The Prophesy: Book 3 - The Hammer of Atlantis

 

The flight to New Zealand went without any problem. The Pterodactyls landed on the northern tip of the island, staying on the beaches. The behaviour surprised the Atlanteans, which had expected the flying lizards to continue flying to their nesting area. The Atlanteans dropped on a beach off the eastern coast, out of sight of the Pterodactyls. As the night progressed, more and more Pterodactyls reached the beach picked up by the main flock, and landed. The animals stayed on the beach and fed off the shallow fresh water lakes in the vicinity during the day, as if they were resting. Their behaviour really left the observers perplexed. During the day, the last ones that had left Tahiti joined those already on the beach and fed as well, before taking what seemed to be sleeping position, with their bill tucked under a wing.

The night passed in a relative quietness, but as dawn peeked over the horizon, considerable agitation was observed on the beaches. The royals were immediately informed of the change and everyone got ready for an immediate take-off should the pterodactyls take to the air. An hour after prime, the flock took off in a noise that resonated across the entire island. They climbed to their long-distance flight altitude, much to the surprise of the observers on the ground. Enron converted to an eagle and began following the huge formation from a distance while the rest of the Atlantean forces stayed put waiting for a signal from the Elvin King as to what to do.

As the Pterodactyls reached Tako Mount after crossing Cook Strait separating North Island from South Island, they turned resolutely west and gained speed to cross the Tasman Sea. Informed of the situation, the Atlanteans sped up their departure as Enron kept a discreet watch over the huge congregation from a safe distance.

«I wonder where they are going?» asked Sitar.

« I think they are following a migratory route. That may explain why Dunbar and Williams did not find many nests in New Zealand. Let's not lose sight of them. At their current speed, they are in full migratory mode, and should cover the one thousand three hundred miles separating them from Australia in sixteen hours and a half.»

«Enron, you are talking like they are birds..."

«According to the Ancients, they were not; however, migratory behaviours can be observed in many reptiles, and I see no reason to believe the Pterodactyls are any different.»

"Why is it following such a route? It could have followed the islands off the northern tip of New Zealand and have some resting spots along the way.»

«There, Paschal, I think that route was set way before today, and probably, there were volcanic islands along it that now have been eaten by the sea. Birds are known to keep rather fixed routes, as do reindeers and other ungulates. Many are unable to alter these routes, whatever the condition they are facing. That is why I think we need to track them across the Tasmanian Sea rather then assume anything. They may change heading at any time.»

Tracking the flock of Pterodactyls was easy, as their speed was steady and their heading unchanging. The problem was their slow speed; way below the dragons' or Pegasuses' stall speed. The trackers resorted to the classic method in these circumstances: they flew in circles above the reptiles.

The reptiles flew all day and all night before finally descending toward the beach of the Australian coast. The Pegasuses took the ground watch while the dragons maintained air cover, gliding slowly on thermals produced by the Australian desert and the updrafts caused by the mountain range that marked the coast. Things stayed unchanged until the next morning, which saw a sudden increase of activity.

«They are ready to fly off!» Enron informed everyone.

As the sun appeared over the horizon, the Pterodactyls took off and turned north, following the coast of Australia. They climbed up, reaching the jet stream and began flying at a much faster pace, reaching peaks of ground speed in the vicinity of thee hundred and fifty miles per hour pushed north by the powerful wind. By sext, they had reached Torres Strait, flew across and turned east along the coast of New Guinea. As the sun began to set, the reptiles settled in distinct colonies.

«What do you make of this behaviour?»

«They are on ancestral grounds, but not nesting, probably wintering. I figured as much when their speed increased. Before, they were lost, and trying to figure out where their home was; once they found some waypoints, they knew where to go. What I cannot assess is if they are here early or if they are late. We are in the middle of summer here, and normally they should be way late for nesting but way too early to return to their winter resting area. Maybe it is an intermediate area? Probably they just came back here waiting for the southern hemisphere's fall to migrate to their wintering grounds.»

«Do you have any idea where their wintering grounds might be?»

«I think it's somewhere with lots of fresh water so they can fish. Remember, their diet is fish, as we deduced from the shape of their beak; but it's not salt-water fish. We never saw any even try to feed off salt-water fish, until now.»

«I was hoping we could get some eggs for the Eden project.»

«Me too, but unfortunately, it's not the case. I am going down to look at the ground. There is something I do not understand in all this,» Harp said, as he dropped to the ground and converted to human form.

«What?»

«What were the Pterodactyls doing in New Zealand?»

«Could it be they were there to nest, but the damn orcs bothered them and used their nesting habits to capture them?» suggested Harp.

«That is contradictory Harp. Their nesting is here; it's the wintering ground we need to locate. Nonetheless, go check Harp's suggestion, Dunbar! It might help figure out why the Pterodactyls came here!» Enron commented.

"I do not agree Enron. There is no trace of nests! However there seems to be huddle spots, typical of wintering in birds. Just look at them and their behaviour."

"Maybe this is a standard rest spot for a much longer migratory path going further south, But we cannot wait on them to complete the migratory path to figure out where it leads," suggested Harold, that had kept quiet during the ethological debate between Harp and Enron.

«What should I look for?» asked Dunbar as he left for New Zealand.

