Home. I was home. My mother greeted me on the pathway leading to the house with joyous tears flowing from the dark brown eyes that sat behind her wireframe glasses and an overjoyed smile on her round face. She seemed shorter than last I saw her and was slightly skinnier too, perhaps age was beginning to catch up to her. She also had a few more gray hairs amid her shoulder length auburn brown hair, but her loving embrace was still as heartfelt and warm as ever and I was uplifted upon seeing her. But strangely enough I couldn’t help but feel slightly hollow at seeing her, as if something were missing. Granted there was still the case of my missing possessions, which my mother immediately picked up on, “Oh geez, where are all of your things? You didn’t send it through SPEx did you? I’ve been following the attack on the news. Oh no, you did, didn’t you!” She shouted immediately deducing what happened to my things, amid her sobs and tears of joy.

 

     But I couldn’t help but think the emptiness I felt was the result of something else. That’s not it. That’s not what’s missing. My eyes caught sight of my dad’s old office window on the front side of our house and I immediately knew what it was. He’s not here. He hadn’t been here for years. It’d been eight years since that fateful day. Eight years: that’s how long it’d been since I’d seen my father. His absence was the source of the emptiness I felt upon my return—he hadn’t been there any of the times I’d come back to visit, but now his presence seemed more significant. I didn’t let myself get caught up in feeling such depressing thoughts and I diverted my attention to what baggage I still had and finally said to her, “Never mind all that stuff Mom, it’s just good to be home.”

 

     Jonos helped me with my bags as we walked up the pathway and stepped onto the porch. It was just as old and worn as I'd remembered. The wood was cracking in many places and the fading verdant-green paint was beginning to chip from the house’s trim, but it felt so reassuring, so pleasant, it was home. I’m finally here.

 

     Mom opened the door and we all walked in. Jonos immediately elected to leave my bags at the door and dropped them where he stood before proceeding straight toward the hallway bathroom. I walked toward the kitchen table with Mom, explaining the trip home, "The flight was fine, although I had to deal with this very indignant Fed officer who found my courtesy to be in the way of his prerogative."

 

     "Well, you know how demanding their lives can get dear. I’m sure he had someone to see and somewhere to be." She responded, clearly alluding to my nonexistent father who’d gone into the UTF Officer Program for the Physics Engineering and Scientific Application Program, and was always here and there doing this and that. Again I was forced to think of him and how the UTF slowly and painfully took him away. But again I pushed the dampening thoughts from my mind, focusing instead on a far more pressing matter, my empty stomach.

 

     As if on cue, my twin walked out of the bathroom and walked through the dining room right to the kitchen. He then began to take out the necessary food to make himself a sandwich. "Want to make me one?" I asked. 

 

     "Not really.”

 

     "Come on." I insisted.

 

     "Make your own." he glibly retorted.

 

     “Dude, come on.” I persisted.

 

     “No, make your own.”

 

     "Oh, just make your brother a sandwich," Mom cut in, "He's been gone for so long and I'm sure he's tired from all of his travel. Show him how nice it is to have him back and make him the darn sandwich."

I hated when Mom stepped in to our brotherly squabbles; mostly because my twin brother—being a whopping thirteen minutes older than me—felt that I got preferential treatment because I was the ‘baby.’ He was born eleven minutes to midnight on the last day of March and I, needing another thirteen minutes of laborious effort, was born two minutes after midnight on the first of April. He loved to use that to his advantage whenever he could, which was quite often while growing up, but also always hated whenever Mom stepped in. We preferred to resolve our differences ourselves, often physically, which she certainly didn’t care for too much. But we believed the various punches, kicks, head-locks, and everything in between ultimately served to bring us all the closer to one another. And usually any backlash from such fights wouldn’t last more than a few hours and then all would be right as it was before the fight. Although most of the time we just bickered until one of us simply didn’t feel like continuing.   

