In the time before time, in a most distant epoch, in what was to be called pre-history, the Elder Gods descended upon this world from the stars. They were intelligent, noble and most important of all, they were powerful. Their purpose was to bring their order and their many wonders to this savage and untamed place. What they found when they first set foot upon these shores were a bestial race of hairy and wretched beings, known only as the Scraith. These wild and uncivilized creatures had to be quelled in order for the Elder Gods to establish their fabulous kingdoms on the whole of the globe. But instead of destroying them, the Elders so generously transformed these creatures into a race of mild and coherent people. The Scraith, who had once been beasts, had become what was to be the Adamites. A creed of lessers who would serve the Elder Gods. For so it was that the Elder Gods settled and established their fabulous empire in a place called Aztlan, The Eye Of The World. Aztlan sat in the very center of the unified Great Land of the Earth and from this spread their culture and rule to every corner of the planet. These subservient kingdoms were ruled by the dynastic bloodlines of each of the Elder Gods. These ruling bloodlines were in turn dubbed the Nu Gods and reigned uncontested over the race of Adamites in every land. The Elder Gods bestowed upon their dynastic offspring, a gift. Another sub race of beings, whose purpose was to be the keepers of the Elders secrets as well as the firm enforcers of their Nu God children. These creatures were called the Annunaki, or the Golden Ones. So these things all fell into order by the decree of the Elders, save for one insignificant addendum…that it was all a lie.

Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose. Then the LORD said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years." The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown." Genesis (6) 1-4

2: Sunrise

The giant and golden sphere slowly breaks over the very edge of the Great Land, superseding the darkness. As the first rays of the sunrise spill over the desolate dunes, an eerie silence lingers forward. This is a land that echoes a resonance of the mysterious primeval. The shifting sands stand as stark sentinels against a mountainous backdrop. This place is one to challenge the imagination of the modern thinker, one that reaches out from the ghostly and dim reaches of a long forgotten past. The air whispers of a time unfathomable, where secrets and fantastic knowledge go hand in hand. This is the world of before…

As the sunlight reaches ever further onward, something else comes into sharp focus, lying just beyond the rocks and the sand dunes. There, shimmering like a desert jewel is a great carved lion, standing as a fearsome guardian, he is flanked by three pyramidal mountains of stone, glimmering in the newly arrived dawn, their peaks adorned with golden capstones. Beyond them is an expanse of desert city, welcome to the Tep Zeppi Empire.

As the last remnants of twilight begin to fade out, a mass of migrating people, thousands strong, begin to empty out of the main city on a ritual trek to the front of the Great Stone Guardian, which was carved into the shape of a great saber cat. As the masses of the city's population drove on, one young Adamite walks amongst them. Not really indistinguishable in any way, he would have blended in with the rest of the crowd. He carried a large axe and an assortment of other tools strapped to a belt, and wore a tattered over garment complete with matted hood, to protect against the driving sands. His skin was of light ebony color mixed with sporadic patches of fish like scales of various color. He was also of good height and muscular build. His eyes were of direct contrast to one another, while one appearing to be Human, the other was quite reptilian in appearance and was set in an moderate size island of green scales that covered a portion of the left side of his face. But of course these characteristics were typical of his race, known as Adamites. This is Jerichis, stone cutter and just one of millions of slave laborer citizens that dwelt within the Tep Zeppi Empire.

"Well I can see that being awaken before the crack of dawn doesn't bother you any Jerichis? This constant, droning routine of ours, it doesn't bother you a bit does it?" asks another Adamite that casually walks beside Jericho.

