“Thanks for the offer but I’ll do it after I finish writing them up. No need to do it multiple times,” Taylor responded as he pulled his notebook close to his chest protectively.
Trying to distract Cooper from Taylor’s defensive response Aarik asked him about the quality of the photos, “How’d the pictures turn out? Were you able to capture it all?”
“Lighting could have been better, but we got some decent shots. Would be nice to figure out how they powered their lighting system but, until then, I ordered more lights. The men will need light to remove the rock in the tunnel without damaging anything else,” Cooper said, as he got up from the computer and loaded the SD cards back into the cameras.
“Great idea. Let me know if you need anything else. Tomorrow I want to study the clamps, we have to figure out how to release the crafts without damaging them. More men will be on site to dig out the next section by Thursday which will give us time to concentrate on the ships. Thanks for your help today,” he said in his friendliest voice, hoping he got the hint that it was time to depart.
“No problem, looking forward to the adventure it brings tomorrow,” Cooper said, then looked over at Taylor and said, “Looking forward to seeing your notes tomorrow, I’ve heard you’re an amazing artist.”
“Thanks. I’ll load them before I head to bed tonight. See you tomorrow,” Taylor replied with a straight face.
Aarik waited to speak as he listened for Cooper’s retreat. When he heard silence, he resorted to retelling his voyage through the tunnels to Taylor in an effort to bore Cooper enough to leave. It didn’t take long before they heard his footsteps retreating into the distance. Aarik walked over to the laptop and turned on some music to drown out their next conversation. “We are not going to have long my friend. The very mountain has eyes and ears, it seems, and even though Jones said I had two weeks, something in my gut says we have less,” Aarik said quietly. “What are you going to turn in for notes?”
“Only the first few drawings, which will only be a hand drawn version of the same thing he took pictures of. I have a few notes in the margins that will need to be modified before I scan them, but all of my translation pages will not be included. I think it might be best if I switched books and hid this gem for a bit. It has years of incriminating evidence that I can’t afford to get out,” Taylor whispered back anxiously. “From your description, I’m positive I’m right, Aarik. The entrance identified the chamber as the city of Vos’rok. The first hallway said Royal Quarters and the second one said Terra Lock. This was definitely an ancient underground facility, that housed roughly twenty royal families. There were twenty docking bays to match the number of families, and we know that only seventeen of the twenty escaped. What happened to the three families left behind? Did they die before they could leave? I mean I know Terra refers to the Earth, but the word Jump gives me pause. Are we talking about a way to jump off the planet? Is that how they are gone? We need to get in there tonight and see if your medallion is the key,” he finished, gasping for breath after his whispered tirade.
“Slow down. If we really want to be the ones that continue with this project and finish it to the end we need to proceed with caution. This discovery proves that an advanced technology existed on this planet long before we thought was possible. The government is already breathing down our necks and we have spies reporting our every move. I think we should wait until the early morning hours before we make our move and head back in to Vos’rok. It will need to be stealth-like, I’m talking dressed in black, the whole nines,” he replied, with urgency in a hushed voice.
“You’re right. I’ll sleep in my clothes and wait for you to come get me. Unlike you, I don’t sleep like the dead. Speaking of, how are you going to get up before the crack of dawn without an alarm?” Taylor responded.
“Not planning on sleeping. Supposed to meet with Kiya when she gets back from her Grandma’s to talk more about what she did today. Don’t look at me like that. It’s an innocent meeting, that she requested I might add, to discuss working out a schedule for when she can test again without worry of squishing anyone in the process,” Aarik replied, with as much innocence as he could muster.
“Look at you what way? Your attraction to her is obvious. You said you didn’t plan on sleeping and that you were meeting up with her. What would you expect me to think? I’m not stupid,” joked Taylor, with a devious smile.
“Not gonna lie, that woman drives me wild but she spooks easily. Our meeting will entail business with sizzling desire sprinkled throughout. Enough so that, by the end, I’ll need a cold shower, which will wake me up enough for a second wind and allow me time to take down all my thoughts from today. I’ll collect you around three AM,” Aarik said, leaving Taylor to finish his notes before he uploaded them.
