Jake continued to stare at the compartment before the Atlas finally got through to him.
'How can it be Atlas, is this a prank or something?' Jake asked the Atlas puzzled at what he saw.
(No Jake it appears to be real, I don't know how but it is. This compartment hasn't been open for tens of thousands of years.)
The object inside was a device, a 7" screen with a picture opened on it. It was a picture of a young man who looked in his early 20s standing beside a young woman with red skin.
The woman looked extremely beautiful with sharp black eyes and light pink hair. She had pointy ears and a slim yet curvy body covered with a purple one-piece dress.
The man standing next to her was also incredibly handsome with a tall lean build yet wore simpler clothes, a pair of black jeans and a black shirt and a grey coat over it. The man had green eyes and medium-length brown hair.
However, the thing that shocked Jake was the background.
Avalon Manor, the home he grew up in and was raised in was behind the two of them.
'H-how is it possible Atlas, t-that's my home and who are those people? Why does that man look like my dad? But how can it exist, 50,000 years ago forgot the manor, humans were still living in caves when this ship crashed' Jake questioned the Atlas hoping for some sort of answer.
(Jake, that woman looks to be of the Raiyu race and well the man looks to be you.) The Atlas informed Jake.
'W-what but I'm only a kid and how is there a woman from the Raiyu race alive? That too on Earth.' Jake was stumped once again.
(It seems that maybe the Raiyu were capable of seeing the future, I don't know how they were able to but the photo seems authentic and from the future. However, what surprises me is the words on the corner.)
Jake was so concerned with the photo that he disregarded the note on the side.
The words looked hastily written but were English nonetheless,
Location-Sol System Planet Earth, Race-Human, Significance-S+ Priority-Maximum, Remark-Hope
'But how could they know? And what does it mean by Hope' Jake asked
(We don't have much information to go on, but it seems the Raiyu had an interest in you. Maybe they knew you were an Aeon Ascendant and we're also looking for the ChronoScribe but I don't think they had bad intentions, the word 'Hope' seems to be quite important. Is there anything else inside?) The atlas asked as Jake looked inside the compartment.
'Doesn't seem like anything el-, wait this.' Jake found a small object that seemingly looked like a keycard.
(It looks important, take the device and keycard with you it will probably be important.)
Jake took the device and keycard and put them in his pocket before walking over to Lyra.
"Jake, what happened, you looked worried are you okay?" Lyra asked Jake, concerned when he didn't answer her.
"Yeah, sorry about that Lyra, was just looking at the shelves," Jake answered her not wanting to tell her about what he had found.
"Oh okay, my model closed up again and won't open up again...where's your dad? He said he would be here soon." Lyra spoke.
(Jake I don't think there's anything else important left on the ship, we should find your father and leave now, I'm sure Lyra's parents would not want her coming home late as well.)
'Good Idea Atlas'
"I don't know, I think I explored what I wanted to on the ship, want to go look for him and go home?" Jake smiled and asked Lyra.
"Okay me too, let's go." Lyra smiled before jumping off the bed and heading out with Jake to look for Victor.
The duo left the ship and looked nearby for Victor who couldn't be found.
"Where did he go?" Lyra asked Jake.
"I don't know, he wouldn't have gone far so let's shout a bit for him then stand by the elevator and that small office over there."
Besides the multiple tunnels that surrounded the site, there was a small 1 roomed building most likely for documentation and communication about 20 meters from the elevator shaft.
Jake and Lyra shouted to no avail before heading to the small office to wait for Victor.
The room was an all-white room with large windows for easy viewing of the surroundings. 3 chairs were placed near an empty table and a main screen was set up in the front for communications camera access.
Jake told Lyra to sit on the chair as he went to the Comms screen.
(Jake, this communications screen seems to be disconnected from the main security system but if I can get in, I might be able to see where your father is.) The Atlas advised Jake.
'But how do we do that, dad didn't give me any clearance information?'
(Well don't worry about that, I managed to see your father's access code that he entered before we entered the elevator. This shouldn't take long.) The Atlas spoke to Jake.
A few seconds later a beep was heard and a 'LOGIN SUCCESSFUL-ACCESS GRANTED' was displayed on the screen.
'Nice Atlas, we're in. Now what.' Jake asked the Atlas as he looked at the GUI of the security system.
(Let's find your father first. Let's check the cameras in the nearest sectors first.) The atlas spoke as Jake started to look through the different feeds.
Nothing was out of the ordinary as most cameras showed either machines moving autonomously or a few workers going about their duties, Jake's father couldn't be seen anywhere.
'Atlas I can't find him anywhere, are you sure we've checked all?' Jake who was a bit worried asked the Atlas.
(I'm sure Jake, your father isn't in any of these feeds althou-) The Atlas replied and was cut off by Jake.
'There!' Jake pointed to the entrance feed which showed a large and sleek transporter landing right in front of the main entrance.
The transporter had all its lights switched off but being near the mine Jake instantly recognised the Blue and White colour scheme.
The transporter opened up and 2 squads of security forces quickly disembarked and made their way to the gates.
'Umm Atlas, this is not good.' Jake's heart beat faster as he got tense.
(I agree Jake. It seems that the Corvette we noticed earlier wasn't here for a simple refuelling run. Also Jake do you see their uniforms, it's not the normal NCSF colour scheme, it's dark blue, their special forces that engage in HVT escorts, abductions and stealth target eliminations. From what I can deduce they are either here for the excavation site or they're here...for us.)
'But how could they know about the ChronoScribe, even then we haven't done anything to attract their attention.' Jake tried making sense of the Atlas's words.
(Either way Jake we should get out of here fast. Grab Lyra and let's head to the elevator. Maybe we can get through with your father up there.) The Atlas quickly informed Jake who quickly walked back to Lyra.
"Hey Lyra, let's head up to the main level and look for my dad. Maybe there isn't a good signal here." Jake spoke to Lyra with a calm demeanor just barely being able to hide his worry.
"Okay Jake, let's go." Lyra smiled at Jake relieving some of Jake's stress as they walked out of the office but unbeknownst to Jake, Lyra had noticed his worry and body language.
As they made their way to the elevator, Jake tapped the login details and called for the elevator.
As they waited for the elevator to come down, the Atlas quickly spoke to Jake.
(Jake, someone is coming down.)
'Is it Dad?' Jake asked the Atlas.
(I do not know, I would recommend you both hide first, quickly.) The Atlas warned Jake.
"LYRA, come on!" Jake shouted Lyra's name before grabbing her hand and pulling some construction material near the office.
"Jake, what's going on? I'm scared." Lyra confused and scared asked Jake as he did not hide the worry on his face and saw that he was serious.
"I don't know either Lyra, some bad people just entered the mine and someone's coming down, let's see who it is first." Jake answered Lyra without revealing too much and held her hands to try and reassure her.
The two waited and watched as the elevator arrived and the doors opened.