Rachel’s first night in Istanbul had been uneventful but not nearly as restful as she had hoped. The room was all right—more than all right actually, it was gorgeous—but the old fortress was full of unfamiliar noises. Every clank and bang startled her awake. After the fifth time, she had given up, opting to explore instead.

After dressing, she stuck her head out her door and checked the hall. Seeing no one, she stepped from her room. As she pulled her door closed, she taped her pocket, confirming both her key and the ever-present USB drive were ensconced inside.

A zing of guilt twinge in her heart. Rachel really should have handed over that drive by now, but concern had her hesitating. She’d already held onto it for so long. What would the Order think if Rachel finally brought it to them now? Would they believe she had simply kept it in hopes of finding the right moment to handed over or would they think she had been willfully disobedient, refusing to let the Order have it and the secrets it held?

She shook her head and shoved the thought aside. “Time to explore,” she muttered under her breath. “Which way should I go? Both ways look the same.” In the end, she chose to go left simply for the reason it seemed lighter.

Walking the halls, Rachel let herself enjoy the architecture. The building had historic charm, even with its modern plumbing and electricity. There were sculptures, hallways full of skylights, and inner courtyards, open to the sky, but for all the airiness, there were no windows looking out over the city. She’d known this to be the case but found it saddening regardless.

As she entered one of the vegetation filled courtyards, an older gentleman stepped up beside her. He appeared to be in his mid-sixties, with gray hair bordering on white. He was still fit and trim in a way that didn’t match his visible age. He was wearing jeans and a simple short sleeve polo shirt and had a leather bracer on his right arm.

Hashashin? Didn’t these people ever retire?

“Hello miss...?” he greeted, nodding her way.

“Rachel, if you don’t mind.” Rachel smiled at him; he seemed nice enough, but she wondered if he was about to lead her back to her room. “Everyone here is so formal. It makes me uncomfortable.”

“Unfortunately, we do adhere to formalities here within the Order, but if you wish for me to call you Rachel, then I will do so.”

“Thank you...”

“Anton.”

“Mister…” Anton shook his head and Rachel amended her statement. She assumed his negation meant that the name he supplied was his first and not his last. “Anton, am I being escorted back to my room?”

His rich laugh echoed in the halls. “No miss, Rachel, you are free to wander to your heart’s content. Our secrets guard themselves.” After a pause, he added, “How are you enjoying your mentorship? You came on board quite abruptly. Are you adjusting well?”

She grimaced. Did he know all about her sex life too? “Well enough, I guess.”

Anton swept his arm aside, inviting her to follow him. “Sometimes it can be difficult to feel welcomed by the Order. For example, I am certain no one has offered you a guided tour of our fortress. May I be permitted the honor?”

“Sure.” Rachel grinned and fell into step beside him. She liked this Hashashin. He seemed genuinely kind, and compared to the agents in London, he didn’t appear to regard her as if she were somehow part of some nefarious plot against the Order or some useless groupie out to bed the star. It was a refreshing change after weeks of being treated with suspicion and scorn.

“This place is a real maze,” she said after a bit.

He chuckled in amusement, “So it is. It was built during the general rebuild of the city back in 1454. Building planners of the day did not have the same eye to functionality as modern architects do.” Anton pointed to the steps at their feet. “Our elders moved each stone from the Fortress’s prior location to settle here because it was situated on a hill and easier to defend. There are several built-in fortifications—like that one,”—Anton said indicating an alcove with a bench departed fern. It didn’t look like anything to Rachel, but she trusted Anton. —“from that time, which are no longer used.”

“All this to protect the alien technology?” Rachel asked.

“Yes.”

“When did all of this,” she swept her arms out, “happen?”

Unlike any of the other men in power she had met so far, Anton vocalized his clarification request of her question with one of his own instead of ignoring her and giving her an arch look. “Are you asking about when the Order of the Guardians for God was founded or are you requesting more information about the Fortress?”

“The Order.”

Anton’s expression warmed as he launched into an explanation. “Per our archives, in 1096, a group of crusaders were lost in the wilderness during a storm, fell into a cave and discovered what they called in awe and fear ‘God’s Workshop’ or ‘God’s Library’.” Rachel stopped walking, leaning forward to listen closer to Anton’s explanation. “When they rejoined their commanders in Constantinople, they were babbling of sacred missions, heaven, and hell under the Earth. Consequently, they were met with scorn and disbelief.”

“I would guess so,” Rachel interjected.

“The crusader army left soon after, leaving only a small group of men behind to investigate the wild claims. Of course, the Order wouldn’t exist today if that cave had been only a figment of their imaginations.” Rachel nodded. “For the group of men, looking on the magnificence of what they had found, the Crusade was over. They had a new mission: protect the cave and all its God-like relics no matter the cost.

“And that, dear one, is how the Order of the Guardians for God was born.”

“That is... Wow...” Rachel responded, awed and at a loss.

“Quite interesting?” Anton supplied.

“Exactly.”

“It is indeed, Miss Rachel.”

He seemed open, so she asked another question which weighed on her mind, “On my ride to the fortress, Jackah-ck and Dr. Campbell said there were more than one of these caves. Caches, they called them.”

“Yes,” Anton affirmed.

“They said the Org may have found some you didn’t control.”

“Yes.”

Rachel wasn’t sure if he had confirmed her question or if he were just agreeing with her. “Do they?” she asked, hoping to clarify?

“Yes.”

“How can that be? How many caves are there?”

Anton was quiet a moment, but it didn’t feel like a stony silence. It felt like a pregnant pause, one filled with the promise of more information. The pressure of his pause built until finally, it burst. “Some of our agents have studied the known locations. There appeared to be no reason for any of their placements, but one of our more… inquisitive… researchers found a correlation with ancient topography. Pangea—You are familiar with the term, yes?—” Rachel nodded. “All of our discoveries have been in defensible locations on that geological plain. It stands to reason, that whatever brought these items to our planet had a military mind.”

“Gives the Order a plan for finding all the stashes and securing them, right?”

“Yes,” Anton said and paused as if he heard something. Rachel glanced around, seeing nothing, yet surprised to find they stood a small, brightly lit courtyard. It was open to the sky via skylights. Are those butterflies? she wondered. Rachel looked closer, confirming. They are! “Alas our time ends,” Anton said. Rachel shifted her attention back to him. “We have two visitors, and I believe one of them is for you. Regretfully, the other is one I need to address personally.”

Rachel nodded. “Okay, Anton. It was nice speaking with you.”

“Likewise, Miss Rachel,” he said, turning toward the archway, clearly waiting. A moment later, Darius and Adam appeared.

Darius gave the man at her side a deep head nod and Adam greeted Anton with a “Sir.” Rachel glanced over at Anton. The two men’s honorific to Anton made her wonder who he was within the Order. She’d never seen Adam so differential before. It kind of scared her, actually.

Anton greeted, “Mr. Darius, Mr. Black.” And stepped toward Darius. As they walked away, Rachel could hear them speaking quietly, and they both left the courtyard toward duties unknown. Turning to Adam, Rachel shook her head, amused, and impressed at Anton skill with knowing the two men were approaching. She never heard a sound. As she joined Adam, he hugged her, and asked, “Sleep well?”

“No.”

Adam chuckled. “I figured you hadn’t; this being a new place and all.” He clasped her hand in his, tugging her toward a different archway. “Come,” he said. “I’ll show you more of the Fortress.”