by JB Penrose
Gail sifted through the stacks on her desk for a picture she found a few days ago. The caption identified Professor Peter Kerroon as the brother to Aurora astronaut Andrew Pierzon. That would explain his priority access, Gail reasoned. She recognized Ms. Bolton as advisor to the Young’s, so that made her friendship with a crewmember’s family not surprising, hence her priority access.
“If you don’t understand the unknown, learn what you can about the well known.” She always thought that was a good place to start. It didn’t connect Frank in any way, but her instinct told her there was something interesting hidden in the information.
She booted up a separate database to cross-reference names of the conference staff employees against the entry-logs of PROBE-Tech. Frank's contact had to be someone at the conference. The president-elect may have been killed in the bombing, but the target was PROBE-Tech’s founder, and Gail had overheard Frank plan it.
The thought of her boss returning quickened her heart, but there was no way she could stop now. Fortunately it didn’t take long before she found the anomaly; her heart pounded. A language translator had BGA clearance, Jude Iscar. The clearance wasn’t high enough to cause suspicion, but it was unusual for the BGA to provide a linguist; staffing for that position fell under the responsibility of the Conference Security Force. This assignment was authorized by Frank Morrow.
Gail double-checked the BGA personnel records. She could only access names by departments, but she searched without success to find anyone named Jude Iscar. She’d found her connection!
Boldly, Gail copied the file and stuffed the flash drive in her purse. If only she knew whom to trust with the information.
* * *
Wednesday
December 28, 2044
The PROBE-Tech jet landed on a private strip at the New Jerusalem airport, well away from the bustle at the main terminal. The brightness and warmth was a nice change from Christmas on the East Coast. Descending the rollaway stairs Rachel tried unsuccessfully to recall what day it was. So much had happened since she’d met Peter.
The DayStar overhead shined on as her beacon; she was reminded of the Christmas star leading the wise men to the birth of Jesus. Rachel certainly didn’t feel wise and her future was definitely uncertain.
“Are you all right?” He wrapped his arm around her waist and went down the ramp with her.
“A reality check.”
“Don’t worry about reality,” he said. “It doesn’t apply to us.”
Peter led her across the airfield toward an unmarked hangar. Halfway there, a small, dark-skinned man with a pointed nose and a big smile greeted them. His gray hair was pulled back in a long ponytail. She knew the design of his native robes represented his distinction as the family leader. Rachel liked him the minute she looked into his wizened hazel eyes.
“Lehur! It’s good to see you.” Peter embraced him in tradition and familiarity. “I was sure you’d be much too busy to meet a couple of weary travelers who only pop in for a change of planes. This is Miss Bolton.”
Lehur smiled broadly at Rachel. “I insisted on handling your requests myself. I hope my taste suits you.” He handed Peter a large woven satchel.
“It always has, my friend.” Peter took the bag. “We didn’t have much time for packing, and we can’t stay long.”
“I understand, Professor. I hope I have anticipated all of your needs. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll see that your hoverjet is ready at the hangar when you are.”
“We’ll be there soon.” Peter returned the slight bow.
Lehur left them at a small building attached to the side of a large hangar. Peter’s palmscan accessed the door marked Private and they stepped into the office. Banks of computers filled wall and floor space. The milky consoles were locked together and reminded her of the Aurora’s construction. It was a maze just to get across the room. Rachel whistled. “Whose luxury office space is this?”
“You know Andrew, he has to be connected everywhere he goes. There’s a larger office inside the hangar but I wanted a little more privacy.” Peter rummaged through the bag. “I hope you don’t mind; I sent ahead for some clothes. Some things can’t be properly replicated, and I thought maybe you’d be more comfortable traveling in this.” He pulled a desert robe and a pair of soft leather boots from the bag. Wearing robes was still the best attire for the desert heat, and improved greatly by newer fabric technology. “You can freshen up in there if you want.”
She kissed him before she slipped behind the door. “Thanks. I’ll only be a minute.”
The window in the lavatory was high, but the dim light filled the room and a slow moving fan dispersed the dry heat. A china bowl and pitcher of water were on the counter and she splashed her face, thankful for the moment to collect her thoughts.
“Mother?” She practiced the word outloud. She’d often dreamt of this reunion, but the reality of what was happening still didn’t register. “Father?”
When Rachel emerged refreshed, Peter was already changed into a robe banded in shades of blue stripes. Her own garment was a solid blue and the silver cross hung around her neck against the background like a star in the night sky. There was no weight to the cross or chain, and to Rachel it was a magical shield; it was something of her mothers.
“The boots fit well.” She pirouetted to show them off.
Peter smiled approvingly. “I kind of liked the slippers.”
Rachel dropped them with her clothes on the desk next to his valise. Her fingers traced the path on the map the computer screen showed and she stopped over the marking Immortal Valley.
