Mosaic (Breakthrough Book 5)

by Michael C. Grumley

  She shook herself out of it as they crested the top of the ridge and found another shorter path leading still higher, for several hundred more yards.

  “It appears this is as far as the vehicle will reach.”

  “Yes, it does.”

  When they came to another lurching stop, she spun around and faced the two in the back seat. Dulce widened her eyes and looked out the window excitedly.

  Here?

  DeeAnn chuckled. “Yes. We’re here.”

  We go. We see.

  Together she and Ronin climbed out and opened the rear doors, allowing both primates to leap out eagerly onto the dry hard ground.

  DeeAnn began strapping on her vest. “At least they weren’t asking how much farther the whole time.”

  Ronin glanced at her with curiosity.

  “Never mind. It’s a joke.”

  She walked to the back of the Jeep and lifted the tailgate, packed full of their gear. She then reached in and retrieved two bottles of water. “Who’s thirsty?”

  There was no reply on her vest, but Dulce reached eagerly for a bottle as soon as DeeAnn unscrewed the top.

  A gorilla drinking from a bottle, or a cup for that matter, was a rather entertaining sight. Most might expect most of the water to spill, running down the gorillia’s black-skinned chest. But DeeAnn knew better. Instead, she watched the small creature sip with a surprising level of dexterity. However, Dulce’s small over puckered lips still made it funny, as did Dexter’s.

  DeeAnn handed the other bottle to Ronin and retrieved a third, tucking it into her back pocket. “Shall we?”

  ***

  The climb was steep and heavily strewn with sharp rocks and boulders, leaving a landscape that reminded DeeAnn of something straight out of a planet Mars movie.

  Her biggest concern was for Dulce and Dexter, but both animals appeared to amble along without any difficulty.

  The sweltering arid breeze strengthened as they neared the top, kicking up a veil of dust that enveloped them in a swirling orange cloud, prompting DeeAnn to cover her mouth. But the entrance to the archeological dig site was still visible.

  A large rounded hump marked the very top of the hill, and below it, a jagged hole clearly identified the entrance––although covered by a makeshift frame, and surrounded by several wooden pylons wrapped in yellow tape.

  As they approached, they saw dozens of wooden boxes stacked to the left side, containing what appeared to be various digging and excavation supplies.

  When they reached the entrance, DeeAnn pulled open the rickety framed door with her free hand, glancing cautiously inside. After a glance at Ronin followed by a quick shrug, she lowered her head and gingerly stepped inside.

  ***

  Dank and earthy were the first two words that came to mind as DeeAnn surveyed the small dig site, only about ten by twelve feet. The uneven ground had been mapped out carefully in squares, using wooden borders and crisscrossing strings. Most of the excavation appeared to be taking place in the center sections.

  She looked down when she felt Dulce’s arm wrap around the inside of her thigh.

  “You okay?”

  The small gorilla stared at the site with a look of nervousness.

  Dark.

  “It is dark,” DeeAnn nodded. After Ronin stepped in and closed the door, the place became almost black, prompting her to reach into her pocket. Retrieving her phone, she quickly switched on its bright LED light, while behind her, Ronin used some sort of device on his arm as another light source.

  It was a tight cavern, barely five feet at its highest, but then descending farther down into the hill. Narrowing through several large boulders, it soon disappeared into blackness.

  The ceiling and walls were all solid rock with the open space seemingly having been created by someone chipping away thousands of larger pieces overhead.

  “There is no one here,” Ronin said.

  DeeAnn checked her watch. “It’s almost evening. I’m guessing whoever was here has closed things up for the day.”

  She stepped forward, carefully lowering her foot over the intersecting strings and into one of the undisturbed boxed sections. When she got close enough to the broken ground, she leaned in and hovered over the site.

  “Wow.” She glanced at Ronin. “Several skeletal remains here. More than in the articles I read.” She knelt down and studied the area. “Looks like they’ve made some progress.”

  DeeAnn looked at Dulce and Dexter, who together were examining small items laid out carefully to the side.

  “Don’t touch those.”

  Both animals looked up at her quizzically and eased back a step.

  “You said these remains were special.”

  “They are,” she answered. “These are just like the species found in South Africa. But older.” DeeAnn gently blew some dirt off one of the larger bones still waiting to be extracted. “What’s different about this species is that unlike every other hominin we’ve found, this group appeared to be burying its own dead.”

  “Are you certain?”

  DeeAnn nodded again. “Come here.” She held her phone up higher to illuminate a wider area. “Look. The skeletons are abnormally close to each other and aligned straight. Which means they were laid here, purposefully. And the researchers said they haven’t found any evidence of claw or tooth marks, ruling them out as victims of being hunted or eaten by animals. Nor have they found any other types of remains. So, it wasn’t just a pile of bodies either.”

  “And this is telling you something?”

  “In a manner of speaking.” DeeAnn then rose and looked at Ronin from behind the bright light, displaying a faint crooked smile on her face. “But it’s only part of why we’re here.”

