"Is he a real Homo sapiens neanderthalensis?" Thayer exclaimed, staring at the furry man-like being on the other side of the reinforced window in the lab.

Gonzalo, the middle-aged, greying scientist next to his friend looked at him.

"I mean, really?"

"Yes, he is, as a matter of fact," the one replied.

"It should be impossible!"

"It should be, actually…"

"How do you think he has been able to survive until the present day? Had his secluded group stayed on that island for some thousand years, unknown to anyone?" the fair-haired man asked the scientist.

"As far as we know, he was completely alone deep in that jungle where our researchers found him."

"So, where are the others from his kind? Do you suggest that he came out of nowhere, maybe a certain era in prehistory?"

"We simply don't know…but the military has already sent a team in to search the area. Everything could be, as a matter of fact, that individual shouldn't be alive nowadays, so why shouldn't they think of some time travel or something like that?"

"Is that your opinion?"

"I don't have a precise opinion yet…but I'm working on it," Gonzalo sneered.

"Why the confinement room?"

"That's the real problem…we need to handle him with care."

"Why? Is he aggressive?"

"No - apart his reasonable bewilderment due to suddenly stumbling upon some modern humans one day on his lost island, and then being transported by force to our research facility…"

"So what?"

"Problem is that he seems to be very dangerous."

"How?"

"He is contagious, very contagious."

"What are you saying?"

"Actually, the first four-manned team that ran into him died 24 hours later…the cause was a weird 100% deadly virus, never seen before."

"Do you mean that he killed them all?"

"Not willingly, of course, but yes, they died because of that single meeting with him."

"Why did you send for me? Don't you need an anthropologist here? Or a researcher of human evolution? Why a Forensics Medical Examiner like me?"

"Because you've already worked for some covert ops with the Army. You are here to study the Homo sapiens neanderthalensis' corpse." Gonzalo stated.

"Wait a minute! Are you saying he is dying? Or are you going to kill him?"

"Killing him is the only option the higher-ups gave us, they have already decided upon this. It's a danger too great, such a measure has to be taken in defence of the human species."

"But that's really incredible. From what I studied at school, Homo sapiens neanderthalensis was supposed to have died because of the encounter with the more modern and abler Homo sapiens. Or, even because of some virus that killed most of them at that time."

"This is what the academicians have always told us, but we only have a few fossilized bodies of Homo sapiens neanderthalensis worldwide. Besides, if there was some virus involved in their disappearance, we never had the chance to find and study some fossilized remains of such a virus, obviously."

"What a great opportunity you are going to waste!"

"Do you know any other alternatives?"

"We could…we could," Thayer tried to say, then became speechless.

"Have you ever thought that, maybe, it was really the humans that killed every Homo sapiens neanderthalensis living in the past for a reason? Maybe just in order to survive…what if the virus the Homo sapiens neanderthalensis had inside his body, which seems not to be deadly for himself, was the worst danger the Homo sapiens ever faced during his evolution?"

"Do you think this is why the humans hunted and killed them all, making those become extinct over the course of prehistory, finally?"

"Who knows? Maybe that's something we should think about."

"So, now?"

"Just put on your lab suit and prepare to enter the confinement room. We are going to inundate it by means of a deadly gas to kill him."

"But this would be the same as if some Homo sapiens representatives wiped out from existence the Homo sapiens neanderthalensis another time!"

"It's already decided…"

"May I speak to him for a while? May I try to communicate?"

"Why not? But only a minute," he conceded.

So Thayer approached the reinforced window and looked at the Homo sapiens neanderthalensis, waving to him and making a gesture asking him to come closer.

Seemingly, the one understood, finally, and got nearer, walking in a strange, ungainly way. Then Gonzalo put his hand on the glass and the other did the same.

"Help us to help you! Tell us who you are." He was speaking with the Homo sapiens neanderthalensis but he knew that, in reality, he was just talking to himself, after all. He didn't think the other being could really figure out what he was saying.

"Grfrfdf…Grtfgdrd…Grfrf…Grgdrd!" That was what the primitive man muttered.

"Just let us discover how you came to our present day: why you are alive, even though the ones like you became extinct long ago."

"Ten seconds before gas emission," the speaker announced.

"I can't watch," Thayer burst out.

"No problem, turn away. But you'll have to study his corpse in some minutes, anyway."

"Grfrfdf…Grtfgdrd…Grfrf…Grgdrd!" the primitive man cried out, again.

In a way, he had replied to Thayer's questions, but nobody there inside could translate his grunts, of course. Homo sapiens neanderthalensis was supposed to be unable to use real words as the Homo sapiens did, but he had some other ways to communicate, like sounds and gestures.

Anyway, the meaning was the following: ‘That incredible light…I simply entered that light!'

