closest stopped car.
As he neared, he could make out a blue light shining softly on the driver's chest, that puzzled him, he rapped on the car door window, the driver stared ahead but the electric window slowly wound down.
It was a beautiful black woman that drove the car, he coughed, she ignored him, he looked over at Petrosino on the far side of the car, who shrugged.
Well, he'd tried being nice, "Bonasera Signori…. Aieeee" That was as far as he got, without turning the woman's hand shot out grabbing him by his shirt and pulled him face first into the door frame, after five repeated blows he collapsed on the road.
Petrosino was caught flatfooted by the ferocity of the attack, he never saw the young man stepping up behind him with the tyre iron, there was a sickening thud, and he joined his partner on the road.
More people arrived, the two bodies were dragged to the side of the hard shoulder and their car parked beside them, then the column of cars resumed their journey, passing under a motor way sign the headlights read Porto di Napoli 8km.
In the car that had been stopped the young woman drove with an unnatural focus, all the occupants of their cars did, anyone sitting beside them on their journey would have heard them mumble faintly under their breath, "…. Lord Autokhthon commands and I obey…." The trident pendants around their neck glowed blue…
Above the motorcade several drones flew, watching, the events of the past few minutes seen and guided by very man whose name they uttered…
….
Sitting at his console Autokhthon was pleased, all was proceeding as planned, a decade's hard work finally paying off, he sent a message to Dr. Shiva to prepare her teams for some new patients, as the screen closed, he looked at the filter image on his screen, he remembered when that was his face….
…..
July 12th, 2002, Sorrento Mountains, Naples Italy. 09.30CET
Standing outside the cave entrance, Billionaire captain of industry and playboy Arginis Callidis felt a wave of exhilaration, he looked at his friend and mentor Prof. Giorgos Deodatis and his two young assistants, Anna Vasiliki and Pavlos Zervatos, they squinted in the strong Italian sun as a refreshing wind off the Bay below them dried the sweat on their foreheads, they had been digging for hours.
Finally with a shout, Anna called them over, she had found it! An entrance, or at least the start of a semi-circle of supporting stones that defined the opening.
"My friend, you have done it!" Arginis slapped Deodatis on the shoulder, humbled the older man turned to his former student, "We would never have made it this far without your wealth, Arginis, you alone kept the faith when others fled, I'm just so happy I didn't fail you!"
Arginis smiled, "What else did I have to do? My companies run themselves, allowing me the time to indulge my great love of Archaeology you nurtured at college."
They embraced as father and son, the professor was delighted, he had been so worried, Arginis's condition had worsened over the years, the damn genetic disorder that had claimed his father was held only at bay by his various companies' products.
The wily old shipping magnate had been clever, before he succumbed, he had diversified his assets while Arginis was a baby, now the Callidis name was everywhere in Greece, and recognised as an industry leader in genetic disease research. The blue logo of Poseidon holding his trident flew on every asset, easily recognisable to the world.
They still had their shipping empire, but they also owned many pharmaceutical companies, directly or through majority holdings, by the time Arginis reached manhood, his vast personal fortune eclipsed the GDP of some nations.
His family condition surfaced at college, his mother didn't take the bad news well, she ended herself quietly, a bellyful of sleeping pills and the produce of a family vineyard, the note she left was no consolation. With no other family and a well-managed corporation, Arginis returned to his studies, occasionally turning up for board meetings, to ensure that funding for his old teacher was secured.
Prof. Deodatis had been a godsend, when he approached his student with a scroll, he had unearthed in the ruins of Akrotiri at Santorini he found an eager partner, together they had laboured to decipher the ancient Greek text, they had been spurred on by the carbon dating that showed it was at least 10,000 years old!
When Atlantis was mentioned by name, the two had been excited beyond words, their old drunken conversations about the mythical city flashing through their minds, the time frame fit, Plato over two millennia ago was the first to mention the fabled kingdom that had existed nine millennia before his time!
It told a tale of a vast sea kingdom that had been besieged by the followers of Ares, this was unprecedented, this called into very question the history of the Greek Pantheon itself by millennia! The inhabitants of this city, followers of Poseidon realising their cause was lost, had pleaded to their God, taking advice from their Oracle, they had fled across the Mediterranean to a place of the sleeping giant, a volcano rumoured to be one of the homes of the God of the Forge, Hephaestus.
Reaching there, the temple Oracle's prediction had rang true, they found an entrance that led deep beneath the earth, through the kingdom of Hades to a new undersea world, a new Atlantis!
They brought with them ancient Atlantean secrets that enabled the survivors to build a city there, the scroll talked of the God of the Forge that had shared his tekhnē -logia, that had excited them the most, this raised more questions about Ancient civilisations and their building methods!
The similarity of pyramids across continents and other structures had hinted at a common school of thought, were these unknown survivors the genesis of this architecture?
However, they had not evaded their pursuers, aided by their agents, the spies of Harpocrates, the warlords of Ares had found them again, the writer of the scroll hinted at a great siege but nothing further, they were hooked.
