Fire - Betrayal (30 page)

Heading back to the dome, the Terreans were starting to question how Ben could be opening the portal
, and what had he done to allow himself control?

Loyally, they followed him into the indigo vortex running to keep up with him, and then stopp
ed at the portal.

The team quickly gathered their supplies and the portal frame and lined up with Ben centre again.  At once they were blown through the portal, landing high on a mountain. They looked out, and saw an amazing view of a bay
guarded by spectacular shaped mountains.

Then they looked up, and got the shock of their lives.  Above them was a huge statue of Christ – all 38 meters of him.  They were puzzled.  This was definitely not a natural wonder of the earth.  This statue of Jesus was man-made.  Why were they here?

Putting their question to the back of their minds, they hastily worked on placing the portal frame into position.  This portal was far too close to tourists for their liking, so they had to work fast, and get out of there.

Ben took them back through the portal, and out of the vortex to the dome, and then sat and pulled up the data on his laptop computer.

They were in Rio De Janeiro – Brazil, which
was
as a natural wonder of the world because of the amazing harbor, and the giant mountains that helped to deceive your eyes to make the harbour seem like a lake.

They had completed two portals today, but their day was not finished. Firstly, they must have the
analysis of their journeys for the day, and then throw up any ideas or questions that they may have.

And secondly, Ben planned to implant the heptagons into each one of their hands to test that they would work on any Terrean.

“Ben, I want to know how you suddenly gained control of the portal activity,
“said Jack,
“and I know that this is the question in all of our heads.”

Ben smiled at them.

“I came up with the crazy idea of placing the heptagon under the skin of our hands, so that the heptagon could never be lost and picked up by a human, and so that Terreans always had control of the portals where ever they were. Julia volunteered to be the first guinea-pig of my experiment, and it worked exceptionally well, so well that you guys didn’t even notice that she did not hold the heptagon in her fingers anymore.  Then I tried it, and more success. Today, my plan is for all of us to have the heptagon implanted under the skin on our right hand, and tomorrow we test them. I am very happy to report that we have almost completed our mission, and probably the next big step will the process of implanting the heptagons into the population of Une Autre Terre, and then educating them on the whereabouts of the portals, and what to expect if they find themselves there and survival tactics, and safe return to our world.”

The Warrior’s
partisans were thrilled about the progress of the mission.

Swiftly, they moved to their hanger, where they all underwent the quick procedure, with Ben tracing his finger over the incision line to heal it.

They agreed to meet early tomorrow to complete the last portal, and then in pairs, to test out their implants.

Greeting the new day with enthusiasm, they met at the dome, and entered the violet vortex
, the last of the portals to be manipulated.

Josiah was the centre of the line for this one, and at Ben’s signal, opened the portal.

They found themselves catapulted out onto snow again in the darkness of the night.  The temperature subzero.  And when they looked up, they saw some amazing colors in the night sky.

While they worked diligently fitting the portal frame, Ben plotted the portal on his computer map and googled night lights.

They were in Alaska, and witnessing the amazing sight of the Northern Lights.

Endeavoring to keep warm the Terreans were gob
-smacked at the dancing lights in the night sky. But, they wanted to get out of the deep freezer.  They were not clothed for weather such as this.

This time, Jade was in control of the portal, and, success again.

Returning to the dome, Ben instructed them to go in pairs and really test out their heptagon implants.  He would remain in the dome, and they were to report to him whenever they re-entered their world.  If they could not return, he would come to track them down and return them safely back home.

Following the Great Warrior’s instructions, the partisans thoroughly tested out the devices for the control of the portals.  Their design and construction at each portal had been executed with precision, and was declared fail proof.

Ben instructed his team to take the rest of the day off to celebrate, while he went to the Council of Elders to report on the progress of the mission.

As he walked through the thick green rainforest, Ben formulated the next plan of attack, and hence, another step closer to breaking his bonds of duty to Une Autre Terre.

Then confidently, Ben stood before The Council.

“Our Great Warrior, we have not heard from you for a while.  We sense that it is good news that you have come to deliver to us,”
said the Highest Elder.

“
Yes, I stand before you to deliver good news.  With the help of my partisans, we have successfully gained full control over the opening and closing of the seven portals.  I have identified them on a world map of the Earth, and added a GPS tracking system.  We discovered that a particular shape cut from the opal seeds of The Magnificent Tree of the Earth, allowed us to open the portals at our own free will.  That shape is called a heptagon.  It is a seven sided polygon.  After a while, my mind was led to the thought of inserting the heptagon under the skin of the right hand.  That way, it could not be lost, and could not be misused in any way shape or form by Earth humans.  Nobody can enter or leave a portal without the heptagon.  Therefore, no human from the Earth can ever accidentally fall into one of our portals ever again,
“ Ben reported with authority.

“Ben, do you have a heptagon implanted into your hand, and, if so, may we look at it and feel it?”
  asked the older woman Elder.

“Certainly,”
replied Ben as he walked over and let them explore his hand.

“Impressive.”

“I sense that the mission is not completed yet Ben.  In your wisdom, what do you believe needs to be done next, to further ensure the safety of our world and our people?”
asked the Highest Elder.

