Far Pangaea 60: Go Fish

"Just close your eyes and relax."

Sophia Ridge softly inspires Colonel Ruby Goddard while both women sat Indian style on the floor of the girls Meditation Chamber. It was also where the massive Aquarium containing the microscopic parasites that inhabited Sophia's every cell lived. Their kin anyway. Through Sophia, Ruby was privileged to hear a beautiful song hummed by the symphony of the room. Their harmony remarkable.

Ruby did her best. She wasn't used to digging in deep for inner peace. She tried not to laugh knowing that Sophia herself, before the accident she recklessly caused would have scoffed at this meditating crap. She had come a long way in a very short time. The lovely Colonel was incredibly glad to have her. Even if she was deemed the sexiest off limits woman in Pangaea. A nympho on lockdown. Yet, happy in her prison outfit.

"Breathing softly. Focused on finding Nirvana." Ruby speaks, "I can almost hear Kurt Cobain."

"That's my boys. They love Smells like Teen Spirit." Sophia chuckles, "Every song I sing they pick up on. It's amazing. Did I tell you I've started calling myself IBod?"

"Cute. Is that your superhero name? You just know James will find something better in time."

"Probably. So, do we trust the liar? He did get us trapped here on purpose."

"His mission was selfish but I genuinely believe in him. He wants to know who his parents are. Being born in this place must mean there is a way home. Right? James was in 2019 just like we were."

"I never thought of that. Holy Diver Mister Dio." Sophia giggles as her tiny friends pick up on a chorus of Ronnie James Dio's Holy Diver song. They did the Master service. It was eerie but beautiful.

"Speaking of Diver. I need to discuss something with you Sophia. I haven't even run this by James yet. It appears obvious to me that you might be the only strong candidate to swim south and find an entrance to wherever the Female Ganthorian is being held captive."

"Lucky me. I'm up for the challenge. Mom could phase through bedrock with me if she didn't disappear on us. Or Malcolm could...no that would require him to get way too big and risk destroying my entrance exit tunnel."

"Right. I doubt even he could survive the crushing depths of five miles down. No reason to risk his life."

"We could always just leave her there. After all she might evict us after we save her. Can she be trusted when we're not even certain if we can trust James?"

"Good point. You're growing up so fast Sophia. You might be taking after your Dad. Becoming quite the strategist. Circling back to examine the mission before charging head on."

"Private Sophia Ridge reporting for booty, I mean duty Colonel." She salutes with the wrong hand.

"Back to basic training Soldier."

They had a good laugh. Even baby Noble giggled in the Colonel's belly. Deciding to light up the letters H and A. For once the letters had meaning. Followed by the letters P and Y.

"Awww. Baby is Happy." Sophia pouts at the recognition.

Ruby could not stop smiling. Finally the Colonel crawls to her feet. Turning her back to Sophia she sighs, "Enough meditating. I feel like a salad. Eating for two now."

Looking at her walk away Sophia notes the Colonel's back light up the letter R. Since when did her back glow? Then it dawned on her.

"Are you calling me a HARPY? You little asshole."

"What was that Sophia?" Ruby stops at the door.

"Nothing Mommy. Come get me when you're ready to send me on vacation."

Sophia grew suspicious.

James Ian Pryce had battled depression for hours. Even his faithful pup Xander couldn't break him out of his funk. Although he knew quite a lot about History, including his own, he was far from knowing it all. Some things were just not privy to the Internet even in the year 2019 where he and his fellow survivors departed from. Things he would learn very soon would change his existence forever. Reality would be filled with both joy and heartbreak. In the meanwhile he chose to access deeper into the Ganthorian logs.

Yawning at the excessive amount of information in the data banks he prepares to give up when something catches his eye. Holographic images of the Female Ganthorian. How could he have missed them before now? Other than the logs mentioning her being on board there had been no actual images. The Ganthorians were notorious for their neglect of self documentation. There were literally no Diaries. No outgoing pictures of any one Crew member. Outside of surveillance feeds and actually seeing their deceased bodies nobody could recognize the race in an alien lineup.

Only a direct depiction from Area 51 and other known affiliations in the Secrecy game knew what they looked like. REGION above all kept certain things so buried that it was albeit impossible to know the truth. James had just been that smart to know where to dig. Hacking mainframes the world wide until he knew way too much. Giving himself away. REGION found their target. He let them. It was the only way to reach the truth. Against his parents wishes. Parents that were quite good at deception in their own right. Even he did not suspect their Ganthorian heritage.

