Resurrection Hour - Hidden in Ice(Nanowrimo)

Chapter Two

"My god, he's hot," Cheryl exclaimed, as she flopped backwards onto the bed, her strawberry blond hair fanning out in all directions. "He can rescue me any day!"

"I hadn't noticed." She was still humiliated that she pulled out her bra in front of him. When she took it off in the plane washroom, she hadn't expected to have to dig in her bag when they arrived. She'd already emailed her identification to them. But she couldn't blame the guy for being thorough, it was his job after all. "Which bed do you want?"

"You're deflecting. You never not want to talk about a guy."

"I'm far too excited about our mission to even think about men."

Cheryl rolled over and stared at her, blowing her bangs from her eyes. "Okay, what have you done with my friend?"

"I'm serious." When she found out that they'd found a completely intact specimen, it was all she'd been thinking about. Partial skeleton maybe, but never with every speck of skin still on it. They couldn't exactly tell whether it was old or young because it was encased in so much ice that you couldn't get a clear view of it, aside from it being maybe the size of an average six year old. It had been discovered on a dig a few miles north of the station, and she was immediately called in.

The university that she worked for had no problem putting her on a flight out right away. She assumed they were already seeing their name in lights just because their name would be added in her research paper. Hannah could see the research grants tumbling her way.

As she stood there daydreaming, the bathroom door clicked letting her know she was temporarily alone. Cheryl was great, but she had a one track mind. Hannah glanced around the room. It was a basic tin can, much like a submarine. There were two beds parallel to each other along opposite walls, with two small end tables beside them. There was a lamp on each and an alarm clock, separated by one four-drawer dresser. In one corner, there was a small square table with two chairs and next to it was a television and a couch. She doubted that they had good reception out there though, so maybe they played movies.

"Hey, do you want the top two drawers of the dresser or the bottom two?" she yelled to her roommate.

"I'll take the top."

She was glad that their bed frames had three drawers built in. That made it a little easier than trying to cram everything into two drawers, especially when she wanted to dedicate a drawer to her camera and other equipment. She did hope that there were lockers in the lab though so she wouldn't have to lug things back and forth.

After a short bit, Cheryl wandered back into the room to grab something from her suitcase. "I still can't believe we're here," her assistant gushed, moving like a whirlwind about the room. "This kinda feels like a movie."

Hannah couldn't help but agree, but with a tad less excitement visible. All her life she'd wanted to be a part of history in the making. That was probably why she'd chosen this field. To uncover, to discover things, that may change how they look at humanity, at themselves.

Sometimes she wished she could go back in time and study things in their natural elements. Life was like one big discovery after another. You never stopped learning. And Hannah swore that if she ever had enough money, she'd continue her education, expand beyond her current confines. She chuckled quietly. She'd probably overload her brain one day.

Hannah glanced down at her watch, impatiently waiting for the fossil to arrive. She had hoped that it would have gotten there before they did, but no such luck. They'd sent her their preliminary findings, but it was encased in ice, so they needed to get it back to the station to study it further.

It was strange to find a preserved body in the middle of nowhere, without anything else around. There were no settlements nearby, nothing to indicate how it got there. It was like it was just plunked there, dropped and forgotten until they stumbled upon it. But how did it freeze so quickly? In their notes it said that it was perfectly preserved in a block of ice, which somehow didn't fit with the rest around it. The ice wasn't white, but crystal clear, so clear you could see the face of the child inside. That's how their machines detected the specimen beneath the surface. They'd been searching for a meteor that had fallen in the area, but found that instead.