From Eden to Armageddon. The Dog-Star Chronicles:2 Right Place: Wrong Time.

By M.C. Wagstaff

Follow the continuing adventures of Commander Wade and his colleagues, including eminent scientist Prof. Everest, as they emerge from an artificial vortex, aboard a stolen alien craft, and close upon the 3rd planet from the Sun.
Beyond the vortex is an alien empire, with whom Dr. Kalashnikov, a former associate, tries desperately to engage. Unbeknownst to him, members of this alien empire have already encountered a group of humans; whom they captured and enslaved, including Everest's wife. Only our small band of fugitives have managed to escape. They now return to Earth in order to persuade somebody in authority to help them mount a rescue.
So why would Dr. Everest and Commander Wade think that they would have any likelihood of success. Well they had leverage. They had the alien spacecraft, that they had named the 'Crusader'. This was one heck of a bargaining chip; now all they needed to do was to find someone to bargain with!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Foxfield Fiction Factory
• Release date: May 3, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215434079

Book preview

THE

D O G -STAR

CHRONICLES.

FROM EDEN TO ARMAGEDDON

Part TWO:

RIGHT PLACE – WRONG TIME

M.C.Wagstaff

Copyright M.C.Wagstaff 2020.

E-Book copyright 2022. M.C.Wagstaff

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers.

The right of M.C.Wagstaff to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.

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CHAPTER 1.

A VERY EDGY FEELING.

THE CAPTURED ALIEN spacecraft slowly approaches the third planet in the star system of Sol, which in turn revolves within a spiralling outer arm of the Milky Way galaxy.

Aboard her flight-deck were seven tired and very relieved human beings. Each silently reflecting upon their own personal memories of the traumatic and dangerous adventure that they had just been upon, stretching across several star systems.

Wouldn't the people back upon Earth be surprised to hear from them. Who would possibly expect that they could disappear upon a commercial aeroplane over the Bermuda Triangle, and then after escaping the clutches of a vile alien race, would return in one of 'their' spacecraft; with one of their species – all be it dead.

COMMANDER Joseph Wade, who had been the chief pilot of the Belgian airliner that had been 'hijacked' by the Thommosaurians, or Th'om'oks, as they called themselves, had trouble believing it too. However he knew that his experiences were real, as were those of the other six lucky humans who had survived the vortex; his co-pilot Peter Jacobs, his burly navigator Geoff Armstrong, botanist Dr. Miriam Roberts, Belgian Nurse Ingrid DeWint. computer analyst Hans Kruger, and not forgetting Prof. William Everest - the celebrated palaeontologist.

This palaeontologist would have some very interesting tales to tell his students when the Professor finally returned to lecturing at Rice University in Houston. In fact all of the passengers would be of extreme interest to both the scientific community and to the general media.

But by far the most important item of interest, for both the scientists and the military alike, would without a shadow of doubt be the craft in which they had returned, and which was now maintaining an orbit around the planet.

It was with all these thought racing through Joe's mind that he asked his co-pilot to contact Lunatropolis, their outpost upon the Moon, to announce their miraculous arrival.

I can't seem to raise them.

Keep trying, they must have seen us approach.

They're probably afraid of us. commented Hans

Why on earth should they be? barked Joe.

But we're not on Earth are we Commander, we are in fact approaching her in a strange alien vessel. How could Lunatropolis know that she is piloted by humans? quipped the analyst.

Of course! exclaimed Joe Peter send a more detailed message to Lunatropolis, and attempt to contact someone upon Earth as well. continued the Commander.

Both of the American pilot's fellow ex-T.D.A. operatives repeatedly tried unsuccessfully to establish communications with either the Earth, or the Lunar settlement upon the south eastern shores of the Mare Tranquillitatis. However all of their transmissions had failed to bring about a response.

Several attempts made by the crew to scan the planet's surface had also been as equally unproductive.

Are all of our scanners and communication systems working now? Enquired Wade I know that our reptilian friend had a handful of components that he was going to install up here, before he managed to get himself killed." He added.

