Tablet of Destinies (2 page)

Remember this feeling, Tory Alexander, and draw upon it when you feel tempted to question your lot. You of all beings have no need to fear, and certainly no need to seek out one of my kind. For you have a direct link with Akasha, the full memory of Allied Logoi.

‘The Tablet of Destinies.' Tory began to fondle the small three-sided pyramid that hung on a chain about her neck.

This was made of the pinkish metal known as orichalchum, the strongest substance known to the ancient civilisations on Gaia. Taliesin, High Merlin of Briton, had given Tory the ancient divining tool before he'd ascended back towards the Logos to assume his
place in the higher scheme of things. As all had been so peaceful since setting foot on Kila fifty years ago, Tory had been given no reason to consult the sacred tool.

All people have the divine guidance of their Logos, but only you have access to the Central Sun of the Allied Chain Logoi.

‘The Central Sun?' Tory wondered out loud, and she was instantly blinded by a vision of a large whirling vortex in space. ‘The galaxy,' she clarified, whereupon she was overawed by her realisation. ‘I have access to the Akashic records of the entire physical galaxy!'

The Deva nodded surely.
And all that has, is and will take place therein.

M
aelgwn was taking lunch on the sunny balcony of the Governor's offices in between meetings of state when a strong sense of love and wellbeing washed over him and brought his wife to mind. He considered that perhaps Tory was putting out a subtle telepathic plea for him to take the afternoon off and spend some time in her company. On any other day Maelgwn would have indulged her, but the next meeting on his agenda he was very much looking forward to, as it had nothing to do with the affairs of state and everything to do with his higher purpose for being.

En Noah, Senior Historian at the Purcell Institute of Immortal History on Kila, had been a difficult man to
catch up with ever since Maelgwn had inspired him to explore his past-life incarnations in preparation for future events. Noah had rediscovered the druid, the revolutionary, and many other aspects of his past selves, and then departed on a six-month assignment in the western jungle continents of Kila from which he had just returned. His wife, Rebecca, was heading a taskforce there that guarded the native wildlife population against poachers, and Noah had chosen to work with her for a time. As a scholar, Noah's physical state of being had never really been in peak condition, and he hoped that by taking up his wife's cause he might hone his animal instincts and some of his warrior skills. This was certainly an abrupt lifestyle change for the historian after fifty years of lecturing at the Institute that bore his name in homage to his compilation of the complete history of the Chosen Ones.

Noah Purcell's
Chronicle of Ages,
although considered the definitive historical work by his fellow immortals, was incomplete. None of the Chosen had been selected from the earliest period of man's emergence into self-consciousness and thus none of them had conscious recollections of that time. In truth, few would wish to. Only a handful of the Chosen had been able to glimpse that primordial era of Homo sapiens' development. As with Noah's
Chronicles
, stored on a psychokinetic retrieval system and edited to suit the maturity and understanding of the student, it seemed Homo sapiens' memory was being censored also. Maelgwn was one of the few who had managed to peek into that part of the human collective consciousness
that held some recollection of the first self-aware human incarnation. Having gone to great lengths to study and record the Ages that the Chosen had spent on Gaia, Noah desired to know all that had happened there, as did Maelgwn.

The Governor had a higher purpose for wishing to rediscover the earliest eras of mankind's mental and spiritual infancy. Humankind's foster parents at this time had been an emotionally underdeveloped Devanic race known as the Nefilim. These entities with highly developed mental souls made manifest in a physical body had found the temptations of the flesh a bit too tempting and some had outstayed their welcome in the earthly realm. It was Maelgwn's destiny to pave the way for the overthrow of the Nefilim's interstellar rule of all the tribes classified as human, both immortal and otherwise.

Noah was aware of Maelgwn's ambitions, although the scholar was the only other soul, besides the Governor's wife, who knew about the looming cosmic conspiracy against the Nefilim.

Sybil, Secretary of State and Head Seer of the Chosen, stepped onto the balcony to inform Maelgwn that En Noah had arrived and was awaiting an audience.

‘Splendid,' announced Maelgwn, finishing off the last sip of his tea.

‘Shall I record all your transmissions this afternoon, in case you feel like a stroll with En Noah?' Sybil queried. ‘I gather you shall not be available for consultation for the remainder of the day.'

She smiled a knowing smile, which made Maelgwn wonder whether the seer had some idea of what the
forthcoming discussion was in regard to. ‘My very thoughts,' he confirmed.

‘I'll send En Noah through,' Sybil advised graciously and departed.

