Friday, December 9, 2022

Is The Doctor Like Jesus?

The Doctor from the popular British science fiction television show Doctor Who has often been compared to Jesus due to the similarities in their personalities and actions.

Both characters are seen as powerful, wise, and compassionate beings who are devoted to helping others and fighting injustice. The Doctor, like Jesus, is known for his willingness to sacrifice himself for the greater good and his ability to inspire others to do the same.

One major difference between the two characters, however, is that while Jesus is a religious figure, the Doctor is a time-traveling alien. This allows the Doctor to use advanced technology and knowledge to help those in need, whereas Jesus relies on his faith and teachings to guide him.

Despite this difference, both characters share a similar sense of determination and selflessness. They are both willing to put the needs of others before their own and will go to great lengths to protect the innocent and fight against evil.

Another key similarity between the Doctor and Jesus is their ability to forgive. Both characters are known for their capacity to forgive even those who have wronged them in the past, and they often use this ability to help others find redemption and turn their lives around.

Overall, while the Doctor and Jesus may have different origins and abilities, they share many important qualities that make them both powerful and inspiring figures. Both are dedicated to fighting for justice and helping those in need, and both are willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good.

Wednesday, December 7, 2022

Griffin Chronicles--Chapter Eight

When the four men emerged from the stairway, the first thing they saw was a burst of light erupting from the exhibition hall. It was followed by what sounded like a huge clap of thunder. A police officer’s limp body flew through the door and crashed into the opposite wall. The impact caused two paintings to fall, setting off the alarm again.

The security chief and Seargent Fines both pulled their guns from their holsters.

“Whoever is in there needs to come on out with their hands up,” Fines called. “We don’t want to have to hurt you!”

The sound of wind filled their ears, and an icy breeze rushed through the corridor. A voice called from inside. Every one of them felt as though the voice was coming from inside their own minds.

“Please,” it called. It sounded like a low growl but also gargled as if it were coming from underwater. “Come and try!”

“That didn’t sound human,” the professor said. “Oh my god!”

“Professor, calm down!” Daniel said. “It has to be human. What else can it be?”

It stepped into the hall.

Most of it was still bones. Black bones that looked like rock. Its left arm, right leg, left side of its chest, and the whole head was that of a petrified skeleton. The rest of it not only had new, pink flesh but also a very young and athletic build. It was looking at them with the crazy terrifying smile of a skull with a bright yellow glow coming from its eyes.

The chief screamed and took off running. The thing held up its flesh-covered hand and a crackle of raw energy erupted from it. The chief instantly vanished into a cloud of golden mist, which the thing sucked up as if it were sipping soda. It moaned as new flesh began to grow across its bare arm. Lips and cheeks formed on its face.

Fines pointed his gun at the creature and fired twice. The thing held up its hands. The bullets stopped in midair, dropping harmlessly to the floor. It pointed at the officer and a bolt of light shot out from its finger. It hit Fines in the head. He fell to the floor, dead.

“Run, Professor!” Daniel said. He turned back to the stairs and could feel the professor following him.

“Robbins!” the creature screamed. The professor froze in place. It was not that he did not want to run. The thing had forced him to stop. He slowly rose from the ground, his body turning to face the thing.

“Stop!” Daniel screamed.

“Daniel!” the professor yelled back. “Go! Get out of here!”

“Robbins,” the creature said. The energy it had absorbed from the chief had made it mostly normal again. It had the face of a man in his late twenties, but he still had nothing but naked light where his eyes should be. His voice was less like a growl. Though when he spoke, it sounded like two voices were coming from his mouth. “I must consume you. I will be complete.”

“I pulled you out of the ground,” Robbins said.

“And I thank you for that,” the creature said. “But I must consume you.”

Daniel watched in horror as the professor’s body was reduced to mist and consumed by the creature. He did not wait his turn. He ran into the stairwell and flew down the stairs as quickly as his legs would carry him.

He had to get the kids and get out.
__________________________________________________________________________

Tyler opened his eyes and woke with a jolt. He sat straight up and looked around himself. He was sitting in the middle of the street, surrounded by broken glass. He breathed deeply, sucking in the cold, damp air.

“Tyler!”

He looked up and saw Megan running toward him. He remembered what had happened now. She had to go back to the lobby and out the door to get to him. There was a police officer and a couple of other people coming toward him as well.

“Are you okay?” Megan asked as she got to his side. He was starting to get up and she gave him her hand to brace with.

Tyler looked down at his body. He had some tears in his clothes and there was a big patch of blood on his thigh. He had probably cut himself pretty well on the way down. Other than that, he felt fine.

“I think so,” he said. He looked down and saw the medallion lying on the ground next to where he was. It was different now. It did not look like an old relic, but shiny and brand new. Hesitantly, he reached down and touched it. Nothing happened. He quickly swiped it up and put it into his coat pocket just as one of the policemen reached him.

“What happened?” the man asked. He looked at the glass all around them and back up at the two broken windows in the museum.

“The guy that set off the alarm came this way,” Tyler said. He pointed down the street. “He got into a car and went that way.”

“And how did you get out here?” the man asked.

