Worlds Without End: The Mission (Book 1)

by Shaun F. Messick

  **********

  Two hours later, Professor Jaskead Tomwon sat with Skip in the underground base mess hall. The professor sipped his steaming cup of tea. He swallowed and leaned his head back, obviously enjoying the sensation as the hot tea crept down his throat. Clearing his throat, he looked across the table at the young man who would lead the research expedition at the temple near Talead. He spoke in an accent. It reminded Skip of a German accent back on Earth. "So, Colonel ? that is what the general told me to call you."

  "Please, Professor, call me 'Skip.' And, don't think of me as your superior. We are equals since you have more knowledge about the ancient tribes of this planet," said Skip, looking at the old man more closely.

  The professor looked to be in his early sixties. His hair was gray and shoulder length, and for his age, he still had a full head of hair. The hair was in a mangled mess, as was his beard.

  The professor was still dressed in his slave uniform, the standard slave uniform of the Gnols. Professor Tomwon was not a big man. In fact, when he and Skip first met, Skip was astonished at how short the man was. Compared to Skip's 5'11" frame, the professor seemed to be just barely over five feet tall.

  "Okay, Skip," said the professor. "And, please, call me Jaskead; if you are not going to be so formal, then neither shall I. Now, let us talk business. My daughter shall join us shortly. She is showering. As you can imagine, being in a slave camp for almost five years does not do well for a person's hygiene."

  Skip smiled at the old man. When he met Jaskead, he instantly liked him. He had brown eyes that were warm and inviting. "I can imagine," he said. "But before we discuss the pyramid near Talead, why don't we get to know one another a little more."

  "Yes, my young friend. That sounds like a great idea. If we are going to work together, then we must get to know each other a little better. Why don't you tell me about yourself first? I am very curious about the planet from which you come."

  Skip commenced to tell Jaskead about himself. He told him about his childhood in Springfield, Illinois. He also told him about his various career adventures while he attended the University of Notre Dame. Jaskead was so interested in learning about Skip, his experiences, and Earth that he continued to ask questions. Skip was so involved in answering almost all of Jaskead's questions that nearly half an hour went by.

  Jaskead was about to ask another question when a young woman with long, auburn hair walked up to the table where they were sitting. Jaskead stood and embraced the woman, who had to bend down to hug the professor. Skip figured the woman to be around 5'6" tall.

  Skip stood when he realized he wasn't minding his manners. His mother had always taught him to stand when a woman entered the room.

  "Oh, I am sorry, Skip," Jaskead said. "This is my daughter ? Ariauna. Ariauna, this is Colonel Steven Hendricks, but he prefers to be called Skip."

  Ariauna extended her hand, as did Skip. The two shook hands.

  Ariauna spoke first. Her accent was barely noticeable. "I am pleased to meet you, Skip."

  "I am pleased to meet you too," Skip said. "And ? I look forward to us working together."

  The two let go of each other's hands, and Skip sat down. Ariauna walked around the table and joined her father. Skip watched her. She was an attractive woman. He noticed that she had bright green eyes to go along with her auburn hair. Her face was thin, and her body looked frail - the result of being in a slave camp for five years. She was not dressed in her slave uniform. She was now dressed in the standard military uniform of the Terrest army, the green camouflage fatigues, but without the beret. It was obvious that any civilian liberated from a slave camp was issued a military uniform because of the lack of civilian clothing. In fact, as Skip looked around the mess hall, the only way he could distinguish the difference between former slaves and military personal was the way they were dressed. Some former slaves had not yet received their uniforms.

  Ariauna sat down and smiled warmly at Skip. "So, what were you two handsome men talking about before I arrived? I hope I didn't miss much."

  Skip felt his face flush red. Rarely was he embarrassed around women.

  "Skip was just telling me about Earth and his experiences," Jaskead said. "Please, Skip, tell me more."

  Skip held up his hand. "No, that's enough about me. Why don't you two tell me about yourselves and more about your knowledge of the ancient religions of this planet."

  "Well, Ariauna and I are not from this region of the planet. We are from a city called Baleal in the Yuelzaiylams region of the planet. The region is in the northeastern hemisphere of Terrest, across the Unifoy Ocean. Baleal was the capital of the Province of Sinoy, one of twenty-two provinces that Juzs Lza Bmail established when he unified Terrest five hundred years ago."

  Ariauna cut in before her father could continue. "Yes, Baleal was a beautiful and warm city, not like Talead. It's too cold here for me."

  Jaskead looked at his daughter. "General Palmer tells me that there are beautiful summers in this region of the planet."

  Ariauna looked disappointed. "Well, I like Baleal better. It is warm year round."

  Jaskead laughed. "I am sure Skip would like to hear about the climatic difference of the planet, but I am sure he is more interested in the temple ruins."

  Skip smiled shyly at Ariauna. She smiled back.