The Pryce's maintaining the perfect family life. Careers. Pets. Home life. Hobbies. Raising a single boy with his intellect became a challenge. His thoughts on the past akin the future made him sad.

"Who's the cutie?" He hears the voice of Greta Winston behind him. Startled he refuses to jump.

"The Ganthorian female. She's young. My age maybe. Weird. I suspected much older. Her voice on the SOS call sounded older even."

"All this alien stuff is beyond me. How we planning on rescuing her?"

"Not many options. Five miles down would kill anyone but Sophia. Question is can she rescue her on her own? We might be sending her on a suicide mission."

"None of these here tinker toys can help us?"

"Narrow tunnels going down I hear. Tech here is not designed for small case deep sea diving. The outer hull if it had its shielding powered up could. But, its not and its too large. Ganthorians had bases under the oceans. Deeper than the Female is being held. But, like I said nothing would help enough."

"So it's damned if we do, damned if we don't."

"Something like that. Ruby's call on how or if we even do this."

"I feel sorry for that lil girl." Greta pouts examining the image of the female.

"Me too."

"You keep thinking Big Brain. I'm going outside to care for my critters."

"Yep."

Outside the crippled starship Malcolm Brand stared out into the desert. He, Elle, and Cam Light had searched high and low for her. Sophia finally telling them to chill. Having faith her Mom would turn up at some point. She knew that after catching she and Malcolm having sex was hard on her. Complicated by hearing her Father's voice through Cameron Scott's bond with Sabbath Black made her even more edgy.

Malcolm was going stir crazy. Having to stay outside the ship for fear of any unplanned size increase made sense but it was a lonely existence now. He was not the only one. The Roman Gaicazar had yet to set foot indoors. Choosing to reside out where he felt safer. Too much high tech gave him a sense of evil.

Thus the sounds of cattle and the rumblings of a soul controlled T-Rex made things dreadfully boring. Malcolm was ready for another salvage run. Anything to keep busy. But, with Ruby dealing with a fibbing James. Being pregnant and now powered up herself left the Colonel a bit unwound. He was needed here. For now.

As much as it was great to have Cameron back from the dead even their tight friendship seemed a bit strained. Mostly stemming from trust and the fact that there was a twin out there somewhere. Evil? Hard to say. Cameron himself needed time alone to sort out who he was.

"Wanna spar with me Mal?" Elle twirled a wooden staff she had made.

"Naaa! Not in the mood Elle. I feel the world calling out to me."

She stops whipping her staff around and uses it to support herself as she stands beside her friend. Joining him in staring out at the desert. It was quiet. No life anywhere besides the occasional dust whirlwind.

"You thinking about leaving us like Jack?"

"No. Just a salvage run maybe. Boredom."

"I hear that. Might join you on the next one. What the heck is Antonaeus trying to do with Jurassic Junior?" She squints in the distance to observe the Roman walking the dinosaur.

"Housebreaking him. He keeps crapping on the lawn."

"How does it have anything to crap out? It doesn't eat." She raises a brow.

"Been our worry. Sooner or later it has to eat something. It's kinda interesting having our own T-Rex but reality will set in soon enough."

"I think the souls of Adam and Eve must be keeping it from losing control. Only explanation."

"Are they somehow fueling it to compensate its hunger?" He poses.

"Never thought of that. Kind of strange that we have our own personal Garden of Eden complete with Adam, Eve, and the serpent. You had the apple."

"Yeah, I thought that same thing. Y'know I was thinking. Maddy used my water rune to create a lake for Eden. Maybe I can size up and dig a big hole. Have Maddy do the same here. Give us a swimming hole. Let the cows stretch out a bit more too."

"Good idea. That would keep you busy. Off of Maddy for the moment."

"Might just do that. Heck we can stock it with fish from the underground. Make some poles and go fishing."

"Sounds relaxing. Maybe some of these unopened crates will have fishing gear."

"Lot more to open up. Could find anything. I'm going to take a short walk. Head up on the ridge overlooking us. Need a little peace of mind."

"I'm here if you need me Mal. Always."

"Thanks Lil Sister."

"Proud to be your Sister. Blood or not."

"Same here. I'll catch you later."

"See you soon."

Below in the basement of the Ganthorian ship Cameron Scott decided to take a quiet bath. He just wanted to be by himself. It bothered him that he wasn't sensing the psychic bond he shared with Sabbath Black of late. Something seemed different. That worried him. Soaking in the tub he swigged some Vodka from a bottle. Wishing he had a cigarette. Having smoked his last before the whole Eden debacle he was craving one. Not even being reborn took away the desire.

