Chapter 14: Jerusalem, November 2028

"Welcome home, Martin!"

My previous aides, James and Michael, met me with enthusiasm as I passed customs at Tel Aviv International Airport. I experienced mixed feelings seeming them again. I hadn't seen them for almost four years. A terrorist attack in Rome had injured James and Michael. My inaction in Rome had allowed a Salafist terror attack to take place, killing hundreds of people including the Pope. I had never felt suitable for my appointment as the grandmaster for the revitalised Templar Order. But now I was back, and while I didn't feel enthusiastic about it, at least I had a purpose in life again.

"I am glad that Jesus kept you safe, James," I said and forced a smile. I had seen James and Michael when they were in a coma after the Salafist attack. I had felt compelled to leave, to get as far away from Rome as possible. My guilt had driven me, yet if I had cared a bit, wouldn't I have visited them in the years that followed?

"I am glad that you found Jesus and came back home," James replied.

"Yes, we thought that we had lost you," Michael added in.

"Well, I am back now. Who is the leader of the Templar order these days?" I asked.

"You are!" James replied.

"I am? So, you were leaderless for over three years?" I asked.

"A body cannot live without the head. Your departure left us in a predicament" Michael replied.

"But to be fair, we were doing rehab for most of the time and we are unable to perform active duties anyways," James admitted.

I nodded, but I didn't say anything. I was the reluctant leader for a defunct religious organisation. And I didn't even share the religious beliefs of the organisation.

"So, are we going to the Templar Tunnels to unlock that bloody door?" I scoffed.

"Yes, Grandmaster. But first, we must head to the grave of the Virgin Mary and pay our respects as is the custom for our organisation." James replied.

"Of course. Lead the way, Brother James." I replied.

***

I watched James and Michael as they kneeled and prayed to the statue of the Virgin Mary. The worship of Virgin Mary had always fascinated me. Even if Mary were a virgin when she got pregnant with Jesus, which seems far-fetched, she did have other children later. At some point, she would have to stop being a virgin for this to happen, or god would have to keep busy, while Josef would be the saddest man in antiquity!

"Why are they praying to a dead human?" Rangda asked in the back of my head.

I walked away from the others. I didn't want to disturb their prayers by speaking to myself like a madman in front of them.

"I guess it brings them comfort, believing in something higher than themselves," I replied.

"But it's nonsense. No matter how powerful they believe that Mary was during her lifetime, she is dead now. What do they hope to achieve?" Rangda objected.

"Well, are you jealous? Would you rather have them pray to you?" I taunted.

"I don't care for human worship. I only care for human obedience." Rangda replied.

"So, who should they pray to?" I asked.

"If they must pray, they can pray to the True Maker, the creator of our universe. But that would be a waste of time." Rangda replied.

"Why is that?" I asked.

"Because the True Maker never does anything. She is just watching as time flows by. How species rise and fall. That's why I will depose her. Together we will spread life to a mostly lifeless galaxy." Rangda ranted.

"Understood!" I replied

"Yes, tell your subordinates to stop wasting time. You need to get to that door, open it, and retrieve my crystal.

"Understood, Empress Rangda," I said and disconnected from Rangda. After that, I urged James and Michael to hurry up.

***

"We meet again, Al-Sham." Ben Yehuda said and twirled his moustache.

"Yes. It has been two years. Can you tell me what is delaying you from opening that damn door? I growled.

"Relax, Al-Sham. Remember where you are." Szymon replied.

I calmed down and didn't say anything.

"So, so gentlemen. Let me show you our progress so far." Ben said.

I walked in silence behind the Yehuda Brothers, who led us to the Templar Tunnels under the Salomon Temple. It was the same tunnels I had spent months combing for clues during my last stint with the Templars. Being back here, I was curious about what the Yehuda Brother had figured out. As we came to the end of a pathway, I noticed that a tunnel on the right had opened since my last visit. I felt a strong aura streaming from the tunnel and my heart rate increased as Ben led us onto the right-hand-path.

We reached the end of the tunnel, and it was a dead-end. Ben and Szymon stared at the wall and I felt compelled to speak. "Hey, what's this? Why did you bring me here to stare at a dead end?" I asked.

Ben took up his phone and handed it to me. "This is why!" Ben said. I looked at the phone. On the picture, the entire wall was lit up with ancient symbols.

"I assume you used a Zeto Crystal to energise the wall?" I asked.

"Yes. We have wasted several Zeto Crystals trying to open this wall. We don't know the correct sequence and the damn wall electrocutes us and shuts down the moment we put in the wrong password." Ben Yehuda revealed.

I studied the picture. I recognised some of the symbols from the tattoo that the Zetans gave me in 2019. Could my tattoo be the password?

