The Archeon Codex: Guardians of the Galactic Sentinel Book 2

by Phillip Nolte

  The members of the expedition, having been pretty much ready since they boarded the craft fifteen minutes earlier, were on the ground with their equipment and a safe distance away from the quadcopter within twenty seconds. They watched, unable to suppress some justified apprehension, as the craft lifted off and soared back toward the safety of the island compound.

  "We' better get moving," said Erik. "Everyone within ten kilometers knows someone just got dropped off here. As soon as word gets around, the natives will start getting organized. We need to get on with our business and get out of here as fast as we can."

  Chapter 55. Agronomy Lessons.

  Earth, Theodore Roosevelt Island, October 16, 2676.

  After the expedition left for downtown Washington DC, Cyrus turned his attention back to the business of managing the compound. It came as no surprise to him that his workers were as fascinated with the Hordean as he had been, unable to take their eyes off the exotic creature. He allowed the men and women of his work crew to come over and meet the little alien, who graciously made time for them, patiently interacting with the workers and politely answering questions until Cyrus intervened.

  "Okay everybody," said Cyrus, "there's work to be done. There'll be more time to visit with Malus later." Only after he was satisfied that the unloading and reloading of the aeroplane was going smoothly and everyone knew what they were doing did he break away to take Malus on the tour of the island's farming operations he'd promised.

  Malus remained close by while Cyrus organized his workers, but seemed to be anything but bored. Immersed in totally alien sensations everywhere he turned, the Hordean was avidly observing any plant within reach. There were plenty of them for him to study. He would stop briefly at a new plant, brush the specimen with one of his manipulator tentacles, examine it with his multiple eyes and pluck a sample, or the entire plant if it was small enough, before stuffing it into a collection sack clutched securely by several of his smaller tentacles. He would then move on to the next nearest plant and repeat the process.

  "Sorry to keep you waiting, Malus," said Cyrus, "but there were some things that needed doing. I should have time now to show you what we grow here."

  "It is no trouble, Cyrus Keeling."

  They headed away from the collection of buildings and over into a maze of orchards and vegetable plots, entering the plots first.

  "These are some of the staple crops that grow well in this climate," said Cyrus. "Humans have been producing most of them for thousands of years."

  "What is this one called?" asked the alien scientist.

  "That's one of our most important vegetables. It's called a 'potato.'"

  "Ah yes, Solanum tuberosum."

  Malus stood at the end of a tangled row of nearly meter-long vines and caressed the foliage using two of his manipulator tentacles, remaining almost motionless as he interacted with the plants in silence. To Cyrus it looked like the alien was having a near-religious experience -- which may not have been too far from the truth! Finally, Malus withdrew his tentacles from the potato foliage and turned his attention back to Cyrus.

  "You must forgive my behavior," he said. "I am the first of my kind to interact with any of the plants on this world. The experience is almost overwhelming."

  "Can you communicate with them?"

  "Not in the way I believe you are suggesting. These plants are not sentient in the sense my people are. I can, however, read their chemical signatures through the sensory receptors on my tentacles and thereby learn a great deal about them. I can sense this particular plant is in need of several micronutrients, and it is somewhat overwatered."

  "Yeah, it rained last night. You can tell that just by touching it?"

  "I can."

  "If you're looking for ways our people can benefit each other," said Cyrus, "your people would be a godsend to anyone who was farming. Would some of you be willing to do that?"

  "I think any one of us would find the task both honorable and most pleasurable. The opportunity to learn would be difficult to pass up." Malus moved to the next set of plants. "And what are these."

  "Those we call 'carrots,'" said Cyrus. "You...We eat the roots."

  "Daucus carota. Fascinating," said Malus.

  As he had with the potatoes, Malus spent a fair amount of time communing with the carrots. They then moved on to the tomatoes, where the performance was repeated. They spent more than two hours in the vegetable garden, during which Malus asked questions nonstop, some Cyrus could answer and others he couldn't. Finally they moved over to investigate the rows of trees in the orchard.

  "These are...," said Cyrus.

  "...Apple trees!" Malus interrupted. "Also known as Malus pumila."

  "What?"

  "In your language, the scientific name for apple is Malus pumila. The name I use for myself when I am among humans was borrowed from this plant, the apple. I have, of course, seen holographs and studied many of your writings about them, but they are ever so much more interesting when I can examine them first hand."

  "Yes, of course," said Cyrus. "Well, you couldn't have picked a more useful species to be named after. Humans have been cultivating them for thousands of years."

  Malus spent more time in the apple orchard than he had anywhere so far. Since the orchard contained at least five different varieties, he chose to examine each of them.

  "The differences in chemical makeup are surprisingly subtle, yet there is a great dissimilarity in appearance among the varieties. Most interesting!"

  The Hordean stopped and, to Cyrus, almost seemed to look longingly at the rows of apple trees. "I suppose we must move on. What would you like to show me next?"

  "The next rows over are cherry trees. This region of Earth was once famous for its cherry groves."

  "Ah, yes," said Malus. "Prunus avium, a source of great visual pleasure for members of your species."