Tyler shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said. “I guess I flew.”

“Shots fired!” a voice called out over the officer’s radio. “Shots fired! All units to the Museum of Natural History! Shots fired on the third floor!”

All of the cops on the street took off back to the museum entrance. Tyler and Megan followed them.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Megan asked as they ran.

“I’m fine,” he said. “I still don’t know what happened, but I’m fine.”
__________________________________________________________________________

Daniel burst from the stairwell just as a group of officers was about to go up. He waved at them, gasping desperately for air. Tyler ran over to him and put his hand on his shoulder.

“Dad!” he said. “What’s the matter?”

He shook his head and looked at one of the policemen. “Don’t go up there!”

“Where is Sergeant Fines?” one of the men asked.

“He’s dead!” Daniel replied. “They all are! Everyone that went up there is dead.”

“Grandpa?”

Daniel looked over and his shoulders slumped. He had not realized that Megan was standing there. “I’m sorry, honey. Yes. We all need to get out of here right now!”

Thunder clapped above them. Another loud crash came from outside. They all looked out to the street just a huge piece of the building had fallen on top of one of the police cars. A second later, a smaller object landed on top of it. It was a naked man.

“Who is that?” one of the cops asked.

“That’s him,” Daniel said. “That’s the guy that killed everyone.”

The cops all ran out onto the front steps and drew their weapons on the man. One of them yelled for him to freeze. He sent a bolt of energy in that officer’s direction and the man vanished. The other officers responded by opening fire. The naked man held his arms out and all of the bullets slowed down until they floated six feet away from him. He dropped his arms and all the pieces of metal fell to the sidewalk.

“I can sense it!” the man yelled. “I know it’s here! But now is not the time! I must prepare!”

With that, he turned and ran down the street. He ran quickly at first, but then shot off into a blur of speed. The police all went after him, but by the time they had reached the bottom of the stairs he had vanished.
__________________________________________________________________________

Daniel, Tyler, and Megan were sitting in the lobby in three of the chairs that were still there from dinner. It had been ten minutes since the man had disappeared into the night. An entire fleet of police cars was outside with their lights flickering in the darkness. There were police officers all over the museum.

The coroner and a team of detectives were upstairs taking pictures and filling out reports. Another group of detectives and uniformed officers were busy trying to get fingerprints in the conference room and here in the lobby. And a detective was standing in front of them.

He had introduced himself as Detective Isaacs. He was not dressed like the detectives Tyler had seen in the movies. This man had on a button-down shirt and a pair of blue jeans. He guessed he had been sleeping when he got a call to come down. He had a notepad and a pen in his hand and had just finished listening to Daniel give his account of what happened on the third floor. Even after the things that Tyler had seen tonight he had a hard time believing what he was hearing.

“So, this guy was sucking people into his eyes?” Isaacs asked.

“I don’t know,” Daniel said. “He was feeding off of their souls or something. He got stronger every time he did it. I’m telling you that it was the skeleton that we had on display! It was encased in stone when it was brought in here, and now it's running around downtown!”

“Dad,” Tyler said. “Calm down.”

Isaacs turned to Tyler. “And the person you saw was a different guy?”

“Yes,” Tyler replied. “I know that his first name is Raloam. I don’t know his last name. He was here tonight with Anya Blake from the Channel Nine news.”

“And you think that he stole something?” Isaacs asked.

“I think so,” Tyler said. He had to will himself not to reach down and touch the coin in his coat pocket. “I don’t know what it was, though.”

“It was a medallion,” Daniel said. “That’s the only thing missing. Well, that and the skeleton.”

“Do you have a picture of it?” the detective asked. Daniel reached into his pocket and pulled out one of the brochures he had printed about tonight’s event. He opened it and found a picture of the medallion. He handed it to the detective. “Thank you. Okay. I’m going to put in a report on this and I’ll probably have some more questions for you tomorrow. In the meantime, you all need to go home and get some rest. DCF is working on getting a place for Ms. Robbins to spend the night.”

“Thank you, Detective,” Daniel said.

The man handed Daniel a small piece of paper. “This is my card. Call me if you remember anything else. Otherwise, I’ll be in touch.”

Detective Isaacs walked away, and Daniel stood up. He looked at Tyler and Megan.

“I’ve got a lot to do here tonight guys,” he said. “But, Tyler, I’m going to have someone take you home. You have school tomorrow.”

“Dad,” Tyler started.

“Don’t argue, son,” Daniel said. “It’s been a long day.” He took Megan’s hand and looked at her. “I’m sorry, honey. And I’m sorry for the way that you had to find out. Your grandfather was a very good man.”

“He liked you very much, Mr. McDawn,” Megan said.

Daniel smiled and turned. “Tyler, be in the parking garage in ten minutes. There will be a car there.”

Tyler gave a little salute and turned to Megan.

“I’m sorry about your grandfather,” he said.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“I don’t really know,” she replied. “I don’t feel anything right now.”

“You’re in shock,” he said.

Megan suddenly opened her eyes wide and looked at him. “Oh my god! Tyler, I totally forgot! Are you okay?”

