Earth Before Man

by Allan E Petersen

  “Any luck Pia?”

  Pia did not like the idea of precariously balancing on a stepladder and so prepared to struggle back down to the much safer floor. Instinctively, Maria reached out a helping hand but it was rudely refused.

  “I can do it. I’m not a baby.”

  Rather than get into a long and obviously not appreciated explanation about courtesy and the meaning of a helping hand, Maria let it go. A thought run through her mind about the lecture Belle would have gotten if she had been that discourteous. However, Maria was also quick to understand the tremendous disadvantage that Pia was working under. She had the mind of a genius trapped in a child’s body and struggling to be accepted as an adult. Recognizing the confliction, Maria pulled her hand away and regretfully said,

  “Sorry, I was just trying to be helpful.”

  An adult would have recognized and understood the apology but Pia, in her state did not. Maria was also quick to get the subject back on track, repeating,

  “Any luck?”

  Pia, not taking well to failure had the answer written in her regretful expression. Like a guilty child caught with a forbidden cookie in her hand, she looked down at her shoes and shook her head.

  “No, I’m sorry Professor. Every time I get an indication of some it is either degraded beyond recovery or quit simply just turns to dust when smearing it.”

  She then swept her hand through the cave and added,

  “Everything around here is just too old.”

  Although greatly disappointed, Maria put on a happy face and said,

  “Well I sort of suspected that. I was hoping for the best anyway.”

  As if it was her fault, Pia offered a weak and certainly needless apology.

  “I’m sorry.”

  Recognizing the unwarranted guilt more reminiscent of a child, plus burdened with raging conflict between adulthood and adolescence, Maria wanted to hug her. However, like her helping hand, she though it would only be construed as an adult pacifying a child. Maria only knew one thing for sure, when getting home Belle was going to get an extra-long hug. More of a consolatory statement she said,

  “No matter. It was a good try. Try your best to get something that I can computer cultivate, anything, even one or two fragmented strands, okay?”

  Pia nodded and returned to her work.

  While looking around the cave wondering if there was any way she could help the specialists, it came to her that it would be best to leave them to their expertize. It was clear by Santo’s pacing and furtively eyeing the D-wing that he did not want to stick around. With the experts seemingly rapt in their investigations, she saw no reason to stay. She turned around to tell Pia that they were leaving and that is when she saw Henrik sitting on the edge of the cot looking as if he had seen a ghost. He looked ashen and frightened.

  She did not know a lot about Henrik Anderson. She gave him the job of Flight Controller based on his dad’s recommendation. It was more of a favor. His mother was one of the many scientists killed during the attack on the island and his father was a contributing scientist from Norway. Although she had once learned a harsh lesson on hiring by nepotism alone, Henrik aced the training qualifications and soon fit well into the House of the Nazarene fold.

  She was going to let it go as just an expression of fatigue until he raised forlorn eyes and looked up at her. Something was wrong. She could feel it. Santo could wait. She was drawn to him like a mother to a crying child. Still sitting on the edge of the cot, eyes glued to the approaching Maria, he watched as she sat beside him. She asked,

  “What’s the matter Henrik, have I worked you too hard?”

  He only shook his head prompting her to continue the questioning.

  “Is something wrong?”

  He nodded.

  Not knowing what to say or do, she looked over to Santo standing impatiently by the D-wing and indicated for her to hurry up. She was about to do just that when Henrik whispered in a most forlorn tone,

  “I have always been a strange person. My dad told that if I wanted this job I should not mention that to you.”

  It was a natural question to ask,

  “What do you mean, ‘strange’?”

  He looked up at her and confessed something he had kept a secret for most of his life.

  “When I was very young, seven years old, I fell off my bike and hit my head. Apparently, it was pretty bad. They told me I was unconscious for five days. When I woke up, I was okay and simply returned to school. Soon after, I started getting headaches, migraines actually. That’s when it all started. Because I didn’t know how to handle it, my friends called me crazy and the doctors thought I was mentally ill.

  From his medical records, she knew that he had suffered a long bout of migraines but according to medical affidavits, they had mysterious stopped when he was in his late teens. She was not hearing anything new. She thought she was going to hear that the headaches had returned. Torn between wanting to comfort him and Santo pressuring her to get a move on, she patted his hand and said,

  “I’m sorry the migraines have returned. Maybe our medical lab can help with that. For now, just lie down and rest for a while.”

  She was practically to her feet when he softly said,

  “No, you don’t understand, it was just one of the things I was supposed to lie about. My migraines never went away. Because of them, I can see what I just saw a minute ago.”

  She looked once more at Santo and a frown indicated for him to be patient. She settled back down on the cot and asked,

  “What was the other thing you were supposed to lie about on your medical record?”

  After a deep breath he confessed what had been kept a secret his entire adult like.

