The Perfect Moment in Peril

by Kenneth Preston

  How far had she descended? Where were her shadowy escorts leading her? What did they have to show her? Oh, right. Her mission. She had a mission to accomplish.

  The corridor was leveling off up ahead. Relief! Beyond that short stretch of corridor was an arched doorway. Her destination was within reach. She could feel it.

  Her feet reached the flat stretch of corridor, giving her calves a much-needed break. She peered through the entrance into the darkness beyond and shifted her gaze to the masonry that lined the doorway. A stone head―large eyes, pointed nose, a slit for a mouth―adorned the top of the doorway. The head was framed by, what appeared to be, some kind of ceremonial headdress. Carved floral designs framed the remainder of the entrance. She stopped just short of the entrance and regarded the designs. A head adorned with a ceremonial headdress surrounded by flowers. It wasn't difficult to guess what she was about to walk into.

  Moment of truth. She stepped through the entrance and examined her surroundings.

  A catacomb. Not much of a surprise there. What did surprise her was the size. It was immense, cavernous. Each clap of her boots echoed resoundingly before fading into the distant reaches of the enormous catacomb. Rows of faded white stone pillars formed rows on either side of the room, the pillars towering above to support a domed ceiling. Artwork that might have been the envy of Michelangelo graced the ceiling.

  Recesses carved into the walls numbered in the thousands. Reaching from floor to ceiling and stretching off into the distance, they were very precisely organized, symmetrically positioned above one another from top to bottom. The catacomb's architects had put a tremendous amount of care into its design and construction. Each sarcophagus was ornately decorated.

  At least that was her assumption. The ones she could see, the ones that weren't covered in dust, were ornately decorated. There were only a handful of sarcophagi that weren't covered in dust. There were only a handful of recesses that weren't filled with cobwebs. The contrast between the clean and dust-covered sarcophagi was striking. It wasn't a subtle difference. The few that were clean stood out like a sore thumb, and they were in the same general vicinity―off to her left.

  She approached the clean sarcophagi, the fear she thought she'd left behind returning as she counted. There were ten of them. Ten clean sarcophagi. The number of shadowy companions that led her to this place? Ten.

  She placed her shaking hands on the sarcophagus closest to her, considered trying to open it. She pulled her hands back. Bad idea. She didn't know why. She just knew it would be a mistake.

  She lifted her head. “Why am I here?!” Her voice reverberated in the darkness. “Why have you brought me here?!”

  “You were brought here to find The Designer,” came an unmistakable voice.

  She turned sharply as her crewmate, her friend, her surrogate sister stepped from the darkness. Emily's eyes widened. Last she'd seen her, she'd been on her way to this very island with Richard and Elexa.

  Deanna placed her hands on her hips, cocked her head to the side and said, “Let's go find The Designer together.”

  Chapter 36

  Richard leaned forward, brought his mouth close to Deanna's ear. “Shadow people?”

  The fairly large group of silhouetted figures moved toward them.

  Deanna shook her head, her hair brushing Richard's cheek. “No, this is something different.”

  The darkness lifted from the figure at the head of the pack. Richard was startled to see a human male. He had a beard, unkempt hair, was dressed in rags...and, adding to Richard's surprise, he was carrying a rifle, one not far removed from the type of rifles found on Earth in the 22nd Century.

  The darkness lifted from some of his human companions as they approached, standing dutifully behind their apparent leader, dressed in similar rags, carrying similar rifles.

  Ever the scientist, Richard's mind scrambled to make sense of the scene before him. Humanoids, he might have expected. But humans? There were countless variables that would have determined that any life form on this planet would have been distinct from any life form found in Earth's past.

  Were they transplants from Earth's past? Were they somehow able to avoid the Great Migration to the Community of Light just as he, George, Elexa, Deanna and David had? Did they make their way to this planet over one-thousand Earth years ago? If so, how many other planets had corporeal humans migrated to? Was there a chance for corporeal humans to thrive again without the need to begin the evolutionary process from single-celled organisms?