  The professor continued. "When General Palmer and his comrades arrived on our planet, almost twenty-five years ago, the news spread around the globe quickly. As a matter of fact, Ariauna was one of the first to enroll in the first English-speaking school that was established in our city when she was just thirteen years old."

  "That would explain her flawless English," said Skip.

  "Yes, yes," Jaskead said. "The majority of our civilization has learned English quite well. It's really an easy language to learn."

  "That's funny. Back on Earth, people learning English say that it is one of the most difficult to learn."

  The professor shook his head. "Hmm. When the general and his friends began teaching English to us, it was so easy to learn. The reason for that is that the Tilicah language, which Juzs Lza Bmail established as the primary language of the Terrestrian civilization, contains the same alphabet, syntax, and sentence structure as English. The only difference is how the alphabet is used."

  Skip was intrigued. What were the odds that a tribal language millions and millions of miles away from Earth would have something in common with English? "What do you mean, how the alphabet is used?" he asked.

  "Rather than me explain, why don't I write it down for you, so you can see for yourself? Do you have any paper or a pen?"

  Skip shook his head. He hadn't seen paper or an ink pen for years, not since his civilization on Earth went paperless.

  "I will get some," said Ariauna as she stood and walked to the counter at the front of the mess hall. She spoke to the attendant at the counter and a few seconds later, she returned to the table with supplies in hand.

  Skip looked at the paper and pen. The paper wasn't the normal size of paper that he was used to. It looked thicker, a little larger, and not evenly cut. The paper reminded Skip of the kind of paper Earth's civilization used back in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, before the advent of paper factories. The pen was old fashioned as well.

  "Thank you," said Jaskead. "Oh, I am sorry, Ariauna. You forgot the ink."

  Skip watched as Ariauna went back to the counter and retrieved the ink that went with the pen.

  "Thank you. You will have to forgive me, Skip. We have not yet learned how to use those handheld ? uh ?" Jaskead turned and looked at his daughter. " ? What do you call those thinking machines again?"

  "Computers."

  "Ah yes, computers. We have yet to learn how to use those things."

  Skip held up his hand. "It's okay. It's been a while since I've seen pen and paper used, but there's no need to apologize."

  The professor didn't respond. He commenced to write. Skip could see that Jaskead was writing
the English alphabet down, and then he went on and wrote the same alphabet, but only out of order.

  Skip was a little confused at what Jaskead had written down, but when he handed him the paper, his eyes widened. Amazing, he thought. How is this possible that an alien civilization would have the same alphabet? Skip examined the English alphabet and compared it to the Tilicah alphabet. There were twenty-six letters in the Tilicah alphabet, the same number as English. All of the letters were the same. The only difference was the order:

  A = I N = S

  B = N O = U

  C = X P = V

  D = D Q = B

  E = A R = M

  F = G S = Y

  G = J T = L

  H = Z U = E

  I = O V = W

  J = F W = R

  K = C X = K

  L = T Y = H

  M = P Z = Q

  Skip finished examining the sheet of paper. He looked up at Ariauna and Jaskead with a smile on his face. "This is great," he said. But he was still curious about the hieroglyphs etched into the walls of the pyramid. "But how will this help us translate the hieroglyphs in the temple?"

  The professor leaned back in his chair, and a poised smile began to curve along his lips. "That is where I come in, my friend. Those ancient writings date back to the beginnings of recorded history on Terrest. The dialect may be different, but I am sure that I will be able to translate them into English."

  Skip nodded his head in agreement. "They are very similar to hieroglyphs used by a group of people called the Egyptians on Earth."

  Jaskead, intrigued, quickly leaned forward. "That is interesting indeed."

  "This is incredible," Skip said. "What are the odds that an alien civilization would have the same alphabet and similar pictograms as languages found on Earth?"

  "That's what we thought too," said Ariauna

  "Yes," said the professor. "Not only are the languages similar, but our months and seasons are as well."

  "I know. General Palmer mentioned that this planet three hundred sixty-five day rotation as well," Skip said.

  "Yes, and Terrest has the same rotation as Earth, twenty-four hours," the professor said.

  Skip's scientific mind was now becoming more and more intrigued. Was it merely coincidence that Terrest had almost the same characteristics as Earth, or was there a higher power at work here? The thought made Skip more and more curious about the temple ruins and the God that the ancient Tilicahs worshipped.

  Jaskead continued. "I am also sure you will find this interesting, my young friend."

  Skip gave the professor a curious look. "What?"

  "Our planet has the same months as yours. For example, January is pronounced Fiseimh in Tilicah."

  "This is very exciting, Jaskead," Skip said. "For thousands of years, the majority of Earth's civilization believed that they were the only intelligent civilization in the universe. And now, here I sit, speaking my native language to another human being who grew up on another planet in another solar system."