«Circular structures, holes in the ground, and eggshells. If I trust what we know of lizards, the eggshells are buried and leathery in texture.»

«I'll be right back!»

Twenty minutes later, Dunbar popped over the flying dragons and reported to Enron.

«I had found some strange things I could not explain in New Zealand, when I had done the exploration of the lower plains. These were the nests! I found how the orcs got there. We again underestimated the buggers! I found a whole fleet of sailing ships, scuttled in the bay. The orcs came along the western coast of New Zealand and literally harnessed the Pterodactyls for their needs, feeding on the eggs! Not a single egg survived their stomach. These walking digestive systems have sacrificed a whole generation of Pterodactyls! Not only did they kill the eggs, but also the hatchlings; there is a whole butchery there. And I found an incomplete harness: they pushed the cynicism to the point of using the young reptiles' skin to make them!"

«Have you found any orc nest?»

«No. There are none. I looked for caves and tunnels, but none was visible, even using magic as Harp taught us to do. I think the orcs were waiting for the right time and probably arrived on the island just before the Pterodactyls touched down to nest. Once the Pterodactyls built their nests and lay their eggs, it was a piece of cake to capture them. The rest is history.»

«This doesn't add up, is New Guinea their wintering or their nesting area? From what Dunbar says, they reproduce in New Zealand and winter here, but it's the middle of summer in this hemisphere.»

«Look at the ground; do you see any nesting structures? I see none. Yet they seemed settled. I think they got severely perturbed by the orcs and are trying to recover a modicum of stability by going back to the last safe place they had, their wintering grounds.»

«Harp's idea stands,» Sitar said, as he observed the reptiles.

«Well, we still have a problem. What do we do with the Pterodactyls?"

A meeting was immediately organized to analyse the problem. Everyone agreed the Pterodactyls deserved as much to be rescued as any life form. The question was how to proceed.

"Do we have a tessaract for them?" asked Typhoon, who was sympathetic to the dinosaurs, finding a close affinity toward them.

"We have yet another tessaract that is empty. It's uncommitted, and would probably do fine for them. However we need to understand the needs of the Pterodactyls if we are to successfully create a breeding environment," replied Enron. "You need volcanism to breed; they need something else."

"Describe the nests' location, Dunbar."

"Harold, the nests are located near the greatest freshwater lake of New Zealand, on high and dry grasslands. The nests are simple diggings done in the dirt, about three feet deep, delimited by a dirt dam that separates its interior from the surrounding grass. There is a layer of grass at the bottom, and another layer of grass above the eggs. I managed to figure that out by chance. There was an infertile egg and it was still in place, below a thick layer of decomposing greenery. The heat of the fermenting grass probably contributes to the incubation."

"If I remember one thing about lizards, dad, it is that the sex of a lizard is determined by the average temperature in which it incubates. The deeper an egg is, the more likely the lizard will be male; the females are always, systematically, near the top or the edge of the nest, where the temperature is lowest," added Enron.

"Then we need to create a proper nesting environment for them which will reproduce the conditions found around that lake. What other considerations must we look into?"

"Their migratory habits come to mind, Harp."

"Let's compare the two sites, assuming this is the wintering site. What differences are there?"

"First, wintering is a lot warmer than nesting. Second, there is a three thousand mile difference in location which implies a change in daily lighting, daily average temperature and magnetism."

"Samson's right, but let's not forget the change in diet, and the exercise represented by the flights. The fish species are not the same in the two locations, and it is well known that in many species, the stress of migration is required to start the reproduction cycle. The Pterodactyls are probably in a similar bind," said Paschal.

"That's going to be a challenge. However, I think that proper use of thermal gradients, lighting, change of diet, and creating a stress similar to the one imposed by migration should let us get them to reproduce. The astronomical and climate controls are easy to reproduce, and I can create two totally separate environments and link them via a transition corridor that will force the Pterodactyls to relive the migratory stress."

"How long to do that, Harp?"

"The climate and lighting can be done overnight. Reproducing their nesting environment can wait a few weeks; the issues is reproducing this wintering environment first, and transplant them to the new environment without them noticing it. Then we will have a few months before the urge to migrate come into play, giving me time to fine-tune the migratory corridor and the nesting area."

"Why not simply carry everything in the tessaract, leaving behind bare rocks?" suggested Ian.

"You have always been for radical measures, little brother."

"When they work..."

"Harp, Ian's right, let's transplant the entire ecosystem, lock, stock and barrel. In fact let's do it for the nesting area as well."

"Very well, Enron. When do we do it?"

"We do the nesting right now. There are no Pterodactyls there, and it will not disturb these reptiles who are busy feeding and packing some fat for their next migration, from hat I see."

"And what about this place?"

"We do it tonight. If you noticed, the Pterodactyls tend to sleep at night, all packed together. This is another indication this is not a nesting area; birds tend to be very territorial when the nesting season comes, but pack tight the rest of the time for safety."

"Fine. Do we all agree?"

No one said anything, so Harp took it for general assent. "I have to get the tessaract ready first. I'll divide it in three: nesting; wintering; and transitionary. Give me an hour to get the astronomical and weather conditions right."

With that last comment, Harp translocated to Thebes and activated one of the last big tessaracts available in the tessaracts cave. Now he understood the strange symbol on the entrance: a stylised Pterodactyl! He activated a powerful magic beacon that would let the mages port the ecosystems precisely in the right location of the tessaract and then moved back to New Guinea.