 

     This time however, he rather effortlessly submitted, "Fine. What do you want?"

 

     "Uh, whatever you're having." I said, completely confident that any sandwich he would make would be more than supremely delicious as both of us were quite the sandwich connoisseurs. I then thought about what Mom said about me being gone so long. How long had it been now? Nearly a whole year had gone by since I’d seen my mother, my twin, or either of our brothers. I had usually come home every five or six months or so but I hadn't had any chances this year as I'd been abroad in Eurkasyia. But I was back now so all of that didn't seem to matter anymore. I’m home.

 

     Jonos ended up making us all toasted open-top ham and salami sandwiches with a pesto-basil spread, spinach leaves, sliced tomato, and avocado. He melted a thin layer of some kind of cheese I wasn’t familiar with (but absolutely enjoyed) over the tops on the avocado. The sandwiches were simply spectacular and an uplifting taste of home, though I did find it necessary to ‘top’ my sandwich, wishing to forgo presentation for the practicality of picking up my sandwich. “What, is it not good enough for you?” My brother started, “Maybe you should have made it yourself.”

 

     “I don’t have the patience to fumble over this sandwich right now.” I managed between mouthfuls as I devoured the sandwich.

 

     He scoffed and we all shared a chortle amid our mouthfuls of the delicious sandwiches. After finishing our meal we talked for several long hours, well into the night. We spoke about Jonos’ upcoming wedding and his flying career, my schooling and traveling abroad and ultimately my future work and career plans—of which I had none. After some time Jonos stood up and said, "Well it's been great catching up, but I should get back to Ayla, I've definitely kept her waiting too long."

 

     "Alright then," Mom responded stifling a yawn, clearly tired from the hours of conversation. "When will you be by next?"

 

     "Oh, we'll come by this weekend. I'm sure Ayla will want to see Savos now that he’s back," he replied. "Hey, I know that you'll want to take some time to unwind now that you’re home, but if you're ever looking for something to do, come by the local airfield. I'm sure I could find something for you to do. Come by tomorrow morning, if you’re interested."

 

     "Sure," I replied, almost in a daze, surprised as I was to hear the offer, "Will do."

 

     After he left, Mom and I cleaned up the dishes and I lugged my belongings upstairs to my old room which was sparse, yet cozy, and exactly as I’d left it when I moved out all those years before. As I plopped my bags down I immediately lurched forward a few paces and crashed onto my soft and inviting bed and instantly fell asleep. I slept a deep, fit sleep unlike any sleep I'd ever slept. I was home.

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

The next morning I awoke to find my mother already gone and the house empty and cold. I didn’t dwell on that too long and decided to take advantage of the fully stocked pantry and refrigerator—my favorite perks about being home. I made myself a hearty breakfast consisting of scrambled eggs, toasted cinnamon bread with delicious home jarred apple-butter, four strips of center-cut bacon, a banana, and a tall glass of fresh squeezed orange juice—which I’ll admit wasn’t as good as the stuff I’d had while studying in the orange-tree-filled tropics of Oridiany—but was a nice quencher nonetheless.

 

     After breakfast I cleaned up in my old bathroom; cutting my hair, showering, and shaving, though I left the tuft of hair under my lower lip as I’d grown quite fond of it—and it distinguished me from my brother. Everything in the bathroom was just as it was before I left home, although it appeared that Mom had bought some new bathmats and towels which I certainly appreciated given that mine were the same ones I’d been using for the past few years and had grown rather raggedy. Having hastily and rather lazily unpacked my bags, I pulled out what I deemed acceptable clothing to go pay Jonos a visit at the airfield on a cold December day. I pulled on a pair of decent blue jeans, a plain gray tee-shirt, and donned a heavy-lined zip up hoodie over top of that. I placed my Link on my wrist and descended the stairs. Once downstairs I pulled on a pair of old winter boots that still fit perfectly and put on my pea-coat, conscious of the near freezing temperatures outside. Before leaving the house I grabbed my wallet and keys, then opened the door and took a whiff of fresh winter air. I then stepped outside and locked the door behind me.

