Chapter One: The Legend Rises

Location: Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America

Timedate: 14th November 2008

In the humble city, all seemed peaceful and tranquil. The sun was slowly inching down into the horizon and everyone spent the afternoon as if it were like any other. From the roads came the sounds of rumbling cars, softened almost into harmony by the distance.

Within the university, a huge classroom was still in session, countless students sat still and concentrated as hard as remotely possible as the grown teacher, proper in tone and stature, continued his lecture regarding the history and mythology of the Greek gods and creatures.

"Now who can tell me how did Zeus, the proclaimed King of the Olympians, win the Titanomachy?" the teacher asked.

Among the crowd, one of the students raised her hand.

"Yes go ahead, Debbie," the teacher pointed.

"At the last minutes of the war, the god Cronus, father of Zeus, and that's with a C and a U by the way, unleashed a secret weapon from a volcano and that weapon was a monster called Typhon, father of the Titans, and Zeus destroyed him, Cronus, and the other titans with the power of a lightning bolt," she answered with one swift breath.

"Correct," the teacher replied with a smile and snap of fingers. "Looks like someone actually did their homework."

The class emitted quiet and hushed giggles. However, just then, the familiar ringing of a school bell interrupted. The teacher pulled back his sleeve to observe his watch, the big hand pointed at 12 while the little hand aimed at 4.

"Well, looks like that's gonna be it for now today," the teacher announced. "Class is now dismissed for the day, we'll continue one this next Monday. Have a good weekend."

The students all got up from their chairs with collected books, bags and equipment, and walked to the doors. As soon as all they all left, the teacher was on his own. Suddenly, the silence was cut short as his ears caught a rhythmic ringing sound. He looked down to his pocket to see something flashing in synchronisation. He reached in, pulled out his mobile phone, and switched on the screen to read who or what this call might be coming from.

The screen read: Yale New Haven Hospital

"Hello?" he answered.

"Hello there, is this Mr. Theodore Grant?" a high female spoke on the other end.

"Yup, Teddy here," he quickly confirmed.

"Hi, this is the New Haven Hospital, " the doctor on the other line stated. "It's about your wife, Kate Grant, she's already in labour and your baby's coming."

Teddy let out a subtle gasp and his heart skipped a beat or two. His mouth slightly hung open upon the revelation.

"I will be there in 5 Minutes," Teddy replied, getting his senses back together immediately.

With that, he grabbed his bag and dashed out of the now empty classroom, into the long hallway. Another minute went by before he eventually reached the exit door, spotting his silver car. Teddy quickly packed his stuff into the back before he got into the driving seat, inserted and turned the keys on the ignition with ease, and drove his way out of the car park. His breaths grew shorter and shorter and hints of sweat rose from his forehead. Unbeknownst to him, his wife and their eventually newborn child that was yet to be born, their lives were about to be changed forever within the next 3 months and the 500 year old legend would come true and commence...

Location: Monarch Outpost 53, Stone Mountain, Georgia, United States of America

Meanwhile, far beneath the large bulbous mountain, various men and women in long white jacket coats quietly observed the well-hidden and indescribable creature laying deep in dormant slumber and unstartled by the presence of such humans, or so it seemed at first. Not even their brightest spotlights can unveil enough details and features of this living anomaly.

One scientist, a young woman in late twenties, with long dark blonde hair and narrowed eyes, sat and stared at the computer screen, looking and continuously absorbing through all the routine info: close-circuit camera views in different angles, none exactly any better in terms of quality, as well as lines and waves rippled by even the most hush of sounds.

Every once in a while, she turned her eyes and head to see a fellow scientist sitting on the other side, also looking at a screen; another woman in a similar uniform, younger by a year and a half, shorter stature than the blonde and even shorter dark brunette hair. Her girlfriend.

Her stare was cut short as an abrupt sound of bumping emitted from the speakers. Turning back to the screen, the blonde noticed the Heartbeat counter slowly but certainly increase from 20 to 21, 22, 23, 24 and still counting. Puzzled, the woman held a button on her desk intercom.

"Dr. Wells," the blonde woman called. "You better check this out."

Barely a minute passed before entering the scene was a steady man donned in round specs and a matching black roll-neck and suit jacket, late thirties at most, black hair and a hint of silver in beard and moustache.

"What is it, Susan?" the stern man responded in a clear English accent.

"It's Tiamat," "Her heartrate had increased from 20bpm to 40."

"You think she's reacting to something?"

"Perhaps a form of echolocation," the brunette woman added a suggestion.

"A possibility, Jamie..." Dr. Wells stroked his chin. "But reacting to what exactly is another question..."

"You, Victor," Wells pointed at another man behind him.

"Oh come on man, I told you like thirty times by now," Victor groaned. "It's 'Animal'. Call me 'Animal'. Everybody does."

"Okay, 'Mr. Animal'" Wells air-quoted. "Get Dr. Chapman on the phone. She's going to want to see this."

Location: Traveller, Utah, United States of America

Out in the ambient desert plains of Utah, grazing horses raised their heads, scanning around as if a predator caused a sound. Indeed there was; up on a gnarled branch, a pack of vultures edged sideways before swooping away. A crawling lizard stopped in its track and tilted its head as the distant howls of a coyote filled the unsteady atmosphere, and a passing nearby snake coiled defencively.

A mountain lion leapt atop a rock outcropping and surveyed the desert floor. Then, suddenly startled, it crouched down, looking up over its shoulder to see a tiny glimpse of something in the clear sky.

Just at the centre of the white glaring sun, barely noticeable at first, was a tiny black dot, growing larger as it approached. Soon it eclipsed the sun itself, a large smooth metallic black orb, hurtling toward the earth, casting an unsettling shadow. The coyote backed up several steps, the horses moved closer together, rubbing past each other, spooked, and the reptiles scurried away.

In the sky, the alien probe emitted an unnatural howling roar like rusted metal scraping against dry concrete, a ball almost completely enveloped by flame as it ripped through the air downward. Realising the potential threat, the horses bolted for safety while the mountain lion took a slight step back and snarled at the approaching abnormal sight.

Elsewhere in Utah was Lake Apopka, a quiet and remote lake, almost devoid of ripples. Upon its surface was the near-perfect reflection of the approaching probe. It continued to grow larger and larger, and then finally, its slammed into the lake. The lake was no longer clear and tranquil; tons of water were displaced. The rest hissed and boiled, churning upwards into a curtain of steam, and nearby treetops exploded into raging walls of flame.

To be continued...