2032 Awakenings

By L. M. Reker

In 2032, Daniel McKnight, a high ranking government official and biologist, who has cofounded a state-of-the-art, cryo-preservation laboratory, aquarium and sanctuary, Noah’s Freezer, reveals a childhood secret: He has been in contact with extraterrestrials for most of his life. Daniel also has spearheaded a brilliant scientific team that recently succeeded in birthing a baby mammoth with an elephant as the host mother. A fearless Boston psychiatrist enters the action to help Daniel cope with the strangeness that surrounds him and the dark forces that seek to crush him. Their goal is to keep humanity in ignorance about the true nature of the universe and to lie about an enigmatic orb that has attached itself to the bottom of the International Space Station.

• Language: English
• Publisher: World Castle Publishing, LLC
• Release date: Mar 8, 2021
• ISBN: 9781953271846

L. M. Reker

L.M. Reker is an educator and Author and has written for many years with very diverse groups: gifted, developmental English, Humanities, and courses in critical thinking, up to his current position of college professor of English. He has written for an Associated Press newspaper in New Mexico, advertising agencies in Phoenix and LA, has helped write and produce two college texts, and became an assistant chair in the English Department after only one year with that group. He currently collaborates with Mr. Shein on various projects books and film.

Book preview

Chapter 1

The White Mountains of Arizona

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

Arthur C Clarke

Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.

Philip K. Dick

Daniel’s campsite was in the White Mountains of Arizona, the higher elevations in the lush Canadian life zone of Eastern Arizona with gorgeous blue spruce, aspen, ponderosa and a rich array of high country meadow grasses. He had done some field research in this life zone (over 8,000 feet); it was twilight, and he was getting ready to crawl into his tent. A full moon was about to rise over an enormous stand of conifers that were to the East of a small creek near which he had pitched his tent.

It was his senior year just before graduation, and he was completing fieldwork for a course in wildlife conservation biology in this area. He sat outside his tent near Corduroy Creek, a magically beautiful place—a favorite of his family. He was reflective, savoring the memories of past experiences, as he smiled at the thought of his numerous family outings.

As he was about to enter his tent, he was startled by a sudden brightness. As he stared upward, expecting a full moon; instead, he was enveloped in light, a light he felt was completely consuming. Its breath-taking suddenness took him by surprise. That feeling immediately gave way to terror as he began to be elevated above his campsite.

The area was awash with light from the indiscernible brilliance that pulled him inexorably toward that direction and from what was now a full moon over the conifer stand. Fear took over, and he flailed wildly, trying to get a grasp on something but knowing in his heart that it was impossible to resist what pulled him.

He screamed, "Oh my God, this is impossible!

He now could see the rough outline of an opening into which he was nearly entering. He discovered it was a tangible place. He thought his mind was about to shut down when he saw the interior of the craft. However, along with the terror, he was surprised there was still part of him that wanted to understand, and in that very thought, at virtually the very same instance, he became calm enough to observe what was happening, instead of closing his eyes—to hide from the reality.

The room revealed an environment that was brilliantly illuminated. He thought, Is it metallic, crystalline or pure energy? It was impossible to tell. In the background, strange silhouettes, some diminutive ‘grays,’ and a few beings with regular humanoid forms moved about in unknown tasks. One larger being supervised the others.

Daniel’s body was immobile except for his head. He was floated over to an examination table, and another burst of fear overcame him.

He screamed in his mind, "Oh Shit! I’m about to become a lab experiment." His demeanor became calmer as he heard a voice that entered his mind, a voice that utterly stunned him with its familiarity. He was not completely sure, but he believed he heard a more mature resonance of a youthful voice that he had not heard since childhood—Kelly.

He was placed on the table, and the voice reassured him there was no danger.

She was in back of him, and he couldn’t see her, Daniel, calm yourself; you’re in no danger here. Some of the things we do will seem awkward and disturbing, but you are strong enough to endure them. You’ll understand them all eventually, and they will connect to your future.

This shrouded obscure figure came around the table into view by Daniel’s side. He saw a true woman, but just barely. She was beautiful; her eyes, large and blue, were only barely visible in the darkness of the shroud, yet they communicated a flickering sense of compassion. He was not sure, but he thought he caught a glimpse of hair—perhaps blond.

