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Story
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Prelude |
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It all began in 1984 when thanks to Einstein theories on relativity, the existence of superstrings was discovered. These superstrings are deemed to be the basic elements of matter with a diameter of 10-35m.
In 1999, professor William Kauffman published his work. According to it an infinite number of parallel worlds exist and one can visit them thanks to the "tunnel effect superstrings" theory. Unfortunately for him, the energy required to work with this theory was too big and the scientific world laughed at him.
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In 2003 the government makes contact with him and introduces him to Anthony Xue. This scientist works on the control of the reaction between matter and anti-matter … a reaction which can produce the energy that professor Kauffman needs. The two scientists agree to work together and four years later they are ready to launch a probe to another world.
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The operation called "SideStep" is a total failure. The probe after working only few minutes, is damaged by an intelligent entity. This creates for an unknown reason, a black hole on Earth.
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Having created the disaster, the government has no choice but to send an emergency rescue team to this new world. This team is made of our two scientists, an ex- biologist (Marion Wolfe), and a former SEAL: Cutter Slade. These four people must find the probe, reprogram its electronics cards and send it back to Earth before it disappears. If possible they will have to discover the reason for the black hole.
One after one they disappear in the unknown...
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Arrival |
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We find our favourite SEAL lied down on a bed having no memory of what happened to him. He has been rescued by the "Dolotai guardians". Their chief, Zokrim, thinks he is "the Ulukai": the saviour of the people of Adelpha (the Talans). According to an old prophecy announced by Kazar, a messenger of the gods (the Yods) will arrive on Adelpha to retrieve the five Mons and allow by this way the fall of the dictatorship of Fae Rhan. As his team mates have disappeared mysteriously, Cutter agrees a deal with Zorkrim: he will find the five Mons while the Dolotai guardians will look for the probe.
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Having discussed with the rest of the guardians, Cutter learns he is in a remote area: Ranzaar. Fae Rhan arrived on Adelpha few "millmoons" and he taught the Talans the terran language. Besides, a long time ago another civilisation lived here: the Ancients. They are supposed to have built among other things the Daokas: kind of portal containing an energy vortex allowing to teleport someone between the continents of Adelpha. But they have broken the balance in the nature provoking the anger of the Yods. The rare survivors of this bloodshed, the Oogoobars, live in the forestry continent Okaar.
After a fitness session, Cutter goes to Shamazaar to retrieve the first Mon. Helped by the local inhabitants, he discovers the secret mechanism in the temples allowing him to access the Mon. After attacking the Fae temple, protected by numerous guards, he discovers the Mon in the middle of the flame at the top of the temple. He has a big surprise when he sees that the Mon is one of the electronics card. After this discovery he receives a message from Marion: she is prisoner of Fae Rhan in the town of Okriana. As the communication is bad, Cutter can't learn anything else and goes immediately to the desert of Talanzaar.
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Once there he learns quickly that Marion managed to escape and is hiding in the house of Zelb. After few minutes of intensive research through the biggest town of the planet he discovers at last Marion...
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Revelations |
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Marion tells Cutter that her departure had been advanced: she left just after him. The scientists were getting mad as a malfunction occurred during the transfers. This malfunction provoked a temporal distortion. Sharing their information, our two heroes conclude that the two scientists arrived on Adelpha many years before them and that the prophet Kazar is professor Kauffman himself. Kauffman confronted Fae Rhan when this one tried to take control of the planet. Before being killed, Kauffman had the time to announce the talans the arrival of the rest of the team as a gift of the Yods. After the death of Kazar, Fae Rhan (aka Anthony Xue) has his hands free to control the planet. He had realised his evil plans with the help of a soldier called Kroax.
Despite the numerous difficulties, Cutter refuses Marion's help, which creates a dispute between them. Marion has no choice but to follow the guardians and to seek refuge in Ranzaar. Then Cutter tries to find the other Mons while fulfilling difficult tasks ranging from repairing a lighthouse to lower taxes… or arresting a food thief which is not easy when you have all Adelpha's soldiers after you.
Having learnt nothing from her previous experience, Marion tries to take over a military base in Shamazaar with the guardians and she is captured. Once again Cutter has to rescue her but with the help of a flamethrower and a grenade launcher this time. After her rescue they have another dispute but more violent and Cutter asks the guardians to watch her closely. Then he returns to his quest and he finds four of the five Mons, the fifth one being inaccessible for the moment in the Palace of Fae Rhan in the middle of Okriana.
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As everything has to go wrong, Cutter receives a distress call from Zokrim: his son Jan is going to be killed in the Darosham in Okasankaar. At this place Cutter meets at last Xue but he can only fight against Kroax. Kroax, feeling that he is going to lose this fight, runs away. Then Cutter finds Jan. Jan, dismissive and ungrateful, asks Cutter to go away without explaining how Xue ran away. Hence Cutter goes back to Ranzaar to give news to Zokrim of his son.
A short time after leaving Zokrim, Cutter learns that the encampment had been attacked by surprise. Cutter rushes there but it is too late : Ranzaar is destroyed...
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Final Assault |
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In the middle of the ruins, Cutter discovers the sole survivor: Jan. The Talan, deeply shocked, tells the horrible truth: being threatened by death, he told Fae Rhan the location of the encampment of the Dolotai guardians. While Cutter goes to Okaar to free the guardians, Jan will try to get the guardians of the other continents to prepare a final assault against Fae Rhan palace.
In Okaar, Kyuran, a hunter, tells Cutter that he saw the guardians being brought to the jail located on the East. In front of the entrance Cutter discovers too late that he had been ambushed and disappears in a trap. When he wakes up, he is prisoner with the rest of the guardians. Few moments later, an explosion happens which attracts all the soldiers to it. The door of the jail opens and Marion appears and rescues Cutter and the guardians. While she brings the guardians in a safe place, Cutter eliminates the soldiers.
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Outside the jail, our heroes meet Jan again and a handful of guardians. Zokrim despite the anger he has against his son forgives him. He gives Cutter a "holy object": a holographic recorder from Kauffman. Kauffman reveals that the phenomenon of the temporal distortion is linked with the rotation of the Earth. From his calculations, the probe should arrive in a moment and the only mean to save the Earth is to leave with the probe after having replaced the electronics cards. A while after, the guardians indicate that they have discovered the probe near by.
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Zokrim, despite his pacifism and encouraged by Cutter and Marion, decides to fight. In Talanzaar, the guardians create a revolt and the soldiers are overwhelmed quickly. Cutter arrives a bit later and learns that Marion is already on the palace to retrieve the last Mon. Rushing in the palace, Cutter has to fight Kroax and his elite soldiers. After a ferocious fight (well few grenades help don't they?), Cutter meets Marion on the stairs of the palace. She has found the last Mon and our two heroes argue gently to know who will leave with the probe. At this moment Xue, coming from nowhere, appears in the back of Marion.
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Marion doesn't see him and she just has the time to watch cutter pulling out his gun. Marion is mortally wounded and falls in the arms of Cutter. After ultimates words with her old friend she dies while Xue laughs at Cutter's feelings of loyalty and honour. But Cutter has no time to fight with him as the palace is being destroyed (Cutter will learn after that was the work of the Yods). Xue, being crazy, goes back inside the palace while Cutter escaped with the corpse of his friend in his arms. Then Cutter goes to Okaar for the funeral of Marion. After a final good bye, Marion flies to the kingdom of the Yods being taken away by a ventilop.
Cutter who deserves now his name of Ulukai, enters in the probe surrendered by his friends from another world. After modest farewells, he goes back to Earth to save for the second time another world from destruction...
End of the first opus.
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