Atlantis

I walked along the cliffs, as I had done every morning since we started this archeological dig. Feeling more restless than was normal, even for me. The sky was slowly becoming brighter with each passing minute. This was my favorite time of day. So serene and peaceful. There was a light breeze and I could hear the crash of the waves upon the cliffside. As I looked out over the ocean I could see the beautiful colors of the sunrise. The pink and orange colors slowly faded and gave way to the ever brightening light blue of a perfectly cloudless sky. The night stars, so visible from this island, slowly faded as if run by a dying battery. I loved the feel of the cool breeze on my face and I inhaled deeply the clean scent of the fresh salty air. I would miss this place when the dig was complete and I resumed my life in the concrete jungle of Atlanta, Georgia. I sat on the cliff’s edge letting my feet dangle while I watched the sun slowly creeping its way up the eastern horizon. The rest of the crew would be awakening soon and we’d resume the excavation of the ancient artifacts that were thought to be possible proof that the lost city of Atlantis really existed. Atlantis, an ancient civilization swallowed by the sea. Myth and legend if you asked me, but the artifacts found so far had made me wonder if there wasn’t at least a bit of truth to those myths.

As I leaned back on my elbows to watch the twinkling stars slowly fade and enjoy the last few moments of quiet and solitude, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck and arms stand on end. I had the feeling that I wasn’t alone, but knew that in this quiet, there would be no way for me to not have heard someone approach. Even still, I looked around to check that I was indeed still alone and that was the first time I saw him. I hopped up and turned around to face this unknown man intruding upon my solitude, intending to give him a piece of my mind for sneaking up on me, and the breath caught in my throat. Before me was not a solid flesh and blood man, but a shimmering vision of what most women would deem a god. Tall, dark and handsome as many would describe him. His hair was as black as night and his eyes as blue as the Caspian Sea. He was tall and muscular with broad shoulders, wearing what looked like something out of an old Charlton Heston movie. His finely chiseled features were covered with a well-groomed beard and mustache that drew my eyes to his soft lips. All coherent thought just fell away as I stared at what appeared to me, to be a holographic image. Time seemed to just stop at that moment.

I closed my eyes and shook my head trying to clear it from the dreamlike trance I felt I was stuck in. Just trying to make sense of what I was seeing. When I remembered to breathe, I opened my eyes to find I was alone. I looked around me but had found nothing to prove to myself that he was real. I shook my head again and stalked straight back to our camp to get another cup of coffee. Clearly, I just had a sleep-deprived hallucination that could only be cured with more coffee…. At least that is what I told myself.

The day sped by in its usual blur. I kept myself busy until I was too exhausted, both mentally and physically to do anything other than crawl inside my sleeping bag. I managed to convince myself that the man I’d seen on the cliff earlier that morning was indeed a hallucination brought on by the long grueling hours of this dig. Though, I could not shake the feeling of being watched throughout the day. I was on edge all day, as was most of the crew. More than once someone mentioned the feeling of a presence. I chalked it up to Dwight Blair’s spooky stories and legends surrounding the mystery of Atlantis. Dwight was the site photographer. He had a knack for storytelling and always managed to put a little fear into the college girls assisting on the dig. Dwight is tall with sandy blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He was very charismatic and very flirtatious.

As I curled up to sleep, my mind kept returning to the vision on the cliff. I thought “That’s just great, I’m officially crazy, I’ll need a shrink by the time this dig is done.” The vision had seemed so real. As my eyes slowly closed, I again felt the same presence. I was just too tired to open my eyes and look. Instead, I just mumbled “Go away, I’m trying to sleep. I’ll hallucinate you later.” The deep chuckle was so faint I convinced myself that I was hearing things as well as seeing things. In my fitful sleep I dreamt of the handsome stranger on the cliff.

I awoke the next morning feeling restless, jumpy, and more than a little irritable. I felt like I hadn’t slept at all. I managed to fumble my way out of my sleeping bag, get dressed and head to the nearby stream and splashed some water on my face. Clearly, I needed a few days away. The myths and legends were starting to play with my mind. I felt more clear-eyed and awake, but still restless and jumpy. I was so preoccupied that I never heard Dwight sneak up behind me. I squealed a very undignified squeal and jumped back. I’d have decked him had he not been holding out a cup of coffee for me.

