Starship Genesis

by Linda M. Miller

  “When did it start producing them? Did it produce them down in South America?” I ask. I am now panicked at the thought of this happening in my offices at the University. Maybe I need to head back to my office.

  “Unknown,” Mark replies. “But it gets better. We started an analysis of the stone here in our labs and it just started manufacturing again. Right now it is developing birds. Analysis has revealed its outer material is unknown. It has no seams. However, we have found the surface of this device to be porous, or perforated with thousands of tiny holes.”

  “And you think this stone came from that crash site, don’t you?” I ask.

  “We haven’t connected the stone to the crash site yet. However, the stone came from somewhere in that area. The crash site still needs to be further assessed to see what’s up there.”

  “Mark, I think it’s time I showed you some of our discoveries from the dig. And it’s time I introduced you to my crew as well.”

  “Fair enough,” Mark says. “When can we meet?” I get up to leave and Mark escorts me to the front entrance.

  “How about I introduce you at our meeting tomorrow morning,” I answer. “You won’t be disappointed.”

  “Sounds interesting. What time should I be there?”

  “Our meeting is at 8:30 a.m. See you then.” We shake hands on it and I leave Sigmas wondering what I’ve really gotten myself and crew into. Time to call Ray for an early morning powwow.

  MATT’S CREW JOINS THE PARTY

  I arrive at the office an hour early the next morning. Ray arrives in time for coffee while I’m going through the files in my drawer on the Peruvian project.

  “Hey,” Ray calls as I’m pouring my second cup. “Whoa, Matt, your face looks a little cooked there.”

  “Kim threatened me to shave for the pics for our wedding announcements.”

  “Yeah, how did it go?”

  “They will definitely be Photo Shopped. Not to change the subject, Ray,” I reply. “I just want to alert you that we have a very important guest coming to our meeting this morning.”

  “A guest? Who?” Ray asks.

  “I have invited a Mr. Mark Valentine, from Sigmas Solutions. I believe you will find that he’s a very useful addition to our meeting today. I can’t go over everything right now because there isn’t enough time. Just get ready.”

  “Okayyyy.” Ray replies. “Anything I need to do?”

  “We’re going to show Mr. Valentine the stone, the gold plate, and the mummy.” Ray gives me that crazy look,

  “Are you sure about this?”

  “I’m very sure about this.” I respond. “In a few days, you’ll be thanking me.”

  Ray shakes his head and leaves to retrieve the items. He preps the mummy for exhibit as well.

  I organize my notes and contemplate on that stone activating in our offices. It does not serve our purposes to hold on to it.

  “Life,” I laugh. I think about that too. I haven’t taken the time to even contemplate what any of this could mean.

  “Crew’s all here.” Ray says, standing in the door. “And Mr. Valentine is in the lobby.”

  “Great!” I reply. “Let’s go to work!”

  Ray shakes his head again and gets more coffee. I meet Mark in the lobby.

  “Mark, please come in. We’re very informal here. Can I get you some coffee or anything to drink?”

  “Coffee is good,” he replies. Everyone starts heading into the conference room. It has a screen, projector and a television. I begin the meeting.

  “Everybody, this is Mr. Mark Valentine from Sigmas Solutions. Mr. Valentine helped us with raising the boat down south last week. And I’ve discovered his company’s project shares a common bond with ours in archeology. Coincidently, he too is working on a project down in Peru. We both thought we could exchange some ideas on what we’ve found.” I continue by pulling up slides, starting with the mummy.

  “The Incas in this community buried their mummies in large clay pottery, positioning them sitting up-right. They were sealed air-tight, until we opened them. And so they looked pretty well preserved. However, the air does compromise their preservation state; this is normal.” I change slides.

  “We found 10 mummies in all. Most of them were guards and servants. We found a king. And then we found this woman. Notice her hair color.”

  “Red. Darkened. But definitely Red,” Mark answers.

  “Exactly.” I say. “A Caucasian woman. And she was the only one of her kind. However, she was buried with these objects. Ray?”

  Ray puts the stone box on the table. Mark looks at the hieroglyphics on the box.

  “Interesting object to have in their possession. Nothing like this existed back then, right? Have you had the glyphs translated yet?”

  “You’ll find it very interesting, Mark. These glyphs go back to ancient Egypt around 2100 B.C. The name in the writing identifies a man of ancient legend in Egyptian history, named Imhotep.

  “‘Imhotep.’ Wasn’t he an Egyptian warrior or something?”

  “He was a healer,” I answer. “History talks about priests. But he was an architect, engineer, and a physician during the Third Dynasty to King Zoser.”

