Earth Before Man

by Allan E Petersen

  “Even back then, they did not use anything as antiquated as batteries. The power pack in these things can last thousands of years.”

  It was then that Santo decided to keep his expertise to matters of security and leave matters of computers to those more knowledgeable. Zak continued,

  “If you are finished playing with it, I suggest that you hand it over to our scientists so they can take it apart and understand that mysterious perpetual power.”

  He again pushed it aside and looked to Maria. It was not a question.

  “I presume we are finished now.”

  As determined as he was to get back to his tablets, Maria was equally determined to find out more about it. She too was not polite when demanding,

  “No, you are not finished yet. If the power source is practically perpetual then why will it not turn on?”

  He looked at the computer and again only needed a moment to figure it out. After a deep exhaustive breath that did not hide annoyance he said,

  “Because it is voice activated. You need to push down on the start button and speak the language of the ancient Sky People to get it to work. Good luck finding a Sky Person.”

  Both knew exactly where and left Zak to his obsession.

  Chapter 35

  Holding the computer tight, it was practically a full run back to the mansion. Both knew how to get a Sky Person’s voice signature to activate the computer. They ran directly back to her laboratory and the far corner where a flat piece of crystal was located. With a touch, she actuated the device and again, in a perfect 3D configuration, the inside of Quastima and Liana’s living quarters came into view. Seeing nobody in the room, Maria said loudly,

  “Liana, where are you?”

  They heard Liana yell from another room.

  “I’m coming dear. Give me a minute.”

  Liana had not intended for them to hear what she uttered next.

  “I swear, there is no patience in these humans. Don’t they know how old I am?”

  Both heard the criticism and when she finally came into view, Santo kidded,

  “What were you up to old woman? Were you molesting poor Quastima again?”

  Although Liana was a Sky Person having different preferences for physical desires than what she considered the frailties of humans, even at this great age she still remembered those pleasures. Unfortunately, memories were all they were. It was however enough to embarrass her and turn cheeks red. Seeing her discomfort, Santo got an elbow in the ribs and a stern look from Maria indicting for him to stop teasing her. Liana, seeing that he was scolded for what she understood was only a tease, said,

  “You human men and your constant desire for female pleasures never fail to amuse me.”

  Wanting to get away from that subject, Maria got right to the purpose of the call.

  “Liana, I need to talk to Quastima about an ancient computer. Is he nearby?”

  “No, I’m sorry dear, he has wandered off to the pyramid out back. He has managed to clear a room in the middle of that darn thing and call it something human men refer to as a ‘man cave’. Why a male would want to isolate himself in a cave is a great mystery to me.”

  Maria snickered and said,

  “Yes well, you can add that to the many other things women do not understand about men.”

  Before the attack on his gender could build to a full assault, Santo quickly halted the invasion.

  “Maybe you can help us instead.”

  He explained what Quastima had said about being able to communicate with the Great Grays in the past. At the mention of the Grays, Liana sneered. It was easy to see that even after so many generations, animosity between the species still prevailed. Ignoring the disgust, he continued to relate how he came into possession of an old communication computer but was unable to activate it, that it needed a Sky Person’s voice signature.

  Liana nodded her understanding of the dilemma but Maria could see by her expression that good news was not on the horizon. Draped in gloom, Liana said,

  “I’m so sorry dear but that is not possible from here and especially from me. It is true that what we once referred to as the ‘babble box’ needs to be voice activated, it has to come from a male voice only. It was a strategy by the Sky People who sat on the council to pacify the male dominated church leaders at that time.”

  Santo shrugged at the seemingly unimportant setback and said,

  “Then it looks like Quastima might be of some value after all. We can wait while you pull him out of that so-called man cave.”

  Liana shook her head and in sad defeat said,

  “No, it is not that simple. I understand the reason for your call is to register a male voice activating the babble box but attempting to activate it through transmitted frequencies alters the signature. The computer will recognize the difference and will not respond to it.”

  Although Maria thought it was a dead end, Santo did not. The solution seemed simple.

  “Then we shall bring the computer to him.”

  Liana nodded her acceptance of the solution saying,

  “Come anytime you wish.”

  Santo accepted the invitation and added,

  “We will be there is a couple of hours.”

  After disconnecting, Santo looked at Maria and asked,

  “Are you ready to go right now?”

  She would love to visit with Liana and Quastima and perhaps even bring Belle but circumstance stood in the way. Sadly, she said,

  “No Santo. My crew in the cave over in Turkey has discovered something that demands my attention. Apparently it is important that I join them right away. That was the message I got when you came into my laboratory with this thing. Best you go alone and give extra hugs to both for me.”

  Not giving up on the attack regarding the ‘man cave’ issue, Santo lightheartedly said,

  “Hugs? Is that a woman thing?”

  As she walked away, she fired back a salvo of her own.

  “Careful. It might be the last one you get.”

