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Project Revamp
Project Revamp
Project Revamp
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Project Revamp

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Sometimes you don't discover who you are until it's too late...almost!


Earth is at the verge of total annihilation. The fate of the human population lies in the hands of a college student named Josh Hamilton and the love of his life, Shelly.
After being kidnapped by NASA, Josh and Shelly embark on a journey across the cosmos to an alien planet named Therosis. It was there they learn the truth about human existence and what is required of them to save Earth.


In this sci-fi thriller you will encounter wormholes, new forms of regenerative light, insight into Earth's origin and past, Diamond asteroids and more. This is a free-fall adventure where fantasy and fact, science and fiction collide or do they?


The odds are stacked against them. Can Josh and his friends save us? Or, is it too late?

LanguageEnglish
Release dateAug 7, 2020
ISBN9781951492373
Project Revamp

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    Project Revamp - Blane Morgage

    www.blanemorgage.com

    PROLOGUE

    Hyperclatimus: (noun) microscopic organ located in the center of the human brain responsible for the production and structure of DNA; known to be where all human life originates. Synonyms: the eternal light; the light.

    Yeah, I had never heard of it either. At least not until recently. What the definition doesn’t explain is that it’s extracted from our brains after death to be manufactured into a serum capable of extending the lives of our makers. Yes, our makers. You see, we are simply clones of a more advanced civilization living on a distant planet named Therosis. How do I have the pleasure of knowing this? Well, I’m glad you asked.

    "Hi, my name is Josh Hamilton. I’m a twenty-one-year-old college student in Colorado. My passions in life are space and the unknown, both of which I was recently introduced to in person.

    "It all started when two newly acquired friends and I participated in and won a NASA sponsored space contest. We designed and built three small satellites at Cape Canaveral and watched as they were launched to the International Space Station. Once they were orbit, we spent a summer in Houston collecting the data they provided. The purpose of the mission was to take photos of major shorelines and provide the scientific community a means to help reverse the ever so damaging erosion patterns. But my two friends, Mike and Alan, had bigger plans. They convinced me to install secret cameras to get some pictures of the space station. It was all for fun until we stumbled across something unusual: an odd triangular shaped craft, docked to the back side of the station, and obviously not of human origin. Weeks after the discovery, everything went downhill. My two friends plummeted to their deaths off a hillside roadway in a very suspicious manner. If there was any silver lining, it was that I became closer to Mike’s beautiful sister, Shelly. She has gorgeous blue eyes outlined with thick lashes, shiny auburn red hair, and a body of a yoga instructor. Mmmm.

    Sorry, got off track a little. So, anyway, things changed after their deaths and I began feeling paranoid with the suspicious timing of the accident. I decided to protect myself from a similar fate, so I plastered the internet with the picture we obtained. What happened after that was nothing short of unimaginable. Our NASA mentor and friend, Russ, took Shelly and I on a journey across the cosmos.

    Excuse me, Shelly interrupts, walking in. Don’t you mean he kidnapped us, Josh?

    Oh, hey Shelly, I was just recapping our recent experience. And yes, it was a trip we surely didn’t sign up for. However, riding in an intergalactic spacecraft was super cool.

    Cool, alright. Her expression proves she doesn’t share my enthusiasm, Especially when we went through the wormhole and were stretched apart like a gooey marshmallow.

    Yeah, that was different, and kind of painful, I must admit. But once we exited the hole, we ended up in a galaxy called Athenia. It was deeper in the universe than humans have ever seen. That is where we were introduced to the planet of Therosis, and it was ginormous.

    And heavy, she adds. Not the planet, us, I mean. The gravity was strong, making us feel nearly twice our weight.

    That part did suck. I’m still a little sore. The Therosians have great strength because of it, but physically they look no different than humans.

    All except when their pupils stretched like a cat’s eye and they communicated telepathically.

    True, they’re a few steps up the evolutionary ladder from us. But it’s kind of scary to think about it, reading someone else’s mind… not for me. Anyway, back to the planet. An asteroid struck their planet many years before human existence which created an everlasting storm that consumed the whole lower hemisphere. As a matter of fact, that is why we exist, but we’ll get to that soon. So, our friend, Russ, works for a mining company based on Therosis named CronTech.

