Babel Found

by Matthew James

“Ready?”

  She nodded at Kane, blinking out of the memories. “As ready as I can be.”

  “Look…” he said, holding out her rifle. “Same as before. Point and click. If they have a gun and it’s pointed at you—”

  “Don’t hesitate,” she finished, nodding again. She then released the magazine, double-checked it and quickly slammed it home.

  “For Hank and Ben,” Kane said.

  “For everyone,” Nicole corrected.

  “True enough,” he said smiling. “Just like old times, huh?”

  She nodded. “Unfortunately, yes… Just like old times.”

  “Sixty seconds!” the voice boomed again, getting them moving towards the rear of the plane.

  The large entry ramp began to open and fold down, allowing them a glimpse of the nighttime sky. It was a beautiful, yet foreboding sight and the increased hum of the engines the same.

  It was like when she fell asleep after getting her latest MRI. The monotonous drone of the machine had lulled her into a forty-minute nap. She could have probably done the same here now, especially with how tired she was. Hank called the ability to sleep anywhere a gift and with his lack of it since Algeria, she began to agree with him.

  I’m coming…

  “Ten seconds!”

  A hand squeezed Nicole’s shoulder as she inched forward, closer to the ramp’s edge. The night sky wasn’t looking so pretty anymore. She’d parachuted a couple of times in years past, but never without an instructor, and never at night into a potential battleground. And a battleground was a possible scenario for them all.

  Let’s hope not.

  “Zero! Go, go, go!”

  Without thinking, Nicole took two large strides and leapt into nothingness. The only sound she could hear outside of her helmeted head was the buffeting of wind as she returned to Earth. She could fight a lot of things in life, but gravity wasn’t one of them. As she fell, she could barely make out the large figure to her left. By the man’s size, she assumed it was Kane. He was doing everything possible to stay with her. A few seconds later the person came closer into view. She relaxed when saw the familiar battle suit.

  Definitely him.

  They continued to fall for what felt like minutes but was something far less than that. Free-falling at terminal velocity for long periods of time could do that.

  She looked at the altimeter on her wrist and watched as it neared the targeted height. When she reached it, she and each of the other jumpers pulled on their paracords. Each was immediately yanked back, their descent stalled by their pluming chutes. As she was instructed, Nicole quickly found the steering handles—also known as brakes—hanging above her and began to guide herself in line with the others.

  Through her night-vision, she could see a large black mass rising up to meet her. She knew what it was from their photo recon. If she held true, Nicole was about to land atop the temple ruins. While normally she’d have actually preferred to land on the high ground, this was actually the last place she wanted to be right now. Not only would she stick out, but the rest of the team, Kane included, were to land on the western side. She wasn’t exactly ready to be on her own yet.

  So instead, she pulled on one of the brakes and turned left, heading to the western edge of the ancient city’s ruins, seeing three other figures in front of her. At least she wasn’t alone.

  Touching down wasn’t as easy as she thought it would be. She stayed loose like Kane had said, but still jammed her ankle, twisting it as she rolled to a stop. A pounding of boots made its way over to her and when she looked up she saw the same large body from before.

  “You better not be laughing.”

  She heard a muffled response and figured it was him clamping his jittering jaw shut. She shook her head. Even in the face of danger the man had time to laugh it up. These Special Forces guys really were a special bunch.

  “Crazy bastards,” she mumbled to herself.

  Kane helped her up as she detached the chute and harness. As the rig fell to the ground, she swiftly pulled her assault rifle and scanned the darkened desert around them. It was eerily quiet and it made Nicole’s skin crawl.

  “What are we looking for exactly?” one of the men asked in her head. They were all tuned to the same frequency, making it easy to stay in touch via tactical throat mic. All they’d have to do was whisper, simple as that. Kane and she also had their NVS glasses on too so they could also communicate with whatever members of their team were still in the network. They’d see as they did.

  “We’re looking for a big ass hole,” Kane said, getting a snicker out of a few of the men. “Seriously, though. Hank was swallowed by a big hole in the ground—perfectly round. It just appeared beneath him like—”

  Nicole watched as another hole suddenly opened up beneath her friend. Kane disappeared inside of it just as Hank did, sending her into an equally horrified panic. She screamed his name and dove to the edge of the hole, gripping its rim as she froze, waiting for it to close. But it didn’t. Instead, she shakily leaned over and looked down seeing Kane laying on the ground below. He was about ten feet beneath her, cussing up a storm.

  “Found it,” he announced, sitting up and rubbing his shoulder.

  One after the other, starting with Nicole, the entire team carefully jumped down and fanned out, securing the corridor they now found themselves in. Then, just like before, it closed, sealing them in tight. It didn’t take long for them to realize that entering the obvious trap wasn’t a good idea. The sounds of scurrying nails and shuffling feet echoed off the stone walls of the tunnel.

  Nicole pointed her KRISS assault rifle into the darkness ahead. “We’re not alone.”

  33

  The Kur

  Enki laughed. Releasing the mitutu—the dead ones­­--would be an interesting ordeal for those just entering his domain. He could sense them landing above and thought it a nice gift to give to those who still worshiped him as their god. Providing an entry took a mere thought.

