I know at once where I am. A nurse is standing by my bed.
‘Mr Sherman?’
‘Yes.’
‘Thank goodness you are all right, we had trouble stabilizing you.’
‘OK, nurse, I will take over now.’
I know this person talking must be a Guardian, but I can`t be sure.
‘What’s happened to me?’ I said.
‘I am Grenwer, a colleague of Sionn’s. You were neutralized by something or someone! Tell me what you know.’
I told him what I saw on the ship. He looked shaken, even for a Guardian.
‘Where is Sionn?’ I said.
‘We don’t know!’
Now I am shaken!
‘The one thing we do know is Sionn must have suspected some sort of trouble; normally you would have been fully accepted by the Guardians but for some reason Sionn thought it best to keep you partially a Guardian and partially Dan Sherman. You have been mentally scanned and we know you could have some info which might be useful to us. Please come with me.’
‘There is one thing I want to know.’ I said, ‘am I dead?’
‘Yes.’
Just Great! I thought, I’ve only been in this job for two minutes, I’ve witnessed the saving of billions of people but now I’m dead and the whole universe could be at risk.’
We walk into another room. He then asked me to sit down at a sort of computer.
‘Just look into the screen, we know you have stabilized so we can now look at what actually happened on the ship. The fact that you were at a short distance from Kallo means we might be able to retrieve some info from him through you. Please relax and concentrate.’
The screen came to life, Kallo is looking at me as though I am there again! I started to feel strange.
‘Don’t be afraid.’ He then touched me behind the neck as Sionn did to the two men at the lab.
‘Yes, I can remember now, he`s going to Junction 43 at Far-Station.’
Grenwer looked shaken again.
‘Far-Station is an inaccessible place.’
‘Why.’
‘Our ships are unable to penetrate its space. There is just one way and I suspect you know what it is?’
‘You mean you want someone to go there in the dream worlds and then transfer to a light suit.
‘Yes.’ But who would go?’
‘He already knows what I am going to say.
‘Well, I`m already dead so what’s the difference?’
‘You could get trapped there and we know it is a terrible place to be.’
‘What exactly is Far-Station?’
‘It is a series of planets which were once highly civilized; they were taken over by numerous warring alien races. These planets are now known as Far-Station. They are within a relatively short light speed distance; most of the evil characters from history are incarcerated there before returning to their respective worlds.’
Oh Great! I thought, I`m about to go to hell in the physical world.
‘Can I ask you something, Grenwer?’
‘Sure,’ he said.
‘Why me? Surely you have people more experienced!’
‘Yes, but that is why Kallo will not suspect, he thinks you’re neutralized, also you now have knowledge which you at the moment can`t see but after looking again into the light book you will know better.’
‘What about Kallo? Why didn`t he just prevent us from stopping Dyon 17 from destroying Relmar, he must have had the technology.’
‘It is conceivable he already had knowledge about Relmar but we think he has other plans for the deadly material.’
‘You mean more deadly than the destruction of one hundred and twenty-billion people?’
‘If he has access to a place where we cannot, as yet go, he could do catastrophic damage.’
‘Why can’t you travel there in the dream worlds and find out.’
‘Although we can travel up and down the time scales on all levels, we can’t as yet access Junction 43 at Far-Station.’
‘Why don`t you get together with the local people from the different planets that were invaded and take back the planets?’
‘We are not allowed to meddle in other planetary problems.’
‘Is that not what we are doing at Far-Station?’
‘The difference is that now Galactic systems are at stake, we must retrieve the container without Kallo suspecting.’
‘One more thing,’ I said, ‘how could Kallo kill me while I had the light suit on?’
‘That is another thing we don`t yet know,’
Reality is starting to sink in now. They want me to dream travel to the border of Far-Station then to an astral planet nearby known as Terick 3; then on the equivalent physical planet wake up in a light suit.
‘No.’ Grenwer said, ‘we have already cloned your old body but we don’t have use for it on this particular mission. Please, we have little time left.’ I wonder what he means, but I soon realize I am in for a pretty big shock.