    And he works for NASA.

    I know, Shelly. I’ll get to that. After the asteroid struck, their population dwindled, and the radiation of the aftermath resulted in mutated newborns. Not every birth was affected, but majority were. The result was a new species referred to as monticals. By their physical appearance, we would label them as aliens.

    Big aliens, Shelly cuts in. Tall as basketball players, enlarged heads, bigger than normal eyes, flat noses, and small mouths. The only thing they lacked was the green color we’re used to seeing in sci-fi movies.

    Besides the looks, they weren’t much different than the Therosians. They possessed the same telepathic powers, but they had to physically touch each other, or another being, to use them. The Therosians didn’t take too well to the monticals, though, and they were cast into the shadows. Many formed their own civilizations referred to as clans, living outside government control. Some worked for CronTech, mostly handling the jobs nobody else wanted to do.

    I think it’s sad the way they were treated, Shelly says.

    I do too. More and more were being born to the point they nearly surpassed the Therosian population. The heads of CronTech decided at that time to expand their enterprise and hired some of the top scientific minds to find a cure for the mutated births. After failing to find a cure, they shifted their direction. This is where the hyperclatimus and humans fall into the story. When they discovered this organ, which they call the light, they invented a way to extract it from the recently deceased and utilize it to create a life prolonging serum. However, soon they realized the demand overpowered the supply, so they began the cloning project. They duplicated themselves to grow the organ and once the clones matured it was harvested from their brains. This had to be done in a conscious being. As the project began moving forward, it was abruptly halted by the government as they deemed it inhumane. Killing people, well clones, for an organ didn’t sit well with them.

    And then began Project Earth.

    That’s right, Shelly. During the many years of mining the universe for an elusive element named Karbontrace, they came across a young thriving planet rich with organic life. They called the planet Earth.

    Yeah, dinosaur organic life. Let’s not forget this is their choice of food.

    Not so much choice, but necessity. The dinosaur meat provides a protein they need to help them maintain their strength in their gravity rich environment. They had farmed dinosaurs on their own planet up to this point, but the asteroid strike killed off a large portion of that population as well. So, they harvested the dinosaurs on Earth nearly to extinction. It was at that time the cloning project was shut down on Therosis, so they used the opportunity to completely wipe out the dinosaurs on Earth with an asteroid of their own.

    By the way, Shelly intervenes, They have an enormous craft, called the rock slinger, just outside their atmosphere that’s used to shoot diamond infused asteroids at planets. The holes they create are deep enough to make the process of mining more efficient.

    Yep, and they figured out they could also infuse the asteroids with other elements capable of building healthier atmospheres on other planets as well. They hit Earth with such a rock, killing off the remaining dinosaurs. When the smoke cleared, they began growing the clones there.

    And somewhere else too, Josh. Don’t forget about the other planet.

    I know, I’m getting to that. Eight different forms of light existed on Therosis. When they populated Earth, the different forms were geographically separated to multiply. As centuries passed, the different forms evolved and became curious. They explored the land and eventually found the other forms. Cross breeding began, and the result was a weaker form of light inside the offspring. The company failed time after time to keep them separated and eventually they gave up trying. The light was still usable, but more was required to make the serum. In the interim, they discovered another planet they named Savitor. It was just as healthy as Earth, so they began colonizing it with clones to offset the weaker product Earth was providing.

    They didn’t tell us much about it, but we assumed it was like Earth in many ways.

    Yes, we did. Now, that brings me to our existence. We are simply products of CronTech. Many of their employees, including Russ, work within NASA. The ship we discovered attached to the space station was a transport vessel that is used to deliver the supply of light back to Therosis to be manufactured into the serum. Other employees of the company work in the medical field, making it easier for them to covertly extract the light from us upon death.

    Or steal our souls, as I see it.

    Let’s not get into that subject, Shelly.