 

     Outside I walked down the pathway to the garage where my car sat parked in hibernation patiently awaiting my return. The car was an eight year old 2212 Candali Qaterro. I hadn’t driven the super-charged 407 horsepower coupe in nearly a year and at that moment I thought to myself how much I’d truly missed it. I remembered the fun times I’d had flying down open country roads—going twice the speed limit as I would catch the eye of the few privileged girls who’d ever accompany me, while I would pretend not to feel my nerves splinter and fray as we courted deathly high speed danger. I had also remembered the countless times my brother Cephus and I nearly killed us driving it on the winding roads of Shendale Locality as we would often disable the car’s traction control in favor of reckless daring. I then remembered how we’d always talked so fondly about the idea of one day racing our Qaterros against each-other, though never actually got the chance. He’d been the one to first show me the redesigned 2212 Qaterro in all its bad-ass glory, but thanks to our well-to-do father—who’d left my mother with quite a considerable legacy—and my earlier 17th birthday, I’d been the one to get it first. Cephus later got his through the substantial salary he received from the Naval Guard, but we unfortunately never did get to race them as we both went rather separate ways after graduating from Secondary; he having his with him on the other side of the country at the academy, and mine sitting in storage while I wandered around the world.

 

     All those memories drifted away as I thrust open the door and gazed on in childlike wonder. My car sat covered, quiet and still in the garage—wrapped up rather like an Endyears present awaiting a happy child to open it. It’d been years since I’d last received an Endyears present as it was a custom traditionally held for young children, but this seemed like present enough though, and I couldn’t help myself from relishing the situation.

 

     I approached the car and saw a note atop the hood. I opened it and read, “She’s all dressed up with nowhere to go,” and smiled as I recognized my brother’s handwriting. I gently removed the covering from the car and found a pleasant surprise. My Qaterro “Silvia” was sitting there in the pale light, glimmering with a fresh waxed glean I had not expected. Silvia’s metallic gray paint was magnificent and shiny and the bold black racing stipe down her middle gleamed so robustly I found myself mesmerized by it and the reflection it created. I walked around the car inspecting the surfaces and curves and with a satisfying grin, clicked the unlock key. Letting myself in I felt the familiar comfort of the soft leather on the driver’s seat and quietly whispered a hello to my car as I keyed the ignition.

 

     Silvia roared out in a controlled fury as I revved the engine into life. It became apparent to me that Jonos had kept a good eye on her and made routine inspections and drove her around a bit to keep the engine in good operating condition, despite my being gone for so long. I was quite happy that he’d been keeping maintenance on it as I knew our mother certainly wouldn’t as she never much cared for it, and certainly never drove it.

 

     I made my final checks and eventually put the car into gear, easing off the clutch ever so slightly to remember the feel for Silvia. I let on the gas a bit and coasted out of the driveway. I slowly turned onto the main neighborhood street and returned the car to neutral as I sat idling in the street’s relative emptiness. I looked left, right, behind, and in front of the car.

 

     Judging the coast clear, I flew off the clutch, simultaneously hammering down on the gas and heard Silvia’s roar and the tires squeal as I peeled out and erupted down the street as I had done so many times in my past. I’d almost forgotten the rush I loved so much from such a quick and jarring acceleration but my body remembered it and immediately wanted more.

 

     I approached the end of the street and turned onto the main road and gunned the accelerator again, feeling all 407 horses of exhilarating power as I raced my way to the airfield, completely oblivious of the harrowing experience that lay in wait for my brother and me.