She spoke, These beings that surround me in their collective minds will perform procedures that we all deem necessary. The ‘why’ of this will become clear to you in time. I’ll join you again in a while.

The grays returned and Daniel, still somewhat disturbed but resigned to his fate, accepted the procedures they initiate. He winced at the intrusion into his private parts, reluctantly accepted the discomfort, and endured the probes in his sinuses and ears very stoically. The grays moved with rapid efficiency, their gray dolphin-like texture occasionally scraping Daniel’s skin. The last thing was an indescribable instrument, something that could be organic but filled with a brilliant energy that descended to his lower abdomen, touched briefly, and then withdrew.

He noticed an odd triangle as a residual on his skin as he was elevated from the table and floated to a new area. The being that implemented his examination returned to supervise a new experience for Daniel. He now found himself in a sitting position encased in a mirror complex of indefinable dimensions with her voice coming from an unseen source. His abdominal area was covered with a blanket-like device that hugged his body proportions perfectly.

She spoke, Daniel, we have one more thing to do before our work is completed. Think of it as a gift, an old fantasy gratified, if you will.

Daniel found the will to speak. Can we talk? My head is swimming with questions—please, if you can.

The being said, Briefly, after you have this experience.

Daniel now lived an extraordinary interaction with the mirrors that surround him. He saw himself reflected in the mirrors, but he also engaged a growing physical connection to the thoughts that came into his mind. A childhood recollection—a walk in the woods with Kelly—now became the actual experience, including the smell of pine trees, the wafting of a cool breeze, the crunch of gravel beneath his feet. All were congruent with the visual experience of seeing. He experimented, thinking of a time he fell into a creek near the ranch. He was wet or felt it was so, and then, as the occurrence actually was at the time, it became great fun.

He ran with the moment experimenting with this new tool. Sights, sounds and feelings pulsated throughout his entire body. It was as if all his senses were expanded—visions were amazingly rich in color—tastes and sounds had bottomless depth. He wanted it to go on forever!

Suddenly, an unexpected appearance, a fantasy he cherished a couple of years before, enveloped him. At first, he was slightly embarrassed, but it was as if the fantasy was controlling the event. It was a sexual encounter he mythologized about a girl in one of his freshman classes—a beautiful redhead. She was now a virtual person—and he said aloud— My God, this is actually happening! After a period of intense arousal and sexual intimacy, he collapsed in exhaustion.

Daniel was returned to the examination table, where he was restored to the condition he was in when he first arrived. The grays exited, and he contemplated this strange place. Although solid, nothing had the exact appearance of metal or other hardened substance, but there was an indefinable quality of life in all parts of it. The other dominant feature of this place was the variability of light and its constant reconfiguration within this mechanism. His speculation ceased when the being returned to the room.

She spoke as she approached him, We’ve done this as a step in the program for your education. Daniel, it’s not the first—deep in your heart—you know—it will not be the last.

Daniel replied somewhat awkwardly, almost childlike, Are you Kelly?

The being removed her hood and revealed the head of a stunningly beautiful woman. In better light, he saw her blue eyes fixed to his, as he took notice of her other features: profoundly blond hair, nearly white, very different ears, which were discreetly smaller and in line with the curvature of her face, which was distinguished by an elegantly small mouth and slightly higher than average cheekbones.

She answered, I’m not the Kelly of your youth, but it was another of my kind who used a type of voice and tone that humankind responds to favorably. ‘Kelly’ is well but currently resides in another environment, very distant from this world.

Daniel asked, You said ‘my program.’ What is that?

She said, The world you live in needs a great deal of help, and you’re a person who can deliver that help. We’ll assist you in that endeavor. You’re not alone, so don’t carry the burden of it by yourself. You’ll remember this encounter, but also be aware that we, in other more subtle ways, will also teach you. In the deep parts of your psyche, you already know this. At this time, I’ll say no more.

He was returned to his campsite, drifted down to his tent, but he declined to go inside. He reclined on his back and stared at the stars—vainly trying to place the puzzle pieces of this experience into a coherent picture.

Chapter 2

An Ice Age Trek

The great herd of mammoths plodded along a tributary of a Siberian river. The matriarch of the clan had just engaged in a battle with wolves, a group that had attempted to attack her four-month-old infant. The wolves discerned a weakness in her calf, a strange gait that didn’t look normal to their penetrating eyes. This prompted these very intelligent predators to attempt a kill, even though attacking a mammoth under any circumstance was, at best, highly risky. The encounter did not last very long since mother was joined by two of her mature sons, whose formidable tusks could intimidate any Ice Age predator. The attacking wolves retreated through the high tundra grassland to seek out a better opportunity.