I'll run a diagnostics check. replied Armstrong

Commander Wade, doesn't it appear just a little odd to you that not a single vessel, a probe, or even a simple radio signal has been sent to investigate our presence? observed the suspicious Professor.

" If you were frightened of something that you did not recognise, wouldn't you try to hide and hope that you had not been detected whilst you investigated if it were 'friend or foe'? " Kruger answered before Joe could reply countering the eminent palaeontologist's question with one of his own.

Maybe if I was alone Hans then most probably I would. However the T.D.A. could not afford to adopt that tactic. One of their prime functions is for such an eventuality as this. So when the opportunity comes along I hardly think that the pilots of the Defence Administration are likely to shy away from the task; even if they are afraid. continued William.

Unfortunately Hans, I share the Professor's uneasiness. Something is definitely not quite right. I've got a very edgy feeling about this. commented the disturbed Commander.

THE 'Phoenix' was not the only spacecraft that was in the proximity of the third planet. The Dogonite's vessel was in geo-stationary orbit above their location upon the planet's surface as they carried out their selenium injection programme.

Had the circuitry of the scanners aboard the 'Phoenix' been fully operational then they would have already detected the presence of this ship If they had done so then Commander Wade's choices and consequent actions may have been different.

ELSEWHERE another group of humans were perhaps regretting the choices that they had made, and the actions that they were now forced to make as a consequence. These particular humans were doing battle with a pride of fearsome creatures within the arena in the heart of Th'om'ak.

Pyrakas were a four-legged carnivorous creature about three feet in length and standing approximately half that in height. These beasts were basically all hair and teeth, the latter being the humans main concern at the moment.

There were seven of these pyrakas engaged in the fight against three times as many human slaves. If these men had been fit and healthy then the attacking pack would have been over matched and posed no real threat. But as this group of twenty-one carefully selected men were far from being at their best, then the odds were really much more even.

The slaves were each armed with either a small staff, a net or a dagger. Seven of each of these items had been placed in the arena, and as the slaves had filed into the stadium they had selected a weapon. These were all weapons ideally suited to hand-to-hand combat, and a close quarter fight against a pack of ferocious pyrakas was the perfect spectacle that the Thommosaurian crowd had come to see.

The Senior Beast-master of the games did not anticipate the pyrakas actually killing many of the humans. He had a special treat laid to accomplish that task, but he hoped that his opening septet of attackers would maim several of the slaves, and provide a little light-hearted entertainment for the crowd; wetting their appetites so to speak.

However these ferocious little beasts were trying their very best to steal the show. Performing their tiny hearts out, snapping tenaciously at the limbs of the undernourished and weakened humans. Ripping pieces of flesh off the slaves whenever their razor-sharp teeth made contact with he soft yielding skin.

This comic spectacle continued for quite some time before the pack of pyrakas were finally defeated by sheer weight of numbers. As the the last member was beaten to death by three staff wielding men, a loud horn was sounded in the arena; this particular act was over. The finally tally being seven dead pyrakas, four dead humans, and five wounded slaves. Quite a respectable showing for the opening performance of the day; at least from the Senior Beast-master's point of view.

At the sounding of the great horn, a dozen adolescent Thommosaurs entered the sand covered bowl, and made their way over to the carcasses that lay dripping in the dust. Then all of them deftly flicked their spiked tails into the exposed flesh of the dead creatures and began to drag them towards the arena's exit.

All that is bar one, as there had been only eleven fatalities so far, but this last young reptile soon remedied the situation by lashing out viciously at one of the surviving, but injured humans. His death was not an easy one, for the Thommosaurian's barbed tail struck the man's face, tearing away his cheek and snatching out the eye upon his left side. To cheers from the baying crowd, the reptile repeated the spectacle, only this time his attention was directed to the slave's right hand side. This second assault, coupled with the injuries already sustained by the man during his fight with the pyrakas was too much for his heart, and he mercifully suffered a massive coronary; dying before he could be subjected to more pain. This caused a huge collective sigh to be let out by the crowd who were all disappointed that their entertainment had been curtailed.