  The old man took another sip of his tea, which was cold by now, and swallowed. He smiled and said, "Yes, it is very intriguing. There is so much I would like to learn about Earth. But first, let us discuss the temple of which the general has put us in charge."

  "Yes, let's do," Skip said. "But before we get into details, I wanted to ask you why General Palmer is so interested in the temple when he has so much more to worry about? I hope he didn't give me this assignment just because of my interest in it."

  Jaskead chuckled and shook his head. "No, no, my young friend. On the contrary, General Palmer is very interested in the temple. He believes that it may have some answers about not only the Terrestrian civilization but the Gnol civilization as well."

  Skip was confused now. "I don't understand. What do you mean answers about the Gnol civilization? I thought your people hadn't had any contact with the Gnols until they attacked?"

  Jaskead was about to speak, but was interrupted by his daughter. "That's true. But when General Palmer learned more about the Gnols from Celeste ?" Ariauna paused and spoke again, "?You have met Celeste, haven't you?"

  Skip smiled at Ariauna. He liked her. Not only was she beautiful, but she was exceptionally intelligent as well; a trait Skip held in high regard. "Yes, we met. In fact, I think his son is quite taken with her."

  Ariauna's smile quickly turned into a frown.

  "What? Did I say something wrong?" Skip asked.

  Ariauna shook her head. "No. It's just that General Palmer's son should be careful."

  "Why? Don't you trust her?"

  "As a matter of fact, I don't."

  "Well, why not? Why would she volunteer sensitive information about the Gnols, if she really hasn't changed sides?"

  Ariauna shook her head. Skip could tell that she genuinely didn't want to talk about it.

  "Please, Skip, forgive my daughter," Jaskead interjected. "She is very sensitive when it comes to the Gnols, especially when she sees Celeste among us."

  Skip saw a tear trickle down from Ariauna's eye. She stood up. Instinctively, Skip started to stand up as well, but Jaskead reached across the table and grabbed his arm. "Let her be. She needs time to herself."

  Skip felt guilty. What did he do? Did he offend her in some way? He wanted to go after her as he watched her walk out of the mess hall.

  Jaskead, seeing the concern on Skip's face, spoke again. "It is not you, my young friend. Ariauna has been through a lot."

  Skip turned his attention from Ariauna and looked at Jaskead. "I can understand. Five years in a slave camp would do that to a person."

  "That is only part of the pain she feels." Jaskead took a deep breath and leaned on the table with his fingers intertwined in front of him. "You see, when the Gnols attacked, Ariauna - who was twenty-one at the time - her mother and I were on an archeological dig about two hundred miles outside of our home city of Baleal. We were uncovering the ruins of an ancient tribe called the Bahirsh. After our dig, we returned to Baleal to find it destroyed."

  Jaskead bowed his head. Skip could tell he was becoming emotional by the sound of his voice. "It was a horrible sight. There were thousands of bodies everywhere; men, women, children, and babies. We had no idea what had happened."

  "What did you do? Where did you go?" asked Skip.

  "We knew that Talead had a powerful army. We assumed that maybe Talead had been spared. So, we found a group of refugees, and we managed to make our way across the Unifoy Ocean to this continent. We were lucky when we arrived. Not far from the beach on which we landed, there was a small base of about twenty-five Terrestrian soldiers who had escaped the attacks.

  "The leader of the group made contact with General Palmer. The general, however, advised that we stay put because it was too dangerous to travel. He said that the attackers had eyes everywhere.

  "Well, we did as General Palmer ordered. We stayed put. We were stuck in that jungle base for ten years. Every time the leader of the group contacted the general, he received the same orders, to stay put until a rescue party could be organized."

  "Wow, you must have felt like you had been forgotten?"

  "Yes, it certainly felt like that. However, I communicated with General Palmer myself. He said that he had heard of me from my teaching expertise at the University of Baleal. After I spoke with him, he assured me that he was doing everything in his power to organize a rescue party, and he wanted me to research the temple ruins outside of Talead."

  "Unfortunately, the Gnols discovered the base and attacked." Jaskead's voice suddenly became shaky. He rubbed both eyes with his left index finger and thumb.

  Skip could see that the old man had grown emotional. "Jaskead, you don't have to continue if you don't want to."

  The old man held up his right han
d and shook his head. "No, no, it is all right. Thinking about the attack just brings back horrible memories. You see ? my wife, Arial, was killed in the attack - right in front of Ariauna. She still has nightmares about the ordeal."

  Skip's heart went out to Ariauna. "Oh, I am so sorry, Jaskead. I can certainly understand why Ariauna doesn't trust Celeste."

  Jaskead took another sip from his tea and cleared his throat. "Yes, that is the primary reason for her mistrust, but it's not the only reason."

  "What's the other reason?" Skip questioned.

  Jaskead gave Skip a questioning look. "I thought you knew?"

  "Knew what?"

  "Didn't General Palmer tell you who Celeste's father is?"