In the cold, dimly lit heart of an underground military base, General Robert âStonewallâ Grieger examined a digital map glowing on the wall-sized display before him. The mapâs shifting coordinates and markers reflected his calculated, precise mind, a mind that had navigated countless covert operations and top-secret missions for the Commission, an organization few civilians knew existed.
âOverlay sequence,â Grieger commanded. In response, a soft blue grid appeared, tracing over the earthâs surface, pinpointing ancient megalithic sites worldwide: Stonehenge, the Pyramids of Giza, the enigmatic Easter Island statues, and countless others. He studied the map intently, his eyes narrowing as another sequence appearedâthe exact locations featured in the new video game, Stone Chronicles: Veil of Titans. He leaned forward, his fingers resting on his chin, piecing together connections only he and a select few could understand.
A knock at the door broke the silence.
âCome in,â Grieger barked, not taking his eyes off the map.
The door opened, and Sergeant Walsh stepped in, rigid and formal. âColonel Jasper here to see you, sir.â
âSend him in.â
The sergeant stepped aside, and Colonel Theodore âTeddyâ Jasper strode into the room with the casual confidence of a man who knew he had long-standing privileges with the general. Jasperâs tall, lanky frame contrasted with Griegerâs stockier build, and he held an easygoing expression, though his eyes scanned the room with a sharpness that came from years of military service.
âWhat do you got for me, Bobby?â Jasper asked, using the nickname reserved for close associates.
Grieger turned to him, gesturing at the map. âHey, Teddy, have you seen this? Weâve got intel suggesting we may have to enter a virtual world to retrieve a device.â
Jasper raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. âVirtual world, huh? You talking about that game the kids are all over now? Stone Chronicles: Veil of Titans, right? I just bought that for my boys.â
âThatâs the one,â Grieger replied, his gaze darkening as he gestured to the screen. âYou know theyâre offering a $10 million prize to the first team to unlock the secrets of the game.â
Jasper whistled, looking amused. âNo wonder my boys are obsessed. I didnât think a video game would have much to do with our work. What, did the developers get access to some classified data or something?â
Grieger laughed, shaking his head. âNot exactly, but youâll find this interesting. I happened to stumble upon this information because, as you know, my sonâs on a team with your boys. Iâve been sponsoring the team for months now, thought it was a good way to keep an eye on things.â
Jasper nodded, his face breaking into a wry grin. âAh, well, if that keeps them doing something halfway constructive, Iâm all for it. Better than them dreaming about sports careers or worseâgetting too comfortable to ever consider the military.â He sighed. âThey think theyâre too privileged for that kind of life.â
Grieger chuckled, nodding. âYeah, your boys are on my sonâs team. Youâre welcome for the sponsorship, by the way.â
The two men shared a laugh, the kind that held a rough camaraderie only years of shared secrets and service could bring. But Griegerâs expression soon turned serious, his gaze shifting back to the map.
âBack to the business at hand,â Grieger said, his voice low and intent. âThereâs something⊠more. A boy named Leo Adams has already found the first key in The Lost Megalith.â
âLeo Adams,â Jasper repeated, brow furrowing. âThat name sounds familiar. Didnât his family have some⊠Commission history?â
A silence stretched between them, heavy with unspoken memories and classified files. Grieger folded his arms, nodding.
âLeoâs father, Leonard Adams, was one of usâback in the day,â Grieger said, his voice carrying the weight of something buried. âHe and his wife, Jennifer Casari, were involved in some high-level operations with us. Adams was assigned to special missions regarding unidentified aerial phenomenaâUAPsâand retrieval missions with both the Pentagon and the CIA. His wife⊠she was in on it too. Brilliant, that one. It didnât take long before they stumbled upon information that got them into trouble.â
Jasper leaned forward, his face grim. âTrouble with who?â
Griegerâs jaw clenched as he pulled up a classified file on his tablet, the screen casting a faint glow on his face. âInformation suggests they stumbled onto something powerfulâa device connected to an ancient technology that weâve been monitoring for decades. They believed it was linked to the same technology hidden in the megalithic sites. When they found out, they decided to hide. They were⊠resourceful. Elusive. It took years, but we eventually caught up with them.â
âWhat happened?â Jasperâs voice was a mixture of curiosity and apprehension.