Jerichis looks at the other man, who was about the same age roughly named Cadeese "Do you ever get tired of asking the same questions? This is life Cadeese, this is what we do. Up early, march to the Great Guardian, partake of the sun rising ceremony, cut stone all day, partake in the sun setting ceremony, eat and sleep…than repeat. It may not be the best of lives, but it's all we have." He pauses and looks up. In the distance is a strange object that hovers ominously in the sky just a few hundred feet above the marching Adamites. The object is a flattened disk that flashes many beacons of colored light. "You see, even the Vimanas keep a close watch on us, making sure we don't stray to far off the path." He looks back at his companion, a look of fatalistic resign crosses his expressions "Life Cadeese, life. As it always has been and as it probably always will be." says Jerichis as he marches forward.

Cadeese stops and smirks at his friend's remarks and comments low to himself as he sees Jerichis walk ahead "Yea maybe, just maybe." He than looks over and catches an glimpse of the mysterious hovering craft, a look of anxiousness welling up in Cadeese's eyes "It's not the Vimanas that bother me, it's what's inside them." he says as he strides forward, eventually catching up to Jerichis.

Before to long the bulk of the people reach the front of the stone guardian as the sun inches ever higher into the primordial sky, it's rays mere feet away from touching the paws of the giant sculpture. The mysterious flying Vimana than circles overhead, the odd looking craft than lands right next to the stone guardian, it being joined by two other aircraft of identical shape and size. Large hatchways spring open from the underside of the three craft and moments later, out swarm dozens of small humanoid creatures with over sized black eyes and adorned with golden exo-skeleton type armor. Being small in stature, but very muscular in build, these frightening anomalies stand at a little under five feet tall. These creatures are known as the Annunaki, the keepers of the secrets of the Elders and the gods' ruthless enforcers.

One of the creatures walks to face the masses of the Adamite people, raises it's arm and bellows in a strange language "Senta frek id skyle! Mok frull dezzin litts manak a-a-a wey! (Now kneel, for the rising of the gods commences)"

The thousands of Adamites immediately stoop down with their faces touching the sandy ground, bowing before their soon arisen gods. Jerichis, in his crouching position feels a wave of nervous energy wash over him and he dares to slightly raise his head just enough as to see over the slumped bodies of the masses of other people bowing.

"Pssst! What are you doing you fool! You could be killed!" shouts Cadeese in a urgent whisper.

"Shut up, I think I see something." retorts Jerichis as he squints his eyes. There in the far distance, a hazy figure can be seen walking from out of the horizon and towards the masses.

This is spotted by the Annunaki as well and the lead one leans over to address the others "Mwas keef maneweii (Do you see that over the horizon?)"

"Tafek brill noot nefill hiksotute(Call to it. If it be another Adamite, they shall pay with their blood for this disrespect.)" says another creature.

"Nutali oot nak nefir!(You there, announce yourself, now!)" calls the lead Annunaki.

As the lone figure gets closer, Jerichis waits anxiously to get a clear view of who it is. Finally the figure gets within viewing range. An old man, obviously of Adamite origin, respectfully bows his head to the bug eyed Annunaki "Forgive my trespass, ye mighty Annunaki. I am one that was sent out long ago as a scout for the gods to the outer lands. After ten years, I have returned with reports of things I have seen and heard."

Jerichis widens his eyes in disbelief "Jaresh?" he says in a whisper.

"Seff nali mah'ootay?(Do you recognize this one?)" asks one of the creatures as they gather around the old man.

"Nell, sett rimose ett kamro, Tep Zeppi. Mak netli teff kafhre oot metley.(No, but perhaps the Tep Zeppi will. We shall see what they have to say.)"

"N'yak fellis too'atay!(Kneel old man!)" yells the lead Naki."

Jaresh kneels without hesitation, his age weathered face sore from what has obviously been a hard lived life. The patches of mutli colored fish scales along with his Human skin had wrinkles of an aged man. His hair was gray and bleached from the hot sun, the sand still sticking to his parts of his face. This was certainly a man who had many stories to tell. He kneels with a kind of hopeless despair that emanates strongly from his worn and tired eyes. Here he waits to meet those who sent him out, he waits to meet the gods.

