And Atlantis had existed tomorrow, Justin Mader [snow like ashes TXT] 📗

Monoton the steam engine scanded and let glide the oars through the water in a continuous rhythm. With about 22 knots we approached the island of Atlantis. But still nothing could be seen and the steep banks of the prospectively Bosporus had long since disappeared on the horizon. I could not believe it that we were not on the sea, but on a huge freshwater lake. Everywhere the water disappeared in the horizon, and at that time in the Middle Ages one had still believed that you would fall behind it from the world plate. Then the grotesque situation came to my senses, which meant that the age of the Middle Ages was still far in the future.

I had also read too much of the time paradoxes and actually we should not cause any changes to the existing process, it would have too many impacts on our future. But when I thought about the 300 desert robbers, who we had simply destroyed with the means of our time, I became sick. So much for 'no changes in the course of time'. Does one of our ancestors had died here? Then this of us never would be born. Or don't it? And determine our actions just our possible future and everything was predetermined and directed? I only knew one, I just was not allowed to think about it and take everything as it was. I was standing at the bow of the ship and the airflow blowed around my nose. All thoughts, however, were only a waste of time, since it was now up to us how we would be able to survive the next days until the fall of Atlantis.

 The other soldiers of the empire also made their own thoughts, because it did not look very good for them. The power relation between the kings and thus their armies stood 3:7 for their own and also for our disadvantage. And how it would turn out, they just did not know. Although we knew roughly how it would turn out, but not in detail and on the other hand, the output did not concern us, because we saw ourselves as a 'third force'. However, we also had a completely different task, but we were closely tied to the fate of the three kings. We were now the protective force of Queen Neith bound to her personal being well and woe. On the other hand, we knew that she had survived the fall and built the Egyptian Empire in Saïs.

Tamara had gone to sleep after yesterday 's long night, but I could not sleep anymore, after all, not only the fate of our 225 men lays now in my hands, but also the fate of the rest of humanity and that are about 6.9 billions. If I failed, then that was it for humanity. Again an extinct species, I had to smile when I thought about how many races we already had wiped out as humans, so it maybe was just a fair balance?

All at once I felt a hand on my shoulder. An officer of the Queens Guard stood behind me and asked me to accompany him to the queen. Since I did not carry any radio with me and a detour would have been a bit rude, I could not inform anyone of our team. Was that okay? The queen did not receive me in the throne room, but in her private chambers.
The rooms were decorated extremely tastefully and not pretentious, as one would assume to a god queen. Many optimally coordinated types of wood, fittings and moldings made of electron and other precious metals had been processed here. She received me at a small meeting table. She offered me various drinks, the effect of which I had already learned the day before. So I took only a normal spring water, because I assumed that now my entire concentration was needed.

She sent her personal bodyguard out of the room and came to the point immediately: "Well, I have to realize that I can not assess you in any way, neither what are your intentions, nor if you are really that what you pretend. You are certainly not simple barbarians who have simply grown up here, but you are also not a member of the middle or senior level of the Atlantic society. You neither have disguised yourself, nor you have the physiognomy of us Artusians, nor does your behavior coincide with that. One possibility is that you are members of an unknown alien species with humanoid roots. Who are you really and do not try to talk you out of the matter! " She had not even talked royally into a big excitement and looked at me now challengingly.

Now I could see that she was 'just' a woman with all her advantages and mistakes. She had a greenish-tinged, almost transparent tulle dress with a refined cut that emphasized her figure and she wore the blond hair on one side short and on the other hand curled open and reaching over the shoulder. And through her blue eyes she looked at me piercingly. Could she please me and did she want me to please me and did I want that personally? And was all that a psychological game or just a test of my loyalty. I had to smile and I took it as a psychological game. From experience I knew, a pure lie would bring nothing here and only strengthen the mistrust between us. And the best lie is the one who damned close to the truth.

"You're right, we're not the ones we pretend to be, but what do you want from me personally?"

Surprised that I tried no excuses, or talked about the bush, she stared at me in disbelief: "And what or who are you really?"

"First, answer my second question above all else!" I dodged.

