Chapter 15

Merlin walked out of the ship as his troops went into the Mayan Pyramid. One of his soldiers fell to the ground in front of the wizard. His weapon sputtered out as the Mayan warriors blocked the entrance.

Huitzilopochtli stood close to the wizard. “You should stay in your ship, ancient. You safety is paramount- the fighting is too intense.”

The ancient immortal human looked at his chief guard. “Why does everyone doubt my abilities.”

The guards were armed with Atlantean Spear Bolts, a nasty weapon that shot a bolt of electricity at its target. After the fall of Atlantis, a shepherd sat himself up as a fake god using one of these weapons and other Atlantean artifacts. He eventually got overthrown by one of his many children. It still shocked Merlin that he would find regular men who worshipped that false god.

However, Merlin scanned the where the guards were holding off his troops with the Spear Bolts. Two of the Mayan warriors protecting the temple seemed to well protected from the sides in their alcoves. Those two were getting most of the shots.

“With the way they are fighting, do you think that they have the priests in there?” asked his general.

“I have doubts, Huitzilopochtli. Something just doesn’t seem right. A piece of Chronos is supposed to be here, and it feels like nothing is responding correctly especially if an Archon is here.”

Huitzilopochtli responded. “We have lost most of our forces this day. If only we had something that could shoot from above that alcove.”

Merlin’s eyes then saw what Huitzilopochtli spoke about. In the indent, there was a hole above where the warriors stood.

“Huitzilopochtli, keep fire on them, so they do not move. Protect the remaining troops. I will take care of this problem.”

Then the ancient wizard started to speak. His purple eyes seemed to fill with power that looked silvery. And then raising his arms with the staff, he spoke a phrase and energy erupted out of the staff into the sky.

The Mayan warriors seemed to chuckle as the bolt ignored them. Then suddenly it seemed like clouds formed. Thunder filled the clouds. The wizard smiled as he fell forward onto his staff. “It is done,” he said to Huitzilopochtli.

Then the crackling of energy could be heard as a black cloud expanded in less than seconds. Growing immense in moments. The warriors never noticed as the huge bolt of lightning hit the two warriors. The bolt spears sorted out as well from the amount of electricity that had come out of the cloud. It burnt the stone as it struck.

Merlin never looked away from the strike as he leaned on the staff for support. He breathed a bit heavily, but as the rain started to come down from the dark clouds against the night sky, Huitzilopochtli looked at the wizard amazed at what he had witnessed.

What was left of the two warriors from the Mayan warriors appeared to be pillars of blacked soot. Then as the rain fell, it deluded and crumbled their bodies as puddles of black gunk. The other two warriors who had kept Merlin from entering the temple dropped their metallic weapons. Some of Merlin’s guards took them captive.

“Come Huitzilopochtli, let’s go into the temple’s secret chamber to see if my ancient enemy is in here. Though I doubt it.”

Huitzilopochtli looked around getting an idea of how many of the men were still alive. “We have four including myself as well, ancient.”

Merlin nodded as he gave a lighted order. “Take care of the other two guards.”

Huitzilopochtli gave the signal to his men who took out obsidian blades and slit the throats of the Mayan Warriors. Merlin showed anguish as the two were killed as blood came tumbling down from their throats.

Two other of Merlin’s guards walked with Huitzilopochtli and the ancient. Walking down the stairs, Merlin expected a lot but what he found felt even worse. There stood the ancient head that some of his guards seemed to be shocked about, but Merlin knew something else was happening.

In the vast arena that had once served as a holographic film center, Merlin sighed as the floating head continued to just repeat a signal phrase. “I am Archon Chonos the Eternal of Atlantis- I am reborn!”

Huitzilopochtli spoke to Merlin. “What does it say?”

Merlin turned to the guards. As he did so, he shot a bolt of energy from his staff up into the ceiling, and the giant head disappeared as the sound of crackling glass echoed. “What the hologram said is that it is reborn.”

“Ancient, how did you destroy the head?”