The valley’s discovery had come in recent years, uncovered by a freakish windstorm that revealed the 2000-year-old city buried beneath the sand outside of Bethlehem. She had often wondered, along with the rest of the world, at the significance of the city’s unveiling.
Peter carried his valise, and Rachel carried their old clothes in the straw bag. A hoverjet was parked under the open rooftop of the adjoining hangar and Lehur waited for them at the boarding ladder.
“You have always been a source of Light for me.” Peter shook his hand warmly. “Thank you, again.”
“I see the Light in you now,” Lehur replied with a slight bow. “May your journey be without need.”
“You have seen to every one of them,” Peter assured him. “I will never forget the kindness you have given me all of these years.”
“You cannot praise me for what you have taught me. It is I who am thankful. Now go on,” Lehur urged them up the steps. “None of you will leave if all of your goodbyes are this long. Good journey to you, Lady. I see that you, too, carry the Light. I am blessed to have been in Its Radiance.”
“Thank you,” Rachel bowed, uncertain how to respond.
“And you were right about the shade of blue,” he said to Peter with a wink.
She looked at Lehur, who only smiled, and then to Peter, who laughed at her puzzled look.
“It’s your color,” Peter explained. “I only made the suggestion.”
Lehur laughed and waved them up the steps. He waited until they passed through the hatch before rolling away the platform. Peter gave a final salute and closed the door to the hovercraft.
She relaxed, and basked in the warmth and security under the tinted bubble. It was a two-seated craft; a helicopter without a tail, she always thought of them. The bubble cockpit provided a 360-degree view and the size allowed it to maneuver quickly into small places.
Power from the engines built momentum and Peter held the throttle until the signal on the console flashed ready. It was a smooth liftoff. Rachel never tired of the thrill, and closed her eyes to feel the rush of gravity giving way to the jet force.
“Clear sailing all the way,” he told her.
“It’s curious how PROBE-Tech always has unhindered access where ever they go. It was my understanding that any aircraft, but especially hoverjets, were restricted from flying anywhere near the Immortal Valley.”
�
��I carry a certain, uh, ambassadorial status,” Peter smiled and shrugged. “And even if I didn’t, it probably wouldn’t matter. You could say we have angels looking out for us. Nothing has ever happened to any of us. And I mean nothing. We never get sick, never get hurt, and never have an accident.”
Rachel was nodding. “I know what you mean.”
“It’s not always a good thing to be divinely protected. What happened at the conference is a typical example. John and Andrew were at the oasis school when a sandstorm rolled in and slowed their return. Nathan and Li’Ana were the innocent victims.” Peter shook his head. “There have been plenty of cases where one of us would have preferred to take-the-bullet, so to speak. John has certainly had his angel working overtime.”
“John’s risk taking was always an inspiration to Nathan.”
“Look where it got him.”
“It got this conference going and I know that’s what mattered to Nathan.” Rachel chewed her lip. “And what mattered to Nathan, mattered to Li’Ana. She was the best friend I’d had in lifetimes. I’m going to miss her.”
“I never got used to the parting in relationships. I guess that’s why I took up something as solitary as archeology. And then, when John actually started bringing the launch together there seemed no need for deep friendships.”
“I always wondered if John was familiar to me, or if I had only seen him in the press so many times.”
“He was always the media darling. It was just another way for him to tempt fate. And for all that has been written about him, ideas of in-depth investigations were somehow washed away from anyone’s mind. No one has ever questioned who, what, we are, no one except Frank Morrow. In two thousand years he’s the only person who has actually crossed our path. That’s why Andrew is suspicious of him. He’s got uncanny timing, and too much information – from somewhere.”
“It won’t matter in another twelve hours, or so.”
“Don’t think about the launch. We’ll deal with that when it happens. Right now you just need to talk to your parents.”
“It’s so strange that you know so much about them while I know so little.”
“What is strange to me,” he reached for her hand, “is to know so much about you as a child and so little of you as a woman. All I do know - is how much I love you.”
“Oh, Peter, I love you. I do! This is all so – unbelievable! I’m back where it all began.”
“Do you fly? Would you like to take the controls?”
“No, thanks. I love to fly, though it’s been a long time since I’ve handled a hoverjet.”
“So you are – were, Amelia Erhart?” Peter shook his head when she laughed.
“That was so strange. I saw the resemblance and still didn’t make the connection.”
“Just as your lives were protected, I enjoyed a similar ambiguity. But you keep the controls,” she assured him. “Besides, you’re the one who knows where we’re going.” Rachel sat back in her seat and looked out the glass. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been here. I think I’d just like to look around.”
Peter encouraged. “What do you remember now?”
“I’m remembering as we go along, more or less. But there are always things that seem familiar. Deja vu, everywhere.” She laughed.
“I can’t believe how the neighborhood has grown.” He smiled. “I remember when we were the first pyramid on the block.”
“How did that happen? You’re bound to have drawn some attention building a monument around a spaceship.”
