A Gift from the Gods

by Martin Gunn

  “Have you done a facial reconstruction?” asked David trying hard to hide the tension in his voice.

  “As a matter of fact, I have,” replied Jessica, “it’s on my computer next door.”

  Both men followed her to the computer and waited eagerly while she booted it up. Eventually she brought the relevant program up on the screen, then clicked on a file. Immediately the image of a face appeared and started to rotate, enabling it to be seen from all angles.

  “Let me sit down.” insisted David.

  “Of course – sorry Dad.” Mistaking his request for tiredness, Jessica stood up, but in fact David just wanted to get closer to the image on the screen.

  Standing behind him, with Harrison to her left she said, “He is obviously Caucasian, so I made his skin tone white.”

  David stared in silent disbelief at the brown eyes staring back at him.

  “Blue,” he insisted, “make the eyes blue.”

  Jessica and Harrison looked at each other and frowned, not knowing what to make of this outburst.

  “And the hair, make that fair, not too blonde though.”

  “Why? What does it matter?”

  “Just do it,” insisted David more assertively this time.

  “Okay, okay.”

  She leant over his shoulder and tapped in a few adjustments.

  And there it was, a face that in his wildest dreams, David never thought he would ever see again, staring straight back at him.

  “Are you alright sir?” ventured Harrison, a little unsure of what was going on.

  David ignored him and squinted closer at the 3D image, then eventually mumbled to himself,

  “What in God’s name happened to you? You sadistic bastard.”

  “What’s going on Dad? You can’t possibly know this man.”

  What was he going to tell her, what could he possibly tell her? David had made a solemn promise to his wife Laura never to tell Jessica the truth. That this computer image, those remains lying on the table in the next room, they were her father, not him. No – telling her would open up a whole can of worms. It was a secret that he would have to take to his grave.

  CHAPTER TWO

  The Origin of Storms

  “I have never understood your obsession with this planet.”

  Set turned around to see his Sister Isis smiling at him as she peeked out from behind a tall pillar, one of many that made up the Pantheon. To him she was a vision of beauty, resplendent in a tight-fitting golden robe and the multi-coloured feathered wings attached to her arms; shimmering with iridescence.

  “They fascinate me,” he replied, still slightly distracted.

  Isis gazed lovingly at her brother, impressed by the well-toned body that stood before her – glistening in the starlight. His countenance was enhanced by a head which looked part canine and part equine. Long ass-like ears stood up vertically, pricked forwards – attentive and ever vigilant.

  “You have put them through so much,” she continued with a sigh, “wars, so many wars and the Black Death. You nearly wiped them out. And recently that Great War. So much suffering, and if that wasn’t enough, you followed it with a ‘flu pandemic.”

  “They are remarkably resilient don’t you think?” Set grinned at Isis mischievously.

  “I wish – we all wish that you would pay more heed to the Prime Directive. Didn’t we all agree to a policy of non-intervention?”

  “I didn’t agree.” Set was frowning now.

  “The Ennead voted. You were outnumbered eight to one. The time has come to leave the universe to its own devices – don’t you think?”

  Set was becoming angry and felt the need to assert himself.

  “I am Set!” he exclaimed bristling with indignation, “Lord of Chaos and Violence. I am the Origin of Storms.”

  Isis was impassive, she was used to his temper tantrums.

  “So, what have you planned for them now?” Isis hoped the question might calm Set down, “their world is in such turmoil at this moment in time.”

  Her ethos was the antithesis of his, espousing health and harmony. If only Set had a fraction of her wisdom.

  “I am watching a particular evil which is starting to rise.”

  “It will go the way of all evil,” sighed Isis, “we have seen it rise and fall so many times. It must always fail.”

  “Why?” enquired Set.

  “Because evil cannot exist without good.”

  Set gave her a doubtful look, he wasn’t convinced.

  “Consider this,” she continued. “What would happen if good was to destroy evil?”

  “Good would prevail and exist in harmony until the end of time.”

  “Indeed, and if evil destroyed good, what then? Yes, evil would prevail but what would it have to fight against? It would have no reason to exist. No, evil may win the occasional battle, but it can never win the war.”

  “Very well then, let’s put your hypothesis to the test,” proclaimed Set.

  “What do you have in mind?” replied a curious Isis.

  “An extraordinary little man is emerging as a leader of a particularly hateful movement,” continued Set. “They are fiendishly clever, but I am going to give them help beyond their wildest dreams. There is a vessel from another world passing near their solar system. I am going to divert it and have the craft crash on their planet. The technology contained therein could see them dominate this world for a thousand years or more.”

  Set paused to gauge his sister’s reaction but again she was impassive.

  “Let’s see what they do with it,” he concluded finally, “this technology will be my gift to them.”

  ***

  The Black Forest, Germany

  21st September 1935

  The leaves of the deciduous trees had not quite reached their best on this Saturday afternoon in late September, although the autumnal splendour was certainly beginning to show itself, with a patchwork of yellow, red and orange mixed in with the dark green leaves, which were yet to turn.