Merlin laughed. “It was just a message, but my ancient enemy is as I feared now in a new human body. I have done so much over the millennia to ensure that one of the shards of Chronos never again threated humanity, and one got a new body. I may have wasted my life if what I fear has occurred We must go further down to confirm if this is true.”

The wizard turned and gave a single order. “Huitzilopochtli, come with me. I need to examine the equipment before we try to hook up with Ashton and Mary.”

Huitzilopochtli nodded.

Merlin and him walked down the vast stairs. The chairs that had been installed seemed to be better in spots. Some seemed to be just slabs of rusting metal, rotting chairs in the middle of the theater.

Huitzilopochtli looked in at confusion at the rotted seat that had once had a large back too that could still swivel. Time had taken the high back on the chair already, but the swiveling fascinated the guard. With his weapon, Huitzilopochtli touched the ancient chair that seemed more like a stool now, and the base fell to the ground with a thud. Dust seemed to come from what was left as it cracked and dissolved.

Merlin made a quip. “They don’t make chairs like that one anymore. A shame, it was probably once really comfortable. Atlanteans knew how to make comfortable chairs for their premier circle.”

“What happened to it, Merlin?” asked Huitzilopochtli.

The ancient laughed. “I keep my Avalon airtight most of the time. No one uses anything, so when I need it after centuries, it is perfectly ready to be used when it is needed.”

Poking another chair with his staff, it also started to fade with just a touch. “This is an ancient chair that is over ten thousand years old. It is amazing that it is intact as it is. I am honestly shocked about that, Huitzilopochtli.”

“Time destroys things, ancient?”

Merlin looked at Huitzilopochtli. “It kills everything eventually. The Atlanteans believed that time was a concept more than anything. However, my society realized that it was a force. Something that exists beyond trying to figure out lengths of the day. Too often, societies think that they can escape that force by ignoring or controlling it. I’ve seen it too many times for me to count which is my curse. I will speak about the dangers of time, but too many will not listen.”

Stomping his staff to emphasis the point, Merlin sighed. “I am cursed because of misaligned love to live as long as the universe. Hopefully when the Creator comes again, I can finally rest truly, but until then I will continue to see this again and again.”

Huitzilopochtli nodded. “Will this place continue to hold as we explore?”

Merlin gave a gaze. “Most of the damage is superficial things. The ravages of time have destroyed everything on the surface level, but the foundation is still strong. That is probably the reason beyond being attracted by Chronos that the Mayans built their city here.”

Huitzilopochtli nodded. “The Mayans use to be more powerful than the Aztecs, and now they are barely a memory. Do you think the Aztecs will disappear, ancient?”

Merlin nodded his head. “All societies born of blood sacrifice eventually fall. The problem Huitzilopochtli is in their death throes. They will they take down what you love as well. That is what haunts me more than anything.”

Merlin started to walk down the stairs with his steps echoing. “I taught a people called the Romans. I taught them various things including some of how my people governed on a local level. Our nobles often ruled for generations over parcels of land, but they always had an elected council of their people. Some were better than others. The Romans took the idea of a council and did something interesting instead of an elected king.”

“My people have no king either,” said Huitzilopochtli.

Merlin nodded. “I can’t claim that one, Huitzilopochtli. That is still to my amazement. However, the problem is always teaching people to be rulers. What should be easy to rule instead causes compromises because unfamiliar rulers want what is important to them to be done, but they make changes for it to get done only for what was clear to be distorted creating corruption.”

Merlin lamented. “And that corruption will end civilization as well. It’s not an immediate death either, but what you love in one era will be twisted and corrupt into something that will become a so-called good later as officials corrupt it.”

“Why do you favor kings, ancient?” asked Huitzilopochtli as they got to the lower ring.

“Time.”

“But you said that time is the great enemy?”

Merlin nodded. “I have fought again and again to leave a mark to recreate the best aspects of my people. It has been the kingdoms that I helped that have had the most lasting effect. Ashton will talk your head off about a boy that I raised to be king named Arthur. And despite how short his rule turned out to be, he left an example of how to be a good ruler that still lingers.”

