The sun had come up sending beams of it's brilliance into every nook and cranny. Dorien began the task of gathering his crew together. Most of them had spent the night talking about this spooky place and wondering when they would get back to the good old fashion Niode Mapping That they were accustom to.
This place brought chills to many, seeing the piles of burnt skeletons brought a uneasy sense of foreboding and gloom even in the light of day. They were used to seeing carnage in battle, but nothing would prepare them for seeing a whole town full of people, burnt and heaped into piles so disgracefully. It left one to wonder just exactly what sort of madness had taken place here.
Dorien addressed his crew explaining that all sixteen including himself, wouldn't fit in the large tower and that he would be taking five brave volunteers. The rest of them would be guarding their flank at the base of the stairs. At first, they all looked at each other, then slowly, one hand went up, then another and another until all five were accounted for. You could tell by the expression on their face's that they were all weighting whether or not they wanted to stay behind with the skeleton's or go ahead into the unknown with the others.
Hector volunteered first, which didn't surprise anyone, for he was often fierce on the battlefield, followed by Sparks, Canned Heat, Dr. No and Flash Frozen. The newly formed team quickly assembled at the base of the stairs behind Dorien and began their unnerving assent up the twisted steps with all the others looking in from below. Dorien had instructed the team guarding, to set up a camera to document their departure and for them to keep in voice contact at all times. Things started to get weird from that moment on. Once they stepped through the archway and on that first step. the tower started to phase in and out between the visible and invisible. Hey boss the tower is phasing in and out of existence shouted Judge Dread on the com link to Dorien. That was the last transmission Dorien heard. As the guarding team looked on in horror the tower grew fainter and fainter, soon it was gone completely.
What do we do now,? the others asked looking at Judge Dread in bewilderment. We wait! said Judge Dread but don't even ask me how long, as long as it takes I suppose. Judge Dread and the rest took turns trying to raise them on the com link but it was to no avail. Meanwhile Dorien and his crew were having troubles of their own. Trudging up the twisted steps in full battle array was not a easy task. Their armor kept clanging and clattering and echoing off the walls. If anyone occupied the tower's top they were sure to know that they had company. The inner stone walls of the tower were made of a strange material which bathed them all in a bright green glow. The steep climb had them all huffing and puffing and laboring for breath so talking was nonexistent.
Dorien started to notice that the noise from their armor was getting softer and softer and soon there was no sound at all. Left alone to his thought's Dorien had no desire to think about his men, their mission, or safety only the rhythmic sound of his own labored breathing. Even though his men were close behind and having similar problems of their own, he was completely unaware of them. His mind began to conger up a image of him standing before a portal and being beckoned to come into the portal by none other than Kellek himself! Kellek held an object in his hand which he raised and pointed at him. There was a brilliant flash of light then.....Hey boss.... hey!.... Hey!.... HEY! Are you ok boss, we are at the top. Dorien looked stunned and shook his head,yea sure just a little winded. After regaining his composure, he started to step through the doorway to a very large room.As he mumbled under his breath ...out of the fire and into the pan! What was that you said boss? I didn't quite hear you said Flash Frozen. Never mind said Dorien an old Earth term that you won't understand. Something my mom used to say to me when I was getting into deeper trouble. Then that fits here, right boss? exclaimed Flash Frozen. Yea,I suppose your right Dorien said as they all stepped into the large room.
The room was lit by a unknown source as they stepped in. That seemed to come from everywhere but nowhere in particular. A large window on one side of the circular room was shut with black shutters. On the opposite side was what appeared to be a very large round mirror that enveloped the whole side. There was a deep grove, that was cut in the floor, in a circle, that made a inner ring in the middle of the room. In this ring were six round stone's about knee high and evenly spaced around the ring. In the center of that was a very large desk and chair of sort's with all kinds of lab equipment including glass bottles with strange stuff in them and a holo note pad with drawings and notes. A big green button about fist size was in the center of the desk. The rest of the room had pictures of a lot of unknown beasts hung on the walls. One picture in particular resembled a Nakshi but only remotely.
Some glyphs were under each picture and probably forerunner in origin. A task for my A,I. said Dorien as he copied a picture on his wrist pad and fired off to his A.I. To be translated. I wonder what this green button does Dorien shouted to his men,only one way to find out. His men stopped him by yelling no wait till we get our weapons spooled up, hard telling what horror will come at us or from where. With that Dorien waited until the weapons were hot. Here goes nothing said Dorien pushing the button down. All at once everything in the inner ring desk and all began to rotate to face the mirror. One of the stones directly in front of the desk began to turn a very, very brilliant white. Then the stone shot out a white beam at the mirror that turned the surface translucent (you could see into a different world). The glyphs under the picture of Nakshi looking beast began to glow white.
Hey boss! said Canned Heat as he thrust his mech's arm through where the surface of the mirror was, I think we can walk right through here. Now what was that saying, you were saying before, something about a fire and a pan? All but Dorrien laughed. Dorien needed to wait on the translation before proceeding any further. He ordered all his men to take a seat or at least kneel, seeing that there were no more chairs, until the A.I. was finished with the translation. So they waited far into the night and some of the men slept in their mech's. But not Dorien, he stayed up all night wondering about what had transpired and about all the things that go bump in the night. He kept his eyes fixed as he guarded the newly opened portal.
Submitted by Marianne Stewig # 687261 (and Mark Stewig)