  She scanned the rocky walls, looking carefully for something. “The pictures in the articles also showed several drawings in the cave.” DeeAnn spotted one and stepped closer with her light. “Like this one.”

  Curious, Ronin stepped in and examined the shapes, all drawn in crimson red paint.

  “What is it?”

  DeeAnn stepped away without responding, still searching.

  “Unfortunately, the articles I read all used the same pictures. And they weren’t taken in very good light. So I only had a few to study. There was one picture that showed only a partial drawing…”

  She paused on another set of shapes and scrutinized them carefully. Then moved on.

  “And if what I think was in that drawing was–”

  She suddenly stopped.

  DeeAnn brought the light in close and took in what she saw, letting out a slight gasp.

  “That is from the picture?”

  She nodded excitedly and quickly turned her camera around to snap a photo. Then another.

  “This is the one they put in the article!” she exclaimed.

  “What is it?”

  DeeAnn studied the picture on her phone and zoomed in, providing a clearer display than looking at the rock itself. She flipped it around to show Ronin. “You tell me.”

  The short man stared for several long seconds. “People?”

  “Yes. People. These stick figures, here in the middle. But I think there’s something more important here,” she said, pointing. “The larger objects on both sides of the hominins.”

  “They appear to be larger versions.”

  “Not quite. These don’t have any hands. It looks more like an animal that would walk on four legs, not two. And look at the heads.”

  “They have big ears.”

  “Exactly. Very big. Almost grotesquely so,” she suggested eagerly. “That is, if they were humanoids. But there are other animals in this area that have ears like that.”

  Ronin looked at her for the answer.

  “Elephants.”

  148

  It was the answer she had been searching for, although the question she had kept from the rest of her team until she was sure. And even more than that, she believed it was another thread connected to their alien
ship mysteriously buried beneath the waters of the Caribbean.

  “Elephants?”

  DeeAnn’s face was completely lit up. “Elephants.”

  “They are interesting beasts.”

  “They’re a lot more than that. They are direct descendants of proboscideans. Which were here over fifty million years ago, making them survivors of the extinction event for the dinosaurs.”

  “Extinction event?”

  “An asteroid impact. Sixty-six million years ago. The event that wiped nearly every dinosaur off the face of our planet. It’s referred to as The Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction Event. And it’s the time when all large dinosaurs seemed to have suddenly disappeared, while others, like the proboscideans, survived.”

  She continued, “And that means that the lineage of elephants has existed in the world longer than almost any other animal today. Making them extremely significant, not just evolutionarily. But maybe now for an entirely new reason.”

  Ronin compared her phone against the drawing on the rock. “You believe these images are elephants.”

  “I do. Especially given what we know about their ancestry, which evolved into different types of elephants all over the planet.” She motioned back to the dig site behind them. “Meaning that when these hominins were alive, here in Africa, so were elephants. And they were probably everywhere!”

  ***

  Outside, at the bottom of the ridge, less than two miles from where DeeAnn and Ronin were standing, a large vehicle turned off the main road. And began the same gradual climb toward the ridge.

  Four large men sat inside, tipped off by the Hudet store owner that two Americans had driven through, looking for the Naledi site. The woman and a small man appeared to be highly educated and traveling alone, along with two animals.

  The battered Range Rover climbed the hill slowly, maintaining a quiet engine speed, while the men inside checked the area carefully and loaded their rifles.

  ***

  DeeAnn was utterly fascinated. It was exactly as she suspected.

  “So, the elephants are important.”

  “Yes,” she nodded again. After a long break, she turned around to Ronin, briefly staring at Dulce and Dexter who were now sniffing at the dig site. “It has to do with a theory called the Big Brain Trio. And recent observations of brains from three distinctly different animal species. Brains that look surprisingly similar to one another. The trio of species are primates, dolphins, and elephants. All of which have brain shapes, sizes, and neural capacities that are so similar, they are unlike any other creature on Earth. So much so that it’s hard to imagine there not being a relationship between them.” DeeAnn paused, thinking.

  “And now it looks like we’re discovering indications of one. The initial clue was the alien vault we first found in Guyana that appeared to have influenced Dexter’s age and intelligence. Then we found the alien ship in the ocean, leaking the same liquid and altering the evolution of dolphins. Which then left us wondering if there was a second vault in Africa that resulted in the same thing with human evolution. Causing us to evolve faster, or at least similarly. And as you know, we ended up finding it. Confirming that the same alien compound had played a role in our own evolution just as it did with the others. This explained the similarities of two of the three species in the Big Brain Trio.

  “But it still left the elephants unexplained,” DeeAnn said, looking again at the drawing. Ancient and faded, it sprawled over several of the ceiling’s orange-hued rocks. “Elephants have been here for so long that we haven’t figured out exactly what continent they originated from. But we think it was probably here, in Africa. And if we’re right, the bigger question then becomes, was their development also somehow affected?”

  “The tone in your voice indicates you believe this to be so.”

