EarthUnder (The Meteorite Chronicles Book 1) (25 page)

About the Author

E
dwin Thompson has traveled the globe since childhood, in search of rocks from space, fossils, and man-made artifacts. For the past thirty years he has hunted meteorites and lectured on cataclysmic impact, meteorite identification, and meteorite hunting around the world. His efforts in the field have produced countless world-renowned specimens and successful meteorite hunters.

He is a short story author and a science fiction adventure novelist. He has written articles and short stories for
Rock and Gem
magazine and
Gemfaire Quarterly
. When he’s not dreaming of ideas for his next novel, he’s racing off to find another rock from space. Edwin has a background in Archaeology and Geology, and he is one of planet Earth’s leading field experts on meteorites. You can visit him at
www.etmeteorites.com
.

From the Author

I
have taught and mentored a nearly countless number of people over the years how to hunt meteorites. Many of those enthusiastic hunters have gone on to be far more productive and successful hunters than I could ever dream of being. You could say that I taught people to fish. This is a huge network of humans who now support many others within their third world countries. In many cases they now live in better conditions than I do. Mostly, they are desert dwellers who had very little to begin with. Now, many of them live in large homes and have healthy families. This was always part of my plan, to save the children. I went into this part of the world as a child and I saw the hunger and the poverty and hated it. This has all been the result of a decision to help stamp out hunger and poverty. I could never have dreamed of the success it has grown to be.

Sneak Peek

Book II of
The Meteorite Chronicles: ThunderSky

Connection

T
he wind breathed oxygen through the trees. Everything from the smallest blade of grass to the tallest tree in the forest waved in a symphony of motion to the beat of the gentle breeze. The air chilled the skin as it carried off the body’s heat. I sat warming by the fire, hypnotized by the dance of flames lapping at the logs in the pit. Night air took over the day. Jasmina and I were taking this time to mend from our losses. She was in the cabin getting a few things while I tended the fire. She hummed melodic tones that echoed over the meadow and into the trees. This was the moment of time between day and night when everything goes silent and one can almost hear the turn of the Earth. The final glow of daylight sank into the forest to the west, while the stark white light of the moon hinted at rising in the east. For a time, the stars were so bright one could read by their light.

At any distance, Mina and I share our thoughts and feelings. She silently listens while I pore over endless memories of past events. This new capacity of memory, knowledge, and recall seems to offer no help in dealing with the dread of what’s to come. I can see the horrifying technology created by the Teranor for their invasive endeavors. I can feel the heartless greed of their consumption, planet by planet. I can feel Jasmina trying to calm me, but I can also feel that she can understand and relate to my thoughts of extreme concern. It comes to mind that I have some powerful friends here on the surface that might be recruited to help us with what is to come.

As I glared into the flames, the faces of countless friends around the planet appeared while I began to formulate an idea. There might be a way to connect open-minded people from my world with Terans in a way that would allow us to work in tandem. We would empower humans to deal with the Teranor, utilizing the powers and strengths of the Terans of EarthUnder.

I had never forgotten the experience I had years ago when I first traveled to England to spend extended time with my friends Vic and Kathy Roberts. We had met years earlier and ended up traveling together for almost a year, seeing the world and enjoying life in other cultures. When I first met the two of them, they struck me as magical. Kathy appeared to be more than just a human. Her elfin size, her permanent smile, and serene, youthful, sparkling, powder blue eyes and knee-length silver hair struck me as the perfect image of what she later admitted to be true. Kathy shared with me that she was a practicing Celtic Druid from a very long line of the same. Her family line traced back to nearly five thousand years of Druid Shamans. She was teaching crystal healing, herbology, holistic medicine, prayer circles, and all manner of medicine far beyond the western medicine that both she and Vic had practiced for decades as nurses in a London hospital. Vic, a more passive, inert presence, was a tall, silent type of man’s man, a gentle spirit always standing by Kath’s side as her second set of ears. He was her advisor, her sound wall, her ultimate companion, and her apparent bodyguard. Vic has always been there for Kath in the strongest, yet gentlest, ways. They were the sweetest couple I had ever grown to know. They always had this low-profile comedy routine going on between the two of them; they would banter back and forth.

