Infinity's Gateway, page 18
Having been chastised by Mercer, Meinhard refused to participate in the conversation. Even though he was dying of curiosity, he refused to ask about HAPS’ capabilities. The expression on his face was that of an insolent, pouting child, glaring at anyone who caught his eye. Dr. Brennan, on the other hand, was as curious about this as Dr. Chudzik. “Can you tell us how HAPS is different from the other drones we sent up?”
“Absolutely,” said Mercer. “Dr. Brennan, you’ll especially appreciate this. The HAPS drone can provide high-resolution imagery down to six-inch resolution.”
“From what height?” asked Dr. Brennan.
“HAPS can reach heights higher than seventy thousand feet, which gives it the capability of seeing more than 250 miles to the horizon and provide imagery in excess of 386 square miles. It’s an amazing piece of machinery.”
“That’s incredible,” said Dr. Brennan.
“The good news is that it is powered by the sun, so, if need be, it can stay in the air for a long time.”
“How long?” asked Dr. Chudzik.
“Close to forty-five days,” answered Mercer. “Thanks to HAPS, we were able to map a considerable amount of the coastline, all of which was sent to Sahir’s team.”
“Which we immediately fed into Argos,” said Sahir. “We also examined the data we collected from the submersibles. Not only did we get pictures of the marine life, but they also gathered several samples of the water at various depths. As with the plants highlighted by Dr. Chudzik, initially we couldn’t identify any of the fish that had been photographed.”
At Sahir’s use of the word “initially” again, Meinhard sighed audibly, rolling his eyes in disgust. Everyone ignored him.
“From a microbiology standpoint, we were equally stumped. Dr. Curra, of your team, was nice enough to review our findings, but he couldn’t come up with any answers either. It was around that time we received the findings that Argos provided by combining the pictures we took of the night sky, along with the mapping of the coastline provided by HAPS. At first, we didn’t believe the findings, but as all of you understand, it would be rather a waste of time to challenge Argos. I’m not sure it can make a mistake.”
“Finally,” muttered Dr. Meinhard, “Some hard facts. So, where are we, or should I say, when are we? I mean, that’s what you’re saying, right, time travel?”
“We don’t know,” answered Sahir. This earned him dark looks from Mercer, as well as Meinhard, who got out of his chair and started pacing in the back of the conference room. Clearly it was not the answer any of them had anticipated. “But it did give us the new set of parameters we needed to complete our research.”
“What kind of parameters?” asked Dr. Chudzik. She was being as nice as she could be, but at this point everyone’s patience was wearing razor thin. Even her voice had a cold edge to it.
“Time parameters,” answered Sahir. While it may have appeared to the casual observer that Sahir was enjoying himself, nothing could have been further from the truth. Yes, Sahir and his team had the data and were ready to give their conclusions to the scientists on board, as well as to Captain MacKay and his officers. But, at the same time, Sahir was extremely apprehensive about sharing this information. In short, what he had to tell them was simply crazy. Had it not been for all the other unexplainable things that had happened to them, he would have dismissed their findings out of hand, Argos or no Argos.
“Once we recalibrated, using the new time parameters, we were finally able to identify seven of the plants and close to fifteen of the fish photographed by the submersibles,” said Sahir.
“Hold on, Lieutenant,” said Mercer. “Are you telling me that Argos still couldn’t determine where we are even with the hundreds of miles of coastline mapped out by HAPS? That’s not possible.”
“Argos has given us a theoretical location,” said Sahir, choosing his words carefully. “But it’s not any place that any of us are familiar with.”
“You’ve been able to identify several of the plants,” said Dr. Brennan, “as well as quite a few of the fish, but the best you can get out of Argos is a ‘theoretical’ location, a location you refuse to name?”
“I’m not refusing to name anything, Doctor,” said Sahir. “As far as I know, it doesn’t have a name. Look, the reason we couldn’t identify the plants, or any of the fish at first glance, is that they are all supposed to be extinct. And I don’t mean recently extinct. I’m talking millions of years extinct. Tens of millions.”