“I told you I’m fine,” he replied.

“But that thing blew you out the window like a cannon,” she said. “How did it happen?”

Tyler reached into his pocket, pulled the medallion out and held it in his hand.

“I don’t know,” he said. “It’s not doing anything now. But all of the age and corrosion is gone.”

Megan took the medallion and looked at it. “It’s beautiful. It looks brand new.”

“I know,” Tyler replied. “There’s something about it. I felt power come out of it.”

An older lady in a blue suit walked over to them and put her hand on Megan’s back.

“Hi,” she said. “I’m with DCF. I need to talk to Megan for a few minutes.”

“Okay,” Tyler said. “I have to go, anyway. Call me tomorrow from where ever they take you.”

Megan smiled. “I will.”
__________________________________________________________________________

“Do not answer that.”

Anya looked over at Raloam. He was lying back in the seat with his eyes closed. A second later her phone started to ring. She rolled her eyes. She had given up a long time ago trying to figure out how he did that. She looked down at the display on the dashboard.

“It’s my boss,” she said. “I have to answer it.”

“No you do not,” Raloam said. “He is calling you to go cover the robbery. You can not take me back there.”

“They won’t know it was you until tomorrow,” Anya said.

“Unless the girl gave them my name,” Raloam said. “You had to introduce yourself.”

Anya gritted her teeth. After a few more rings the phone stopped.

“Did you kill him?” she asked.

“What?” Raloam replied. “Of course not.”

“I had to ask,” she said. “It looked like a pretty big explosion back there, and I’m almost positive I saw someone fall out the window.”

“It was the first floor,” Raloam said. “He’s fine.”

“So, he has it now?” she asked. Raloam nodded silently. “I’m still not sure that this was the right thing to do.”

“Anya, this was not your decision,” Raloam said. “I am sorry. But it was something I was going to have to do eventually.”

“But as on edge as you got when they showed that skeleton, I thought you would have second thoughts.”

“It is not my fight anymore,” Raloam said.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Anya said. “Everything you’ve searched for all these years just showed up in Birmingham, Alabama, and you just want to stop?”

“The only thing that I have searched for is that medallion!” Raloam yelled. “I found it and I used it for its purpose!”

“That medallion’s purpose was to create a sentry,” Anya argued.

“And it has created one,” Raloam replied.

“A kid that doesn’t even know what’s happened to him,” she said. “You’re not the man that I thought you were.”

She reached over and switched on the radio.

“If you’re just joining us we have reports coming in from the Birmingham Museum of Natural History,” a reporter was saying from the speakers. “We do not have anyone on the scene yet so we’re not exactly sure what’s happened down there. What we do know is that there has been at least one explosion, and an exchange of gunfire left at least seven people dead. We know that three of those were Birmingham police officers. It is believed that this all stemmed from a robbery attempt after tonight’s gala event. As soon as we have more information we will let you know.”

Anya looked at Raloam.

“Damn,” he said.
__________________________________________________________________________

Tyler walked into the apartment and hung his coat on the hanger next to the door. It felt like it had been years since he had last been here, even though it had only been a few hours.

He reached into his coat pocket and pulled the medallion out. It lay there in the palm of his hand. The gold glittered in the dim light and the red jewel gleaming at him looked like an eye staring into his soul. He had never seen this thing before tonight, but somehow he felt like he had owned it his whole life. He looked at the etching on the surface. He had seen it earlier and thought it looked like gibberish. It was not written in any language he had ever seen. He had been around ancient languages as long as he could read. However, it looked strangely familiar.

“To the soul of a warrior,” he said to himself. “The soul of a griffin.” He did not know why he said that. He just felt like that was what the writing said. He laid the coin down on the table next to the door and went down the hall to the bathroom. He turned on the shower and started to get undressed. He winced as he pulled down his pants. He had not taken the time to look at the wound on his leg, but judging by the size of the blood stain in the fabric of his pants it was going to be pretty bad.

He took a washcloth and wiped away the blood on his leg. There was a wound, but it was not much more than a scratch. It had pink skin and was a little red around the edges of it. It almost looked like he had gotten a bad cut weeks ago, and it was well on its way to healing. He just stared at it. There was no way that a cut like that could have caused the amount of blood he had on the thigh of his tux pants. He shook his head in disbelief. This night could not get a whole lot weirder.

He pulled the rest of his clothes off and took a quick shower. It was nearly two in the morning and he was going to be lucky to get any sleep before time to go to school.

When he climbed out he heard his phone ringing. It was still in his pants pocket. He retrieved it and swiped his finger across the screen to answer it.

“Hello?”

“Hi, son,” his father said from the other end of the line. “I just wanted to be sure that you got home alright.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “I’m just getting a shower and heading to bed.”

“Good. Listen, things got so crazy around here before you left. I’m sorry about that. I realize now that you had blood on your leg. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, Dad,” he said. “It was nothing. I just scratched it chasing after that Raloam guy.” He left out the part about flying through a glass window into the street. He had managed to keep any of the cops from saying that to him and he would rather he not find out now. His dad had been through enough tonight.