    Fine…why don’t you tell them why we were taken to Therosis, anyway?

    After I exposed the picture of the alien craft to the world, the head of CronTech, Crius, was concerned about the ripple effect the discovery may cause in the already fragile human ecosystem. He thought the human population might panic. He felt there was a high probability that missiles would be launched which would create a nuclear holocaust. If that happened, the planet would surely die.

    Not just the people would die, the whole planet, right Josh?

    Right. So, before humans could overreact and potentially kill the planet, Crius planned to hit Earth with another asteroid and wipe the slate clean. Once the atmosphere was cleared of the aftermath, he’d repopulate the planet with a new crop of clones and start over. Russ wasn’t too pleased with this decision. He not only believed humans wouldn’t go that far with nuclear warfare, but he was also in love with one. So, his plan involved taking us to meet Crius and convince him we would return to Earth and tell everyone my discovery was just a hoax.

    Crius seemed to buy into it, don’t you think?

    He did, but I’m not too sure that’s still the case. When we thought Russ was about to load us in a ship and return us home, he took us on a little field trip around Therosis.

    I don’t think I trust Russ too much, by the way, Josh.

    Me neither. Our suspicion grew as we toured the alien land and met several of the monticals. One of which was Russ’s brother.

    Jarrok. I like him.

    Yeah, me too. What we found was Jarrok worked for the company also and was part of the whole secret plan Russ was keeping from us.

    A plan full of holes.

    Isn’t that the truth? After our tour, we snuck back to the factory section of CronTech and were apprehended by Crius’s right-hand man.

    We called him Mr. Personality.

    Yeah, because he didn’t have one. We were temporarily separated after our capture, but Russ and I escaped with the spaceship. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before we were all reunited. Shelly and Jarrok escaped in a smaller craft and docked it inside the larger ship we were in. We shot through a wormhole to return us back to our galaxy. During the flight back to the Milky Way, while floating around in zero gravity, I got mixed up in a fist fight with one of the monticals on board.

    You did good too, Josh…for your size.

    Oh, thanks a lot, Shelly. I know I’m a bit scrawny, but I held my own.

    She smirks.

    I continue, So, that brings us to where we are now. We lay on separate beds on the spacecraft destined for Earth, encased in glass tubes, and wait for the gas to enter to knock us unconscious. When we wake, we’ll be sitting in my car in a desolate place, and the plan is that we’ll just drive back into everyone’s lives. Although our complete trip to Therosis was only a couple days, the wormhole travel manipulates time, so months have passed on Earth since we’ve been gone. Our explanation for our extended disappearance was that the media attention we were getting after the discovery was too overwhelming and the two of us went into hiding.

    Yeah, like my parents will believe that.

    I agree. Mine too, but that’s all we’ve got.

    All the sudden the fumes that fill the chamber blurs my vision as I struggle to stare at the love of my life laying adjacent to me.

    Darkness sets in. The excitement of returning home paints a smile on both our faces.

    Time to convince the world I’m a liar. This should be fun…not.

    SECTION I

    It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.

    ~ Charles Darwin

    CHAPTER ONE

    Home Again, Home Again

    I cracked open my eyes. An older woman stared down at me. She wore blue scrubs. Some sort of gear, lined with crazy looking gadgets, fit firmly around her head. Small flashlights were attached to each side next to her temples. The pure white direct light they delivered strained my vision.

    She tapped at the side of the gear and extinguished the lights. Well, hi there. You’re finally awake, she said.

    I sat up but offered no immediate response as I attempted to collect my thoughts.

    Hospital?

    The chilly temperature of the room wasn’t reason enough to explain my uncontrollable shakes. I felt nauseous, most likely sparked by the sterile smell filling the air. A comfortable light blue, one-piece pajama fit loosely around my body. The blanket covering my lower legs was just out of reach of my restrained hands.

    Where am I? I asked. Panic set in, Why are my hands and feet tied? Where’s Shelly?

    The woman slid out of the way and revealed Shelly lying on the bed next to mine, Is this Shelly?

