CHAPTER 25: MEETING THE ELVES

"...secure here Admiral." Martin spoke to the screen while leaning back in the chair of the command center." Were transmitting on an encrypted channel. I don't know if they can even detect the beam, let alone crack it. From what we've seen so far, its looks to be a dog eat dog world here."

Wallace nodded from the command center on EDEN." Would you mind telling me how Kevin Graham found his way onto your Raptor Martin? "

"We had already started pre-flight Admiral". Martin answered." He leaped aboard just as the ramp was closing. I couldn't stop him."

"I hold you personally accountable for his safety Commander!" Senator Grahams voice and face appeared behind the Admiral. "I've already talked to him, and he told me you forced him onto the Raptor, as well as Commander Peterson. I intend to bring you up on charges when you return!"

Martin maintained a straight face and cut the audio feed from the transmission as Graham ranted. "Master Chief Brown, please go and find that little prick and strip search his sorry ass until you find his transmitter. Hes got to be broadcasting on an open channel and that could very well sink our dicks."

Tony grinned," With pleasure sir."

Skipper, Julie spoke from the chair of another console, a smile on her face. "Anja and I don't have dicks."

Anja couldn't help but chuckle at the expression on Martins face and she had to turn away as Martin reactivated the audio link.

"I have Danny spooling up the reactor gradually Admiral." He said." Once we get it to eighty percent power I'll access the core and download all the files into the Raptors onboard computer. Figure another nine hours to spool the reactor all the way up and download the core. Ben and Tina are working on getting the overheads repaired so that we can lift off, but Ben says they're jammed pretty tight and hes going to have to do some cutting. As it stands right now, well be here a little longer than we first thought. Well shoot for an extraction no later than 0730 day after tomorrow."

"Are the overheads fully jammed open?" Wallace asked.

Martin shook his head." No sir. They jammed about two feet open. Ben has all the tools he needs here sir, and the base is pretty much intact as well. A lot of human remains, but nothing is destroyed or damaged and thats a good thing."

Wallace nodded from his chair." Keep me informed of any developments and stay out of sight. We don't know what the situation is down there and I don't want to get tangled into anything before we know what is going on."

Martin nodded. "Well do that Admiral, Ghost One out."

Julie watched Martin shut down the transmitter." You didn't tell him about what we saw coming in Skipper?"

Martin shook his head. "No need. We don't know what was going on, and I'm not one to guess."

"What is above this facility Martin?" Anja asked from her chair.

Martin swiveled his chair around and looked at her." Nothing is directly above us except the Book Cliffs. An abandoned Reserve Air Force Base is three miles away via underground tram. He answered. We took off from the same airfield eleven days ago."

"There is an underground tram on the base?" Anja asked curious.

Martin nodded. "We used the base as cover. It was a complete facility with personnel and families and such. The tram runs on a track from here to directly under the base head quarters building."

"Does the tram still work?" Anja asked.

Martin shrugged." If there is still power I would imagine it does. We always used Hummers to get back and forth since the tram runs alongside the wall. The Hummers were faster. "Martins eyes lit up. Hey that reminds me. "We had surveillance cameras set up all over the base. "He turned to Julie." Julie can you activate the base surveillance grid. Lets see what it looks like up there."

Julie turned to her console and began to operate the computer. Martin and Anja moved their chairs over as the computer screen changed and Julies hands deftly typed in commands.

"Ok, power grid coming online now!" Julie spoke. "We ....."

[SECURITY BREACH, SECURITY BREACH.

NORTH QUADRANT, NORTH QUADRANT.

SECURITY FORCES RESPOND.]

"What the hell". Julie exclaimed." The computer is saying there has been a security violation in the northern quadrant of the base. That would be the office complex."

"Is it picking up something from before maybe?" Martin asked.

Julie shook her head." According to this, the breach occurred ninety minutes ago".

"Can you get a fix?"

"Let me try localizing the breach. "Julie spoke working the console. "Looks like its coming from the old administration offices in the E block area. Lets see if the cameras are still working."

The picture went fuzzy for several moments then the screen cleared and they had a picture of a long hallway. The dusty floor was evident even in the black and white video, and it appeared as if all the doors in the hallway were open.