“Okay,” his dad said. “Well, take care of it. Put some peroxide on it and bandage it before you hit the sack. How was Megan?”

“She’s okay for now,” Tyler said. “I don’t think she will be, though. It didn’t seem like it had hit her yet.”

“I know,” the older man replied. “Poor girl. Her parents are back in Greece. I called her dad a few minutes ago to tell him what happened. He’s heading out tomorrow to get her and take her back.”

“She’s going back to Greece that soon?” Tyler asked.

“Well, it’ll probably be a couple of days before she actually leaves,” Daniel said. “But, yeah. I mean, probably. You really like her. Huh?”

“I guess,” Tyler said. “Listen, Dad. I’ve got to get some sleep.”

“Yeah,” Daniel replied. “I probably won’t be there when you get up in the morning. But I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

“Okay, Dad,” Tyler said. “Good night.”

“Good night, son,” Daniel said.

Tyler ended the call and went into his bedroom, but he did not sleep.

Saturday, December 3, 2022

Griffin Chronicles--Chapter Six

“May I give you a lift back to your hotel?” Daniel was saying as he stretched his arms and tried to work out the crick in his neck.

“Not at all, Daniel,” Professor Robbins said. “I have to catalog everything before I leave.”

The two men were propped on the rail of the third-floor balcony, overlooking the main lobby. The wait staff was busy clearing the tables while another crew broke down the stage.

The professor was staring intently at the massive tyrannosaurus skeleton at the far end of the lobby. It seemed to be staring down at everyone as they worked, as if it were waiting for the perfect moment to pounce.

“Isn’t it funny how things that don’t look very dangerous can be deadly?” the professor asked. “While things that look as if they are ready to kill, like our dino friend over there, are no more harmful than a wooden chair.”

Daniel laughed. “How much have you had to drink?”

The professor smiled warmly. “Not much, my friend. Just the ponderings of an old man, I suppose.”

“Well, to answer your question, yes,” Daniel said. “It is funny. And some of the most beautiful can be the most dangerous. But what’s brought it up? It’s kind of some dark territory to be going to on your big night.”

“I know,” Robbins said. “I’m sorry. I was just thinking about the rumors.”

“Rumors?” Daniel asked.

“Don’t pretend you haven’t heard,” the older man replied. “As much as I tried to keep it all under wraps, it got out somehow. I must have overheard at least three people talking about it tonight.”

“I didn’t want to say anything,” Daniel said. “Look, Professor, it’s nothing to worry about. Strange things happen anytime a group has to stay out in the wilderness for a long time. Your group has been camping at the base of that volcano on and off for a decade.”

“Two people just up and vanished, Daniel,” Robbins said. “They didn’t take anything with them. They didn’t leave anything behind. They were just gone. That’s more than just strange.”

“And you’ve done everything you could,” Daniel replied. “What more could you have done?”

“That’s the question that will plague me forever,” Robbins said. “Or until they turn up. I thought about shutting the site down.”

Daniel pointed in the direction of the exhibition hall. “After a discovery like the one in there? You found a skeleton that shouldn’t exist! You found a medallion unlike anything anyone has ever seen. And you proved the existence of a civilization no one believed in. You can’t shut it down, Professor. It’s too important.”

“Those are the same words my investors used,” he said. “I’m heading back to Greece next week. I just pray that nothing else like that happens again.”

Daniel looked at his watch. “It’s getting late. I have to get Tyler home. You’re sure you don’t need a lift? I can have a car take you when you’re ready.”

“Maybe in a while,” Robbins said. “I believe I’ll take a look around while your crews are finishing up with the cleaning. I don’t usually get to spend any time in a good old-fashioned museum.”

“I’ll tell the guard staff to leave the lights on until you’re done,” Daniel said, patting the older man on the shoulder. “And a car will be waiting for you out front. Good night, sir.”

“Good night, Daniel,” he replied.
__________________________________________________________________________

The car pulled up to the curb about a block from the museum and Anya switched off the engine.

“I don’t understand how you plan on doing this,” she said. “The cleaning crew is still in there, not to mention the normal security staff. The place is also covered in surveillance cameras.”

“Do you think this is not something I have done before?” Raloam asked. He was pulling off the jacket that was part of his suit and loosening his tie. “I will handle this. Drive in a five-block radius around where we are now. Do that three times. Then park across the street from the east side of the building.”

“Okay,” Anya replied. “Good luck.”

Raloam looked at her and gave her hand a slight squeeze. “It will all be fine.”

Anya gave him a small nervous smile. “I hope so,” she said.

He got out of the car and threw his tie on the seat. He reached into the back and pulled out his long, tattered raincoat, and pulled it over his shoulders. He looked more like the guy that he usually was. Except this version was clean-shaven and had on nice pants. He closed the door, ducked into the shadow of the building beside them, and was gone.

Anya let out a long, slow breath and blew the bangs out of her face. This was going to be a long night.
__________________________________________________________________________

Professor Robbins stood solemnly and stared at the paintings lining the walls of the museum’s east wing. He was just down the hall from the room where his exhibit was. A vase from ancient Rome had caught his attention, and now he was enraptured by the artwork of many of history's great Italian artists. He could not claim to be much of an art expert, nor did he know meaning of every symbol hidden in the details. He was not versed in much of the information about the artists themselves. But he enjoyed looking at these pieces.