Now she understood what I meant. "Well, anybody else I would put to death immediately because of this presumption, but I admit, you actually fascinate me personally but..." she put her hand on my arm, but the appearance of personal intimacy quickly passed, "... but primarily, as the queen, I have to make sure that my people and my kingdom survive and are not over-favored by fortune-knights and buccaneers. So I'm primarily concerned with what you want and what your intent is!"

"Thank you, Queen, for your openness, the subject will naturally remain with us and will not leak to the outside, but unfortunately I can not announce all the facts that I know, because it is not good to know your future too well!"

"Do you really know the future?"

"Yeee,... Yes, and no. Well my personal future unfortunately not, your on the other hand very well!"

She swallowed, "So you can look into the future and influence it?"

"Too much honor, but we do not have such capabilities, but I can assure you, our knowledge is based purely on our technical capabilities and our intentions are shaped by the survival of our race!"

"So you're time travelers?" She asked in disbelief, "... and what does our future look like?"

"Well, as I said, I can not answer all that, but I can assure you, that you will survive this conference."

"And the rest?"

"There will be big upheavals on you and your kind, but I even do not know if I'm going to survive!" I shrugged.

"To come back to my original question, what do you intend to do with your actions?"

"Well, I can only say again that we do not intend to harm anyone at will, least of all you, but it is about the survival of my species and maybe yours!"

"So we have the same interests, can we at least agree on that?"

"Absolutely, you can rely on us completely in this direction!"

Then she smiled at me and she became more and more sympathetic to me. It was still an interesting meeting, more than I had hoped.

  When I returned to my cabin later, Tamara was still asleep, but the next day she looked so peculiar to me, had she noticed my little experience? Well, it's so hard to live with a woman who knows every one of your thoughts.

Flash!

After three more days we reached Atlantis. If we had navigated correctly, it was approximately on the site of today's Crimean peninsula. However, at that time it was a complete island, but extended further south-east or southward according to today's principles.

We knew all the accounts of Atlantis from the records of Plato, we knew the fantasies that writers of our time wrote about Atlantis, and everyone was full of praise for the uniqueness, beauty, and outstanding architecture of this island and the great construction of its numerous concentric Canals and the walls covered with silver, gold and electrum. Well, what can I say. For simple barbarians of that time, of course, the buildings were bombastic, and of course, the glitter and barbaric style of the electric columns was impressive, but anyone who has seen gigantic cities like New York, San Francisco, or architectural jewels like Neuschwanstein or the Taj Mahal, for thisone Atlantis was a great disappointment. The walls shone only partially, because the substructure had suffered greatly from the humidity after almost 2000 years of existence, the canals were dirty and neglected and the houses had seen better times. Yes, they do looked exotic to us, with all their curved constructions and even the Temple of Poseidon was impressive with its ivory, gold and electrum adornments. 

 But this building was the only monument that gave us a well-maintained condition. All other facilities, with perhaps the exception of the Royal Palace, made an extremely run-down impression. Somehow dingy, not clean or well maintained. Although the canals were flooded by the bypassed rivers, all sewage and waste were also channeled into these channels. In addition, it was primarily considered that the waters around the Royal Palace were cleaned by the rivers, the other channels lazily lolling and silted away. Similarly, the smell was remarkable and Venice was in comparison to squeaky clean and pure, since Atlantis had no sewage treatment plants and everything was disposed of in the direction of the sea. After all, we were here, at least at this time, in subtropical climes, which provided an additional impetus to decay. Say Atlantis offered us in this 'today' only a copy of its perhaps original splendor and its size.

OK, so much for the overwhelming size and beauty of Atlantis. Just the inner ring was reasonably well maintained, since the king and the Atlantic upper class lived and worked here. So there was a very rich infrastructure and numerous shops for every kind of entertainment. Also numerous spas and bathhouses were available here. So you could enjoy all kinds of luxury there, including cultural ones and those of the palate. But we did not have time for such things. Our quarters as the queen's guard were simple but clean and spacious. However, what disturbed our concentration was the constant mental pressure on our brains caused by the presence of the ten kings. No one could say what