Eye of Ra (14 page)

“Actually, my dad used to tell me that people who constantly used curse words did not have anything intelligent to say,” he huffed.

“Your father is very wise,” it answered.

They finally stood before another round door that split apart upon their approach. Laurence stepped through into a room that served as part memorial and part armory.

He briefly glanced at the Annunaki armor, shields, staffs, energy swords, handguns and rifles. He was never that interested in weapons. His eyes were more focused on the two large objects forged in gold and silver with multiple colors that were connected to separate casings against a wall. Each pulsated with a white glow from an unknown power source.

What made him a moth to their flames were the faces etched on each of them.

As he neared them, his footsteps became heavier as if a planetary force was pushing him backwards. He weathered it with a pounding heart in order to stand before them.

“Are those sar…sar…?” an amazed Laurence attempted to find the right words.

“Sarcophaguses,” it answered. “They hold the cryogenic remains of Osiris the third and Set the third.”

 He strolled closer to them, raising a hand to touch the metallic gold, silver and mostly green coffin that held the corpse of a visitor from another world known as a mythical Egyptian god on Earth. He held his hand inches away from the metal out of reverence.

“Where’s Amun-Ra?” he asked.

“He chose not to have his remains preserved upon this transport,” answered the familiar.

“So where they at?”

“Upon his final command, I erased the location of his remains.”

“How come?” He furrowed his brow.

“Because he commanded it,” it said flatly.

He answered it back with another curious look, uncomfortable with its response. It would be another topic to be continued later as something else caught the corner of his eyes and pulled away him from the remains of his otherworldly ancestors.

Once again he moved with veneration to a different part of the armory. He swallowed as he stood before three tall glass cylinders that went to the ceiling. Each sat on top of a golden base with alien hieroglyphics that emitted a reddish color. Each cylinder housed a full set of unique armor that appeared to have a splash of ancient Egyptian fashion, but was clearly from another planet.

Each set came with a helm, faceplate, chest plate, a pair of bracers, a metallic belt skirt, and a pair of greaves with sandals. As he examined them, he was sure that the metal and crystal parts were similar to what his familiar was made from.

He first examined Osiris’ armor, with a silver helm and a golden sculpture of a cobra similar to ancient pictures of the god Osiris he had seen in history books. However, the drawings seemed to have been over-exaggerated. He then shuffled to Set’s menacing black, gold and red armor, with a helm depicting an animal that looked like a cross between a rat and a horse head with boxy rabbit ears that stood straight up.

“Set seemed like he was a real badass,” Laurence uttered. “Especially with this funky head piece.”

“Some Annunaki warriors forged the faceplates of their helm into the images of their fathers or mothers,” the familiar explained. “It was said to provide reassurance that the paternal member they chose was with them, especially in battle. Other warriors choose animals, which was mainly used as an intimidation tactic.”

“What’s the animal on Set’s helm?” he pointed.

“It is an image of the Ardimento-Si,” it answered, “Best described on your planet as a revered national animal, similar to your country’s bald eagle.”

“Question, how come you look like a cobra?” he turned toward the familiar.

“I am actually modeled after a Seni.” It answered. “Similar counterpart to the Earth reptilian, except it is five times larger than your planet’s adult version, has a bite which is much deadlier and its “hood” can expand allowing it to glide. It is also kept as a domesticated pet on Anu.”

He nodded and prayed he never ran into a Seni.

“What is the real story with you familiars?” He changed the subject.

“Familiars were constructed as tools to give aide in various situations such as counsel, research, defense, and combat. Our primary order is loyalty and servitude to our designated masters without fail. There are several classes of familiars, of which I am the most powerful, reserved only for the Eyes, Heads of House, and Secondary Heads of House. This is primarily because my class is infused with Awakening energy.

 
I am able to function, process, and calculate on a quantum level. I am also capable of harnessing and manipulating every known energy source in the universe, executing multiple dimensional jumps to any known quadrant of the universe, as well as creating dimensional tethers to harness additional energy from power sources such as stars, dark matter, and black holes when needed.”

“You could destroy … this whole planet, if you wanted to,” he swallowed.

“Yes, I can if ordered to do so, although I suspect that I am obsolete by now?”

“What do you mean obsolete?” He nervously chuckled.

“Before leaving Anu, there was research implemented to create a type of familiar armor specifically for the Head of House.”

“Familiar armor?” He wrapped his brain around the name while pointing. “Basically something like you …combined with these.”

“Correct, the combat capabilities and destructive output of such a concept is calculated to be on a near planetary level without the need to siphon from any additional source. I suspect they have already been developed since my time here on Earth, making my model and these versions of armor outdated and obsolete.” It deduced.

Laurence slowly turned to position himself in front of the cylinder casing that held the armor of Amun-Ra. His familiar raised the cylinder allowing him access to it. With an extended hand, he began to reverently touch and examine its different parts.

The headdress helm was gold and red with a Seni sculpture protruding from the top of it. The face plate, which was down, depicted a humanoid face constructed out of a gold material. The chin guard was a long golden braided beard similar to the Pharaohs of old. The chest plate was large with shoulder pads. A red crystallized creature akin to a beetle was displayed on the chest plate, while attached to the back was a long golden tail that looked like it belonged to a scorpion.

The belt skirt was also gold with hieroglyphics etched into the metallic straps. The skirt part was in two pieces. The main skirt was made of a gold and tan material with the feel of silk, while the second skirt was longer and covered the front and rear. It was thick and had the weight of leather. On top of the front red skirt was a sculpted emblem of a creature similar to an eagle with its wings expanded. Hanging from its claws were six golden plates with hieroglyphic etchings.