"Ok. As you can see, there is a beacon in the magic field. This is the location for the nesting segment of the transport. Let's port back to New Zealand and translocate the nesting grounds right now. We will then have the afternoon to rest and restore our reserves for the night port. Pegasuses and Fairies stay behind to monitor the Pterodactyls."

***

Given that some of the dragons did not have the capacity to port, the group flew to New Zealand instead. The two thousand seven hundred mile trip took them four and a half hours.

"First things first. Dunbar, you lead the exploration around the nesting site and mark it with that red colouring. Your task is to delimit the maximum extent of the nesting area, which will be at the centre of the new site. Take Williams and Yamato. Divide the area in thee segments. Be generous. I prefer moving too much then not enough!"

"Yes, Enron."

"The others! Divide the area and try to cover a maximum number of ecosystems. Mark your area using these orange markers. I want things to be clear-cut. Include everything from sea front to mountainous areas. We are over a hundred and fifty able to port, so, again, better take more then not enough!"

"Aren't you afraid of running out of space in the tessaract with that philosophy, son?"

"Not really. Harp explained to me he has set the ecosystem tessaracts to a ratio of one to one hundred thousand, the Tessaract is folded in such a way that we have over one million square miles of free space. Even if we took New Zealand from one end to the other, we would still have vast expenses of free space."

"How much compression does that give?" wondered Diamondcutter.

"Well that single tessaract has more area then the entire planet times four. The volume is also in proportion. So the Pterodactyls will have a lot of space, as with any of our migratory species."

"I still do not understand tessaracts, even if I've been in the Pyramids and undergone that intensive brain-washing under hypnosis, if you want to know."

"Don't feel bad, Diamondcutter. I trust Harp with it, I don't try to understand," replied Samson.

"Well, it's related to folded dimensions..."

"Harp! Shut up!" exclaimed the two men, not willing to get a headache.

"Let's get to work. We have four hours of day left, and I want that port to occur before sundown!" said Enron.

Everyone dispersed according to assigned tasks and rapidly, red and orange markets appeared, delimiting two ragged regions, the red enclosed by the orange. As vespers neared, the last coloured orange stake was put in place by Sitar, completing the marking.

"Everyone, get outside of the orange markers. I will divide the area into squares one mile to a side and each of us will assume the port of one of these areas."

Yellow lines suddenly appeared, creating a neat grid on the ground below the flying dragons. In all, one hundred twenty-two thousand five hundred square miles were marked for porting.

"Harp! You have command!" said Enron, recognizing that Harp was best at handling massive ports.

"All right! Guys, set in a line along the eastern side of that rectangle, and we will port the first squares. At a minute by port, we should have covered the three hundred and fifty ports in five and a half hours! We refuel. Then those adults that cannot port will fly back to Thebes after refuelling. The area is to be vacated by matins, local time! As for those staying, we should be back in Thebes within six hours, well in advance of those that will need to fly."

The transport of the marked areas began in earnest, as the Dwarfs and other dragon riders used torches to light the sky and allow those that were doing the port to see the ground below. Things went well, but were terribly noisy as the earth was translocated without compensation of air. The rolling thunder bespoke of a thunderstorm of incommensurable amplitude, not that the area was unaccustomed to stormy weather.

Half an hour before matins, everyone landed, the dragons fed copiously on tons of meat generated by the care of the royals, while the dragon riders, the Dwarfs and the Elves that had accompanied the dragon flight to this first battle ate a healthy if light meal. Then, as matins came to pass, the eighty-six adult dragons and their contingent of human cargo took off for Thebes, a fifteen-hour, eight thousand nine hundred mile non-stop flight. The others ported to the nesting area.

«Has there been any activity from the Pterodactyls?" asked Harp.

«None whatsoever, everything is quiet,» replied Iridia.

«Is everyone ready for the next part?»

Getting no negative reply, Harp ported quickly to Thebes and activated the second beacon before coming back to the nesting area quietly.

«Ok, I activated the next beacon. This time we need to synchronize the port so the Pterodactyls know nothing of their sudden change of residence. Flying in these conditions is a hindrance. Let's land and form a static circle around their wintering area. Remember, we have ample space in the tessaract. We will each land on a promontory so we have clear, direct, line of sight view of each other and of the nests. Dunbar, have you located the best location for each of us?»

«I just exchanged the information with Paschal, and we spent the last five minutes assigning specific points to each of those of us able to translocate objects and life. It is roughly arranged in a circle measuring two hundred and fifty miles in radius. That will include all known rest agregates both abandoned and occupied. This will cover an area of one hundred ninety-six thousand three hundred and fifty square miles. However, Harp, I suggest we divide the task differently from what you seem to suggest.»

«How so?»

«We need to divide the task in three stages: first the area currently occupied, which is considerably less then the full extent of the wintering area. We came to the conclusion that the circle is more ten miles in diameter, which brings the area to approximately seventy-nine square miles. Once this is done we can port individually the rest of the area, at a much faster clip since we will not need to be careful about disturbing an occupied location. Third, Harp, the full extent on the wintering area is much wider then the area occupied for rest. We figured out they needed to fish, and we discovered it extended rather far and wide, if only from traces of feeding along river banks. Before we left, I asked the Fairies to determine the requisite ecosystems. Iridia, do you have that report?»