Mercer pushed his chair back from the table. “Mr. Sahir, I’m starting to recognize the slow speech of an old-fashioned country doctor. It took my dad’s doctor twenty minutes to tell him he had Stage IV cancer. Just how bad are your team’s findings?”
Sahir dreaded what he was about to say, but he had no choice. Despite his paralyzing fear of going anywhere near a jungle, right now he would have given anything to have gone ashore with Colton and Garrett. “Based on the pictures we fed into Argos of the night sky, as well as the data sent to us from HAPS, with 75 percent accuracy Argos has determined that we are on earth.”
“That was never in question, Lieutenant Sahir,” Mercer nearly shouted. “I want to know where and when on earth?”
“Again, based on the location of the stars, the coastal mapping, and backed up by the extinct fauna and marine life, Argos has determined that we are on earth as it existed roughly sixty-five million years ago. Due to continental drift, the world’s landmasses looked very different then.
Yes, we’re close to land, but that’s the best we can tell you. If Argos hadn’t confirmed all this, I wouldn’t believe it either.”
The room went completely silent.
“Stupid question, but you’re positive there’s no mistake about this,” said Mercer, his voice betraying the fear that coursed through him.
“Argos is not theorizing, nor does Argos make hypothesis on its own. It answers the questions we ask. Argos says it looks like we are on earth sixty-five million years ago.”
Mercer looked at the three scientists. Slowly nodding their agreement, they were still trying to wrap their minds around the information they’d just been given. Sahir looked like he was going to be sick.
“None of this leaves this room,” said Mercer. “Lieutenant, your team is confined to this area until further notice.”
“Yes sir,” said Sahir, his voice just about a whisper.
Mercer didn’t move, staring down at his hands. Finally, he leaned forward and picked up the phone sitting in the middle of the conference table. “Captain, we need for you to join us.” Mercer listened for a few moments, and then said, “No sir, it would be best if you joined us here.”
CHAPTER 14
The shore party continued to penetrate deeper into the interior, following the signal from the downed drone as best they could. Although the locater signal was becoming less and less frequent, as well as weaker in strength, they had been able to establish a pretty good bearing on where it had come down.
The sounds from the inhabitants of this jungle were new and strange to all of them, ranging from piercing, gut-wrenching howls to fierce screams and the anguished cries of battle. This unsettling symphony of nature surrounded them, but so far, they hadn’t seen anything too extraordinary. That is, if you chose to overlook that flower thing that attacked and killed the lizard. The scene of that fast and lethal attack kept playing over and over in Colton’s mind, and try as he might, he couldn’t let it go.
The only other item of curiosity that bothered him was when Garrett pointed out the lack of birds. None of them had seen a single bird since they’d set foot on shore, nor had they heard anything that remotely sounded like a bird. At one point a large shadow raced over a partial clearing, but none of them had been able to see what had caused it. Corporal Lee suggested that perhaps they were staying high in the treetops, the dense vegetation keeping them out of sight. Whatever the reason, it simply added one more thing to the list of unanswered questions.
The discovery of the plane had certainly been surprising, but Colton reasoned that maybe it would finally help to put to rest all the Bermuda Triangle nonsense. Like everything else in the world, there was always a natural explanation for why things happened, although he knew Father Ryan would never agree with that assessment. Father Ryan needed mystery; it was the source of his energy.
He’d read a great deal about Flight 19 years ago while at the academy. The tremendous amount of time and manpower that had gone into the search for those planes had been the largest to date by the US military. Obviously, they’d all been looking in the wrong place.
A wry smile passed across Colton’s face. He realized that even though one of the planes from Flight 19 had now been found, the navy was no closer to knowing where it had disappeared to than they’d been in 1945. Although not one of their crew had said it out loud, they all realized that they too were as lost as the plane they’d just found. They had joined the lost, rather than bringing the lost to the found.