  She smiled. “Like humans and dolphins, elephants are deeply intelligent and social creatures. And they have a very complex culture within their matriarchic society. For example, they self-medicate using plants, are very protective of each other, and recently have been discovered to be able to paint.”

  At that, Ronin’s brow rose.

  “It sounds crazy, but it’s true. There is so much to elephants and their culture that it’s just…astonishing. And on top of all that, there’s something even more unexpected. At least to me.”

  Ronin’s face remained curious, waiting for the answer.

  “Elephants bury their dead.”

  She enjoyed witnessing his surprise. “It’s true. But even more than that, elephants actually practice a burial ceremony! When another elephant dies, the surviving members of the group all gently, and repeatedly, touch the body of the deceased. And if it was part of their group, they will stay with the remains for days or even weeks. Weeping. Burying it with dirt and leaves.

  “And we think this is something elephants have been doing for a very long time.” DeeAnn paused and took a breath. “So if these recent hominin remains were interacting with elephants, and also beginning to bury their dead, did the elephants learn that from us or did we learn it from them?!”

  A thoughtful Ronin tilted his head, considering her words.

  “The other thing you don’t know,” she continued, “is that those dolphins I told you about showed us their birthing grounds. Something they have never done before with humans. So while birth is a remarkably sacred thing to them, death is very important to elephants. Could it be that the burial ceremonies of elephants and the birthing rituals of dolphins are at opposite ends of the same developmental spectrum?”

  “DeeAnn Draper,” Ronin mused. “This is interesting.”

  She laughed excitedly. “Isn’t it though? And look at this,” she directed, pointing to the ceiling and holding up the light. “Look closer at the drawing. In the middle, where you see what resembles humans. It looks like there is something else there. Another object that’s harder to see.”

  “Yes…it does.”

  DeeAnn looked at him slyly. “Do you want to know what I think?”

  “Yes.”

  “I think,” she said, “that there may be more to this drawing. More than just showing hominins and elephants together. I think there’s also something in the middle of the picture. Some kind of object.”

  Ronin looked again, closer.

  “And the elephants portrayed on either side are symbolic not just of their presence but perhaps the protection of something. Maybe something sacred to them.”

  DeeAnn’s words ended, and the small cave grew quiet. Next to her, Ronin stepped back without speaking. It was a very interesting concept. And even to his untrained eye, he had to admit, there did appear to be an object in the center of the drawing. It was faint, but clearly something was there.

  “You are quite the academic, DeeAnn Draper.”

  She grinned again. “My father wanted me to be a ballet dancer.”

  When he looked at her inquisitively, she shrugged. “He gave up on that by the time I was six.”

  Ronin mused. “On my world, our roles are more…determined.”

  “You can’t be what you want?”

  “It is not that. Over time our evolution has slowly become more accurate.”

  “What does that mean?”

  He thought for a moment. “It is hard for me to explain. Perhaps another academic would be able to.”

  DeeAnn displayed a mixed expression of curiosity and perplexity. “What were your parents?”

  “That is also difficult. My parents survived our planet’s first impact event, but my father died in the second event the year following. On the other side. I was born several months later.”

  DeeAnn’s face softened, and she began to speak but stopped suddenly, closing her mouth. She stared at Ronin and leaned her head to one side, searching for the right words.

  They were interrupted by an earsplitting shriek from Dexter. So loud, it echoed off the walls all around them.

  149

  Dressed in casual clothes, the four men silently ex
ited the Range Rover and eased their doors closed. They then examined the nearby Jeep, peering through its dusty windows before scanning the area again. In single file, they quietly began the final ascent toward the Naledi dig site.

  The sun was now fading, gradually darkening the sky along with the rest of the surrounding landscape. As they trod past a chain of long shadows on the ground, created from nearby shrubs and boulders, the slight wisps of dust kicked up by their shoes glowed briefly in a golden hue from the final rays of sunlight.

  There appeared to be no one else around. And it was perfect timing.

  The whole thing would take only minutes.

  ***

  “Dexter!”

  Covering her ears, DeeAnn screamed his name several times, trying to get his attention.

  “Dexter! What is it?!”

  She noticed Dulce standing on the other side of the cave, appearing just as surprised at the capuchin. The smaller monkey had run to the door in a panic and was now peering out through the cracks in the wood.

  Ronin approached calmly behind him, looking down at the distraught animal, who began clawing at the door with his tiny fingers.

  Unfazed by the monkey’s screeching, Ronin knelt onto one knee and tried to see. When his eye squinted through to view the outside, his face became drawn. Ronin immediately stood up.

  “What is it?!”

  “There are people outside.”

  Her eyes widened. “What kind of people?”

  “Unfriendly.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “They are carrying weapons.” He lowered his gaze and raised one of his sleeves, revealing the strange device wrapped around his forearm. “Remain here and keep the animals inside.”

  It was all he said before pushing the door open and stepping out into the light. Once outside, Ronin let it slam closed again behind him.

  DeeAnn ran to the door and grabbed Dexter. The two peered out. Ronin’s small frame walked toward three, no four, large imposing figures now cresting the hill. All of them were armed.