It had taken time and a fortune, but now they stood in the antechamber of a vast cavern, they looked again at the volcano of Vesuvius across the bay, "Forge of the Gods…" Deodatis murmured, he shook his head, "it explains a lot, the eruptions, other seismic activity, help hide this…." He indicated the cavern.
Anna Vassiliki nodded, she had a LIDAR machine setup, she took a reading and gasped, on the laptop screen in front of her an image of immense depth filled the screen, behind her Pavlos Zervatos stood in shock, "…that can't be right…can it?"
Callidis walked to the back of the cave, now that they were this far, he felt a compulsion to see just what they had uncovered… he could hear the other voices behind him, "… this has to be kilometres deep at least…"
He entered out onto a wide thoroughfare, he set up a portable lamp, it's strong light pierced the stygian darkness, with a start he realised there was figures about 50m ahead of his position, he walked over, he recognised the likenesses of Poseidon and Hephaestus, they were very lifelike, he frowned as he saw they were pointing down… but where…?
It was with a small exclamation of surprise that he saw the steps, stretching away into the darkness below him, grabbing a larger torch he descended to another terrace, there were more steps leading down from that, again he descended.
There were footsteps above him, "Are you there, Arginis?" He never had a chance to answer, it happened so fast, the ground shook violently… earthquake! A big one, the sounds of falling rock were everywhere, cursing he tried to turn to climb the steps again but from around him there was a rushing air, as if a door in a storm had suddenly opened, it threw him off his feet and into space…falling…blackness….
…
It was a bright light shining in his face that woke him. He lay in water, his head throbbed, he sat up slowly and looked about, his torch bobbed about in the water twenty feet away, he thrust his head under the cool water, using his hands he tasted it, it was fresh. He sipped a bit. Standing, he waded over to the floating light, picking it up, he noticed the water was …red... Anna… her broken body was spreadeagled on a boulder.
That was the first of them, the other two were close by as well, it took a few minutes more, but he realised they'd all fallen when the stairs collapsed, he had hit water, they… had been less fortunate, rocks…
He wept silently for his mentor, until that small voice in his head started to make sense, exit, supplies… medicine…
He grabbed the torch and quickly scanned the area, fear coursing through his veins, his breathing rapid, he bounced from stone to stone until a manmade path appeared under his feet, he stopped, there were steps going down again!
He turned and headed in the opposite direction. There were steps going up too! He ran towards them only to skid to a halt as he saw they went nowhere… only a few remained, shocked but undeterred, he aimed the beam upwards, a new surprise awaited him.
They had fallen far, he could make out a faint patch of low light from overhead, night had fallen outside. The ruined steps and terraces could be seen, the others must have followed him out and then disaster….
They had fallen over two hundred feet he estimated, no way out there…medicine…. The small voice spoke again, quickly he searched the area, they hadn't planned an extended stay in the small valley, but they had some supplies, he heaved a sigh of relief when he found his backpack, that was short lived, he had only 3 vials remaining, a couple of weeks before…
He shook his head and continued to search, he found the others backpacks and then the grislier task of searching the bodies for anything useful. Most of the equipment was smashed but there was a small knife and a lighter, he pocketed those.
He discarded anything he deemed useless, he needed to travel fast. If the original builders had made a way in it stood to reason there might be another way out, somebody had survived to write and hide the scroll, he was betting on it.
…..
Hours later he stopped to check a depth gauge they'd brought, he stared at the device in disbelief, he was over a mile underground! How was this possible? He was no geologist, but he knew the main cave was probably a lava vent that must have been connected to a deep earth fissure, but the time the ancients must have spent building that staircase, he felt like those characters in that movie he'd seen last year, in the mines of Moira, he giggled inanely, happily no Balrog about though…. he hoped.
When he entered the vast chamber that housed the city he was stunned, there was some sort of bioluminescence that covered the …ceiling…sky… he had no words.
Water trickled in the distance, and he made his way over, he was stunned to find it was salty, he looked uneasily at the ceiling again, he was underwater! He must have travelled under the bay and beyond… he sat trying to think… his eyes adjusted to the gloom, that's when he noticed the structures in the distance.
He almost fainted when he recognised the architecture, of Ancient Greek origin, he wished old Deodatis had witnessed this. Gathering his belongings, he headed for the biggest one he could see, a huge temple, the giant statue to Poseidon instantly confirming his observation.
That's when he saw the bodies, thousands of them, weapons, and armour everywhere, a battle had been fought here. The ancient symbols of Ares were on some, tridents on others. The scroll had been right.
He entered the temple, now he would see if those years of studying had paid off, he located the altar, he moved slowly around it, searching for hidden chambers, it was with some joy that he found it, a simple mechanism, but a rumbling could be heard elsewhere, there!
A doorway had opened in a wall, grabbing his torch he entered, it was a library! Rows of alcoves housed scroll after scroll, this was amazing! A rustle sent a shiver down his spine, he slowly turned to see a robed figure at a table hunched over a marble table, to his horror it turned towards him, he backed against the wall, as a face slowly came into view and crumbled to dust….
His loud breathing was harsh in his ears, but he realised the room had been airtight, hell, the whole city had been! That was the rushing sound, air returning! The earthquake must have opened the fissure again, he really had been lucky!
