THE
PATH
CHAPTER
ONE
5mBC
The Development Committee was not required to meet frequently but the
members had become very aware of the need for an early decision on the Earth
Project. They had a growing
sense of anxiety, a hunch, which they instinctively knew to be brought to their
minds by the usually reliable method of telepathy, and they also knew that it
must not be ignored. Such normal methods of communication were considered
unsuitable for handling the various possibilities so they assembled in Alpha
committee room and awaited the arrival of the Chairman.
When Ywancontin
appeared on the dais, each of the other six members saw his penetrating eyes
looking into their own. He
then described the status quo verbally, despite knowing
that they would be aware of the problem as soon as he formed the words in his
mind.
" My Brothers of
the Light, we are required to consider the facts of the situation on the Earth
and make a decision regarding the requirements of the Project and the methods to
be used to introduce the necessary amendments to these creatures.
There is a growing recognition of our seeing an established species which
meets all the necessary survival criteria but which requires some adjustment in
order to help it move in the right direction.
Let us examine the beasts as they exert their ability to
survive. We can move into
their vicinity for, perhaps, a year and record their strengths and their
weaknesses. Let us consider
the effect of their steadily enlarging brains, the growing strength of their
instinct for self survival and also their ability to follow their reproductive
urges at any time of the day or the year.
We must take a long-term view of all the aspects and project where we
estimate that they will be in each of the next long periods.
Let us move as an invisible group to be with them".
They had spent the time of darkness up amongst the growth in the mighty
trees. They felt safe there,
in small clusters of bodies. The
babies and infants had been kept warm amongst the adults who were lying along
the large branches, intertwined with the sinuous creepers, which were also
closely knitted into the forest canopy.
Yes, the worst dangers came from the large carnivores that hunted
throughout the day and night for these small creatures.
In the first short period of time, immediately after the dawn, the
bearded males were the first of the group to venture down to the ground.
They could see and smell some of the even smaller animals that were
seeking food on the forest floor. The
hunt was on. Those early forerunners of mankind had learned to take
advantage of changing conditions, which might have improved only temporarily.
They hunted in a group. They
used their limited vocabulary of only about one hundred sounds, or grunts, in
order to shout brief orders to the other members of the group.
The waved arm of the leader sent the others into a rapidly created circle
around the few rodent-like foragers seeking their own nourishment.
The end was swift.
Each of the hominids held a rounded stone in his hand and used it to kill
the quarry. Previous, but now
defunct, members of the group had collected the stones when they had been
hunting many years ago near the big water.
They had been unaware that the tidal action of the water had ground the
stones into their present shapes. They
had merely applied their growing intelligence to the new-found toys.
Experiment had shown them the amazing fact that they could be thrown
accurately at any creature that they wished to harm, whether a food animal or
another hominid. Practice
improved their aim but they lost a large part of their stock of stones over a
period of time. Some of this
loss was replaced with new stones found during their journeys but these were
rarely of the favoured smooth rounded shape. As the stock dwindled there was a sensible tendency to
avoid throwing them but to retain a favoured stone in the hand, up to the point
of striking a decisive blow. The
possibility of fixing one in a split piece of tree branch, and making a
hammer-like weapon, would not be thought of until the brain had evolved a little
more, perhaps in a few thousand years time.
There were nearly one hundred of the creatures in this group under
surveillance. Some thirty of
them were the mature males, the hunters.
The fact that they had the benefit of the invention of a crude but
effective weapon gave them a growing confidence whenever they came up against
any of the larger animals. Today,
they were fully in control and the slaughter of the rodents was soon completed.
The excited winners immediately squatted on their haunches to eat the
warm flesh in their hands. The
furry skins were torn from the bodies with their teeth and the meat was
swallowed after a minimum of chewing.
The remainder of the group had stayed near the trees, ready to climb to
safety if danger was seen. A
quarter of them were fully grown females and the rest were youngsters of various
ages. There were no old ones
amongst th. All were naked
with hides that were darkened from exposure to the hot sun and the contact with
the earth and plant growth. Many
of them were scarred from damage received during hunting, or from fighting
amongst themselves. They had
appeared to be excited as they watched the slaughter of the small creatures,
which they named as Carn, a word that
they applied to any animal that could be considered as food.
"Carn, carn", the
females called to their menfolk, hoping for some nourishment for themselves, but
the plea was ignored. The
males had had their fill and were already starting to move across the open space
to look for more prey. One of
them had eaten well and he was still holding a small body in right hand.