    The fear inside me subsided a notch or two as I realized Shelly was there with me. I attempted to wake her, Shelly…Shelly.

    She hasn’t come to yet. Physically, she checks out fine. We have high hopes she’ll be joining us soon. What’s your name, sweetie?

    Josh, I shook my arms to test the restraints with the hopes of breaking free.

    Calm down, please. This is standard procedure. You have no identification on you, so we have to take precautions.

    What happened? We were supposed to wake up in my car.

    You don’t remember? You were in a horrific accident last night.

    Last night? Is it morning?

    Mid-afternoon to be exact. They calculated you went off the road sometime late last night and crashed into the woods. Fortunately, you were spotted by a passerby today. Much longer, you could have suffered heat stroke. It’s a miracle you came out of it with just a couple bumps and bruises. She turned to Shelly, And your friend was even luckier, as she doesn’t have a scratch.

    Should I explain the bumps and bruises were caused by getting beaten up by an alien as we were floating around in zero gravity inside an intergalactic spacecraft? Yeah, that’d go over well.

    Where are our suits? We had suits on.

    Your clothes are in the closet. I wouldn’t refer to them as suits. More like leisure clothing. Who is Hollister by the way? The quality of those pants is phenomenal.

    Are you serious right now?

    Okay, just relax for a moment, she said, stepping out the door. I’ll send in your doctors.

    Shelly…Shelly…please wake up, I pleaded, but she remained motionless.

    The door swung back open. A man and woman wearing white overcoats walked in. Their shirt pockets were packed full of pens and instruments. The woman planted herself between Shelly and me and the man stood at the foot of my bed.

    Her serious expression proved she was all business, Hello, how are you feeling?

    I’m okay. Who are you?

    I’m Doctor Litner. This is Doctor Frank. Do you remember anything about the accident?

    No…no…I don’t.

    Well, you were lucky. Both of you were lucky, I should say.

    Where are we? Are we at Denver General?

    I’m sorry, where?

    Denver General Hospital.

    No, you’re in the Helix Medical Center.

    Is that in Denver?

    We’re in the province of Helix. That’s where you wrecked your vehicle, she turned her attention to the nurse standing at the doorway. Have we tested for any drug use, nurse?

    Yes, doctor, she replied, everything came back negative.

    I’m not on drugs. I promise, I said. Where is Helix? Province? Are we in Canada?

    She looked back at Dr. Frank for support. He intervened, And where exactly is this Canada?

    Just above the United States, where Denver’s located.

    They looked at one another, This is no longer a physical matter, he claimed. We’ll need to bring in Dr. Scolly to handle this one.

    What? Who?

    Just relax, she said as she stood up. Someone will come back and talk to you soon.

    As they proceeded to the doorway, I begged, Please, tell me where we are. I don’t know where we are.

    Before they stepped out, she turned back, Everything will be alright. The doctor will be here soon.

    I started hyperventilating and frantically tried to free myself from the bonds.

    Josh.

    Shelly’s voice brought my panic level down from insane to mildly crazy. I looked over at her, and she stared back at me with those big beautiful eyes, I don’t think we’re back home, Josh.

    Oh No!

    RRRRUUUUSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

    We remained silent for a few moments after my unnecessary scream proved nothing. We surveyed the room and digested as much information about our surroundings as possible. A desk or workstation ran the length of the wall across from us and ended at a closet. The wall between the desktop and the cabinets, mounted above it, was filled with a variety of stainless-steel instruments. Some appeared to be utilized for torturous procedures rather than surgical. That concerned me a bit. A reclined chair sat in the corner, comparable to a dentist chair. A domed light fixture hovered above it.

    Without saying it, we both knew we needed to swiftly invent a plan of action to get ourselves out of the obvious mess we were about to be in before Doctor Skull Banger came in and probed my brain.

    You have to lie, Josh.

    Lie about what?

    You have to tell them you don’t remember talking to the doctor. Tell them you must’ve still been affected by whatever brain trauma you got from our so-called car wreck.

    Why? We don’t know we’re not back on Earth for sure. Maybe they dropped us in some small town in New Zealand or something and they’ve just never heard of Denver.

