Voyagers!

The Fossil Hunter

Dusk settled along the wind whipped coast of Lyme Regis in Dorset, England. The waves gushed forward and splashed a young woman from behind. She paid no mind and enjoyed the cool mist dampening her warm skin. Her long, rich mane of dark hair swirled around her, her fingers were raw and ruddy from digging into deep crevices on the cliff. She shifted her position over the fossil and eventually sat upon her knees after nearly a half-hour of crouching. She barely felt the ache in her legs and only focused on removing the wonderful discovery.

Her helper was antsy. He stared at the ocean and shook his head.

"Mary, we've done all we can for today, we'll be losing the light and the tide's coming in sprightly. Lets come back in the morning."

Mary continued to dust off bone shards. She waved her hand and adjusted her woolen blue skirts. "Please, Michael. I've come so far. I can't give up now! This is the second Pleisosaur I've found!"

"Mary, I'm not asking you to give up, I'm asking you to take a rest. The creature's been there millions of years, one more night won't hurt. It's very dangerous out here!"

Seawater crashed against the cliff and poured over them. Mary wiped her brow and disregarded it.

Michael groaned. He'd been Mary's assistant for over a month, and when she explored the beaches, the rest of the world melted away. In these moments it was just Mary and the ancient remains of the fantastic giant beasts that had once roamed the earth.

Michael's eyes widened. A giant wave headed straight toward the cliff. It showed no signs of slowing and nearly doubled in size as it sucked up the water around it. He tugged Mary's arm.

"We must go now! We'll be drowned! Come!"

Mary dropped her chisel and hammer and leaped to her feet. Michael had already raced down to the shoreline. Mary turned slowly, her legs weakened and stiff. She screamed and threw her arms over her head as the wave swept her into the sea.

~V~

"I don't know what's worse than sand in my sneakers!" Jeffrey Jones complained, shaking out his Nikes.

"I'll tell ya what, wet sand in my boots!" His partner, Phineas Bogg replied, yanking off his tall brown boots and slapping the heels.

"Bogg, man! When was the last time you changed those socks? They've got so many rips, you might as well get rid of them. They're ripe too, I can smell them from here!" Jeffrey over-dramatically held his nose.

Phineas rolled his eyes and wiggled three long toes jutting out from the raggedy holes. His socks had also lost elasticity on top. They slid down his heels and it was one of the most annoying feelings imaginable. He tore them off his feet disgusted and tossed them in a ball.

"Happy now? Next stop, somewhere I can get those athletic socks you wear."

"Good thinking. I need a few new pairs too. I might get athletes foot if I don't change mine."

"What's that?"

"It's nasty. It makes your toes burn and itch, it gets so scaly and it bleeds and cracks and you can get nail and skin fungus!"

Phineas shivered. "Yuck! Now I remember the disease. In that case, we better hurry up and check this omni so we can get the socks. I don't want mushrooms growing out of my feet."

The Voyagers stood and wiped the sand off their clothes. Phineas flipped open his omni. "England, 1829…wuh oh! Red light, kid."

Just as he clipped it back on his belt, Jeffrey pointed to a man running in the distance and shouting for help. The Voyagers glanced at each other.

"I think we found the problem. Or it found us. We're right on target." Phineas said, and they took off to meet him.

The man doubled over from his exertion. He held his knees to catch his breath and Jeffrey put his arm over his shoulders to calm him.

"Are you alright? What happened?"

"Please help us! I left Mary! I heard her scream, but I lost her! I think she fell off the cliff in the ocean!"

Phineas grabbed his shoulders alarmed and stood him up. "Tell me where!"

Michael pointed frantically at the cliff not far down the beach.

"There! I…I thought she was behind me!"

"Jeff, stay with him! I'm going after her!"

He tossed Jeffrey the omni for safekeeping and Jeffrey latched it to his belt loop with a firm nod. There was no sense talking Phineas out of the rescue. He'd do whatever he had to and rescue Mary or die trying.

"Be careful, Bogg! The tides are tricky."

"I know, but this pirate knows how to swim."

~V~

Phineas dove into the chilly waters and swam briskly. The waves were powerful, but he fought against them, allowing their buoyancy to carry him to his destination. A woman clung to a rock a few feet from the cliff, but she couldn't hold much longer. Phineas dove under and propelled himself closer. He popped up for air. The woman's fingers were barely on the stone and the slippery moss prevented a solid grip.

She saw him and her wide brown eyes filled with tears. "Help me! Please help me! I'm slipping! Ahhhhh!"

Another wave enveloped them, dragging Phineas further back and knocking her under the water.

