The 6th Extinction (15 page)

Kat glanced over to Gray, her meaning clear.
British military again
. Same as the team who had raided DARPA.
Could there be a connection?

“Go on,” Kat encouraged Jason.

“Before I get to the history, let’s start with more current events. Back in 1961, the international Antarctic Treaty came into force, basically declaring that the continent was off-limits to territorial claims, that it was to be used for peaceful purposes only. Since then, a multitude of bases have been established across the breadth of Antarctica. Some are purely research outposts, but a majority—despite the treaty—are indeed joint military/research bases.”

Similar to the one in California
, Gray realized.

“But prior to that treaty, an ongoing turf war was waged on that continent by international communities. Everyone wanted to claim a piece of that frozen pie. This fighting came to a head during World War II, due to the use of the Southern Ocean as a haven for Nazi U-boats. But even prior to the war, Germany was very aggressive in attempting to stake a claim. In 1938, they established the Deutsche Antarktische Expedition to explore the continent and set up a base.”

Jason tapped the keyboard and brought up an emblem of the German team.

“The official reason for this expedition was to look for a site to establish a whaling station, but most believed they were actually scouting locations for a German naval base. Oddly enough they even hired the famous American polar explorer, Richard E. Byrd, to lecture the group before they departed from Hamburg. Which is important.”

“Why’s that?” Gray asked.

“The Nazis eventually carved a territorial claim out of a section of Antarctica called Queen Maud Land, which was considered Norwegian territory at the time. The Germans named the new place Neuschwabenland. Apparently this stoked the Americans to lead their own expedition, one led by the same Richard Byrd. There was much mystery surrounding this U.S. expedition. Byrd had commissioned the construction of a massive snow cruiser, a fifty-five-foot monstrosity capable of climbing polar mountains or forging giant crevasses. The top deck could even hold a small exploratory plane. Here’s a picture of it landing in Antarctica.”

He clicked an icon to bring an image of the vehicle on the screen.

“An impressive beast,” Gray admitted.

“It was built to carry enough equipment and supplies to last an exploration team a full year, to operate with total independence, making it basically a mobile base.”

“What was its purpose?”

“Ah, now that’s when it gets interesting. While there was much publicity about the construction and transportation of this beast, once that cruiser reached Antarctica, everything went silent. Not only were Byrd’s orders for this expedition secret, but the very existence of those orders had been classified. Only years afterward did Byrd admit that the snow cruiser had explored nine hundred miles of unknown coastline, what he called the Phantom Coast. And that fifty-nine men had been left behind to carry on that exploration.”

“What were they looking for?” Kat asked.

Jason shrugged. “There are a lot of theories, some mundane, others pretty far out there. But Professor Harrington had copious notes and collated historical documents from that time. He believes the Germans discovered something incredible, something buried under the ice.”

“What?” Gray scoffed. “Like a UFO?”

“No, but you’re not as far off as you might think. Some old accounts support that the Germans had found a vast underground cavern system of warm lakes, vast crevasses, and tunnels.”

Gray must have let his skepticism show.

Jason glanced at Kat, who nodded as if allowing him to speak freely. “There’s some precedent for it,” he said, stammering a bit as if he had some personal knowledge of such matters.

Gray wanted to know more, but Kat waved Jason to continue.

He cleared his throat. “Actually recent geological surveys make the German claims seem less wild. Studies done over the past few years have revealed surprising anomalies deep under the ice. From ancient lakes and flowing rivers—both of which might be full of life—to trenches that dwarf the Grand Canyon. Even buried volcanoes have been discovered, some with lava flows melting a slow path miles beneath the ice.”

Gray tried to picture such a strange landscape.

“Either way,” Jason continued, “the belief in the existence of a Nazi base grew to national attention. Here’s an article published in the
New York Times
in 1945.”

Gray leaned over his shoulder and read the headline. “
Antarctic Haven Reported
.”

Kat made a small sigh of impatience. “Yes, but what does this have to do with Dr. Hess or the British Antarctic Survey?”

“Everything. Professor Harrington put great stock in these prior expeditions. You see the Brits were actually some of the most active explorers in Antarctica. They were the first to establish a base there, they named most of the major landmarks, and in the ten years after the war, they led a dozen expeditions across the continent, most of them conducted by an organization called the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey.” Jason looked up at them. “The group changed their name in 1962 to the British Antarctic Survey.”

“So it’s been the same group operating down there for decades,” Kat said, her expression turning thoughtful, weighing this information. “But why did they conduct so many expeditions, especially after World War II?”

“You have to understand that at the end of the war, most of the major players in Nazi Germany ended up in British hands. Rudolf Hess, Heinrich Himmler, and most important of all, the head of the German navy, Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz. The Brits had unfettered access to interrogate these leaders and their confederates, well before we or the Soviets did.”

Gray understood the significance in regard to their discussion. “And as navy commander, Dönitz would certainly have intimate knowledge of the U-boat activity around that southernmost continent.”