  Soon… He thought, looking up. Soon everyone will know my name again. Not just these cursed souls here. The entire world will bow to my name, or…they will perish.

  Like when he arrived and became the god of the simpletons surrounding the great rivers of Mesopotamia. Everything they knew. Everything they would learn. It was all based on his knowledge. He reveled in the fact that everything this planet had from that day forward was because of his influence.

  Finally, he thought as he made his way back to the Citadel, after 5,000 years of waiting… Finally, I will be able to reveal myself to this planet and take my place.

  He knew the Citadel also gave him another option. If the world didn’t accept him as their one true god, it would burn from the inside out.

  Like those before…

  While 5,000 years would seem like a literal eternity to most, for Enki it was but a blip on his lifespan’s radar—a notch on his existence’s ruler. Impatience had most definitely taken over, but it was nothing he hadn’t dealt with before. He could still work from the shadows like he did with Thoth and countless others.

  It started here in Eridu, spreading to the Canaanites which would eventually become the land of Israel and its surrounding area. Enki’s power also swayed those in parts of this region, including the Hittites and the Hurrians.

  While his name, indeed, meant “Lord of the Earth” on this world, it was misconstrued by the local people millennia ago. En was, in fact, lord. Ki, however, did not properly translate to Earth like the people of the time inscribed. Ki actually meant Earths—plural.

  I am the Lord of Worlds…

  He again laughed at their absurd motives for constructing the tower. It was supposedly a beacon to God above, but what they failed to understand is that the tower was actually a shrine to the god from above. There was no metaphor needed. It was the accurate truth behind the massive tower’s erection.

  They believed only what their minds could grasp.

  Mankind was not ready for his arrival. They wo
uld never fully understand what he was. It actually made him angry thinking of how easy it would have been to emerge then. The humans would have cowered in fear and bowed at his feet. All he’d have to do was stand there and bask in their bewilderment. They would have professed him a living god and made him their worldly king without so much as a fight.

  My REAL influence would have taken root shortly after and not just my concepts. I would have been able to call upon those that fled An’tala. Those that carried a small portion of my own genome.

  Enki was a warrior by nature and he loved conflict. The early settlers used to war in the name of God, believing themselves to be in the right. Modern man would do the same too, but have their own underlying wants and needs mixed in.

  Like the Crusades.

  Some of Pope Urban II’s military might was a just cause, but some of the men under his rule became pirates, pillaging and murdering. They stole from and then destroyed countless villages and cities as they passed, breaking a vow given to their leaders not to partake in such activities. They even went as far as sacking Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade. This act all but made the infusion of Christianity—their ultimate goal—all but impossible.

  Enki remembered the mass hysteria of religious extremists in Salem, Massachusetts too. The supernatural fear of Satan ran so rampant in the 1600’s that the most paranoid of men began executing those that showed any signs of witchcraft. Any behavior out of the ordinary was deemed that of evil.

  Simple minded… Another representation of what fear of the unknown could do to the minds of men.

  His prodigious cheekbones raised in an attempted smile. Now the world was at odds over other things, but all having started with him. Singlehandedly, he had brought mankind to war against itself over the superstitious concepts of right and wrong, fighting in the name of God at times.

  They should be doing it in the name of Enki, The Lord of Worlds.

  His shoulders sagged as he thought of those who fought against his will. It was the other side of his influence over the Earth. Not all of those that believed these things were fooled by his smoke-and-mirrors. Some broke free of this power and became the heroes of humanity.

  Like Thoth.

  Enki first encountered resistance when a simple shepherd boy named David, defeated the giant Philistine from Gath, Goliath. He rose up and slew the massive bear of a man with a simple sling and stone. Mankind wasn’t as feeble as Enki had first thought.

  Later came similar men, including William Wallace and Leonidas, King of Sparta. Each defied an enemy in their own way, inspiring even more men to do the same.

  Even others became mankind’s gold standard of excellence. Jesus Christ, Moses, and Buddha, they all influenced many men over the millennia. Some had extraordinary abilities that not even Enki could dispute. They preached peace and civility, combining it with love and understanding.

  They still influence men now, he thought, sneering. He’d have to undo it all once Boyd arrived in the Citadel. He would erase all that man had built and start anew. Eridu would be the world’s greatest beacon to himself—to God.

  He continued forward, barely clearing the ten-foot ceilings. If he’d grown any taller after his…awakening…he would have had to stoop down.

  It was the only thing in his long life that he couldn’t recall. It was a necessary event, though. The first of many. He needed a human host in order to connect their species, meshing his mind with that of a man. He was actually impressed when he first connected to the collective that could be the hive mind of humanity.

  All they’d have to do is unlock the pieces of their minds.

  It’s how he spoke to his followers and Thoth before them. Once they allowed him access to their minds, he could unlock what was missing in order for them to use them properly. They had originally been taught their abilities by their father, but Enki truly gave them the gift of controlling it to the fullest.

  Boyd will be next.