  While Maria went upstairs to change, Santo went directly to the hangar with the intention of signing out the same D-wing he had returned in with what was now apparently going to be referred to as, the ‘babble box’. With it tucked under his arm, he entered the hangar and was surprised to see that there was only one D-wing available. Knowing that Maria was going to show up soon for her journey to the cave in Turkey, Santo acted fast. He wanted to get away before she discovered she would have to wait for another D-wing to return. Worse, he feared she would pull rank, take this one and he would be the one who had to wait.

  While quickly doing his mandatory pre-trip, he noticed that Henrik seemed strangely preoccupied, constantly glancing at the far door. When Santo was finished with the irritating pre-trip, Henrik handed Santo a clipboard and asked him to fill out a D-wing performance survey, something he had never done before. Henrik again looked to the door and it was then Santo knew that a stall was on and why. Glaring at Henrik, he tossed the uncompleted performance survey back at him and quickly jumped into the D-wing.

  Despite the flight controller’s attempt to stall, Santo slammed the canopy shut and practically laughed at his successful escape. It was too late. The large sliding doors slowly slid open to reveal a victorious Maria standing in the opening. The triumph of victory to bitter defeat, took only a quick second. With a sneer, he looked down at Henrik who was obviously her accomplice in this heinous crime. Henrik quickly snapped his eyes to the clipboard pretending to fill out the performance questionnaire.

  From the pilot seat and looking through the front of the canopy, Santo saw her sternly marching straight at him. Panic to escape set in. With adept hands on the control, like a skier on a slalom course, he zipped the D-wing around her and made a dash for the open hangar door. Once outside, he sniggered at his success and shot straight up to the stratosphere. Undeterred, as if she was prepared for a quick escape, she calmly activated her communicator and said,

  “Get that thing ba
ck here right now Buster or I’ll revoke your D-wing license.”

  As she stared out the hangar door, the D-wing slowly lowered into view. Defeated, Santo waited for her to walk out to him. Instead, a stern finger stabbed the ground at her feet. A slow D-wing entered the hangar and stopped in front of her. She then motioned for him to open the canopy. After sheepishly obeying, he tried to project a voice of authority. It did not work.

  “You can’t revoke my D-wing permit. I’m the Head of Security.”

  She rebutted,

  “And I’m your boss. I can do anything I want and I want a ride to Turkey.”

  Santo looked over his shoulder to Henrik who was practically running back to his office with clipboard in hand. He was wise to retreat.

  Maria climbed into the passenger seat, looked to the loser of the conflict, smirked, and said,

  “Let’s compromise. Where should we go first?”

  Defeated, Santo dejectedly said,

  “I guess I’m giving you a ride to the cave first.”

  Generally not one to revel in victory, somehow this one seemed extra sweet and she boasted,

  “Damn right you are.”

  Santo closed the canopy and exited the hangar with his passenger.

  Santo reset the new GPS coordinates and the D-wing changed direction now flying over the Black Sea. Camouflaged and engulfed in the radar Avoidance Program they soon entered Turkish territory. It was only then that Santo stopped stewing about being turned into a shuttle service. When she saw him lower his frown a bit, she told him how Kirk had scared the kids off by pretending to be a dark spirit. As she laughed at the image of the kids running away, Santo too let a little chuckle escape.

  Now hovering over the lake, because she knew where the secret underwater entrance was, Santo handed the controls over to her. She aimed the D-wing straight down and like an elephant performing a belly flop from a diving board, a great burst of water shot skyward. Despite the massive impact on the outside, there was no hint of the intrusive impact inside. Underwater, she turned on the searchlights and looked for the cave entrance. Once locating it, she followed the tunnel upward and a moment later burst out and into the recessed overflow pool. A gentle hand on controls landed it softly at Kirk’s feet. When the canopy opened, she jumped out, turned to Santo and said,

  “Thank you for the ride Mister Chauffeur. I’ll tip you later.”

  Kirk was surprised to see the canopy close and Santo prepare the D-wing for an exit. He turned to Maria and asked,

  “Doesn’t he want to see what we discovered?”

  “No, he is off on an errand in the Amazon Jungle.”

  Not even Kirk knew about the last of the Sky People on this planet hiding in the Jungle or even Liana’s strange relationship to Maria. She turned to Kirk and eagerly asked,

  “So, what is this great discovery you want me to see?”

  Pointing to the other cave and walking toward it with her in tow, he said,

  “You are not going to believe this.”

  Chapter 36

  In the field now referred to by the villagers as ‘the Field of black spirits’, ten Turkish soldiers are walking in a search pattern looking for something on the ground. With a stick in hand, one soldier brushed aside a branch of the prickly and poisonous artificial shrub. Because Kirk had bolted the trip lever shut from underneath, all the soldier saw was what was to be expected, dirt and stones. It was clear by their sluggish attitude that they were not excited to be searching a field already searched numerous other times. Glass? Why was Inspector Buruk ordering them to look for glass? Some of the men in the search pattern were the ones who had the misfortune of coming across what they saw the other night as two of the black spirits in this very field. They were not excited to come across them again.