So quiet he could hear a pin drop it became annoying. Luckily the silence wouldn't last long. The sound of water splashing from the interior flooding made him sit up straight and look out over the dimly lit water. Now that the ships power cells were solar collecting again they had established small lights to see better by.

After a lengthy survey of the surface he spots bubbles and the sudden rise of a certain red skinned aquatic beauty. Animahni had returned. Stepping into the shallows she drug a large net of fish behind her. Noting the cleanliness of the basement since her last visit. Even the rebuilt fish pens. Regardless she continues onward with her catch.

"Hey Stranger. We didn't get much time to talk last time. Kinda busy Komodo killing. How you been?"

She marches over to Cam and stops to glare down at him. With a very timid smile she raises the fish into the air and drops them into his lap. Fish rioting to be free all over his submerged lower half.

"HEY! Why did you do that?"

"I brought you pinchers. Be careful that they do not grab anything you require."

"What? Fuck! You brought Lobsters and Crabs." He leaps up in a hurry. In his sudden move his body begins to glow. The water he stood in began to boil. Fish began to cook. Animahni tilts her head at the unexpected activity.

"I did not realize you could do that." She appears stunned.

"Recently acquired. Hey! Don't take off too soon. The Colonel needs to talk to you. You and your friends down below."

"Where is Elle?"

"Outside I think. Let me grab a towel I'll walk you up." He hurries. Her eyes examining his manhood with curiosity. His size troubled her. She had not seen a male genitalia before now.

"Does it hurt?" She expresses.

"What?" He follows her eyes to his dangling monstrosity, "Only when he gets really tight. Then it's a war."

"I am certain he would lose to you."

"Every time. You think he would learn not to pick a fight." Cam chuckles. He needed a good laugh. Once dressed Cam motions her to follow him upstairs. Locating Ruby now sitting with James and talking over the images of the Ganthorian female he had found.

"Look what the catfish dragged in." Cam knocks on the opened door.

"Animahni! Welcome back." Ruby stands up and moves in with a careful hug. She knew the Hybrid's touch could paralyze her for a short time. She didn't want to rile up the Baby.

"You wished to speak with me?"

James jumps in, "We all need your help. Look here." He shows her the images, "This girl is being held captive 5 miles below us. Have you seen anything suspicious of late?"

She pauses, "Strange lights. From tunnels below."

"Where you guys supposedly pushed the dirt into, to dig your way down to the sea below?" Ruby questions. It still nagged her how four Hybrids could accomplish such a feat.

"No. These tunnels lead to a large cavern. Oophalah ordered us to stay away from the unknown. It is safer. Only Karnog dared to enter. Long before Sophia killed him. He returned more vicious than ever. This scared us all."

Ruby studied her response carefully. Some things in the history of the Hybrid's did not add up. The girl appeared friendly and concerned. She did help against the giant Komodo. Yet, even with a naïve demeanor Animahni seemed as if holding something back. That worried her.

"When Karnog was still alive. You knew of these lights and never told us about them?" Ruby points out.

"In all fairness we never asked any of those type of questions." James winces.

Ruby caught on to his response, "Do you know what those lights are James?"

"Me? No. Why?" He appeared shaken. Even Cam noticed.

"Spill it Kid." Cam nodded.

"Spill what? I don't know. Look guys? I know I screwed up but trust me I'm learning as I go here in this place. Pangaea. Through all my years of hacking I learned tidbits. I got us here. I was born here. I don't know much more than that."

"You mentioned what were they called the Anunnaki?" Ruby prompts.

"Totally separate. Those guys came to Earth much later than this time period. Where we are right now is unrecorded time. That's all I grasp. The Anunnaki left writings on stone about things in Earth's history. Their teachings. Why they were here. The only thing they even mention about this time period was simple. Time began. Before Eden. Before man there was Time."

"Not much to go on." Cam shrugs.

"You were born here?" Animahni looked puzzled.

"Yeah."

"How do you know that?" Cam also looked confused.

James clams up looking toward the floor. It takes Ruby to reach over and lift his chin. He melts at her gaze.

"We never did pose that question James. How do you know this?"

"I don't really. It just made sense to me. The hacks discovered a project called Beautiful Dreamer."

"You told General Ridge that in his psychic communication through me." Cam recalls.