He came out of his trance of deep thought when he heard what sounded like footsteps coming from the room he had started. He turned and looked back in that direction. He thought he saw movement but decided it was just the shadow of a person who had just walked through the doorway. The guards were conducting rounds, or one of the cleaning crew members was trying to give him a subtle hint. They probably wanted him gone so they could get back to business as usual.

He shrugged and walked back down the hall, intending to say goodnight to whoever had just gone into the exhibit and to head for the elevator. He came to the doorway and leaned over to peer inside.

There was no one there.

The exhibit hall where his items were displayed was a large, nearly empty space. It was about thirty feet in diameter. There were four display cases in the actual floor space. The two located to the left of the door contained large pieces of ancient pottery. The one at the center of the room contained the medallion he had talked about earlier in the evening. A fourth one on the right side had several photographs of objects still being uncovered at the site. In addition to these were two large cases that ran along the length of the back and left walls. These cases had various pieces of pottery, jewelry, tools, and even fragments of what were believed to be weapons.

On the right side of the room was the showcase of the exhibit, The piece of black rock holding the skeleton frozen inside. It was standing on a small platform with a velvet rope attached to four stanchions to prevent people from touching it.

Other than that, there was just the professor.

He immediately turned and looked back out into the hallway. There was no one there either. He could have sworn he had heard someone. He was even sure he had seen something.

“Hello?” he called down the hall. “Is someone there?” He looked up at the security camera peering at him from the ceiling. He waved at it.

“Mr. Robbins,” someone called from the air. It sounded like an intercom though he did not see one anywhere. “Are you alright?”

“Yes,” the professor said. “I thought that I saw someone.”

“I don’t have anyone on your floor right now, sir,” the voice said. “Where did you see someone?”

“In the exhibition room,” he replied. “But there’s no one there.”

“I’ll send someone up, sir,” the guard replied.

He nodded and walked back into the room where his treasures were.
__________________________________________________________________________

The doors were locked from the inside, but that did not concern Raloam. He knew the wait staff and the cleaning crew were still inside. That meant the main locks had not been activated yet since the doors would have to be opened again in a little while. Even if the place had been locked down tight, he had a pretty good feeling he would still be able to get inside. He had gotten in and out of tighter places than this.

He crouched low behind a dumpster and watched patiently as a cook and a waiter took their cigarette break outside the roll-up door of the loading dock. They stood and talked casually for a few minutes before finally throwing the smoldering butts down on the concrete platform, grinding out the ember with their shoe. As they walked back inside, one grabbed the chain on the pulley and let the door slide back into place.

Raloam listened carefully for the sound of the locking chain but did not hear anything. It was what he had thought would happen. They did not want to unlock and unchain the door every time they went out for another cigarette, so they left it unfastened until they got ready to leave for the night.

It was too easy.

He glided carefully through the shadows to avoid the security cameras for as long as possible. It was inevitable they would capture his image sooner or later. But the longer he could remain invisible, the simpler this task would be.

When he reached the loading dock platform, he grabbed the roll-up door and pulled up on it gently. It raised about half an inch.

He smiled.

He pulled the door until it was eight inches from the ground. Then he laid down on the platform, slid inside, and lowered the door.

The stockroom of the museum was mostly empty. The inventory was all out in the exhibition halls. There were a couple of forklifts and some pallet jacks. A messy break area was on the other end of the room, and a small office was on a balcony above it. Most of the lights were turned off. There was just enough light for a guard to be able to get a quick look around when he came through on his rounds.

The cleaning crew would be here in a matter of minutes. They would be hauling all the tables and chairs from tonight’s dinner into this room to be picked up in the morning. Raloam needed to stay on the move.

He slipped out the door and found himself in a hallway that looked a lot like hallways in a hundred office buildings all over this city. This was the administration area of the museum. None of the ornate lighting fixtures or fancy carpet would be seen here. The accountants and HR personnel had their offices in this area.

He had been studying the layout of this building for weeks. He knew where to go. He moved his way down the dim hallway until he reached a double set of fire doors. Pressing the handle down on them, he hoped an alarm did not go off. It did not. At least there was not one he could hear.

On the other side of the doors, the décor changed a great deal. A set of restrooms were on the right followed by another hallway. This one had paintings on the walls and there was the sound of a waterfall coming from the distance. He had made it into the display area.

“Almost there,” he whispered to himself.

The exhibition hall that held tonight’s display was on the third floor. He could not use the elevator. It had most likely been turned off for the day and would not work without a security card. The stairs were not a choice because the doors from the stairwell would probably be locked from the outside. He would be trapped inside once the first door closed behind him.

That only left climbing.