Maelgwn was very fond of his son's wife; she was very easy to work with and rarely needed instruction. She could easily have run the State office without any assistance; the department heads were constantly finding their requirements met by Sybil, oftentimes before they'd even realised their need.

The Governor rose as his historical advisor made his way to the balcony, and as Noah emerged from the darkness of indoors into the bright sunshine, Maelgwn could hardly believe the transformation.

In the historian-turned-warrior who neared, Maelgwn saw also the druid and the revolutionary that Noah had been in lives past. He was tanned and fit, and there was a new sense of purpose to his stride. Noah's long blonde hair had been shaved to near bald, but a neat beard and moustache now framed his mouth. His blue eyes sparkled with exhilaration from his adventures and his smile conveyed how pleased he was to present himself before Maelgwn as a completely changed man — one balanced in mind, spirit and body.

‘Governor, I didn't expect to be granted an audience immediately upon my return to the city.' Noah took hold of Maelgwn's extended hand and shook it firmly. ‘I am sure you have far more pressing business to attend to.'

The man's modesty amused Maelgwn. ‘There is no business more pressing than that which I have with you, En Noah.'

Noah's eyes opened wide with expectation. ‘Is it time?'

Maelgwn raised both eyebrows, avoiding broaching the topic in the present situation. ‘It's such a lovely day,' he commented, gazing up at the sparkling aquamarine atmosphere of the sky above. ‘Feel like joining me for a stroll?' He looked back to Noah, his expression more serious.

‘I'd be honoured.' Noah was curious as he fell in beside Maelgwn and accompanied him down the back stairs of Government House.

Noah kept pace with the Governor as he strode through the central city park towards the amphitheatre in the middle. Maelgwn was babbling on about staging another huge production to celebrate the New Year, but Noah realised this conversation was just to kill time until they got to wherever it was Maelgwn was leading him.

Beneath centre stage lay a myriad dressing rooms, props storage and so forth, but the Governor led him to a small cupboard beneath one of the many sets of stage stairs, which opened upon their approach in response to Maelgwn's mental command.

‘I didn't realise there was a door here.' Noah scratched his head, as he'd helped stage many a production in the past and had thought himself very familiar with the underlying area of Chaliada's outdoor theatre.

Maelgwn turned abruptly and held a finger to his lips to caution Selwyn against pursuing the topic. ‘
So
… I think we could cater for quite a large cast in this
area,' he commented, urging Noah to enter through the secret door, whereby Maelgwn closed it behind them.

They continued their mindless babble about a New Year's Eve production as they headed down a steep stairway and into a long corridor. Upon their approach a large section of the ceiling lit the modern access tunnel with a subtle mauve light. The lighting extended all the way down to the end of the corridor where there was a double set of Charichalum doors. This lightweight black metal was the strongest and densest substance in the known universe.

The doors vanished upon the Governor's mental command, and once Maelgwn and Noah had entered the large conference room beyond, the doors reappeared to seal them inside.

‘So, what do you think of our secret operations base?' Maelgwn turned a circle referring to the room around him. ‘We can speak freely here, as no one knows of its existence any more, not even the men who designed and built it. It is pretty much impenetrable, indestructible and bugproof. Even if you or I have been bugged, no transmission will penetrate these walls,' he announced, well proud of the setup.

Noah, although most impressed by the Governor's foresight and vision, couldn't really see the need for such measures. ‘No offence, Governor, but this is not the Dark Ages. Couldn't we have just removed our thought-wave neutralisers and communicated telepathically? After all, no one can monitor the telepathic process from a distance.'
Or,
Noah thought,
there could be things
the Governor is not telling me and therefore does not want to risk opening his mind to me.

‘Out of sight, out of mind,' Maelgwn replied, removing the thought-wave neutraliser from his wrist and casting it on the table. ‘Ah,' he sighed, so liberated that he began removing all the remaining electronic paraphernalia from his person: weapons, communication devices, thought-recorders and even his all-terrain boots. The Governor was left wearing only his trousers and a light, loose-fitting shirt. ‘I feel free here, free to speak and move … free to think!' he exclaimed loudly, throwing his arms up to embrace the moment. ‘You see, for you this rebellion is only just starting.' The Governor let his arms drop back to his sides. ‘But I have had to carry the knowledge of the eventuality for seventy years, whilst constantly under the scrutiny of those I mean to shake up … I love this place, no one can hear or see me, unless I wish it.'

As Noah's doubts about Maelgwn's motives were swept away, he offloaded all of his devices onto the table as well. ‘So how many people know about this place?'

