Lovers of Babel

by Valerie Walker

  “Vote for me and I promise I’ll lead this society to a better life underground and on into the new world. If I fail as leader you can impeach me.”

  The committee members were irresolute about giving such power to one man, but they were desperate to gain the citizens trust again. The last thing the underground needed was more rules and regulation. The people needed something different. They needed a new horizon. Amias had a good reputation around the elite circles and was often praised for his leadership skills. He was an independent thinker and was painfully intelligent. If anyone were to be leader, anyone who could gain the people’s trust again, it would be Amias Riley.

  The stout committee member stood up and announced that they would accept his proposal under the condition that Amias would only use his power for good. Amias nodded his head.

  “Of course sirs. I would never think of using it for anything else.”

  And while he crossed his fingers on the hand behind his back, he saluted the committee with the other.

  “I am honored to serve you and the citizens of the underground.”

  The Astronomer

  It was late one summer night, two years before their ascent to the surface of the earth, when an excited astronomer was making his way back underground. He had been slaving over a new breakthrough experiment for a few years and now he would see a positive conclusion for his hypothesis. Many other scientists and physicists doubted his prediction immediately upon hearing it. On his journey back underground, the astronomer recalled a man by the name of Fabian Klerinzky who told him he was crossing the border between concrete science and metaphysics, and that while that line was thin, it should never be crossed unless there is unquestionable proof to justify it. The astronomer was no physicist and he only knew the science of space, but he was sure by his calculations that the Mayans were right about what would happen to human consciousness after the apocalypse. His colleagues called his hypothesis New Age philosophy and that it would never stand up against the deafening scientific evidence to the contrary. The astronomer knew they were right, but he also knew that when the universe had shifted into an unbelievable ball of focused energy, the energy source within us would have no choice but to shift too. It was an elaborate prediction reminiscent of old age 2012 conspiracy theories and Mayan fanatics. He had every scientist in the Underground cringe every time he walked into a room. Science galas were a chore for the astronomer. Every conversation would start off with “so how is your Nirvana experiment coming along?” This was the nickname that was given to his project. He was not taken seriously, he was losing his credibility, he was the butt of every joke about the surface, and he was about to make them all eat their words.

  He took an elevator-type contraption down a few thousand feet. His body was adjusting to the difference in air pressure. With each ascending foot of earth he felt the weight of the world collapsing upon him. Approximately five hours ago he was at the surface of the earth; a place that he never saw as a child. The only exposure he had to the surface was when his father read stories to him about the old world and their Indian heritage; a culture that wilted away once the world united under one civilization. The young astronomer used to study pictures of the environment and he would imagine what it was like to dirty his hands in the soil and dig out worms.

  When he reached the surface and saw how it had changed, he was unsure of what he was seeing. He looked up and saw the night sky for the first time. There were steaks of color in random places and the stars twinkled almost mechanically. The ground was fluorescent and had a pulse. With every apprehensive step he took it beat softly creating a background rhythm amidst the silence of new earth. He had a contraption around his head reminiscent of an astronaut that fed him oxygen just in case the surface lost oxygen or the radiation levels were still fatal. In actuality, he could’ve been an astronaut walking on the surface of the moon; where all the other planets were within eye sight and gravity was nonexistent. Only he didn’t bob up and down as he walked, instead there was lightness to his steps allowing him to move faster while conserving energy.

  It was night and the stars were brighter and nearer than ever. He was tempted to reach for them, but in his peripheral he saw what looked like a tree. Only, this tree was twenty feet tall and fluorescent blue with gold leaves. He walked over to it and touched the trunk and it too had a pulse. He was in awe. The colors of the earth were vast. What was left after the apocalypse was a new world entirely. What was green was now more vibrant than before. What was alive yet immobile now had a pulse and a presence. He felt a sense of oneness with the earth unlike ever before and for reasons unknown, it scared him to death.

  He spun anxiously around looking at the transformed earth. He ran his hand nervously through his brown hair while taking in this alien environment. There was no sign of any creatures or birds in the sky. The moon was dangerously close and the grass was hugging his moon boots. He looked toward the horizon and all he saw were more fluorescent trees ranging in color. He walked over to a small body of water that looked like aurora borealis on the surface. Colors blue, pink, yellow and green were swirling and gleaming from the pond. He wanted to jump in and immerse himself in this new earth, but was too apprehensive. What if this was all an illusion or a mirage of some kind? Maybe the oxygen in his space helmet was up too high. He bent down to gather a sample of water. He steadily placed his brown hand on the surface when suddenly he saw a reflection in the water of a beast charging toward him at full speed. He fell back, turned to run away and there it was in the distance running at him like a bull. He backed away in a panic still on the ground and he saw the beast was a mammoth; the kind that he read about in science books that roamed the earth with dinosaurs. What in the world!? How could this be? He thought. The mammoth was getting closer and larger. He struggled to get back on his feet, but couldn’t get a grip on the fluorescent grass. “Oh no! Help! Somebody!” He saw fluorescent liquid splattering from the mammoth’s gigantic hooves. It was close enough to smell. He closed his eyes in a last attempt to shield himself. Maybe he won’t see me anymore if I close my eyes. Maybe I’ll just disappear. Suddenly, the beast stopped charging. The astronomer, whose eyes were still closed, slowly opened one eye at a time. To his astonishment there was suddenly a forest in between him and the mammoth. Just a few seconds before, the mammoth was only a couple of yards away and now there was a real rainforest that had shrouded him from being that beast’s dinner. He was stupefied. He looked for the small body of water that he saw before to see if by some miracle he transported into another place, but it was still there. The ground was still fluorescent, but the forest was not. However, it appeared to be unreal. It looked like it was painted.

