Chapter 12; pages 64-69
A green pall materialized from the darkness; and they gawked at each other, thankful their eyesight was restored and awestruck by their bodies’ ghostly green color. They spread out, looking for a way out. Lyn stumbled on a large mandala with curious interlocking patterns on the cavern wall that resembled the symbol in their dream. Its motif had a mystifying cipher text she feared defied analysis. Although she knew cryptography, number and information theory, computational complexity, and quantum computing, what she stared at baffled her.
She decided Occam’s razor was the answer. Entia non sunt multiplicande praeter necessitatem. She thought keep it simple, baby. She boiled her analysis down to combinatorics theory and the fundamental number Pi. She hoped her calculations would expose the meaning and purpose of the mandala.
They gathered around her and gazed at the enigmatic pictograph while Lyn checked and double-checked the alien signs. She felt those signs were a set of laws to the cosmos similar to the image of Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man whose body reflected the universe. That is when the mandala’s secret design hit her. Ali peeked over her shoulder.
Lyn felt her breathing down her neck and said, “Do you see that?”
“See what?” “Hold on a moment.”
She examined several symbols.
Ali grew impatient, shaking Lyn. “See what?” Lyn pointed to several symbols, which meant nothing to Ali.
“These symbols are mathematical constants in the mandala’s design. Whoever put this here wanted us to find it. What you are looking at created by an advanced intelligence.
Mathematically, these five symbols activate the mandala and put the universe at our finger tips. The symbols revealed five star-points within the alien matrix that represented a derivative of the transcendental number pi, the optimal number she had been looking for. Lyn sighed deeply. “Listen up. This may sound incredible, but I think these symbols represent a teleportation access code.”
Mad blinked. “Did I hear right . . . teleportation?”
“Yes, a quantum teleportation code to the stars.”
“You can’t mean ‘Beam me up, Scotty,’ do you?”
“Yes, but not science fiction. I think I broke the code to the star system in our dreams and the extraordinary events that brought us here, but it is a test. Do you remember the Great Sphinx, Abu al-Hôl, Father of Terror, and the Greek Sphinx who strangled all that could not answer its riddle? I am afraid this alien brainteaser is the Alpha and Omega that has been cursing me. You see the laser light that blinded us was a warning to trespassers. Whoever left this message did not want anyone accidentally accessing its secrets. I hate to think what would happen if they failed—or if we fail. Nevertheless, I think I have the cosmic answer to its challenge.” She swallowed hard and mustered her courage. “However, if we fail, I think it will cost us our lives.”
“What are the odds you’re right, a flip of the coin if we set this thing off?” Mad demanded.
Sade interrupted. “My intuition says it’s a go.”
“Sade, with all respect, it’s our lives at stake.” Jill objected.
“Jill, we are on a quest. Come on, do you want to live forever?” Ali chided. Lyn laughed. “Let me be the devil’s advocate. I figure a 90 percent chance it will work. You all know something beyond Earth is calling us. Jill, didn’t you say it was our destiny, back in Malibu?”
“Yes.” Ali declared, “It’s our way of putting the star in Stargirls.”
“Who can fight that?” Mad agreed.
“Looks like the Alpha brats rule.” Jill capitulated.
Life is difficult at best, Lyn thought. The choice was to run or bravely leap into the unknown. She understood their choice would forever define them and their fate. “Okay, is it a go?” Lyn asked. Without thinking, they embraced her shouting, “One for all and all for one! We are the Stargirls forever!” Lyn forced a smile, “Okay, the alien mechanism means life or death, depending on how we activate it. Kind of a 50s nuclear missile, fail-safe system where two controllers turned two keys to bring their Intercontinental Ballistic Missile to life; but that’s where the analogy ends.” She paused. “The point being, hidden within the mandala’s encrypted symbols are five star-points. Mathematically, when they come together they form a perfect geometric star that should release the mandala’s energy—but there is a catch. Each point is a trigger, and we must press them together in concert. Pressed out of sequence, we will never know what happened. Whoever created this technology designed it to self-destruct if it fell into the wrong hands. “Now, place your fingers on your star-point, and when I say ‘Ready?’ you shout ‘Ready!’ back to me. Then, when I give the command, press your star symbol—any questions?”
Jill warily said, “Wait! Let’s not screw up. What command?” Lyn blushed. “Oops. Star power. She then double-checked their positions and took her own. “Ready?” They shouted, “Ready.” The Stargirls were following her hollow-eyed, trusting, and hopeful. Without hesitation, she gave the command, “Star power.” Directly, they pressed their star-points and stepped back. In that gut-wrenching moment, the Stargirls mesmerized as the mandala blazed and the cavern wall flickered, and then rippled in kaleidoscopic light. Suddenly, the mandala imploded and the wall vanished.
* * *
The Stargirls lounged on rainbow beach towels while Malibu’s summer sun baked the sand.
Ali said, “Boy, its hot and sticky.”
Lyn added, “Pass me the sunscreen—” while Jill and Sade sipped tart lemonade, puckering their lips. Jill commented, “Hmm, southern California, land of milk and honey—yet today it’s a tropical paradise.”
Sade replied, “Life’s good.”
Ali asked, “Why do you think we picked these bright rainbow towels?” Mad chortled, “Simple—to attract attention. Men like alluring, sexy colors.” Lyn tittered and smiled. “I think they have a deeper meaning than a mating ritual.” Ali sniggered. “Kind of reminds me of when our hormones erupted and our parents freaked out. Jill howled. “Yeah, that was a crazy time.”
“Remember how Mad got caught sneaking out to see her boyfriend?” Sade taunted.