Who knows, maybe the first time that Homo sapiens neanderthalensis met the first Homo sapiens in history, the first one said something like ‘Back off, I'm ill/contagious!' but nobody understood what he was trying to explain back then.

March 2nd midnight

"My fathers have waited 4000 years for your return," whispered the large man wearing a tan cotton abaya over a galabya and jeans.

"I'll need to convert these after the show," muttered the smaller man, dressed in a robe and keffiyeh that covered his face. He held out his palm to reveal six pebble-sized, golden ankhs from the Nabta Playa.

The two Egyptian men sat in the Café Riche in Cairo, facing the TV over the bar. "I am your faithful guide, my Lord."

"Could you call me ‘Bakari' instead? Let's not attract attention." He looked over at the larger man. As he turned, the guide could see that hidden under the scarf, his guest was wearing some kind of plastic apparatus over his face. "Wait, wait. They're starting the next segment…"

On the screen Maury Haralovich stood in front of the Sphinx. "Two years ago an American research team came to Giza and using ground penetrating radar reported odd readings underneath the Sphinx. The findings suggested the possibility of an underground chamber. More recently, Dr. Hemass discovered just that – a subterranean chamber. And it lies at the bottom of a long shaft not far from the Sphinx. This long hidden chamber honors the greatest of Egyptian gods – Osiris. In ancient myth, he is the principle figure of the country's genesis – a benevolent god/king who brought civilization to Egypt. He was ten when he was brutally murdered by his brother, and eventually healed by Thoth."

"Nice," quietly sneered the small man under the hood. "At least now I have the basic script." Two green bottles Stella were delivered as the bartender solidly made a ‘no charge' gesture with his hands.

"You have many followers here," confirmed Shakir.

The small, bookish man's focus was now transfixed on the live TV special. Onscreen Dr. Hemasss was helping three workers, tugging on pulleys as a large stone lid was lifted and a pit of water was revealed below it. There seemed to be a large blue obelisk in the pit. "We'll get this lid out of the way and begin to pump out the water. We can see something written about Thoth on the lid. Could this actually be the tomb of the man who brought Science, Astronomy, and writing to Egypt?" The camera began to pan about the small room re-focusing on shards of pottery and weathered books blocking the mouth of a passageway. Further back, the camera's light reflected off what seems to be a metal beam.

"What the heck is that?" asked the cameraman – pointing. Men in military uniforms suddenly came to the forefront.

Maury was hurriedly being shoved in front of the camera. "I'm being told that the remainder of tonight's show will…will end now. To our viewers worldwide, I say goodnight from Cairo…" The screen went blank followed by a commercial.

"It's still there! They haven't disturbed it – no one has – in over 4000 years," whispered the small man excitedly.

"What hasn't been disturbed? What does it mean?"

"It means that I'll find my way home somehow. Let us leave – I only have a few days to pack."

Walking into the busy streets of Cairo's night, the two men passed a bookstore. "What are those rectangular objects behind the glass? I saw them in the rubble on the screen."

"Those are books."

"Books?"

"Yes – words put down on paper to convey ideas."

"This one, with the stars in the back – what is it about?"

"A Short History of the Universe by Steven Hawking. It's about the study of the stars."

"You will get this for me tomorrow. And what do those words say?"

"Grey's Anatomy. It's about medicine – the inside of the human body."

"That one as well, and something to put them in." Thoth eagerly pointed out five more books to add to the list. "You must teach me how to decode these patterns. What good are the books if I don't understand them?"

"It usually takes years to learn to read," stumbled Shakir, stating the obvious.

"You'll find that I'm a fast learner," he said firmly, stepping away from the window. "This age of unlimited knowledge – I should have been born into this time." Shakir could hear the disappointment in his voice. "My heart lives in another age, however – an age of lush river valleys – an age apart from all this sand."

"I am curious about one thing," said Shakir.

"Ask me."

"How did you come to be in that machine – the one that exploded?"

The man in the mask hesitated. "My people were standing around a circle of stones and a leader was pointing to a star, when there was a brilliant flash of light. We hid our eyes and when we looked again – it was just sitting there, aglow, waiting. The others shrank back, but I could not contain my curiosity. I walked in, sat, and my world disappeared. It was just by chance that I came to you. Teach me to read that I might change my world."

"I will teach you to read so you might begin history."

The Sphinx 6 nights later

The small band of men hid beside a jeep. The man in front kept stealing looks at the fenced-in pit leading to the Tomb of Osiris.

"There are too many guards around it," sighed Thoth.

"You forget – you have many followers." As if on cue, a sharp whistle was heard. "That's the signal. You must go on alone."

"Hand me the pack," the traveler said.

"I included a medical kit."

"Good." Without warning he removed his mask and the two men could finally see each other face to face. "Thank you my friend," said Thoth in a language uncarried by the desert wind for 4000 years. In spite of not having a translating device, each understood the other perfectly.