He nodded to the leader, held up the meat and then nodded in the
direction of the group of females standing near the big tree where they had all
slept the night. The leader
shrugged and turned to move away from him.
Another hunter grunted "uhuh"
and pointed to where the leaves of a small tree were moving unnaturally. They were not going to be distracted. An intense look came to all their faces and they moved
very quietly and very carefully in the hunt for more food. They were soon hidden in the undergrowth, seeking the
creature that had caused the movement.
The hunter with the meat had returned to the group of women and children.
"Nga", he called as
he approached. "Nga",
he said, pointing to one of the females.
The one that he had indicated was only just reaching maturity, with her
bare breasts pushing strongly between the long matted hair hanging from her
head. "Nga?"
she asked, with widening eyes. She
had not been asked before now and she knew that she was only just ready for a
male. There were no secrets
or privacy about the mating habits of these primitives.
It occurred at any time, whenever a creature of either sex was so
inclined, in full view of the children and others that happened to be there.
If the female showed a lack of interest or any resistance to the male's
advances, she might be encouraged to be more co-operative by the simple
persuasion of a blow from his fist, with or without the heavy stone.
Here was an offer of fresh food, which she had seen killed a few minutes
earlier, and now it was offered to her.
All she had to do was to let ming enter
her until he was satisfied.
She took the meat from him, with a smile, and turned on to her hands and
knees, holding the food in front of her.
Her hindquarters were then raised ready for the ming,
and she started to eat. It was
nothing new. She had seen it
happen so many times throughout her childhood.
"Ming nga, ming nga",
she thought to herself as she became aware of the penetration. The best part of it was the food, which she enjoyed as
the hunger pains from the long night began to fade. Perhaps this ming
will hunt for her again? Perhaps,
she should show her appreciation in some other way. She moved her body and gave a few squeals of
excitement, hoping that ming would
remember her for another time. He
rolled her over and ran his hands over her body before taking her again, but
this time from the front. He
was chuckling and grunting with satisfaction.
Then, it was all over. He
stood up. "Da",
he said, and then ran off into the undergrowth to try to catch up with the other
hunters. She liked the sound
of "Da", but she was not
sure whether it was meant to be a word of thanks or whether the ming was giving her a name, a grunt that would be recognised as and
when he thought of her. It
sometimes happened that individuals were named in this way.
The other females looked at her, some with envy, and one with hate.
This last one was the pregnant one that her ming
had been mating with regularly all through the year.
The ming had given her the
sound of Ud.
Why was she angry? She
had a big belly and she would soon be bringing a new life into the tribe.
Perhaps it was because she knew that her baby would be arriving in the
middle of the cold spell. That
was a bad time to have a baby. It
was a time of little food, a time when the older members and babies were all at
risk. In the long cold nights of the winter it was often
necessary to put the weaker members out in the cold, whilst the younger,
livelier ones huddled under a fresh covering of leaves and bark. In the light of the next day the survivors would share
the cold meat and maintain their strength.
Nothing was wasted and the group would continue to survive for another
year.
When the hunters returned to the rest of their group there was an
awareness of anxiety amongst them. They
had been successful in killing a horse-like animal, a forerunner of the quagga,
and had brought it back for the benefit of their mates.
They had also noticed that many of the smaller creatures had been moving
quickly towards the direction where the warm sun spent most of its time. They must follow them in that direction or, perhaps,
there would not be enough food for them in the immediate future. They were very aware of the regular cycles of the year.
The warm period would make life a little easier for them but the cold
period would bring serious problems.
There was a constant worry about the possible shortage of food, which
could lead to the death to some of the children and reductions in the number of
hunters, especially the more mature ones who had acquired a cough or damage to
one of their limbs. It was a
short hard life but the will to survive was strong in every one of them.
They had returned with the complete body of the quagga
and proceeded to dismember it, using brute force helped by a flattened stone
with a sharp edge. One of the
females had found the flintstone recently and given it to her ming
as a token of her desire to remain his nga. He used it later to kill a small carn and had been surprised to find that it had cut into the head
rather than smashing it. It
had also been useful in helping to remove the skin and to give access to the
flesh. This stone was now
used by the owner to help in the removal of the quagga's
pelt, in one piece. This had
never before been done.