The bracers were constructed of a gold metallic and brown crystalline material, while the greaves were made of the same gold material adorned with red crystal. On the knees of each of the greaves was the same red beetle displayed on the chest plate. They were attached to open toe sandals.

“This looks all hot and all,” Laurence scoffed. “But this doesn’t seem like it’s protecting much.”

“The armor has not been activated yet.” The familiar answered. “You must first don it, so that it can synch with you. Once synchronization has been completed, it will go into sentry mode upon your command.” 

“So I can put it on?” He turned to it.

“If you wish,” confirmed the familiar. “However, you will have to remove your current article of clothing.”

Like a child about to play with a toy on Christmas, Laurence quickly removed his sweats. He started with the bracers and greaves, followed by the skirt belt; next came the chest plate and finally the helm. He did it in the same order he’d put on his football gear before hitting the field. Disappointment came over his face. Although he had an extremely large and imposing figure, the armor was clearly meant for a much larger being, especially with the belt skirt that sagged a bit around his waist.

“I look straight up retarded,” he sighed preparing to take it off.

“Please remain still as synchronization begins,” instructed the familiar.

Laurence arched his back a bit as he felt a tingling sensation on his spinal column. He shuddered in shock as parts of the chest plate configured to fit him properly while the malleable belt skirt constricted to fit snugly around his waist. The bracers, greaves, and helm were the last to fall into place conforming to his size and shape. A smile grew on his face admiring the smooth fit of the once-baggy armor.

It lasted for second. A thick silver metallic liquid seeped out of the armor pieces and began to coat his bare skin.

“Ow! Yo! What? What is this?!” He screamed.

“Please remain still, this is part of the synchronization,” emphasized the familiar. “Your armor is bonding to you.”

“Bonding my ass! What is this yo?”

“Your armor consists of three main materials,” began the familiar, “The gold-colored material is called Alder, one of the three hardest metals in the known universe. The red crystal is called Ember, equally as durable and known for its ability to absorb Awakening energy. The substance coating your form is known as Menos, a metallic organism.”

“This thing is alive?” Laurence quaked while fighting to remain still.

“Correct,” answered the familiar, “it was conditioned to bond symbiotically with its wearer and serve as a protective outer coating. It is also highly durable, but is best known for its pliability, strength enhancement, and regenerative properties.”

“It can heal itself?” An astonished Laurence asked.

 “It is a living organism,” it responded. It is also one of the few living organisms in the universe that can absorb and conduct energy, increasing the armor’s physical strength as a whole.”

  “You said this thing has a symbiotic bond with me.” Laurence swallowed, “So what am I giving it in return for protecting me?”

“Nourishment,” answered the familiar.

“This thing is eating me?” he screamed. “Oh hells no, get it off! Get it …”

He attempted to pull the material off his left bicep, but it stuck to his hand and oozed through his fingers, slithering up his arm to bond with the material on the other parts of his body.

“Please remain still and calm during the bonding process,” reiterated the familiar. “The nourishment the Menos requires from you is not physically fatal to your well-being.”

“So what the hell is it eating off of me?”  Laurence shuddered demanding to know.

“The Menos mostly feeds on bacteria and hair follicles located on the epidermis of your skin,” explained the familiar.

“Say what?” he cocked an eyebrow, “It’s eating my hair?”

“Correct,” it confirmed. “The ingestion process is extremely slow. One two-minute feeding session can last a Menos two months before it feeds again. This armor’s Menos will be feeding a bit longer on you since it has not fed in quite some time.”

“Wait …hold up,” Laurence screwed up his face. “Wasn’t its last ‘feeding session’ when Amun-Ra wore it?”

“That is also correct,” the familiar replied.

“That was like several friggin thousand years ago man!” He yelled. “And this thing ain’t starved to death?”

“If it has not fed after a certain period of time, the Menos goes into a type of hibernation mode until its next feeding session,” explained the familiar. “Its feeding is not ravenous to the point of causing injury or fatality. Many have claimed it to be therapeutic and a regular beauty regimen on Anu.”

“Do I look like the type of dude that gets his nails did?” He barked. “Oh…oh shit…it’s going into my draws!”

“As you recognized, it has not fed in a while.”

Laurence became fascinated as the metal organism that now coated his entire body began to harden, shaping itself to match his body and creating a second skin. The organism stopped at his neck forming a collar and at his wrists creating sleeves. He looked down at his feet as the Menos covered them, creating a split-toe boot that was similar to Japanese tabi shoes.

Finally, the scorpion tail attached to the back of his armor made the sound of clanking metal as it rose, coiling up over his head as if to strike. It lowered back down to a resting position as he raised his arms and lifted a knee, amazed at how fluidly the Menos now moved along with it. It truly felt like a hardened second skin despite feeling as light as a feather.

“Now this is off the chain,” he grinned.

“Urban slang meaning that you approve?” the familiar asked.

“Oh yeah, was even worth the bikini wax. Wait a minute,” Laurence turned to the familiar. “The way you change shape, is that because you have some Menos within you?”

“Negative. My shell and housing is comprised of eight million movable platelets which I cybernetically control,” it answered back. “This allows me to change shape, or increase or decrease both my size and density as required.”

“That’s hot,” he nodded.

“Are you referring to the temperature within the room, or the urban slang?” the familiar asked.

“Uh …slang.”