Artifact

Dr. Brown

Chapter 1

Other than some subtle signs of disuse, the old wooden hanger at Edwards Air Force Base on the edge of the Rogers Lake dry lakebed in central California looked identical to its two neighbors. The difference became apparent only when the small side door was opened and Air Force Colonel Raymond James Matheson stepped inside. The hanger was virtually empty. Except for a thick layer of dust, the work benches and tables were bare. The only object in the cavernous structure was a twenty foot long grey object secured to a pedestal of rough wooden pallets.

Armed with a clipboard and a checklist, Matheson began his bi-monthly inspection. He turned on each of the light switches and made a note of the burned out bulbs. As he made his way to the rooms in the back, he paid little attention to the strange item lashed down in the middle of the old wooden building. Matheson went from room to room switching on and off each light and making a note on his checklist.

With the windows covered over on the inside, very little outside light penetrated into the silent darkness. Matheson walked blindly along through the building confident he would not encounter anything unexpected. Alone in the dark vacant structure did not unsettle him in the least, for Colonel Raymond Matheson felt comfort in the presence of the most unlikely of companions.

As Matheson visited the final upstairs room and completely the last of his inspection, he felt oddly reassured knowing that he was indeed the only human in the building. He placed his clip board by the entrance door and turned off the hanger lights. The only light remaining was a single spotlight immediately over the object. He then walked over and placed his hand gently upon the dark surface. He felt the familiar warm tingly sensation and gave his hand a gentle tug. It was stuck. His mind was suddenly filled with a very intense recollection of a pleasureable memory.

As he relived a distant experience from his past, Matheson said aloud, "I have good news old friend. Progress has been made. You've been found at last."

Chapter 2

They looked like giant locusts Dr. Eugene Brown realized as men in dark jackets swarmed around his suburban Boston home.

Dr. Brown had gotten up early Saturday morning and was debating whether or not to go for a run. He had been trying to establish an exercise routine for the last two months after realizing that middle age was catching up to his middle. He brushed the curtain aside and was considering the dark sky as he tried to decide between shorts and sweats. Athought it was November, the weather had been unseasonably warm.

That was when a white van pulled in and stopped abruptly in the cul de sac in front of his house. The door flew open and four men jumped out immediately followed by four more. The first wave split into pairs as they rushed across the freshly mowed Brown residence lawn. The second wave moved slower as the four agents approached the front door. Dr. Brown grabbed a housecoat and raced downstairs terrified that he was about to have his door knocked down.

"There must be some missunderstanding," explained Dr Brown as the agents rushed past him. He saw the letters FBI on the backs of the men's jackets.

"Eugene, what is happening?" asked his terrified wife from the top of the stairs as the lead agent identified himself to the professor.

Inside the house the agents focused on Dr. Brown's den leaving the rest of the house untouched. They took several notebooks relating to Dr. Brown's research along with two computers. The operation was very discrete. Other than the unexplained presence of the van and two identical model full-sized sedans, the neighbors wouldn't expect anything unusual.

After Dr. Brown's wife loaded the two kids into their SUV and drove off an older man in an ill-fitted suit and crew cut approached the house.

"I'm sorry sir, but I can't let you in," said the agent at the door.