  “I can see ghosts.”

  Maria learned a long time ago not to judge people by what was considered normal convention. She understood that if she were ever to sit in front of a psychiatrist and confess all the strange and wonderful things she had seen while in the service of the House of the Nazarene, within seconds she would find herself in a straightjacket and padded cell. Now, somebody confessing that they can see ghosts, at least to her was not that much of a shook. Well, perhaps only a little bit.

  What was important to Maria was why he would suddenly confess to such a thing right now. It was a careful question.

  “Tell me why that this is important right now. Do you see ghosts in this cave?”

  He nodded.

  She understood this was not the first time a ‘ghost’ was mentioned lately. Santo talked about seeing one on the security monitor. Black spirits were reported to be walking on the field above them. It was for this reason that she tenderly said,

  “Don’t be embarrassed. When I hired you, remember I told you to freely question anything you think might be wrong.”

  He nodded and she added,

  “This is one of those times. Tell me what you saw.”

  Because her attention was drawn to Henrik, she did not notice Santo approach and listen. Henrik looked over to a seemingly bare wall of the cave, over where there was no equipment and timidly said,

  “The first time I was here I thought I saw a ghost walk out from that wall and over to the control panel Jessika was working on. It did something, pressed a button or something but Jessika was standing right there and didn’t notice. For some reason a strand of hair fell over her eye and she swiped it away.”

  Maria raised her eyes to the ceiling and he continued,

  “It then walked back to the wall and disappeared into it.”

  Santo asked,

  “Was it a dark ghost, like a shadow of a man walking about?”

  “Yes, but a very tall man.”

  Santo sat on the other side of Henrik and while trying not to sound demanding, said,

  “Tell me what you saw.”

  “Okay. I was sleeping here on this cot when I heard you guys talking. I saw you enter the cave and heard you yell at Dr. Marls something about obeying orders but thought nothing of
it.”

  He then looked to Maria and added,

  “The way he treats people here, he deserves to be yelled at.”

  Not wanting to get off track, Maria said,

  “Okay, and then what?”

  “Well, something happened in there to cause a very bright flash of light that lit up this whole place. That’s what drew my attention to the entrance of where you were. Right after that exploding light, I saw a ghost run out of the cave, come almost in front of me and disappear into that wall.”

  He pointed to it.

  Both looked at the wall. Santo, like Maria also had too many strange and wonderful things happen to him and was not deterred by a ghost story. Like Maria, he took Henrik’s experience seriously. Santo then looked at Maria and asked, “You scanned that wall for void areas right?”

  Looking at the wall, she only nodded and he continued,

  “So, what’s behind there?”

  Still mystified, she said,

  “Nothing. However, the scan encountered a lot of interference. Our laboratory in Australia reported that they couldn’t guarantee the accuracy of the reading.”

  He stood up and walked over to the wall. After touching the stone, confirming that it was solid, he turned back to Maria and asked,

  “Where is the equipment that reads trace heat variances?”

  Understanding what he was getting at, she jumped up and said,

  “The Spectral Analyzer that reads infra-red fusion variances. Great idea.”

  Sure, that is what he meant to say. She ran to the near table, snatched it up, and quickly returned to Santo with it.

  She scanned the wall but was not pleased with the reading. It should either have detected small temperature variances in the stone, indicating a hollow behind it or nothing at all indicating continuity in stone temperature, meaning a solid mass. According to this instrument, there was nothing there except solid stone. Santo was ready to dismiss Henrik’s story and concede that there was nothing there, but Maria did not get her reputation for tenacity by giving up on the first try.

  She turned to Henrik and knowing that his propensity for scientific terminology matched Santo’s, nothing at all, she pointed and said,

  “Get me that little blue instrument right beside you there.”

  Obeying, he reached over and came to her with the little blue instrument. After waving it around, looking for energy anomalies and reading the instrument, she was able to report,

  “Okay, there is something back there. It is not solid stone. Whatever it is, energy emissions are present.”

  Santo asked,

  “Can you identify the energy?”

  She again studied the read-out and dejectedly confessed,

  “No, and that in itself adds to the mystery. This instrument can identify all known energies.”

  Santo caught on to the term, ‘all known energies.’

  Santo then asked,

  “How did Jessika get the other cavern open?”

  Maria replied,

  “It was through some sort of action at the computer board.”

  Santo added,

  “Yes, but she didn’t know how it happened, right?”

  She told Santo about the near death experience of the dimensional warp and how Pia had saved the day. He got the jest of the story and said,

  “Okay, that’s too dangerous to try again, I get it. However, there is still one old fashioned way to get in there.”

  She followed him over to their D-wing where he reached in and activated the communication com. He then looked to Maria and asked something he was supposed to have known. It was a rule everybody had to obey.