Her concerns extended beyond predators; her baby calf did not move as quickly as normal for an infant of her age. She would have to continually nudge the reluctant, tiny pachyderm more often than should normally be needed. She noticed that even in play, the little creature would often retreat from the frolicking of others her age.

Their southern migration continued as they formed lines adjacent to the tributary that in another epoch would lead to a major river, the Volga. Instinct told them that fall weather was concluding, and they needed to graze in more rich grasslands before they too would be blanketed in snow, making forging far more demanding. An Arctic storm front had been following the herd, a mixture of rain and sleet pursuing them. It began to erode the embankment on which they were traveling. They sensed the deterioration and veered more inward away from the crumbling land.

Their new direction took them into a more precarious situation, irregular marshland with unpredictable variations in water level and consistency of earth. The matriarch’s baby was starting to fall behind, and when she veered too far into a deeper area of the marsh, she started to panic. Panic turned into terror as she wildly and blindly began to advance without considering her actual position to escape to firmer land.

The matriarch saw her dilemma as she turned back to her to give her assistance. However, the frightened little creature had plunged into a murky quicksand that was starting to envelope her more and more as she continued to struggle. Mother, standing on the nearby firm ground, brayed in alarm as she tried to extend her trunk to her struggling baby.

It was all for naught. The matriarch watched her infant descend into this choking death. Their eyes met as the little calf brayed a last high-pitched squeak as she sank into the mire. The mother stared as her baby went out of sight. She had seen death many times and had administered her fair share to other predators. However, like all animals with the maternal instinct, she was pained profoundly by the loss of her newborn.

She raised her trunk and brayed to the gray, wet sky plaintively proclaiming her loss. She stood near this scene briefly but knew that separating herself from the herd would also place herself in great peril. She rejoined the rest of her company after one last look at the murky bog, where her only daughter now rested.

Within a few days, the body of the baby mammoth was completely enveloped in slushy clay and silt, sealing off any oxygen and microbes that would consume her soft tissue. Her carcass then experienced a surprising gift of preservation from another set of microbes that produced lactic acid, which would keep her flesh amazingly preserved for millennia to come.

The shifts in the river over time deposited her body into permafrost, where it was even better capable of resisting the entropy that consumes most living things. There she rested for thousands of years.

A period of great flooding, a 21st-century phenomenon that had become more frequent, released her from her captivity, and as chance would have it, indigenous people on a hunting expedition discovered her. They had seen her head protruding from a sand bar and were aware of such discoveries from other tribal groups who had come across such specimens as these.

They were also aware after carefully digging her out of the sandbar that she was exceptionally well preserved—perhaps the best-preserved specimen ever. They acted quickly, and a team of scientists was there the next day.

Little did they know that the unearthing of this creature was the first stage in her rebirth.

Chapter 3

The Seeding

A Neolithic European community near the Alps

Uta sat on a ridge overlooking her village and plucked several plump raspberries from her satchel, savoring the rich sweetness of each, as her eyes surveyed the reality of her beautiful, spring-engulfed world. The grass she sat on, the cool breeze that stroked her skin, the warm, caressing sunlight that amplified the depth of her amber hair, and the anticipation—the unbearable expectation of tomorrow’s ceremony, enveloped her with indescribable joy. The Great Mother, the goddess of all this exquisite life, would be honored by her and her people. The annual ceremony to the earth, the sustaining mother of them all, was imminent.

The Womb of the Earth was a sacred place where she and the others of their community visited annually to honor the Great Mother. Only the most foolhardy would dare enter its sacred space for a casual adventure. The trek into the foothills of their great mountain, the snow-capped home of the spirits, would take the better part of a day, an adventure she welcomed, since it would allow her to traverse the wildflower fields studded with arrays of gold, blue, scarlet, and some colors that were simply indescribable. She and her women companions would garland themselves with flowers and don their best-prepared furs and hides. Their men would carry the wise and very aged village dowager on her flower draped chair in front of their tribal chief, with the entire procession to be led by the village shaman, the oldest and most insightful man of their tribe.