"No! Mary!"

Phineas submerged again, using all his strength to keep himself from being swept away. Mary struggled to surface. She hadn't sank too far, but any moment another wave would slam her into the sharp rocks hidden below. Phineas swam close to her. He ducked her thrashing arms and grabbed her hand. She couldn't hold her breath much longer.

Phineas put his arm across her chest and kicked upward. Mary panicked, and flailed her body side to side, making the ascent difficult. When they finally broke the surface, Phineas struggled to keep her afloat.

"Stay calm! I have you, Mary! Relax. Let me bring you in, or we'll both drown!" He demanded.

He leaned Mary against the crook of his arm and patted her back to help her choke up seawater.

Mary gasped for air, and finally let her body go limp. She was grateful for the handsome stranger's intervention. He swam her to the shoreline. As soon as their feet hit sand, the man swooped her up and ran far from the water's edge. He sat her down gently and crouched in front of her. He tenderly brushed the soaked hair off her face.

"You're gonna be okay, we made it. Are you hurt?"

Mary choked and grabbed his arm to keep steady. She found herself staring into the most sincere and bluest eyes she'd ever seen. His serene expression almost made her feel she was gazing at the face of a guardian angel. His voice was as thunderous as the heavens during a storm. She shivered and finally spoke.

"N…no…no, sir, many thanks to you. I surely thought I'd die out there! This makes the third time I cheated death."

"You're very welcome, Mary. What do you mean by third time?" He questioned and pushed back his wet hair. He smiled at her. Mary was attractive, with high cheekbones and an aquiline nose. Her skin was tanned and lightly freckled from frequent exposure to the sun.

"My parents had nine children, but my brother Joseph and I were the only ones to survive. When I was a baby, there was a lightning strike in my village. Three people were killed, including the woman who held me, but I lived! My mother always said the stroke of lightning raised my intellect and creativity. It was the only way she could explain my deep interest in science and "dusty old bones" to those who ridiculed me."

"There's nothing wrong with a woman who loves science. One day they'll become Doctors and Scientists too, as good as any man. I'm sure of it." Phineas encouraged her.

"If only I can live long enough to see that. "When I was eleven, my father died from tuberculosis and past injuries, but I was fortunate enough not to catch it. He instilled a love for this work in me."

Mary drew figures in the sand. "I'm sorry, I said too much in one breath."

Phineas whistled in surprise. "Oh, no. It's fascinating. I'm sorry for your tragedies, Mary, but that's a very amazing story."

Phineas' tensions subsided and he stood up. Mary would be fine, she was coherent and even ready to go back to her digging.

Mary wrung out her hair and gasped astonished. "Wait a moment, how did you know my name?"

Jeffrey and Michael hurried over and Jeffrey tossed Phineas' boots down and hugged him.

"That was awesome, Bogg! You did it!"

Phineas returned the hug and caught Jeffrey's wink. The omni light had turned green. Michael paced around and sank to the sand. He tearfully clutched Mary's hands.

"Please forgive me! I thought for sure you were behind me. I didn't know what to do when I saw you fall in. I'm not a strong swimmer like this young man. I was grateful to find them on the beach!"

Mary hugged her friend. "Michael, don't worry! I know you wouldn't deliberately abandon me. You warned me to leave the fossils, but like a fool, I didn't listen. I'm sorry for putting you through distress."

Mary attempted to rise and Phineas and Michael helped lift her. She tottered and Phineas caught her.

"We should get you to a doctor, you may have swallowed more seawater than you realize."

"Oh, dear! No, that's fine. I must be dizzy because I haven't eaten since breakfast. I get very preoccupied with my work and sometimes forget meals."

Mary backed away from Phineas and discreetly drew her arms over her chest, her dress was soaked through to the skin. Phineas glanced the other way until she felt comfortable and tapped Jeffrey to do the same. He quickly put his boots back on. She smiled shyly from his respectful manner.

"You are both welcome to come to my home for supper. It's not much, but we'll give you the best of what we have. I live with my mother and brother. I'm sure they'd love to meet the man who saved my life."

Jeffrey tugged on his sleeve and Phineas smiled at her, holding up his finger. "Umm, will you excuse us for just a moment?"

"Of course…uhh…"

"Phineas Bogg. And this is my friend, Jeffrey Jones."

"It's a pleasure to meet you both, Phineas." She beamed.

Jeffrey pulled him away and Phineas crossed his arms and grinned.

"I always know the history lesson is coming when your eyes light up. Lay it on me, who she is, and what did we fix?"

