Season of Passage, The (32 page)

have been camphor, for al I know.

'Abruptly the wal on our left vanished. One moment it was there, the next it was gone. A few feet later, the ceiling of the cave also disappeared. The

yogi now took care that I stayed near the right wal . He didn't want me fal ing off the edge. I was excited. We had obviously entered a vast

underground space. Our torches continued to burn bright, but their light showed nothing beyond the edge of the path.

'My amazement continued to grow. We walked downward for a long time before a floor appeared. To your average geologist, such a large cavern

would be considered almost an impossibility. I brushed aside the film of dust on the right wal and discovered the same marble-like

substance, only now it was laced with streaks of clear quartz crystal. The marble material was hard. I tried scratching it with a pocket knife I carried

and failed.

'Final y our path leveled as we stepped onto a flat plain. I knelt and examined the ground. It was like a carpet of compressed blue grass, soft and

springy.

'We headed away from the path, out over the plain. I must say something about how my perception of the yogi was changing. He stil looked the

same, natural y, but when I first met him, it was his gentleness that had impressed me. That quality remained, yet it was now overshadowed by a

sense of high lineage. What I mean is, now he seemed like a king. Indeed, I felt as if he were taking me on a tour of his kingdom. I could tel he

thought of the place as his own.

'After some time we came to a barrier of water. I couldn't tel whether it was a lake or not. I don't think it was a stream; it wasn't flowing in either

direction. With the yogi's permission, I stopped and took a long drink. The water tasted faintly of the camphor I mentioned a moment ago. It was not

unpleasant. The yogi indicated that we were to swim across. He removed his robe and I stripped down to my shorts. Standing tal in nothing but a

loincloth, the yogi looked like a young Greek god. He took my torch as wel as his own and waded into the water, holding the fires safely above the

surface. He swam using the power of his legs alone, which you know is hard to do. I fol owed as best I could. The water was warm and clear,

although I could not see the bottom.

Soon I felt ground underneath my feet. We climbed onto a silent shore. The yogi handed me my torch and we continued forward. At first the terrain

was the same as before - perfectly flat. Then I began to notice shapes in the dark. They appeared to be nothing more than huge boulders. However,

as I looked closer, I believed I saw subtle shapes. You might ask, did I see carvings or not? I tel you, I'm not sure. Being an archaeologist, I was

tempted to think I had been led to the ruins of an ancient civilization. But the boulders might just have been boulders. I know that's not a satisfactory

answer, but it's an honest one. Everywhere I found the same marble-like material I had seen in the cave, only now it was free of dust and it was

whiter, and laced with greater amounts of quartz crystal. Yet, once again, I could not conclusively say I was examining anything that had been

fashioned by human hand.

'Eventual y we came to an oval pool of water. It was large and symmetrical. I forgot to mention earlier that while we were undressing to swim across

the water, my companion indicated that I should bring my canteen. Standing at the edge of the oval pool, he took the canteen from me and emptied

its contents on the ground. He submerged it in the pool until the canteen was ful . Then he replaced the cap and handed it back to me. I made a

move to drink from the pool, for I was thirsty again, but he stopped me and shook his head. I was surprised. I gathered from his gestures that I

wasn't to drink the water in my canteen, either.

'When he shook his head, it was the first specific gesture that showed he knew anything of modern culture. But upon reflection, I think he had

learned the gesture in our short acquaintance. I had the impression he understood everything I said to him, but that he didn't have the means to

answer me. I guess it was the way he smiled at me.

'We walked around the pool. I was curious to know its depth, but when I reached down to feel for the bottom, he gently restrained me. I got the idea

that the pool was sacred. I found the whole place fascinating, but my biggest surprise was yet to come.

'On the far side of the pool was a block of marble. It was flawlessly white and literal y a perfect cube. Resting on top of it was a single silver ring. The

yogi indicated I should pick it up.

'The ring's appearance was remarkably ordinary. True, it was exquisitely polished, but its design was plain - a simple silver band. I placed it on my

finger, half expecting something extraordinary to happen. We've al read fantasy stories about magical rings and the wonderful powers they give to

those who possess them. I guess being where I was, I believed those stories could come true. Of course I felt no different with the ring on.

'But new understanding did come to me then. Constantly, while examining the strangely shaped stones, I looked for evidence of an ancient

civilization. Now that I held the ring, I had such proof, although it was far from conclusive. The yogi could simply have put it on top of the marble

block. He could have shaped the block for that matter. But in either case, I began to see the cavern in a new light, not as being incredibly old, but as

being incredibly young, not yet born. Does that sound strange? I know it must. But in the square block I began to imagine a sculptured table, as if in

the future it would be that way. I could see the boulders that lined the pool as being pil ars in a grand palace. The springy turf we had been walking

over would be blooming grass, even bushes and trees. I got quite carried away with myself.

'The yogi indicated that I should keep the ring. Then he pointed to the torches, which had final y begun to dim. He gestured in the direction we had

come. I protested. I wanted to look further. But then I imagined what it would be like to explore the cavern without light. I agreed we should go back.

'There is little to say about our return journey. We

retraced our steps at a good pace. At what I estimated to be sea level, my flashlight began to work again. I imagined that in the place I had just

visited, twenty-first-century technology didn't operate. To this day I think of the cavern as belonging to a separate time, a different reality, with its own

laws of nature.

"The sun was high in the sky when we arrived at the mouth of the cave. I had walked far, but felt little fatigue. In fact, I wasn't even hungry anymore.

