Copyright and by Owen Quinn
The Honoured Souls is part of the story collection the Time Warriors: The Wolves of Chernobyl & Other Stories. get your copy today on Amazon.
It was a good fifty minutes later they had passed through chamber after domed chamber each lavish with lenticular art that drew them in. Whatever this civilisation was it was rich with life forms and if they were indeed the artists of all of this, they were on par if not superior to the best Earth had to offer like De Vinci or Van Gogh. But at times you’d swear the paintings would reach out and take your hand. Some of the scenes seemed so diverse that you could be absorbed right into them as a participant. It was as if each chamber represented a different section or race from wherever they originated. They had counted eighteen different ones so far not counting animal life like insects and ocean dwellers.
There were creatures of an elephantine nature meditating in gardens of lush cream white flowers with blue centres. Intricate sculptures were dotted along the blue lawns as brown leathery bats circled overhead. Short dumpy beings were depicted crossing a great traverse of mountain range so high that they were almost choking on the clouds. Huge red serpents held aloft diamond pods from which brewed wraith like vapour. Skies broke apart as grey globules reigned down on frightened avian like villagers.
Stone cities of white and red huddled uselessly into mountains that were cracking and crumbling beneath volcanic fury.
“These beings seem to run all the way through the art.”
Michael pointed to the rugged ape sized troll creatures, their bodies green and cumbersome. They were everywhere; the ocean, the volcano and reaching down from the skies themselves.
“Inhabitants or conquerors perhaps,” mused Varran.
“If this isn’t a ship then why is so big?” Tyran wondered.
“Why are you so sure it isn’t a ship?” Michael pressed. “Even the Voyager is a ship of sorts.”
“The Voyager probe is a sample ship; designed to show other worlds what we are by giving them a taste of our civilisation.” Jacke paused. “Thank God Love Island wasn’t invented back then,” she added wryly.
“Maybe it’s just a matter of perspective; what seems large to us is minimal to them.”
“I think we just entered the centre of the craft,” Varran stated staring all around him hand unit drinking in everything.
The Time Warriors and Beyond 