  “I forgot Han Lee’s communication code.”

  The look he got could have melted an ice cube at fifty yards but considering the circumstances, she let it go for now and told him. He managed to tear away from the glare and punch in the code. Han Lee responded,

  “Yes Captain?”

  “I need to blast through thick stone but with little or no collateral consequence to the frailty of the surrounding area. Do you still have some of that isolated detonation material you used on the obelisk in the yard?”

  “Yes Captain, in fact lots of it.”

  “Good, grab as much as you can and bring it here right away.”

  Santo did not like the long pause. As per military protocol, Han Lee was supposed to endorse confirmation of the order but instead said nothing. Just as Santo was going to demand confirmation, a weak reply came back.”

  “I’m sorry Captain but there is only one D-wing here and both Kirk and Jessika have reserved it for a trip to the cave.”

  As Santo cast a silent exasperated blaspheme to the air, Maria stepped forward with a solution.

  “Mister Lee, You don’t have to come. Just get in touch with Kirk and tell him to bring what the Captain has asked for. Tell him that it’s an order from me.”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  Santo winked and said,

  “I like it when you get all bossy like that.”

  Chapter 45

  After a morning of harassment by the Inspector and his men, Professor Asker had returned to the village of Alakati for something to eat. After lunch, he went to his small rented room and prepared for another late afternoon in the field. He had already packed his knapsack with the essentials, water, a sandwich purchased from the lady of the house as well as pencil and paper. Pleased that all was set, he laced up his hiking boots, slung the knapsack over his shoulder and was ready for an afternoon of exploration.

  The second he walked out into the street and turned east, the stifling afternoon air became polluted with the acrid smoke of a Russian cigarette. Adjusting the brim of his hat, he pretended he did not notice and innocently strolled down the street. A few buildings later, he waved at Yesin and another soldier sitting at an outside table pretending to enjoy a cup of Turkish coffee. He understood that as soon as he was out of sight the Inspector and Yesin would once again follow him. However, because the pretense of going to the field of the dark spirits and looking for what his permits had allowed, searching for lost civilizations, he was confident that what he was really going to look for would be well concealed. It did not bother him that, like this morning, he was going to be watched.

  There was jauntiness in the Professor’s step this afternoon. From as far back as Inspector Buruk was watching him, even he noticed the invigorated step. According to his suspicion all along, Inspector Buruk thought the Professor had discovered something of historical importance to ancient Turkey and like most archeologists was trying to keep it a secret. He feared that the Professor would steal the artifact and sell it to a foreign museum. Inspector Buruk never trusted Professor Asker. Judging by the perky steps, he was sure this would be the day he finally discovered what treasure Professor Asker was hiding from him.

  Now at the field, the Professor stopped and surveyed the surrounding area with a different eye. Clearly, he could not explore the cliff facing the lake. It was too steep and dangerous to be hiding an ancient settlement. Moreover, the eyes on him would be suspicious of him looking for an ancient village site there.

  The rocky south side of the field lazily slanted down to another field and it was there he would begin his search. With a small pickaxe in hand, he leisurely strolled down the slope occasionally kicking at rocks and turning them over. From the top of the field, through binoculars, the Inspector saw what he thought was suspicious behavior even for this orthodox archeologist. Yesin was beside him, removed his binoculars and asked,

  “What is he doing?”

  It was a bland reply.

  “I don’t know. He is an archeologist. Maybe he is just doing what he is supposed to be doing, looking for relics from lost cities.”

  In fact the Professor’s eyes were everywhere except looking for lost civilizations.

  Chapter 46

  Waiting for the special explosives to arrive, Santo and Maria wandered back into the cave where the remaining three Anannaki crafts
were located. Dr. Marls was nowhere in sight and so once again she called out his name. The reply came from the farthest away craft, the one with the open canopy. The Doctor had constructed a makeshift ladder and platform needed to get up and look down into the cockpit. Seeing that it was safe enough they both dared cautious steps to the top platform and looked down into the cockpit. There was ample evidence afoot that if this really was an Anannaki craft, they were at least seven feet tall. Sitting in the lone pilot seat, the Doctor liked like a child sitting in a car playing with the steering wheel and touching unfamiliar instruments. He looked up at them and reported,

  “There is no doubt that all three are war craft. They are all armed with missiles of goodness knows what destructive power. Although I can’t get into the other two, I should guess they also only have one seat which is indicative of jet fighters.”

  Though Santo concurred, there was just one thing that bothered him about the configuration of the cockpit. He said,

  “It’s awfully simplistic. When I look into the cockpit of an advanced jet fighter I see a lot of instruments and controls.”

  The Doctor, in his usual gruff manner said,

  “That’s because you have a simple mind and are thinking in terms of our limited technology.”