Uta stood and looked at her world one more time from her secret lookout, and then she carefully descended down her forested ridge to the village below. She passed through some of her favorite places, the soaring fir trees, the wild raspberry bushes, and then by the open grassy meadow and the village lake, where she saw a flock of swans take flight to the sun and then cross over her enclave.

In her mind’s eye, she mused. There are so many living gifts from the Great Mother. Great numbers of them are unnamed. Words...words are so soft, so thin; they are like blades of grass in the wind.

She laughed, What a silly thing to say.

Then reflectively, she thought, Why do I feel such love for all this? The Mother’s way is so hidden.

The collective spirit they called ‘tribe’ was warm and immediate to her as she passed by and waved to village fishermen that adroitly speared massive pike and freshwater catfish from the shoreline of their lake.

Uta caught a glance from a young man, Egon, who has just thrown his fishing spear.

He shouted, Uta the Wanderer, Welcome Back!

She responded with a smile, hid her exhilaration at his recognition, and waved back.

She thought, Why do I feel so warm from his glance—another mystery of the Great Mother?

Women on a nearby lake inlet collected water chestnuts, hazelnuts and yellow water lilies. Passing a stream feeding this blue, crystalline wonder, village children played the games that their parents and countless generations before them were taught: Find the hidden child and capture the ball, this one made from tanned skins and a grass-stuffed auroch bladder. They cheered with delight as one young boy reached a stone monolith before the others could grab him.

Three little girls caught sight of her, ran to her, and begged her to help them arrange flowers in their hair. Uta, Uta, do the flowers to us the way you do!

She complied, talking with the exuberant little girls, In a few years, you’ll be doing this yourselves, as she weaved the multi-hued stems into their braids.

Uta, why can’t we enter the great womb like the others?

She gently replied, You know that all too well; you’re not women yet. Your time will come; the goddess will bless you, and you will share in the mysteries. She finished garlanding each one, embraced them, and moved toward the village.

She picked up her pace as the familiar lodgings came into view, a semi-circular enclave of lodge houses made of heavy wood poles, carefully thatched roofs and elevated to protect the tribe from unexpected predators. In the center of the semicircle were several cooking pits designed to allow the entire community their shared communal feasts.

Just before she arrived, Taga, her close friend, ran in her direction, accompanied by her beautiful silver Sheppard, Roamer, a dog who had been her constant companion since childhood.

She was excited and spoke in gasps, "Uta, the Traveler was right. The little life grains have been touched by the Great Mother! Come, Come, you must see!

She grabbed Uta’s hand, and they dashed to a patch of land on the edge of the enclave. Oats, wheat and chickpeas had sprouted with their little green heads just above the cover of the dark soil.

Taga, her words gushing, said, The Traveler was right; the little grains have the life force in them. Oh, I wish I could hug him and give him thanks. Look, their little green sprouts are exactly in the designs I dug in the soil.

Uta, astonished, knelt with her to inspect the new growth, something she and Taga had seen in the wild but never attempted to create by conscious design.

Uta grabbed her hand firmly and spoke, Taga, we must tell the Dowa; she is closest to the truth of the Great Mother.

You’re right; she’ll understand. Oh, how I wish the Traveler had stayed a little longer to explain this wonder.

The three entered the enclave and approached the lodge of the Dowa, the aged priestess of the Great Mother. They respectfully spoke her name.

Dowa, may we speak; it’s very important.

The priestess responded, Enter please, we always enjoy your company. What is this important matter? Does it concern tomorrow’s procession to the Womb of the Earth?

Taga paused to think, at that moment making a connection of the seedlings to the power of the ceremony, We don’t know Mother; I’ll explain. Six great moons ago, when the Traveler visited us, he gave me (as she opened her pouch and displayed a handful of seeds) these and said that they would create life. I only half believed him, but I did as he suggested. I cleared out a nice patch of land and played with several line designs, the kind we put on our pottery, except these were dug in the dirt. I stuck in a seed about a finger’s length from each other, watered them as he instructed, and now today they grow. This is beyond my mind.

She paused, and they waited in respectful silence as she finally withdrew from her pouch a flat wood tablet with a series of notches on it. You said six great moons ago (as she carefully scrutinized the placement of notches to each other). Did the Traveler say they would be born at this time?

