The trip towards the warp gate was quick and grueling. Milo was not out of shape by any means, but he was not an athlete either. The research facility was situated in a low-lying area and had an ugly, tanish-orange exterior. There was a large, automatic door on the side of the building where they approached. Trissie opened the electronic box next to the door, pulled the tip off of her left index finger, and stuck the short metal rod under her finger into a keyhole in the box. A green light lit up on the box and the door opened. The inside of the facility was very dark as there were no windows, and it didn't appear that it had been abandoned for very long.
"Follow me" Trissie said shining lights from the palms of her hands onto her feet so everyone could see where she was going. A few times Milo felt himself bumping into someone else and felt someone hit him from behind.
"We're going down a flight of stairs, watch out" Trissie's voice said through the darkness. She opened a door to a stairwell and walked down, towards the underground level. In the large room in the underground level is where it was…two large, black columns with a black arch over the top of it. Like a lot of gray devices, it looked pretty simple and didn't appear to have any kind of controls or buttons on it.
"Whoever has the cylinder, give it to me" Trissie said with the two lights from the palms of her hands pointing upwards, illuminating only her face. Milo felt someone brush past him. He could barely make out Clyde giving the cylinder to Trissie.
She took the cylinder and slid it into the bottom of the rod's handle and twisted it into place. Just a few seconds later, there was a mild rumbling under the floor, and a bright, brilliant blueish white light from the arch that lit up the entire room.
"Can this thing be used indoors?" Milo asked
"Yes" Trissie said. "This is not a worm hole or any kind of space-time distortion device. It's a metaphysical device." Everyone in the group said nothing, but was just standing there in pure awe. The room was lit up as bright as day.
"We need to go now" Trissie said and she walked through the portal and seemed to disappear.
"Well, I guess it beats being taken prisoner" Clyde walking into the gate with his eyes closed and a wince. Milo went next. He closed his eyes and walked through the gate. He had a very bizarre sensation as he walked through, as if his body were becoming bloated in a painless way. The sensation lasted for only a second or so until he realized he was on the other side. He arrived in a room with white marble walls and a very fancy red rug over a white marble floor. It resembled something from medieval times, but was lit up with modern lighting. Gradually, everyone else followed Milo through the gate until six bodies had traveled through it. When they were all through, Trissie pointed the two prongs of the key at the gate and the light completely evaporated, revealing a similar arch-like object that was found in the research facility.
"Well" Kayla said breaking the silence of the group. "I suppose this place doesn't seem too threatening."
All of the sudden, the sound of footsteps could be heard coming from the corridor on the other side of the gate. A short, young, brown-haired man appeared in the door way.
"This is Marcus" the man said into a radio communicator. "Someone has come in through one of the warp gates!" he said excitedly. "Yes, I'm sure, looks like three men, two women, and a gray!" A voice could be heard on the radio, but couldn't be deciphered. "Yes, I'm certain!" he said.
"Have you come here to take us back to the Milky Way, or perhaps you, gray, are one of the metaphysicists?"
"No" Cubork said finally taking charge to speak for the group. "To make a long story short, we're on the run and need shelter for a brief while." The young man put his radio back on his hip, seeming interested more than disappointed.
"Come with me" the man said. "I think that Carlton would very much like to meet all of you." He turned around and walked very quickly, going through many different corridors. The building was beautifully decorated and seemed very large. It felt like a medieval castle with gray tech inside it. Milo was still tired from the rush to get to the research facility, but was too fascinated to care. The young man led them to a small chapel with about a dozen pews. They all took a set near the front row.
"Carlton will be here shortly" the young man said turning around and leaving practically at a running pace.
"Trissie" Cubork said, "what is this place?" the gray asked.
"I don't have anything in my memory about it. To date no one who has crossed over to this side has returned, at least to my knowledge." Shortly after she made that comment, the sound of the door to the chapel closing from behind filled the room and footsteps could be heard from behind where they were seating. Milo turned around and saw a familiar-looking black man with glasses, an individual that he had only seen through photographs. It couldn't be…
"Welcome" the man said in a voice he recognized from speeches he had seen on videos "to the Cathedral of Light." He walked down the pews and shook the hands of every one of them.
"Is this an android or some kind of trick?" Cubork asked clearly recognizing the man's face and his voice.
"No" Trissie said. "I can feel his pulse and I can detect circulation in the blood vessels of his eye."
"Or perhaps some kind of clone?" Cubork posited.
"No" the man said. "I am Carlton Carver, otherwise known as Saint Vernon, though I haven't been feeling overly saintly in quite a while. I have been preserved all these years from aging by gray nano-devices that clean up cellular aging. "
"So this is where you and the missing members of your church fled?" Milo asked.
"Yes" Carver said.
"It's really pretty nice" Milo said looking around at the fanciness and attention to detail in the rooms.
"Not once you get outside and see the type of world we live in" Carver said glumly. "When we came here we were met with an even worse fate. We walked right into the domain of the Star Viper Clan and their leader, Scythe. They completely rule over us and control our lives."