    Or Canada? her eyebrows raised. Seriously, Josh, did you hear the doctor’s reaction when you brought that up? I think that’s proof enough for me that your buddy, Russ dropped us off at the wrong bus stop.

    I giggled, You think we’re on that other planet…Savitor?

    Keep going with your story when the new doc comes in and see where that gets us then, she said, and laid her head back down on the pillow, closing her eyes.

    Oh, so that’s it, you’re just gonna take a cat nap now and let me deal with this mess?

    Without cracking her lids, she replied, It’s your decision. Good luck.

    Ugggghhhh… Women!

    Okay, what’s your master plan, crew chief Shelly?

    She sat back up, We need to get out of these restraints. Until we convince them we’re sane and non-violent, they’ll keep us locked down.

    Yeah, I already kind of figured that, but how can we convince him or her we know where we are? We have no landmarks to refer to, no states or countries or anything. How do I convince them?

    Amnesia.

    What? Both of us?

    Well, we can try. Or I stay asleep long enough for you to get yourself free. Then, you can free me, and we make a run for it.

    Here we go…I get to do all the work.

    Oh, I don’t think so. Recent experience proved we’re not too good at getting away with anything. Besides, we have no idea where we are. Where will we go?

    Anywhere but here; tied up to a bed. Someone outside of this place would help us, don’t you think?

    If we’re back on Earth, yes. If not, who knows?

    Well then, let’s start by assuming we’re on Savitor. You need to use whatever little bit of information you gathered from the doctor, like we’re in the Helix Province. Tell them we’re from around here but got lost on the highway and that’s all you remember.

    That doesn’t sound too convincing.

    The sound of footsteps walking up and stopping just outside our room interrupted our horrible plan. Shelly planted her head back into her pillow and closed her eyes, fulfilling her half of deal. The door swung open to reveal a short, grey haired fellow. His beard was in shambles and in need of some major grooming. Above the upper frame of his thickly lensed glasses lay his wily eyebrows that ran solid from temple to temple. They looked like overgrown hedges hanging over a fence. His white coat hung down slightly above his knees, and he sported a pretty nice pocket protector packed full of goodies. If I were to guess by his fast-paced walk, I would say he was either jacked up on caffeine or he was one of those guys. You know the ones; right to the point, and no time for nonsense.

    Let’s hope it’s the coffee or I’ll be screwed.

    Hello there. I’m Doctor Scully, he said. His voice was higher than I would have expected. I’ve been assigned to evaluate your mental well-being and give my fellow practitioners my best professional prognosis and recommendation for any future procedures or decisions.

    Yep, he’s that guy.

    Hi, I’m Josh. I’d shake your hand, but they apparently think I’m trouble or something, so they chained me up. Do you think maybe you can get me unlocked? I’d feel more comfortable if you could.

    He retrieved a computerized tablet from the footboard of the bed. His eyes bounced back and forth, scanning the screen, Absolutely…

    Wow, that was easy.

    …not. Sorry there, young man, but until we know who, or what, we’re dealing with, we must take all precautions.

    What do you mean ‘what?’ I’m a person just like you.

    His eyes magnified to twice their size as he glanced up at me, Yes, well that’s yet to be established.

    He reached in his pocket and pulled out a black device, shaped like a hard-shelled sunglass case. As he tapped at it, a series of lights illuminated around the perimeter and some words I couldn’t quite make out displayed on a small screen. He pinched it between his thumb and index finger. Two thin rails emerged from each end automatically forming into a circle and connecting to each other. A separate single rail smoothly popped out of the top, curved to the back, and met the other rails. It fit firmly on his head. A small rod extended out of the front like a mini unicorn horn.

    Okay, I want you to look directly at the little blue lights on my head gear and answer two questions for me. The first one I want you to answer truthfully, and the second I want you to lie. Understood?

    What is this???

    Okay, shoot.

    Your name is Dave?

    No, my name is Josh.

    He paused for a moment. The lights blinked like a strobe, then went back

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