Grieger hesitated, his gaze darkening. âWe managed to capture Jennifer. But it didnât go as planned. Leonard was out of reach at the time, but Jennifer⊠she put up a fight. It was unlike anything Iâve ever seen. I donât know what she knew, or what she could do, but it was almost as if something⊠something beyond us was protecting her. When we finally got our hands on her, she wasnât the same. She didnât talk, didnât respond. She became⊠different. It was as if sheâd vanished without ever leaving.â
Jasper shook his head, incredulous. âAnd the boy?â
âLeo was just a baby back then,â Grieger replied, his voice carrying the weight of old memories. âLeonard went into hiding with him, kept them both off the grid. We had our tracking resources tied up for years, chasing any hint or rumor, but he always seemed to stay one step ahead.â
Jasper listened intently, his face drawn in curiosity.
Grieger continued, the words heavy, as though each one pulled up pieces of a story heâd buried. âBut finally, years later, we got a break. A small town hospital reported a man fitting Leonardâs description. He was in the ICUâinjuries from a car accident. He had no ID, but it was him. Problem was, by the time we found him, Leonardâs memory had been affected. Heâd suffered head trauma, and he was fading. They thought it was from the accident, but⊠I suspect otherwise.â
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Jasper frowned. âOtherwise?â
âHis mind was deteriorating rapidly, but it wasnât just the accident,â Grieger said, his voice dropping. âHis memories were slipping away, like pieces of his past being erased. He had early-onset Alzheimerâs. By the time we made contact, he was a shell of himself. Weâd finally found him, and yet the memories we needed were lost.â
âWhat about the kid?â Jasper asked.
Grieger sighed, rubbing his hand over his jaw. âLeo was still young, too young to be useful to us. He barely knew anything about his fatherâs past. The poor kid had been raised on the run, never staying in one place long enough to call it home. He was polite, quiet, didnât ask questions. The hospital staff said Leonard had been muttering about spies and shadows, insisting that they stay hidden, that his boy was âimportantâ and needed to stay safe.â
Jasper leaned back, his eyes narrowing. âSo, the boy really was the key all along.â
âExactly,â Grieger replied. âBut without Leonardâs mind intact, we were left with nothing concrete to act on. The only option left was to keep an eye on the kid, watch and wait. We needed to know if Leonardâs suspicions about his sonâs importance were true.â
Jasper shook his head, a wry smile tugging at his lips. âYou were thorough as always, Bobby. You even uprooted your whole life to move here and keep him under surveillance?â
Grieger chuckled dryly, glancing at the digital map that glowed dimly in the roomâs dark shadows. âDidnât have much of a choice. My sons go to school with Leo; they play on the same sports teams, even share some classes. Weâve been close enough to see him up close, to keep tabs without drawing suspicion.â
âSmart,â Jasper murmured, nodding in admiration. âSmart move. Keep him close, integrate him into your life.â
Grieger nodded, his expression hardening. âWeâve kept him in our line of sight all these years. And I thought that would be enough. But then, the damn game had to release that Lost Megalith challenge. Now Leo has the first key, and suddenly every interested party has a vested interest in his whereabouts.â
The room fell into silence, the digital map casting a cold blue glow over them as the enormity of Griegerâs strategy sank in.
After a long moment, Jasper spoke, his voice a whisper. âAnd now the boyâs playing the game?â
Grieger nodded. âAnd not just playing it, Teddy. Heâs the first to unlock one of the keys. This game⊠itâs linked to what Jennifer and Leonard were searching for. Whoever designed this version of Stone Chronicles is either incredibly lucky or knows more than theyâre letting on.â
Jasper took a deep breath, processing the revelation. âSo, whatâs the plan?â
Griegerâs face hardened, his gaze turning cold and determined. âWe need to monitor him, track his every move in that game. If he unlocks the remaining keys, heâll have access to information we canât let fall into the wrong hands. Meanwhile, we need to find this game developer. This isnât just a game, Teddy. This is a matter of national security.â
Jasper nodded, his expression darkening with understanding. âIâll get our people on it. We can run a full surveillance operation, monitor his activity in real time. And if he leads us to the deviceâŠâ
âWe take it,â Grieger finished, his tone brooking no argument. âIf thereâs a chance that this device could compromise our operations or end up with the rebels, we need to act now.â
With a final look at the map, Grieger dismissed the display, the room falling into darkness once more. He turned to Jasper, his eyes glinting with cold determination.