Once he reached the sound of the waterfall, he found himself about to enter the lobby. He looked up at the tyrannosaurus, grinning at him with its jaws full of sharp, white teeth. He looked over at the area that had been used earlier for their dinner. Some of the tables were gone but the crew was still busy breaking everything down. He looked up and saw the second-floor balcony, and then the third-floor balcony above it. Beyond that was a glass ceiling. The rest of the building could not be seen from here in the dark. The effect made the lobby three stories high but still gave plenty of room for exhibits on the other two floors. The entire lobby had been designed to hold the dinosaur bones.

Raloam slouched behind a pillar and quickly moved to hide behind a plant next to the elevator. He checked that no one was looking. Everyone was gone at the moment. No doubt they had taken another couple of tables to another room where they would be loaded on a cart to go into the stockroom he had just come from.

He took in a quick breath, set his foot up on the huge pot next to him, and launched his body as high as he could go. His other foot reached out and connected with the elevator housing, propelling him further. His outstretched arms grabbed the railing of the balcony. He somersaulted, landing perfectly on the carpeted floor.

Raloam pressed his body as close to the wall as he could and looked around quickly to be sure there were no guards on this floor who could have seen him.

He was halfway there.

He peered over the balcony. None of the crew had yet returned. Without hesitating he jumped onto the railing and sailed into the air toward the tyrannosaur skeleton. He caught the main cable that held the bones together and spun around it, using his momentum to sling himself back to the balcony. This time when he climbed over the side he was standing on the third floor.

He ducked into the shadows of one of the dark corners. Voices were coming from the main exhibition hall, so he slowly moved his way in that direction. When he was finally within sight of the door, he could see a guard standing in front of it talking with an older man. The older man was the professor that had made a speech at dinner.

“What’s he still doing here?” Raloam muttered under his breath.
__________________________________________________________________________

“I’m sorry,” Robbins said as the young security guard put his flashlight back on his belt. “I guess I’m just seeing things.”

“That’s not a problem, sir,” the younger man said. “That’s why I’m here. I need to get back to the lobby now.”

“I’ll go with you,” the professor said. “I’ve caused you enough trouble for one night.”

The two men walked down the hallway toward the elevator together. As they went, the professor had the distinct sensation of being watched from the dim light of the corners of the abandoned rooms. He felt a shiver go down his spine. He stopped and turned. Of course there was nothing there. He chalked it up to the lateness of the hour.

They arrived at the elevator and the guard pressed the button. After they had waited for a minute or so there was a beep from the radio on the younger man’s hip. He pulled it off of his belt and pressed the button.

“Jones,” he said, identifying himself.

“Stu,” a garbled voice called from the handset. “Are you still up on three?”

“10-4,” Jones replied.

“Cut that out,” the voice called. “You’re not a cop. Some of the motion sensors down on two just went off. It’s probably just a glitch but I need you to check it out.”

“10…,” Jones started and then caught himself. “Okay. I’m on it.” He put the radio back on his belt and turned to the professor. “Can you see yourself down, sir?”

“I’d like to go with you if that’s alright,” Robbins replied.

“That’s not necessary, sir,” the guard said. “The motion sensors go off all of the time. It’s usually nothing, but we have to check out every instance or else there’s no use in having them. You go on back down to the lobby. I’ll take the stairs.”

The elevator doors opened and Robbins nodded. He stepped inside and the young guard watched as the doors closed again.
__________________________________________________________________________

Raloam watched the professor get on the elevator. When he was gone the guard walked down the hall, past where he was hiding, and on toward the other side of the building. He was sure he was the one that had set off the motion sensors on the lower floor. He was just lucky that the other two men had been on this floor or the security office would have noticed that he had set the sensors here off as well.

Raloam took his chance. He walked quickly down the hall in a slouch until he got to the main exhibition hall and ducked inside. There were security cameras trained on most of the exhibits here, but there did not appear to be one focused on the spot by the wall where he was right now. He took this opportunity to look around.

The thing he had come for was right in front of him. But the item against the right wall was what had his attention. The blackened bones of a man frozen for thousands of years in a case of black volcanic rock. The skull was protruding from the rock just enough so that the ancient human appeared to be grinning maniacally at him.

“Not my fight,” Raloam said to himself. “Not anymore.”

He turned to the display case containing the medallion that the professor had been so proud of. The parts of it that still looked like gold were glistening under the bright bulb mounted over it. The rest of it had become corroded and green. He looked at it closely, barely making out the two indentations under the jewel on the front. Two small places that looked like they once held smaller jewels themselves but were now empty.

Raloam took his coat off and wrapped a big part of it around his arm. He held his breath and punched the display case with all his might. The glass shattered into thousands of shards that flew to all parts of the room. Immediately the electronic beeping filled the air. The police station a few blocks away would already be getting a report. He grabbed the medallion and ran out the door, into the hallway leading to the east side of the building.

If he had not taken off so quickly, he would have noticed that deep inside the black rock that used to be the recesses of the skeleton’s eyes, there was a dull glow that was slowly becoming brighter.

Friday, December 2, 2022

Griffin Chronicles--Chapter Five

A few minutes later the professor wrapped up his speech and Daniel McDawn invited everyone to move to the exhibition hall to view all the items. Everyone got up from their tables and began to make their way toward another area in the museum.

Anya got up and started to follow everyone but quickly saw Raloam was not getting out of his chair. She sat back down and leaned over to look into his eyes.