«Yes. Apparently, the area they roam is somewhere around a thousand miles wide by five hundred wide, for a total of five hundred thousand square miles. I propose we strip the entire area and port it to the Tessaract. If we all work together things should be done before sext tomorrow.»

«So be it! Every time we do a plan, someone throws a wrench in it! I'm beginning to regret the days my only worry was fear of falling in mom's cacti patch! Let's get to work! The Royals will port the nests, while the others start porting the fishing grounds of the Pterodactyls starting the furthest away. We have no time to lose. As soon as the nests are in Thebes, we join the others in porting the whole area. Get to work! Believe me, after we're done, I'll sleep for a week!»

The process began in earnest. It took the royals less then three minutes to port the resting area where the Pterodactyls lay, and a quick pop in the tessaract reassured Harp. They were still asleep, undisturbed. In an effort to gain some time before the Pterodactyls woke up, Harp slowed down the vibration of the time string by a factor of twenty-five percent in the Tessaract. He then returned to the site of the transport.

«Ok, I gained us some time. The Pterodactyls will sleep for another twenty-four hours. Let's put it to good use! I dared not stop time entirely, since we still need to be able to move things within the tessaract.»

Things went well from then on, and twelve hours later, the very tired Royals ported to Thebes, while the Pegasuses, after feeding an hour on the grasses of the island, took off for a supersonic flight back to Thebes. They would arrive about fifteen minutes ahead of the Dragons. The sun began baking the bared and rusty-looking rock, which looked like a wound on the green and blue of the planet's surface.

***

Three days later, the royals had recovered from their ordeal.

"I just hope we won't have too many seventy-two hour non-stop interventions along the way," said Ian grouchily.

"We all do, son, we all do. Hey, Alexander is making his teeth and is even grouchier then you were. If it's a measure of magical power, I'm going to retire and practice asceticism!"

"I'd like to see that! Can you imagine yourself, spending all day sitting in the lotus position, so cramped you would probably be unable to stand?" replied Annabelle.

"With all this, how are the preparations for the upcoming Orc invasion?" asked Enron.

"We have set the traps along the invasion routes; we need to finish setting in place the eastern frontier's demolition mines for the tunnels; the western border is completed; we have yet to begin the southern border. The northern border is solidly iced up and we should be able to begin setting the mines in the glaciers," replied Sitar.

"Before we resume this task, let's see if the latest setback of the orcs has affected their timetable," commented Harp.

The royals took their position in a circle on the floor, and entered the trance required to foresee the future. It took less then thirty minutes to assess the situation. The last cataclysm to hit the orcs had not delayed their plans this time and they would launch it on time.

"Too bad, I would much have preferred the whole thing to have been delayed another year. But I think the problem is you cannot keep an army this size immobile too long without getting into serious logistics problems," commented Sitar.

"Let's get to work then. Harp, Sitar, Thorsten, you set the mines on the southern border. Typhoon, Timor, you finish the eastern border. Paschal, go check on the maps, the Spiders have been on their own long enough we should have some updates. Dunbar, Williams, the Ark and Eden projects are suspended until we have dealt with the invasion. You are to report respectively to the three hundredth and three hundredth and fifty-second Armies as Primus Legatus! Annabelle, your first Legion is fielded! You are to move to the eastern border and hinder the orcs' progress as much as you can. Viola, you are promoted centurion as of now. Regroup your old centurie. You have two weeks to bring them to Atlantean standards! Yamato, you take the new Spiders and see to it they become effective at fighting. Your rank is Primus Legatus of the Spiders. I suggest you read on armoured vehicles, especially tanks, as used by the Ancients during battle. I read some rather interesting stuff written by one George 'Blood and Guts' Patton and another, Edwin 'the Desert Fox' Rommel, which explain proper use of tanks in different field conditions. I hope you know German?"

"I know some; one of my teachers was of German origin, but I doubt the language has survived intact."

"I know. But the drawings are more important then the text. And do not forget you can access the Dog Conscience to gain a good knowledge of the spoken language form." Two rather thick books popped on the table. "Here they are. I duplicated them from their originals, which are way too fragile to be taken out of stasis. Your nightstand reading is set for you."

Turning to the other end of the long table, Harold continued assigning duties.

"Iridia, you have the Pegasuses at your command as Primus Legatus. Practice strafing, dive-bombing, and other air support techniques. Here is another book, about the history of a war called the Spanish War, which occurred at the beginning of the Cataclysm. It explains how objects called Stukas were used effectively to do what we need. We may not have these Stukas, but I'm sure you can find a way to emulate their tactics. Banjo, you are incorporated in the second centurie of the twenty-first Legion; Cello, you are now part of the fifty-sixth Legion's fourth centurie. They are in need of mages. I know you think you know nothing about this, but you are of Royal blood. Diamondcutter, you are Legate of the second legion of Dwarfs. Amethyst, you are Legate of the fifth legion of Dwarfs. Samson, you are Legate of the fifth Legion of Elves. Ian, you are Legate of the first Legion, the one in charge of insuring protection of Thebes should things turn sour. You also have at your disposal the Unicorns for magic support. I will command the Dragons until Typhoon is free to take over. Greywolf, you maintain your current duties; so does Lord Agramon. Harp, once done with your task, you will be busy as Legate of the Mages. Bjorn, you are Legate of the second Legion of Trolls, and temporary Legate of the First, while Timor is busy. Paschal, as soon as you are done, you take control as Legate of the Medical Corps. Dismissed!"

