Covenant (8 page)

“How big were these cities?” Ethan asked.

He was surprised by her answer, never having known that such ancient cities could harbor populations of up to forty thousand people. Nor had he known of the complexity of their technologies: that the Indus civilization had built domestic bathrooms, flushing toilets, and drains using burned and glazed bricks; or that it built public basins with two layers of bricks with gypsum mortar and sealed by a layer of bitumen, a remarkably astute method. The Mesopotamians had built docks and seaworthy vessels for trade, and had developed extensive irrigation comparable to modern agriculture.

“Okay,” Ethan said, “but so did the Egyptians, right, and they came later?”

“The Egyptians rose at about the same time,” Rachel said. “Egypt’s first king, Menes, ruled some five thousand years ago in its capital Memphis, but the kingdom was ancient even then and had already developed its hieroglyphic script, again apparently out of nowhere.”

Ethan frowned.

“And you don’t think that this could have happened naturally?”

“It’s possible,” Rachel conceded, “but it should have taken longer than it did, and it seems that the ancients suddenly acquired knowledge sufficiently advanced to still be used today.”

The Babylonians, Rachel explained, were descended from the Sumerians, and their mathematics was written using a sexagesimal numeral system: one which has as its base the number sixty. From this derived the modern-day usage of sixty seconds in a minute, sixty minutes in an hour, and three hundred and sixty degrees in a circle.

“Which remains after almost eight thousand years,” Ethan said.

“Along with various customs and traditions,” Rachel agreed, “which are continued today in recognizable forms.”

“And Lucy thinks that another species,” Ethan guessed, “perhaps an extraterrestrial species, gave them knowledge, which they then passed down through time ever after?”

“If it seemed crazy before, it doesn’t now after what Lucy found,” Rachel said. “I’ve spent some time researching all of this since Lucy first mentioned it months ago, long before she disappeared. There have been many books written in the past that have attributed all manner of activities to alien visitors from distant planets, from the founding of Atlantis to building the pyramids. All of it was rubbish, of course.”

“So what’s the difference here?” Ethan asked.

“Real historical events that match the supposed myths of a thousand religions,” Rachel said. “We are familiar only with the religious histories that survive to this day, but they have existed in many differing forms for millennia. Oral tradition was the only way for ancient civilizations to record their past until scripts suddenly appeared simultaneously around the world: the Neolithic script, Indus script, Sumerian and Bronze Age phonetics all appeared around six thousand years ago. In all of their creation myths, these early civilizations almost identically describe Gods who came down from the skies and passed to them great knowledge.”

Ethan himself had read of the legends of the Sumerians, Egyptians, Amerindians, and Japanese, describing such visitors as traveling in fiery chariots, flaming dragons, or giant glowing birds that descended noisily from the sky.

A loud thump reverberated through the fuselage.

Ethan looked at the sun-baked runway flashing past outside. “So we don’t know who hired Lucy to go digging in the Negev for alien remains, but whoever it was must have known what they were looking for.”

“I doubt that she would have abandoned her original research on a whim.”

Ethan unbuckled his seat belt and turned to face her.

“I need to know everything you know about this,” he said. “When someone vanishes, the first forty-eight hours are the most critical and they’ve already passed. Knowledge is our only resource now because X never marks the spot.”

Although Ethan could still see doubt shadowing her expression, Rachel unbuckled her seat belt and looked at him expectantly.

“What do you want to know?”

BEN GURION INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
ISRAEL

T
hat’s crazy,” Ethan said.

“Why?” Rachel challenged. “Just because it sounds ridiculous doesn’t mean it’s not correct or even likely.”

The main terminal of Ben Gurion International was dominated by a circular glass-vaulted ceiling from which poured a cylindrical sheet of glittering water. The waterfall drained into a pool that reflected light across the domed roof in a shimmering kaleidoscope of color. Ethan had the impression that he was passing through a giant fish bowl as he walked with Rachel toward the airport meeting point.

“Yeah,” Ethan conceded, “but UFOs in the Bible?”

“And in all other ancient creation works. Ezekiel speaks of such events in the Bible,” Rachel said, and her expression became distant as she spoke. “‘And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire.’”

“Could have been a meteorite,” Ethan suggested.

“‘Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures,’” Rachel continued. “‘And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man.’”

Ethan looked at her for a long moment.

“I’d have thought Lucy would need more to go on than that.”

Rachel was about to reply when a thunderous voice boomed across the terminal.

“Ethan!”

Ethan saw Aaron Luckov the moment he entered the terminal, a bearded and barrel-chested man who swept through the crowds like a tornado through an olive grove. The man possessed shoulders like a harbor wall and a grip that felt as though Ethan’s hand was being stood upon.

“Aaron, been a long time.”

“Too long, Ethan!” The towering Israeli swung an arm around Ethan’s shoulders, one hand clapping loudly against his back.

“Is everything ready?” Ethan whispered as he returned the embrace.

“It is prepared,” Luckov replied equally quietly.

Aaron Luckov had served as an Israeli Air Force fighter pilot before starting up an air charter company with his wife. Ethan had known him for over a decade, and together they had shared both the best and the worst of times out in the ancient cities and deserts.