  "Yes," said Cyrus, "That and some of them taste good."

  The rest of the morning went by very quickly as the alien interacted with at least one plant of most of the species in Cyrus' garden, all the while directing a continuous barrage of questions about them at the plantation owner. It soon became apparent Malus knew a great deal more about the science of Earth plants than Cyrus ever would. As much, in fact as any professional botanist. Maybe more, his ability to immediately detect biochemical signatures and other interactions within the plants would be impossible for even the best of human scientists.

  Cyrus was a good enough farmer to know that with the help of the Hordea, he could vastly improve the amount and the quality of the crops he was producing. The possibilities for him individually and all of Mankind were mind-boggling.

  He wondered what Mankind could do for the Hordea that could possibly have an impact as profound on their culture.

  That was something both species would have to work on.

  Chapter 56. The Institute.

  Earth, Near the Smithsonian Ruins, October 16, 2676.

  Zack, Ariane, Erik and three Soviets immediately fanned out away from the exposed landing site in the middle of the mall and headed for the cover of the adjacent ruins. As soon as the team reached an area among the nearby buildings providing some cover, Ariane consulted the tracking device Symantia L'Proxa had given her.

  "It looks like our target is...that way." She pointed down a partially-blocked street towards a jumble of large buildings, all of them in varying states of decay. The team avoided clustering as best they could, to avoid concentrating their small force into clumps where attackers would have an easy shot at multiple targets. They quickly made their way over to the collection of buildings comprising what remained of the Smithsonian Institute.

  The assortment of buildings making up the formerly peerless museum was in a depressing state. Over the five centuries since all of North America's civilizations had collapsed, the once proud institution had been looted repeatedly. Anything of value had, no doubt, disappeared long ago. In many places there was evidence of fire.


  "Not a pretty sight," said Zack, surveying the scene. "Where do we start?"

  "Are we anywhere near the right place?" asked Erik.

  "This way," said Ariane as she turned and pointed down the street towards some of the smaller buildings. "It shouldn't be more than a few hundred meters."

  The group set out in the indicated direction and took a ninety-degree turn to the left after about fifty meters. Just a bit further on, Ariane called for a turn to the right. Finally, they came to a small, open clearing, an area that at one time in the distant past might have been a square or mall for patrons of the museum to take a break in. Lanes designed for foot traffic converged on the tiny square from all corners of the compass.

  "The tracking device indicates we're nearly right on top of our target," said Ariane. She fiddled with the device for a moment. "It looks like it's somewhere within a fifty-meter radius of this spot. Let me see…and it looks like we're about half that distance above it."

  "That means the object we're looking for is somewhere underground?" said Zack.

  "That's what it looks like," replied Ariane. "Remember, Symantia told us it was probably buried. We need to find a stairway or something going down."

  Erik and Zack went in opposite directions to investigate the ruined buildings ringing the open area. The three Soviets spread out to keep an eye the lanes leading to the square.

  "I don't think we're going to have much luck in this building," said Zack, from inside the ruined entryway of a fallen-down structure. "The roof is caved in, and there's nothing in here but rubble."

  "I might have something over here," said Erik, from the opposite corner of the square. "There's a stairway in this building going downward. Looks like it's mostly intact."

  While the Soviets continued to keep a sharp watch on the approaches to the square, Zack, Ariane and Erik gathered in the entryway of the partially intact building.

  "We won't know if this is the right place until somebody goes down there and takes a look," said Ariane. "From what Symantia told us, at least one of us has to be a Guardian. I have the homing device, so I'll be going in. Erik? How about you and the marines stay up here and keep us covered while Zack and I check this out. We can stay in touch over the com units in our armor."

  "Sounds like a plan," said Erik. "Just be damned careful in there."

  "You can count on it."

  Erik and the three Soviets each took up a position on one of the four corners of the square where they could keep watch in all directions for anyone or anything deciding to come at them. Ariane and Zack crept gingerly into the ruined building and worked their way over to the intact stairwell, stopping at the top of the stairs to switch on their helmet lights.

  "The stairway does look to be intact," said Ariane into her helmet mic, "at least as far down as I can see. We're going down."

  "Keep us informed," said Erik.

  Zack remained at ground level for the time being to provide cover for Ariane as she headed down the staircase. The original builders had spared no expense. It looked as though the stairs had, at one time, been covered in marble. Only shattered and scattered bits of the material remained, however, the best of it having been pilfered long ago. The stairwell structure itself seemed sound enough though.

  Without her suit lights, the trip would have been impossible for Ariane. Every surface was littered with rubble. The stairs and the rubble were, in turn, covered by a thick layer of dust that bore the marks of countless footprints. Here and there, a beam, a pipe or a bit of ductwork dangled down from the ceiling towards the floor and, in some cases, was resting on it.

  "Do you think it's safe for us to be in here?" asked Ariane

  "It's held up for five centuries so far," replied Zack. "I think it should be safe enough. We should avoid going anywhere we aren't really comfortable with though."

  "Not a very good joke, Zack."

