There are few moments in most people’s lives when their breath fails to escape their lungs. The first time I saw my wife in her wedding dress was the only other time I’ve been this breathless. I’m no poet and have no words to illustrate the view before me, but I’ll try. The doorway opened to a room approximately 50x30 feet with walls as black and the granite on the exterior. The ceiling was only about thirteen feet high but also the same slab like granite as outside. However, the feature that captured my and Crystals attention wasn’t the shape of the room but the singular feature along the back wall. Directly center of the thirty foot back wall sat an 8x5 cover stone that projected a view of the solar system and galaxy beyond. Even trying to describe this wall failed to capture the magnificence of it. The resolution and detail were beyond anything I’d ever seen or experienced in my life.
We stood together in the presence of art so profound it rendered me speechless for minutes. “Francisco, you—you could have given me a heads up.”
“Would you have believed me if I told you?”
“No,” I paused, “I guess I wouldn’t have.”
I’ve taken part in many archeology projects over the years and had a feel for what I’d find. I expected to see dirt, and I expected darkness. The antechamber was as clean as any room I’ve ever seen and the... and the ‘Galaxy Wall’ bathed the room in a soft shimmering glow. The lack of imperfections of the walls or seams complimented the beauty of the Galaxy Wall at center.
After a few minutes of hesitation, I walked up to the Galaxy Wall. Anxiety caused my knees to quiver as I stood less than two feet away. The light from the cover stone reflected off the walls. Upon closer inspection, this cover stone was not granite. The material had a glass-like quality to it. I felt like I could reach out and touch the planets and stars that hung in the distance. Our sun shone in the middle of the slab and upon closer inspection could see the flames and flares. The planets appeared to rotate slowly, and I fought off the urge to reach out and touch Earth. It was beautiful beyond description.
The strange language Dr. Alvarez spoke of earlier was superimposed under the moving backdrop like a watermark on paper. I’d seen the language before, but the hieroglyphs gave off the same familiar feeling to them as the ones in Guatemala. I don’t know why, but I felt like I should understand the language.
“They’re moving, Francisco.”
I hadn’t seen him walk up, but he stood behind my left shoulder.
“You noticed that, did you?”
“I’m confused. Is this a bad joke? It’s artificial. The Mayans didn’t build this!” My voice raised the more I spoke. “Francisco, we’ve been friends for a long time, if you pulled a practical joke on me...”
“It’s real, my friend.”
“THE HELL IT IS!”
Francisco closed his mouth and met my eyes, and I felt silly yelling at him like that.
“Dad, what it is?”
I started when I heard Crystal’s voice, and I’d forgotten she was here.
“Why are you so upset, Dad? I think it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
I looked at my daughter for the first since entering the antechamber. Tears streamed down her face as the glow of the Galaxy Wall reflected off her eyes. These were no simple tears of sadness but tears I’d expect when coming face to face with a God. I took a calming breath.
“I’m upset because what you’re seeing can’t exist. It’s obvious it’s not made by the Mayans. It is artificial, and only industrialized nations produce things like this.” I stared at it for a few more moments.
We stood in silence as Earth slowly turned on its axis. I had so many questions and needed answers. But, I didn’t even know where I’d find those answers. I only knew one thing for certain; we were the wrong experts needed to solve this riddle.
###
"Francisco, how do we continue?"
"I'm not sure, John. We don't want this leaking out."
"Think we'll have another Guatemala incident?"
Francisco rubbed the back of his neck while considering my question. "It's possible we could be in more danger."
I've suspected since Guatemala that a drug cartel stood responsible for the incident. Later investigation of the site showed looting and massive excavation. Looting robs all the people of Guatemala of their history. They found a submerged city in Lake Atitlan a year later but who know's what they lost at our site?
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
"Who's been in here besides ourselves?"
"Juan and a few laborers who punched through the dirt. Pedro came to get me after its discovery."
"Pedro?"
"Oh, he's one of the camp guards."
I didn't remember Pedro, but it didn't matter. I didn't recognize half of Francisco's team this year. The number of staff we had here was insane and will probably cost our benefactor millions by the time we’re done here.
