The Journal - Beginning.txt
THE JOURNAL March 30th, 2048 Its been three days since I entered the portal. It occurs to me that this could be a parallel universe, or another dimension, or something of that kind, but I cant be sure. I can, however, be sure that that I am no longer on Earth. At least not the Earth I knew. Three days. It seems like yesterday, and yet so long ago. Four days ago, I was sitting in my office high in the Rockies, looking down on the excavation site, watching them remove the rock and rubble from the ever-expanding hold in the side of the mountain. Bucket after bucket of rocks and sand traveling the rails from the depths of the cave to the surface, to be dumped into growing mounds on the side of the dig site.
As I watched the trucks heave their latest loads off the side of the hill, my executive officer, Declan Michaels, walked through the door that connected my office with the rest of the installation. Even though he knew that I was aware of him, he waited patiently for me to acknowledge his presence. Finally, I turned away from the sight out my window and strode to my desk. What is it, Declan? I asked, casually returning his salute. Sir, weve found something. I think you should come take a look at it. Michaels replied. I considered him for a moment. Declan wasnt a man who startled easily. After 15 rather extraordinary years in the Marine Corps, he was an impressive man. Almost six feet tall and nearly that broad, he was intimidating to say the least. But at that moment, his face registered something Id never seen on it before, a twinge of fear. That rattled me, as Declan had seen combat in more theaters than anyone else I knew in the force, and even being a civilian advisor, I knew that if this man in front of me was scared, there must be something deeply fucked up going on. I motioned to the door, Lead the way, Major. We walked through the installations corridors and down the massive stairways to the ground. Exiting the installation, I was once again staggered, as I was every time, by the sheer size of the cavern. Over 100 feet wide at its widest, a large jet could have fit in the opening and hand room to turn around in the initial chamber. The cavern system was discovered intact within the mountain, and my corps of engineers had been working steadily to expand the size to take advantage of this peculiar natural feature. So far, we were finished with the initial chamber, and the connecting tunnels, and we were starting work on the other rooms within the cavern system. No one knew exactly what we were doing with the cavern after it was finished, but all of us suspected something deep and dark and mysterious from some alphabet soup government agency. With the plans that we were following, it looked as though they were building an entire city down below that mountain. They had rooms that looked like they were for computer equipment and some for barracks. I wonder if Ill ever find out what it actually was for. We walked through the massive main entrance to the cave and plodded steadily through to the back of the cavern where a small opening led deeper into the mountain. Through the door, I could see the string of lights that engineers had strung along the cavern ceiling to provide a modicum of illumination to the workers as they made their way further into the heart of the earth. Deeper and deeper we went, passing all of the old work and gradually we arrived at the newer work sites, where workers gradually chipped away at the rough walls, smoothing the rough edges, making them wider and safer for human travel. The lights thinned towards the end of the cavern, as the workers hadnt erected as many strings yet, and the shadows grew in length and breadth, almost taking on a life of their own. Each way I looked, I kept expecting a pair of eyes to be staring out of the shadows, stalking the wandering humans, wondering at the invasion of this deep place. Finally, we reached the end of the corridor, and emerged into a chamber almost twice the size of the initial one. If the first could have landed a 747, this one could have landed three, side by side, and stood the space shuttle launch pad in its vertical space. I stood for a moment, dumbfounded at the sheer size of the space. I honestly wondered if the mountain was just a hollow shell. The cavern was illuminated by giant spotlights at the four cardinal points, pointed at the roof. The reflected light illuminated the space and highlighted a peculiar feature, dead center, in the chamber. It took my eyes a moment to adjust to the light, and when they did, it took them another couple seconds to focus on the strange object in its conspicuous position. A large, smooth, black obelisk stood in the center of the chamber, each side polished to a mirror shine. Blacker than the original darkness of the cave, it created almost a negative space, a place where nothing, not even light, was. It defined the absence of space. Carefully, but without thinking, I walked to the obelisk. The monument stood almost 20 feet tall, perfectly cubical, and eerily shiny. I reached out a hand to touch the side. Major Michaels pulled me back from the stone, What the hell are you doing? he shouted. I was examining the surface, I sputtered. I didnt want to admit to him that I really didnt know why I wanted so badly to touch the thing. what was the flash, then? he asked. I stood looking at Declan, dumbfounded. What flash? I think wed better head back to the base. Well call for some backup, more scientists to study the thing. In the meantime, we can continue with the rest of the site until we can move this thing. That sounded an awful lot like an order, major. No, sir, just an opinion and a suggestion. Damn his smug manner. I couldnt even reprimand him now. Fine, lets go up. I followed him back out through the tunnel system. Odd, I