All the famished group members gathered around the carcass, using their
hands, teeth and favoured stones to pulverise the bones and sever pieces of
flesh, which they swallowed or shared with their offspring. Their unwashed bodies were covered in more scratches
and blood, but they were satisfied. The
feast was over and most of the mature creatures then lay down where they were
and slept. Some of the males
mated with the nearest females before relaxing.
They all stank, but none of them were repelled by the odour.
In fact, it was the smell, or scent, that gave them a sense of unity in
the group. They had no
hesitation in knowing whether another creature was one of their group or whether
it was an enemy, to be attacked and destroyed before being eaten.
A little time later, the leader roused the complete group and they obeyed
his pointed instructions to climb to safety up their favourite tree.
Two of the ngas carried the bloodied pelt up with them.
The next morning saw the two ngas
take the pelt to the nearby stream and wash it thoroughly, in the clear fresh
water, and scrape it with the sharp stone until there was no sign of any flesh
or blood attached. They then
took it up into their tree and fixed it in the branches, spread out to let it
dry, using splintered bones as pins.
They looked pleased with their efforts.
They also looked much cleaner after the personal contact with the fresh
water. Just before the sunset
they examined the pelt. They
screamed with frustration. The furry side of the skin was clean, smooth and
pleasing to the touch, but the complete pelt was hard and rigid.
Their mings looked up at the
noise and examined the skin. One
of them then picked up his smooth killer stone and beat the skin with it against
the bark of the tree. This
had the effect of breaking some of the stiff fibres and, eventually, softening
the pelt until it could be wrapped around the body.
The strongest nga of the two
then grabbed it, as if it were her own property. After kicking her friend off the branch, down to the
ground, she retained the prize, wrapping herself and her baby in it for the
night.
Her late friend lay on the ground, with a broken back, moaning in pain,
until a night predator found her and carried her away to be consumed.
The medical member,
Lucus, commented on high mortality rate.
"It is rare for a creature to survive for long, after the age of
twenty. In fact, older ones
are usually looked upon as a source of food in times of shortage.
They might be very effective hunters, using their experience to guide the
younger ones to good
sources of prey, but they can be surprised
by a sudden blow to the head from the stone of a youngster, even from one of
their own sons. Dismemberment, butchery and consumption quickly follow
this activity. If the group
can be helped to survive each winter they might realise the benefit of retaining
the wisdom of the older ones".
"No", said
Marcus, the enterprising one. "I
doubt whether you will be able to encourage that reaction from the young ones.
In their ignorance, they are not likely to recognise that time can be a
teacher. They will make their
own mistakes and they will have to learn from them.
That is, perhaps, the basis of future progress for them all".
Surtyn, the member with the assured manner, the decision-maker, indicated
that he had strong opinions that he wished to express.
"It is easy to
make a prognosis. We
need to keep in mind the fact that this is only one of a number of similar
groups that are receiving such help, along their own paths, in order to make
progress. With some of them,
like this one, the survival instinct is so very strong that they could easily
eliminate enough members of their own group so that it becomes weakened to the
point of extinction. That
could defeat the object of the exercise.
No. I feel that it is
essential that we retain the strong instincts for both survival and reproduction
until such time that we can guide them to reduce the excess power of those
instincts using their own willpower.
That will be long
after the planet appears to be overpopulated, when survival appears to be
assured, long after some of the spiritual paths are being followed successfully.
There are so many other possible sources of danger and elimination that
we must encourage their physical survival.
The other carnivores are a constant danger and will remain so for many
thousands of years. I believe that the time appears to be ripe now
for a slight modification to be made.
I suggest that the trait of compassion be introduced here, so that its
effects might be seen by all the group members, whilst it develops within the
recipient. It will then be
passed on to the future generations, subject to their survival and the pressures
of the other members. It is
possible that it might counter the worst effects of the two survival instincts
mentioned. Depending on the
fertility of the human chain involved, the trait might appear in a growing
number of the future families within the group.
Also, it can be passed from this group to one or more of the other groups
with which contact will be made into the future.
The result will be
that we will see that the strong reproductive instinct will be an asset in
encouraging these creatures to seek out other groups, not only for the food that
will become available to them, but, also, for the pleasures of the sexual
contacts and conquests. The
survival genes and the compassion trait will then be passed on to the members of
the other groups. The mated
female conquests will also be likely to be retained within the winning group,
therefore strengthening it numerically".
The other members of
the Committee pondered the suggestion before they made their comments.
They heard Chairman
Ywancontin encourage them to check, and recheck, their reactions to the proposal
from Surtyn, before they expressed their thoughts.