  The human’s power was most definitely impressive. Based on how he just defeated Susanoo and before that Nannot and Coaxoch, Enki believed that Boyd may be his strongest competition yet. What makes the man so intriguing is his selflessness. Even as Enki made his way back to meet him, Boyd did the same, knowingly marching to his death. Enki could feel Boyd’s will pushing on the earth around them. It was this feeling of hope that Enki needed to erase before it set root.

  Boyd cannot be allowed to believe he has a chance.

  A scream enveloped Enki’s mind as he leaned on the wall nearest to him. It wasn’t from anywhere close by, but that of one of his mitutu. They’d apparently met conflict in the tunnels above. This one died, struck in the chest by something small, but effective.

  He laughed again.

  They’d also found their first real meal in centuries.

  34

  The Kur

  “Fire!” Kane yelled, opening up into the first wave of whatever the hell was down there. All he knew was that if it wasn’t Hank, you shoot it. And these weren’t his friends. He didn’t know what the hell they were actually.

  He put two rounds in the chest of the closest one and watched it fall dead. They were kind of human looking but looked almost zombie-like in appearance.

  Sure as hell don’t move like zombies.

  Some ran on all fours like primates, others ran like Olympic sprinters. He unloaded into one as it scurried across the right-hand wall. Some others did that too.

  What Kane did know was they were obviously some sort of security measure. That was plain to see. But how did the master know they were here? It didn’t matter regardless. The answer to that riddle could wait. They were here and that was that. Now, they just needed to survive and push forward.

  More clicking and popping erupted around him as the group continued firing off round after round of whispered gunfire. It was a standard setup for Special Forces teams like this. It was also a blessing considering they were in the tight confines of the stone corridors. If their weapons weren’t rigged with silencers, they’d all be deaf.

  Silencers…stupid movies. There wasn’t any such thing. You could only suppress the sound of gunfire. You couldn’t completely silence it.

  He yelled a command to stop after the last body hit the floor, standing from his crouched position as he did. At least a dozen bodies covered a stretch of stone in front of them, but something about it made no sense.

  “No blood,” one of the men said.

  “Nope,” Kane added. “None at all.”

  “What are they?” Nicole asked, stepping up next to him.

  He shook his head, peering further down the tunnel. “Don’t know and don’t care. The history stuff can wait. We have a job to do.”

  He didn’t mean to be harsh with Nicole, but he knew she’d agree. Archaeology officially took a backseat to what they were doing now. There weren’t history majors here. This group of ten, Nicole included, was a lethal killing machine until further notice.

  “Kill them all,” Kane said, stepping forward.

  The corridor was ten-by-ten, making it easy to move side-by-side. He and Nicole were up front with another on Nicole’s left, weapons forward and ready to go again if needed. Kane knew they’d be needed. That was just too damn easy.

  Then again, he thought, they didn’t have this kind of firepower back in the day.

  Unfortunately for Kane, he also knew how people thought back then, seeing some of it firsthand in Algeria and later in Mexico, and Florida. These people didn’t like to fight fair. They would use whatever means they could.

  Which could literally be anything.

  “Where are we going?” the man next to Nicole asked. His concerned tone was evident. “There are tunnels everywhere.”

  Kane felt the same way. They could easily be lost down here forever. On the other hand, they needed to have a set path first in order to actually become lost. They had neither. Right now they were in a hellish limbo. No direction. No set goal.

  “Worry about that late
r,” Kane replied. “Right now just keep moving and keep your eyes peeled for anything that might be a door.”

  They moved further down the corridor as quietly as possible. More movement echoed off the stone around them, but nothing came for them. With the dizzying amount of side tunnels and the unknown pathways, the enemy could be only a few feet away and they wouldn’t be able to tell.

  “What’s that?” said one of the rearmost soldiers.

  Or they could be right behind us.

  “Damnit, Kane,” he said. “I think there’s another group coming up fast—right on our six.”

  “Prepare to engage,” Kane said, still facing forward. It could still be a trap and they needed to keep their butts guarded.

  “Roger that.”

  They got into position, three men kneeling, three men standing. Six of the best men, using six of the best weapons. Once they were ready, everything went silent. The underground atmosphere gave it a stillness that could drive a man insane over time. It’s amazing what something as simple as the quiet-calm could do to someone’s mentality.

  “Davey,” Kane whispered, never looking back, “You stay with us and guard our new rears. I don’t want to get one of these things sneaking up our butts.

  “Got it,” Davey replied, swinging his rifle back around.

  “Contact,” someone said, “coming in hot.”

  Kane chanced his first look, immediately wishing he hadn’t. The stone corridor was alive with these things. There were more heads and limbs—more than he could count. Every single one of them looked to be emaciated and vying for position at the front of the pack, glowing green in his night vision.

  “Shit,” another man said.

  Kane waited another breath and then gave the order. All six men let loose with controlled bursts until their mags ran dry. Each one of them was replaced by another soldier with a fresh one. Dozens of rounds were sent flying into the wall of incoming bodies, but when one was killed—like how the soldiers replaced their own with another—the mitutu also replaced their own.