The terrain thinned out as they headed uphill. While the jungle remained reasonably dense, they were starting to see more and more rock outcroppings that appeared to have erupted out of the earth centuries ago. The tall rock face that had been to their right stayed parallel to the course they were following.
The game trail they’d been following veered off to the left, cutting through a patch of thick bushes with wicked thorns along the edges of the leaves. Suddenly Colton could hear something coming his way at fast pace, and he realized he’d lost sight of Private Hill and Corporal Lee. By instinct he brought his rifle up, clicking the safety off, all in one fluid movement. Private Hill, a little out of breath, burst into sight, running towards him.
“Sir, we’ve found something up ahead,” he said, keeping his voice just above a whisper. “Corporal Lee is there waiting for us. Turns out, we’re not alone is this jungle.”
“What have you found?” asked Colton, dropping his voice to match Hill’s.
“There’s no one there right now, but I’ve never seen anything like this. I’m guessing it’s a monument of some kind, but that’s all I can tell you,” said Hill.
Garrett, with her men deployed, joined Hill and Colton to see what had happened. “It seems that Private Hill and Corporal Lee have come across some ruins,” Colton explained, a bit exasperated with Hill. The way the private was acting, it was as if they’d come across an enemy force.
“Sir, they’re not ruins,” said Hill. “I mean, they’re not new, but they look like they’re in pretty good shape, and the grounds around them are beautiful, like a park. Maybe it’s a religious thing, I don’t know.”
“Alright,” said Colton, “let’s take a look. Captain, tell everyone to stay alert and be ready.”
Hill turned and took off at a slow trot. Colton, along with the rest of the team, followed Hill and they soon came upon Lee, crouched down behind a small boulder. “It’s up ahead, sir, just beyond that small rise. Talk about out of place, wait till you see this.”
“Did you see anyone?” asked Garrett.
“No sir, but they can’t be far away. The grounds around this thing are too well kept. Someone keeps the area nicely trimmed.”
Colton turned and motioned for Private Bannister to join them. “Captain, I’m going to take these three men with me and see what we have. If Lee is right, let’s not let anyone come up behind us. If there’s trouble, depending on their strength, we may need to make a quick retreat.”
“Be careful, Colton,” said Garrett. “We’re not exactly dealing from a position of strength here, so before you start shooting everything that moves, try diplomacy.”
“An easygoing guy like me?” said Colton, smiling broadly. “Diplomacy is always my first choice, especially when their gun is bigger than mine.”
Leading the way, Colton set out, slowly advancing up the small rise, all four of them listening for the slightest sound that would let them know that there were potential enemies close by. The normal sounds of the jungle that they’d become used to droned on. Dropping to his knees, he slowly stuck his head over the edge of the rise. Just as Corporal Lee had said, what lay before him was totally out of place.
The jungle opened, giving way to a perfect, circular area covering at least an acre and a half. Just inside the perimeter of the circle stood three eight-sided pillars of stone, each, he estimated, to be thirty feet in height. On the sides of the pillars were all kinds of symbols, covering every square inch, all the symbols unfamiliar to him. The three pillars were spread out along the edges of the circle, forming a triangular area in which nothing grew. The ground inside the triangle was completely bare, with not even one blade of grass growing.
In the center of the triangle were three more eight-sided pillars, but these appeared to be only around nine feet in height, all three with rounded tops. They too were positioned in such a way as to form another triangle and were covered with what appeared to be the same kinds of symbols. What really amazed him was how perfectly manicured the grounds within the circle were maintained. How did the gardeners even get in there? Did they drop in?
“Amazing,” Colton muttered under his breath. “I’ve played golf courses not this well cared for.”
“What did you say, Commander?” asked Lee, who was right next to Colton, but up until now had gone unnoticed.
“Nothing, Corporal,” answered Colton. “What is this place?” Turning to Private Bannister, he said, “Private, take pictures of this and shoot them back to the Eclipse. Let’s see what they can make of it.”
“On it, sir,” said Bannister.
“Private Hill, let Captain Garrett know that it is okay for her and her team to advance. She needs to see this.” Hill turned and started back down the trail.