"Well, we've assembled the key rod!" Milo said. "All of you can come back with us through the portal. Things aren't nearly as bad back on our side! We just scored a victory over the reptilia attempting to run humans out of their expansion worlds!" Carver shook his head.
"That is entirely too risky to be an option" Carver said.
"Why?" Milo asked. Carver put both of his hands on the barrier in front of the front pew, taking a second to gather his thoughts.
"That rod that that android over there has" he said looking over at Trissie "is what the Star Viper Clan has been hunting desperately for a while now. I assume that by now you know about the temple on the planet Marzala. That temple is basically a warp gate, but it's a gate large enough to bring ships through between Andromeda and the Milky Way. If you think you've got problems with the reptilia now, they are the least of your concerns if Scythe gets a hold of that key and is able to send his ships over to your side. If they discover you have the key, it would cost every person on your side dearly."
"The Fire Flower clan just reunited with the warrior clans and they've got at least a dozen ships with xenon plasma batteries. We've kept them in check so far. The royal armada is really strong now."
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"If a few dozen of those ships are a problem for you now, then I promise you the kingdom wants no part of the Star Viper Clan. They are almost surely more powerful and advanced than the reptilia in the Milky Way. My advice to you would be to go back through the portal and then destroy the key by burning it. It's too late for most of us over here."
"Are the metaphysicsts not here?" Cubork said interrupting Carver's thoughts.
"Haven't seen or heard from them since they arrived here" Carver said. "I figure they're still somewhere on your side or somehow Scythe has forced them to create technology for them."
"What happened to the Carlton Carver I read about that believed in spreading hope?" Milo said with a real feeling of disappointment.
"Young man" Carver said calmly. " I don't believe in blind hope, only in being meticulous at finding it. I've been around for quite a long time, as you know. I've had more hours to sit and ponder and think through things than you have. If I and a select few could go back through the gate to your side, but that won't do the hundreds of thousands that live in this city any good. Nor would it do good to try and evacuate us through the ship gate. That would be entirely too conspicuous as the reptiles watch us too closely."
"Are you sure that there's nothing we can do?" Milo asked. "I have connections with people in the Union Intelligence, and they might be able to come up with something."
"I doubt that" Carver said shaking his head. "But if you really feel that you want to do something, I suppose there is one remote hope."
"What is it?" Milo asked eagerly.
"I have the metaphysicist's star charts of both the Milky Way and Andromeda" Carver said, "but it's in gray binary data and I don't have a device that can read it. Do you know how to read it?" Carver asked looking at Cubork.
"No, sorry" Cubork said shaking his head. "I don't have a device either. Gray binary is all but extinct"
"There is one individual who I know could, but I have no idea if by now he isn't either dead or in some secret royal prison somewhere" Carver said.
"Who?" Milo asked eagerly.
"Frik Heridik. He's got cellular immortality just as I do, though that doesn't mean he isn't dead. Being immune to aging doesn't make you indestructible. If he is alive he probably keeps a low profile." Milo suddenly had a complete epiphany.
"No" Milo said. "But let's just say I've got a strong suspicion of who it might be."
"You think Dover is Heridik?" Kayla interrupted.
"Why not?" Milo asked. "He has that grudge against the Royal Ministry of Science and his apparent connection with the metaphysicsts."
"That sounds like him" Carver said sounding somewhat interested.
"So what can be done after we read the star charts?" Milo asked.
"The metaphysicsts charted many of the worlds suitable for life to inhabit and most of the safest SPG pathways to get between them" Cubork said. "But they didn't reveal all of them. Every person on this side can settle one of these worlds there and it would probably take the Star Viper forces centuries to find them."
"Correct" Carver said. "Getting everyone here to such a world would be tricky as the reptiles keep a close eye on what space travel we do, but it's doable and once we're there we might be able to warp everyone back to the Milky Way en masse."
"We'll do it" Milo said.
"I don't want you to assume the burden of helping us, especially if it will place your side at risk. There is not a lot that could save us on this side, but there is still hope for your people. As a matter of fact, all of you should be going back to your galaxy as soon as you can. We can't run the risk of them finding you here. They will know you don't belong here."
"Mr Carver" Cubork said, "I would at least suggest you bring an emissary from your side over to ours with us."
"I will send one" Carver said nodding his head. "My most trusted confidant, Skyler Holmes. The smaller the number of people there are that know that the key has been assembled, the better off we are. And don't even think about attempting an assault on Scythe. That would probably be the absolute worse decision you could make" Carver said firmly. Carver turned to walk to his left, away from where the group was sitting, seeming to be in deep thought. The soft screech of the door at the rear of the chapel sounded again.
"Nicholas" Carver said talking to the young man that had met them all at the gate. "Go tell Skyler to pack his bags. He's going back to the other side with our guests." The young man nodded his head and closed the door.