  “He was also a chancellor and a high priest to their sun god.” Ray adds, “This guy designed his own burial tomb, somewhere hidden in Memphis. The tomb is so well-hidden, no one has ever found it. It was thought to be hidden in Saqqara. We haven’t found the body of Imhotep yet. But this stone box is a significant lead.”

  “Who do you think the female is, then?” He asks.

  Ray added, “The woman was buried with this box in her arms.”

  “Open the box, Ray,” I ask. Ray opens the box and the stone radiates brilliant rainbow colors.

  “Well now...” Mark replies. “It looks like we definitely have a common ground here.” Everyone looks at each other in confusion.

  “What?” Asks Leesa. “You mean you’ve seen this type of stone before?”

  “I can only tell you a little of what I know right now. But I promise you will learn more soon.” Mark answers.

  I then add, “Mr. Valentine has asked for our assistance on his project. However, there will be some requirements from each of us before we can go forward. You will hear more of that later. But for now, from what I have learned, we are not going to want to keep this stone in our facilities because Mr. Valentine’s company has discovered some very unusual properties associated with the stone’s presence.”

  “What does it do,” Ray asks. “Does it turn everything to gold?” Everyone laughs.

  “Let’s just say it gets a little messy,” I tell them. “I think we should trust Mark on this one folks. But there’s more, Mark. Take a look at this.” I reach into the stone box and pull out the gold plate with the fine patterns inscribed upon it. Mark looks at me and back down at the plate,

  “Well, this is incredible. Look at the detail on this. No one from anywhere in Peruvian history would have this capability.” He looks it over and turns it upside down and around. Then he touches something, and very quickly a hologram appears of stars and constellations. Everyone in the room gasps.

  “We never got this far,” I tell Mark. “I would have to assume by the box and its contents that our female mummy is not of this earth.”

  “Looks like things are going to move a little faster than I had planned,” Mark states. “We’ll have to conclude this meeting at this time. But let’s plan on having everyone over to our offices tomorrow, Matt. I think 10:00 will be good. Bring all of this over when you come.”

  “Aliens?” Dewayne asks. “This just keeps getting better.”

  “Let’s hope it does,” Mark replies. “I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow. Congratulations on your fine work.”

  Mark turns to me and says, “Looks like I’ve got some unexpected prepping to do for tomorrow, Matt. I need to run ahead and get my people ready for company.”

  “Understood,” I tell him. “We’re going to keep the mumm
y. But we’ll bring the stone, plate and the box tomorrow. See you then.”

  The next day, our entire crew heads over in two vehicles to Sigmas Solutions. Everyone files into the lobby of the building. We all sign in at the receptionist desk and are taken to a conference room, where everyone waits one-by-one to meet with someone in Security. Each person goes in separately and returns.

  Mark Valentine shows up.

  “Everyone. Let’s get started. I’d like to welcome all of you to our offices. I think you are about to venture on a very memorable project and we look forward to working with you.”

  Mark continues. “Just as an introduction, each of you will be briefed on the basics of this project and how it came to be. But for now, you will only be told what you need to know on an as-needed basis. I say this because it will take us about a month to get the clearances you need for this project. But now that you’re somewhat prepped, I can tell you more.”

  Mark briefs them on the agent who found the stone on his mission down in Peru with the drug lords. He covers the plasma, amoebas, fish, and birds. He also shows them the hologram pictures he showed to me.

  “By now,” Mark tells them, “You may have guessed that our project has to do with more than just an archeological dig. We’ve had that stone in our offices for twenty ten before it started coughing things up. When it did that, we got a little more serious about where it came from. We did some searching and found some interesting satellite imagery. It’s taken about five years. But we finally found a crashed ship up in the mountains of Peru, near your dig. I can’t go into details about that ship as yet. You’ll need a higher level clearance before we get into that.”

  Mark continues, “We don’t know what activates the egg. It could be heat or moisture. But it does get out of control. There’s no way to turn it on or turn it off, as you can plainly see. “That’s about a wrap for today, everyone. At least that’s all I can share for now,” Mark states. “I expect your background checks back in about two weeks. And then we’ll go from there. Things should speed up for all of us. You’re all free to go now. Thanks for coming.”

  Ray approaches me, “You trust this guy, Matt?”

  “I do, Ray,” I answer. “I don’t think we would have a choice with each of our crews running into each other. We can and should work together. I think we’ll all benefit in the long run.”

  Ray nods. “I’m headed back with the crew to do some more carbon dating on stuff. What are your plans?”

  “They’ve asked me to stay for another meeting. I’ll see everyone tomorrow at the office,” I reply.

  “Right.” Ray says. “Looks like you’re having more fun than the rest of us.” He says that to make me feel bad and pats my shoulder.

  “Yeah, sorry for that.”

  I then proceed to join Mark’s next meeting. We head to a conference room filled with people this time, some in military uniform. Mark introduces me to everyone and then asks one of the uniformed personnel on the status of the bird.