"Hey, Ben. Do you have any more Zeto Crystals?"

"Yes, I got one. Why? Do you think you know the correct sequence?" Ben asked.

"Yes, I believe that my tattoo might contain the correct sequence," I replied.

The Yehuda Brothers walked up to me, and they checked out my tattoo. They gave each other a long look. Eventually, Ben nodded towards Szymon and Szymon handed me a replicated Zeto Crystal.

"Use it well. Don't get the sequence wrong." Szymon said.

"I won't fail," I said, and I grabbed the crystal.

"Where is the slot for this crystal?" I asked.

"There isn't any. You'll have to slam it towards the wall to discharge the energy." Ben instructed.

I thought about the proposition. It sounded wasteful, but with a priceless treasure on the other side of the wall, I had to give it a shot. I slammed the Zeto Crystal against the wall, and it sent out a burst of blue energy that lit up the wall.

I felt how my pulse rose. I was so close to the end of my journey. Once I had the Primordial Zeto Crystal, I could open the portal to the Divine Dimension and avert the coming apocalypse.

I worried that the Yehuda Brothers would try to use the Zeto Crystal for their own nefarious purpose. The Yehuda's wanted to ethnically cleanse the Holy Land and make way for the Jewish master race. But I did have trump on hand. I assumed that the crystal would out of charge when we found it. The only way to charge it, which I knew of, was to wrap it in Pachamama's Veil and drop it into an active volcano. So, I would let the Yehuda Brothers take the crystal for now, and then steal it back from them once they believed that it was useless.

Having planned my next move, I approached the alien symbols on the wall and entered the sequence from my tattoo.

'poof'

The room blackened and I felt and burning pain before everything faded to black.

***

"Al-Sham you lost our Zeto Crystal."

The thing I hated the most about my life, was that every time something knocked me unconscious, I was never met with love and concern when I woke up. Instead, it was always someone whinging or arguing, making me want to fall back into unconsciousness to get away from it all. I decided to try this approach. I kept my eyes closed, pretending to not hear the Yehuda Brothers.

Unfortunately, Szymon Yehuda saw through my ruse and spoke. "Al-Sham. I have drinks and food. I can play this game all day long. Don't pretend to be unconscious."

I realised that Szymon had a compelling argument, and I opened my eyes.

"My brother isn't happy with you," Szymon said.

"Why is that, I heard you guys also stuffed up the sequence!" I replied.

"Yes. But you used up the last Zeto Crystal. Now we either must find a new crystal or ask Pierre for another one."

"Not a big deal, Pierre is wealthy. He can send us a few." I replied nonchalantly.

"I suggest that you tell Pierre yourself. I am sending you and the other Templars to Mexico. There might be a clue for us there in the Sun Pyramid. See if you can recruit some local agents while you are at it. I hope our next meeting will be under more joyful circumstances." Szymon said and left my hospital room.

I got up from the bed. My back was still very sore from the collision, but I didn't want to stay here any longer. Keeping active was my best way to find the solution and the further away I was from the Yehuda Brothers, the better. I got up from my bed, and I contacted Michael and James.

***

'Keila Eisenstein does not generate any matches.'

I was searching the internet as well as the CIA's secret files for any clues about Keila Eisenstein. The woman was a ghost, or she didn't exist. I had recalled that the Zetans tasked me with finding Keila while I got the tattoo. The two had to be related. Ergo, finding Keila Eisenstein was the key to deciphering the tattoo and retrieving the primordial Zeto Crystal. But finding Keila seemed to be as tricky as interpreting the tattoo. But what were my options? I couldn't guess the sequence out of millions of possible solutions. Every incorrect guess would get me electrocuted and lose me a Zeto Crystal. I had to find Keila, it was my only option.

I decided to confide in Michael and James. Finding a woman in hiding on Earth was like finding a needle in a haystack. If three people were looking for the damn needle, that would reduce the time finding it.

"Michael and James. There is one more thing you need to know about the mission ahead of us." I said.

"What is that, Grandmaster?" Michael asked.

"When need to keep an eye out for a woman called Keila Eisenstein," I replied.

"What do we know about this woman?" James asked.

"I know nothing about her. The name doesn't exist in any database, but I know that she is important for our success." I replied.

Michael and James studied me sceptically for a while. Eventually, Michael spoke: "Okay, Martin. I promise to keep an eye out. But let's focus on our mission in Mexico. Let's see if we can find the Royal Tomb in The Sun Pyramid."

I nodded in acknowledgement. We couldn't travel the world, looking for a random woman that could be anywhere. We had to focus on following the clues we had on hand. Next stop, the Sun Pyramid in Mexico City.