“He did, including knowing the location of the Neuschwabenland base and what the Germans discovered on that continent. Apparently it was something incredible. Here’s a quote from Admiral Dönitz during the Nuremberg Trials, where he boasted about Nazi discoveries in Antarctica. He says they found an
invulnerable fortress, a paradise-like oasis in the middle of eternal ice
.”

Jason let that fact sink in before continuing. “And what’s even more unusual is that this admiral, one so high up the Nazi chain of command, ended up serving only
ten
years in Spandau Prison in Berlin. So while others were put to death, the Nazi fleet commander escaped with barely a slap on the hand. Why is that, do you suppose?”

“Let me guess,” Gray said. “He made some sort of deal. A lighter prison sentence in exchange for information.”

Jason nodded. “That’s what Professor Harrington claims in his exchanges with Dr. Hess.”

“And this British group has been searching for this lost cavern system for decades?” Kat said. “Why is it so important?”

Jason took in a sharp breath. “That’s all there is about it in the history files, but Professor Harrington’s private notes hint at some secret papers—maybe a map—something once in the possession of Darwin.”

Gray couldn’t hold back his shock. “As in
Charles
Darwin.”

“That’s right.”

Gray pointed to the file name at the top of the computer screen.

D.A.R.W.I.N.

“Is that why the folder we copied from DARPA’s servers is titled like that?” he asked.

“Maybe, but it’s also apparently the acronym for the main philosophy shared by Harrington and Hess. They discuss it in several of their e-mails. It stands for
Develop and Revolutionize Without Injuring Nature
. The two researchers were united in an effort to seek a way to halt the current great extinction that’s sweeping the globe.”

The sixth extinction
.

Gray remembered Dr. Raffee’s description of Hess’s mission: to try to engineer a way out of this mass extinction.

“But what does this past history have to do with Hess’s current synthetic biology project?” Kat asked.

“I don’t know, but I believe it all came to a head in 1999.”

“Why then?”

“Both scientists kept referencing a discovery made in October of that year, describing it as a breakthrough in both their pursuits. Harrington described it more ostentatiously, as
the key to opening Hell’s gate
.”

Gray didn’t like the sound of that.

“They were both very cagey when writing about it. But they did reveal what that
key
was.” Jason faced them. “It’s why I called you in here. I thought it might be important in regard to what’s happening in California.”

“What was it?” Gray pressed.

“I confirmed this with independent sources. This particular detail is definitely true. Back in 1999, a group of researchers discovered a virus in Antarctica—one to which no animals or humans were immune. What’s even odder is that this microbe was found far out on the desolate ice fields, where nothing else lived. Some of the scientists from that time speculated the virus could have been some form of prehistoric life that thawed out of the ice . . . or maybe it was part of an old biological weapons program. Either way, the discovery excited both Harrington and Hess.”

Gray understood why this detail had provoked Jason. Considering what was happening in California, it could be significant.

Before they could discuss it further, the phone on Kat’s desk rang. She picked it up. Gray hoped it was further news from California. He checked his watch; the expedition team should be on their way back out of the hot zone—hopefully with some answers.

Kat glanced to Gray. “I’m being connected to Professor Harrington.”

He straightened.
Maybe this was even better
.

Kat put the call on speaker.

“
Hello, hello.
” The connection was faint, cutting in and out. “
This is Alex Harrington, can you hear me?
”

“We can, Professor. You’re speaking with—”

“
I know
,” he said, cutting her off. “
You’re with Sigma
.”

Kat glared at Jason.

He mouthed, “I didn’t say a word.”

“
I was good friends with Sean McKnight
,” Harrington explained.

Gray and Kat gave each other startled looks. Sean McKnight had founded Sigma Force. In fact, he had recruited Painter into the fold over a decade ago, and eventually the man gave his life in the line of duty, dying within these very walls.

“Sir,” Kat said, “we’ve been trying to reach you. I don’t know if you heard about the accident at Dr. Hess’s lab in California.”

There was a long pause, long enough that Gray worried the connection had been lost.

Then Harrington spoke again. He sounded panicked and angry. “
That fool. I warned him
.”

“We need your help,” Kat pushed. “To better understand what Dr. Hess was researching.”

“
Not over the phone. If you want answers, you’ll have to come to me.
”

“Where are you?”

“
Antarctica . . . Queen Maud Land
.”

“Can you be more specific?”

“
No. Come to the Halley Research Station on the Brunt Ice Shelf. I’ll have someone meet you there—someone I can trust—and they’ll bring you to me.
”

“Professor,” Kat continued to press, “this matter is time critical.”

“
Then you’d better hurry. But first tell me this, is Dr. Hess dead or is he missing
?”

Kat’s lips narrowed, clearly judging how much to say. Finally she opted for the truth. “We believe he may have been kidnapped.”

Again there was a long pause on the line. Fear replaced anger in the professor’s voice. “
Then you’d better get here
now.”

The line clicked and went dead.

A new voice spoke behind them. “Sounds like a road trip is in order.”

Gray turned to find Monk at the threshold, standing in sweatpants and a sopping T-shirt with a basketball under one arm.