 

 

 

When I got to the airfield I quickly pulled into the parking lot and killed the engine. My exhilarating ride was over, but my blood was still pumping in excitement from the drive. I hadn’t sped too much, but the extreme acceleration offered by the car’s 407 horsepower always made it seem like you were going twice as fast as you actually were. Sighing from my elation I stepped out of Silvia, locked the doors, and proceeded to the main annex to find Jonos.

 

     I entered the annex and greeted the receptionist. “Hi there, I was wondering if you could tell me where I might find Jonos Angelus.” The petite brunette behind the counter looked at me quizzically for a moment. I could tell that she was baffled at the sight of me, so I thought to clarify, “I’m his twin brother, Savos.”

 

     “Oh I see,” She exclaimed, “I thought you were trying to play a joke on me. I wouldn’t put that past Jon.”

 

     Jon? I thought, slightly perturbed at the casual use of his name. I guess they didn’t address him by his full name as I always had.

 

     “I think he’s in one of the hangars doing maintenance work,” she continued, “He and Rennai are inspecting one of the new planes we recently acquired. Rennai is the owner of the airfield and CEO of our company.” She concluded before I had the chance to ask.

 

     “Which hangar would that be?” I asked, enticed at the mention of new planes.

 

     “Let me check for you, it’ll be just a moment.” She replied and then checked a wireless Link she’d had at her desk. “They’re in hangar 18.” She finally provided, “You’ll need this to get through our security.” She handed me a lanyard with a security pass on it.

 

     Security? What security? I’d been to the airfield on two occasions before and hadn’t ever had to deal with any kind of security. I wondered if it had anything to do with the new planes they’d just acquired or was simply a recent addition. “Thanks,” I said to the receptionist as I headed for the rear door of the annex toward the actual airstrip and hangars.

 

     “No problem Jon—I mean Savos.” She replied as I walked away. “Sorry. You just look so much like him. Have a nice day.”

 

     “You too.” I smiled and left. As I walked through the door outside I was immediately greeted with the cool fresh air and the blast of a plane landing on the airstrip. It was a rather cold December morning, though it was supposed to warm up slightly throughout the day, but a chill ran down my spine as soon as I heard the rush of the landing aircraft and the wind on my face. As the plane finished landing and a relative calm settled over the airfield I suddenly felt the winds change dramatically and a feeling of apprehension began to take seed. I decided to push the thoughts aside and continued toward the hangar bays.

 

     I found my brother in hangar 18 just as the receptionist had told me I would, and to my astonishment, had to present the security badge to a guard just outside the hangar door. The guard shared the same quizzical look the receptionist had as he saw me enter—clearly he’d recognized my face though it took a second to process my identity. I presented the security badge and my own personal ID card and was recognized as Jonos’ brother and permitted to enter the main hangar area. 

 

     Inside, I noticed Jonos and his boss Rennai; they were both completely mesmerized by something that I couldn’t fully see. As I approached them I caught sight of what they were so intently looking at. There in hangar 18, were two brand new Macdonus FA-2 supersonic jets.

 

     The FA-2 was the premier supersonic fighter used by UTF forces; its speed and maneuverability were unparalleled by any fighter in the various insurgent factions that opposed the UTF, and two of them were now sitting in a hangar at my brother’s airfield, just waiting to be flown. As I walked closer I noticed their sleek fuselage and wedge-wing-like design and realized the two were slightly different from the standard single-seat FA-2 I’d previously seen. Both of them displayed longer and wider fuselages and rather than a single seat bubble-canopy cockpit like the UTF fighter jets had, they each had a windshield style cockpit like on an airliner—which clearly designated space for a second seat for a co-pilot which I found quite interesting. I let out a low whistle as I stepped up to my brother and his boss.

 

     “Sup?” My twin greeted.

 

     “Well hello Savos.” Rennai said, sounding rather welcoming. She was taller than Jonos and me by a couple of inches, had dark brown skin, dreadlocked hair pulled into a ponytail, hazel eyes, and a remarkably beautiful face. Jonos had told me she’d started the flying company as a small crop-dusting business nearly 20 years ago but through various sub-projects including; opening a flying school, a shipping business, a sight-seeing agency, and a freelance search and rescue team, she’d turned that crop-dusting business into a fully functional airfield.