  As a corporeal human being, he could feel the excitement building within him, but as a scientist, he had to keep it in check. He was getting ahead of himself, and he knew it. He didn't have all the evidence. He didn’t have much evidence at all. And there was some evidence to suggest that what he was seeing was something else entirely.

  Then, of course, the group's apparent leader spoke and made his working theory a little more difficult to accept. “Welcome. We've been expecting you.”

  Richard whispered into Deanna's ear, “You heard that, correct?”

  Deanna nodded. “Correct, papa,” she whispered back.

  Richard wondered if he should respond or leave it to the captain. Hello was on his lips, just ready to come out when Elexa finally spoke up. “Thank you.” Her tone was cautious but diplomatic. “I assure you, the weapons aren't necessary. We're unarmed, and we mean you no harm. We're explorers.”

  The leader of the group nodded. "Captain Elexa Thomas, Lieutenant Deanna Kara, Richard Dentmeyer, we know who you are. As I said, we've been expecting you." He paused and glanced down at his rifle. "I apologize for the weapons. It's simply a precaution."

  Richard marveled at the man's tone. It was soft, comforting, at complete odds with a rugged exterior that would make most people a bit uneasy.

  “What do you mean you've been expecting us?” Elexa asked.

  The leader smiled warmly. “It is not for me to say. We were asked to escort you back to the Kingdom. I'm sure everything will become clear to you in due time.” He turned halfway and gestured toward the darkness beyond his group. “Will you come with us please?” Without waiting for a response, he and his group began walking.

  Richard, Elexa and Deanna remained in place, exchanging puzzled glances.

  Richard said, “Captain?”

  Elexa shrugged, “We have to assume Emily and David came this way. We're not gonna find them by turning tail and running.”

  “I agree. So we follow them?”

  Elexa glanced over her shoulder. “Lieutenant?”

  Deanna brushed past Richard and Elexa and marched up the trail after the group of soldiers. She glanced back and said, “That's a yes!”

  Richard looked at Elexa. “That's a yes,” he echoed before following Deanna.

  Marching along the path single file behind their mysterious group of human escorts for what seemed like an eternity, the trio remained silent, or at least Richard did. If Elexa or Deanna had spoken, he hadn't heard them.

  He was somewhere else at the moment, off in that little laboratory in his head, scrutinizing every piece of information that had been presented to him. The universe was an enigma. He knew that. He had spent a considerable amount of time pondering the possibility of intelligent life in the universe and, if it existed, what form it would take. His imagination had created many shapes, sizes and features. His imagination had created a multitude of scenarios regarding first contact with intelligent life on another planet. But nothing in his imagination could have prepared him for this. He, Elexa and Deanna were being led through the jungle by a group of, what appeared to be, human beings who spoke perfect English on an Earth-like planet. It was, to say the least, unexpected...and a bit overwhelming.

  It didn't make a bit of sense. If defied logic. But he was processing the information, moving it around in his head, formulating a theory. It was a rather bizarre theory, but under the circumstances, it would seem to make sense. Besides, after everything that he and his crewmates had be
en through, what did "bizarre" really mean anymore? Bizarre had become the new normal. But his bizarre theory was still just a theory. He needed to test his theory. He needed evidence.

  He broke into a trot.

  “What are you doing?!” he heard Elexa call from behind.

  He ignored her and kept on trotting. Deanna stopped and turned to face him, probably assuming that he was running toward her. He had just enough time to watch her jaw drop as it became clear that he wasn't running to her but past her.

  “Wait! Where are you going?!” she called out as he closed the gap between himself and the soldiers.

  He knew that it might be a bad idea. A really bad idea. They had guns. It was a strong possibility that at least one of them had an itchy trigger finger.

  He made the bad idea a little bit better by slowing to a brisk walk as he neared the apparent leader at the tail end of the group. The leader apparently heard his footfalls, turning to face Richard, a gracious smiling touching his lips.