Thoth threw the backpack over his shoulder, beginning to run towards the pit, towards the past, into his future.

As I scribe and recount my experiences, it was if a dream… to which I cannot return.

He said his name was Colonel Virgil. In a vision, he offered me an opportunity to see what the future would hold. He was able to converse with me in my native Tuscan dialect and French. His English was of a dialect I did not speak. He explained much that I had yet to understand. He said he would be my guide.

Was that fellow Virgil who told me the story, really speaking the truth? I remembered, he was dressed in a strange military type garb, but wore no armor.

I opened my eyes to a room I'd never seen. It wasn't Florence. It wasn't 1482. I touched the bed I was on. The material was none I'd ever felt. The room, Spartan in adornment, was cool. I turned and saw him sitting on a style of furniture I had never viewed; with machinery flashing and buzzing I understood nothing of. "I'm not dead. When am I?" I inquired in French.

"An excellent question. The year, sir, is 2012.You are in a laboratory of a future government. I mentioned all that to you back in Florence when I was offering you a chance to view the future, and then some. You had your doubts, hesitations, but you accepted, and here you are. Be careful getting up. Time travel is a bit rough on the senses the first few times. Sir, first have some water. It's safe to drink. You are dehydrated."

The glass was not glass. It was some type of clear flexible material called plastic. The water was cool and refreshing, almost without taste.

I stood up and looked at myself in a mirror. Yes it was my face but my tunic was gone. My garb was of a similar style as his. It was a gray, snug fitting material, with various shapes and designs that appeared to vary as the light changed. He explained, "The clothing actually blends in with the surroundings to make one less conspicuous."

How interesting.

A fortnight later:

GOOGLE, the Internet, how utterly fascinating and frightening. Virgil had his associate train me to use this amazing technology. I looked myself up as well as other before and after me. After studying and questioning almost nonstop for all the time I was there, I had a basic grasp of the situation. I also had an understanding of their English.

I am filled with ideas.

One breakfast, Virgil graciously offered, "What may I show you today? You have carte blanche, courtesy of the American Government."

"Your military, your armed forces. I read about them on this machine," pointing to a computer. "That would be most interesting. There might be something here I could utilize."

"Yes sir, this way." After some hesitation Colonel Virgil asked, "May I call you Leonardo? You may call me Virgil, if you choose."

"If it makes you more comfortable, Colonel," I replied.

I walked out into the bright sun for the first time in weeks. Virgil handed me tinted optics. They are a wonderful product. They are made of plastic. I looked up the nature of that product on the computer.

Before me was a machine with long appendages sprouting from the top. Virgil explained rotary winged craft to me. He added, "some are flying weapon systems; others, strictly for transport." We got in and to my surprise, it rose into the sky.

As soon as we were in the heavens three different type of air machines flanked us. He explained they were escort craft designed to protect the vehicle we were in. "Protect from whom," I asked. I received no answer. It's no different now, than it is at home. I scanned the heavens. I noticed no angels.

We landed in a field. There upon I saw a large cannon mounted on some type of vehicle. This cannon and whole vehicle was sheathed in armor.

"It's called a tank. It weighs over 60 tons," a soldier explained, "can travel over 70 miles per hour and fire on the fly."

"The fly?"

"Sorry sir, shoot as we move. Would you like a demonstration?"

Again, I was a bit hesitant. "Yes," I replied. They gave me a helmet and told me I could communicate with all the people in the tank. I sat next to the loader as she was called. I couldn't believe it, a female warrior. I noticed females here and there; I assumed for pleasure, not warriors.

They gave me a demonstration of its cannon power. I got to fire the machine's weapons. The vehicle is highly destructive and impressive. They said I had invented a wheeled tank and a helicopter. I think I know why I will. I have not done so yet.

"I must return home," I exclaimed.

Virgil hugged him good-by and gave a kiss on the cheeks, in the European fashion of farewell.

Back in Florence, Leonardo wrote to the Duke of Milan explaining that he has "seen and examined the inventions of all those who count themselves makers and masters of instruments of war…I will therefore demonstrate all these things…"*

He continued, "I will make armored cars, totally unassailable, which will penetrate the ranks of the enemy with their artillery, and there is no company of soldiers so great that can withstand them."*

Leonardo looked at the card made of a material not yet invented. He remembered what Virgil said. "Any time you want to return to our time for any reason, place your thumbs on both these metalized spots on this card. You will be transported here. You are always welcome."

Leonardo thought for a while. He looked at a few of his military weapons drawings, his sketches, and then, Leonardo Da Vinci put a candle flame to the card and wrote "perche la mianesstra si fredda."* Dinner called.

__________________________________________

* Nicholl, Charles, in Leonardo Da Vinci, Flights of the Mind, Viking Press 2004