I felt in my gut that I needed their help. On a long trip around England visiting ancient archaeological sites such as “The Big Man” and touring the ley lines and standing stones across the land, we found ourselves hiking across Dartmoor. I had found an arrowhead on the Moor, which inspired a lengthy discussion about early Stone Age man across the planet. I had puzzled for years over the fact that artifacts found all across the globe, from any period of time, would resemble those of early man from other parts of the planet at the same time period. How could this be? Five, eight, ten, twelve thousand years ago, how did early man communicate these styles, fashions, and techniques to tribes of humans elsewhere? No cell phones, television, computers, airplanes, not even a postal system, nor any kind of global transportation system—and yet I found the same tools from the same time periods on virtually every continent.

While Vic silently listened, as he always did, Kathy opened my eyes to something far beyond my belief system. Kath explained a system which at the time seemed a bit farfetched to my skeptical, scientific mind. But after all I have seen in New Tera and all I have learned from Mina and Talleyrand, what Kathy had shared with me those years ago started to make sense. Kathy explained that since the beginning of the Druids’ record of time, they had gone into their fogous or souterrains, as they were known in Ireland and Scotland, built of stone over holes in the ground, and traveled through Mother Earth to communicate with the Shaman of tribes the world over. Kath detailed how she had actually done this with Southwest American Aborigines. She had traveled to their sweat lodges and the Kivas of the Puebloan peoples to participate in prayer circles. Now I had a better explanation to share with Kathy and Vic, or maybe they already knew all about New Tera and had steered me in another direction those years ago.

Vic and Kath had moved from their six-hundred-year-old home in Somerset, England, to a peaceful Welsh countryside farm near the sea, outside a village with a name I cannot pronounce. I had visited them there once and had spent many wonderful days enjoying the lush green Welsh countryside and eating far too many of Kathy’s delicious rock cakes and drinking all manner of tea. It was Kathy who had persuaded me to give up coffee for tea those years ago. In her endless efforts to generously share her magical ways with me, she had converted me to the healthful benefits of tea.

Every day with both of them had been a full day of learning a proper lifestyle. Kathy had warned me once to be very careful when calling out to the universe for what one wants. This was one of her lessons that I had taken to heart and had never tried for fear of doing it incorrectly.

Perhaps now it was time for something to be asked. Still, even in light of what was to come, I felt that Mina and I should visit the two of them together to learn all we could from Kathy about what she knew of a relationship between ancient man and the Terans. It may be that there a large number of humans were already in the know about New Tera. Mina and I knew we needed to build a network of resistance here on the surface, but maybe that network was already in place: a network of believers ready to take action in defense of our home. I searched my Teran memories for any limited or extensive contact between humans and Terans, but could find no deliberate, long-term contact. I could see back thousands of years, when the Terans were involved in the construction of pyramids built to cover holes that penetrated into New Tera. Before Man was brought to Earth to populate the surface of the planet, a number of openings into EarthUnder allowed unfettered passage between the underworld of New Tera and the surface. In an effort to allow Mankind to develop their own world community, those openings were sealed. Terans, who were once revered as Creators, Angels, and Gods flying about as if on wings, vanished into the Void. I began making all sorts of connections between Man and Teran in the archaeological record of Man’s past. Still, with all of these answers coming to light, there was little evidence of any consistent contact between Earthlings and EarthUnderlings. Could it be that this was yet another shielded aspect of Teran history?

Jasmina’s singing still lilted over the meadow as I bent to place another piece of wood into the fire pit. The Moon began to peek over the horizon, its illumination washing out the lesser stars in the sky above. Jasmina’s voice came to mind telling me that I must remember to let some things go. Her peaceful nature came through in her words. Being of Earth’s surface, I was by nature more aggressive, focused on what was to come. I could see in my mind’s eye what might transpire here on my home world and it was terrifying, a huge distraction. In the light of the fire I watched as Teranor plasma ships raided space stations and distant outposts. Planet killers disrupted ecosystems and atmospheres on countless outlying worlds, some with humanoid populations, others populated by alien creatures of lesser or greater levels of evolution. I witnessed the seething deceit and degenerate corruption of the Teranor approach. I could watch as entire world populations were consumed by the evil, seemingly unstoppable, Teranor scum.