Jerichis intakes a sharp breath as emotions begin to flood his mind with memories of a man he thought long dead. The young Adamite places his head back to the sand covered ground and begins to shake slightly, finally a single tear falling from his Human eye down to the floor. The tiny droplet reflecting the approaching sunlight.

"Jerich, what is going on? Who is that?" whispers Cadeese.

Jerichis turns his head to face Cadeese, his expressions overcome with apprehension "Someone I thought I would never see again." Jerichis than begins to whisper to himself "By the gods Jaresh, where have you been…"

The stone chamber was dark and dank, but the interior expanse is cavernous. Hieroglyphs of all kinds adorn the walls inside. The descriptions depict strange scenes of other worldly creatures descending from the skies and erecting civilization. Along the walls are several weird looking sarcophagi of gigantic proportions, which take on a high tech appearance. Digital lights and displays flash with ambient brilliance, while tubes and wires run every which way. The enclosures resemble futuristic pods mixed with ancient Egyptian burial caskets. In the center of the chamber is a large crystal that spins in a slow methodical rotation. The encroaching sunlight finally washes over the front face of the stone Lion Guardian and the colossal eyes of the megalith mechanically slide back to reveal two openings which filter in the first sunlight. Two beams of light are focused to the interior and directly into the cavernous chamber. They are caught by the large crystal, immediately broken up and reflected into several smaller laser like projections which are in turn absorbed by small solar panels located directly on the midsections of the sarcophagi. The enclosures suddenly begin to glow with an eerie white light as they are infused with sunlight energy. The heavy lids than begin to open and emit a gyroscopic type sound. Inside these sarcophagi are giant beings ranging from ten to thirteen feet in height. They are alien yet exotic to eye, possessing features that are amalgamations of human and animals. They all wear golden and computerized armor and exo-skeletons, which are powered directly by the sunlight. Imbued with energy their various apparatus' and technological devices that adorn their bodies invigorate them to life and they begin to stir. Their eyes start to glow bright yellow as they emerge from their resting places. The Nu Gods of the Tep Zeppi Empire have awakened…

Outside, a large stone doorway embedded in the great stone lion's lower chest slides open and out step the intimidating looking Nu Gods. The Annunaki immediately take to one knee as one of gods steps forward, a thirteen foot tall monstrosity outfitted with golden armor and possessing the head of a cobra. This is Amun-Ra, eldest of his siblings and leader of the Tep Zeppi Dynasty. The Nu God raises one of his four arms skyward and a long scepter like weapon, expands outward from both sides, golden waves of electricity dancing over it's length.

"Rise and greet the glorious rising of the Sun!" he bellows as the masses of people all stand to their feet in unison. "It's power shining over we, the Tep Zeppi! Brining us life once again as it has completed it's journey across the underworld! We, the Nu Gods of the Tep Zeppi Dynasty are it's progenitors and your absolute rulers! Now go and continue your work, your constant building always adding to the greatness of this empire!"

"Praise be to the sun, and praise be to the empire and praise be to the Tep Zeppi!" the masses shout as they slowly spread out and form various work crews to continue several building projects throughout the city. Many are shepparded out forcibly by the Annunaki.

Jerichis anxiously looks back, not wanting to leave Jaresh behind without speaking to him, at least once. Cadeese urges him to disperse with the others, yanking on his arm.

"Come Jerich, there is nothing you can do at this moment. Your friend is under the eyes of the gods, it would be death to approach him now."

Jerichis knows there is truth in Cadeese's words and reluctantly joins the others in their exodus back to the city "Only for now, but mark my words, I will see him before the day is out."