 

     “How in the world did you guys get those?” I blurted rather unceremoniously.

 

     “They’re civilian prototypes of a modified FA-2 from a private Macdonus contractor,” Rennai answered frankly. “We have good connections.” She smiled and winked at me.

 

     “Clearly.” I said matter-of-factly, still in awe of what I saw displayed before me.

 

     “This is your lucky day Savos.” Jonos said to me with a mischievous smirk on his face. “I’ve been given the opportunity for the first flight with my choice in a copilot. You interested?”

 

     I’d only ever flown small subsonic civilian models before; my father had first taught Jonos and me when we were twelve, but we were only able to build up about sixty-five hours of actual flight time over the few years leading up to his departure. Since then Jonos had taken up flying full time and was currently an esteemed instructor at the airfield’s flight school, but I chose a different path in academics and self-searching. A lot of good that had done. Despite the fact that I hadn’t been flying in nearly ten years, I was always a natural at it. I wasn’t nearly as gifted or as practiced as Jonos—who seemed more at home in the air than he did on his two feet—but I always had solid reflexes and a great feel for aircraft control, and I certainly relished the idea of flying something faster.  Not wanting to decline such a monumental offer I graciously accepted. “Absolutely!” I then remembered Rennai’s presence, “Is that ok with you Rennai?”

 

     “Sure.” She said confidently, “Anyone Jonos trusts as a CP, I can trust. Just remember, you break it you buy it. And from what your brother tells me about your job status, I suggest you bring it back in one piece.” I mulled over a response to her jab at my unemployment but decided against it.

 

     “Alright then,” Jonos offered, “Let’s suit up.”

 

 

 

The powerful engines roared to life and shook my entire body; the tremors ran down my spine and had every one of my nerves tingling. Jonos pushed the throttle forward and my body immediately sunk into the back of the seat. My ride to the airfield in Silvia was exhilarating but the FA-2’s acceleration put Silvia’s 407 horsepower to shame.

 

     “It’s got a kick!” He said over the person-to-person com headsets we were wearing.

 

     “It’s awesome!” I simply returned.

 

     We sped down the runway faster than I’d ever gone in my life. Jonos pulled back on the control yoke and we immediately ascended into the sky. Higher and higher we began to soar, traveling faster and faster. It was incredible. Enthralled as I was by the remarkable craft and the pure adrenaline that was running through my veins, I couldn’t ignore the nagging suspicion that this was too good to last.

 

     We leveled out at 4000 meters and Jonos quickly pointed out a storm that was growing on the eastern horizon, “Check it out: huge storm front coming in from our 2 o’clock.” The clouds beyond were an ominous shade of gray and unnerved me. Within the gray I thought I could see flashes of violent purple lightning.

 

     “Did you see that?” I gasped.

 

     “See what?” Jonos said slightly distracted by the displays and controls. Gazing at the brewing storm I felt a shiver down my spine but was drawn away from it when Jonos followed up on the com, “No worries. We’re heading that way.” He took a hand from off the control yolk and pointed off in the area of our 10 o’clock, off toward the Great Mountain Cascade. “But not before I show you what this thing can do first.”

 

     Before Jonos launched us into a roller-coaster-like thrill ride of immense proportions, I looked at the mountain and was immediately drawn toward its presence and forgot about the thoughts of danger and foreboding. I stared at the mountain and for a brief moment, slipped into a trance like state of recall as I remembered the dream I’d had on the train when I’d arrived just the day before. Oddly though, the dream felt as if I’d known it for ages, as if it’d been a recurring dream.

 

     I came to with a jolt as something rattled the plane. “What the hell happened to you?” Jonos was shouting.

 

     “What?” I was able to sputter.

