Chapter 1

Welcome to the United States

Scott mac Fergus looked around himself at the room he had just been transported into. Surrounding him were his wives, children and his friend, 'Mac' MacKelvie along with Scotland's magical Stone of Destiny and the Brecbennoch of St Columba.

The room was grand, very grand, with plush fixtures and fittings - silks, gilt, brass, you name it, this room sported it somewhere. It just barely escaped being gaudy, Scott guessed it had taken the work of a top-notch interior designer to avoid that.

At one end of the room was a set of large wooden doors. At the other there was a raised dais with two high-backed chairs, a small table between them. A lectern was situated at the very edge of the dais and it carried an emblem, one that made Scott's chest puff out with pride. The device was circular, depicting the blue and white Saltire cross of St Andrew with a yellow lion rampant at its centre. Around the circumference of the circle were seven golden stars.

His wives and family were also looking around at the room, but their expressions were more amazed and shocked than Scott's was. They had followed Scott into the hall-house at Inveraray in ninth-century Scotland and had absolutely no idea where they had now ended up.

Scott whirled round, raising his bloody sword as the doors crashed open and a squad of men rolled into the room to take up positions on both sides of the door, some kind of weapons levelled at Scott and his group. He spoke without thinking, his use of Gaelic instinctive. Fortunately the men obviously understood.

"Soldier, lower that weapon immediately!" He shouted.

The sheer authority and presence of the man had an impact on the soldiers and Scott could see the strange weapons waver and lower somewhat. He hurried to try and press home his attempt at talking himself out of trouble.

"I am Scott mac Fergus, Ard Righ nan Albannach, what kind of welcome is this for me and my family?"

He could see the mouths of all of the soldiers hanging open in amazement. Another man, clearly an officer, now strode into the room. He too appeared amazed at the appearance of the group. The ninth century style clothing was certainly at odds with the grandeur of the room.

"Your Grace, forgive us. Your appearance, although foretold in legend for eleven hundred years, is still something of a shock. Please, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Admiral MacCulloch, Commander of the US space forces."

The Admiral moved forward and bowed low. Falling to one knee, he held both of his hands out in front of him, one above the other with the palms inward. Scott recognised this as the ninth century position for taking the oath of fealty. He allowed his own hand to be taken between those of the Admiral and then the man hesitantly spoke what for him were ancient words.

"I, James Charles MacCulloch do hereby swear allegiance to you Scott mac Fergus as my Ard Righ and promise my fullest strength and that of my family and men to support your cause and crown, so long as you defend Alba."

"Well met and well spoken Admiral. I would have thought such customs would be long since a thing of the past though?"

"Indeed, your Grace. These words have not been spoken in over seven hundred years, not since the last of Gabrain mac Boanta's line died out."

"Be not so hasty with such statements Admiral, strange things can happen!" Responded Scott.

The Admiral rose to his feet at last and cast his eyes over the rest of Scott's group, taking in their strange garb.

"Again, forgive me your Grace, but you all look as if you have just stepped out of history."

"May I remind you Admiral that, that is exactly what has just happened. Only twenty minutes ago we were all in the ninth century and now by some device of the Stone, we are here."

Scott was himself from the twenty-first century, but had been thrown back in time to the ninth century, a ninth century he had determined, that existed in a parallel universe to the one he was from. After many years of defending Scotland against the warlike Norse and English, he had hit on the idea of transporting some twenty-first century specialists back in time with him to help speed up the rate of technological advancement in Scotland.

His introduction of trade, public health, education, improved agricultural methods and eventually such things as modern weapons, electricity and medicines, had accelerated Scotland's development immensely and had allowed him to change the country from a feudal system to one where there was growing democracy. Scotland's sudden military supremacy and access to twenty-first century technology had allowed Scott to begin to foster peaceful relations with his neighbours.

Before being transported to this room, the real reason for his trip back in time had been revealed when an alien had managed to come through the portal he himself used into the ninth century. The appearance of the alien suggested that the Earth was going to be attacked by an alien life form in the twenty-first century and Scott's time-travel was aimed at accelerating developments so the Earth would be ready to defend itself.

Once the groundwork for this accelerated development had been laid, the Stone of Destiny had called Scott and informed him his time in the ninth-century was at an end. Other challenges faced him he was told. He had left his close friends Gabrain and Lachlan behind to continue his work, as the Stone of Destiny had somehow transported him and his family to what looked like another time again.

When he had stepped into the dome of light the Stone and the Brecbennoch had created, Scott had been given access to all of that would come to pass between the ninth century and the year 2012 AD. He now assumed that this room, wherever it was, was in the year 2012. Nothing else would make sense.

Scott could see the Admiral was now staring at the Stone with its little box sitting on top. If he had been open mouthed at Scott's appearance, the sight of these mythical relics was almost too much for the man to take in. Scott decided he needed to bring the man back onto more solid ground.

"I am assuming that we are now in the year 2012 AD?" He asked, purposefully seeking to get the man's attention away from the Stone.

"Yes, your Grace. This is New Inveraray. You are in the stateroom of the President of the United States' residence. He has asked that he be presented to you as soon as I have verified your identity. I should send word to him now."

"Very well Admiral. We must speak hereafter on the threat of the iLOX. I am assuming they have attacked the Earth?"

"This very day your Grace. We managed to fight them off, but not without losses. We are still de-briefing to try to identify what happened during the exchange."

"Aye, then perhaps a few battle hardened eyes might be able to help you Admiral. Now, the President shouldn't be kept waiting perhaps?"

The Admiral turned and walked from the room, intent on finding his President and bringing him to meet the Ard Righ. The squad of soldiers was now also standing up and had their weapons loosely at their sides.

Scott turned to his wives and family, recognising that they would still be out of sorts by the sudden move from ninth century Inveraray to 2012. He tried to explain to them what was going on, reminding them of the alien threat and now revealing that he believed the Stone had spoken to him, had transported him to play some part in the defence of the Earth.

"Scott, what strange place is this? This Admiral called it the residence of the President of the United States. What is a President and what is the United States?" Asked Fiona.

Scott realised that none of the others seemed to have been given the full history that he had been blessed with by the Stone.

"Fiona, Scotland has developed well over the years it seems. She fostered peace and co-operation between the nations of the Earth and created a United States of all the people of the Earth. The seven stars you see on that emblem on the lectern do not represent the seven original sub-Kings of Scotland; they represent the seven continents of the Earth.

"When Gabrain's line died out there was a move to invest the descendants of my father as the new High King, but that was overruled and instead a President was elected. The President is the head of state for all of the Earth, but the constitution that was established in 1357 AD makes it clear that if the true Ard Righ is discovered, the rule will revert to him. As each of the continents joined the United States, they confirmed the constitution. So, in theory, I am now the head of state for the entire Earth."