  “Hold up,” he ordered his men. They did as they were told, turning and standing obediently behind their leader, their rifles pressed against their chests. It was quite an intimidating sight. Richard hoped he wouldn't fluster.

  Addressing the leader, Richard said, “I'm sorry. May I ask your name?”

  The leader's smile widened. It didn't seem artificial. It appeared to be a genuinely warm and gracious smile. “Of course. My name is James.”

  “James, I hope you don't mind my asking, but is any of this real?”

  James furrowed his brow. “I'm sorry, Mr. Dentmeyer; I don't take your meaning.”

  “I'm struggling with just about everything I've seen and heard since I've arrived on this planet. You, for instance...and your men. You're human. You speak perfect English with an accent that sounds native to 21st Century Earth, specifically New York or somewhere in the northeast.” He paused for a moment, looking for some sign of recognition in James' expression. He didn't find recognition is his expression, just confusion. “Does that sound familiar to you?”

  “I'm afraid that I'm not at liberty to discuss this topic,” James responded, his tone defensive.

  Richard wasn't ready to let it go. “May I ask why?”

  James looked past Richard. Elexa and Deanna were approaching. Looking back at Richard, his eyes filled with concern, he said, “I'm not at liberty to discuss this topic. Everything will become clear when we reach the Kingdom."

  Richard threw up his hands. “Kingdom? What kingdom? There is no kingdom?” He was feeling confident. He knew he was on the right track.

  Elexa said, “Richard, what are you doing?”

  “I just want a few answers.”

  “Papa, they have guns,” Deanna chimed in.

  "Yes, of course they do." To James, he said, "I'm going to get right to the point. I don't believe what I'm seeing...or hearing. Any of it. Those guns, you―it's all an illusion, isn't it? You're an illusion.”

  James smiled, but this time, there was nothing genuine about the smile. “If you'll just come with us―”

  “We're not going anywhere with you,” Richard interjected. “We're not playing this game anymore. We're staying right here...or better yet―” He turned on his heel, saw the expressions of horror on Elexa's and Deanna's faces, offered them a wink and placed his hands on their shoulders, urging them to turn around. “―we're heading back to the shuttle.”

  Elexa and Deanna reluctantly turned and allowed Richard to guide them a couple of steps away from the soldiers.

  “We must insist that you come with us,” James said urgently.

  “Or what?” Richard challenged him before turning.

  All rifles were raised and pointed in their direction.

  Richard chuckled. “You're not going to shoot us.” He took a step toward the soldiers. “In fact, I'm willing to bet that you can't shoot us. It's not possible. Those guns aren't real. If you can shoot us, then shoot us. Otherwise, stop wasting our time.”

  He turned to Elexa and Deanna and said, "Walk." The trio began walking in the direction from which they came.

  “Are you sure about this?” Elexa asked.

  “I'm a scientist. Trust me.”

  You are correct, Richard. It was a voice unlike any he had ever heard before. In fact, he wasn't even sure that he had heard it.

  “Did you hear that?” Richard asked as he slowed his pace.

  Elexa said, “Hear what?”

  “I didn't hear anything,” Deanna confirmed.

  They didn't hear us, and neither did you. We communicate telepathically.

  Richard stopped and turned, Elexa and Deanna following his lead. A group of tall, luminescent beings stood where the illusory human soldiers had been standing moments earlier.

  Richard gaped at them. “Well, that's more like it.”

  Chapter 37

  Sebastian and the collective led George to a circular lounge area with two plush curved sectional sofas facing each other. He sat and took a look around. The room was lightly colored with a set of huge bay windows that overlooked the shore and the ocean beyond. From that height, with the sun just beginning to peak up over the horizon, George could make out the other island in the distance. The height made it impossible to see the surrounding city from where he was seated, but George knew that if he stood at the window and looked down, he would see the city but not the conditions. They were completely isolated from the misery below. Yet, another example of the haves and the have-nots. The haves had put themselves on a pedestal so high, they would never have to look at the have-nots down below.