Taga reflected and then spoke, I’m not sure, Dowa; I believe so.

Dowa sat quietly, invoking experiences and connections in her mind to formulate a thoughtful response. Let’s decide what to do with this after we visit the Womb of the Earth. I feel confident that this wonderful gift has a use. Our quest for nourishment encircles all of the Great Mother’s creations, but these magic grains bring a special power with them.

Then with a smile to each and joining their hands together, she said, The Great Mother will give us direction; of this, I have no doubt.

***

At first light, the entire village was stirring, each person knowing his or her role. Cantu, the shaman, regaled in his bear robes and animal fetishes and crowned with deer antlers scurried about getting everyone ready. The men carried torches, firewood in backpacks and offerings for the Great Mother—several carried drums. The women packed food for the evening, red ochre, and their goddess figurines. The procession left the village with the first light as children waved good-bye with their elder caretakers.

In the slow ascent through the foothills to the home of the spirits, they paused in a stand of evergreens to watch an elk herd spook and head to the highlands; a wolf pack cautiously eyed the group as they paused for everyone to collect wild almonds, berries, medicinal roots and wildflowers.

A massive formation of geese traversed their path, braying their distinctive call as several men facetiously imitated their sound while the women giggled at them.

The orifice of the Womb was not noteworthy, just sufficiently large to allow entry by robust adults. However, the gravity of the ceremony about to be performed and the collective power it held over the group transfixed everyone’s attention. When it was finally in full view, it was mostly inconspicuous in the shade of an overhang.

They all averted their gaze from it by preparing themselves for the evening, which was rapidly approaching. Their individual work, each in preparation for this Spring Rite, was accomplished silently. They consumed a modest evening meal as the last light of day gently faded.

The men lit the torches, which were passed to every other man and woman, as the shaman led the Dowa to the entrance to allow her to be the first to enter the lips of the Womb. He followed her as the careful procession cue silently entered the cave. Uta had a position in the middle of the procession, carefully holding her torch through the narrow entranceway. She had performed this ritual five times before, but her fascination with the place had not diminished.

The first room was modest and revealed some stalagmites with just a few fetishes hanging from them. Uta knew well about the labyrinthine depths of the cave, whose actual dimensions and the full complexity of passageways were thought to be known only by the Great Mother. Several people placed offerings, and a few inserted carefully swathed bird eggs in wall niches.

The next orifice was larger than the original entrance and allowed quick passage by the entire group into the inner sanctum chamber of the cave, the great hall. The collective torches revealed the convoluted ceiling of an immense world, one where the limits could only be dimly perceived at the other end of the chamber, where ceiling and floor finally converged to a rough point like some vast cone. This was the place of the altar of the Great Mother.

The group methodically moved in that direction, as the light of the torchbearers moving among stalagmites and stalactites created macabre tricks of shadow and image.

The group paused near an adjacent passageway that was the stuff of legend in their community. In complete silence, they listened to the very distant rush of water, the pulsing blood of the Great Mother. This was also called the Path of the Lost Shamans, dedicated to the brave souls who entered its way and never returned.

The group paused one more time by several large niches at the base of some dominating stalagmites. The Dowa and Cantu stopped and lowered their heads reverentially and placed their hands over their hearts as they paid homage to the burial grounds of the many village priestesses and shamans who had preceded them.

They finally arrived at the stone altar divided by a centerpiece that was a life size ancient goddess figure seated in her chair. The assembled villagers formed a partial semicircle facing their Great Mother altar and placed their torches into holders behind them. Cantu and the Dowa stepped forward and broke the silence.

The Dowa spoke first, We honor the Great Mother by renewing her spirit. Then she gestured to Taga and spoke, Renew her essence.

Taga stepped forward and with a container of red ochre; she silently smeared it over the extraordinarily exaggerated contours of her gigantic egg-like breasts, massive thighs, and very pregnant abdomen. Her facial features were rudimentary below her braided hair and upturned stare.

Cantu spoke as Taga finished her duties, We know not the creators of our Great Mother’s image. They lived beyond the reckonings of the comings and goings of the moon. They were different than us, but they understood her power and mystery. We honor them and our kin who have passed into spirit because we all share the earth together.