“What's wrong?” she asked. “You freaked out when they showed that skeleton.”

Raloam looked at the waiters coming into the room to clear the tables. “I can’t talk about it now,” he said.

“Well, I have to go interview the professor and Daniel McDawn,” she replied. “I’m supposed to be on air in thirty minutes.”

“Anya,” he said quietly. “Do not go into the exhibition hall. It is too dangerous.”

“Ray, that isn’t an option,” she replied. “If you can’t give me more to go on, I have to go do my job.”

Raloam looked at her. “Fine,” he said. “Go. But keep your eyes open.”

“I haven’t done anything else since I met you,” she said as she turned away to join the others.
__________________________________________________________________________

“Tyler!”

Tyler turned at the sound of his name and saw Professor Robbins walking toward him. Walking next to him was a girl who appeared to be around his age. She had reddish-brown hair and was wearing a blue dress with tiny sparkles. He felt his back straighten and tried to will his eyebrows not to raise. He did not think he was successful.

“Professor,” he said, shaking the older man’s hand again. “I enjoyed your speech.”

“Thank you,” the professor said. “I’m much better at digging than speaking. But I do enjoy showing off what I’ve been working on.” He motioned to the young woman standing next to him. “I would like for you to meet my granddaughter. This is Megan Robbins.”

Tyler shook her hand lightly and smiled. “It’s nice to meet you.”

The girl smiled and Tyler had to control his breathing. Her smile was beautiful and her green eyes lit up. He could see the same sparkle he had noticed in her grandfather’s eyes earlier. But this time it had a different effect on him.

“It’s nice to meet you, too,” she replied.

“Professor Robbins,” a voice called out. The three of them turned and saw another woman in a black dress carefully jogging toward them. Tyler recognized her as a woman he had seen on the news a few times since he had gotten to town.

“Ms. Blake,” he said. “I was wondering where you were.”

“Yes, sir,” the woman said. “May I speak with you for a few minutes in the lobby? My cameraman is setting up and I’d like to get a couple of lines from you for the ten o’clock news.”

“Of course,” Robbins said. “Megan, why don’t you and Tyler head into the hall and have a look at the exhibit?”

“Okay, Grandpa,” she replied. He went off with the reporter and Tyler turned to her.

“Would you like to get something to drink?” he asked. She nodded and Tyler turned to one of the waiters walking by with a tray. “Do you have anything other than champagne?”

The waiter nodded. “That is sparkling grape juice on the left, sir.”

Tyler took two glasses and handed one to Megan. She thanked him and took a sip.

“So, what did you really think of my grandpa’s speech?” she asked.

“It was very interesting,” Tyler said. He sipped his drink and looked back at her. She was looking at him with a laugh in her eyes. “Okay. It was boring.”

She laughed. “I know. He’s been practicing all week, so imagine having to hear about ancient artifacts and petrified skeletons every night for hours.”

“I see your point,” Tyler said. “But it can’t be that bad. I’ve grown up going to things like this my whole life. I’ve heard speeches about everything from mummies to birds.”

“This is not my kind of thing,” she said. “I’m much more comfortable with my hands in the dirt.”

“Oh, are you planning to be an archeologist as well?” Tyler asked.

“Yeah,” she replied. “I already think of myself as being one. I spent the summer with Grandpa in Greece. I was there when they finished uncovering that skeleton.”

“Really?” Tyler asked. “That whole thing is kind of interesting. How is it possible that it wasn’t destroyed by the lava? I mean, not even part of it.”

Megan finished her drink and handed the glass to one of the waiters as he walked by. “Do you want to know what I think?”

“Sure,” he replied.

“Well,” she said. “It had to be magic. It’s the only explanation.”

Tyler stopped. He hoped that all that beauty was not just a cover for ten tons of crazy.

“Magic?” he asked.

“I know you think it's nuts,” she said. “But there were some bizarre things that have happened on the site. Some noises and lights came from that cave at night. And two people turned up missing.”

“Really?” Tyler said. “I hadn’t heard anything about missing people.”

“They don’t want it to get out,” she said. “Grandpa is afraid it will hurt the exhibit. They’re doing a whole search party thing back in Greece. But he’s trying his best to keep it out of the news over here.”

“And no one has any idea of what happened to them?” Tyler asked.

“No,” she replied. “Everyone went to bed one night and when they woke up there were two team members that were just gone. They didn’t take anything with them, and the site is at least thirty miles from the nearest town.”

Tyler’s father walked by and stopped when he saw his son.

“Tyler,” he said. He looked at Megan and smiled. “Who’s your friend?”

“Oh,” Tyler said. “This is Megan. She’s the professor’s granddaughter.”

“Well, it's a pleasure,” Daniel said. “Listen, Ty. I have to go down to the lobby and talk to Anya Blake with the local news.”

“Okay,” Tyler said. “She already came and got Professor Robbins.”

“Good,” Daniel said. “Have you two seen the exhibit yet?”

“Well, I have,” Megan said.

“Of course,” Daniel laughed. “You were probably there when they dug this stuff up. Well, would you please make sure that my son takes the time to look it all over? He needs a little culture.”