The yogi pointed toward the val ey of flowers. He indicated I should walk the length of it to get back to where I was supposed to be. He was such

wonderful company - I did not want to leave. I asked if I could come back and visit him again. He shook his head and pointed at the sky. I know the

gesture could have been interpreted in a number of ways, but at the time I had no doubt that he understood I was going to Mars. He hugged me,

touching me briefly between the eyebrows, and then walked back into the cave. I never saw him again.

'In a dream I walked the length of the val ey of flowers. It rained on me again, the storm coming out of nowhere. Eventual y the scenery began to

make sense and I found the stream where I had left Panda and George. But I did not find them, not until I reached Gangotri a couple of days later.

They were much relieved to see I was al right. They said they had searched for me, and when they didn't find me, they thought our paths had

crossed and that I had returned to Gangotri ahead of them. They wanted to know where I had been al this time, but for some reason I didn't tel

them. I just said I had gotten lost. I did try to find the old sannyasi who had told me about Devashan, however. I thought I might tel him of my

adventure. But he must have left town. Sannyasis are always wandering from one place to another.

'Panda and George had to return to their family and I let

them go. Despite what the yogi had said about my not seeing him again, I wanted to go back. I pored over maps in Gangotri. A lot of good it did

me. I couldn't find any of the peaks I had seen near the yogi's cave. Stil , I returned to Devashan and hiked up and down the val ey three times

looking for signs of the place. I looked and looked. If it had not been for the ring in my pocket, I might have believed I had imagined the whole

episode. I guess it goes without saying that I didn't find the cave. What was I to do? My vacation was almost up. I was going to Mars soon. I returned

to the States, excited about what I had discovered, but also frustrated that its mystery had been left unsolved.

'Back in Houston I performed a number of tests on the ring. I tried to scratch it with a diamond and failed. I subjected it to an electron scan and found

it to be a perfect circle, and I mean perfect. I dipped the ring in concentrated acids and got no reaction. By this time I knew it wasn't silver or gold.

Final y I put it under the laser they have at the University. I was scared to do it, but I also had a peculiar faith in the magic of the ring. I set the laser at

ful power and pushed the button. It didn't do a thing to it. Let me impress upon you how extraordinary a fact that is. Nothing known to man could

have withstood such a concentration of energy.

'I've already commented on the ring's shine. That shine never fades. I've never had to polish it. Occasional y the ring even appears to shine in the

dark. But that may be merely my imagination.'

Jim paused once more. The sun was setting. The canyon beneath them was fal ing into long shadows. It was difficult for Jim to watch the sun going

down and convince himself that it was the same sun that set on Earth.

'Wel , that's my story,' he said final y. 'I've talked for a

while. You've been good listeners. I suppose now you must have questions. I assure you, I won't be offended if you don't believe a thing I've said.

Sometimes I wonder myself if it wasn't just a dream. But then, you've seen the ring too, Lauren.'

'Why did you give the ring to Jenny?' Lauren asked.

'I did it on the spur of the moment,' Jim said. 'I've always adored your sister. I thought she would like to have it.'

'How many people have you told about this?' Gary asked.

'Only you two.'

'Are you sure the laser was on high power?' Gary asked.

'Yes. Ful power. It didn't even heat the ring.'

'That's impossible,' Gary said. 'What could it have been made of?'

Jim shook his head. 'Nothing known to man.'

'What did you do with the canteen of water?' Gary asked.

'I took it home to the States in a sealed bottle. It's in a box at my apartment in Houston. I never drank any of it.'

Lauren peered at him closely. 'Why did you tel us this story?' she asked. 'Why did you tel us now?'

'To prepare you,' Jim said.

'For what?' Lauren asked.

Jim hesitated, unsure of how to explain himself. The reasons were unclear in his own mind. He wanted to give Lauren and Gary a sense for the

supernormal, and open their minds to things they never considered. He knew they respected him; they seemed to believe his story, and had

certainly been moved by it. But he knew he had to be careful about speaking directly. Gary was easily suggestible. Jim had watched him reading

his books. Gary would be genuinely scared at the tense parts, would laugh at the humorous spots, and would grow angry at the vil ains. He

was remarkably innocent given his heavy responsibilities. He was also impulsive, and extremely protective of Lauren. Jim knew Gary would blow

Bil 's head off if he told him everything he was thinking.

Lauren was different. She was the most intuitive woman Jim had ever met, sensitive to feelings in others few would have noticed. Her intel igence

and resourcefulness were obvious to everyone. Yet she had a hard-headed side that categorized everything as either black or white. To say what

he wanted, he needed to move through a sea of gray. He didn't know how she would react.

'Did you know that we've lost contact with the Nova?' Jim asked.

'Shit,' Gary said. 'Is it the generators?'

'I don't think so,' Jim said.

'What then?' Lauren asked.

'I'm not positive,' Jim said, 'but I have theories. That is why I told you my story, to make my theories more acceptable to you two. Where should I

begin? You asked about this hole where the Russian ship is supposed to be. What do you think caused it, Gary?'

'There must have been an explosion of some kind. But then there should be signs of wreckage, even with the snow here. It confuses me. Even if al

their fuel exploded at once, it couldn't have made this size hole. But I know that ship landed here. I'm sure of it.'

'Do you have any theories, Lauren?' Jim said.

'No.'

'I'l tel you what happened,' Jim said. 'Coming to Mars, we knew there was always a chance we might catch an alien disease. Especial y in light of

how the Russians disappeared. Now an infection, as Lauren wel knows, can be subtle. You can have a disease and not know it. In fact, you can

have a disease that produces obvious symptoms and stil not know that you're sick. The disease could be such that it makes you incapable of

thinking you're il . Am I right, Lauren?'

Her tone was cautious. 'In rare cases, yes.'

'The possibility existed when we set out for Mars that we could catch such a disease. How great the chances were, no one could say for sure. But