Charles nodded. “Let’s do it. I’m anxious to see what’s inside.”
Jose, along with the two workers, drilled small holes in the rock wall to set the first charges.
“We better get back down the mountainside,” suggested Foster. “We don’t know what blasting here might do. There could be a rockslide.”
Looking one last time at the rock wall, Charles headed down the mountain. The path was a little treacherous, with small boulders and areas of loose gravel. After about fifteen minutes they were down where the tents of their base camp were set up.
“They’re ready for the first blasts,” Foster reported to Charles, having spoken with Jose over the handheld radio.
“Do it,” ordered Charles, who looked expectantly back up the mountain.
Suddenly a loud explosion echoed through the valley, and dust and smoke could be seen on the mountainside. After a few minutes the smoke cleared.
“Jose is setting the next series of charges. He says the rock is split pretty well, and this set should penetrate to the cave.”
Charles nodded. Every minute he came closer to his goal. He could hardly wait to get inside the cave. Looking around, he studied the excavation site in the valley. At one time a large settlement had been here. A very advanced settlement for its time. Carbon dating the site had indicated that those people had lived in this valley for nearly five hundred years before the settlement was abandoned. Charles suspected it was due to the eruptions and the earthquakes caused by nearby Mount Etna.
Another set of explosions on the mountain drew his attention. Looking up to where he knew the cave was, he spotted another cloud of smoke and dust rising.
“Jose reports the entrance is open,” Foster informed Charles. “He says to be careful coming back up, as the explosions caused more gravel and small rocks to slide down.”
“Get some men together and lights. I want to see what’s inside that cave.”
-
It took a while to get everything together, but finally Charles started back up the slope of the mountain, heading toward the cave. It was tiring going up the steep slope, but eventually he made it. Coming to a stop, he saw a narrow entrance in the stone wall.
“Get some men clearing out this rubble,” ordered Charles. “I don’t want anything falling on us.” Charles waited impatiently as men worked, clearing the rubble, and making sure the cave entrance was safe to enter.
Finally Foster turned toward Charles. “It’s safe now. I’ll get some lights and we can go in.”
Charles waited as Foster dug some handheld lights from a backpack. He handed one to Charles and kept one for himself, gesturing toward the cave entrance. “This is your discovery. I’ll follow you.”
Stepping up to the cave entrance, Charles wiggled his way inside until he stood in a narrow tunnel. Looking around with his light, he could see this was not a natural cave. Someone had dug it through the hard rock into the side of the mountain. Charles waited until Foster and several other men joined him. “Let’s go. What we want is deeper inside.”
Walking down the tunnel, Charles studied the cave walls. The walls looked as if they had been chiseled smooth as well as the floor. There was no sand or loose rock. They walked about forty yards when the tunnel suddenly widened into a large chamber.
“Let me get some brighter lights set up so we can see better,” said Foster, as he gestured toward several of the men to open the packs they carried. After a few minutes the portable lights were set up, and the chamber was lit up.
Charles felt the breath catch in his throat. This was much more than he had imagined. The walls of the chamber were covered in writings and paintings. He stepped over to one wall in disbelief. It was covered in complicated mathematical equations. Walking along the wall, he recognized chemical formulas, physics equations, mathematical formulas, and numerous other scientific descriptions of various processes. He finally came to a stop at a series of paintings on the wall. He couldn’t believe his eyes. The first picture showed a massive spacecraft with people descending a ramp, carrying crates of supplies. The next showed the spacecraft gone, and a large camp of tents set up.
Moving along the wall, he found another group of paintings. This showed aliens shooting Humans with some type of energy weapon. Other paintings showed spacecraft battling one another in space.
“What does all this mean?” asked Foster, as his eyes roamed over the walls and the paintings.
Charles took a deep breath. “We’ll have to call in some other scientists, as well as the government. This is far more than what I expected.”
Walking along the wall, Charles was surprised to find a large stone sarcophagus. “Help me open this.”
“What if this is someone’s tomb?” asked Alan Foster.
“It’s not. I’m certain of that. Let’s get it open!”
Foster gestured to several of the men, and between them they shoved off the heavy lid. A hissing noise was heard as the lid came off.
“The damn thing was in a partial vacuum!” exclaimed Foster in amazement.
Charles shone his light inside, and he stopped breathing. The sarcophagus was full of books! Extremely old books from the look of them. “I don’t want anyone to touch these until we get some experts in here. Let’s put the lid back on this sarcophagus, and then let’s leave this cave. I need to make some phone calls. We’ve just made the greatest discovery of the century, if not of the ages. I want two armed guards placed at the entrance. No one is to enter without my permission.”
Charles could hardly wait to call Kala on the Endeavor and tell her what he had found. He had been vindicated, and soon the entire world would know of his discovery.
-
Foster followed Charles outside of the cave. The entire team went back down the mountain to base camp, where Charles could make his calls with his satellite phone. Foster sent two of his most trusted men up to the cave entrance to stand guard. He watched as Charles hurried to his tent to retrieve his phone. While Charles was busy doing that, Foster made his way to his own tent and retrieved a small communication device.