 

3: Dangerous Revelations

As the old Adamite knelt, he felt himself tremble with fear, it had been nearly ten years since he caught sight of these creatures that portrayed themselves off to his kind as so-called gods. Jaresh had traveled extensively in these years out in the Unified Great Land of the Earth, he had been many places and had seen many things, but nothing quite held the terror and fear that these beings seemed to emanate. As he knelt there with his face and his eyes pointed toward the sandy ground, he would never forget the day he was hand-picked by the Tep Zeppi to be an outlying scout to travel the great land in search of what else might be out there. Amun-Ra and his monstrous siblings feared that other Nu Gods out there could threaten their rule and domination and so as a precaution of sorts, they decided to use Jaresh as an expendable scout for them, not really expecting him to return from his trek. In fact in all probability they had forgotten all about him.

As the large crowd dispersed the Nu Gods' attention shifted towards the awaiting Annuanki and the old Adamite they held in their detention. The Naki rose from one knee and addressed their Nu God lords.

"Lykist ponootay moot wren solist uundrung pharaohs(Welcome back from your journey through the underworld my lords.)" said the lead Naki.

The Nu Gods look on in puzzlement as to why their bug eyed servants held an old Adamite with them. Amun-Ra approached the awaiting Annunaki, slowly clenching his fists. As his towering form looked down upon the creatures and Jaresh, his a snake like eyes narrowed a bit. As he stood there, Amun-Ra's shadow nearly blotted out the sunlight overhead and Jaresh could sense this, his breathing becoming more labored as his fear rose. He dared not look up or even move without being expressly told to do so.

"Sook nuy sill paron kiz pharaohs(Who is this that you have brought before the gods)?" asks Amun-Ra specifically addressing the Annunaki.

The lead bug eye stands fully erect as he responds "Uundrung pharaoh Amun-Ra, nit farootay sootsootay arciss tethis. Noot okii fis narl poos ess pharaohs(My lord Amun-Ra, this Adamite claims to have been sent out by the dynasty as a scout to the outlying lands. He has returned with a report for the gods)."

Amun-Ra's eyes widen a bit as his reptilian tongue shoots out several times in succession. He is joined by his other frightening siblings as they too find this news most interesting. Isis, one of the female Tep Zeppi and eldest sister, steps forward.

"Most intriguing, I seem to recall the dynasty sending this one out as a scout. But I never dreamed he would ever come back." she said, a hint of sadistic glee in her voice.

"Indeed, with all the incredulous dangers this land has to offer, I am quite impressed this Adamite made it back. Rise before the gods old man." says Amun-Ra.

Jaresh does not hesitate and stands to his feet, his head still bowed "My Lords."

"What is it you have to report to us old one. What did you see out there. Be sure to hold nothing back, for you know it would mean death to so." says Isis.

Finally Jaresh looks up, seeing the faces of his most shameful of masters. His eyes betraying the torment of his choice to return to this accursed place "To the credit of the gods, I Jaresh an Adamite subject of the Tep Zeppi have seen and heard many things in my travels. But none as great as the Nu Gods that stand before me." he says his voice cracking with the insincere tone of his words. "There are many kingdoms that lay beyond these borders. Kingdoms of ice and cold to the north, of jungle and brush to the south, and empires of great Vimana builders to the west."

Amun-Ra suddenly lets out a thunderous and frightening laugh "You hear that Naki! Other Vimanas fly the skies! But all this seems trite, these other kingdoms you speak of, they are no doubt the product of other Nu God bloodlines sired by more the Elders."

"We may be many things, but not so ignorant to think that we were the only Nu Gods to walk this land, aye my brother?" says Horace, bird headed brother of Amun-Ra, covered in golden armor like the rest of his siblings.

"Well spoken Horace, but I wonder if this is all this Adamite has to tell us." Amun-Ra crouches down, so that his reptilian eyes meet with Jaresh's, his presence filling the old man's heart with even more dread "What else are you hiding old one, what else did you see?"

The eldest god could hear the old man's heart race and he could indeed tell that Jaresh was holding something back "Tell us!"

His voice trembling, Jaresh begins to speak again "Even though these other kingdoms boast other gods of power, truly I tell you that none pose any significant threat to the Tep Zeppi."