“More Divine protection. The night we crashed, Jesus instructed us to hide our arrival. James engineered the project. We salvaged a lot of gear from the ship and it was easy enough to make the bricks. No one approached our camp while we were building, and when the structure was complete we gathered our things and walked until we found civilization.
“Immediately, we were taken in and provided for. There had been a sandstorm for a moon’s cycle and we walked out of it untouched. We didn’t know it was happening, but when we turned around to look there was a wall of sand circling fiercely from horizon to horizon. Later, when John went back to check, the Orygin had been completely buried.”
“So the sandstorm that uncovered the Immortal Valley wasn’t a freak of nature, then.”
“No. Actually, it’s been uncovered and covered several times. Whenever John needed something from the ship it was always going to happen. He began to feel like Ali Babba.”
“Where is Mother’s school? Isn’t it close to here?” Rachel asked.
“Close; North. The location was revealed to James in a dream, an oasis in the desert. You were born there. I would give a better location except that’s it’s close to nothing. As far as could be seen, there is nothing but sand and dunes. We lived centuries without ever being discovered. When you were kidnapped Mags was devastated. It had been almost 700 earth years since your birth, but you were like a child of ten.
“We searched for you for a very long time. After a while, John took things into his own hands and decided to build his own ride home. The Aurora gave us something to look forward to. Even Mag’Dalyn began to anticipate the return home, although she never entertained a thought that something tragic had happened to you. She has always believed you would appear before the launch – and here you are.”
The seif dunes crept along the desert horizon, mapping interesting designs across the ever-moving mountains of sand.
“Do you see that?” Peter pointed to a dark spot on the horizon. The afternoon sun hung over the desert city walls of the Immortal Valley in the distance. “We’re almost there.”
“What if they’re not?”
“Trust me, Mags is there. She hasn’t been late in two thousand years.”
The Valley was under them now and her excitement was building. As far as she could see there were stone buildings and walls. Different heights, different faces carved in the stone pillars; the passage of time was documented by their story across the sandy hills.
“It always takes my breath away.” Peter slowed the craft to a stop.
A light on the panel began to flash as the radar centered on its target. Their pyramid, by comparison to the elaborate structures built around it, was a simple triangle. The peak of the pyramid below them slid aside to reveal an opening large enough for the hoverjet. It was unnatural to see something so ancient move with the sophistication of modern technology.
Peter easily maneuvered the craft into the opening. As soon as the panel above them closed off the outside, lights inside the pyramid activated. Peter shut down the hovercraft engines.
“I’m ready.” Her hands fumbled at the harness and she had to let Peter’s fingers snap the latch. Only with his assistance could she force herself to stand, and her knees buckled again when the hatch to the hovercraft opened from the outside.
“Hello?”
Rachel froze at the sound of her mother’s voice.
“Roko?” Her mother stopped on the landing.
“Mother.” Rachel’s whisper was so soft only Peter heard.
“Oh my darling, it is you. You’re here. It’s you!”
“Yes mother, it’s me.”
The two women fell together in tears and laughter. “Oh, Roko, I’ve waited so long for your return. I can’t believe it,” her mother said over and over. “I love you so much.”
I love you were the treasured words Rachel had always longed to hear her mother say. The voice was immediately familiar, and Rachel felt as though she’d always known her mother’s touch. Their sobs quieted and she forced her eyes open. Centuries hadn’t faded Rachel’s memories. Just as she recalled from her dreams, Rachel recognized the jade color of her mother’s eyes, her strong jawline and the wide smile. It was as though the past erased itself, and Rachel tried to relax. The joy in her heart was more than she had ever known and Rachel was sure it would burst from excitement.
James peeled her from her mother’s embrace with a slight tug and she fell easily into her fa
ther’s arms. It was just as she’d always remembered; his short beard still tickled her neck.
“Let me look at you.” He pushed back the dark hair from Rachel’s face and lifted her chin. “We never stopped looking for you. You must believe that.” He hugged her tightly. “We were always looking for you.”
Mag’Dalyn lifted the silver cross her daughter wore around her neck. “This was mine, did you know?”
Rachel nodded. “It was my gift from the Christmas party. Teddy seemed to pick the perfect gift for everyone.”
“He has a special talent for that. I recognized it as soon as he turned up at the school.”
“There are no coincidences,” her father said. “I guess you’ve learned that?”
“I understand a lot more than before, but it’s all happened so fast. Peter, well, he’s the one that put it all together.”
“So Roko is the Rachel that Andrew told us had you so captivated?” James asked.
Rachel blushed and Peter slipped his arm around her. “I couldn’t hide my feelings from my own brother.”
“Now I believe in miracles,” Dalyn said. “I have prayed everyday to find you. To find you happy and in love is more than I could dream of. And together with Peter? Well, it’s fitting that he’s the one.”
“I don’t think we can make age an issue in this group.” James laughed. “Come on,” he said. “We have a lot of catching up to do.”