  "I know. Sorry."

  The stairwell continued down to a landing where it took a ninety-degree turn to the left and continued downwards before spilling out onto the first below-ground floor. The scene there was much like it had been in the entryway and the stairwell, with pipes, beams and ductwork hanging down to the floor here and there in the large expanse, and dusty footprints everywhere. The floor may have contained a well-organized assortment of exhibits sometime in the distant past, but now all was in chaos. Glass from broken display cases littered the floor everywhere, and statues or other artifacts too large or not worth liberating were toppled and defaced, much like the same sort of things had been desecrated when the ancient Roman Empire was overrun.

  "We need to go deeper," said Ariane, consulting the homing device.

  "It's just as well," said Zack, scanning the area with his suit lights. "This floor looks like a hopeless mess. Anything of value must have been hauled out long ago."

  Things didn't improve much as they descended past the next three floors, each of which was as devastated as the one above. At each floor, the homing device indicated their goal was deeper yet. Finally, the stairs ended five floors below street level, making any further descent impossible. Ariane stepped off the final stairway and made her way cautiously out onto the bottom floor.

  "We can't go any lower," she said, consulting the homing device, "but it at least it looks like we're about the right distance down. Let's have a look around. According to this, we should be within maybe twenty meters of our prize." She swung around in a circle, holding the device at arm's length in front of her. "Looks like our target is over that way." She pointed towards a wall on the side of the room opposite the stairway.

  Ariane carefully stepped further into the room in the indicated direction and shined her helmet lights around. This floor was far from being a wide open expanse. Evenly spaced throughout the space, her lights exposed rows of massive beams thrusting out of the floor, holding the building up. Here and there was what appeared to have been a workroom or office space. Again, all of the glass had been broken out and several of the doors hung at odd angles indicating they had probably been forced open, and none too gently.

  A peek inside one of the rooms revealed what might have, at one time, been a work bench running along the back wall. Any of the tools being used or artifacts in the process of restoration were long gone. "Looks like this floor was a work area for stuff that hadn't been processed yet," said Zack.

  "I was thinking that too."

  The open spaces between the walled-off rooms looked much like the floors above, strewn with dust-covered artifacts, some still standing upright and readily recognizable, others toppled and broken, their original purpose not readily discernable. Ariane consulted the tracking device again.

  "That way," she said, pointing toward a workroom lining the back wall of the room. The two of them picked their way through the rubble, shadows from the various relics in the main room dancing disturbingly in their suit lights.

  With Ariane leading, they approached the workroom. Like many of the others, the door had been forced open and was badly battered and bowed. It was hanging at an angle, the top hinge broken. They went through the ruined doorway into the workroom. Ariane stopped and scanned the space with her helmet lights. "What's that over there?" she asked, indicating a double doorway in the far wall, its two doors also damaged from having been forced. When they shined their lights through the doorway, they discovered a passage through the foundation and into what looked like an access tunnel of some kind.

  "We're getting very close," said Ariane. "The homing device indicates our target is down that tunnel somewhere. Why don't you stay here, Zack, I'll go in and have a look."

  "Okay, just be damned careful."

  Ariane went through about three meters of the building's massive concrete foundation before entering the access tunnel. She could see immediately that the upper third of the tunnel had been dedicated to a fat bundle of now unused conduits and cables.

  "Looks like this was a tunnel for power and water lines," she said. "Okay, I'm going in."

&nbs
p; "Roger," replied Zack.

  Ariane found she could negotiate the portion of the tunnel not taken up with piping or cable by stooping slightly.

  "Looks like this was bored right into the bedrock," she said, shining her suit lights around. After taking a few more steps, she announced, "I think I see something up ahead."

  Ariane continued for several meters down the tunnel before encountering a perpendicular side branch off to the right. In the circle of light cast by her helmet lights, she could see the branch ended in what looked like solid bedrock after about five meters.

  "There's a side branch about seven meters from the entrance. I'm going in."

  "Roger."

  She made her way down the side branch and stopped when she could go no further.

  "Hmm…this ends in a solid rock wall," she said. As she scanned the wall, something about it looked familiar. "This looks promising," she said, as she reached out with her right hand and touched the blank expanse of wall. In response to her contact, the outline of an arched doorway appeared in the rock. The outline was of the same fluorescent green color they had encountered so many times back on Deimos.

  "Zack?"

  "Go ahead."

  "I'm pretty sure we've found what we're looking for. Erik? Are you listening in?"

  There was no answer.

  "I don't think he can hear you," said Zack. "There's too much rock in the way." Zack repeated her message to Erik. "We're down on the fifth level below ground, and we've found a section of exposed bedrock that was part of an access tunnel of some kind. When Ariane touched the wall at the end of the tunnel, the outline of a doorway appeared in the bedrock. It looks a lot like the doorways inside Deimos. Got any advice for me?"

  "I don't know that you have any choice but to go inside if you can," said Erik. "Just be damned careful down there." He paused for a second before continuing, "I hope what you're doing doesn't take a lot longer, we're starting to get some activity up here."