Free Alpha Rising by G.L. Douglas

chain and positioned it on top of her eternity symbol. The
cross fit exactly within the open circle.
    Altemus spoke up. “Time to go.”
     
     
    *****
     
     

CHAPTER TEN
     
     
    Inside the dragonfly rescue craft, Bach sat
behind Altemus in a gel-filled jumpseat that instantly conformed to
the shape of his body. He’d already overdosed on incredulity, so
the weird seat and a cockpit filled with flickering lights,
suspended tubes, video screens, something that looked like an empty
picture frame, and voice- and touch-activated gadgetry hardly fazed
him. With Star at the controls and Altemus manning surveillance,
the dragonfly levitated with a gentle swish, then the wings
retracted and it shot like a bullet through the dark sky.
    On the ride to Dura, Bach felt like a kid
wanting answers to a hundred questions but was too bewildered to
ask. Everything, including conversation, moved at a pace almost too
fast to grasp. But something Altemus had said a few minutes earlier
stuck in his thoughts and he wanted to know more. “Altemus. You
mentioned that you studied life forms on planets in other galaxies
through surveillance technology. What did you think of Earth, the
blue planet as you called it?”
    Altemus paused before answering. “We found
the technology primitive, but saw potential for advancement to a
more sophisticated level with proper guidance. We tried repeatedly
to make electronic contact with your communications equipment, and
easily adapted to your language, but never received a
response.”
    Bach mulled over the
information. How could these guys see
details on Earth? They’d have to have something better than our
interferometers. A new perspective of his
rescuers came with a pang of fear, but he had to ask, “How advanced
is your civilization in comparison?”
    “ If we measured
intelligence as is done on your planet,” Altemus replied, “our
results would be superior by four times.”
    “ Intelligence four times
higher than ours?”
    “ Correct. But now our
progress is slowed by limited resources.”
    Bach nervously digested the
information. These people are far smarter
than genius level on Earth? He suddenly
asked Altemus, “Will you tell me about the lake now?”
    “ You may find it
confusing,” the elder replied. “The death lake has two irregular
cycles. They’re identical in appearance, but opposite in
consequence. At times, like now, it’s pure with antiseptic
properties we depend on for periodic cleansing of ourselves from
contaminants—a preventive measure. However, medicinal properties
can’t heal once disease sets in. Other times it transmutes to a
deadly phase, when ionized microorganisms break into lethal enzymes
that feast on living matter. Death is agonizing, but swift.
Eventually, the enzymes consume themselves, save a scant few, and
the lake becomes pure—but only temporarily. The big boulder out
there is a fusion of metals, synthetics, and other undigested
matter.”
    Bach thought about his time in the lake and
squirmed a little. “You said you have a way to determine the deadly
phases?”
    “ We’ll go over that later,”
Altemus said.
    The trip to Dura may have taken minutes, or
hours, Bach couldn’t tell. He’d lost perspective of time in the
presence of planet Jenesis’s scientific patriarch, and the most
beautiful woman he’d ever seen.
    During his short ride in the dragonfly, Bach
got a brief look at a portion of the crater-pocked planet, but when
the ship descended through a shallow mountainous region, he tried
not to react to the surreal sight dead ahead of three sprawling
blue-white superstructures, in a horseshoe configuration, perched
on the horizon. The pentagonal-shaped buildings looked like huge
crystal prisms. As the ship drew nearer, the prisms’ exteriors lit
up and hundreds of spines of eye-blinding blue light flashed across
the golden planet like high-intensity searchlights. “Oh, my gosh,”
he whispered under his breath, trying to take it all in.