Space Pioneer 1 - 21. Chapter 21

"It’s hard to believe," Osiris said, after Lest had told them of Ezer. "And you think the man wants to raid the pyramid and get hold of the ancient Seth devices?"

"You were tracking our shuttle. We were wondering how you had noticed it," Lest said. "Didn’t you spot Ezer’s shuttle either?"

"You said the man spent a couple of days here. It’s frightening. We didn’t detect him and his shuttle," Hemiunu replied.

"I happened to see your shuttle in the sky when it reflected the morning sun," Imhotep explained. "I knew at once what I was seeing. I have read the ancient Seth records many times. I’m the keeper of our archives. The Seth wrote down a lot about spaceships and shuttles."

"I told them you spotted the shuttle. I told them you were hawk-eyed," Jeff said with a smile.

Imhotep smiled back. "I’m sharp-eyed, yes. I saw the vehicle only briefly, but I instantly knew it was a shuttle. We have often wondered if more of the Seth had survived and if they would ultimately look for the planet that our ancestors had travelled to. When I saw your shuttle cruising the sky, I was excited at the sighting and reported to Hemiunu and Osiris at once."

"We have radio sets," Hemiunu said. "That’s how we communicate secretly with each other. I suggested we use them in order to contact the crew of the shuttle. I’m happy that our efforts worked out."

"You had no clue of Ezer scouring the place?" Doctor Midad asked. He turned his head to Lest. "Do you think Ezer has received the tracking signals also?"

"Hulton is monitoring Ezer’s shuttle. It left the planet shortly before we received the tracking signals. I have no idea if Ezer received them either," Lest said. "It doesn’t matter anyway. I suspect he will return in order to retrieve artifacts. We must stop him from raiding the planet and from changing the timeline."

"The time-space continuum has self-healing capabilities," Doctor Midad said. "We’ve witnessed it ourselves. The timeline is able to heal to a degree. I guess it much depends on how seriously the past was altered. Sometimes the timeline won’t heal, however. We have witnessed this also in space."

He told the Seth men of the planet Kwain and the incident on Mount Sinai.

"So there’s where they went," Osiris said. "Moses, the preacher, started a riot. He fled with several hundred men, women, and children. The Pharaoh sent soldiers after them, but they were stopped by the Red Sea that was unexpectedly rising. The sea flooded the lands. We think the flood was maybe caused by an earthquake. Anyway, the soldiers were stopped. We suspected that Moses and his people wandered north-east, but apparently they went south. They must have crossed the desert."

"I’m wondering why," Imhotep said. "Did they get lost in the desert or what?"

"Who cares?" Hemiunu asked. "The man was a rabble-rouser. I’m not sad to see him gone. He protested against the erection of the pyramid and he stole a weapon from a secret chamber."

"We saw his stick-like weapon," Lest said. "It’s a plasma handgun, albeit one out of date in space."

"We are planning to store the ancient devices in a secret place. Too many of these gadgets are scattered all over the town in the homes of the few true Seth," Hemiunu said.

"Where do you want to store the devices? In the pyramid?" Doctor Midad asked.

"Nothing was found in the pyramids. There are four pyramids in my time," Jeff said.

"Yes, I’m planning three more," Hemiunu said with a smile. "I’m happy to hear that I will accomplish the task."

"How did you erect the pyramid anyway?" Jeff asked. "We have never found out how you did it."

Hemiunu’s smile broadened. "Well, the construction plans are ancient. The Seth erected many pyramids on the island in the inland sea. I used ancient technology that I have back-engineered. It’s the most advanced technology that I have been able to reverse-engineer."

He explained the technology to Jeff and the others.

"3D printing? You printed the boulders?" Jeff asked in disbelief.

"Yes," Hemiunu said. "We can produce a boulder quickly."

"This technology is widely used in space," Lest said. "The Mohics are experts in the field." You have done an amazing job, Hemiunu. I think that back-engineering the technology was difficult."

"Trial and error and a lot of nights of tedious study," Hemiunu replied. "But my efforts worked out in the end. The pyramid is almost finished."

"We actually planned to store the devices inside the pyramid," Imhotep said. He looked at Jeff. "Are you sure? The pyramid was empty when they opened it?"

"I’m fairly sure," Jeff replied. He looked between Lest and Midad. "Do you think that Ezer will succeed and steal the devices?"

"He might want to steal them before they are being transferred into the pyramid," Lest said. "He was scouring the place. He saw the pyramid is almost finished. I’m sure he has drawn his conclusions."

Midad raised his hand. "Sorry for interrupting this conversation. Dawn is breaking soon. We better get back to the shuttle," he said.

"The hours went by quickly," Imhotep said. "You’re right, Doctor Midad. You better leave before dawn is breaking." He rose to his feet. "Come, I will take you back to the pyramid compound, but we should set a time for our next meeting. We have to discuss many more things and we need to make a plan on how to proceed. We certainly don’t want this man to come back and steal the ancient Seth devices."

The others stood also. They left the room and Imhotep led them down the staircase. The house was quiet.

"Khepri’s gone," Imhotep said. "But he will come back at sunrise."