"Yeah. I figured if he could find that information then he would understand. Beautiful Dreamer is a file dedicated to Lineage. My lineage. Trust me it freaks even me out. If it's true I'll only live to age 33. Like all of my Ancestors. Ready for this?"

The group eye each other and await him to continue.

"I was Jesus Christ in a past life. No lie. Every few centuries I'm born as someone special."

Cam raises an eye brow, "Let's not ruin Gaicazar's belief. So it was you that bled a tear upon Antonaeus?" Cam considers.

"I guess. It's not like I remember my past lives. If I did I guess I'm glad I chose a true hero." "Mind blown." Ruby huffs.

"How do you think I feel?" James pouts, "My life is half over. Unless of course I get killed before age 33. Then I'll be reborn almost instantly after. The way the file dictates it the rebirth process begins exactly nine months prior to the death. So actually I live that long as two separate entities. Not sure how that is possible. Back in 2019 I imagine I was reborn since I'm back here now. My timeline was erased the day we warped back here. As they say life goes on. I'm pretty certain mine did. Somewhere."

"Wait. If you were supposedly born here in Pangaea how could you be in 2019?" Cam brings up scratching his head. Animahni was so lost she could only dart her eyes at those speaking.

"Right." Ruby nods, "You had to have had real birth parents in what? 2004?"

"If I did I never knew my real parents. The Pryce's tried to fool me but I caught on. They were Ganthorians. Their race studied my lineage because for some reason I cannot be cloned. They were genetic scientists after all. I puzzled them. I think it was the Ganthorians that explained things to Majestic 12. From there on the treachery began. A trust was broken."

"Used by the Government Mule. Do tell." Cam chuckles.

Behind them Elle Franklin shows up. Sneaking in behind Animahni she pinches the Amphibian beauty on the butt. That became a hiss fest quickly. The girl did not like being snuck up on.

"Easy Beautiful. It's only me. Welcome back." Elle flares her eyes waiting for the girl to recognize her. That she did. The red skinned Goddess rushes Elle and kisses her viciously on the lips.

Ruby smirks, "Well now. Somebody missed somebody."

"Yeah? How did we miss it?" Cam raises a brow, "I'm digging this show. Close your eyes Kid."

James throws his hands up, "Really? I'm kind of Immortal. Older than everyone in this room technically. Even if I don't remember my past incarnations."

"Still a Kid." Ruby nudges him, "Relax. This won't go much further than..."

Animahni molds her palm over Elle's left breast. Sitting on the floor the German Shepard Xander tilts his head.

"Yeah. Okay, let's take this elsewhere Ladies." Ruby orders. Elle without releasing her kiss casts a thumbs up for Ruby to know she had been heard. In turn Elle cradles Animahni in her arms and heads back to her own room. The door kicked shut for privacy. "Pretty mermaids all in a row." Cam sighs grinning.

"Enough. Back on topic. We give Animahni her time with Elle then we approach her about getting Oophalah and Tyrakuus involved in saving our Female Ganthorian. Sophia can join them seeing as she's the only one capable." Ruby motions with her hands. "James? In all of your hacking you didn't discover your birth parents identities?"

"I tried Ruby. Literally nothing came up. Then, I dug more into Beautiful Dreamer. Once I learned the reincarnation theory I discovered anomalies. Past Me's that were born in strange ways."

"Like Jesus being born to the Virgin Mary?" Cam questions.

"Exactly. Those incarnations displayed powers. Miracles if you will. Between centuries it's like a flux pattern. Those gifted do their thing then vanish. Those that came after nothing special."

Ruby turns to Cam, "Okay GOD! What do you have to say for yourself? You create James?"

"Me? Uhhh! No. No kids on my porch. Sorry. Look! I'm just as in the dark about what happened to me as you are. All I know is I'm glad to be alive."

"And, you don't know that whole Eden scene they went through?" Ruby eyes James. "Zero. All I knew about Eden was in the History books. Mainly the Bible and a few hidden texts the Vatican kept hidden from the public eye."

"I feel like we're the templates for the Bible. Light Cam. Eden. Fallen Angels. Unexplained babies." Ruby shakes her head.

Cam pauses a moment, "You don't think..." He points at her belly then cautiously toward James with a strained expression.

"What?" Ruby didn't comprehend at first, "You think my baby could be...James? Come on now."

James bulges his eyes and whines, "Ruby?"

Her expression goes pale, "Oh, you better not tell me I'm your Mother."