BACK aboard the 'Phoenix', any thoughts of entertainment were far from the mind of Jacobs when he heard his colleague say:

Sir the diagnostic check shows that most of the circuitry and relays in these panels are fried.

" Well it looks like we will just have to go and take a 'look-see'. In the meantime Peter do what you can to get the sensors and scanners working again. Do whatever it takes. We are blind and I have a very uneasy feeling, and I don't like it! "

This would be a whole lot easier if those bugs hadn't killed our yellow-crowned collaborator. observed Kruger.

It is mainly because of our friends highly selective collaboration that I have this edgy feeling. Which reminds me, check the medical-room because Th'ok'ok had a handful of components when he entered. He may be dead, but what surprises has he left in store for us. replied Wade.

The Commander had decided to send a shuttle down to the surface of the Earth to investigate as to why their transmissions had not been replied to. He concluded that descending to the surface was the best solution. Wade would lead the reconnaissance flight accompanied by the rest of the crew, barring Peter, who was to remain at the helm of the mother-ship. Kruger volunteered to stay aboard to keep the pilot company, just in case he was needed.

Joe, I should try to get the communication system sorted first, then perhaps I can raise the T.D.A. Regardless I will contact you as soon as I get it working again.

" Fine. Just make sure that this bucket of bolts is here to pick us up. So don't get yourselves involved with the defence systems of 'Lunatropolis' or 'Skynest', because they will probably fire upon you, like Hans said. Oh and try not to have too much fun pressing buttons this time, Mr. Kruger. Sending laser beams across the ether willy-nilly is not going to endear us to the locals. See you later. "

Jacobs tried very hard to stifle a grin, and failed. Hans looked a little perplexed at the Commander as he departed, confused by the colloquial term, and turned to his colleague, who took one look at the expression upon the analyst's face and burst into laughter.

Peter why are you laughing? Who is Willy? For that matter who is Nilly? Is this the Commander's new nickname for me and you? Tears were running down the pilot's face as he watched Joe disappearing from view.

As Professor Everest headed towards the hangar his mind raced over the information that they actually knew about this planet; and a somewhat disheartening conclusion forced its way into his thoughts. There was another explanation that fitted the criteria that they had; this planet was not the Earth, but an almost identical world somewhere else in the universe.

The instant that this rogue thought had been liberated from the constraints of his subconscious, it seemed the inescapably obvious conclusion. Now that the Professor was no longer blinded by the over whelming feeling of relief at being 'home', a very different feeling swept over him; that of fear.

For the moment at least the concerned palaeontologist kept this disturbing thought to himself as he took up his seat in the second shuttle in the cramped hangar. This vessel was the official resident and belonged aboard the 'Phoenix'. Alongside her stood the stowaway craft which had come originally from the 'Canis Questor'.

With Wade and Everest at her controls, and Armstrong keeping both of the ladies company further back down the cabin. 'Phoenix's' shuttle-craft was soon clear of the Th'om'oks starship that had been her resting place. The tiny interplanetary shuttle-craft made a graceful arc as it responded to the gentle caress of the helmsman upon her controls, and pulled away from the larger ship.

The visi-screen of this shuttle was filled with the view of the third planet as it slowly rotated upon its polar axis. The land formations that could be made out through the swirling cloud cover looked vaguely familiar to both Professor Everest and Commander Wade. The African continent and the Arabian peninsula were both visible beneath the volatile atmosphere, yet there was something not quite right; or was it just that the fast moving clouds were distorting the image.

Professor Everest had been half-expecting as much, and the proverbial lump that came to the throat of his companion did not rise in his gullet. The world that spun below them was an almost identical planet to theirs; but it was in fact the Earth that they had left all that time ago. Not their birthplace. Not their 'home'!

The other members of the crew aboard the tiny shuttle had soon gotten over the shock of finding out that the planet to whose surface that they were heading was not their home planet. This feeling of disappointment was permeating throughout the vessel creating an air of gloom and an atmosphere that was nearly as thick and depressing inside the craft as the one through which the shuttle was descending.