”In my opinion
Your Highest, I believe that every Terrean must have the heptagon implanted into their right hand.  It is a very simple and painless procedure. It may save their lives one day. They also need to be educated about the seven portals, where they are, what they will see if they find themselves there, and what to do to return to Une Autre Terre, including how to survive in the Earth world. Once these things are instigated, them my mission is more than completed. Une Autre Terre is safe from invasion, and our people have been educated to survive,”
Ben explained.

“You are very thorough Ben, and your
Earth knowledge has served you well. When do you plan on starting the heptagon implants?”
  asked the Highest Elder.

“Within the next couple of days, I will inform our people through a
hologram, explaining everything in detail that has occurred, and reassuring the people.  If you would approve of this plan,”
said Ben, bowing his head.

“Granted.  You may leave now Warrior.”

Ben exited the Council of Elders room, and set to work at once.  He wanted to set the plan into action quickly so that he could return to the Earth to find Cate.

As Ben predicted, the heptagon clinics were up and running in two days. He was helped by his
partisans and many others who had the gift of medicine and healing.  After two weeks, all Terreans had been implanted with the heptagon, and many workers were knowledgeable on how to insert the heptagon under the skin.

Education was the final frontier in his mission. He utilized their own technology to inform the Terreans of the portals, and survival.  He
created holograms that could be projected anywhere they were needed.  He even designed a simple thin pocket guide that they could use, that would be at their disposable at all times.

Exhausted, Ben lay on the bed of his pod and reflected on everything that he had done.  He was searching for loopholes in his work from the beginning to the end.  He was ensuring that everything they had done was fail
proof.

After considerable deliberation, he was confident that the mission was absolutely and infallibly completed.  His Warrior mission had been executed and accomplished.

The chains that bound him to Une Autre Terre had
now been broken.  He was free, after he reported to the Council of Elders for the final time.

Now without burden, Ben fell into a deep sleep that would last for two days, during which his body regenerated new cells and new nerve connections, and healed.

Attraction

It wasn’t the bright moonshine
flooding my room keeping me awake, nor the familiar ache in my heart as I pined for Ben.  It was because of Nic. He had stirred something inside of me…in a good way, and it made me nervous.

E
xcitement and guilt dwelt in me at the same time. Excitement at the connection that I had felt forming that night, but guilt that I was being unfaithful to Ben, by liking another man.

I
t was impossible to remove Ben from my head.  I loved him so, so deeply. Although I knew that we could never be together again.  I had to tell myself it was okay to move forward with my own life.  I was entitled to happily ever after, wasn’t I?

Ben
.  I sighed and held the pain in my chest, sadness creeping over me, and I wished that sleep would come.  But it did not.

As the orange rays of the sun peeped out from the east and danced into my room, I escaped from my bed,
dressed in my pink bloom long beach sarong dress and headed to the beach for a change of scenery – the fresh salty air, the blue calming water and the rhythmic swoosh as the waves washed ashore – these would soothe my soul, I was sure of it.

The day was glorious, cloudless
, peaceful.

But I was greeted by an overcrowded car park and people everywhere.  So much for my private living connection to the Earth elements!

I decided to go and see what the major commotion was about.  Then I saw them.  The guys in their bodysuits that hugged their muscular frame like a glove, and the racing bikes that looked like they were built from the future.

A loud hooter infiltrated the atmosphere.  I looked towards the ocean and saw a large group of swimmers trying to exert their dominance in the water.
At first, they were crowded up as if they were a pack of sardines, then as they continued to swim, the strong swimmers took the lead, out and around the orange floating buoy, then back into the beach, where they ran to the bike transition area, put on their bike helmets and then began the cycling leg of the triathlon.

It was then that
I saw him.  Nic was up with the leaders, coming fourth.  His face was dogged with determination.

I
watched as he mounted his racing bike and unleashed his strength and power on the pedals to push the bike to the limits.  I looked around me, my mind a blur with so many people abuzz with excitement at the event.

So this was a triathlon, Nic’s professional sport.  What attracted him to it?  Why did he enjoy it?

I strolled through the sporting venue, and caught a glimpse of a large screen that televised the cycling. Nic was spectacular, his athletic body perfection.  I drew in a sharp breath.

Nic what are you doing to me
?

Then all of a sudden, the crowd rose to their feet and walked quickly to the bike transition area again.  The
competitors dismounted their bikes, roughly placing the bikes in the racks, removed their helmets, shoved their sports shoes on and ran off at a very fast pace.

Nic, you are beautiful…..I could easily fall in love with you…..

As soon as the last elite competitor had left on the run, the crowd returned to the big screen to watch the competitors duel out the final leg of the triathlon.

After 30 minutes
, the crowd rose to their feet and walked to the finish line of the race.  Within five minutes the leaders were in view – three of them, pushing themselves to the limit, pain evident on their faces.

As they entered the final one hundred metres, one of the three accelerated, digging deep for the final burst of energy to get him over the line.  It was Nic with his white cap and dark sunglasses.  The crowd screamed his name, encouraging him on, clapping and cheering, pushing him first over the finish line.  Nic slowed his sprint to a slow jog,
as he crossed the finish line first and then stopped and turned around to welcome his fellow competitors, shaking their hands in congratulations as they completed the course.