  He touched the trees and the bark stained his hand with pastel brown. He began to walk deeper into the trees and they were all painted. There were birds chirping in the trees and monkeys swinging from branches. They too were painted. A monkey was eating a painted berry by the astronomer’s foot and he bent down to touch its fur. He smeared away the small strokes of hair and the monkey escaped into a tree to finish consuming his artificial food. The astronomer looked up and around and was trying to make sense of what was happening. The forest was spinning around him faster and faster until the colors blended together forming a whirlwind of colors. Then he stopped and looked up at the top of a painted tree. There, perched on a branch amidst burgundy strokes, was a toucan with an orange beak. He immediately knew then what it was that he was looking at. It was a memory from his childhood come to life.

  When he was five his father used to read him nursery rhymes and old fables before bed. Sometimes his father would add to the stories to make them more interesting and the little astronomer would help. This was a scene from the story of Tarzan: King of the Jungle where Tarzan first encounters the talking toucan that would become his friend and guardian. The young astronomer loved this embellishment more than all the other stories, because of the idea that Tarzan – although strong and mighty – needed a guardian to w
atch over him just in case he needed help. He also was fascinated by toucans and how colorful they were; and also an animal that talks is always a favorite among children. The astronomer stood in the middle of the pastel forest looking up at the bird and realized that this was a figment of his imagination brought to life. What was more is that he, himself, made it appear. He watched the toucan as it slowly descended toward him. It lowered itself until it was hovering eye-to-eye with the astronomer. He waited in silent anticipation as the toucan opened its beak when suddenly a beastly groan sounded in the distance through the painted trees. He looked back to see what it was and when there was nothing he looked back toward the toucan and it was gone.

  As he walked ahead deeper into the forest he could hear the mammoth pacing back and forth. He got to the edge of the forest where his creation stopped and saw the beast there waiting for the astronomer to leave his haven so that he could feast. It was then that the astronomer realized that what he had created was something from only his imagination and that is was real. And what’s more is that I did this out of a conscious need to protect myself. On the brink of pure desperation I willed my mind to create something that would shield me from the beast! His hypothesis had already proven true with the way the earth’s atmosphere and structure had changed. Now, he had discovered something that made his predictions look pathetic.

  The mammoth was eyeing his dinner. It was relentless. The astronomer wanted to turn away and escape, but he knew that the only way out was down through the elevator he came from. He had to pass the mammoth to get there. He thought of creating another shield, but the mammoth would still be alive and waiting to kill him again. Then he thought that maybe with his new-found power he could control the mammoth and make him stop. The astronomer stepped slowly toward the animal in a futile attempt to tame the beast. With his hand out he stepped closer and closer to the mammoth while the mammoth watched calmly. The astronomer was standing just under the beast’s gigantic tusks when the animal stomped its hoof and started at the terrified astronomer. He immediately fell back and cracked the glass in his oxygen helmet. Frantically, he ran toward the forest hoping by some miracle he would continue to breathe. He tried to cover the crack with his hand to keep in some oxygen, but the crack was too large. He finally decided to take in one last breath in hopes he could hold it until he reached the elevator. He hurled the helmet towards the charging mammoth. The beast chomped at his shoe, just missing his foot. The astronomer hurled his body in the forest and the mammoth roared in frustration. Then, in a reflex reaction, the astronomer gasped, but there was sparse air to take in. He was panicked trying to breathe in, but his breaths were short. He began to get light-headed and dizzy. This is it. His mind was in distress, but his body was quickly adapting to the shortage of oxygen. Then he realized that despite the thin air, he could breathe. The astronomer regained his strength and realized that he was missing a shoe. He needed a new plan. He realized that trying to escape was probably not the safest idea. He needed a way out; one that didn’t involve running away from a fifteen foot twenty ton hairy elephant. He needed to do something that would ensure his safety. He needed to kill the beast.