He walked over and looked at the table, it was the scroll he had been looking for, the last chronicle of events. Slowly he translated the contents…
We are besieged… found again… Ares is relentless… many have fallen to the hordes… the main entryway is impassible… we can hear their drums….no escape… we have hidden our treasures here … the ancient knowledge of our forebears…. our priests managed to escape… they will keep our memory alive… they will avenge us…at the altar of Hephaestus in the catacombs we have started a tunnel…Poseidon grant us the time to finish it…. the air grows stale…they have sealed….
His heart leapt! He had been right, there was hope! He paused, he had no idea where the catacombs where, this was a big city, it could take days, weeks, he took stock. He had running water, his food he could stretch out, two weeks at best, it was his medicine….
Without a new supply… the symptoms would manifest… he hadn't experienced any first hand yet, his company's drug had kept them at bay, mostly… he dreaded what was to come. He needed to rest and then begin his search, he found old torches, amazingly the resin or pitch used had preserved them, he switched off his torch and lit a few.
He found urns with the same oil, he lit the large temple flame, pleased with himself he fashioned a bed, he was out in minutes….
In a small pool outside the Temple, there was a small splash, something stirred, they sensed life… they waited, they had waited for such a long time, they could wait some more…
…..
An alarm ringing woke him up, his phone, once he realised, he'd no signal, Arginis had immediately turned off his phone, he found Deodatis' by his body, it was a Callidis make, he had given it to the professor as a means of private communication between them, quickly he had taken the battery out and pocketed it. He couldn't afford to lose track of time.
He hit off, rolling to his feet he smelt his own odour, a clean body was a clean mind, he stripped and walked to a pool he had noticed outside the temple. He waded in, it was deep fast! He tasted the water, he quickly spat it out, sulphur, volcanic spring he mused, but for what purpose?
He yelped; something had brushed his leg! He shot back to the edge; he had been here 5 minutes and already he had been careless! He had no idea what lived down here. He exited the water and sat on a rock, he calmed down, hell, it was probably fish, he might have a food source after all.
…..
It wasn't. In the pool something had acquired him.
In the middle of his back a small eel like creature clung, it was about 3cm, secreting a numbing agent Arginis never felt it as it burrowed its way beneath his skin, genetically programmed instincts kicked in and it wound itself around his spinal cord and slowly climbed.
Reaching the base of his neck it wrapped around his cervical vertebrae and began feeding…
…
Weeks later…...
Callidis frowned, another dead end, he stopped and suddenly threw up, dizzy, he sat down. This must be his condition, he had rationed his vials out, half doses, it seemed it was not enough, he had felt delirious this morning, the past week had been troubling, every morning he had woken up in the inner sea surrounding the city, no idea how he'd got there… just floating… he had clawed his way back to the surface, spluttering…
That first time had been a shock… barely awake, a giant face had appeared in front of him, disoriented, it had taken him a few seconds before he realised it was another statue to Poseidon, this one enormous, he sat on a throne holding his trident, impassive features staring into nothingness… that had been a regular one since. …being drawn there…
He could have sworn he heard voices on occasion, foolish he knew, he was alone…wasn't he? Cotton wool filled his head, but he pressed on, he'd mapped the city, now it was door to door, ironically, he found wealth beyond measure, gold, silver, gems, useless to a rich man, he'd trade it all for a month's supply of Cybincin.
He screamed as something huge moved against a wall, backpedalling he hit the far wall, he rubbed his eyes, again….
….
It had was a surprise every time, exploring a structure against the cavern wall, he had been startled by explosive movement from a wall, something huge had moved, he had dropped his torch in surprise, cowering, regaining his senses, he slowly crossed the room, to his amazement it was a window!
Now he was calm again, he saw it was a fish, magnified beyond belief by the thickness of the glass…. how had they done this? This was incredible, he studied the aperture, it had been cut and placed here…but how…? This would have been a major architectural accomplishment even in this time…. It had shocked him more when he realised vast sections of the …. ceiling was also composed of the glass… the water pressure above gave him nightmares.
The ancient scrolls in the hidden room were a mystery, full of cuneiform in a language he didn't recognise, he had sat stunned … had Atlantis been real after all? There seemed to be no other explanation.
…..
The creature had fed well, small tendrils had grown from its body, they attached themselves to the brain stem and made changes….
….
Arginis propped himself up against the wall and exited the building. He was beginning to lose hope, there weren't many structures left… he pressed on, at the next one a surprise awaited him, he gasped, on a doorway in front of him he recognised the shapes of a hammer and anvil… stumbling forward he entered.
He almost wept with joy when he saw the descending steps, grabbing a torch, he lit it and descended, there were more bodies, a works crew he guessed, tools lay scattered everywhere, he looked about, a chamber opening lay ahead, he walked towards it, rounding a corner he was dismayed to see a smaller opening in the rockface, it was blocked by a rockfall, he sat, the torch fell to the ground. He cursed and reached for it, that was when he saw it, the miracle….
The flames flickered violently, his eyes widened, he dropped to the ground, there was a smaller opening in the fallen rocks, he laughed when he felt the airflow pass over his face, it was almost beyond belief.