"It seems you have introduced the man into many secrets," Doctor Midad said. "Aren’t you afraid he will reveal them to others?"

"No," Imhotep replied. "Khepri is well aware of what he would lose, if he chose to steal and run."

He opened the door to the pantry. The men stepped inside. Imhotep led them back to the pyramid compound. They stopped in front of the shuttle.

"I was thinking," Lest said. "We can come here only at night. It’s a risky endeavor. How about you come over to my main ship for a couple of days? Could you make it? I could pick you up tonight with the shuttle."

The Seth men grew excited. They were talking with each other. Finally, Osiris turned to Lest and bowed to him.

"We’d feel honored to be your guests, Captain Lest," he said.

Lest nodded back. "Good. I will pick you up on the pyramid compound at eleven in the evening. Is this fine with you?"

"We’ll be here in time," Osiris replied.

The Seth men bowed again. Lest, Jeff, and Doctor Midad nodded.

"Oh," Midad said, touching his ear. "I’d better take the clips along."

The Seth men handed back their clips, then turned away and entered the pyramid. Lest, Jeff, and Midad climbed into the shuttle and flew back to the Horus.

***

Lest picked the men up the following evening. He showed them around on the Horus and introduced them to his crew. The men assembled in the lounge after the tour through the ship, only Hulton remained on the bridge. The Seth men were stunned by the futuristic spaceship.

"It isn’t like I had imagined it," Osiris said. "Your ship is amazing, Captain Lest. I feel honored to be your guest."

"Yes, your spaceship is very impressive," Imhotep said. "Our ancestors travelled to Earth in an even larger ship. It’s a pity that so much knowledge is lost."

"A lot is actually preserved, construction plans and the like, however, we don’t have the means to build a spaceship. We lack resources and manpower, skilled engineers and technicians," Hemiunu said.

"How many true Seth do still live in Men-Nefer?" Jeff asked.

"Ninety-five," Imhotep replied. "We can’t do much but preserve what has been passed on to us."

"We must think of how to proceed," Lest said. "Hulton is monitoring Ezer’s ship. He has not detected any signs of the ship changing its course. However, Ezer’s ship is still around. They have not yet jumped back to the future."

Doctor Midad spoke up, but Lest waved his hand and touched his temple.

"A message from Hulton," he said.

Lest listened, then jumped from his chair. "Forget what I said. Hulton has just informed me that Ezer’s ship is moving towards Earth. All men on the bridge at once," he said.

The men hurried on the bridge. Lest told them to sit down and strap to their seats. Osiris and his companions looked shocked at the news. Doctor Midad led the men to side seats and helped them to strap to their seats. Jeff sat down next to Corr and Le’Ton. They checked their displays and controls. Lest sat down in the captain’s seat.

"Full power," he commanded. "We’re climbing into orbit. Hulton, status update, please."

"Ezer’s ship is moving at a constant speed. It’s heading for Earth," Hulton said. "I’ve passed the data to Le’Ton and Jeff. They can watch Ezer’s ship, while I continue to scour his computer in order to find out about his plans."

The engines were powered on and the ship vibrated heavily at the almost cold start. A minute later, the Horus took off and rapidly climbed to orbit. Doctor Midad was sitting next to the Seth men who looked utterly uncomfortable on their first and unexpected trip into space. Midad tried to calm them.

"Ezer’s ship is approaching fast," Corr said. "It will be here in three hours and twenty minutes."

"I’ve detected an internal protocol," Hulton said. "The ship’s cargo bay was cleared from stuff they had taken along. I have no idea what was in the twenty crates that they’ve thrown out into space, but now they have plenty of space in the cargo bay."

"They want to pick up stuff from Earth. Artifacts. Ancient Seth devices," Jeff said drily. "I suspect they will land on the pyramid compound. If I was looking for artifacts, then this was the place I would go to."

"The arrival of Ezer’s ship cannot go completely unnoticed," Hulton said. "The natives would notice the raid of the pyramid. I think that after an initial period of shock, they would enter the compound and try to hamper Ezer’s operations."

"The period of shock might be long enough to retrieve what he wants," Jeff said. "Bear in mind that the natives have never seen a spaceship. They might think that a demon has landed on the pyramid compound. Think of Moses on Mount Sinai."

Hulton nodded. "You’re probably right, Jeff," he said. "In particular if Ezer chooses to shoot the ship’s weapons."

Lest turned to the Seth men. "You said you wanted to store the items in the pyramid, but have not yet transferred them there. Where are the objects now?" he asked.

"Most are still in the homes of the Seth and some are stored in a few secret places outside the town, but we have already transferred quite a number of bigger items into the hall under the Sphinx," Imhotep said. "There’s a tunnel from this hall to the pyramid."

"I suspect that Ezer has detected these corridors when scanning the area," Jeff said. "He plans to enter the tunnel and raid the hall."

"The ship is on a straight course to Earth. Speed constant. Arrival in three hours," Le’Ton said.

"Leave orbit," Lest commanded. "Plot a course to Earth’s moon. We will hide in its shadow."

The Horus changed its position. The ship was on alarm and in stealth mode. They were waiting for Ezer’s main ship that had set course on Earth.

***