"Your lying old man! I can sense your pathetic heart beat! I give you one last chance to tell me what you know!" shouts Amun-Ra.

The monster's anger causes the old Adamite's eyes to well up in tears and he finally reveals what he has been suppressing "Within the oceans of desert on the very edges of the Great Land, there is a man and his family who are constructing a large wooden vessel to travel the waters."

Isis begins to laugh "A boat in the middle of the desert, to folly! Tell us Adamite, what be so threatening about a man and a boat?"

"His name is Noah and the ship he builds is by the command of what he claims…is the one true God. He speaks of a great deluge that will drown the Earth by the decree of what he calls the God of which has no name, but is far more powerful than any that walk the land now. He is referred to as, The One Creator. Noah claims that the Nu Gods are false and are in fact not gods at all." Jaresh trembles even further, knowing that he has possibly signed his own death warrant by the information he has just divulged.

Amun-Ra rises up to his full height, his mind seething with rage at what Jaresh had just said. How dare someone deny his and his brethren's godhood. This was an insult that could not stand "You speak blasphemy old man! Who you see before you are the only true gods here! You would dare take the word of some hermit in the desert over ours! This heresy demands your life as punishment."

The snake headed creature clenches it's golden clawed hand around Jaresh's neck and lifts him off the ground with ease. The old Adamite struggles against the assault, but is completely powerless to stop it. He than pleads for the Nu God to spare him "My lord Amun-Ra, I believe none of it! He is just some old fool who suffers from to much sun exposure. I serve none but the almighty Tep Zeppi, otherwise I would not have returned to you as I did! I just feared your reactions to what was said, that is why I held back my encounter with this Noah!"

As Amun-Ra continues to strangle the life out of Jaresh, Isis comes beside her eldest brother and strokes her hand across his broad chest in an effort to calm him "Quell your anger my brother, wouldn't the proper course of action be too report this to the Elders? Spare the old fool for now and see what they have to say about all this."

Amun-Ra hisses in anger but knows that his sister's words ring true. As all powerful as the Tep Zeppi and indeed all of the Nu Gods thought they were, they wouldn't dare countermand the seeming invincibility of their Elder patriarchs. Reluctantly he releases Jaresh from his death hold. The Adamite drops to the ground like a stone, gasping for air and clenching his neck.

"Annunaki, teff nett undtay scrool sootootay(Return this insect to his brood until we've consulted the Elders)." says Isis.

"Nyak pharaohs(Yes my lords)!" shouts one of the Naki as they forcefully drag Jaresh away.

Another of the Tep Zeppi siblings, Osiris, a twelve foot tall, crocodile headed abomination speaks up "This news could be most damaging to our rule. That is, if it were revealed to be true. I think it most unwise to let the old man live my brother."

"Agreed, think what could happen if this man spreads the word of what he's found amongst his kin. It could spark a revolt amongst the Adamites, the future of the empire itself could be put in peril." chimes in Horace.

"So would you rather risk the disapproval of the Elders. Their continued sanction is why our empire exists in the first place. Things of this magnitude can only be handled with their council first and foremost. That is the Law after all." says Isis as she strides up to Amun-Ra "Go on my brother, engage an audience with our father, the great Aten. Let him decide what our next move should be."

The leader of the Tep Zeppi intakes a sharp breath and grudgingly nods in agreement.

"Perhaps I should accompany you…" starts to say Isis before she is abruptly cut off by Amun-Ra.

"No! If anyone is to consult our father, the great Aten, than it shall be me, eldest of his sons and appointed leader of this dynasty. Do not forget your place my sister." he says with a growl as he walks off with a concession of the Annunaki by his side. Isis looks on, silenced by her brother as she witnesses him board one the flying and disk shaped Vimanas. The craft silently break from the ground in a haze of smoke and exhaust and hover into the air, headed towards the largest of the grand stone pyramids.