Inside the cockpit of the shuttle-craft Joe and William battled with the mis-shaped control columns as the ship was buffeted in the upper Ionosphere. The atmosphere gradually became thicker and more dense as they descended. This increased the friction upon the fragile vessel, with its nose-cone and wing beginning to give off a red glow. They had been getting hotter and hotter as the shuttle's descent had continued. Now as this craft neared the planet's surface the prominent features of the descending ship were beginning to show signs of the tremendous strain to which it had been subjected during the flight.

The climate of this planet was very similar to that of the Earth, yet it was a little warmer and markedly more humid. The terrain over which this shuttle was mainly hot and steamy jungle. Huge trees thrust up from the planet's surface for several hundred feet into the sky, like giant green fingers, reaching out of the swamps for the life-providing light. This light was essential to convert the primeval gases into life-supporting compounds.

Beneath these natural umbrellas a vibrant jungle was thriving with the myriad of flora all furiously competing for the limited sunlight that penetrated the canopy above them. Some creepers, like vines, used the trunks and branches of the taller trees as highways to the Sun; utilising the strength of their hosts structure, and thus not having to produce a strong supportive frame of their own, could send up relatively thin and weak tendrils to capture the much needed light.

This hot steaming sub-tropical rain forest was a hive of activity as thousands upon thousands of tiny insects gorged themselves upon the banquet that flourished before them. In many cases they feasted upon each other.

'Phoenix's' tiny explorer flew over this shrouded feast, and on past the edge of the tall green canopy. It then continued to fly across the vast open plateau that lay beneath them, towards a titanic range of jagged-peaked mountains that soared forebodingly out of the planet's tortured crust. These sharp granite peaks were shrouded in mist, for their tips reached the clouds.

As the shuttle-craft neared these giant needles of rock its flight came under scrutiny. The native observer watched with a mixture of curiosity and anger. The latter being the stronger primaeval urge, for its territory had been encroached upon.

TERRITORY had also been encroached upon by Commander Th'ak, as his freighter approached the outer reaches of his home star-system. The experienced Thommosaur followed established procedure and contacted the Th'om'ok's Outer Marker Control. 'Canis Questor's' exterior antennae twitched as they scanned for the transmitted response from the extreme defence station; a lightly fortified installation which served as the gateway to Th'ov'ac, the Th'om'ok's home world.

FAR away in another galaxy, in another dimension, was a creature protecting its territory... As the shining invader neared the nest, she attacked. The great winged-reptile swooped down from her inverted perch in the cliff-top crevice towards the silver alien.

Joseph was the first to see their aggressor. William saw the fearsome creature soon after, and stared in disbelief at the approaching bird. The 'pteranodon' flashed past the cock-pit window, and was seen this time by all five members of the crew. Several seconds later a deafening thud rang throughout the craft, quickly followed by a second equally loud thump.

What was that? shouted Hans.

I don't know! replied the Commander.

Look out Joe, it's coming again! yelled Armstrong.

Stay strapped in your seats. ordered the pilot.

This flying reptile attacked the shuttle-craft once more, lashing out with its mighty head at the intruder. A third sickening thud reverberated throughout the hull of the vessel. As the winged aggressor circled for yet another assault upon the shining beast that had invaded her domain, her own majestic and glorious form became the centre of attention upon the minds of the astounded crew as she approached for her fourth attack.

Shoot it down Joe before it brings us down! shouted Geoff.

Why don't you just out fly the creature Joseph? enquired Doctor Roberts, whose more was in this carefree adolescence that Miriam had learned to appreciate the beauty of nature and decided that her future would be spent in some way working within it. She had always been a strong-minded individual even as a child, so it came as no surprise at all to her parents to see her earn her doctorate in botany. Her mother had been at the university's presentation ceremony to see Miriam receive her much deserved award; unfortunately her father was absent as he had been killed in a tragic farming accident five months before.

You haven't got a hope of out manoeuvring that magnificent beast Commander. Do you know what it is? asked the awestruck palaeontologist.

I know what it isn't, and that's friendly! countered