The first reply came
from the quiet member, Solem.
"There is a
great deal of sound logic in the proposal from Surtyn and I recommend that it is
considered before being implemented.
We need to look forward in time when all these instincts will be so
ingrained into the creatures' minds and bodies that they will not wish to
relinquish them. They are
already showing extreme pleasure when asserting their abilities to conquer other
beings with force, whether it is to kill them for food, or to satisfy their lust
for the females. As already
mentioned, we could be creating a future situation where the gentler traits,
such as compassion and some others that we might decide to introduce, are
suppressed by the already forceful instincts.
We need to monitor the progress at regular intervals"
Ywancontin looked at
the seventh member of the Committee who had not yet made any contribution to the
debate. "Bevak, we have
not yet had the benefit of your own thoughts?
You have always been regarded as the Active One.
You have tended to examine the possible results of any action before it
is permitted. What aspects do
you feel should be considered before we move?
Your input is required".
"Oh, yes, I
agree with the general trend of opinion, but I am aware of another aspect to
bear in mind. The creatures,
which we intend to encourage both physically and mentally, are already
developing a strong instinct, which had not yet been mentioned here, that is the
ability to use psychic powers. Consider
their lack of language. They
rarely use any words. They
rarely give each other a recognisable grunt that could become a name by which
they are recognised within the group.
Also, when they are being hunted by other predators, animals that are
expert in the art of concealment, one or more of the group is aware of a feeling
of anxiety, or nervous tension, even when the threat is not to be seen with
their eyes. The complete
group is instantly aware of the need to move quickly to safety, either up a tree
or by running away from the source of the danger.
Neither of the communications is oral.
They are both mental awareness and bring instant reaction, which saves
the group from massacre. They
can only be psychic, as we know, and are an indication that they are moving
steadily towards an extremely sophisticated social structure.
We can easily test this ability, if it is wished. We can permit one or
more of them to have a fleeting glimpse of us during a period of close
observation. We can then hear
and note their reactions. They
might be frightened, aggressive, or even comforted at the realisation that they
have spiritual support. That
is my proposal". Ywancontin
nodded approval, as the others all indicated their agreement.
"We will move on those lines, but we will also encourage the group
to move to the north east, as the approaching cold period tends to make life
more difficult for them in the present location.
They will find better protection amongst the mountains".
And so it was.
When the seven
members of the Committee moved around the sleeping group that night, noting the
pairing of the adults and the comforting, interlocking positions on the wide
branches, the eyes of one female, wrapped in the animal skin, were opening.
The
full moon lit the group. The
female with the opened eyes was the one named Da
by her food provider and she simply could not absorb or comprehend what she saw.
There were a number of tall strangers standing around them and looking at
them seriously, but without any sign of being hungry or being ready to attack
them. Although she was unable to count up to seven, it
was obvious to the watchers that she had, in fact, seen them.
She trembled and screamed at the top of her voice. "Ga
Ga Gaaaaaa!".
Immediately,
every member of the group was awake and starting to climb down the trunk, or
falling from their branch, down to a lower level and, eventually, down to the
ground. Some of the weaker members had broken limbs and all of
them were shaken and bruised. They
moved as a group to the next tree trunk and, after only a short hesitation, the
fit ones started to climb up in the hope of finding security. The damaged members huddled in a small cluster at the base of
the trunk where they remained until the break of dawn.
Da radiated
fear and anxiety, which she could not express verbally.
She continued to say "Ga, ga,
ga", but that was the limit of her vocabulary for indicating fear.
She knew what she had seen.
The seven "tall ones" were all more than twice the height of
the males that she lived with, but they were usually bent almost double as they
searched the ground for grubs and scraps of food dropped by the others.
She had never seen anything like it in her short life. What she had not realised was the fact that the
telepathic abilities, used successfully by each member of the group in their
normal survival activities, had evolved within her into an embryonic
introduction to the art of psychical awareness.
She had seen seven spiritual entities.
She felt lost, terrified, and weakened to the point of being at risk, by
not taking all the usual precautions when moving about during the approaching
day. As it happened she was
fortunate. The group leaders
had also been frightened by her screams.
They started the day by collecting all the stones that had been dropped
during the flight down the tree and making it obvious that they were starting
their trek towards the sun. All
their instincts now told them that it was not in their interests to stay in that
vicinity, the screams, the awareness that the smaller animals had already
started to move towards the sun, and the growing chill during the past few
nights up their tree.