  Sebastian took a seat on the sofa across from George and crossed his legs. He gestured toward a pitcher of water and a tray of pastries on the circular glass table between them. “Thirsty? Hungry?” The pitcher was either a very well preserved relic from Earth's past or a recreation. His mouth watered slightly at the sight of the croissants and buttered rolls on the tray in front of him.

  “Not hungry,” he lied, looking up from the tray. “Just confused.” He scanned the room. Artwork reminiscent of some of the most famous pieces in Earth's history adorned the walls. There was a piece that was reminiscent of the Mona Lisa. Another piece was reminiscent of Starry Night.

  “That's understandable, and I'm sure you have a multitude of questions.”

  George chuckled. “That would be an understatement.” He locked eyes with Sebastian. “I wouldn't even know where to begin.”

  Smirking, Sebastian said, “Why don't you start with me?”

  George nodded, accepting the obvious challenge. “All right. Let's start with you. Who, or what, are you?”

  Sebastian raised his eyebrows. “What am I? Should I be insulted?”

  George didn't respond.

  “I am a human being. My name is Sebastian Díaz. I thought we'd established that.”

  George shook his head, keeping his eyes locked on Sebastian, mindful of the fact that five collective members were lurking behind him. “You may have Emily fooled, but you're not fooling me. You've somehow gotten into her head, recreated her memories, and you're exploiting the loss of her father. You're exploiting the fact that she's at a crossroads, caught halfway between here and there, between the physical and non-physical. She's having an identity crisis of epic proportions. She's vulnerable. She's sensitive. Her mind is wide open, and you're taking advantage of the opportunity her open mind has given you. You're taking advantage of her.” He paused for effect. “Does that sound about right?”

  Sebastian shook his head slowly. “That's some theory you have there. But I assure you, I am Sebastian Díaz.”

  “Impossible.”

  Sebastian leaned forward, placing his forearms on his thighs. “Not impossible. Improbable. But here I am.” He knocked on the side of his head a couple of times. “I exist. I'm real. And I'm really Sebastian Díaz. I exist in the only way I can possibly exist. You've seen a lot since you've met my daughter. You've seen things that you would hesitate to call a miracle, because you're a s
cientist, and you don't believe in such things. But what you've seen since meeting my daughter would be considered miraculous by most people. You've had some eye-opening moments, moments that have pushed the boundaries between science and superstition, moments that have caused you to question everything that you believe in. You think you've seen it all, but trust me, you haven't seen anything, not yet. But you will.” He gave George another smirk and sank back into the couch. “But this is not why you're here, is it?”

  George hesitated. He'd almost forgotten why he'd come to the tower. “No, I suppose it's not.”

  “Well, why don't we get to why you are here? Our guests will be arriving shortly. Do you know what you have to do?”

  George trembled. He hesitated a moment before saying, “I know what I'm supposed to do; I just don't know...” He trailed off. The fact of the matter was, he didn't believe he would be able to go through with it.

  “You don't know if you'll be able to do it.”

  “I just don't understand why I'm expected to do it. If you're so sure―”

  “We can't do it. This has been communicated to you.”

  “Right, it's an exercise in free will.”

  “And you're every bit as sure as we are; you just don't want to believe it.”

  George wasn't quite ready to acknowledge the truth, but the being who may or not have been Sebastian was right. The identity of the man sitting across from him may or may not have been a deception. But his purpose in coming to the tower was certainly not a deception. Certain walls were put up when One communicated telepathically with him; certain areas of information were off limits. The true nature of the man sitting across from him was among the areas that were off limits to him, raising more than a few red flags of suspicion in George's mind. But information regarding his mission wasn't off limits, wasn't a deception. That information had been communicated without any mental walls or barriers. When that information was communicated to him, he knew what One knew. One knew it was the truth, and so did George.