As Cantu removed a handful of the ceremonial herbs from his shaman’s bag, the Dowa spoke, Bring the cups and the broth of life. These were brought to the altar, as several communal wooden bowls are placed on the stones adjacent to the goddess statue. Two large bladders were placed next to them as Cantu removed a handful of mushrooms from his pouch and carefully divided them into bite-sized segments with his sharp obsidian knife (a gift from the Traveler). Each participant moved forward, took a mushroom fragment, and returned to their original places to wait for the passage of a cup.

The Dowa, Taga, and several others carefully poured the broth into the bowls, and they were passed among them all. They chewed and swallowed the mushroom washing it down with the herbal concoction.

Uta consumed them with great anticipation, a mixture of excitement and fear. She knew that the sacred herbs produced feelings and insights that would influence her for weeks to come—perhaps all of her life. The thing they called ‘second sight’ would allow her a communion with the tribe while revealing parts of her nature that are both gratifying and frightening.

She thought, What is fear compared to the power of the Great Mother?

The drummers began a slow rhythmic beat, and then, as if one single entity, the group began to sway and dance with an un-choreographed harmony. The tempo of the drums increased as the group began to move with complete abandonment, together and then with the individual expression of each person.

This continued until a strange imperative took hold of each one. For some, it was a journey into their own selfhood, and they elected to curl up quietly in their furs to allow this connection. For others, it was the familial joy of bonding and talking in heightened fellowship.

The potency of the drink and mushroom changed Uta’s senses, as the cave became crystalline even in the dim torchlight of this inner sanctum. It’s as if her compatriots were haloed in their own spectrum of light. Quartz deposits on the wall of the chamber glistened and twinkled magically. She swayed, absorbed in the exquisite strangeness. She closed her eyes and saw her blood coursing through her veins in her eyelids.

She thought, Do small streams of blood travel my body like the rivers of the Great Mother above and below?

Her body’s heat heightened even more as she felt a presence near her.

She turned, and facing her with longing eyes, was the young man, Egon, with whom she has had only a few but significant dialogues in previous days, the same fisherman who greeted her the day before—the one who called her the Wanderer. They shared a look that was unmistakable for both, and they retreated to a more private part of the cave.

Finally, after many hours, they all gave themselves up to blissful sleep, the sleep of joyful children who have been granted the wonderful boon of returning to the peace and tranquility of their Mother’s Womb, this one, their created surrogate, the Great Womb of the Earth.

***

Slowly the congregation of the Earth began to stir. Several ignited their torches, and they prepared their exit from the cave. The gathering finally initiated their trek downward from the mountain to their home as they greeted the rising sun.

They were silent, each in his or her reverie of residual experience from the previous night. Uta and her ‘Womb’ companion, Egon, walked near the front of the procession.

Later in the day, as the sun became more luminous, they were coming into the proximity of the village. Uta caught a faint flicker of light on the horizon; it seemed to be approaching the right side of the peak that shadowed their village.

She rubbed her eyes and focused intensely at this unexpected phenomenon. Its brightness increased as it came closer to the peak. A few in back of them began to notice this aberration. Their pace accelerated, now with each individual in the group starting to take notice.

Egon spoke, Is it snow geese?

Uta responded, It’s becoming brighter. I don’t see birds.

A woman exclaimed in back of them, What could it be!

They all picked up the pace as if drawn to something that is both very attractive but singularly frightening.

They all stopped suddenly as the anomaly became clearer. The collective confusion was palpable, and a wave of concern passed through the group. There was nothing in their realm of experience to define or compare this to anything anyone has ever seen.

Slowly, inexorably, a brilliant metallic disc of enormous size, flawless in shape and perfectly smooth with its surface reflecting flickering sheens of unimaginable brightness, approached the backside of their village mountain.

Exclamations arose from the group. This was beyond excitement; it was a breathtaking contradiction to the collective reality of their world. Everyone was riveted to its incomprehensible dimensions as it passed out of view behind the peak. In frenzied excitement, they finally reached the lake and entrance to their village.

They exclaimed, Only birds and clouds fly!

What was that shining thing; it’s...it’s so smooth?

Where do the colors come from?

What could possibly be so perfect? Is that a word?

Arriving at the comfort of their enclave and their communal eating area, trying their best to frame in language something that eclipsed language, they gestured and frantically reached for the sky.

Uta thought, No words can capture this.

They all suddenly paused; a deep humming sound trumped all of their noise, as everything seemed to vibrate.

