At the top of a steep incline of weather-worn granite, a man-like creature with heavy-set eyebrows and thick hair covering much of his semi-naked body squats on his haunches. His gaze surveys the plain below that stretches toward a distant horizon ablaze with sunset colors. A crisp, gentle breeze stirs the tall savannah grass below him, and from this relatively safe vantage point, he successfully protects his females and their offspring from the many dangers offered by this savage world.  In one of his weathered, callused hands, he holds his favorite spear; its butt wedged firmly into a crevice to his right. In his other, he holds a sturdy, axe with its sharp, carefully worked stone head securely fastened to the handle with chewed animal hide lashings.

The oldest of his mates is heavy with child; she is awkward and ponderous; the proud creature knows he will soon have another mouth to feed. His younger mate sits by the fire in front of the small cave opening, mixing crushed seeds gathered throughout the day with water to make hard crusty bread.  His mouth waters with anticipation as the smell of cooking meat comes to him on the breeze. He feels hunger gripping his stomach as he remembers the texture and taste of cooked meat and the pure delight of bread soaked with the meaty juices that remain.

Small children play quietly near their mothers and the warmth of the fire in the cooling evening. The small opening in the cliff face behind them leads to a secure cave with permanent water at its deepest point. The cave is their home, and final line of defense against attacking beasts.

It had been a good day for the small family. The small grazing beast cooking on the fire was a lucky catch. It was not often that a fresh kill came his way without the long-toothed beasts taking it from him. He knew he should be feeling happy, he wanted to be happy, but something about this night was increasingly unsettling the creature.

He sniffed the crisp evening air, and voiced deep, sharp guttural sounds of worry. His females answered with the same guttural sounds, his uneasiness stirring their own.  The usual evening noises ceased completely, and the creature grew agitated. He sniffed to the left and right again, but could detect nothing unusual on the breeze. His body became ridged; a taught spring, poised for attack or flight, but he saw nothing and confusion grew from unease, to fear. Suddenly, the male creature tilted his head to one side listening. He grunted forcefully, his dependents ceased their noise and crouched low, cringing in fear at his warning.

Then it came-a high-pitched whine that became a scream, and then a painful roar that hurt their ears and vibrated the rock beneath their feet. Whatever it was, it was coming from behind their protective rock outcrop and could not be seen. The mothers and infants cowered to the ground, terrorized at the offensive, painfully screeching noise.

The male, now in full panic, thought only of protecting his family. He herded his small tribe urgently before him into the protection of the cave, dragging the partially cooked carcass behind him as he followed. He did not feel the cooking meat burn his hand as he rushed. With the help of the females, he pushed hard against a large round bolder, rolling it into place, blocking the entrance. It would keep them safe from any known natural predators.

The frightened family scuttled to the rear of the cave, huddling in fear as the thunderous roar rose to a deafening climax; the noise and vibration filling their small cave, causing dust particles to fill the air. Just as quickly, the noise subsided to a thin, whistling whine drifting through the darkening night air, then quickly diminishing to silence. The night became eerily silent.  The creatures huddled, still afraid to make the slightest sound or movement in the intense darkness of the cave. Minutes later, the family of terrified creatures shielded their eyes with fear-moistened, dirty hands as blinding bright light speared into the cave through small openings around the rock which blocked the entrance.

Dust particles danced and sparkled as they floated through the piercing light rays.  It was then that the male creature, squinting painfully against the glare, noticed what he may have thought was a thin black snake worming its way through one of the small openings around the rock blocking the entrance to the cave. The snake began to hiss softly and the male creature’s fear turned to rage.  He had identified the intruder as a target he felt able to defend against. He screamed animal rage, leaping the breadth of the cave to bring his stone axe smashing down onto the black snake.

An instant later, his vision turned white, and he collapsed to the hard-packed ground next to the still hissing snake. His females and children joined him in unconscious oblivion seconds later. The night once more became silent and minutes later, the rock blocking the entrance was moved gently out of the way, and sturdy, boot-clad feet crunched through the graveled entrance into the cave.

2230AD-Earth is suffering and is very close to total environmental collapse. The oceans of the world have become polluted and are hard pressed to support life. The coral reefs are dying over most of the world and the atmosphere had become hazy and thick. The once mighty Amazon jungle was completely gone and time was running out for Earth and the human population which exceeded ten billion.

Terrorism had become the driving force for change in the West, forcing the western nations to implement the strictest monitoring and security systems to successfully oppose it. The major component of this new security system involved microchipping the right wrists of the entire population and replacing key locks with palm and microchip scanners.  Microchipping is compulsory for every person wishing to enter a Western country. The drastic measures taken assured that illegal entry into any Western country was detected very quickly. At last, through the implementation of a “right of entry” system, no door will open, no vehicle will start, and no financial transactions can be made by a person who is not microchipped.

The security measures worked, but resentment, distrust and hatred between nations grew resulting in the worlds’ population splitting into two major political powers: the Western and the Eastern Alliances. The exception to the split was France, which preferred instead to become politically neutral. Being a powerful nation in her own right, neither the West nor East could force French allegiance without dire consequences.  East/West relations continued to spiral to new lows. The Western Alliance realized that extinction for the human race was a distinct future possibility. Planet Earth had become an environmental disaster zone and drastic steps would have to be taken to save as many people as possible. To achieve this, the biggest, most ambitious plan in the history of mankind was conceived. The Western Alliance would begin to build a massive subterranean complex deep inside the Moon.

The French had refused to join the Western Alliance of nations, because they reviled the anti-terror security measures that were compulsory. They considered microchipping the population to be a sacrilegious invasion of privacy and very un-French. The French government however, was not the true seat of power in France. The dynamic motivator behind French politics was a secret society called “The OMEGA Legion.”

Using their immense financial and political might, OMEGA Legion leaders persuaded their government officials and populace that the French nation needed their own doomsday contingency plans.  The Massif Central mountain range in central France was selected as the totally secret location of an underground mega complex, similar to the lunar subterranean colony.  The “Catch 22” situation developing between East and West was poised on a fine razors edge. Trouble was sure to follow.