âWeâll start with Leo Adams. Whatever secrets his parents were hiding, whatever legacy they left him, weâll uncover it. And weâll make sure it doesnât fall into the wrong hands.â
Leoâs Uncertainty with the Rebellion.
Meanwhile, miles away, Leo sat in a dimly lit room, still reeling from his recent encounter with the Wesirians. The initial shock of being kidnapped had worn off, but he still felt uneasy, caught between the mysterious allure of the rebels and a lingering mistrust.
He looked across the table at Maera, who watched him with a calm, steady gaze.
âWhy did you have to kidnap me?â he asked, the bitterness creeping into his tone. âYou could have just⊠I donât know, reached out like normal people?â
Maera tilted her head, her eyes never leaving his. âBecause we needed to get to you before the Commission did. They would have used you, Leo, just as they used your parents. We wanted you to have a choiceâa real choice.â
He looked away, still skeptical. The idea of trusting a group that had dragged him from his home wasnât exactly reassuring.
Seeing his doubt, Maera stood, gesturing for him to follow. âPerhaps I can help you understand. Come with me.â
She led him down a narrow corridor into a large room filled with shipping connexes.They walked through the first isle and she opened one of the containers. It was filled with artifacts: monolithic tablets, ancient scrolls, and objects with strange inscriptions and engravings that glowed faintly in the low light. Each item seemed to radiate an energy he couldnât quite explain, and as he stepped closer, he felt a pull, as though the artifacts themselves were reaching out to him.
Maera gestured toward the objects. âLet go, Leo. Let yourself feel the connection.â
As he moved down a small isle inside the connex between and among the artifacts, visions began to appearâblurry, fragmented images that slowly sharpened, becoming scenes from a past he couldnât remember but somehow knew. He saw flashes of Atlantis, a city gleaming with crystalline towers and advanced machinery that hummed with life. He saw temples in Egypt, massive structures lit by an otherworldly glow, and cities in Mesoamerica where beings of light moved among the people, guiding them, teaching them.
Finally, his gaze fell on a small, simple pendantâa pendant he recognized instantly. It had belonged to his mother, a locket sheâd worn with photos of her and his father. He reached for it, his hand trembling, and as his fingers brushed against it, a surge of energy coursed through him, filling his mind with a flood of images.
He saw his mother, Jennifer, young and vibrant, speaking to a being made of light, its form shifting and glowing with a wisdom that went beyond words. He saw her holding him as a baby, a look of fierce protection in her eyes. He saw her taken, a struggle, and then darkness.
When the vision faded, he found himself clutching the pendant, breathing heavily, as though heâd lived through each moment. He looked up, and Maera was watching him, her expression soft with understanding.
âYour mother,â Maera said, her voice barely above a whisper, âwas one of us. She was⊠my predecessor, the one who kept the knowledge alive, the one who knew the truth of Eirata.â
Leo stared at her, realization dawning. âYou⊠you knew her?â
Maeraâs form shimmered, a shift in her presence, and suddenly he felt an unmistakable familiarity in her gaze.
âShe is me, Leo,â Maera whispered, her voice filled with a mixture of sorrow and love. âI am Maera now, the Hasmadah of the Wesirians. But once, I was Jennifer Casari. This was the only way to save me, to keep our knowledge alive. Eirataâs consciousness flows through me, but so does hers. I am both, Leo.â
Leoâs heart pounded, the weight of the truth settling over him like a revelation. He felt as though he were seeing his mother for the first time in years, and yet she was something more, something beyond human.
He reached out, his voice breaking. âMomâŠ?â
She placed her hand over his, a warmth spreading through him that felt like an embrace. âIâm here, Leo. I always have been.â
Leoâs world spun, but for the first time, he felt a sense of purpose, a connection that went beyond the game, beyond the trials. He was ready to face whatever came next.
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