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Author Bio Ian Gordon has spent all of his professional life involved with education. He taught English and Humanities in Victorian secondary schools for twelve years then became involved with teacher training and lecturing at Monash University. He was a curriculum consultant to schools and later held senior positions in the Curriculum and Research Branch of the Education Department of Victoria, of which he became head for about five years. He has written extensively for students and teachers, including children’s novels published by McGraw Hill. Special interests in psychic research and spiritual phenomena led him to write The Andronicus Tapes, a book about psychic phenomena published in Melbourne in 1983. Well known for his association with the New Age movements, for many years he conducted workshops in Australia and produced two documentaries about psychic and spiritual phenomena. He has also had an interest in astronomy and UFO research and reporting for more than thirty years. These interests provided a special expertise to be able to write Aliens in the Warrumbungles, an evidence-based science fiction story. Ian Gordon is now retired. As well as recently completing Aliens in the Warrumbungles for teenagers, he has also recently published an adult novel entitled: The Return – A Novel of Prophecy and Mysticism, and a provocative religious book entitled: Letters to the Church by a Spiritualist. Ian Gordon’s qualifications are BA, TSTC, M.Ed. PhD and formerly MACE. Chapter One
Mystery in the Warrumbungle Ranges
In the bush everything became still. Kangaroos stood erect, leaning back on their tails, alert to something unusual. The rabbits, too, were watchful and listening, rotating their ears to catch any sound. The birds stopped calling to each other and landed in the nearest hiding places. Emus caught in the open came to a standstill. They didn’t know which way to run – only that there was something nearby which should not be. The dingo which had been stealthily hunting the rabbits paused when an unfamiliar scent came on the wind. Even the insects seemed to go silent in that part of the national park. Only the wind moved among the dry leaves of the gully. Everything in Nature sensed something unusual. Something dangerous had entered the Warrumbungle Ranges in New South Wales. A park ranger who had been scanning the countryside for bushfires from a hilltop lookout tower noticed that the animals were being alert for danger. They certainly hadn’t sensed fire; he could not see any smoke. There weren’t any noisy vehicles travelling along the road, nor were there any low-flying light planes or hang-gliders to be seen. But just then something definitely flashed on the horizon – probably near the southern boundary of the park, he thought. Glass reflecting in the sun, he wondered? About two minutes passed before any of the creatures of the bush moved. It was a long time for them to be so quiet and still. Then, as if someone had given a psychic signal, noises and movements again stirred in the valleys, plains and hills of the Warrumbungle National Park. Peter had been a park ranger for three years and knew how important it was for him to be in tune with Nature. So only when he saw the animals resume their routines did he also relax to think about the evening. Even though it was the last week of the long summer holidays there were still several families enjoying the camping grounds. He had mixed feelings about the school holidays ending. He had been a science teacher who really enjoyed being with teenagers – and challenging them to think! In fact it had been his frequent excursions with students to the many Australian national parks which had prompted him to become a ranger. Among other things he now had the job of running the Park Education Service when school groups visited for Environmental Studies and Astronomy excursions. And that was another attraction for him: The Warrumbungle National Park was also the heart of Astronomy in Australia. From his lookout tower he could see the various silver domes of the Australian and international telescopes perched on nearby mountains. At times he even wished he were an astronomer, but he had settled for an amateur’s telescope and close friends at the observatory. Peter sighed and stretched as he enjoyed the last of his afternoon watch. It really was time to be heading back to the camp – and other duties. Through his binoculars he could see the holiday-makers at their camp sites. Among them the ranger recognised the groups which had recently arrived from somewhere along the north coast. They were two families – four young people and their parents. He had met them when they had checked in. The parents had booked a cabin near the perimeter of the camping area, while the teenagers, who seemed particularly confident and determined to make the most of their stay in the national park, had erected two tents nearby. He didn’t know much about them yet, but as he approached their camp in the fading light, he recognised their exuberance, the good-natured rivalry between the cousins and a certain sense of independence. The ranger’s impressions were close to the mark. Just then, Andrea and Jill had been reviewing their plans to stir the boys early the next morning. They had already enjoyed having their own camp site well organised while their two cousins were still stowing gear in their two-man tent. But they would have to acknowledge Gordon’s experience had paid off when the campfire had to be organised. Peter noted the precautions against the fire spreading had already been taken – and that the parents had been keeping a watchful eye on things from their cabin doorway until he arrived. Just then Mark had set down a pile of something on the ground and was saying, “It looks as though it’s just about time to shove some potatoes in the fire. I’ve wrapped them in foil, ready to go.” “Good one, Mark. Takes you back to stargazing at the farm doesn’t it?” “Well, I hope there’s one for me then,” laughed the ranger as he sat down with them. The girls weren’t about to be outdone. Andrea dragged out some packets. “Well, we are keen on toasted marshmallows – and there should be enough here for everyone, but we’d better wait for the fire to die down a bit more, by the look of it.” “This gets better and better,” Peter decided as he held one of the skewers of sweets. “How about you go ahead and put those potatoes in – preferably in the hot ashes at the bottom, Mark – then we can have a chat while they are cooking.” Jill had been waiting for just such a moment. “I have a question, Peter. On the way here we visited a tourist centre with model dinosaurs all around it. Were there really dinosaurs here once – or is the display just a gimmick to get the tourists in?” “Oh, I know where you’ve been! Great place. Say, did you put coins in the dinosaurs to make them roar and spray water? One evening recently, I drove out there and fed twenty-cent coins into the Tyrannosaurus Rex in the carpark. It roared its fool head off, echoing through the ranges in the dark for about ten minutes. Had the campers really going for awhile – then I had to own up or they wouldn’t have slept!” “Good one, Peter,” laughed Mark, “I actually fed one when Gordon wasn’t looking. It moved its long neck all over the place and spewed water over Gordon. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time.” “Sounds as though you had a good look at all of them! It’s actually true, Jill; people still find dinosaur bones and fossils around the Warrumbungle Ranges. Now try to imagine going back in time as you look at the display board of the park over at the light. Most of the mountains you can see were active volcanoes only thirteen-million years ago. What would it have been like here then? Some of those, like Wambelong Mountain, Crater Bluff and Belougery Spire, are all that’s left of the volcanoes. Most dinosaurs in the World died out something like sixty-five million years ago when a meteor hit the Earth and changed the climate radically. Mind you, some of them in Australia were already used to surviving extreme cold in the ice age, and may have lasted longer than others. But they were round here, that’s for sure. If you are good hikers, in the next few days you could visit places like Belougery Split Rock and The Breadknife. There are huge posters of them you can take home from the observatory…” Gordon looked up enthusiastically, “The observatory? Can we actually go into the Siding Springs Observatory?” “Heavens yes!” Peter looked back at the cabin to see whether the parents were still around, but there was no sign of them just then. “Get your folks to take you to the visitors’ gallery at the main telescope area. And don’t miss the big exhibition in the building next door called: Exploring the Universe! You can learn a lot about astronomy there – and you’d quite enjoy the interactive models.” “Do we get to check out the international telescopes?” Mark asked hopefully. “Afraid not. The professional astronomers keep them busy. But I’ll tell you what we can do. Tomorrow night, all being well, I’ll set up my telescope in the clearing over there!” “Great! Thanks!” yelled Mark as he raced off to the cabin to share the news. As the ranger looked over the remaining teenagers he seemed to be trying to make up his mind about something. He became more serious as he spoke to them. “Now I have to tell you the national park is a strange place. There are well-marked walking tracks – but you don’t go on any of them without letting me know first. And I’ll want you to show me that you have first-aid kits, water, torches and a jumper in your packs! Okay? It’s easy to feel very alone once you leave the camping areas – and that can be very spooky! Oh, and if you see anything unusual around the tracks or rock ledges, like bones or fossil rocks or even Aboriginal tools and things left behind years ago, mark the spot and come and tell me. Don’t disturb anything!” The cousins stared at the ranger and wondered why he had become so serious. But just then Mark came running back looking really happy and brandishing a pair of cooking tongs. “Here. Mum said when the potatoes are cooked we can put this butter on them!” And that was the signal for everyone to relax again. While the fire was burning down and the marshmallows were being toasted, Peter decided to find out more about the group’s interests. “I suppose you are in high school,” he remarked as he looked them over yet again. “Actually we start back at our regional secondary college next week. Year ten for Andrea and me and year eight for Jill and Mark. Both families keep in step, although Mark is a few months younger than Jill,” Gordon explained. “So, do you have time for any hobbies?” Peter asked. Andrea unclipped a pendant around her neck and showed Peter. “Gemstone collecting is mine. This one is a piece of amethyst crystal I found myself last year.” “Then you are lucky to be in this part of the World. You can fossick all the way from here to Tenterfield. You may even find diamonds and sapphires, let alone a few mineral clusters and crystals. For that matter, keep your eyes peeled in the creek beds through the park here.” “Mine is photography – but Mark and I are both well into computers too – exploring the internet as well as playing the inevitable games,” added Gordon. “Well, Gordon,” Peter looked at them all thoughtfully for a few moments before continuing, “your photography could be very useful indeed, if you come across anything mysterious.” Jill had been quiet for too long for her. Her sister knew something was going on. Then she just blurted out, “Well, I belong to two clubs; the local swimming team, and Andrea and I are both part of UNICEF, you know, United Nations Children’s Fund activities through Sydney. But I think there is something YOU should tell us, Peter. I think YOU are being MYSTERIOUS! Is there something happening around the Warrumbungle Ranges which you haven’t told us about?” “Perhaps…” Just then the darkness of the bush was suddenly lit from something a long way away. Giant lizards and goannas hissed nearby and unseen creatures called bravely in the darkest parts. Sentry animals stamped their feet and a mob of kangaroos bounded to the valley and their home territory near the Castlereagh River. The teenagers looked to the ranger for answers. “Like that! Look, I must go and make some calls. I’ll see you guys tomorrow. Fasten your tents or you may have unexpected visitors during the night.” As the ranger left the campfire, Mark asked, “Do you think he was warning us about more than the local wallabies?” They were still wondering about that same question when they went to bed. What had really disturbed the animals? What was that flash of light? What does the ranger hope they will photograph? Then somewhere in the distance an eerie howl echoed its way through the trees to the camp site. Then a second sound, more like a screech, seemed to answer. In their tents, Gordon and Mark, and Andrea and Jill, snuggled deeper into their sleeping bags and wondered whether they should be in the cabin. It was proving to be really weird in the ranges after dark. Click on the cart below to purchase this book: |
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