Everyone left to take on the new or, in some cases, same duties. It was clear that Harold had fully taken the crown of Atlantis by the speed at which he had distributed tasks to all present around the table.

***

Days passed quickly, as everyone was occupied with the preparations. All those with a crown spent mornings rendering justice, as the population of the United Kingdoms of Americus were fully checked by the royals for any major criminal issues. The consequences were much less then what would have been thought, as most criminal elements had been removed during the invasion. The total number of flat out executions did not exceed ten thousand, less then one percent of the total population of the now defunct kingdoms. The rest were distributed into units, adding three thousand legions spread into three hundred armies to the already very impressive number of armies fielded by the Atlanteans.

On the eve of a decisive escalation in the war, the Atlanteans were nervous. The last few days saw Viola drive his centurie to the brink of revolt with his almost eighteen hours of exercises and training. He brought them into the Pyramids, and put them through what amounted to an intensive six-month boot camp in a three-day stay in the first Pyramid. When they got out, they had replaced any trace of fat by hard muscle, a temper fit to boil an orc on sight, and a newfound respect for authority and Viola. The prince had driven himself even harder then his men, and everyone knew it. Those that had shown prominent beer bellies were surprised they no longer needed a peniscope to see their dangling bits!

***

The morning after the tasks were distributed, Paschal signalled he wanted to talk to Harp after breakfeast.

"What's the problem?" Harp asked.

"I've lost two Spiders in the same region of the Atlantic, Harp. They were exploring a deep area located at 30N 70W Greenwich meridian at a depth of seventeen thousand eight hundred and one feet."

"And?"

"Well, you know the Crystals better then I do. Would a crystal have the proper load to disrupt a Spider's circuitry?"

"I don't know. But I do know one thing: that was the biggest crystal we produced. And it was fully loaded when it left Atlantis II. If it sank and did not have the proper regulators set for long-term storage, as the others did, it certainly could have caused havoc in that region, and especially to your Spiders."

"Even after all this time?"

"Yes, even after seventeen thousand years. If it sank near a source of orichalque, it probably drained it by migration and added the orichalque mass to its original one."

"How would crystallisation proceed since it's no longer regulated?"

"That is the difficult part; we never did an unregulated crystallization. However, the Ancients' books on the subject tells me it would still maintain the crystal's form, just make it bigger. I just hope they knew what they were talking about!"

"I'm wondering about another question, Harp."

"What is it?"

"Technically, the ships carrying the Crystals were the safest we had. How could one have sunk?"

"I wish I knew. We'll have to look into this. Anyway, let's not assume it's the Crystal that destroyed your two Spiders."

"All right. Anyway, I have to go back to the map. The Spiders have ported over five hundred million tons of stuff on the moon. Some has come back already, having been recognized as part of Thebes' construction elements. We have recovered ninety-nine percent of all the elements manufactured in Atlantis II; of those, only five percent need to be remade because they were too damaged. I've assembled what I could, and I've begun remanufacturing those parts that are damaged. I'll let the search run its course in the Atlantic before manufacturing the other one percent. Some of the missing parts would take me a few months to a year to reproduce. I just hope that these pieces are intact."

"What is the most complex piece missing?"

"So far? The cargo ship carrying what is identified as a graviton resonance amplification modulator, or GRAM, that was used to communicate across space and time."

"Do not dare start using acronyms! I read a military book by the Ancients, and it had so many I got lost!"

"Can't I tease my favourite little brother?"

"Not when I'm on needles waiting for the Orcs to move their butts. I hate waiting!"

"You and needles never made good company!"

"No, you prick!"

"You better get back to your mages, brother, before I use your rear for dart practice! Just before you pop out, where are Spare Ribs and his brother?"

"Ian is in Pyramid Five teaching them how to hunt. They are doing a run at one of the colonies of rabbits. These two are too individualist to hunt in a team, so it restricts the size of their prey. Anyway, these two have brought sibling rivalry to a new level. This shows they will never be able to develop a Conscience. It takes us constant monitoring to keep them from gutting each other. Luckily, I've begun developing a new segment of the Tessaracts that will give them ample space without ever crossing path, once we judge they can survive on their own."

"Do you have some females?"

"Oh, we have recovered all those of their species, so that is not an issue. There are enough to ensure viability and prevent consanguinity. The two brothers will be put at opposite ends of the space, and it would take them years to meet even if they actively looked for each other."

"When will they be released?"

"I have no idea. We are considering releasing them the day the orcs trigger the alarms, since we will be too busy to take care of them from then on."

"That makes sense."

"It may make sense, Paschal, but we must be sure they can hunt and kill before letting them loose on their own. If they are not ready, I'll ask you to put them in stasis for the duration of the conflict."

"That's ok. We can use two cryogenic chambers for them. We have a lot of those."

