3000 years before The Verant Chronicles

Two figures sat before a bizarre instrument panel that appeared, at first glance, carved from the finest alabaster stone. Strange twinkling red and white lights illuminated the control panel lighting up the figure’s almond shaped faces. Framed within long straight dark hair, their unnatural eyes seemed murky pools of blackness devoid of whites or pupils reflecting the lights like a dark mirror. Their skin was impossibly pale and powdery in a way that was simply not human. In the center of their foreheads a small polished black stone was embedded, surrounded by a shining steel ring. The stones reflected with the same brilliance as their eyes. One figure leaned back in the leathery chair; thin black lips pulled tight and the light breath drew in through a nose that was more like two slits than nostrils. They had ears pulled back into long points like an elf, hidden beneath their sleek black hair. Their chins came down to a sharp rounded tip, protruding forward ever-so slightly. The strange humanoid-looking creatures could have been twins, appearing nearly identical.

The one wore a set of headphones with a microphone projecting forward against the right cheek. Long thins finger rested gently on a set of controls. The fingernails were painted black and pointed like the claws of some fantastic animal.

They both wore long flowing crimson robes with high pointed collars, made from a light airy fabric that seemed to almost float around them as if they drifted in an imaginary breeze. Both humanoids wore gold pendants with purple stones hanging from them that glowed with internal brilliants.

Through the glass window above the instruments, the countryside below could be seen drifting by as the craft glided silently along. The sun loomed high overhead. The large triangular shaped ship had the unnatural appearance of being made from white marble, but the true nature of the material was a closely guarded secret. A puffy white cloud drifted pass the window as the craft floated high over a snow topped mountain range.

“We should be arriving in Karnak in approximately four hours,” The one stated in a distinctly feminine voice that was both flat and emotionless.

“I’ll set the controls for autopilot. The Empress is requesting that everyone assemble in the conference room,” The one with the headphones stated in a more masculine voice. He pressed a few buttons which beeped softly before removing the headset and setting it down on the console between them.

“Celestial, this could be the end, the final battle. Can we really fight the Gods and win?” The female asked turning mechanically to face her male counterpart.

“What choice do we have, Ariel? We are Enki, are we not?” Celestial replied turning towards her in a corresponding manner. “If this is our end, then so be it.”

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Their thin dark lips showed signs of both worry and fear.

They rose up from the control panel. Together they walked down a long corridor behind their seats. The whole interior of the ship was as gleaming white on the inside as on the out. The strange craft had no normal angles anywhere. All the walls appeared purposely built slightly askew, part of the peculiar architectural style of the ship. An eerie soft light filled the hallway, yet it seemed to have no source filling the space from all around.

They came to a large semi-circular room with several levels designed for auditorium seating. The seats were long red leather benches with contrasted brightly against the stark whiteness of the room itself. In the center was a small pure glass podium. There were about two dozen of the alien-like people assembled, along with a couple humans dressed in similar white cloaks and thick black leather collars with rings of steel dangling from them. The Enki towered over the humans, averaging seven feet tall. The Human stood less than six. Like Celestial and Ariel, the Enki all looked nearly identical with only a few subtle changes that revealed any difference at all, a slightly dissimilar shade of hair colour or forehead stone for example. However, they all wore the same identical crimson robes.

Shortly, the Empress came into the room and took her place behind the podium. She had the same styled robes, but of the deepest blood red. The stone in her forehead matched the colour of her robe precisely.

“Tell the humans to leave!” She commanded with the clear voice of leadership. “This meeting is for our people only. No slaves.”

Someone escorted the humans from the room. The double doors glided gently together shutting and locking the humans out. Everyone took a seat and waited assiduously. The air held a faint scent of electricity, like after a violent lightning storm. A sense of foreboding dark power filled the room.

“Soon we shall be reunited with our brothers and sisters in Karnak,” The Empress spoke without expression or emotion. “We are preparing for a great battle, it is fate. We can not escape it. We will have to confront the supreme beings that call themselves Gods. Their agents may already be waiting for us when we arrive. We do not know for certain. The Elves are refusing to fight with us, they have chosen to hide and cower instead. We gave them most of our humans to protect. The rest are dead or have fled, hiding in caves, I’m sure.”

She smiled awkwardly for the first time and there were a few chuckles at what was considered to be a mild joke. After a moment she held out her hands in a command of silence which was instantly obeyed. “We are on our own now. No other race will support us. For the most part our western forces have already fallen. The two warships, the Tyr-Gala and the Dega are still in action, but our communications are intermitted at best. The Gods have done a good job of splitting our forces, but not for much longer. Once we reach our homeland, we can prepare to face them with a much stronger force.”

The Enki gave each other grave looks, but not a word was spoken.

The Empress continued in her near monotone fashion. “I know that there is a lot of trepidation about the future, but I firmly believe that the advancements that we have made in the fields of genetics, engineering and physics could give us an advantage. Gods or not, our power is fast approaching their own and we greatly outnumber them. That is why they launched this war. Remember that. They fear us even more than we fear them. We are gathering the best and the brightest Enki that Gaia has ever seen. Once joined together, we can combine our powers and stop these supreme beings once and for all.”