 

     “You just passed out or something. You weren’t responding.”

 

     “What do you mean?”

 

     “I said your name like 9 times.”

 

     “Uh, I don’t know. What just happened?” I shouted, “Did something hit us?”

 

     “No, just some turbulence.” he responded, and then added, “Systems are holding up just fine.”

 

     It had been unlike any turbulence I’d ever felt, but I didn’t have time to comment on that as there was another massive jolt; this time accompanied by a vibrant, violaceous white flash that seemed to be part of the jolt. The craft lurched and several of its systems began to short-circuit.

 

     “Shit!” Jonos exclaimed as he began battling with the controls while trying to stabilize the systems.

 

     “What the hell is going on?” I said suppressing my urge to panic.

 

     “I don’t know but if we can’t stabilize we’re going down. We’re going down hard!”

 

     “What can I do?”

 

     “Deploy the flaps to full extension, and then lock in our position with the tower.” I briefly panicked at the instructions but was distracted by yet a third strike.

 

     The craft pitched downward in altitude and we began to jet toward the earth. Our descent was fueled by our natural gravity, but also the engines which were still functioning and adding in our plummet to the ground. More systems began failing and I was immediately made aware of the ground as it became our only view. But it wasn’t the ground I was noticing, it was the side of the Great Mountain Cascade, we’d neared it and were clearly going to get even closer.

 

     Jonos pulled me back to reality as he shouted, “Are you with me? I need you to cut back full on the throttle then pull the green-tipped levers just above the throttle on the right. Then turn the black dial next to them all the way. That’ll deploy the flaps.” I immediately pulled the throttle back, then pulled the levers and rotated the dial all the way, and felt the ship slow. We were still falling but we’d at least recovered a slight measure of control. Jonos continued to wrestle with the controls trying to keep our descent to a minimum and pulled it back evermore to negate our fall. “When I tell you to, I want you to retract the flaps and give me half throttle.”

 

     “What?” I blurted.

 

     “Just do it. On my mark.” He barked.

 

     I didn’t question my brother when it came to flying, not on a single matter. He was far more skilled in it in every way and I trusted him with my life. He pulled the control stick back and I could easily imagine the level of strain and focus he imbued.  “Come on dammit!” He yelled to the jet.  Suddenly I felt the craft lurch. Jonos had managed to pull the nose of the ship upward almost level with the horizon before yelling, “Now!”

 

     I reinserted the levers, retracting the flaps and immediately felt the acceleration of doing so. Afterward I grabbed the throttle and pushed it forward to half power and again felt the strain of the acceleration.  As I did this, Jonos had adjusted our orientation and attitude and suddenly I realized that he was inverting the jet using the boost in speed. As gravity pulled us headfirst toward Terra I couldn’t help but glance around at our surroundings and saw the storm from before looming closer. It had changed direction and was now approaching the mountain. Suddenly additional klaxons started blaring as I felt another rupture in the craft. Several gauges had surged to max position and then flat-lined. Our propulsion was gone. Our fall had yet again become an uncontrollable nosedive.

 

     “Jonos! Help!” I said frantically.

 

     I turned my head to look at him and saw that his head had drooped down and to the left. I gasped in shock. He was out cold. He’d passed out or something. Shit.

 

     “Jonos! Jonos!” I desperately tried to revive him. “Jonos we are going to die!”

 

     No response. 

 

     I desperately grabbed at the control stick in front of the co-pilot’s seat as we continued plummeting to the surface, trying to pull us out of the dive. My gaze was diverted as I saw yet again another flash of fierce lightning; this time however, I praised the fact that it hadn’t hit us. The flash hit the mountain beneath us and immediately the storm let loose its full fury. The wind intensified, the clouds swelled and a hail of razor-like rain began to fall. Returning to our perilous plummet to the earth I intensified my efforts and desperately tried to level out our fall. Recalling what Jonos had been attempting before passing out, I completed the roll that he’d started and deployed the flaps yet again, barely slowing us down. Immediately after doing so I pulled back on the control stick, while simultaneously throttling the engines all the way forward to level us out as much as possible before crashing.