Chapter Fifteen
Kiya
The drive to Grams was anything but pleasant. Her brain replayed the vision of the woman begging her to stop some unknown man from finding some unknown passage, on a continuous loop, enough so that by the time she arrived her nerves were frayed and she felt like she was going crazy. Her grandma was descending the front porch stairs when she opened her car door and didn’t stop until she was holding Kiya in a tight hug. “Who is she, Grams?” she uttered after she stopped shaking enough to speak.
“Who is who, my dear?” Grandma Tashina asked in confusion.
“The other night when you drugged my lemonade I dreamt of a young pregnant woman that looked a lot like you, but in ancient times. She was crying and talking in a foreign language until the end. I thought you would know since you were responsible for the hallucination in the first place,” she snapped back and regretted it immediately.
“I would hardly call adding some chamomile to your lemonade drugging you, young lady. I could sense you were tired and had a lot on your mind. When I made up your tea I added some chamomile to help you sleep, not make you hallucinate. Tell me more about this vision and don’t leave anything out,” Grandma Tashina responded, in a firm but gentle tone, as if she realized how close Kiya was to breaking.
Kiya finished detailing as much of the dream as she could remember to her grandma over tea she made herself, and was amazed at how much better she felt confiding in someone. It felt even better when she looked up at her grandma and saw acceptance instead of rejection at her crazy off the wall story. Without saying a word, her Grams got up from the dining table and headed into her bedroom at the back of the house. Kiya attempted to get up and follow, until her Grams waved her to sit back down. “Be right back, child,” she said and left with a burst of energy she hadn’t seen from her grandma in years.
“Don’t hurt yourself, Grams. I’ll still be sitting here when you get back,” she cautioned and was surprised to see her Grandma coming back up the hallway with a small jewelry box in her hands. She set the box down in front of Kiya and as she walked back to her seat she said, “Before you open that, let me tell you a story. The week before your great grandma passed, she gave me this box and with it the following warning,
'Upon your death you will pass me on
Mother to daughter over the millennium
Keep it safe, keep it hidden,
To speak of it is forbidden.
Shrouded in secrecy it denies escape,
He’ll come for the origin make no mistake
Break the cycle when you gleam
You are visited by me in a dream
Find the descendant from the royal race
He will be the one who makes chase
Together you have a chance at the final stand
Without him you will lose I’ve seen it firsthand'
“I have no idea how long this box has been in our family, but I’d say you had a visit from an ancient grandmother many times removed and that you, my child, have a destiny to fulfill. Go ahead, open it. Tell me if I’m wrong,” she finished with a sparkle in her eye.
Kiya pulled the lid off with caution and set it to the side carefully. The interior, lined in
purple satin, contained a brilliant amethyst crystal, no larger than her palm. Her hands shook slightly as she removed it carefully and held it up to the light. “How is this possible?” she gasped. It was an exact replica of the one from her dream, except now it hung from a black leather cord. “I don’t understand. I’m not crazy and this proves it, but all this thing brings is more questions,” she said, shaking the necklace slightly as she tried to make sense of her thoughts.
“Crazy as the rest of us I’m sure, child, but I must say, I’m feeling a bit disappointed. I believe I raised you to know that anything is possible. At least I thought I did,” she said, and shook her head.
“I’m sorry. You did,” she replied like a sullen child, hanging her head slightly in remorse.
“I think you’ve been away too long. But since we both agree anything is possible, I believe you will find the answers to your questions. I’m glad you came home, but you’re not going to find those answers here,” her grandma said with conviction.
“How the hell am I supposed to find some guy who belongs to a royal race? I mean, do I wait for some guy to chase me and then ask him flat out?” Kiya whined, while imploring Grams with her eyes for wisdom. “If someone was chasing me I don’t know how apt I’d be to shack up with them to save the world,” she said as a side note, scrunching her forehead together in concentration.