thought all the workers are gone. We passed ladders, tool belts and scaffolding, but not a soul was in sight. The shadows seemed larger and thicker as well, and the loneliness of the cavern threatened to close in forever. Finally, we walked out into the initial chamber and were bathed in the warm light from the Rocky Mountain sun. Blessed warmth worked its way back into my arms and legs, colder than I had realized after trekking through the caverns. I shivered involuntarily as I turned to face the marine officer beside me. To my surprise, he was meters away, speaking on a radio I hadnt realized he had. Furious, I stormed up to him. Major! What the hell is that? I demanded. A wave of his hand was all I got for an answer. Yes, sir. Completely black. Thats right sir, completely black. About 20 feet to a side. The damn squint touched the thing, too. Damn squint?! I nearly screamed, pulling the radio out of his hands. Damn squint? I put the radio to my ear, Who the hell is this? I shouted into the microphone. This is General Dodges, came the cold reply, and I suggest you calm down, Dr. Matthews. Youre no longer in charge of that installation. At those words, I looked back up to Major Michaels. A handgun had materialized in his hand, and the muzzle was pointed directly between my eyes. Im sorry to have to do this, Dr. Matthews, but give me the fucking radio. Dumbfounded, I passed the phone back, my eyes never leaving the weapon. I thought you appreciated this project, Declan. Youve got it all wrong, doctor. Its you who doesnt appreciate this project, at least not the combined scope of it. Did you think this was just an exercise in engineering? Then what the hell have we been doing? I asked. Building an underground military base, of course. This installation, however, has the distinction of being the first one built in a set of caverns once occupied by another society, a species so ancient it makes the dinosaurs seem like a recent addition. That piece of stone back there is all thats left of their civilization. Our military intends to be the first to examine it, since our analysis tells us it took more energy than our sun could produce in a year just to compress that block. What are you talking about, Declan? I pleaded. Its a chunk of obsidian, probably formed by natural causes. No, doctor, that block is a chunk of hyper-compressed diamond. He paused, looking down at me, waiting for it to sink in. Diamond cant be compressed further, I said. Thats what we thought, too. As I said, General Dodges has an extreme interest in this cavern. This is now a military operation. You will be restricted to the fourth floor of the temporary installation until we can get some helicopters out here for you and your scientist and engineers. The Army will handle it from here. You bastard, I made no effort to keep the rage from my voice. Major Michaels motioned to someone behind me and almost instantly two pairs of hands seized my arms and pinned them at my sides. The two marines behind me led me insistently away towards the temporary structure. Awash in rage, I let them lead me away, all the while cursing slowly and fluently under my breath. When we came to the fourth floor of the base, the marines let go of me and stepped back in the elevator. Doc, Im sorry, the larger one said. On the bright side, youve tough a couple of marines a whole new batch of foul language. He chuckled as I ran towards the closing door. Too late, my fist impacted with the metal door where his face would have been. Later, nursing my broken hand with a makeshift ice pack, I sat in front of my computer looking over the images sent back by the remote Major Michaels had sent back into the cavern. Every angle of the obelisk had been photographed in every available spectra, and in each photo, the black monument stood as a silent tribute to the lightless reality of the cavern. The only change was in the x-ray films, in which the obelisk showed up completely white, but with a solid black aura. Slide by slide I worked my way through the pictures, each one almost exactly like the other. Finally, I reached the laser topography picture. Lasers were used to sketch a 3-dimensional image of the obelisk. I leaned forward in my chair as I realized that there was nothing there, and the LasTop picture shoed only the inside of the chamber. What the hell? I thought. I flipped back through the rest of the photos, making note of the time, and flipped past the LasTop images to the next set. The obelisk was still there, no doubt about that. Why did it disappear with the Laser Topography? Was it something about the wavelength of the lasers light? Damn Michaels, I silently cursed, I could be down there right now, figuring this thing out. A vision crossed my minds eye, the elevator door unlocking and opening, and the elevator car there waiting. I struggled to stand up, overturning my chair in the process. My hands clutched my head as I stumbled down the hallway, pain searing the front of my brain, waves of fire cascading to the back of my skull and down my neck. Just as suddenly as the flash had come, it went away, along with the pain, and I stood in the center of the corridor, looking towards the elevator. The door stood open, waiting. Blinking a couple times to make sure my eyes werent playing tricks on me, I walked into the waiting maw of the elevator cab. The doors closed on my view of the corridor and the cab descended to the bottom floor. The doors opened on an empty first floor hallway. It was the same hallway Id walked down a thousand times before, each time on my way to the mouth of the caverns. I had never seen it this empty, though. Usually, there were office workers, day laborers, and other essential staff wandering hither and yon on their way to something important. Today, though, the corridor was completely empty. Every office door along its length stood open and only the safety lights were lit. I caught sight of the outside through a lower story window, and to my astonishment saw that it was dark out. I checked my watch and was even more surprised to see that it was almost 0200. How long had I been staring at that picture? Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I walked down the corridor towards the exit. I reached the end of the hallway and pressed against the door. Not surprisingly, it was solidly locked. A chain falling off the outside of a door surprisingly like the one in front of me. A wire in a box burning through. The exterior lights dimming and going out. The searing pain reared its head again, cascading from my eyeballs down my spine. Even my toenails hurt this time. I managed to keep the scream back to a small whimper while I desperately clutched my head, trying to keep it from either falling off or falling apart. I wasnt sure which. Again, the pain left as suddenly as it came, and when I could stand to open my eyes again, the door was open, and only darkness lay beyond. I looked around, making sure I was still alone, then continued forward, through the door and into the cool night air beyond. Even in the summer, the air at the top of this mountain, high in the northern Rockies, was almost arctic at night. I wished Id had the foresight to bring my jacket. No turning back now, Matthews, I chided myself. Shivering in the frigid air, I made my way along the same route I had memorized many months before. Even in the dark, I could find my way to the cavern. At the back wall of the chamber, I could see, to my relief, that the string lights were still lit. Swallowing my fear, I stepped through the entryway into the caverns corridor and followed it down until I arrived at the obelisk chamber. A voice sounded behind me as I crossed out of the corridor into the chamber. I figured youd try this, Dr. Matthews, Major Michaels said from where he stood behind me. I dont know how you got out of the installation, but I cant let you go any further. Im going to give you this one chance to turn around and come with me back to the complex. You can take this offer or Ill shoot you. I turned slowly around to face the large marine. In his hands, he held an M16 rifle. It was braced on his shoulder and he was looking through the sights, centered on my chest. Pain washed over me, so severe I could only clench my fists and writhe on the floor. No visions came with this flash, only searing, burning, stabbing pain Convulsing on the floor, I retched again and again, each time bringing nothing up, and making the pain no better. I could breathe again, and my eyes tracked to where Major Michaels was standing. He wasnt there. A smoldering pile of greasy ash, burned plastic and glowing molten metal was the only sign that he was ever there. Oh God, what have I done? I struggled to my feet and spun around, feeling a pair of eyes watching me. Nothing was in the chamber except me and the shadows. What a pity, a deep masculine voice said through the darkness. Screeching, I spun around to face the obelisk. A dark figure sat atop it, his shadow creating the image of a man with a canine head, clothed in a cloak. He sat with one leg bent, foot flat on the top of the obelisk, and the other leg wrapped around under it, leaning his elbow on his upright knee. An eerie glow lit his shadowy form where his eyes would be and the dim glow from the string lights in the corridor reflected off an impressive set of canine teeth. He did deserve it, though, trying to keep you from your destiny. What the hell are you? I asked, backpedaling away from the cube and spreading myself against the back all. What am I doing? I asked myself. The being chuckled and unfolded itself, sliding off the cube to land gracefully on the floor of the cavern. I am your destiny, William. I am your teacher, I am your friendand I am your enemy. As it spoke, it stepped closer. Each step graceful, bringing it closer to the light from the hallway. I am a god, but yet, Im mortal. Most importantly, William, I am your savior. How the hell do you know my name? I asked, almost frantic. The creature just tapped its head with one clawed forefinger. Its all in here, William. Youve got it right on the forefront. And perhaps I should mention the last, most important thing, it said as it stepped into the light. Its face, though very canine in appearance, looked familiar. Like someone Id known forever, but hadnt seen in a while. The light made it apparent that the creature was most definitely male, he wore a black cloak with a silver streak at the shoulders, the hood pulled back now, and nothing else. His white teeth gleamed as he pulled his lips back into a smile. He leaned his muzzle in right next to my ear and whispered, Im you, William. I stood stock still, not even daring to blink, What? The creature settled back on its paws, withdrawing its head a bit, Oh, not as you are now, William, he said as he turned and started pacing. Im you as you shall become. Im what youve always been destined to be. He turned and stepped closer, until his chest pressed against mine. He stood almost a foot taller than me, and he craned his neck down as he towered over me. You have a purpose, Dr. Matthews. Pictures of lifetimes, some mine, some not, ran across my minds eye. Pictures of places Id never been, places Id never seen. Pictures of people, both human and others like the one standing in front of me, and still others even more different. Finally, a picture of a dead planet, smoke filling the air, choking out the remains of a dead-wood forest. The pain flowed through my head again, but this time it was less intense. My head still wanted with all its heart to implode, but I felt like it wouldnt. Its getting clearer, isnt it? he asked. The visions are clearer and the pain is