  The astronomer knew he needed to imagine something that would be able to kill such an enormous creature. He searched his imagination and thought of a shot gun like the one his father kept in a case by the front door of his childhood home. He thought of it, but nothing happened. He closed his eyes and imagined it, but it didn’t appear. Meanwhile the forest was beginning to fade and the mammoth was getting closer. Common’ brain! Create the shotgun, now! Still nothing. The beast was now one foot into the forest that had once kept him safe. The astronomer kept trying and the mammoth was gaining on him. The beast knocked down a tree with his tusk and the astronomer began to panic. Think! Think! Suddenly a shot gun appeared in his hands and he aimed at the beast and shot him square between the eyes. This only startled the mammoth and made him angrier. Now the beast was picking up speed amidst the astronomer’s collapsing forest. The man threw away the shotgun and thought of a machine gun he’d read about in war books. Miraculously, one appeared in his hands and he began shooting at the charging animal until it stopped. The beast’s fur was painted red with fresh blood. It was wounded, but not dead. The beast started for the man again with more force and anger. The astronomer was searching his mind for weapons to create, but they all seemed useless against the beast. It was difficult to think clearly in the face of danger. All of his natural instincts and compulsions were telling him to run away, but he knew that he could never outrun a beast that size. He fumbled through his memory files and remembered explosions. Hand grenades! Immediately a grenade plopped in his hand, he pulled the safety lever and threw it at the mammoth. BOOM! It hit the beast in his massive chest, but it kept moving. The man threw another one. BOOM! This time it tore off a tusk and the mammoth howled in pain. One more grenade went into the beast’s mouth. The mammoth swallowed and in an instant was mutated into a huge pile of prehistoric elephant guts. Unfortunately, the astronomer was under the pile.

  He frantically dug his way out from under the heavy carcass. He dug as if he had been buried alive and only had a few minutes before suffocating to death. The thought of dying under a heaping pile of mammoth insides made him dig faster. Finally, an arm appeared under the pile; then two arms, a head and a torso. It looked like the mammoth had given birth to a lanky astronomer, but he was alive. He climbed off of the pile and looked at the mess he had made. Who’s gonna clean this up?

  The Birth of Powers

  George Duncan had discovered the link that would change human existence forever; the ability to create something organically. He was about to usher in a new world where human beings could create things using only their minds. The environment had also undergone tremendous changes. The plant life was self-sustaining and vibrant. The air was thinner than before since the earth changed its place in the solar system. It was now amongst the other planets and there were three moons that dotted the celestial sky at a perfect angle. There was a shortage of animal life after the apocalypse, but the ones that survived had rapidly adapted to the radical change in the environment. Along with his change in human consciousness hypothesis, George had also predicted that there would be an ice age unlike any in recorded history. The shifting of the earth caused continental drifts and snow began to fall upon the earth for ten years. Eventually the continental drifts stopped and some of the ice melted, but the climate on earth was still colder than before. The animals that were accustomed to warmer climates, but survived through the ice age, rapidly adapted to the change in climate and produced a new species of polar animals. The sun had also changed its place in the solar system and was now like a distant star. It was still visible, however, but Gorge predicted that the earth would never see summer again.

  George was still reeling from his adventure as he closed the elevator door and prepared for his two-hour long descent into the Underground. The blonde woman on the LCD screen was advising him to put on his pressure safety helmet and lap bars. The cabin was the size of a small airplane that seated twenty people. There were five seats to a row and in front of each seat were a pressure safety helmet, oxygen mask, nausea mask, LCD screen and digiphone. The elevator rapidly descended at a rate of 400 miles per hour and Duncan was thankful for his pressure helmet. A few years back when he made his first trip above ground for some testing with Will Baker, a colleague of his, he thought he could travel without the bulky headwear. After Will insisted he put the helmet on, George refused and the pressure hit him so quickly that he felt like a crushed coke can. He had a migraine for three days because of that and vowed never to choose macho behavior over safety again. Will Baker said he was lucky that his eyes didn’t bulge out of his head.

  Approximately five hours later, the astronomer still dripping with mammoth guts, made his way to the lab to relay the outcome of his hypothesis to a group of already unenthused scientists. This trip to the surface was his last chance to prove that his resear
ch was verifiable. The head scientists were no longer willing to invest in useless trips to the surface when, according to them, it wasn’t habitable yet. George was given this last opportunity so that he would no longer annoy his colleagues with useless theories. He was given only a day to gather his last samples and enough evidence to prove that his hypothesis was correct and that human consciousness had changed. He would have to present his findings to a group of stellar scientists immediately following his journey back down. This was his last chance, but he was very unprepared for his meeting. He had only one sample from the pool of water he found and he was covered in mammoth insides. He had no time to change clothes or to wash the animal goo off of his scrawny body, but he walked into the lab as coolly as the president. The scientists were at a loss for words. Everyone immediately stopped what they were doing to gawk at the slimy astronomer. George walked to the center of the very white and sterile room and began to speak.

  “You’re all probably wondering why I’m late. Well, there’s a reason for that I assure you. As you all know I’ve made my last journey to the surface. Although most of you think that I was unsuccessful in f-“

  “George could you just cut to the chase and tell us if your nirvana hypothesis is true or not? We’ve got a lot of work to do,” an Australian scientist interrupted.

  “You want me to cut to the chase? The chase? Do you even know what it’s like to be chased by a twenty ton woolly mammoth!?”

  The scientists were rightfully confused.

  “Up there, you know, up on the surface of earth,” he pointed overhead, “things aren’t the way some of us remember them. There are some of us youngsters in this room who haven’t the slightest idea of what the surface looks like. We probably wouldn’t flinch if we saw that there were now three moons in the sky instead of one. Or that there were purple trees instead of green ones. Or that elephants have hair again! But if you’ve read a book or seen a picture of the surface you know that these things are beyond strange.”