He ran back to the Temple, gathering his meagre belongings he filled a water bottle and headed back, kneeling in front of the small opening he felt a strange sensation, like he was reluctant to leave, like he shouldn't leave, he shrugged, he pushed himself down and entered the void….
….
It was a few days later when he woke up in a private hospital room back in Athens, he'd been lucky, he'd been found washed ashore on a riverbed, delirious, he'd collapsed into the arms of some farmhands that had been tending some cattle.
One look at him and they had scrambled to the farmhouse, the Carabinieri had been quick on the scene, he'd been gone over a month, the Professor had never logged their sites, preferring secrecy, the authorities had been searching in the wrong place.
Given the team had been Greek, it now fell to the Hellenic police force to determine the fates of the missing academics, their only suspect, one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in their country, if not Europe.
Police Major Takis Theodorakis of the Special Violent Crime Squad had visited the patient, Callidis had been very forthcoming and had not requested a lawyer or dikiigoros to be present, Takis was glad, the main fear of Callidis hiding behind an army of skilled legal practitioners was a reality at his level, but he was surprised to find Callidis offering the full support of his companies resources and to cover all costs in the recovery of his friends bodies. He omitted his discovery though….
There were no lies Theodoraikis could detect in the man's story, a simple archaeological dig had ended in tragedy, whatever the families would do to Callidis was between them, but it was officially declared an accident. Case closed.
It seemed the reclusive Billionaire had been extraordinarily lucky; it took a few months before that was proven false….
…
16th December 2002, Callidis Genetics Athens 10.00CET
Dr. Karol Shiva, Head Geneticist studied the patient reports in front of her, she scowled, they had to be wrong, they were idiots down in the labs, she'd need to go and run the tests herself if she wanted proper data.
She wasn't just another research scientist, she was also her employer's main medical doctor, and today she was as puzzled as she'd been when she first started her career, this made no sense, two months ago Arginis started showing some startling physical changes, at first, they attributed them to his bizarre experience, but something was altering his DNA.
His symptoms weren't symptoms, he was being rewritten, the most shocking thing was his genetic condition had been hijacked somehow, his mammalian genes were being recoded, whatever was happening it was somehow using old fish related genetic material, they shared 70% of the same genes with fish and this was a now a major component in her investigation. What the hell was going on…?
…
Arginis sat in his private office, he had undergone some changes, his hair was gone, he wore a company cap, sunglasses covered eyes that were increasingly sensitive to strong sunlight. There were others too, he was bundled up, other than his face, his hands were the only parts of his skin you could see, they now had a green-grey scaly appearance, some of the other doctors in the facility had assumed Ichthyosis, they kept their speculation to themselves though.
Callidis companies had been undergoing unsettling changes recently, many had been quietly let go, the generous severance packages had not quietened the unease that pervaded the organisation, the new hiring policies had also been a puzzle. Many hopeful recruits had been knocked back, stellar qualifications, excellent work experience, it didn't seem to matter, after a medical, many received the polite excuses of the HR departments and the news that their applications would be proceeding no further.
Divisions closed down and a new section headed by a former North Korean defector was the hot spot for career advancement. It made no sense.
Except to Callidis, his plans moved forward. His Lord's plans….
…
23rd January 2003, Callidis Genetics Athens 13.10CET
It was the MRI results that finally explained the whole thing, Karol's hand stifled the cry that surely would have echoed through the laboratory had she not caught herself.
She'd finally had enough and did exactly what she'd complained about weeks earlier, returning early from lunch she entered the test area. It was empty, she found the chief laboratory scientist's office and set to work. Ten minutes later a folder with a small note saying "NOT TO BE SHOWN TO DR. SHIVA" caught her attention. It was the MRI results.
The shock of the note soon wore off and her curiosity overcame her, she opened the file, she flicked through the printouts until she hit paydirt.
What stared back at her was unlike anything she had ever seen in all her research. A living organism bonded to the base of the brain stem of Arginis Callidis.
Thoughts flew through her mind, parasite? … symbiote… the answers to Callidis' return to health now made sense, the creature needed to keep him healthy, but the changes…. Sitting down she read the conclusions of the other scientists, the written text was odd…
She knew the team of young scientists well, They were young and although serious in their work, their emails reflected a boisterousness, here, there was no humanity in the data, it was as if the material had been drafted by a computer.
She was so engrossed she never saw the laboratory door open, a small oriental studied the scene, his eyebrows raised slightly but otherwise he was soundless, he quietly closed the door, walking to a wall phone he quickly pressed a sequence of numbers. It rang twice and was answered.
"Mr. Callidis? We may have a problem…."
…
Karol Shiva lived alone, which was very unfortunate…. She never woke up at home the morning after she disappeared from her onsite campus apartment. Instead, she awoke in a structure that was functioning as a laboratory, the plastic sheeting was opaque, but she could make out bright lights outside, there was a smell of …salt… the sea?
Her head ached and she recognised the symptoms of a tranquilizer, clarity returned with a fury, she tried to sit up, but she had been restrained, the anger vanished, fear quickly replacing it.
She could move her head and she strained to see around her, there was a low chuckle from behind her. She strained her head to see the rotund face of Dr. Chunso Nu, smiling back at her.