“I’d like to know more of this Arthur,” said Huitzilopochtli.

“I don’t think that I am a good teller of stories, Huitzilopochtli. Besides we have found the door to what I need to see.”

Merlin willed his staff and it lit up brightly that caused the door to open. “Come let’s explore this tunnel. It should take us to where we need to go.”

The tunnel had a distinct odor as they entered. While the vast theater seemed to have light, the tunnel was dark. They came to a split in the tunnel. Pointing at stains on the ground. Merlin motioned to follow and went to the right.

Advancing they came to another area with odd light. Merlin went to the side and pressed several buttons embedded into the wall. The light illuminated the middle of the room, and then Merlin saw what had disappeared.

There in the middle of the room stood a pedestal with a broken jar that had fluid coming out slowly. There were several tables with equipment that had not been put away either. That troubled Merlin as he examined the equipment. It led to a stand designed to hold a man.

“What is this place?” asked Huitzilopochtli.

Merlin explained by pointed at the pedestal. “That is an Atlantean bio computer. No doubt the shard of Chronos existed inside that bio brain for untold ages. The outer edges of it seemed to have been fried a bit by an event. Probably the shield didn’t work as quickly the bio brain hoped.”

Merlin didn’t go into further details as he pointed at the how the lobe on the edges the bio brain had been damaged. Most likely the shard of Chronos that Merlin was dealing with wasn’t necessarily the peak version.

Huitzilopochtli looked at a cable near the bio brain. The warrior traveled quickly to it. “And what is this?” asked the warrior.

Following Merlin picked up the cable. “That is what worries me. Most likely the bio brain was already damaged, and when it combined with one of the travelers from the future, Chronos didn’t overwhelm fully the personality of the one that I think is . . . Bill. He isn’t exactly an Avatar of Chronos, but he is no longer Bill.”

Huitzilopochtli looked at Merlin. “Then who is he?”

“Probably my worst nightmare.”

Huitzilopochtli wondered what Merlin meant when the ancient looked at something on the ground near the wire. “Circe helped here,” he said as picked up something rotting on the ground.

He picked up the sphere with blood, gore, and now some dust on it. Merlin flicked his wrist, and it was an eyeball. “She never cleaned up anything well. This has gotten worse. Mary’s brother probably got turned into an Atlantean BioBorg.”

“Why is this bad, ancient?” asked the warrior.

Merlin looked at his companion. “Because a BioBorg are subservient to an Archon without question. They are created to do whatever whim an Archon wants. Now in this age, another bio borg is alive serving an Archon without question. Dear Creator!”

Merlin started to rush out of the room with his robes fluttering. “We must get back to Ashton and Mary. They are both out of their league.”

Huitzilopochtli lingered for a moment. He had given much reverence to the one known as Merling, but repeatedly, this day he had proven inadequate. He had been led around like an animal instead of a man. The death of his men bothered him as well. As he started to follow the wizard out of the chamber, perhaps it was time to do what some of the lords of his people wanted him to do. Take the Ancient’s machine completely.

Ashton and Mary trudged through the jungle following the signs of where Joe’s machine man had been. As the twilight enveloped the jungle, Ashton had to tell Mary how to turn onto the light enhancing device.

“So, why is it washed out?” asked Mary.

“Would it be better that it was green?” asked Ashton.

Mary laughed. “Why would it be green?”

Ashton probably knew that most people didn’t know what night vision googles were. “Well back in our days, the US Government has these googles that can enhance vision at night- it’s not exactly great according to what I read. It’s green as well.”

“So, the Murau could do kind of washed-out video with light, but the American government can’t?”

Ashton laughed. “Well, the American military industrial complex can’t do giant robots either, but you never know what is at Area 51.”