  Above the field, near the knoll where the three children were scared witless by Kirk’s antics, stood Inspector Buruk. He was preoccupied attempting to light up another cigarette. It was a frustrating task but not because of the gusting wind, rather because the Russian lighter produced only sparks and irritation. Although muttering in Turkish, there was no doubt he had unkind words for the Russian lighter. Tossing it far away, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the more reliable Turkish made paper matches.

  It had been a long couple of days for the Inspector, boring in fact. He hated surveillance work. He suspected that the Professor had discovered something of interest in the field and was not reporting it. He was determined valuable artifacts pertaining to the history of his great country would stay in local museums. Although his men had examined the field and come up with nothing, he understood that none of them had the eye of an archeologist and could easily have missed something. The suspicious term, ‘vitrified rock’ in the email kept bouncing around in his head. He could not help but think there was a code in there somewhere.

  By that suspicion, the Inspector ordered Adem, one of his few reliable soldiers to keep an eye on the Professor. The order was that no matter where he goes, to follow at a distance and note whatever he does. From where Adem was watching, he saw in the distance that the Professor was sitting on a rock and paying a great deal of attention, not to the field and the searchers but rather to the lake far below. In the Inspector’s suspicious mind, he thought that it was only a ploy to get his attention off the field and down to the lake.

  The Inspector was wrong. The Professor wanted the team to search the field of dark spirits and not pay attention to something as mundane as the lake. Occasionally, when he knew Adem was looking at him, the Professor would deliberately raise the binoculars to his eyes, turn and scan the far mountain range. Determined to discover what greatly interested him, Adem would do the same, scanning the far range wondering what he saw or at least was looking for. All day it was a cat and mouse game of distraction, eyes off the lake and into the distant landscape. As cunning as the Professor was, he was not trained in espionage or subtle surveillance. There was no doubt in Adem’s mind that the Professor had paid particular attention to the lake.

  It suddenly became clear to Adem that the Professor had spotted something of great interest. The Professor bolted to his feet and again focused on the lake. Curious at what he saw, Adem turned and too focused on the lake. What he saw greatly confused him. At first, there was nothing to see, just a calm lake with a few gentle ripples. Then, as if something big from the sky had dropped into the lake, a great flume of water shot upward. Slow waves reached the far shore and then all was again calm.

  After witnessing the mystery, Adem swung the binoculars back to the Professor. He saw him looking at his watch, reach into his pocket, and bring out a small note pad. Notes were made and the pad returned to his pocket. Although seemingly a mundane thing to witness, Adem was ordered to report all suspicious activity to the Inspector. He too noted the time of the strange act in his notebook and then walked over to Buruk to report what he saw.

  Obviously, the Inspector was not enjoying his cigarette. He inhaled, frowned and repeated that action many times. It was clear testimony to an addiction rather than the relaxing pleasure of the smoke. It was also a Russian cigarette. When Adem marched up to him and saluted, Buruk flicked the cigarette into the dirt and seemed pleased to stomp on it. Adem said,

  “You said to report all suspicious actions sir. I saw him make a note.”

  As he lit another cigarette, he saw nothing suspicious about the report and wondered why Adem did. He asked,

  “A note of what?”

  “Of nothing sir. He just stared into the distance like he always does and suddenly something excited him and he jotted it down.”

  On the surface there was nothing to get suspicious about. Except for one thing. Inspector Buruk had been in this business long enough to understand that ‘nothing’ was often something. He commanded,

  “Send one of your men up there and bring him to me.”

  An unlucky soldier was ordered to the task. It took a while for him to cross the field, march up to the far hill and face the
Professor. Even from this distance, Buruk saw the two small figures argue. It was clear that the Professor did not want to come. It was not until the soldier unstrapped the rifle from his shoulder and aimed it at him that there was reluctant compliance. Soon, the Professor was presented to Buruk with a rifle pointed at his back.

  Now face to face, it was overly clear that the Professor was mad. Before words of displeasure could spew forth, Buruk got the first word in.

  “Pardon the rudeness Professor. I hope you don’t mind.”

  Professor Asker was not as polite. He snarled through clenched teeth,

  “I do mind. What is the meaning of this? I was simply sitting on a rock enjoying the view. You have no right to arrest me.”

  Not impressed with the fuming objection, Buruk kept his demure tone and said,

  “You are not under arrest. I simply want to ask you a few questions.”

  There was then a slight rise in his tone when adding,

  “And yes, as an inspector for the Turkish Divine Antiquities Council, I have every right to question you, especially when I have suspicion of foul play on your part.”

  Surprised, but not showing it, Professor Asker prepared to demand what that reason was when he felt the rifle barrel poke him in the back. He immediately settled down and calmly asked,