Hatred filled my heart and mind as my body tensed from these visions of horror and devastation. I could hear the voices of billions suddenly silenced—from the cries of anguish and torturous pain to the hush of eternity without whisper nor thought. I could feel the Teranor greed pulsing through the cosmos as they traversed the galaxies in their endless hunt for more. They are cold, ruthless, remorseless, soulless, stone-hearted monsters.

I saw that over the years the Teranor have launched asteroids at the Earth, sending them through the magnetic portholes near our sun. These chunks of stone and iron have been sent to test the Teran defenses. For thousands of years the fence has been tested. I could see their battleships drifting out there beyond our galaxy, conserving power as they waited endlessly for their orders to approach. Like great fleets of warships, floating in mothballs, awaiting the next conflict, the Teranor invasion machines have waited in stasis for the climactic, apocalyptic command. Through time, mankind has documented these pieces of asteroid flying through our solar system and glancing the surface of the planet, having been deflected from direct impact by the Terans. Over the millennia these projectiles have grown smaller as the portholes have been downsized by Teran effort to protect the planet. Some of the earlier impacts were devastating to the surface environment. But these were just rocks, chunks of planetary debris hurtled at our globe with vicious intent. What I couldn’t get out of my head were the ships. These massive plasma ships carried death; they represented an end to life anywhere they would navigate. My new mental capacity still could not fathom how we could possibly go up against a fleet of these destructors and their planet disruptors. It felt like there was nowhere to turn.

Sitting in stasis, frozen in thought, warming by the fire, I snapped back into the moment as Mina arrived to sit next to me by the fire. One could see the compassion and concern in her face from listening to my thoughts and watching the images that flashed in my mind. Her presence next to me had a calming effect as she began to speak of my thoughts. She reminded me that worry is the mind killer, that fear is the life taker. She placed her powerful hand on mine and told me to continue to maintain my fearless approach to all challenges. Mina detailed how much she had always admired my confidence and composure in the face of adversity. She seemed to know me better than I knew myself. Jasmina saw qualities in me that I just don’t recognize as part of who I see in the mirror. Her hand remained comfortably placed on mine, and I felt the energy of her strength flowing from her hand into mine. It was as if she was transferring her power into my body with her contact. There was a sensation of accretion—my body swelling with her power and strength.

Mina explained slowly with minimal detail, “The Teran Elders have shared mental ability and capacity with you. I am sharing some of my physical strength and ability with you, Bryce Monroe. Since you have always leaped into the breach to protect me and you are always there in front of me as a human shield, I feel that you should have some of this gift. This will allow you to move faster, react more quickly, and exercise more force. In like kind you will also be able to think faster.” Mina held her hand over mine. I could feel a flow of warmth passing through the back of my hand and surging throughout my entire being. What I was feeling was the tangible input of Jasmina’s own lifeforce. In what felt like a mere blink of the eyes, I noticed that the first light of sunrise was beginning to illuminate the leaves of the aspen trees at the edge of the forest. Mina’s hand cooled as she gradually ceased sharing with me. My greatest concern was that this action might diminish some of Jasmina’s abilities or reflexes.

I could see that Mina was tuned into my thoughts. Without moving her head or line of sight from the flickering light of the fire, she put my mind at ease by telling me that nothing in her had changed. Then she said, “Yes,” with a smile in her voice, “we must visit your friends in Wales and then we should pay a visit to my family in Iceland.” She went on, “I have cousins in that part of the world. They maintain one of my favorite places to visit, and they are some of my closest friends. It will be a chance to introduce you to Robynow, one of my favorite members of the family. Robynow is even stronger than I am, but in a calm, quiet, cool and collected sort of way. She has many talents uncommon to Terans. She is an artist, she writes and plays music on the piano, she questions everything and yet she has more understanding and resilience than any of us. She is stronger than two of me and she loves everything that lives on this planet. I have watched her communicate and fly with butterflies as if she were one of them. She is one of the rare few who can see into the future and yet she keeps this knowledge to herself. Robynow is different in many ways from most Terans. All of her physical features are darker than any Terans. She has brown hair and eyes, and her skin is an olive color. She has a quiet, thoughtful, gentle, wholesome spirit, along with gifts and abilities that no other living creature possesses. I haven’t seen her in a number of years; she and her part of the family line chose to live in a remote part of the planet where they can keep an eye on the rest of the world. I would like very much to reconnect with her. She may be invaluable in the days ahead.”