"Nu! What the hell is going on?"
"it appears you have been naughty, looking at things that didn't concern you, Dr. Shiva. Now you will be rewarded for your insatiable curiosity, you will be one of the first…"
"First what…?" she demanded, she tried hard to keep the fear out of her voice.
" First, in a new way of life, my dear Dr. Shiva…" a new voice joined the conversation, she turned to see Arginis, or rather the altered Arginis standing in the entrance. Here, he wore a loose tracksuit type pant, no top of any kind, when he turned, she understood why, she gasped as the protrusions beneath his skin came into view.
"What's happening to you, what is that thing…."
"it's a gift Karol, one, you will soon appreciate yourself."
Her eyes widened in horror, "You can't…"
"I can, how did you think the results of all those tests you performed on me were going to end?"
"...I …I … don't understand…
"Karol, I'm already cured and prepared, for the new world ahead and it's thanks to you, you have made this possible, a new species of humanity… or perhaps … even an old one."
"But how…?" she exclaimed in shock.
"Let me tell you a story…."
….
Months earlier. Hidden city…
He had been delirious…side effects? He remembered he needed to get to the sea, vague recollections of his journey flitted across his consciousness, now he imagined he felt like he was in a womb, light, floating, surrounding by a warm water…. his eyes shot open!
He was floating! Back underwater again in the cave sea, the statue of Poseidon loomed large in front of him, he realised his heart was racing… air!
He spun in the water, aiming for the surface, then the convulsions hit… he curled in on himself… he couldn't leave the water, how was this possible?
…. LOOK AT ME…
The voice boomed in his head, he froze, slowly he turned in the water… the statue's eyes had opened! Bright blue in the twilight of the shallows, they locked on him…
Impossible! His mind screamed… side effects... no proper dosage, this was a side effect…
I HAVE GIVEN YOU MY CITY AND ALL IT'S CONTENTS BUT THERE IS MORE, NOW I WILL CURE YOU…
Callidis stopped, a beatific wave of euphoria flowed through him…. He felt it, better than he had felt in years, the pains held at bay by his company drug, muffled but always whispering promised torment like his father, had vanished…
…..
Inside Callidis, the symbiote had finally merged with the host, it had been a difficult process, a problem within had needed to be corrected if it wanted to survive, it's usual regime of chemicals had not rendered the host docile, it had needed to alter the perception centres to achieve its goal.
It had flooded the host's brain with stronger and stronger secretions, but it was weary, and it had already spend energy preparing for the reproductive process, finally it had succeeded, the host was where it needed to be, when it needed to be….
….
In the sea of the hidden city, he convulsed as he vomited a substance from his throat, unseen by him the eyes of the statue broke formation and swam towards him, smaller forms not unlike that which now inhabited his body surrounded him in his delirious state, their natural bio illuminance lit the waters.
These were the female of the species, awoken by his presence, shedding their cocoons, they had waited patiently for the spawn of the male to be dispersed by the host. Now they eagerly bonded, for Callidis, it was a sight that eluded him, trapped in the chemical miasma that had brought him to the waters he floated, the hallucinations running their course, by rights he should have died, but his genetic condition had immunised him, inside him the symbiote having completed its duty went dormant.
His brain was still awash with its secretions, he listened to his own subconscious, years of study and his own precarious mental state programmed his mind more effectively than any state-owned brainwasher could have.
….
YOU ARE MY SON, I NAME YOU AUTOKHTHON, LORD OF NEW ATLANTIS, THE NEW SAVIOUR OF MY PEOPLE….
"…your people? I don't understand…" Did he say that? How did he say that? His mind was a whirl…
I WILL TEACH YOU, MY SON… LISTEN AND LEARN….
And he did, by the time he had regained most of his senses he understood his purpose, his mission… His search of the city took on a new importance, he had a God's wishes to fulfil…
…
Karol Shiva had heard many things in her life, but this insanity… she swallowed but kept her face impassive, the chemicals from the creature, they had obviously driven Callidis insane, his plans were absolute madness. Divine inspiration? Nuclear Armageddon? She'd keep scanning the room while he talked, Nu was wandering about preparing something, when the tank was unveiled, she nearly lost her own mind!
The small eel-like creatures floated eerily against the glass, Nu smiled as he watched them, Callidis had stopped talking, Nu looked at her, "breathtaking, aren't they? A new form of life hidden away down here, a peculiar balance of environment and the chemical properties of the water perhaps…" he trailed off, lost in thought.
"Your work was invaluable Doctor Shiva, your analysis led me to Doctor Nu, his former employers had him perfecting mind control techniques via subliminal programming and chemical inducement, can you imagine his surprise when we discovered the secretions of the male were an even better solution than ones he had been trying to perfect for years?"
"Nature always has all the answers, but certainly, it shaved years off my research" Nu grinned, "…It was a fortuitous coincidence".
Callidis nodded, "As soon as I realised the significance of his work, I was able to 'buy' his help from his Korean Overlord, some shipments of badly needed pharmaceuticals and I had a major component of my plan, the means to build a loyal and unstoppable army. One that would obey me without question!"