***

Yamato took delivery of ever more Spiders over the days that followed the meeting. Reading or, in the case of the German book, examining the drawings, he implemented a series of tactics that combined the German sweeping Blitzkrieg methods with the spear-head methods favoured by the American general. He spent days looking at the Spiders' specifications before deciding he needed some assistance. He visited Paschal and engaged the debate.

"Paschal, I need to be able to know at all times what the Spider are doing and where they are. Do you have something like that on your drawing board?"

"Yamato, I have much better. We had a similar issue when we invaded the United Kingdoms of Americus, and I designed an auto-update map. Each unit was represented, its status, and the result of a fight. You will be equipped with just the same, much like dad and Ian. In fact I've been making auto-update maps of the kingdom so they would be available in a wide range of scales, and for every officer from the centurion up."

"That makes for a lot of maps!"

"Yes, well, I found a printing press; I did a series of master maps, one for each scale and region, from the 1:10 000 to the 1:500 000 scale. The maps have been made so each unit is represented with a symbol and its displacement signalled. The moment the Orcs enter the kingdom by passing under Harp's Shield, there will be a number of red dots marking their position and displacement. They won't be able to pee without us knowing."

"Where are mine?"

"In that cube. Note that you have all maps, kept in that portable map room. I asked Harp to create the cubes. You need only port inside and you have access to your entire collection. You can carry it in your shirt pocket. There is another advantage to this. Should things turn sour, you port inside the cube and initiate the inertia amplifier. The cube will become impossible to move if it is immobile, and impossible to stop if it is in movement."

"What will be the inertia gain?"

"6.0221417930_ * 10²³."

"Holy shit! I better not ask the compression ratio!"

"I don't know it anyway. In there, you have a complete, enclosed and autonomous ecosystem, with food production, recycling and living quarters."

"Will you have one?"

"We all have one. The Decurions will be issued theirs shortly, and receive instructions as to when and how to use them. Those at decade level are designed to shelter eleven men."

"Most men do not know how to port!"

"That was our main concern. Each man already has a port-key to the hospital that activates automatically in case of bodily harm or manual trigger. We had those installed on the expeditionary forces we engaged on the East Coast. Now everyone has one. That's why you have that red button on your collar. The green button is to port inside the map room in your case, but you do not need it. For the others, the moment a Decurion issues the recall, all his men end up in the cube; if it's a centurion it's all the centurie under his command, and so forth. When the Orcs attack we either win or they end up with nothing to chew on."

"That's my kind of diet! But what happens to the cubes?"

"That is even more interesting. The cubes have an assigned rack on the commanding officer's front shirt. Notice the ten little squares on your new shirt? Each one can hold one of these micro-tessaracts. If, for instance, Iridia called back her units, she would find herself carrying on her front ten tiny, zero-mass cubes, each containing the units under her command, separated by layer. And to make things even nicer, she would find herself on dad or whatever officer of the Atlantean army she is under. Technically, Dad has ten of those sockets, and the entire population of this place can be put in them. He would then be in his own cube and the orcs would have nothing to eat. As you know the Ark and Eden projects are themselves tessaracts, and contain our entire work so far. If we had the last Crystal and everything was ready, Thebes itself is a tessaract of incredible proportion, and we could seal ourselves in it without any problem."

"It's the first time you mention that the sixth Crystal was essential, Paschal."

"It's a backup. The issue is more completing Thebes. I just wish the Orcs would go play elsewhere. We have so much to do."

"Aren't you afraid a panicked officer might activate the inertia thingy and crush his officer?"

"No, once it's affixed to the shirt, it's in a new resonance form. You didn't listen. I said they were zero-mass cubes. The moment they tie to the shirt, they lose all mass. Zero mass equals zero inertia."

"What if it gets activated before the recall?"

"The recall nullifies the inertia amplification and the moment they lock in place they become zero mass."

"That's complicated. I don't understand anything about this."

"Ask Harp to explain, but you might consider waiting after the battle! He came up with that set of equations about resonant strings and it took all my engineering capacity to keep up with him. That little prick is scary sometimes."

"Sometimes? Only sometimes?"

Paschal laughed as he accompanied Yamato to the door leading out of his laboratory.

"Have a good day Yamato, and try not to have nightmares with Harp at the centre of them."

***

As the days went by, Iridia had the Fairies and Pegasuses practice precision bombing first with inert chunks of rocks; then they took some live ammunition from the ordinance. The first tries were a bit awkward as the shape of the rocks and the shape of the ordinance did not match. However, after adjusting for this, things became more reliable. The accelerometers needed some adjustments, but, after Paschal rode a Pegasus and included the impact of flight in the equation and doubled the security margin, the number of early explosions completely disappeared.

"Iridia, when you do a bomb run make sure you drop the bombs before doing the pull-up from the dive. It's pure luck no one got hurt. I've made it so the acceleration needs to be twenty-five G, but during a high-speed dive, it reaches minus ten G then flips to plus ten G exiting from the dive and entering the candle climb. The accelerometer will record it as the differential, that is twenty G, so be careful."

"Ok. I noticed that if we turn too sharply, our field of vision is reduced. Is that the cause as well?"

"Yes."

"Is there anything we can do to reduce this?"

"I suggest easing the change of direction. Dive from higher, pull out earlier, more gradually; take wider turns, and do not do acrobatics. We may have time to design and build anti-G suits later but I'm sorry I do not have the time or the resources to do that now, Iridia. Just be careful."