"Hey I remember this hallway." Martin spoke. "The office at the end used to be the base personnel office."

"There!" Anja gasped pointing to the screen as three figures appeared from one of the offices. There were two women and a man, and they appeared to be looking for something, and they were all armed with small weapons that appeared to be sub machine guns of a kind that Martin had never seen before.

"Can they see the cameras?"Martin asked.

Julie shook her head. "All of them were inside light domes identical to the actual light fixtures."

"Switch to the room they just came out of. "Martin spoke." It looked like the procurement office."

Julie typed in the commands on the computer and the picture changed quickly to a large expansive room, old filing cabinets and chairs scattered about and turned over. There were also twelve men and women in the room that they could see on the camera, as well as what appeared to be some injured ones as well.

"Fifty bucks this is the group of soldiers that was being attacked by that overgrown bear." Julie spoke.

Martin shook his head. No bet here. He spoke, his eyes never leaving the screen. Looks like they got at least four wounded.

"They're being awful relaxed for a group that was fighting not too long ago. Julie commented.

Maybe they think they're safe. Anja spoke.

Julie looked at Martin. "Or maybe they don't know that second group was on their trail."

Martin nodded," Could be. Either way it doesn't"

L"ook at that!" Anja gasped, her voice filled with genuine surprise this time.

Julie and Martin could only gawk at the screen as the camera zoomed in on a man and a women talking. Though the camera was black and white, you didn't need color to see that the ears of both the man and women were considerably larger than normal ears, and they ended in pointed tips.

"What the hell. "Julie exclaimed. "Who the hell has pointed ears?"

"They look like they look like Elves." Anja spoke. She watched as both Martin and Julie looked at her as if shed lost her mind.

"Elves, "Martin said with a grin. "You mean like Santa's little helpers?"

"What was that children story, Snow White and the seven Elves?" Julie asked with her own smile.

"Asshole, "She barked at Martin, a small grin wanting to spread across her face. She turned to Julie. "And it was Snow White and the Seven Dwarves Julie". She spoke sweetly, her eyes gazing upon Julie in such a way that Julies stomach did little flips. "Elves were a huge part of Earth legend dating back several thousand years. They were part of many European cultures lore, including England and France."

Martin looked at her, still with a smile on his face." And how do you know so much about them?" He asked.

Anja ignored him, and continued speaking. "They were considered a very honorable race, and exceptional warriors. It is said they populated the entire planet at one point. I loved Elves when I was a little girl, and read hundreds of books on them."

"But they are just a myth, right?" Julie said." They are nothing more than just a fantasy and legend right?"

Anja nodded. "They are supposed to be". She said. "But it appears they are not so fictional as I first thought. Julie didn't you say some of the transmissions we were picking up mentioned elves?"

"C'mon!" Martin said exasperated." You don't honestly think they are really Elves do you?"

"I think we have to go based on what we see". Anja spoke." And without a complete examination, we shouldn't assume anything. we've come almost five hundred years into the future. We have no idea what has happen."

That statement sobered Martin up quickly, "Point taken." He spoke. "As long as they remain on the base and don't discover the entrance to the tunnel we leave them be. The Admiral ordered we avoid any contact with anyone, and thats what we are going to do."

Martin slid his chair back to the console he had been sitting at. "Jules why don't you and Anja wander down to the galley and see if there is anything left that we might be able to eat."

Julie got to her feet. "I like the sound of that idea." She said slinging her HK74.

Martin waited until they had left the control room before moving back to Julies station and looking at the monitor again. He used the zoom mode on the camera to bring it in closer on the men and women who occupied the floor in the large office. They were eating and drinking and talking amongst themselves just as any soldiers would do. The movement in the background caused Martin to adjust the camera and pan it to the right. He stopped it on the young woman that was peering out the broken window to the north. He used the controls to zoom the camera in, and his interest grew as he noticed the extremely long hair, and the fullness of the body, as well as the provocative uniform she had on. Martin moved the camera in closer, and even in the black and white of the video he took notice of the brightness of her eyes and the sensual curves of her cheekbones and face. Her long ears pointed up from her head, parting her black hair, but they appeared to be the most natural item to her face.

Martin continued to watch the video, unaware that Tarifa was the female Elf he was watching.