“Brett, this is Alan. Professor Wright found the cave. He’s already been inside, and he’s seen the writings and the paintings on the wall. He found the books as well. It won’t take him long to figure out some of us are still around if he doesn’t suspect already.”
“Don’t reveal yourself to him,” ordered Brett. “Continue to play along, as you have. I’ll meet with the Imperial Council to discuss our next move. We don’t want to do anything until we hear from Andrew.”
“As you wish,” replied Alan. “I’ll stay here and keep an eye on things.”
Alan ended the call and took in a deep breath. Things on Earth were about to get extremely interesting, and he would be right in the middle of it.
Chapter Seven
The Endeavor continued to the outskirts of the Solar System, reaching the beginning of the Kuiper Belt. Tensions were high in the ship, as they were far beyond any hope of possible rescue if anything went wrong. Andrew continued to use the array to scan the region of space around the Endeavor for signs of Sanctuary. He knew it had to be somewhere; he just couldn’t find it. It was possibly on the far side of the Solar System, and that was why his instruments were failing to locate it.
Kala sat at her console, watching Andrew. She was curious as to why he spent so much time at his console, monitoring his computer screens.
She had recently received a message from her father, and if what he said was true, much of Human history would have to be rewritten. It had also raised some serious questions about Andrew and his unusually advanced communications array. Several times when she had spoken to Andrew, she had the distinct feeling he was hiding something. She wondered if her father’s discovery had something to do with what Andrew was keeping secret.
“Still no luck in your search?” asked Kala.
Andrew looked startled and slowly turned to face Kala. “No, I believe we need to go out another few AUs and
then we should pick up some signals.”
“Signals from other civilizations?” mused Kala, looking at Rachael. “What do you think?”
“It’s what we came out here for. We still have several days of travel time ahead of us before we reach the region of space the scientists back on Earth felt we should be able to receive signals.”
“When we hear nothing, we can go home,” grumbled Professor Tower. He was in the Command Center, using one of the ship’s scanners to take some readings on some of the objects in the Kuiper Belt. “I’ll recommend the Endeavor be reconfigured to go to Jupiter. The moons of Jupiter offer a vast opportunity for new resources, plus the four larger moons can be colonized.”
“What if we pick up signals?” asked Kala. She knew for some reason Andrew avoided getting into arguments on this subject, as if he knew something everyone else didn’t. The mystery that surrounded Andrew was a magnet that drew Kala to him.
Professor Tower laughed. “It won’t happen. We’ve wasted our time coming out this far. I’ve already sent a message back to Earth, requesting that the Endeavor make a slow flyby of Jupiter on our way back.”
Captain Greer looked at the professor with a frown. “Any suggestions in changing the parameters of our mission should be run by me first, Professor Tower.”
The professor didn’t reply but left the Command Center, as if insulted.
“How did he ever get on board this ship?” asked Kala with a deep frown.
“Politics,” replied Captain Greer. “Numerous people in our government want to see us fail. If we detect any signals, it will have massive ramifications for our world. Many don’t want to see the changes it would cause.”
Kala didn’t reply. If what her father had told her was true, things would change anyway. Her eyes returned to Andrew, wondering if he knew what was in the excavation her father had found.
-
Andrew sat in his quarters, reading, when a hesitant knock came on his door. “Enter.”
The door opened, and Kala stood there. She wore standard ship clothing, but her blouse seemed a little tighter than normal, and one of the top buttons was undone, showing a little cleavage. Andrew let out a deep sigh. Kala had been coming on to him for weeks, and he found it harder every day to resist her charms. She was a good-looking woman, and she knew it.
“Hello, Andrew,” said Kala, coming in and shutting the door behind her. “Can we talk?”
“Sure, have a seat.” Andrew gestured to one of the two chairs in his quarters. He sat down in one and Kala in the other. “What can I do for you?”
Kala hesitated. Andrew could tell she was uncertain about what to say.
“I received a message from my father yesterday,” she began, looking strangely at Andrew.
Andrew felt a cold chill sweep over him. “Is this about his excavations on Cyprus?”
“Yes, he found a cave, and what’s inside is more than he had dreamed of. He says it will change Human history.”
Andrew forced out the words. “What did he find?”
Kala’s eyes narrowed. “Evidence of Humans from another world who came to Cyprus around one thousand years ago. He believes they have been manipulating Human history.”
Andrew remained silent. He needed to get a message off to Brett and let him know of this development, if he didn’t already. If word of such a discovery were to get out, it might cause an immediate response from the Druins. A response the Earth was not prepared for. “What do you believe?”
“I don’t know. My father sounds pretty certain.”
“If what your father says is true, what happened to those people?”
Kala looked directly at Andrew. “He believes they’re still among us. He also thinks there is a good chance one of them is on this mission.”
Andrew felt his breath catch in his throat. “Is that why you came to see me? Do you believe I’m one of these mysterious space people?”
“I don’t know,” admitted Kala, her gaze focused on Andrew. “Your array is far more advanced than it should be. I haven’t mentioned that to anyone else. I’ve watched you for weeks working with it. It’s as if you’re searching for something. Something you haven’t found, and it’s not messages from space.”