“I didn’t get the impression it was to be taken in the literal sense. I think it implies the guy would more likely pursue you romantically and, because you are stubborn, he would be forced to keep at it, if he was interested that is, hence it would be a chase. I could be wrong. Only one way to find out though,” Grandma Tashina said nodding toward the door.
Kiya bit her bottom lip as she thought about Aarik and his constant flirtation. Could his overtures be construed as a chase? Her grandma was rarely wrong, “Why do I get the feeling you are trying to kick me out? Don’t you want to feed me? I thought that was something grandmas got off on,” she said, as she put the necklace on and tucked it under her tank top trying to change the subject quickly.
“It’s in the oven, dear. Chicken dumplings, I’d already started them by the time I realized you were coming, so don’t complain about the peas,” Grandma Tashina replied.
“I don’t complain, when have I ever complained? I just don’t eat them. There’s a difference and you know it. I think if I’d made a fuss when I was younger, you would have made me do all the cooking. You raised me to be smarter than that,” she responded. “Can I take it to go? I have a meeting at nine with the archaeologist in charge, to discuss a working schedule for both of us.”
“Doesn’t give you much time. Your grandpa’s thermos is on the top shelf in the pantry. Should keep it warm until you have time to eat it later, after your meeting. Unless, of course, the meeting runs late. Maybe you should eat it before your meeting,” she winked.
“Grams! For all you know, Aarik could be a grumpy old man!” she replied in indignation, trying desperately to hide her growing smile.
“Well then bring him over next time you come down. I could use a distraction,” she replied demurely.
“I’m going to pretend we didn’t just have this conversation,” Kiya said in mock disgust.
“I’m not dead, dear. It should give you hope that life doesn’t stop after you’re old. I miss the companionship,” her Grandma answered truthfully. The thought of her Grams hitting on Aarik was comical causing her to giggle uncontrollably. She sobered quickly when she saw that her Grandma looked hurt. “Sorry, Grams, I wasn’t laughing at you. Aarik is not old, but he can be grumpy and bossy, not to mention sexy beyond measure,” she admitted with defeat.
“Ahh. Grumpy is easy to handle. You find out what makes them happy and give it to them. Bossy is okay if you make it known you only want to be bossed in the bedroom, as a compromise, of course. Problems solved,” Grandma Tashina said, as she handed Kiya the thermos and ushered her out the front door.
“No wonder Gramps was a happy man. How’d you find out what made him happy?” Kiya asked, not really sure if she wanted to know the answer.
“We only ever really fought when he was feeling deprived. As long as he had constant nooky he was a happy man,” Grandma Tashina replied with a wink.
“Wow. I think that’s my cue to take off. Thanks for dinner, Grams,” Kiya said with a smile, as she got into her car.
“Any time. Make sure you bring that Aarik around next time, I’d like to meet my future grandson,” joked Grandma Tashina, as she waved goodbye.
“Grandson, huh? Don’t think you’ve ever taken it that far before. I think I’ll hold out on bringing him next time, you’ll scare him away,” Kiya said, before she shut the door and drove away.
Kiya was making excellent time until she reached the dirt road and slowed down to save her poor shocks from more damage. Living in the Spokane area was rough on a person’s car. The roads were in such sad repair that cops determined drunk drivers by those that didn’t swerve to avoid the giant, car swallowing, holes versus those that did. Kiya hated driving at night on unfamiliar roads, she swerved to miss a large pothole that seemed to come out of nowhere and heard the undeniable swish of air coming from her tire.
“Dammit. Just what I needed!” she muttered to herself. Popping the trunk, she got out to begin the arduous task of changing a flat tire in the dark. Groaning, she pulled out the jack, tire iron, and donut they called a spare tire and cringed when she thought about driving back to camp on it. She grabbed the flashlight and cursed when she realized the batteries were dead. Instead she pulled out her cellphone and found the flashlight app as a backup light source, balanced it on a large rock precariously as she wrenched on the lug nuts with frustration.