Francisco and I made our way around the interior walls looking for any irregularities in the surface. Since I first laid eyes on the Galaxy wall, I couldn't shake off the sense something was wrong. The whole project seemed shady. The money spent on this excavation exceeded any job I've ever worked. Most projects receive funds from known donors, but the money spent here was off the charts. The prospectus I reviewed in January gave no sign of anything this monumental. What about this location convinced someone to sink so much money into it?
"I can't vouch for your guards but keeping something like this a secret isn't wise, we need to take precautions."
"What do you have in mind?"
"My brother works for the US government in security. We should check if he can bring his team down for a while."
"John, I'm not allowing your government to take this project away from me."
"Me? Francisco, I'm not suggesting they steal the project but if a drug cartel comes at us again who will stop them?"
"We're guarded this time."
I couldn't believe Francisco was fighting me on this. After spending weeks being starved and treated like we were, you'd think he'd jump at the chance for better protection. If a drug cartel came after this site, how could his guards protect those working here?
"Francisco, are you trying to tell me that if an armed militia attacked, your five-man team could protect four dozen people and the artifacts?"
Francisco continued rubbing the back of his head and paced back and forth. "Um. I don't know John. You'd need to run it by Esmeralda and see if we can afford extra security."
"Is there a budget for this project? I've yet to see evidence a budget existed. Can we afford not to bring in more security?"
"It's not that easy."
"What's hard? Don't you remember what we went through in Guatemala?"
"It's just... Fine. You're right. We can't risk losing everything, but I’d rather hire guards myself."
"How can you be sure anyone you bring in won't betray us in the first five minutes? Give me a break. You and I both know drug cartels infiltrated every aspect of the Mexican government and most of the local villages. I bet half your laborers are trying to figure out how to contact them as we speak."
"Fine. We'll ask Esmeralda to get the funds, but I keep control."
And there it was again, ‘I.’
###
Dr's Landry and Banuelos joined Francisco and me in the antechamber for an impromptu meeting. I sent Crystal back with Juan to work with Michael for a few hours while we sorted out our plan of action. Allan just might save our lives.
"I can't allow bringing your brother here,” Esmeralda said emphatically. Dr. Banuelos was against involving anyone with US government ties.
I raised my voice in protest to her stupid logic. "Our guards aren't skilled enough, and can’t trust the locals for security. If a cartel attacks us, we're as good as dead."
"It doesn't change my answer, Dr. Haws. I don't trust your government any more than the cartels."
"We're not talking about my government. We are talking about my brother and his team. They've been providing security services around the globe for years."
"What guarantees can you give me your government won't try to take over?"
Dr. Landry cleared her throat. "Dr. Banuelos, what guarantee do any of us have against government involvement from Mexico? I agree with Dr. Haws. We need to increase the security. It's clear this isn't a Mayan temple. We need to protect the artifacts and the site?"
Esmerelda ground her teeth in frustration and glared at Francisco. "And you signed off on this?"
Francisco said nothing, so I answered for him. "He agrees we need professional help. I'm not the only one who realizes this is alien." Esmeralda chuckled and gave me a look to belittle me. "Oh, give me a break. I can't be the only one here who realizes there isn't an industrialized nation on Earth who could produce that wall."
Nobody spoke for a few minutes while my words sank into their overstuffed minds. When your intelligence exceeds the vast majority on earth, you often miss seeing the nose on your face. We all knew this Galaxy Wall wasn’t from the Olmec, Aztec, Inca or Mayan's. I doubt it'd be possible with today's technology to duplicate it either.
"OK."
"Okay?
"Call your brother, but I agree with Francisco's concern. We are not giving control up. If they try to take charge, I'm kicking them out of camp and call UNAM for more security."
A breath I hadn't realized I was holding escaped and the tension I felt moment before fled. I wanted Allan here because my daughter Crystal would be his number one concern. His best friend, Kenny Morris, was Crystal's adopted Uncle. I knew Kenny would move heaven or hell to protect her.
Our meeting moved on to other topics, and after a half hour we broke up. Michael and Crystal would work with me on the translation first thing in the morning. Since I had help tomorrow, I asked Francisco if he'd make sure we had workbenches and lighting brought in.