"But it was your study on my condition that had altered after the Cave that really made me understand the scope of my Lord Poseidon's vision…"
From her position on the gurney, Shiva could see Nu's face twitch, he thinks this is madness too, she thought.
Callidis continued, "With the alterations to my physical being, I finally understood, I was to be the template for a new species, the question of who else was answered by your research, and then we knew exactly what kind of people we needed…"
Shiva paled, now it all made sense to her, the layoffs, the selective recruitment…" The new people share your genetic condition…."
"Not quite, Doctor, they share the genetic potential for change".
The two men stared at her, "The eels facilitate this once they are implanted in the host. It's a fascinating process as you can see, and as a bonus, they render the host quite susceptible to suggestion, especially now Doctor Nu has managed to isolate a signal that the eels used that we have mimicked and incorporated into a device that means we can activate our chosen from anywhere, almost like sleeper agents, only in this case, precursors to a new civilisation!"
Shiva felt she was falling deeper down the rabbit hole, his words kept repeating in her head, implantation, she squirmed at the thoughts of something foreign enveloping her mind, stealing her sense of free will.
Unseen by the others she had worked her right hand loose, under the cover she flexed her wrist, Nu approached, she waited as he stood over her, then she slammed a small tray she grabbed against his face, he crumpled. She grabbed at her other wrist restraint, freeing her other hand, Callidis landed on top of her, but her fear and disgust lent her strength, she kicked hard with her legs, and he shot back crashing back into a cabinet and lay still.
She stood shakily, she recuperated fast, they couldn't be counted on to stay incommunicado for long, she needed to go!
She threw open the flap of what she now realised was a field tent and froze….
The cavern that she found herself stretched on beyond her field of vision, she saw work crews everywhere, hoisting light fittings aloft, sparks flew from acetylene torches that fastened steel fittings to overhead gantries and building structures, it was a meeting of the old and new. Out on the inner sea boats bobbed, more floating pontoons and other devices, she shook herself out of her shock, pressed back against the tent, she registered others, it was a compound of sorts.
She looked around and saw the path to the outside lit by floodlights, she dogged the flap, slowly, keeping an eye on the surrounding workers, she began to recognise armed guards amongst them, she moved confidently, as she turned the corner of the tent she hit a wall of muscular flesh, she rebounded to the ground and before she could move strong hands had grabbed her and pinned her arms behind her back, and she was dragged screaming back to the tent.
Callidis and Nu had emerged, anger on Nu's face, he stepped forward and slapped her hard, stunning her into silence, she sagged and wept helplessly against her captor.
"I see you met my new head of security, Mr. Lasky, he and his men joined us recently, they were languishing in a prison in some despotic …. well best not mentioned… his country had abandoned them, disavowed I believe is the preferred term. He took some encouragement, but the good doctor and his team helped him to our cause, isn't that right Mr. Lasky?"
The giant man grinned, tightening his grip on the struggling Shiva, they followed Callidis to the pool where the eels thrived, he stirred the waters with his fingers, the waters rippled as unseen forms moved beneath.
"You've come at a very fortuitous time Doctor…." From behind her she noticed a group of bound young men and women, with a start she recognised some of them as recent hires for the company, they moaned, and their eyes were as fearful as hers.
A group of men prepared an apparatus that hung ominously over the small volcanic pool, one by one they were brought forward and attached to it, Nu smiled evilly, his face was lit by a perverse joy, that was until Mr. Lasky grabbed him and dragged him to an empty place.
"What is the meaning of this? I'm one of you…."He screamed, his words were cut off by Callidis, "Now, now Doctor, all of us will be joining the new order, there simply is no room for any dissent…"
"But my research…"
"Has been most invaluable, and rest assured, once implantation has been achieved, why, you'll be back at work in no time at all, freed from the burdens of everyday life, all your troubles forgotten as you complete the task our Lord has set before us, you and everyone here are my Elite, you will light the way for others to follow, there are preparations to be completed…"
As he spoke, he had nodded to Mr. Lasky who had taken a handheld control and raised the now crying group and he manoeuvred them over the pond and began lowering them, some struggled, Shiva didn't, acceptance of her impending fate was written on her face.
Callidis watched as they dipped beneath the surface, it would only take seconds, but they waited a full minute, he nodded again, Lasky raised the platform, the figures were still, the silence was unnerving, a group of nurses approached and immediately injected them with a solution they had concocted to speed up the process.
They were transferred to stretchers and transported to another part of the compound.
That went well, thought Callidis, they had perfected the joining, in two days, three at most they would be ready, then he could begin to work on the next batch.
He walked to the inner sea, all he needed to rebuild Atlantis was here now, the rest he would add to over time, he had to move cautiously, small steps, but he had time and a fortune, and that was augmented by the treasure troves they had uncovered down here.
Now was not the time to draw the attention of governments and their intelligence networks, their agents of Harpocrates…. their spies…
No, he had to build his forces, taking only those who would be of service in the new world, the very cream of the scientific world, as well as top engineers and other professions, he reckoned about two thousand, they would be noticed by their absence, but stealthily, one by one he would possess them, the rest he would prepare, with Nu's devices and Shiva's discoveries about the eels, he would draw them in, they would never know until the end, until the summoning…
He smiled, in as much as he could, the facial changes were making that difficult, price of progress…
…
Now. Undersea base, location unknown.