“I have culture, Dad,” Tyler said.

“Right,” Daniel said. “Zombies and aliens. Anyway, go look at the stuff.” He patted Tyler on the back and headed toward the lobby.
__________________________________________________________________________

“Tonight’s gala at the Birmingham Museum of Natural History is meant to serve two functions,” Anya Blake was saying as she gazed into the camera lens pointed at her. “The first is to display several of the unique findings of Professor Jonah Robbins and help bring awareness to the things he has been working on for several years. Another reason for this event is to raise funds for the new museum, and for Professor Robbins’ excavation which is continuing in Greece.” She turned her attention to the waiting professor, just out of view. The camera moved so that he was now in the shot. “Professor, what would you like to say to the average person in this city that will compel them to come out in the coming weeks and months to see the things that you’ve brought here?”

Robbins smiled. “Well, this is my passion,” he said. “So, of course, I’m a bit biased. But I think there is a little bit of a history lover in all of us. These relics are links not only to the past but to a civilization that we believed to be a fairy tale until just a few years ago. I would think that anyone, not just those of us who attend galas and functions of this sort, would find a lot of interest in seeing these sorts of items.”

“Thank you,” Anya said. She turned to Daniel who had just stepped up behind the professor as he spoke. “Also with me is Daniel McDawn. He is the curator of this museum, as well as many others all over the world. Daniel, you have museums in New York, Chicago, and London. What made you decide to come to Birmingham?”

“Well, I don’t remember having any discussions about why I shouldn’t come here,” Daniel said. “Birmingham is a great place. The people who live here are just as deserving of a nice place to get a little culture as anyone else in any other part of the world.”

Anya turned back to the camera and began to make some closing remarks so she could send the newscast back to the studio. Daniel and the professor stepped away and began to make their way back toward the exhibition hall.

“I’m glad that’s over,” Robbins said with a chuckle. “I don’t believe I’ll ever get used to being on camera.”

“It’s easier than being in front of a crowd,” Daniel said. “At least you can’t see the audience.”

“As I said before,” the professor remarked. “I’d rather be somewhere with my hands in the dirt.”

They were laughing as the elevator doors slid apart to reveal Tyler and Megan standing there with a noticeable amount of nervous distance between them.

“I thought you were looking at the exhibit,” Daniel asked. He gave his son a little smile that told him he knew he had other interests.

“Well, we did,” Tyler said. “We were thinking about going down the block for some ice cream or something.”

“That sounds like fun,” Robbins said. He gave Daniel a sly wink. “Perhaps we’ll join you.”

“No!” Tyler exclaimed a little more quickly and louder than he had intended. “I mean, that’s okay, Professor. There are a lot of people upstairs who want to talk to you.”

Daniel laughed. “Okay. But be back here in an hour. It’s already getting late and you’ve got school tomorrow.”

Tyler nodded and they watched the two men get onto the elevator. The doors closed and he chuckled.

“Your grandfather is great,” he said.

“He is,” Megan said. “He works too hard. But he loves it so much.”

“And he’s good at it,” Tyler added as they walked toward the front door of the museum. “I don’t know much about that sort of stuff. But that skeleton is really amazing.”

“Really creepy,” Megan replied.

They got to the front door just as Anya Blake was stepping back inside. They could see the news van driving away down the street.

“Hi,” Anya said. “Aren’t you Daniel McDawn’s son?”

“Yeah,” Tyler said. It came out sounding more like a question than a statement. “You’re the reporter on the news.”

“Anya Blake,” she said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“You, too,” Tyler said. He looked and there was a large man with long hair dressed in an expensive-looking suit stepping out of the shadows behind her.

“Hello,” the man said.

Anya turned and looked at him. “Ray. I thought you’d gone upstairs.”

“I was waiting for you,” he replied.

Anya turned back to Tyler. “I’m sorry. This is my date, Raloam.”

Tyler looked up at the man’s eyes and felt a cold shiver travel down the length of his spine. There was something about those eyes.

“Hi,” Tyler said. “Have we met before?”

“No,” Raloam said. “I do not believe so.”

“You kids leaving?” Anya asked.

“Yes,” Megan said. “I’ve heard enough about this. Professor Robbins is my grandfather.”

“Oh,” Anya said. “Yeah. I guess there’s only so much of this kind of thing one can stand.”

“Well,” Tyler said, opening the door for Megan. “It was nice to meet you.”

“Very nice to meet you as well, Tyler,” Raloam said. 
__________________________________________________________________________

Anya's smile faded as the two teenagers stepped outside and headed down the sidewalk.

“So that’s him?” Anya asked.

“Yes,” Raloam replied. “That is him.”

Anya sighed deeply and turned to face him. “Jesus, Ray! He’s a child!”

“I told you all about it,” Raloam replied calmly.

“You said he was young,” Anya said. “You said nothing about him being a little kid!”

“I have studied him, Anya,” Raloam said. “He will be eighteen in a matter of weeks. This is normal.”

Anya turned back and watched the two kids moving down the street. “There’s nothing normal about this.”