‘Tory and myself, as it was our brainchild,' he explained. ‘And now you,' Maelgwn concluded, stunning Noah with the fact that such a confidence should be bestowed upon him.

‘But surely, as Head of Defence and wife of the Vice-Governor, Candace knows?' Noah was horrified. What if something adverse was to happen to Maelgwn and his wife; no one would know about their hidden agenda?

‘You would know,' Maelgwn advised, catching the scholar's thought. ‘And you are the only one who needs to know right now.' As Noah appeared to be a little
bemused, Maelgwn thought he'd take Noah's mind off his newly-bestowed responsibility. ‘Allow me to show you around.'

‘You mean there's more?' Noah was shocked.

‘Of course there's more.' Maelgwn passed by Noah to exit out the same door through which they had entered. ‘You can't win an interstellar war with a boardroom table and a few chairs.'

Noah followed the Governor back down the tunnel. Maelgwn was counting the large panelled sections of the floor as he went. ‘Twenty-seven, twenty-eight! Here we are,' he announced facing the tunnel wall on his right and, with a mental command, the section of the wall disappeared to reveal a transporter plate. ‘The boardroom is just a decoy,' he explained and he stepped onto the teleporter.

‘I figured.' Noah grinned and stepped on board, whereupon a wall manifested to enclose them in the secret annex.

‘To the pit,' Maelgwn advised the teleporter, and then raised his brows at Noah as they were sped forth.

What the Governor had created here beneath the park in Chaliada's city centre was not just a few secure chambers to escape to, but a major communications, research and defence complex.

As Noah was shown through the control centre that housed a multitude of inactive psychokinetic databases complete with accompanying hardware, he gaped in awe. It was not the sight of the excessive amount of equipment that floored him — more that the Governor foresaw the necessity for it.

‘It's just a precaution.' Maelgwn placed a hand on Noah's shoulder to reassure him, but it only served to startle the scholar, who was off in his own little world.

Noah gave a funny smile and shrugged off the fright. ‘I had hoped I would feel more prepared for all this after six months in the jungle, but … I don't.' He gave half a laugh ahead of drawing a deep breath for courage. ‘Well then, I know you haven't dragged me all the way down to this top security facility just to take in the sights.'

Maelgwn smiled to confirm Noah's assessment. ‘Can I interest you in a drink?'

‘You could interest me in what you've found out,' Noah suggested, too curious to wait.

Noah's forthright response made it plain he no longer needed enticing to the cause. He had embraced the rebellion, for better or worse.

‘You have discovered the whereabouts of one of Lord Master Enki's stations, haven't you?' Noah jumped to his own conclusions.

‘No.' Maelgwn flattened the scholar's guess. ‘However, I believe I have discovered the means to locate another of the Creation Stations that the Lord constructed in secret throughout the star systems he once frequented.'

The Lord Master Enki had been one of mankind's Nefilim carers who had not degenerated during his time in the physical realms. Enki had continued to nurture mankind's development as was intended by the Nefilim Logos, Anu, even after he had ascended back to the causal realms of awareness from which he'd come. Enki's brother, Enlil, leader of the Great Pantheon of Twelve at
the time, had decided to keep most of the human breeds as slaves, but not Homo sapiens, as this particular human breed was fast becoming too wilful to do the Nefilim any great service. Advised of a great deluge pending on Gaia, Enlil ordered that mankind be left on the planet to drown. Thanks to Enki's divine intervention, some of mankind's mortal souls had been spared. Unbeknownst to the Great Pantheon, however, Enki had discovered the secrets of fourth-dimensional time travel and devised a means to ensure the preservation of his precious Homo sapiens, via the creation of the Chosen Ones.

When Enki's defiance was discovered by the Pantheon he was made an outcast from the Twelve, but as he still had the divine support of his Logos, the Lord Anu, his beliefs and prophecies flourished in isolation. He knew, as did the Great Pantheon, that mankind would eventually overthrow the Nefilim due to humankind's capacity to multiply, but as long as the human breeds remained the weaker, mortal races, their great destiny remained remote. Thus, with the aid of his son, Marduk, and a lot of time hopping, Enki went about planting the immortal seed of the Nefilim into his most cherished human breed, Homo sapiens. By activating the immortal Nefilim gene in mankind's most outstanding individuals (originally introduced into the Homo sapiens' genetic structure by the Lord Marduk), a race of Chosen Ones was singled out to partake in the next stage of Homo sapiens' evolution.