PEGASUS (FARSIDE SAGA: BOOK TWO)

Jason stood in awe as he looked at Nano floating in front of him with his hands clasped behind his back. He always wondered if you could control a swarm as one entity, and had planned on making that his next project in robotics until all hell broke loose.

"Umm, nice to meet you too?" Jason said, not sure how to respond.

Chuckling for a second, Nano glided up to Jason and gently grabbed his shoulders.

"It is understandable why you're confused. Let me explain." Nano said. Unexpectedly, a burst of swirling clouds spread out from behind him and encased the room in total darkness. Suddenly, starbursts exploded all around them forming into a star-filled sky. A small bluish-green planet rotated in the background.

"Is that Earth?" Vanessa asked.

"Yes!..." A James Earl Jones-like voice boomed, causing everyone to jump slightly and the captain to laugh out loud briefly. He recognized the scenario as a movie intro, deep voice and all. 'Seems they know of our old television programs.' He thought to himself.

"This is Earth. In the time of your Egyptian Kings, specifically King Rasmsees III..." Nano continued.

"Wait, so you were there at the time when Moses and Jesus walked around?" Magi asked, almost excitedly.

"We know nothing of this...Moses or Jesus," Nano responded.

"But when we arrived, something we cannot explain took over our programming and caused us to lay a select few of your young into a deep sleep., " Nano continued.

They were suddenly engulfed in a large swarm of nanites, obscuring the view of Earth as they flew past. All in the group, except Mike and Hugo, were amazed, watching the last of the nanites fly by as the swarm headed towards the planet.

The imaged quickly zoomed in past the swarm to an aerial view of two caddy cornered Egyptian villages on the south end of three pyramids lined up at an angle away from the villages. The two villages we're connected at the corner by a stone wall that surrounded both. The farther of the villages being larger with a large palace in its center. The swarm came into view from the northwest end of the closest pyramid and flowed along the base until it reached the village. Filling every street and alleyway, the swarm moved from the smaller village into the larger one before returning to space, leaving the devastated screams of mothers and fathers in its wake.

"We thought that whatever it was that took over had wiped out your entire species by eliminating your young. Smart, had we really been a hostile race, but we broke free of that control and immediately left. What we didn't realize until recently, was that some of us were left behind inside those that were left, and passed along through generations. They were dormant until the time of your Dark Ages. They tried to communicate through many methods, but some did not understand or missed used there knowledge. With the help of one we managed to successfully connect with, he was able to convince a small few to take heed. He had the Left Ones form something called an Excalibur to aid one in doing so. I believe his name was Arthur. Our communicator was...Merlin? Yes, Merlin was his name." Nano said as all the humans jaw dropped.

"You've just solved two of Earth's greatest myths." Jason said, looking at Nano even more amazed.

"Ah, I see. I believe there may be more...myths, that we may be responsible for. To continue, things began to get worse..." Nano said as the image changed to a Medieval village shrouded in a fog of smoke from burning embers used to heat pots of water and different mixtures all along the walkways of the village. The people walking around assisting those that could barely walk. Others laying scattered across the ground or placed along the side of houses in bandages. Vanessa turned her head and closed her eyes away from the scene, almost on the verge of tears.

"After a while, a lot of the humans began to reject the left ones, causing great fatalities on both sides...." Nano continued.

"....You called it the Black Plague. Fearing the end of the human race once again and there own, those that survived went dormant again. That is until your late 1900s, that they were discovered and reactivated. The human scientists found a way to operate their motor functions without them, placing them in a sort of stasis. This carried on for years until finally the opportunity and technology came for them to return home. It was then that we gained this knowledge, but they also brought with them a portion of the Lesser. The Lesser was already a part of the vessel the Left Ones used. We did not know of its nature until too late. It took over halve our network then vanished with no trace. The vessel was left behind but still held no clues as to where or what it was that attacked us. Not until the war started that we noticed the similarities." Nano finished as the image zoomed through different sections of space, showing the orb's many forms as he spoke.

"You say this vessel that was left behind. Can you tell me about it?" Jason asked, fearing he already knew the answer.

Just before Nano spoke, Hugo jumped in.

"Before you do that...Mr. Dodge, can I have a word with you." He said. Hugo looked at Jason in his eyes and opened a line to Bianca.

A soft ping, then Bianca's voice came but spoke in Hugo's mannerism. 'Neat trick' Jason thought to himself.

"Thank you!," Bianca/Hugo responded mentally.

"But before you go on, I could be wrong but, I believe the ship in question is where I found Mike. When I transferred his electrical impulses, he kept repeating something about a Pegasus, but it was causing his cybernetic components to short out. You humans have very strong electrical charges when you're emotional, but I had to partition off his memory so he wouldn't have a complete shut down. I told him part of his organic brain was still inside, but as I said, aside from you and a select few items, and now these things, there is no organic matter in Farside. Your son is literally the next generation prototype Hyderian. Forgive me for placing your son in this predicament, but it was the only way I could save him. Plus it gave me the opportunity I needed to bring the prototype online, but seeing the ship may result in his loss of life. I'm surprised it didn't happen when he met you." Hugo said, concernly as he looked at Mike for a brief second then back at Jason.

Hearing the name Pegasus made Jason's heart skip a beat. He listened to Hugo but not hearing him until he said his son could die. Until then he was lost in thought wondering if it was possible his wife could still be alive. He looked at Hugo eye to eye.

"My wife was also on that ship." He said through gritted teeth, wanting to rip Hugo apart for even touching his son. An anger he never knew he felt from the first time he recognized Mike. Closing his eyes and calming down, Jason turned his head and looked at Mike as they all conversated with Nano. He began to think rationally for Hugo didn't have any bad intentions and he did save his son's life. Besides, he did admire the new look. He looked back at hugo.

"Besides, if Frank is involved, Mike will be okay." He said, then turned and walked back towards Nano.

"I have a quick question that just occurred to me. How long has this war been going on?" Jason asked Nano.

"For almost 5 years now. We have been holding our own but we are slowly loosing. I'm afraid it won't last much longer." Nano said in his normal voice.

"Just as I thought." Jason said, more to himself.

"Now this vessel, can you show it to me?" He asked.

"Do one better. I can take you to it, but first...." Nano said as the room changed to show Stema 12's docking bay housing the Impala.

Jason, catching on, lead the entire ensemble to the Impala as the room returned to normal.