"Young man" Carver said turning to Milo, "I would like to talk to you for a moment in my study. I will give you the disk with the map on it. The rest of you, head back down to the warp gate and get ready to depart. I'm sorry I could not offer more hospitality." They all got up almost immediately and headed for the back for from which they came. Milo followed Carver through a locked door at the front and across several corridors and up about two stories to a door marked with Carver's name. Carver opened the door to what was clearly a living quarters more than a study. He led Milo into a room with lots of drawers and shelves containing various assorted items.
"Are you really serious about trying to get the map to Frik?" Carver asked.
"I will do whatever I can to get it to him. The elf I mentioned before is either him or might be the one guy who can read the star charts. This elf is in charge of the organization founded by Grithmeer."
"Well" Carver said in a hopeful tone for the first time, "that really sounds promising. I can't tell you how much I appreciate this. I just wish that I could share this newfound hope with the people."
"Mr Carver" Milo said.
"Call me Carlton" he said.
"Carlton…" Milo added correcting himself, "when I was at an elf-ran resort they took some blood to genotype me and when I managed to get a hold of the report it said I had a Carver Neurotype. I suppose that's named after you?" Now Carver appeared to be really interested.
"It is" he said. "I bet the Royal Humanology Institute attempted to try a 'cure' on you?"
"Yes" Milo answered, "and I narrowly escaped that cure."
"You know" Carver said, "there's an old terrestrial-age word for people like us. They called us 'autistic'. We were responsible for many of the great scientific and artistic achievements of that age. "
"You don't need to stretch the truth to try and make me feel better" Milo said.
"It is the truth" Carver retorted. "Allow me to tell the brief history of hominids that Grithmeer himself once told me. When the metaphysicists arrived in the Milky Way, they discovered the metaphysical organism Gaia, in which you could say they mistakenly gave their trust. She directed the grays to Earth and to create a new species using the human genome as a base."
"You're saying they created the elves under Gaia's direction."
"Yes" Carver said. "The new species didn't have a lot of the flaws of our species, yet paradoxically, with this perfection came certain limitations. It's in imperfection in which real genius – creative and innovative genius – comes from. That is why the humanology institute is so fascinated by and also very fearful of people like us. We are the side effects of the flaws in our own genome." For a moment Milo said nothing, trying to take all of this information in, before realizing he did not have enough time to unpack it and that his time with Carver was limited.
"Carlton, what do you know about Nadarska" Milo asked?
"Not a whole lot" Carver said searching through a couple of his drawers. "Grithmeer never talked much about him, other than to say he's basically a weak adversary of Gaia. I assume there's a particular reason why you're asking this?" he added.
"Apparently, I have the ability to communicate with him in a dream-like state in my sleep when he needs to talk to me" Milo said. Carver stopped what he was doing to look at Milo with his jaw opening a bit.
"Incredible" he said. "And what is he like?"
"He has been very helpful to me" Milo said.
"That's good for you" Carver said resuming his search. "When his talisman was destroyed Grithmeer never bothered to make another one. I kind of assumed he was pretty limited." Carver took what appeared to be about an 8-inch ceramic figurine from a drawer and smashed it on the floor. He picked up a small, black disk on the ground and handed it to Milo. He put his hand on Milo's shoulder.
"Here is the disk" Carver said. "Good luck, and I don't think you can really comprehend the level of gratitude that I have for you."
"You are a personal hero of mine, Mr. Carver. I will gladly help you out" he said extending his arm and shaking his head. The both walked back down to the basement where the warp gate was. Matt was there, seeming completely intimidated and seeming traumatized and not sure of what to do. Kayla was talking to Clyde. He noticed that Trissie wasn't there. He didn't have long to think about it before the warp gate lit up again with a large, blueish-white light again and Trissie walked back through the gate with the key.
"Cubork, everything looks clear" she said. "The reptiles seem to have left. Our ship had all of its communications removed and engines destroyed. But I am pretty sure that we can commandeer Drake's ship and Michelle, too."
"Great Trissie" Cubork said. "Well, I guess it's time for us to wrap up our little visit here. We wish all of you here the best, Mr. Carver."
"Give my hopes and well wishes to all on your side" Carver replied. "Good luck. The hopes of our side are with you. "
"So who is going to take the key" Cubork asked.
"Take it to Dalton Dover's deep-space laboratory" Milo said without any delay at all. "It is probably the safest place in the galaxy for it."
"I concur" Cubork said. Carlton Carver said his goodbyes to Skyler, and one-by-one, they all went back through the gate. On the other side, the lights were on in the research facility.
"The communication tower is online here" Trissie told Milo. "You and the other humans can contact the military base on the northeast continent and they will come and get you. We will get Drake's ship running and take the key to Dalton Dover."
"You will be all right?" Milo asked him.
"Oh yes" Cubork said. "Between me and Trissie and Michelle's mind we can get it working again. Drake actually had a pretty nice vessel." And just like that, they were gone.
Kayla walked over to Milo and hugged him with what seemed to be all her might. "We made it" she said. "It looks like we're going to be all right." Milo felt an overwhelming calm in his body.