  The forest was huge and dense, though this didn’t worry Anton Keller who, after growing up in a small village in one of the valleys, knew the forest like the back of his hand. The low sun was trying its best to cut a swathe through the branches and when it did so, Anton had to avert his eyes from the glare emanating from the shafts of light that were struggling to break through.

  Anton was tall for his age, skinny with blonde hair, blue eyes and typical Teutonic good looks, and as he ran up a slight incline through the forest he had every reason to feel elated. Not only had he received his uniform today but Hannah had finally agreed to walk out with him. They had arranged to meet by a large fallen elm, that was roughly halfway between their respective homes, and when he finally arrived, he was a little disappointed to find Hannah wasn’t there. He sat down on the fallen tree, still hot and panting from his run up the slope. Anton was beginning to question the wisdom of wearing his overcoat, but he wanted to surprise Hannah when she arrived.

  Hannah Richter, knowing that she was late, picked up her pace a little. Her parents had taught her from an early age that it was bad manners to keep people waiting, but since she didn’t know the forest quite as well as Anton, the journey to their rendezvous point had taken longer than she had expected. Anton smiled as he saw her walking hurriedly through the trees towards him. She looked lovely with her long fair hair flowing over a flower-patterned dress and green cardigan.

  “Sorry I’m late Anton,” she gasped with a frown, worried that he might be cross.

  “That’s alright,” he replied with a smile, glad and relieved that she had finally arrived, “I haven’t been waiting here long.”

  Sitting down on the fallen elm, Hannah caught her breath and Anton waited patiently until she was ready to continue.

  “Let’s take a walk this way,” he offered eve
ntually, “there is a pretty spot I think you will like.”

  Hannah relaxed and nodded, she had known him from a very young age and knew that she could trust him. Linking arms, they walked along a footpath which would take them deep into the forest. Conversation came easy with Hannah laughing at some of the silly things Anton was saying, until eventually they could hear the sound of running water. Before long they had reached a small rocky stream, which dropped over a small waterfall some twenty foot below.

  “You are right,” observed Hannah, looking around, “it is pretty.”

  Anton looked at her and decided to try a little charm.

  “Not as pretty as you,” then feeling self-conscious he added, “let’s pick our way down this side. It’s not difficult.”

  No boy had ever told her that she was pretty before, and she smiled fondly at him, hoping to assuage his obvious awkwardness.

  The bottom of the waterfall flowed into a shallow pool, with rocks of various sizes lining the edges. As they looked up at the water flowing over the edge and cascading down, they could see nothing but trees and the dimming sky.

  “This place is magical,” proffered Hannah with a sense of wonder, “I have never been here before.”

  “I come here quite often,” replied Anton, “it’s so peaceful.”

  Eventually Hannah remembered something and turned to Anton.

  “You said yesterday that you had something to tell me.”

  “I can do better than that,” he replied getting to his feet, “I can show you.”

  Anton started to unbutton his overcoat, then let it drop to the ground for maximum effect.

  Hannah was aghast, looking him up and down. Anton, looking proud in his new uniform, was wearing knee-length white socks, black shorts and a light brown shirt. A shoulder strap ran from his belt diagonally over his right shoulder and on his left arm was a red arm band with a horizontal white stripe, a white circle was emblazoned over the stripe with a black swastika upon it.

  “What have you done,” she uttered with dismay, “you’ve joined the Hitler Youth.”

  “Of course, most of the boys have.”

  This wasn’t the reaction he had hoped for or expected, even though earlier in the day his mother had burst into tears when she saw him wearing it.

  “Why?” Hannah was frowning now, “Just because the other boys are doing it.”

  “No, not that.” Anton sat down on a rock and looked at the ground. “Ever since the Führer came to power I have felt something big is happening in our country, something important, and I just wanted to be part of it somehow.”

  “Have you stopped to think what it actually means to be a Nazi?” she blustered somewhat rhetorically, since she suspected that he knew the answer, “They are burning books in Berlin, and persecuting people – especially the Jews. Do you know why Konrad left school? It’s because his mother is Jewish and his father is German and that is now illegal here.”

  Anton looked up with genuine concern and asked, “What happened to them?”

  “I don’t know for sure, Papa didn’t want to talk about it, but I think they have left the country.”

  “It’s starting to get dark,” muttered Anton sullenly, “let’s make our way back up to the top.”

  He put his coat on, and carefully they climbed up the slippery moss-covered rocks until they reached the top. It was a clear night and many of the stars were already visible in the evening sky.

  “It’s a lovely evening,” shivered Hannah, staring at the stars.

  Removing his coat again, Anton placed it around Hannah’s shoulders, hoping to regain some of the faith which she had lost in him. Her mood lightened and Hannah smiled at him in gratitude. She knew deep down he was a decent lad, just a little misguided.

  “Do you know any of them?” she enquired, nodding at the sky.

  “That’s the North Star,” he responded, pointing up into the heavens, “there is Ursa Major, and that group of stars that look like a pan with a broken handle is called The Plough.”

  “What about that one?” asked Hannah.