“Aaron, this is Rachel Morgan,” Ethan introduced them.

“Ah,” Aaron said, gently shaking Rachel’s hand. “I have heard much about you. I am so sorry to hear of your loss.”

Rachel flushed. “Hopefully, it’s not a loss.”

Aaron took Rachel’s bag in one meaty fist.

“I hope so too. Come, I have a ride waiting for us outside and we’ll need to hurry.”

“Why?” Rachel asked in confusion.

“Because we’re not alone,” Ethan said, glancing across the terminal to where two suited men stood and observed them with fixed gazes. “How many?” he asked Aaron as they began to walk.

“Two inside, two outside,” Aaron replied.

“Why are they watching us?” Rachel asked.

“They’re not,” Ethan said. “They’re watching
me.
”

Ethan felt his lungs spasm reflexively as Aaron led them out of the air-conditioned terminal into a merciless heat. A white convertible jeep was parked by the sidewalk, a petite and dark-haired woman sitting behind the wheel. Safiya Luckov was Aaron’s wife, a Palestinian with dark olive eyes and a bright smile. She got out and helped them with their bags before driving them out of the terminal and east toward Jerusalem.

Ethan leaned back in the rear seat, finally able to stretch out after the long flight. “What’s the situation in Jerusalem?”

Aaron’s rolling basso profundo voice carried easily above the wind.

“Fragile, how else would it be?”

Ethan had spent several months living within the disputed territories. He had seen the shattered, scarred wreckage of the Gaza Strip, where the Palestinians lived in a near-permanent state of squalor and oppression. And he had friends in the West Bank who had lived under Israeli military occupation for more than forty years since the Israeli-Arab War. Likewise, he knew many Israelis who lived under the constant threat of terrorism, their lives dominated by the wailing sirens warning of unguided Qassam rockets being fired into their backyards from the Gaza Strip by “freedom fighters” of a dozen obscure sects sworn to Israel’s destruction.

“This doesn’t make our job any easier,” Ethan said, glancing over his shoulder. Behind them, a pair of glossy black SUVs followed at a short distance. “Are those guys Mossad?”

“Just an NGO,” Aaron said, glancing at the following vehicles in his side-view mirror with a wry smile. “You’re not
that
important, Ethan.”

“Surely if the authorities are following us, then we’re being protected too?” Rachel said.

Ethan turned to her.

“The authorities don’t like me here,” he said simply.

“Why not?”

“This discovery that Lucy supposedly made,” Ethan said, ignoring her question. “You really think it’s real?”

“You’re not buying into this, are you?” Rachel muttered. “Even the Defense Intelligence Agency is showing an interest, regardless of their motives.”

“I doubt they’re holding their breath,” Ethan pointed out.

“No?” Rachel challenged. “NASA launched its
Voyager
space probes in the seventies with solid gold discs aboard, bearing greetings in fifty-five different languages. One of those was ancient Sumerian. Why else would they include a script that is several thousand years old and no longer used by humanity?”

Ethan shrugged.

“Not for me to say. Why would Lucy have been looking for alien remains out here?”

Rachel gestured to the parched land around them as she spoke above the wind.

“Israel is part of the Levant, the cradle of civilization.”

Ethan glanced across the barren landscape baking beneath the equatorial sun.

“Doesn’t look like much.”

“Not now it doesn’t,” Rachel agreed, “but twelve thousand years ago the Levant was a very different place. Back then, this would have been a lush and fertile land, and the Sumerian legends describe the origins of their civilization here through unusual means.”

“Like the Bible?” Ethan asked.

“Sumerian legends tell of a god named Oannes,” Rachel explained. “Oannes rose out of the Persian Gulf in what is described as a diving suit, and is depicted as an amphibious being. Many legends state unequivocally that Oannes came from under the sea. Oannes is the culture bearer for the Sumerian civilization, who is said to have brought them the arts of writing, agriculture, and tool making.”

From the front seat, Aaron Luckov peered at them curiously.

“Is this what you’re going to tell the government when you meet them—legends?”

“What contact have you had so far with the Knesset?” Ethan asked.

“In this, I have excelled,” Aaron stated proudly, not noticing Safiya rolling her eyes. “I have an appointment for you at the United States embassy this afternoon, and there will be a member of the Israeli Foreign Ministry present.”

Rachel turned from looking out across the sun-scorched land and the twinkling blue Mediterranean beyond. “How did you manage that?” she asked.

“I spoke to a few contacts in the West Bank and Tel Aviv and they put me in touch with the Foreign Ministry. Your name was mentioned, and they understood immediately. There’s a lot of sympathy for what’s happened, and they understand your frustration at their reluctance to broadcast your daughter’s disappearance because of the peace negotiations.”

“Well done,” Ethan said, clapping his friend on the shoulder.

Aaron smiled awkwardly. “There was a price to pay.”

“What do they want?” Ethan asked.

“Security,” Aaron said. “They’re determined that you remain under armed guard throughout your stay here, to prevent any further kidnappings. We’re to meet with your escort first, and I don’t like any of them.”

MEDICAL EXAMINER’S OFFICE
MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE, SE, WASHINGTON DC

Y
ou know I hate this part.”