For the seven men that had survived the attack on the training ship, Sean's statement was a classic understatement. They had been stunned by Robie's actions, but he had saved their lives, only now what?
Here they were in yet another impossible situation and if that madman's address was to be believed on a countdown to the end of the world!
Robie looked around the room, Chen, Erik, Sean, Brun, Maksym and Krzysztof Bigos stared wide-eyed back at him.
There was a groan from the corner, the guard they had surprised was regaining consciousness, Erik walked over and there was a thud, the man lay still again. The tension eased out of the men. Training started to take over.
"Alright, let's not freak out, is he bullshitting or is there a legitimate threat?
Maksym and Bigos spoke in rapid-fire Ukrainian to each other, to the amused onlookers there was much gesticulating and raised voices, finally Maksym sighed, the other man nodded, he turned to the rest.
"You remember Submarine we see in docking area?" There was a chorus of nodding heads. "Before nuclear reactor we both served on Russian navy, submarines, nuclear submarines…", he emphasized the last words.
"That boat looked a lot like a prototype we saw at the Crimean base before we left for power station job…"
Sean had a sinking feeling, "… is it armed…?" Nobody asked the obvious question.
Maksym shrugged, "That was 5 years ago, early trial days, we only saw the propulsion tests, but if they were completed…" he paused, "… armaments would be next…."
"How many"
"It was a new ship…" He looked at Bigos who also shrugged, "…we think twenty…"
"Warheads?" said a stunned Chen.
"Missiles… each would have multiple warheads, maximum yield approximately 200 kilotons …. each", he said the last part with a grimace. There were several white faces in the room as the men digested that titbit of information.
Sean felt as if the sea could swallow him up, this was some really bad news, he'd watched Robie's face and saw a long blink, Robie met his eyes and nodded.
Shit….
He looked at the men, "Ok, we need to establish communications with the outside world, let them know what the fuck is going on…."
Chen and Robie both turned to their consoles, fingers flew as they accessed the internal workings of the base's mainframe. The others waited patiently, Erik tore some wiring loose and tied up the guard. He examined the side arm, it was almost like a pistol, except for the bulbous tip where the muzzle should have been.
"That's odd..." The others looked over, they each examined the weapon, it was Brun that copped on, "it's some sort of taser, see the clip, it's got charging ports…" They did, Sean whistled, "makes sense, we're in a pressurised undersea can, no live rounds or we'll be squeezed into paste by the implosion."
"Just full of cheery thoughts, aren't you Sarge?" Brun chided; the men sniggered. Sean rolled his eyes; he twirled as a grunt came from Robie.
"You seeing this, Philip?" There was an answering grunt from Chen. "Fuck…."
"What?" The others formed up behind them. Robie spun in his seat to face them, "There's no way to raise the alarm, we're submerged…"
"Worst than that, sarge, if I've accessed the Nav system here, we hundreds of miles from we were, this thing is mobile and we're heading for some place near…. "Chen blinked, "… Bay of Naples, Italy."
"Holy Fuck… "
"Exactly, if we try to deploy any communications array, they'll instantly shut it down, and know we're here. The only thing we got is the element of surprise… for now".
"Can you take control of this …whatever the hell this is?"
Robie had been busy calling up schematics, Chen was startled to see Robie's face as the Intersect downloaded information, "What the fuck was that?"
Sean groaned, he didn't need this, neither did Robie, but with the knowledge that Robie's cover had been blown back at base, this was no time for subtleties.
"What have you got Robie?" He was intrigued, the duration of the flash told him Robie had learned a lot.
"This … ship… it's a base, Brits had plans to build one back in the Cold War days, sort of a floating dock, it could move about so hard for the Russians to get a lock on it in the event of conflict, it could house up to ten submarines, and supporting craft, do running repairs and the like, there were also plans to fit launch platforms for missiles…"
"Shit, why didn't they built it?" asked Sean.
"Cost, mainly, things cooled down, domestic needs outweighed military budgets, it got mothballed."
The others had crowded around Robie, dumbstruck they had listened to his findings. "How… how the hell do you know this Robie?"
Chen had looked thoughtful, "It's about what you told me back at the hospital, isn't it?" he eyed Robie.
Robie looked at Sean, "They may as well know. Can't ask them to risk all if I can't tell them the truth…"
"Tell us what, Robie, this is some scary shit, how can you know this stuff? ", challenged Brun.
Sean nodded, "This is between us, all of have a reason for joining the Legion, right?"
The others looked surprised but also nodded in agreement.
Robie stood, his shoulders stooped, this was a big ask. "Before I got in, I had been working for my country's intelligence agencies as an asset…"
Bigos and Maksym's eyes widened, they understood only bad things happened when you involved the government, their faces hardened. Seeing that, Sean leapt in. "No, you paranoid clowns, he was pressganged into service, somebody gave him some information…"
"Bozhe Moi!" said an angry Maksym. "And you knew!" They glared at one another.