  He replies, “The bird went up yesterday and has checked out healthy, we have a ‘GO!’ on its usage!”

  “Wonderful!” Mark replies. “How are the SAR algorithms, have they checked out yet?

  One man replies, “Sir, the SAR has been fully checked out and is operable to the required resolution that we need for the operation. Checks were made on a glacier fly over near Mt. McKinley earlier this morning. The pictures we received are outstanding!”

  “What about the mapping routine,” Mark asks?

  “Sir, we are already looking at possible routes suggested by the Bird. Two routes look promising. We have their GPS paths already plotted. However, Mount Huascaran is heavy with snow, and we won’t have an actual visual on the saddle’s surface and the actual glacier until late November. That will depend on the amount of snowfall. We have been able to view the entire mountain. Security is also reviewing wilderness areas through park maps to determine the best sites to plant observers, and other security measures.”

  “Very good. Screen on,” Mark requests.

  “Matt this is the area of your dig.” The dig is also snow laden. I’m looking at the large screen. Our dig is clearly marked.

  “The crash site is approximately 60 miles northwest on Mount Huascaran. Its altitude is 22,000 plus feet.”

  Mark continues, “Our current plans are to start moving equipment down to the Huantar site directly below the mountain, 60 miles south from your dig beginning in early November. We probably will use the surrounding area as a base camp. We’ll set up a camp to support approximately 25 people for an expedition up to the crash site.”

  “We’ll then travel by helicopter to as high as they’re able to take us, and make the remaining ten mile climb as a team. Then we’ll make a reconnaissance of the crash site and begin assessment of what we can haul out, how we can haul it, and then package it for removal from the country. This meeting is concluded for now. Thanks everyone.”

  Mark and I remain to discuss items further.

  “Matt, we’ll need your requirements for your crew. Everything you normally plan on. But additionally, you need to also plan for mountain climbing now and high altitudes. It’s not Mount Everest. But we’re talking about glaciers that do not melt in the summer. Your people are going to require some training for this trip.”

  I acknowledge.

  “I know that six months sounds far away. But this is going to require advanced planning on the part of everyone so that it’s done quickly and without a hitch.”

  Mark continues, “We also know you’re getting married in September and we want to see you keep those plans. Government logistics require planning well in advance.”

  “Understood,” I reply. “When do I get to see this lab of ‘living organisms’ and such you’ve been telling me about?”

  “How about tomorrow?”

  “Sounds good.”

  Mark adds, “I’ll meet you over at your office at 9:00 a.m. and we’ll leave from there.”

  “Great,” I tell him. “I look forward to it.” “Prepare to be amazed,” Mark answers.

  THE LAB

  As promised, Mark picks me up and drives me to a place located in Bowie, not too far from the university.

  He gives me a further background on the lab.

  “This is one of the foremost health research centers in the world. Its affiliations are tightly intertwined with government. Being tied to the government, it has its own agendas set by the same. Here, open heart cardiac techniques were researched and conducted.”

  Mark checks his badge at the front desk and I’m issued a temporary badge for the visit.

  A little further inside are two more guards, and they’re armed military personnel.

  Mark escorts me down the hallway. I notice the corridors are divided by air tight doors. I can smell the medicinal atmosphere of the labs and it makes me feel uncomfortable in this atmosphere. We finally stop at a doorway entrance to one of the labs and enter the first door where I’m given a white coat, a medical hat, gloves and lab glasses.

  The next door reveals an air-locked compartment. After a few moments I feel a mist all around me. I try to cover my face.

  “I hate this part,” Mark tells me. “It’s bad enough it’s humid in here. But you have to be sterilized or something like that,” He says.

  Several researchers are examining fish, insects, plant life, etc. Everything seems normal to me. The fish are just common catfish, trout, bass, etc.

  Another gentleman joins us. He walks up to me and apologizes for the treatment.

  Mark introduces me. “Matt, this is Dr. Cliff Gray. Dr. Gray, this is Dr. Matthew Vaughan; the archeologist I’ve been telling you about.”

  “Dr. Gray, it’s a pleasure.” We shake hands. “I don’t understand. Everything in here looks normal. I’ve seen all of these creatures before.”

  “Matt, everything you see here was generated by the stone Mark has told you about.” I find the whole picture startling. The three of us walk
around the lab together.

  Gray adds, “We put the stone through extensive examination, but its secrets are still locked inside. What causes it to radiate is also unknown. The material it is made from is unknown. Analysis has revealed a series of patterns of extremely fine microscopic indentations that vary in size and orientation. The size of the pin-type holes are measured in nanometers.”

  “Nanometers, you say? That’s very advanced stuff,” I reply.