"I'll do my best."

"Do more then your best. Do it. Since we have air superiority, I see no good reason to risk the Pegasuses and your people in risky manoeuvres. By the way, here is your map cube. Unfortunately you will need to land to use it. I've also given one to the Fairy that stays on the ground to handle advanced infiltration behind the lines of the Orcs. Keep in touch with him. You will be the extraction team should things turn bad. If you see a cube pop on your flying vest, it means the unit has retreated to their cubes. The Pegasuses will be ported directly in their level of the Ark should their team transfer to a security cube. Do not worry about them."

***

As Iridia left the laboratory with a bag full of cubes for her people and another bag carrying collapsed auto-adjustable vests for everyone, Bjorn, the Troll king, walked in. He too received his material and appropriate explanations.

"My Lord, I have another reason to be here. May I speak freely?"

"Certainly, Bjorn. State what is on your mind."

"I feel more and more overwhelmed by the events. I believe my son Timor is much better equipped then I to lead our people in this strange new world. However, I have no idea of what to do and even less how to proceed."

"Have you followed the accelerated training in the Pyramids, Bjorn?"

"Yes. That is why I still can function, even if I feel inadequate commanding my people's army. By the way, I must thank you and the other Lords for offering my people a second chance and insuring we multiplied considerably in the past few years and had a wide genetic pool to prevent consanguinity. I still do not understand where all these male and female Trolls came from, to disappear as soon as the children were born."

"They were my brothers and I, Bjorn. We can shift shape, and we knew you needed a fresh influx of genes to first prevent too many genetic anomalies, and second to insure that the next generations of Trolls would be powerful magical being, full Atlantean. We maintained your physical characteristics, but the last five years of your newborn are twenty to forty times more magic-able then you are, even after all that stay in the tessaracts. And you are right: your son was the one that showed us your people could be magical beings as well. He gained a lot, but the moment he is able to reproduce, one of us will give him children that will boost your family's magic tenfold. Note that all the new Trolls were male and impregnated those females that had no mates, making sure they had multiple births. We also took your mated females and made sure that two out of three newborn was more Atlantean then his or her mother was. They look Troll, but they are Atlanteans, Bjorn. We are proud to count you and your people as our vassal, but we wanted you to be part of us, no longer in a situation of subject to lord. I hope you understand?"

"I see. Why weren't there any female from your people?"

"Because the gestation period was too long, and then the mother would have had to raise the babies. We are at war Bjorn, and we needed to be available in our current form to deal with it. Do not worry, once this shit is over, in three years or so, we will take males and give your people children. We will also do the same with the other species. We have impregnated wolves, horses, Pegasuses, Unicorns, Fairies, Dwarfs, just to name a few, to make sure that everyone feels Atlantean and part of the family. It is important for us that Atlantis' genes permeate everyone, even if each species retains its identity. You are Atlantean, of Troll ancestry. That is all there is to it."

"Does my son know of this? I know he spends a lot more time with you then I do."

"Yes he does, and he requested it."

"That proves my point then, my Lord. He has a greater vision of the future then I do. I spent too much time trying to survive on a day-to-day basis to really develop that capacity. What can I do to resolve the issue?"

"Come with me, we'll visit dad. We'll pick up Timor along the way, since he was coming here to get his load of cubes."

***

Bjorn and Paschal walked out of the laboratory to fall face to face with Timor, coming back from a training session in the Pyramids.

"Hello dad! What brings you to the Palace? You rarely leave the tessaract, except to train with your unit!"

"I'm going to pay a visit to Harold, our Liege lord. Come with us son, Prince Paschal thinks it's important you be there too."

"Ah? What's the problem? I hope we do not have discipline problems in the army dad?"

"It's nothing of the sort," intervened Paschal as he quickly led them to the Throne Room.

They entered without any ceremony, as Harold hated ceremonials with a passion.

"Hey dad! I hope I'm not intruding. I have a problem and a solution, if you have the time to listen, that is?"

"State the problem and the solution and I'll see if it is acceptable. It's been a while I've seen you Bjorn. What has kept you? If it's too hot in here, I have a freezer room we can sit in for your comfort, my friend."

"I'm fine my Lord."

"All right. Timor, how are the crossbows holding?"

"They are fine, my lord. The laminated wood you used to create them is both sturdier and more flexible, so they can be used by my elite forces without breaking like the old ones did. Their range is twice the normal range of a standard crossbow."

Bjorn looked at his son and Harold wide-eyed. The standard battle impediment of a Troll had always been a mace. Now they had a crossbow? If any doubt about the need for his son to be in charge lingered, that made it evaporate instantly.

"Dad, I think the last exchange brings to light exactly what Bjorn was telling me."

"What?"

"He feels overwhelmed, and outdated. He wants his son to take his place. I think that what he wants to do is abdicate in favour of his son. Is that the solution you were thinking about, Bjorn?"

"Yes. I will be sad leaving this world, I ..."

"NO! Dad, you cannot! I forbid it!"

The explosion from Timor took the others by surprise. He was generally even-tempered, but in this case, his hairs were standing on their ends, increasing his apparent volume five times over.

"Why are you reacting so violently, Timor?" asked Paschal.

"You do not understand! Dad will off himself if you say yes to his request!"

