September 30, 1995
Serengeti Plains, Kenya
Saa Sita Mchana (Noon)
She crouched in the grass, frozen and absolutely silent, for once oblivious to the annoying insects that buzzed about her. Ever so slowly she raised her binoculars to her face, resting her elbows on a small boulder that kept her and the equipment hidden from the object of her attentions. She grinned, and adjusted the focus until the image was crystal clear. They had a perfect view of the cheetah, the mother she had nicknamed Sara in her reports, and Jeni watched in breathless excitement as the tawny feline tucked her cubs into a soft recess beneath the shade of an acacia tree. Then she's going to go for it. Jeni looked up to glance at the herd of antelope that grazed calmly nearby, all unaware of the cheetah's deadly presence.
Good luck, girl, Jeni thought. Sara hadn't eaten in days; she needed to make this catch, for her own sake and for her two cubs. They were only seven months old, still far too young to care for themselves. The slender cat ducked down into the dry grass that matched the color of her coat perfectly and began to sneak smoothly toward the herd with such poise and control. She looked like a dancer.
"Are we rolling?" She whispered over her shoulder to her assistant, a first year student she was fond of, and Melissa nodded silently, one hand steadying the tripod. Jeni turned back around and cemented everything she saw into her mind.
Sara was now about twenty yards away from the antelope. A good distance. She stopped, considering for a brief moment, muscles all wound up and tensed, then sprinted.
Cheetahs could reach speeds of up to seventy miles an hour, and Sara was flying. She raced past several animals before swerving, and her target soon became clear to Jeni. It was not full grown, but not a baby, either. Jeni bit her lip, eyes following the chase. It was a risk. In her weakened condition, Sara might not be able to bring it down...
And suddenly, in a burst of speed, Sara was on her chosen, and it fell with a broken cry. Struggled, and was still. Sara raised her bantam head, panting heavily, and watched the rest of the herd run off. She looked so majestic, so proud, just standing there. Jeni smiled and let out a quiet laugh as the excitement wore down. Motherly instinct allowing them to eat first, Sara began to drag her kill to the waiting cubs under the acacia.
***
Jeni could hardly believe their good luck as she drove home, an overjoyed Melissa and ungainly camera in tow. They had never gotten footage of Sara and her cubs eating before; their view had always been blocked by a tree or the tall grass, but today nothing had interfered. Elated, she sped the Jeep along the dusty road that led back to Mosanwi, where she and several other college students shared a large house. They had formed a sort of family, Jeni playing what she considered to be the mother role, and even though their interests were often extremely different, they got along well. Sometimes projects even overlapped, as Jeni's and Melissa's did, the latter dreaming of becoming a nature photographer. When they reached the house, they both jumped out and rushed inside.
"You guys will never believe -" Jeni stopped short at the solemn looks of her companions, only then noticing the man that stood among them. He appeared to be a Masai elder, judging by his clothing and decorated staff. He stood tall above the others. She was unsure of what to say, then spotted Morogo, a close friend of hers, sitting on the sofa. She cast him a questioning glance. "Do you know him?"
"Jeni, this man has come to speak with you," he said softly in Swahili. "He asked for you, by name."
He knew her name. Jeni's heart pounded. She didn’t recognize the man. The seriousness hung heavy in the room. "Tafadhali, kusema," she stumbled nervously. "Please, speak."
"I am from a village," the man began, "just west of here. You visit it often."
"Komasa," Jeni said. "Yes, there’s a lion pride nearby, I've been studying them recently."
He nodded. "A few days ago, we began seeing..."
He said a word that Jeni was not familiar with, and she repeated it, having to turn to Morogo for translation. "Comets," he told her.
The man continued. "Comets, strange lights in the sky. They frighten the cows and the children. They come because of you."
"Because of..." Now Jeni was really confused. She shook her head. "No, I don’t know anything about this. Why do you think that?"
"Last night, they came again. And the visitors came. They asked for you."
"The visitors?" Again she shook her head. This was silly. "No, they were probably just men from the university... from my old home. They must have gotten lost. And the lights... well, maybe they really were comets, or shooting stars. I'm sure the whole thing can be explained."
"No", the man said. "No. You have not seen it... the lights in the sky..."
October 1, 1995
Near Komasa
Saa Moja Na Robo Usiku (7:15 p.m.)
She couldn’t believe that Morogo had talked her into coming. Of course, he did have a good point; she didn't want an entire Masai village angry with her over comets, but then again, she had to analyze the tape she had gotten of Sara's family soon if she was going to include it in her next article...
She sighed and slapped a mosquito that had somehow found its way into the Jeep. Stars were beginning to dot the darkened sky, and still no sign of comets or strange men.
Or lions. The pride that frequented here was led by a male she called Tempo, and earlier she had explored the general area and found no recent tracks or carcasses. She doubted that she’d see them at all. This night was just one big disappointment. What a waste of time.
She was about to turn around and go home when something caught her eye. She looked up just in time to see a bright light flash across the horizon and fade into the distance. Then another. And another. So this was it. She waited for more, but the sky was still. She was surprised that this had alarmed a Masai village. Certainly they had seen a meteor shower before; there was no doubt in her mind that that's what it was. She turned the key in the ignition, and the engine sputtered to life.
Her hand was on the gear shift when she saw the fourth meteor, this time coming from the direction where the others had headed. And, strangely, instead of dimming, it seemed to grow brighter, and slow to a stop above her.
Then another. And another. All mimicking the first.
She felt an eerie chill creeping up her back, and barely noticed when the Jeep became still and silent again. She looked up through the roof and thought she could tell which three pinpricks had been in motion just moments before; they were the three that were now growing bigger, their light stronger, blending together and illuminating the inside of the Jeep. And if she didn't know better, she would say that they were coming closer, lowering, closing in on her...
And Jeni opened her mouth to scream.
*end*
| MAIN | NEW | CHARACTERS | GENERAL | CURRENT CASE | PAST CASES | OTHER CASES |