 

     Suddenly the jet lurched yet again as we were struck by lightning and a new set of alarms sounded. The engines had maxed out and detonated from the strike and negated our forward acceleration. We were in an uncontrolled flat freefall now and there was absolutely nothing I could do but stare through the windshield as the world passed me by and we approached the mountainside. We plummeted the remaining few-hundred meters in a matter of seconds. I closed my eyes and thought it the end.

 

     “At least it’s with you.” I said to my unconscious twin, resigning myself to our tragic end.

 

     “HuuuuUUUAAAARRRGGGH!” Jonos suddenly roared to life from his unconscious state and suddenly the storm seized up. We felt weightless for a few moments as if frozen in midair, and I wondered what could have possibly stopped us. We then dropped as suddenly as we’d stopped, falling the remaining dozen or so meters with a deafening and bone-chilling crunch.

 

     For a brief moment I sat immobile in the cockpit next to my prostrate brother and listened as the storm resumed, but at a much calmer tempo. I heard the wind and pattering rain against the ruined husk of our craft and quickly lost consciousness.

 

 

 

I awoke to find myself in a dimly lit and hastily dug refuge in the ice, with my twin looking over my prostrate body. I groggily greeted him as I sat up.

 

     “Hey, there you are. How are you little brother?” he replied.

 

     “I’ve been better, but I’ll live.” I responded coming out of my daze. “How are you holding up?”

 

     “Good. And also good.” He followed up.

 

     “How are we alive?” I asked, baffled that we somehow survived our fall.

 

     “I couldn’t tell you. It’s all a blur to me. What I know is that we are and we’re safe in here. The search and rescue should be here in 20 to 30 minutes. But in the meantime you’re gonna’ want to see this.”

 

     “See what?” I questioned. I then realized that the shelter we were in must have been dugout by my brother; he must have regained consciousness and gotten us both out of the wrecked jet. So we sat there within the cave with a small lantern casting light in the shelter as I regained my wits. As I looked around our hastily dug shelter I took notice of a smaller hole within it. It was an old tunnel made of ice. The hole was large enough to fit a man through and went back a solid 10 meters before fading into darkness.

 

     “I already checked it out.” Jonos said grinning with satisfaction, “You have to see what’s back there.”

 

     I got to my feet and shook off any remaining lethargy and approached the hole. I hunched over then got on my hands and knees, and turning on my flashlight on my wrist Link began the journey through the tunnel with Jonos at my rear. As I passed through the other end of the tunnel I found myself in a humongous cavern. A cavern that wasn’t empty.

 

     In the hollowed icy cavern lay a peculiar and ancient looking ship. It was sleek and somewhat arched in design looking like an alien space ship from a sci-fi movie. Its nose resembled an arrowhead leading into the neck and aft form which widen to a broader shape of the hull. From its widening and bulbous aft section came downward swept wings ending in sharp hawk-like wingtips. Out from its backside sprouted 4 angled stabilizers, similar to the slanted vertical stabilizers of several military jets I’d seen. Finally, jutting out from its backend, the four massive cylindrical engines. It was an incredible sight to behold, neither of us had ever seen anything like it, not in our wildest imaginations.

 

     Jonos pointed to the exposed area of the hull we faced, guiding my sight to a specific bit of what appeared to be writing. I looked at it and wondered in fascination when I read what appeared to be our own language. The lettering had a slight variation but the resemblance was uncanny. The script read simply one word:

 

     ZANZABAR

 

     “ZANZABAR?” I said aloud. “I wonder what that means.”

 

     “Let’s go find out.” Jonos said smiling.

 

     “Right with you.” I countered, matching his grinning excitement.