Mary was about to ask a silly question for someone who loved stories about conspiracies and stories about unknown technology being developed between the US Government usually through Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency more commonly referred to by its acronym DARPA and the military industrial complex. Before being thrown into the past, Ashton had been in a bulletin board service using his Atari 800 where someone claimed that the US Government had been working on a Stealth Fighter and drones. The same poster also claimed that Grumman was going to get shut down because some Congressman had stock in Boeing, and if the Soviet Union fell in the following decade, he’d get the major aircraft manufacturing to consolidate all to eliminate the F-14 for some odd reason. Ashton often agreed with his parents that he spent too much time on the forum. Why would some random politician go out of his way to get rid of a quality fighter just to pad his own pockets?

“So, what is Area 51?” asked Mary.

“Area 51 is this place owned by the Federal Government close to Las Vegas. Officially, there is nothing there, but there are people who go out there and watch X-Planes. I wanted to go this summer, and I was hoping to see the XF-19. If it looks anything like description that I have heard, it will be awesome.”

Mary laughed. “And your parents instead took you to Big Bend.”

Ashton sighed. “I was outvoted by my sisters as the parents said if we went to Big Bend this year that they could save more money for a Christmas trip to Disney World.”

“Disney World?” questioned Mary. “Can I go?”

“It’s just a glorified bigger Disneyland,” said Ashton as he tried to make out something in his sensors. The sensors indicated something that look kind of like that Atlantean squid machines from the simulators, but it’d be shifted to machine man that stood next to it.

Mary shouted back. “It’s got Epcot!”

Ashton looked at the sensors and identification again as he tried to get a long-range view of what he was seeing. “Epcot has no major rides, and they don’t even have a space ride. It’s just a glorified Tomorrowland without a Space Mountain. Plus, most of the countries in that park have no ride or attraction just restaurants. Who cares about restaurants? Next, you’ll just have people walked around the park eating food and drinking wine like a bunch of gluttons out of cardboard booths.”

Mary laughed. “You don’t know about Horizons.”

Ashton continued to try and get a visual using a telescopic view. And for a moment, he thought that he saw a machine man. However, there appeared to be something like a snake slithering around the machine man.

Ashton answered Mary. However, he felt slightly frustrated trying to figure out what he had seen. He had to revert the scope to the original scale.

“Horizons?” asked Ashton. “I hadn’t heard about it.”

Mary sounded incredibly happy to talk about it as Ashton tried to figure out what they were coming up to beyond the trees. “Oh, it’s this great ride where you decide the ending. One goes underwater. One goes flying above a future farm, and the last launches into space. It opened last year, and I am not likely to get to see it anytime soon. So, if we make it back to the future, can I go with your family to Disney World?”

“I won’t eat much I promise.”

Ashton wanted to answer her. “I hope this space ride is better than the Black Hole. That movie was just the Tempest in Space which already got made in Forbidden Planet.”

The worry in Ashton voice became more noticeable. However, he didn’t want Mary to worry. He knew that they could get through this together. “However, when we get out of this, I’ll tell my parents that we should bring you along.”

Ashton knew that Mary was smiling as she answered back. “Thank you! Thank you, Ashton. Don’t worry. I won’t embarrass you with Amanda and Allison.”

Pushing past some trees, Ashton had the machine knight move its head. There was something unsettling going on. They should already be on top of the position for Joe’s machine man.

Getting his weapon ready, Ashton pulled out his sword. That was when out of the darkness popped out a machine man that Ashton assumed was Joe’s, and then another machine man with rifles on either arm with a backpack and no head appeared.

And that was when he saw something flying between the two machine men. It appeared to be a throne with a figure sitting on it. “As usual, Ashton doesn’t invite me to join him with his fun.”

Fear started to enter Ashton’s soul as he realized the voice sounded familiar even if the diction didn’t sound the same coming from the radio. “Bill, is that you?”

Lights lit up on the chair, and there sat Bill once more in the orange t-shirt. “Not exactly. I am not exactly Chronos either. Thanks to that falling apart bio brain, but either name works either way. Ashton and Mary, I am here to offer a deal.”