"I just realized it, Bogg. She's Mary Anning! She spent her entire life hunting fossils along this beach. Her family was very poor and she used to sell the fossils and seashells she found to local museums, scientists, and curio shops. She could've been a really good and famous scientist if the schools allowed women better education."

"That's very interesting, so she was like an archaeologist?"

"More like a self-taught Paleontologist. She discovered the remains of the Ichthyosaur, Plesiosaur, and Chimaeras dinosaurs."

Phineas scratched his head confused. "Okay, I take it that's noteworthy? You can stop there; all I know are the Pterodactyl, Brontosaurus, and T-rex."

Jeffrey rolled his eyes, but smiled at him. "Yeah, it's very noteworthy. She also found something similar to the Pterodactyl, but she was never given credit through the years. Her findings helped scientists discover new evidence for extinction and they gained a better understanding of geology. Before Mary's discoveries, they thought dinosaurs only migrated to unknown parts of the earth."

"Wow! She's really something. I wonder what became of her?"

"There's not a lot of information about her life, she died kind of young at 47 years old. Since she was poor and a woman her name was usually left out of the scientist reports and announcements. Her friend was a geologist and he painted the creatures and sold prints to help her with money."

Phineas grunted disappointed. "Figures! That makes me mad! People never give credit where it's due!"

Jeffrey sighed. "I know. It stinks."

"They're waiting for us, whaddya say we go eat something, I'll dry off and we can…"

Jeffrey shook his head. "No, Bogg. We shouldn't hang around any longer. It's green. Besides, you two are making googly eyes, you know what can happen!"

Phineas had to laugh and patted his back. "Yeah…I know. You're getting too big for your britches, kid! But I guess you're right."

Jeffrey glanced at his feet and cringed. His brown pants rode up to the tops of his ankles. "I sure am! Can we go to 1970 or something? I really need new clothes, I'm busting out of these. Pretty soon the button on my jeans are gonna pop. The seams are splitting."

Phineas wanted a change of clothes too, considering he was also cold and drenched. "Okay, let me just say goodbye to her."

"Let's make it snappy, Bogg."

"Okay, okay. Talk about snappy."

The Voyagers returned to Mary and Michael and Phineas held out his hand. Michael shook it vigorously.

"Have you decided to stay?"

Mary bit her lip. He winked at her, but shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but Jeffrey and I have to keep moving on. We wish you the best success."

Mary bowed her head glumly, but then looked up with a small smile. "Thank you, Phineas. Fossil hunting's my passion. It's my entire life. Oh, before you leave, please take this."

Mary dug into the satchel Michael carried and pulled out two corals. She carefully placed them in Phineas' palm. Jeffrey and Phineas gazed at their design in awe.

"I found them within a few feet of each other just yesterday and something told me they needed to be together. Go on, you can kind of attach them."

Phineas took the green coral and slipped it into the notch of the red one, it was a near perfect fit and they adhered in a coiled fashion down the center.

"Wow, that's really neat! Can I hold it, Bogg?"

"Sure, kid. Knock yourself out." Phineas handed them to Jeffrey. "Thank you, Mary. Are you sure you want us to have it? You could probably sell it and make a big profit. It's beautiful."

"No, please! Keep them to remind you of this little adventure."

"I'll never forget it, Mary."

"And I won't forget you." Mary stared across the horizon as the sun started setting for the night. "We must go too, then."

Phineas leaned forward. He softly cupped her chin and kissed her cheek. She rubbed her cheek against his palm then pulled away slowly and cleared her throat.

"Perhaps we'll see you again?"

"I don't know, but, take care of yourself, Mary…you too, Michael." Phineas wagged his finger. "No more evening dips off the cliff, young lady!"

They all laughed. Phineas and Jeffrey waved. They waited until Mary and Michael were safely out of sight off the coastline. Jeffrey kept the coral in his hand, admiring the texture.

"Hey, Bogg, can I hold onto this? It makes me feel like I have my own omni." He kidded. "Besides, I have tight pockets."

Phineas laughed. "Sure thing, Jeff. You'll get a real one soon enough. Now, where to?"

"Anywhere we can find clothes that fit."

"How about we go back to Voyagers Headquarters? They have clothing from every era in time!"

"Sounds like a plan! I'd rather wear clothes from 1982. Hey, I just remembered something about Mary. She's the inspiration for a famous tongue twister."

Phineas adjusted his omni dials. "Really, which one?"

"She sells seashells by the seashore. Try saying that one three times fast!"

The End.

"If you want to learn more about Mary Anning and her discoveries, take a voyage down to your public library. It's all in books!"