"I really do not understand, then, Timor. Off himself as kill himself, commit suicide? Why should he? He is not being demoted," replied Annabelle.

"What you do not understand is that in our rules of inheritance, the leader can only be replaced if he is dead. As long as he lives he is the leader. Dad is the leader, doubly so: he leads our family, and he leads our tribe. To replace him, I must wait for his death. If he abdicates, his abdication will take effect only if he kills himself. And I forbid it!"

Harold sat, scratching his chin, trying to find a solution to the problem. Ian had heard the exchange from a corner of the room and cleared his throat.

"Bjorn, these rules predate your acceptance as vassal to Atlantis, do they not?"

"Yes, my Lord."

"Did you consider all the aspects of swearing fealty to the Crown of Atlantis, when you did?"

"I think so, my Lord."

"Are you sure?"

"To the best of my knowledge, yes, my Lord."

"I, for one, am not so sure. One of the consequences of vassality is that Atlantean laws supersede those of the vassal when the two sets of laws conflict. This is such a case."

"What do you mean, my Lord?"

"Simply put, according to Atlantean law, a king may abdicate in favour of someone of his choice. The new king may call his predecessor to sit on the Privy Council to help govern the state by contributing his experience as previous king. There is another form of this law. It states that an abdicator may be called to sit on the Privy Council of the Liege Lord by the Liege Lord. This is what has happened to Diamondcutter and Samson. They sit on the Privy Council of Atlantis, and respectively Dwarf and Elvin Privy Councils as well. It is not uncommon for the new king to assign special duties to the old king, such as diplomatic negotiations, or other things that take a lot of experience to deal with."

"What does all this legal mumbo-jumbo mean?" asked Timor.

"Simply put, your dad can abdicate in your favour and you will be king in full, without his demise. You are run by Atlantean laws the moment you vowed featly to the Throne of Atlantis."

The two Trolls looked at each other, trying to process this new titbit of information.

"What would I do?" asked Bjorn.

"Sit on my Privy Council and give us a view of how things are perceived by your people, that is what. I know your people do not yet have a Privy Council, but I'm sure Timor would appreciate your input in managing his kingdom, Bjorn."

"How do we proceed?" asked Timor. "This has never occurred in our history."

"It's simple," replied Ian, always for the most direct solution. "Your dad asks my dad to relieve him of his duties and to assign you in his place. Dad says yes and proclaims you king; then dad calls your dad to sit on the Privy Council and it's over. It's even simpler then usual, since the only one of you two wearing a crown is you, Timor. Your dad never understood the need for the symbol, but given the few Trolls around when he got voted king, he did not need it. Now you do, because there are many more Trolls then at the time. And it's simple enough not to be too ostentatious."

"I will write the proclamation about the change of leadership as soon as the request is made and approved. Dad, I'll also write a proclamation reminding the Trolls and all others that Atlantean laws supersede their native laws when the two conflict. The Trolls may not be the only ones with inheritance issues."

"That's a good idea Paschal."

Let's have a working lunch, Bjorn and Timor. I'll have the written form of your request ready shortly, but the reminder's wording must be carefully crafted so everyone is on the same level once it is made public. I need your assistance there, both of you. When is Thorsten due back?"

"He was in this morning. He is in the chemistry laboratory working on another form of explosive."

"I thought we had all we needed?"

"I thought so too, but he thinks that he can polymerise TNT by binding the nitrogen somehow. He lost me completely. He wants to increase the stability during transport while increasing explosive power upon release. He's also working on a form of explosive he calls a two-component explosive. That one I understood better. According to him, the Ancients had made an explosive whose components were mixed at the release of the bomb and detonated on contact to each other; as long as they were separate, they were stable."

***

The abdication of Bjorn took place immediately after the Royal Reminder on the supremacy of Atlantean laws over customary laws. Bjorn found himself sitting in two Privy Councils, much to his amazement. For the first time in his life, he fathomed the complexity of keeping the Atlanteans all on the same page and the delicate balancing act Harold had been doing all those years. Timor got crowned, but given his young age, he got assistance in the fine art of governance from the other kings.

"We are two days from the invasion date. Harp, have you done a scanning of the tunnels?"

"Yes dad, they are being filled in as we speak. It will not be delayed anymore."

"When will the ice tunnel be booby-trapped?"

"We are starting today. I do not think the glaciers will move much in the next few days, especially since the temperature outside is in the minus twenty range in the lower valleys and reaches minus fifty in altitude. Our only problem is the weather. It's snowing hard and the visibility is non-existent. The wind is terrible, even if we do the flying in the stratosphere. The orcs are sleeping soundly, secure in their glaciers and rock tunnels, but it won't last."

"Is their second wave ready to move in?"

"Yes. They are hidden in their backup tunnels waiting for their first wave to move out on us. I'll activate the triggers the moment the tunnels are vacated by the first wave. The collapse will crush the second. The average distance between the two tunnels is five miles, which they cover in thirty minutes."

"Have you found a third wave?"

"No, but it may just be that it is further away then we thought. Not that there is much space on the eastern border, but the other borders have lots of open, rather rocky areas where they could nest and hide."

"Good. Proceed. Put everyone on the mining task, Harp. I want it done within twenty-four hours. Then everyone sleeps. We may not have much of that for the next few weeks."