Robie stepped between the two, "Hey! Blame me, look I was about to run anyway."
The men looked surprised; Chen decided to throw his hat in. "His cover was blown, we just found out on the exercise, he was going to…."
"Run Robie?" It was Erik, he had a hurt look on his face, Robie faced him, "Yeah, look, it's bad news to be near me, if who I think is after finding out, your lives were in danger too, Maksym is right, I'm sorry, but getting away was my only option."
The room went quiet again.
"Moot point now, we're in the middle of this so we need to park it for later, ok?"
"What can we do?" Sean looked at Robie, "Can you defuse the bombs?"
Robie looked inward again, they all watched as his face stiffened, in a matter of moments he blinked and looked at them again. "I can defuse the missiles, trouble is …"
Brun's smile vanished "But what?" Robie swallowed, "Each bomb will take me about forty minutes to dismantle…"
Chen did the math and pointed to a countdown clock on the wall, "we don't have that kind of time…"
"Isn't there any other way?" asked Sean, he looked at Maksym and Bigos, "you worked on these types of missiles, don't they have safety measures?"
"Can you show the missiles Robie?" asked Bigos.
Robie's fingers blurred on the keyboard, the views on the screens changed, a number of launch chambers popped up, "…zoom in there… fuck…"
"What?" demanded Sean. Bigos was talking in Ukrainian again with Maksym, eventually he turned to Sean and pointed to the screen, "See here?".
Sean and the rest nodded, "They have new Bulava missiles, I am unfamiliar with their features, but if it's similar to old type, that could be fail safes on the decks there…" He pointed out some machine parts.
"Dammit. So, we can't flood them and see if it shuts them down and it's gonna take Robie too long to individually defuse each one assuming we can evade our friends out there as he does…"
They watched a number of sentries in each launch area as they patrolled.
Robie was still working on something on the system, "Krzysztof, these things need a stable platform for launch right?"
"Da, but why…" a light went off in the other man's head. "is it possible?"
Robie leaned back so the others could see, "We can't risk trying to assume control of this base, they made too many alterations to the original design, it was done with 1970's tech, they used top of the line on this, too many redundancies and backups for me to account for, but…!"
He highlighted several locations on the onscreen schematic.
"These are the air tanks for the ballast system, if we can disable these, we can destabilise the platform, the internal gyros on the propulsion systems won't launch if the angle goes over 45 degrees!"
The others smiled; it wasn't going to be easy but if they could knock those out….
"And…", continued Robie, "These here…" He pointed out, "are escape pods!"
"Alright Robie! So, what do we do?" asked Sean.
Robie quickly accessed the rest of the internal security cameras, searching rapidly for the ballast tank controls, flicking through the various chambers he suddenly stopped and groaned…
"oh no, no, NO!", he stood, shaken.
He ran his hands over his face, to the others watching he seemed shellshocked!
Sean was startled, what the hell would cause this?
"Robie….?"
Erik getting concerned had walked over to Robie, he paused abruptly as the image on the screen caught his eye and gave an appreciative whistle, in a chamber a beautiful redheaded woman hung naked from a pair of suspended manacles.
"WOW! …. she's…"
Spinning to face Vanderlaan, Robie stared at him with anguished eyes.
"She's trouble...oh God, why her?"
"Who Robie?", Even Sean was getting more anxious now.
"Carina FREAKING Miller! The Devil's own handmaiden, that's who!" cried Robie.
"She seems pretty harmless to me…" said a dubious Erik, still unable to tear his eyes away from the screen, he seemed thunderstruck.
Robie noticed it, "don't, just don't. She's one of my ex's…. friends."
He eyed Sean meaningfully. Murphy's eyes widened in comprehension.
"THAT Miller?" What the fuck is she doing here?" He said incredulously.
Erik still seemed dazed…
"…she can't be that bad…"
Robie laughed nervously, "she makes Mata Hari look like the Virgin Mary in a Nunnery! When Satan needs a new succubus, he uses her as a template…!"
Maksym had heard enough, "Robie, we face more immediate threat, worldwide nuclear Armageddon!"
Robie stared in disbelief at him.
"Pffft…that's nothing…walk in the park, I've already done that…" There were puzzled looks on faces, Robie continued, "…that's peanuts compared to what she's capable of! …Carina Freaking Miller!" He shook his head again.
"That's all I need!", he groaned.
The rest of the men just looked at each other….
…..
07th May. 2010. Camp Raffalli Calvi. 05.30hrsCET.
Delon and Ilsa looked at the phone on his desk for the umpteen time that morning, finally he picked it up and rang the harbour.
After a few moments conversation he cradled the receiver again. "Still nothing?"
He shook his head, what was going on? Had Robie found out? But that still didn't explain the radio silence and the missing men, he looked at the time, finally he picked up the phone and rang the airfield, Sabut entered, "What's happening?"
"We're going to find them, alert the coast guard and the Navy, get some resources in the area."
"What could have happened Alain?" asked the stunned senior officer.
"Damned if I know, but I'm going to find out, coming Major?"
"You bet I am!" said Ilsa.
"Me too!" came from Maggie Koh who had shaken herself awake, her man was gone, and she was not missing out on the fun!