“Wow Mac, a little jumpy today, are we? I would never have believed such a girly squeal would ever come out of that mouth!” laughed Dwight. With the most withering look I could muster I replied, “We’ll see how girly I can make YOU squeal, when I yank your thing off, Dwight!”

“Whoa! Hey now, NEVER threaten a man’s manhood!” Dwight exclaimed. I just rolled my eyes and took the cup of coffee he held out as a peace offering. The blue mug, with a picture of a shovel and pick axe on it, warmed my chilled fingers. The first sip tasted like heaven. Most people that know me well, know to not speak to me until I’ve had my first cup of coffee. Needless to say, I’m not really a morning person. Dwight started to say something, but the look on my face told him that I wasn’t in the mood, so instead, he waved and went off in the direction of the camp. Smart man.

I yelled “Thanks for the coffee!” to his retreating form. He was a good guy overall and it wasn’t his fault I hadn’t slept well, though in my defense he knew better than to mess with me in the morning, especially before I had my coffee.

Since I wouldn’t need to walk back to camp for coffee I decided to take a quick walk along the cliffs to prove to myself there was no presence hanging around watching us. As I approached my favorite spot on the cliff’s edge I thought again of the man or vision I had seen out here. I shook my head muttering to myself about not being crazy, only then to think about the fact that muttering to myself about not being crazy made me feel all the more crazy.

I stopped mid-stride when an amused voice asked me “Why do you think you are crazy?”.

I whirled around, heart racing to see my handsome hallucination standing where he had the previous morning. I quickly closed my eyes and took 3 deep breaths hoping against hope that when I opened my eyes again, I would find myself alone.

The man’s voice was so warm and rich even when he chuckled. “Oh no, now I’m hearing things too!” I exclaimed. My eyes flew open and I saw to my despair that he was indeed still standing there. “So much for not being crazy,” I muttered under my breath.

We stood in the early morning light, hearing nothing but the sounds of the ocean waves as they crashed against the bottom of the steep rocky cliff. Though I wouldn’t have been surprised if he could hear my heart pounding. It seemed loud in my own ears. I took a few tentative steps forward, stopping when he did the same. He gave me an appraising look and wondered aloud,

“What a strange way for a woman to be dressed”

“Excuse me?” I said irritated. Who the hell did this guy think he was anyway. Hallucination or not, I wasn’t going to just stand there and let some man wearing a Halloween costume judge how I was dressed. I didn’t care how gorgeous he was.

“You’ve got some nerve judging what I am wearing when you're walking around looking like some cosplay nerd at Dragon Con,” I exclaimed loudly.

He looked at me mystified and asked, “Where is this nation of Dragon Con that you speak of?”

Were it not for the completely bewildered look on his face I would have thought he was just being an ass. My lack of response prompted him to then ask, “What year is this and where am I now?”

Curious, I asked him, “First tell me who you are and where you are from.” I figured I’d have some fun and play along with my hallucination and see how far it would go because clearly, I was insane. Maybe there is something bad in the water around here, but then again, I wouldn’t be the only one hallucinating.

He looked at me and I could sense he was contemplating whether or not I could be trusted. From the man’s ever wary stare I gathered that he did not trust people easily. That, I could totally understand. I’d been stabbed in the back so many times, I didn’t easily trust anymore either.

I relaxed my posture some as I realized I looked like I was ready for fight or flight. That seemed to ease something in him as well. I took a tentative step forward, drawn to the intense look in those bright blue eyes. It sometimes almost seemed like there was a slight flash of violet color around the edges. It would be all too easy to get lost in those eyes for an eternity and that pissed me off. Be damned if he trusted me or not, he was going to tell me who the hell he was and where the hell he’d come from because I just knew in my gut that he wasn’t from here.

I stalked toward him but decided to slow my pace and smile, hoping I didn’t look as unhinged as I felt. I stopped a few steps from him. Allowing him to make the decision of whether or not he could trust me and take the last few steps towards me.

Something in his searching gaze softened a bit, and then he smiled in return. I guess I passed muster.

He took a few steps towards me and closed the gap. I could see him more clearly up close. He looked otherworldly. I began to wonder if someone was spiking my coffee because this just couldn’t be happening. I could feel the air humming around him. I held my breath without even realizing it, waiting for him to speak.

When he finally did, I was mesmerized by his rich, baritone voice. More than once I wanted to look away as it felt like he could see into the very depths of my soul finding every strength, weakness, secret and dark desire that I have.