less. Still too stunned to speak, I just nodded. Youre passing the test, William. Even now, youre changing. You must come with me. I will take you to a place where you can become what you were always meant to be. How can I trust you? I asked, already convinced, even against my better judgment. You already do, he replied, extending a paw. Cautiously, I put my hand in his. From the corridor came the sound of footfalls, more than 20 running men. We must hurry, the creature said, pulling my hand. But where? I asked, looking behind us to the door of the chamber. He stopped in front of the obelisk and pulled me in front of him, his arms firmly upon my shoulders. A picture of a red desert with a pink sky and a yellow sun, views from the mouth of another cavern. When I could stand to open my eyes again, we were standing exactly where my vision came from. I was looking out the mouth of a cavern, nothing but endless red sand stretched out in front of me. The sky was an odd shade of pink, and the sun was a bright yellow. A hot wind blew in fron the sand, carrying with it a substantial amount of dust. I turned around, my back to the wind. Where are we? I asked the creature, who was busy behind me unrolling some fabric from a bundle. Where did he get that? I wondered. He picked up the fabric, a cloak exactly like the one he wore except there were two silver stripes on the shoulders. He tossed it to me. Were elsewhere, he replied. What the hell do you mean, elsewhere? I demanded, catching the cloak. As heavy as it looked, it was surprisingly light and airy, yet it felt as though it would keep me warm through many cold nights. Were not on Earth any more, at least not your Earth. He stood up and bowed a head. You must trust me. Theres too much to explain right now. Just put the cloak on and well get some food. I just nodded and pulled the cloak over my shoulders. It fit perfectly. This creature knew a lot more than he was letting on. I crossed the cave and sat down across from him while he dug in a pocket and came out with, of all things, Meals, Ready to Eat. H tossed a brown, plastic package to me and pulled his own open, dumping the contents on the floor of the cave. I watched him for a moment, then did the same with mine. After adding water to his heating packet, he passed his small water sac to me and I did the same. We sat staring at each other while we waited for our meals to heat. What did you mean when you said that youre me? I asked. I meant just that. Im you as you should be and as you may become. Unfortunately, Dr. Matthews, our time is limited, and Im afraid I must do most of the speaking, otherwise, you wont be prepared when I leave. What do you mean, leave? I asked. You got me into this mess; you cant just leave me here. I have no intention of leaving you here, Dr. Matthews. When I have finished explaining, I will take you to another place, where you will be safe until you decide to follow your destiny. The people there will show you the ropes and theyll teach you. We will meet again in the future, when youre ready. I have no idea what youre talking about. Who are you? You may call me Will. Its easier. As I said, Will continued, I know you have no idea what Im talking about, mainly because you havent been prepared. The obelisk gave you a great gift, but it also gave you a great responsibility. Its my job right now to tell you whats happened to you. He pulled his MRE package out of the heater and tore open the top. With the plastic spoon, he began to shovel it into his mouth. Gingerly, I did the same. Between bites, he started his tale. When you touched the obelisk, it felt something within you. It felt that you could handle the power it was about to give you. You have been chosen, Dr. Matthews. In the history of the worlds there have been only 6 chosen. Of the six, only four have survived the training. The other two were consumed by the power and it corrupted them. One of them was the beginning of your myth of Lucifer. Morning Stars greed overpowered his will and he became obsessed with the power, pushing the limits, crossing the lines. The other was driven insane. The power short-circuited her brain, and she became the myth of Loki. Of course humans turned her into a him, but its her nonetheless. I told you this so you could realize the kind of power that has been granted to you. Both of them were compared to gods on the human Earth. Of the other four, three try not to interfere with human culture. The fourthwell, thats up to you. But I started, but the words fell off. Why you? He laughed. I havent figured that one out. You have become a traveler of worlds, William. I will take you to each one, where you will stay until you are ready to continue. The people there will teach you about your powers, and they will teach you about themselves. What you do after that is entirely up to you. What if I decide I dont want the power? I asked. That too is up to you. But I warn you not to give it up until you know more about it. Entire civilizations could be altered if you choose that course. Whatever you choose, know that the stakes are the highest they could possibly be. Finished with the meal, Will gathered the wrappers and stuck them into a pocket in his cloak. H stood up and offered me his hand. Are you ready, Dr. William Matthews? I shook my head, but put my hand in his paw and let him pull me to my feet. No, I said, But Ill go anyway. Braver words were never uttered, he replied as he turned towards the back wall of the cavern. Once again, he pulled me in front of him and placed his hands firmly on my shoulders. A picture of a peaceful village surrounded by trees on all sides and warmed by a temperate red sun under a light lavender sky, children looking remarkably like Will played in the meadows, and men and women smiled and laughed with each other. And the journey began.