Mad scowled, “You stinker …” and rolled over, “Watch out, I’ll feed you to the sharks.” The rhythmic sound of the shore break, chatter of sea gulls, and sun’s heat lulled Mad into a sleepy state. The sun- struck surfers turned waves into thrill rides; and dogs flew like Olympian gods catching Frisbees and dove in waves like dolphins fetching tennis balls. Defying leash laws intended to keep them from being Olympian gods or dolphins.
“What a wonderland—it makes my heart sing.” Ali mused.
Sade said, “Why don’t we join the surfers?” “Good idea.” They trotted toward the water, feet on fire, singing a hilarious chorus of; “Ooh . . . ouch . . . ouch . . . ooh . . . ah . . . ouch—“ until they dove into the water. The others sat, crowing at the comical sight.
Jill said, “I wish I had a camera.” “This is the kind of day we work hard for.” Lyn said. Mad’s eye popped open. “Let’s join the fools and not waste it.” Jill stretched and stood up. “Okay, last one in is a rotten egg.” She raced over the fire pit and dove in the shore break. Time seemed lost as they bodysurfed and built sandcastles and families came and went like the tide. Seagulls circled above, as others strutted on beach-stealing snacks. One big white gull pecked at a bag of chips until it gave up its salty treasure. An afternoon breeze turned the heat down.
Mad shivered and said, “We’d better rescue our rainbows or the tide will claim them.” They reluctantly left their ocean playground and picked up their towels to dry off. Lyn, drying her hair, heard the sharp howl of dogs and thought it odd. “What do you think is stirring them up?”
Mad replied, “I don’t know, but look,” pointing to the sky teeming with brown pelicans and western gulls heading south. Sade said, “Must be thousands; it’s unusual.” Their masses blocked the sun and cast crablike shadows around them. No sooner had the exodus passed than another wave of birds flew low and hard going south. Their agitated squawking startled them.
Lyn said, “What’s going on?”
Ali shouted, “What in God’s name!” pointing to the ocean horizon where a colossal object hovered.
Lyn screeched, “Jill, toss me your phone. I want to call a friend at NORAD,” but before she could, a terrific boom shook the beach. Involuntarily, she turned toward the deafening sound, stunned by what she saw. The object, now clearly in view, moved closer to the shoreline. It hovered thousands of feet above them, rotating counterclockwise on its axis. Awed, she tilted her head back. Her jaw dropped, and she gaped at the translucent object—a red, ethereal, whirling entity in the white-blue sky, emitting fantastic bursts of energy. A mushroom cloud materialized over the object, forming a massive anvil thunder dome. The thing she thought, at a loss for words, gyrated faster and faster, glowing bright reddish-orange. Pulses of energy surged into the sky and sizzling and cracking lightning struck the ground, causing her hair to stand on end and spark. The Pacific Coast Highway’s sandstone cliffs moved from the force of the sonic boom, causing huge landslides that buried everything.
Lyn screamed, “Mad, what’s going on?”
“All I know is that super cell looks deadly,” she replied, as a violent gust of wind bent them over. The sky turned to night as the object’s red glow created a shaft of light that pierced the ocean, causing it to boil. Three bluish-white tornados appeared curling and twisting like poisonous snakes, heading for the beach.
Mad let out a shriek, “Get out of here.”
Lyn yelled, “Run for the cottage.”
Mad screamed, “No, take the jeep; we’ll escape south like the birds.” Lyn fumbled and dropped the keys. She grabbed them and slid into the driver’s seat. Jill rode shotgun, and the rest squeezed into the back. Torrential rain beat down as Lyn barreled off the driveway, driving like a maniac. She turned south along the shoreline. Mad glanced back and gasped. The sky turned greenish black as a massive wedge tornado touched down, annihilating everything. Cars, people, and million-dollar homes hurtled through the air as a rescue copter crashed.
“Faster, faster or we’re dead!” Mad shrieked. Lyn squinted through blinding rain, as baseball-size hail crashed down. They screamed until their voices gave out, “Go . . . go . . . go.” The jeep hit a rut that blew a front tire, ripping the wheel from her hands, causing the jeep to veer and flip over. Shaken, they helped each other out of the jeep.
Jill glowered at the flat tire and said, “Let’s make a run for it.” Mad looked back. “It’s too late.” They hugged goodbye and turned to face their fate. Holding hands, heads high, they courageously faced the wedge of Black Death that swept them away—
* * *
Lyn was oddly aware; she was peering into a Star Chamber with gleaming transparent walls that reflected the past, present, and future. Gradually, she realized she was looking into a space-time crystal ball, a cosmic ball she had once gazed into as a small child. She realized they had left their bodies in the mandala’s cavern and had not even noticed. She felt the others but could not see them. She heard Jill’s pleading voice call out, “Are we dead or alive?”
Lyn tried to respond but could not find her own voice. Mesmerized by the shift in space-time, she realized their nightmare of annihilation was a subconscious projection, a projection of their deepest fears when they pressed the star symbols, not knowing whether they would live or die. Regardless of its reality, she was thankful they survived the killer alien tornado.
Mad, in exasperation, cried out to the unseen force, “Why did you summon us? There must be a reason. Tell us.” She heard a dreamlike voice. “You are Stargirls.” The voice paused, letting the fog and confusion of their nightmare to lift.
Lyn found her voice, “But why us?” “You are the chosen ones by prophecy; you have proven your worthiness. A time warp brought you here. The one you opened was no accident. It was left a hundred thousand years ago just for you. Your Star training as children has prepared you well. You are ready for the next stage in your evolution.” Her disquieting words shifted reality, creating an energy-womb within them, a powerful psychic connection to their puzzling destiny.