  Anton looked in the direction she was pointing and saw a light, pale red, low in the sky. He frowned, not recognising it.

  “I don’t know, it could be Mars I suppose. That has a red look to it.”

  As they watched the light, both noticed that very gradually it was getting larger, and within less than a minute the light had become huge and glowing bright red.

  “I don’t think it’s a star,” exclaimed Anton, with concern.

  Transfixed they watched as the light turned into what looked like a ball of flames and now they could hear a roaring sound. Suddenly it became obvious that the object was heading their way. Anton threw them both to the ground and a massive flaming object roared past about 150 feet above their heads, trailing fire. They both felt the heat and a draft as the object flew past, descending fast until it eventually crashed 500 feet away in a flurry of fire.

  “What was that?” gasped Hannah, staring wide-eyed at Anton.

  “I don’t know,” he blurted, equally perplexed, “it certainly was no aeroplane.”

  The only aircraft Anton was familiar with were mostly biplanes, when he saw one at all that is, but this was something else. The craft was wedge-shaped with delta wings at the rear. In the short time they had to observe it, the surface seemed to be a smooth, dull grey colour with wide diagonal metallic purple stripes.

  “It hasn’t crashed far away, let’s go and take a look.” Anton was excited now, but Hannah wasn’t so sure. In fact, she was frightened.

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  “Don’t be silly, I’ll look after you,” reassured Anton, taking her hand.

  Reluctantly Hannah allowed Anton to lead her in the general direction of the downed craft. It was dark now and a faint red glow could just be discerned over the tree tops. Picking their way through the woodland, it didn’t take long before they started to notice broken branches and a few fallen trees, then suddenly they came out into a small clearing where the ground had been gouged out in a furrow, about fifty feet wide and four feet deep. Their eyes followed the line of the ripped-up earth, until they set upon the craft with its nose buried in the ground. At the rear were two large rectangular thruster ports, still glowing a pale blue and the delta wings had a downwards curve to them, giving the impression of a manta ray. A few fires had started near the craft, and the blue glow from the two thruster ports faded to black as the ship shut down. The two teenagers looked at each other in wonderment, mouths open, then back to the crash site.

  “Let’s see if we can get closer,” whispered Anton taking Hannah’s hand again, though this time he felt resistance. Hannah was rooted to the spot.

  No, I…I’m not going any nearer,” she stammered, clearly terrified.

  Anton smiled and said, “You wait here then, I’m going to take a closer look.”

  As he picked his way around the right-hand side of the clearing, Hannah watched apprehensively, until eventually he disappeared into the darkness. She was alone now and wasn’t at all happy about it. In no time at all, Anton was close and looking straight at the starboard side of the craft. It was bigger than he realised, the body must have been nearly one hundred feet long. The fires had started to burn themselves out and Anton found himself in pitch black. He paused and just looked for few minutes, then just as he was about to move in closer still, he stopped. With a low crack a thin yellowy-green rectangular line appeared on the side of the craft, beaming a light out into the darkness. The light became larger as it became apparent that a panel was sliding open. Enthralled and scared, he continued to stare as a ramp extended from the open hatch. Nothing happened for a few minutes, then a long shadow was cast over the sickly yellow light that shone down the ramp. The shadow suggested to Anton that someone was moving from inside the craft to the entrance, and sure
enough a figure stood in the doorway, in a kind of suit and helmet. As he watched mesmerised, he saw the figure stagger down the ramp a few steps, waver a little, and then collapse on its back. Anton didn’t know what to do next. Should he check to see if the person needed help, but then what could he do? Gathering up some courage, he gingerly started to make his way closer, ever watchful for movement from the figure, prostrate on the ramp. Anton could feel his heart pounding as he cautiously walked onto the ramp and was able to see the figure up close.

  The first thing he noticed was the creature’s height; he guessed that it must be around two metres tall, with a long slender torso, long slender arms and legs. The creature’s suit was dark blue – almost black, and as Anton’s gaze moved up the body, he saw the helmet with an array of small white lights around the neck line. The alien’s face was clearly visible, being a pale lilac and grey with green freckles. Two long thin lines extended either side of a heavy brow, which suggest that the eyes were closed. There were no obvious nostrils, just an inverted V that extended down the hollow cheeks. With very little chin, the mouth was difficult to discern. The other striking characteristic was the extended cranium, being over double the length of a human’s.

  As Anton gaped, the creature began to stir a little and laboriously lift itself up onto its elbows. The head began to show some animation, and then the eyes opened, displaying two red slits either side of the nose. Unable to contain his fear any longer, he panicked, turned and ran blindly in the general direction of where he had left Hannah. Looking back occasionally, Anton noticed that the creature had not moved since their encounter, so he slowed his pace and when he got to the point where he’d left Hannah, she was nowhere to be seen. Looking around panting, his heart still pounding, he couldn’t see a thing in the dark dense woodland. There was no option, he had to make his way back the way they had come. Anton started to run again, pushing branches out of the way, some whipping him painfully in the face as he pressed on. Eventually he caught up with Hannah, who whirled round in fear, startled as she heard Anton approach.