Uta looked up toward the peak and fell to her knees, and shouted, Goddess!

Everybody with faces upward saw the disc they witnessed earlier, as it emerged from the mountain as a bird would pass through a cloud, completely unaltered in its magnificence. It now hovered over them, as the villagers were bathed in blue light, their skin tingling with a strange vibration and a humming sound that overwhelmed all others.

***

Within the great disc, a cadre of beings, diminutive and gray, silently affixed the villagers to examination tables. They were now naked and bound to the tables by an unseen force. Their terror was indescribable.

Uta cried out, Mother, help me!

A voice intruded into their minds, one of sublime calm and certitude, Calm yourself; we’ll do you no harm. In unison, their exclamations became silent, as their gasping was now relaxed breathing.

Uta felt a presence other than the grays flanking her table. As she was about to speak, a bright light from the table and above her saturated her entire frame. She was astonished as her body became transparent. Even in her reclining position, she could see arteries, veins, her skeleton and view her heart and lungs laboring inside her rib cage.

She thought, I’ve done this before...in the cave, but this...this is so much clearer!

Busy hands now inserted metallic objects into her ears and nose. Uta, who has resigned herself to her fate, addressed the figure she believed was near her. Who are you? Where do you come from? Do you serve the Goddess?

The figure came from in back of her to face her. She was robed with only her face revealed, clearly humanoid, with large ingratiating eyes, slender lips and a gracefully small nose.

Uta bravely exclaimed, You are like us. How could you make such a thing as this?

A faint smile appeared on the woman’s face. She spoke, We share a common line, an ancestry if you will. It is very ancient and far-removed from this world. We come from those brilliant lights of the night sky—we call them stars.

Uta asked, Are you gods?

No, we are humans, just like you.

Uta, staring at the grays, spoke, Who are they?

They come from a different world, a different ancestry. The only differences between us and them are our times, places, and methods of evolution, an idea your progeny will come to know in the distant future.

Uta declared, You use strange words. I don’t know what you mean..

You will.

Uta asked, What are you doing to us? Why have you bathed us in this strange light?

The robed woman smiled, We’ve given you a gift that is not apparent to you now but will benefit you in ages to come. We are humans like yourself, and we visit humans such as you on other worlds. We are making changes in your bodies that you and your children, and their children for many generations, will alter things in your future that you cannot even imagine in your current state. You will learn the full truth of this in a very distant time. For now, live your lives with honesty and courage in all the places you travel.

She continued, We will not be much longer, and all of you will only remember this experience as symbols in the deepest parts of your dreams. For you, however, something grows inside that you will soon cherish and adore. Peace and love to you and all your kin.

That night a restless slumber enveloped the entire village as their dreams of light and falling were interrupted by unexplained touches by things unknown. With the morning light, Uta ran to Taga’s lodge and roused her from her slumber.

She shook Taga, Wake up! I have an idea about your magic grains. Come, we must visit the Dowa.

Taga finally got up, and the two staggered off to see their priestess. She was awake and acted as if they were expected.

The Dowa looked at Uta and spoke, Let’s make a plan about the grains; I know you come here for that very reason.

Uta, surprised said, Taga and I can take her grains—she still has many in her pouch—and, if we plant more places, we can help feed the village. We wish to work together. It will be a wonderful gift from the Goddess.

Dowa smiled in assent, I will propose this at our next village meeting. We’ll need help to prepare the land. I know the Goddess will bless this. The two left thrilled with the prospect of fulfilling the Traveler’s gift.

The next day, Uta found Egon by the lake and excitedly told him of her plan. He embraced her as she made another request.

Egon, I must return to the cave.

He looked at her skeptically and replied, Would that be the right thing to do? Would the Dowa and Cantu approve of such an action? More importantly, would we trespass into the Great Mother’s world?

We both know others have done it. I want to show you something that I’ve thought about doing."

He smiled and agreed.

The next morning they exited the village before everyone had begun to stir.

They arrived at the cave later in the day. Uta had a large pack with her that held several stone knives and colored powders. Egon lit two torches, and they both entered the first chamber. They moved carefully until they found a section of cave wall that was relatively flat. She extracted the tools from her pouch and placed them carefully on the ground with the bags of colored powder.

She planted her torch near the flat section of the wall while Egon held his