The plan now was to spend a few days more here at Clifftop, our place of solitude, and then we would try to make contact with Ali and then Vic and Kath, followed by a visit to Iceland to spend time with Jasmina’s Robynow. Deep inside I could feel that I did not want to leave the fireside and more mentorship from Talleyrand. Life was filled with questions, and he had already proven to be the paramount source of answers. Mina appeared apprehensive about my desire to check on Ali. It felt as though she knew something that I was not aware of. But I needed to find out for myself if this long-trusted dear friend was safe and unharmed.

Daylight was consuming the dark of night to begin another day of warming the Earth and sky as our fire dwindled to a bed of coals. We both looked up at the same instant to see illuminated figures approaching. I glanced at Mina to see the same dread in her eyes that I felt in myself. I felt my chest swell and eyes well up with the flood of tears as we both watched the figure of Kadishya come into focus. Both Mina and I knew instantly what had happened. Talleyrand and Magna stood back while Kadishya drifted towards us. Mina collapsed to the ground in grief, sobbing and crying out to her beloved sister. Kadishya had discovered that one of her children had been Fladed by the Teranor who had tracked us during our journey with the stones. When Kadishya recognized the hazard, she took the Flade from her daughter and escaped to the upper atmosphere, where she was obliterated by the explosion. I had learned from Talleyrand and my orientation that if a Teran is vaporized by a destructive event such as an explosion, or if the head of a Teran victim is removed from the body, there is no chance for the Teran to reincarnate. Part of what gives the Terans their long lives is this ability to reincarnate into one of their own host bodies. This is a ritual process that requires time for the memories and consciousness to transfer. A Teran sacrificing his or her life to save another is the ultimate immolation since it can result in certain finality of that Teran’s span of life in this plane of existence.

Mina and I were both stunned by the loss of this closest loved one, a powerful, kind, loving, distinguished friend and family member. It felt as though all of the memories of time with her were coming to the forefront of my mind and then washing out as they appeared. Mina enlightened me that this occurs during the transfer of life memories to the brain bone. She said that over time those memories will return in colorful detail. It is so difficult to fathom the loss of someone who was nearly immortal in many ways.

Kadishya approached with her eyes obviously locked onto mine. She spoke from behind the translucent curtain of shroud between worlds. “Bryce Monroe,” she began in her typical warm tone, “as I said in our last encounter, I will be with you always. Do not grieve my passing, I am still with you.” She hesitated as if there was much more to say but then turned to Jasmina and began to confide in her. She looked down to Jasmina crumpled on the ground next to me and said, “Mina, the children are with Maryam. They understand what must be done. You must be strong for our family and our people. I was prepared for this, as you well know, and I will be with you.” Kadishya drifted back into the morning light and the three figures faded into obscurity.

As the day deepened into its rhythm, we felt each other’s sense of loss and sadness. Each of us could feel how the other dealt with this pain and emotion. Neither of us had the emotional tools to handle these feelings. Kahdy was the heart and soul of her people. We all knew that she was destined to be an Elder. Her wisdom and her gentle spirit shined as a beacon of leadership for the future of both our civilizations. We were headed into a new age; it would be an age of two worlds combined. I could see that everyone had felt Kadishya would be the one to lead us into the future of our worlds united in one single, safe home. I felt the sense of loss throughout the entire populace of New Tera. I turned to Jasmina and asked, “Where do we go from here?”

Jasmina turned her tear-covered face to look at my questioning expression. Her face changed from grief to a startled look of confusion. “Bryce, your chest is glowing,” she stated as she pulled my shirt open to reveal that I was wearing the medallion coin Kadishya had presented to me on that dark day when I saw her last. The medallion was glowing with a pulsing aura of golden light. Mina knew instantly what this meant. She cried out with exultation in her voice, “This is my sister! She is here with you! Kadishya left her spirit with you; she knew this would come to pass and she entrusted you with her life!”