“What if I were one of these space people?” asked Andrew carefully. “What would you do?” Andrew suspected Kala had already guessed the truth about him and was only here to confirm it.
-
Kala closed her eyes and slowly opened them. “I don’t know. I suppose I would have to tell Captain Greer.”
“What if my mission involved the fate of the entire Solar System?”
Kala shivered. Was this an admission of who Andrew was? “If you had a reason for being on this ship, and if it was important, I would be willing to listen.” Kala could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She had developed feelings for Andrew since she had first met him on Earth during training. She had tried to keep those feelings to herself, but she still found herself strangely drawn to the man.
Andrew stood and stepped closer to Kala. “Give me two more days and then we’ll talk again. I’m not saying that you’re right, but at that time my array will prove other civilizations are out there. Once I’ve done that then I’ll tell you everything.”
Kala stood. She knew she would give Andrew those two days. “Very well, two days. And, if I’m not satisfied with your explanations, I’ll talk to the captain.” They stood very close together. Kala was extremely aware of his presence.
“We’ll talk to her together,” said Andrew, stepping forward and pulling Kala into his arms. His lips met hers in a gentle kiss.
Kala knew, at that moment, she would do anything she could to help Andrew. She pulled free and looked up into his eyes. “I better go before this gets out of hand.” Kala opened the door and fled down the corridor. She couldn’t believe she had let Andrew kiss her.
-
Andrew watched the door shut. He wondered if he had made a mistake. He had allowed Kala’s charms to get the best of him. Going to his locker, he removed what looked like a simple laptop. In actuality it was a hyperlight communicator, which he could use to contact Brett, who was on the Imperial Council on Earth. Brett needed to know about these latest developments involving Kala’s father.
-
Rachael saw Kala emerge from Andrew’s quarters and hurry down the corridor to vanish into her own room. Rachael wondered what was going on. She knew Kala was highly interested in Andrew, but Rachael was also certain that Andrew would not take advantage of the situation. She hoped she was right.
-
Two days later the Endeavor reached its planned destination in the Kuiper Belt. Everyone who could was in the Command Center, waiting for Andrew to turn on his communications array and to scan for alien communication signals. The ship had come to a stop and held its position a few thousand kilometers from a small field of icy remnants.
“We’re ready,” said Captain Greer, looking expectantly at Andrew.
Andrew took a deep breath. They were far enough out that, even if a Druin field prevented hyperlight communications from getting through to Earth, his array would now penetrate it. “Activating the array.”
Professor Tower laughed. “What a waste of time and money. Let’s get this over with so we can go home and do some real research.”
“Quiet, Professor,” said Kala, glaring at the older man. “Let’s see what happens.”
Almost instantly the communications screens lit up with tens of thousands of communication intercepts. “Confirmed communications from outside the Solar System,” said Andrew, watching the faces of the others.
“What! Impossible!” uttered Professor Tower, his face turning pale. “You must be reading something wrong. Your array must be picking up communication signals from Earth!”
Andrew reached forward and pressed an icon on one of the screens. Instantly the screen changed to show a view of an alien speaking. The alien looked like a cross between a praying mantis and a lizard.<
br />
“What trickery is this!” screamed Tower. “You’ve set this all up. That’s not real. It’s some video you’ve loaded on your computer!”
“No, he hasn’t,” said Rachael in a calm voice. “My instruments are showing the same thing. What the array is picking up is coming from outside the Solar System.”
-
Captain Greer took a deep breath. “Can you tell how many different civilizations we’re dealing with?”
This was a momentous event. They now knew they were not alone in the universe. The captain also knew it was her duty to gather as much information as possible about these communications. As soon as she was satisfied with what they were receiving, she would send a message back to the space station near the Moon. She could feel her heart racing as she realized the magnitude of this discovery.
-
Andrew nodded. “Just a moment. I’ll have to make some adjustments to the array. The computer system it’s connected to will analyze and give us a number as to how many different languages it’s detecting.”
The crew grew silent as they waited. Everyone knew this was a massive discovery and one that would drastically change how people thought of the Solar System but also how they thought about a lot of other related matters.
Andrew waited as the system analyzed the different messages. He also watched another screen for any signs of Druin interference. There was no doubt in his mind now. If a Druin presence was in the Kuiper Belt, they were now aware of the Endeavor’s presence. The computer finished its analysis, and a number appeared on the screen. “The computer confirmed 22,716 different languages.”
Professor Tower glared at the computer and then turned around and left the Command Center.
“So, what now?” asked Professor Adrian Marcus. “We’ve just proven the galaxy is full of life, most of it probably much more advanced than we are.”
Professor Crayton smiled. “We stay here and record as much of this as possible. We try to determine where some of these messages are coming from. Once we return to Earth, the linguists can try to decipher these messages and see what languages are the most common. We have a lot of work ahead of us for the next few days or even weeks. The number of messages we’re receiving is far more than anyone expected. It appears our galaxy is heavily populated with intelligent species, and many of them are talking to one another.”
The Forgotten Empire: Banishment: Book One Page 9