“What is that sound?” said Corporal Hill. “It’s kinda like bees, lots of bees.”
“I hear it too,” said Colton, “but no, it’s not bees. It rather sounds like electrical current, that sound you hear when you walk under massive power lines.”
“Sir, I’ve sent the pictures back to the ship,” reported Bannister.
“Thank you, Private,” said Colton. “Can either of you identify the symbols on those pillars?”
Before they could answer, Captain Garrett crawled up beside them. “I’ve got the men deployed in a defensive grid,” she told Colton, then caught sight at what they were staring at. “What is that? That’s not English, Russian, or Chinese.”
“Your guess is as good as mine,” said Colton. “Time we took a closer look. Private Bannister, you will accompany Captain Garrett and me. Shoot as many pictures as you can, including some close-ups on those symbols. Just be careful where you walk. We have no idea what this place is. Corporal, in the event anything should happen to us, take the men and get back to the ship. Is that understood?”
“Yes sir, it is, but don’t you think it would be better if Private Hill and I first took a look around?”
“Unfortunately, we must be cognizant of the time,” said Colton. “We’ll be spending the night in this jungle and we’re going to want to try and find some place far more secure than this to make camp before the sun sets. Considering the animals we keep hearing, not to mention the things we glimpsed crawling along the ground, we need to find a place that is far more defensible. I don’t want to get caught in the open when the predators come out.”
“He’s right, Corporal,” said Garrett. “We’re going to run out of daylight all too soon. Let’s get this done.”
Garrett got up and led the three of them as they cautiously moved forward. The edge of the circle was so fine it could have been cut with a knife. Not a single plant from the surrounding jungle encroached on the area at all. Another item that didn’t make sense. Within the circle the ground was covered with a grass that was very fine, not all that different from what you’d see on a golf course green.
Colton went up to the closest pillar and after studying it for a moment, took a chance and lightly touched it with the back of his hand. The pillar appeared to be a type of stone, one that resembled granite and yet was quite different in its texture. His attempt to interpret the symbols came up empty. As far as he was concerned they might as well have been Mayan hieroglyphs, completely undecipherable.
“These three pillars come to a point at the top; the shorter ones are rounded. Wonder if there’s a reason for that?” said Garrett, her question almost rhetorical.
“Let’s check out the smaller triangle. Those pillars look to be made of a different kind of rock,” said Colton. Bannister continued to take pictures as they moved towards the center of the circle. “As well kept as this place is, there’s absolutely no sign that anybody ever comes here.”
“The humming sound is getting louder,” said Garrett. “I think it’s coming from those three smaller pillars.”
The smaller pillars were darker than their larger cousins but were covered with similar markings. The humming sound was its loudest here, so whatever power was being generated, this was where it was focused. The area inside the smaller triangle appeared to be one triangular slab of stone, highly polished, so much so that it reflected things around it.
Taking a small tin of rations out of his backpack, Colton said, “Everyone step back. Let’s see if anything happens when I do this.” He lightly tossed the small tin, striking one of the pillars. The tin merely bounced off and landed on the ground. No sparks. No flashes of light. Nothing.
“That was rather anticlimactic,” said Garrett. “What were you expecting?”
“I’ll take anticlimactic any time I can get it,” said Colton as he leaned down to pick up the tin. As he leaned over he put his left hand on the small pillar to steady himself. The moment he touched it, the three pillars seemed to come to life. The humming sound became louder and the three pillars were slowly encased in a light-blue light, starting at their base and gradually working its way to the top.
All three of them quickly stepped back and were watching as the light seemed to gather in strength at the top of each pillar. Three beams of light, one from each pillar, shot out, meeting in midair in the center of the triangle. There the light briefly formed into a small globe of soft blue light before being transformed into what looked like a highly detailed map of some kind. Made up of varying shades of green, there were also numerous streams and what appeared to be rock outcrops. There were also a few red dots in certain places and two dark blue dots.