Kiya looked at her phone and laughed out loud when she saw the time. It took her ten minutes alone to loosen the first lug nut, leaving only ten minutes to finish before she would be late for her meeting with Aarik. She tried to keep positive thoughts as she labored over the tire and repeated the mantra everything happens for a reason multiple times before she got the last nut off and wrestled the tire to the ground. “For all I know, this saved me from a deer,” she said, rolling the flat towards the trunk.
She wiped her forehead with what she hoped was a clean spot on her arm and paused mid wipe when she saw a car approaching. Kiya squinted towards the car in apprehension, when it stopped with the lights still on, she shielded her eyes with her hand and called out to the driver when the door opened. “Hey there. I could have used your help twenty minutes ago, those lug nuts were a bitch. I’ve got it under control now, though. Thanks for stopping,” she said squeezing her hold on the tire iron while she waited for a response.
“Never one to be a damsel in distress, I see,” Aarik said in response as he approached.
Relieved to hear his voice she relaxed her grip and laughed out loud. “Sorry, to disappoint you. I’m almost done but I’ll be crawling on this donut, meet you back at camp in say 30 minutes?” she offered, as she bent over to grab it.
“I have a better idea. Let’s get this tire on and park your car in that pullout twenty yards back. I’ll drive us to camp and we’ll have someone bring you a real spare tire. Never did understand the point of these things,” Aarik said, as he grabbed the donut out of her hands and had it locked and loaded before she had a chance to form a reply.
“I don’t know how I feel about leaving it out here. What if someone hits it?” she retorted when she finally found her voice.
“Do you have insurance?” he countered, while tightening the lug nuts with ease.
“Of course I do. Ugh! Fine. I’ll park it,” she said in defeat, throwing her hands up in the air in emphasis.
She stormed over to her car and wrenched on the door in frustration. The donut was a complete joke and by the time she parked she was pleased to leave it behind, although she would never admit it to Aarik. She reached over grabbed her stuff, including dinner, before she locked up and wandered over to Aarik’s waiting Jee
p.
She climbed in and closed the door before she said, “Thanks, I guess.”
“You’re welcome. How was your visit?” he said, ignoring her sarcasm.
“Um, good,” she said, grabbing the crystal unconsciously as she scrambled for a better response.
When she realized what she was doing she dropped her hand and peeked over at Aarik, who was staring at her quizzically. She cleared her throat, “We had a great visit, so much so, that I lost track of time and had to bring dinner back with me,” she said. She opened the thermos and waved it near his nose as a distraction.
Aarik took the bait when he took a deep breath and groaned out, “Chicken and Dumplin’s. Yum! You plan on sharing?”
“Don’t even think about it. I missed out on whatever Doris fed you earlier. This is mine,” she said and shoved a spoonful into her mouth, groaning exaggeratedly around the bite to rub it in.
“Not fair. The least you could do is give me a bite,” he whined, shifting gears to increase his speed.
“You’re driving!” she retorted, pointing her spoon at the road for emphasis.
“I’ll pull over,” he pleaded and looked over at Kiya pouting. “Come on, please. Just one bite.”
“Okay, but just one bite,” she relented with a sly smile.
He smiled victoriously and slowed to a stop. He turned towards her, closed his eyes and opened his mouth waiting for her to feed him. Kiya normally would have been offended, but as she put the spoon in his mouth and his lips closed around it, she imagined what those lips would feel like on other parts of her body. She removed the spoon slowly and shivered when he hummed his delight.
“Mm mm mm. Not sure if one bite will be enough,” he murmured, staring deeply into her eyes that gave her the impression he wasn’t referring to her food.
Kiya looked away first to break the connection, scared of the way he made her feel. She ignored his innuendo and changed the subject. “So I was thinking, since I’m not what you would call an early bird, maybe I can do my work in the late afternoon. I don’t want to stop your progress, but I need to be able to pinpoint the science behind what happened today.”
Sounds of the Forgotten Page 10