“My name is Hyas, son of Atlas, son of Poseidon. I am a prince of Atlantis”

I snorted and asked, “As in Poseidon, the god of the sea?” He must really think I’m stupid or something. Grandson of Poseidon my ass. Myth and legends with no substantial proof ever found that they existed. His eyes turned cold and I took a step back.

“Look whoever you are, Poseidon is not real and neither is the city of Atlantis so try again. Who the hell are you and where are you from?”

His eyes warmed again and he replied “Poseidon is very much real, as am I. What you see now is just my projected image”

I just stood there staring at him like he had three heads. I must have been quiet for too long because he asked me “Are you alright?” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “No, I don’t think I’m alright. I’m talking to a hallucination as if he is real. I really must be losing it”

He looked confused and asked “ What is this hallucination you keep speaking of? I’ve not…”

I opened my eyes to see why he stopped mid sentence and just like that he was gone. I stood there, just shook my head and said out loud, “Wow, whatever drugs they put in my coffee must be good.” Not a second later I heard Dwight coming up behind me asking, “Who were you talking to just now?” to which I replied “No one, I was just talking out loud to myself. I do that on occasion”

“Rowan McCauley don’t play games with me, I heard a man’s voice, you weren’t talking to yourself and you look like you’ve just seen a ghost” He looked at me, worried. I must have paled when he said he heard a man’s voice, because that meant I wasn’t hallucinating after all. I just shrugged and said “Dont worry about it” I quickly changed the subject hoping to distract him “Were you looking for me?” The diversion worked because he perked up saying “Oh my gosh Mac, you have got to come see this. We found an ornate box on the east side of the dig. Preston is waiting for you before we open it.” Preston is Dwight’s brother and leader of this motley dig crew.

We both hurried back to the dig site, passing through camp where I quickly poured another cup of coffee to take with me. I was going to need more caffeine to help me clear my head if I was going to keep it together after my visitor.

We walked over to the east side of the dig site where Preston was sitting next to his assistant Natalia. Both looked like kids sitting next to a Christmas tree waiting to open presents.

“Hey Preston! What did you and Natalia find?” He reached down into what looked like a golden chest and lifted out an ornate silver box. The top of the box was inlaid with blue stones of varying shades surrounding what looked like a golden city. On the sides of the box were trident shapes that looked to be made of mother of pearl, but I’ve never seen a mother of pearl quite this colorful. So many shades of blue and when the sunlight hit it, it almost looked like it was made of clear blue rippling water.

I sat down next to Preston and he placed the box between us. “What do you think is in there I asked?”

“We’re about to find out aren’t we?” Dwight said from behind me. He was setting up the camera to record the historical event. “Looks like you may have found the proof needed to prove the existence of Atlantis”

I scoffed, “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves Dwight. It’s an amazing find regardless, but we don’t have a clue what’s inside”

We all got serious and looked at the box. Preston tried to open it, but it wouldn’t come open. He inspected the box looking for a latch, button or something that would open it. He ran his hand along the top of the box and pushed on the golden city and we heard a click. He tried again to open it, but to no avail. Immediately the blue gems on the top started to glow slightly. Pressing the golden city must have activated them.

Suddenly my dream came back to me. The handsome Hyas, telling me he needed our help, that Atlantis needed our help. He told me of a box I would find and how to open it. He said that inside I would find an amulet. That this lost amulet would break Atlantis free from the curse put upon it by Zeus who was angry with Poseidon for preferring the humans over his own kind. He said the amulet, once found, would bring Atlantis back up from the dark depths of the sea. That once we opened the box and took out the amulet they would all be free again.

I looked up to see everyone staring at me. Preston said, “What do you think, Mac?” I leaned forward, my hands shaking and pressed the glowing blue gems in the same order Hyas told me to in the dream. The lid of the box slowly opened. I was holding my breath as I waited to see what was inside. I was not surprised when I saw a golden amulet with what looked like a glowing sapphire with bright sparkling diamonds surrounding it. Everyone stared in stunned silence as I picked up the amulet and felt the impossible warmth coming from it. My fingers started tingling with the tiny vibrations coming from the amulet. Suddenly the sapphire glowed bright, then dimmed again.

“Oh my God” I whispered softly and looked up, “This proves it. Atlantis is real.”