Chapter 4: The Decision of My Lifetime

                           Chapter 4: The Decision of My Lifetime

“Excuse me?”  I knew the look of shock must have been written all over my face.  

Seeing that Astuto had finished the explanation of the Garden and here and there to me, Eldey walked over to me, again placing his wing around my shell, “George, the reason we have brought you here from there is to ask you if you would willingly join us in our endeavor.  You see, as extinct creatures, we have ‘options’,” Eldey said again air quoting, “but our options are very limited compared to yours.”

“Yes. Yes.  You see, you are not quite extinct there, and have such a long span of time until you go extinct, that you can choose how and when you want to go extinct before your scheduled time.  It’s an anomaly really, a ‘loophole’ in the realm of extinction that hasn’t happened in a long time.  Most creatures go quickly or surprisingly.  The people don’t usually even notice or care until it’s much too late.  You, on the other hand, have 23 years left there if you choose, or you can decide to leave there now to join us here, to go back there,” Astuto stated without furthering his explanation.

“I was with you until the last part.  Why would I leave there at the CDRS, to come to the Garden, and then head back there again? That seems like that would be against the rules or something,” I interjected.

“The ‘rules’ as you put them are simple.  If an individual here wants to go back there, they can, as long as they choose to go back to the same location they were originally placed,” Astuto explained.

Eldey could see that I wasn’t understanding, so he altered his approach to fill in some gaps in Astuto’s explanation, “So if I went back there I would have to start off on Eldey, an island near Iceland in the North Atlantic, and Astuto would have to go back to his home island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean.  We cannot simply go back together to the same location, which is one of the complications with this mission.”

I guess those ‘rules’ made sense in a strange sort of way.  I wondered how I’d be able to help since the Galapagos Islands are in the Pacific Ocean far away from the islands of Eldey or Mauritius. 

“Some species have chosen to do this successfully in the past.  The takahe is a good example,” Eldey explained.

“Tacky?  What is that a good example of?  Glue?” I said, struggling to keep up.

“The takahe,” Eldey enunciated, “is a flightless blue, green bird of New Zealand, who chose to go back there with great success but returning from the Garden can be difficult to do.  Many of our homeland environments have been devastated since our extinction dates.  The people there may also choose to simply eat us back into extinction.  Any bad experiences back there would be felt by us when we return back to the Garden.  It is the biggest downside to trying to be a ‘Lazarus species’,” Eldey clarified.

“Wait a minute,” I said trying to keep my facts straight, “A Lazarus species?”

“Yes, that is simply a term that the people use to describe a species that they think went extinct which they miraculously find again.  It usually is not because those animals were not extinct.  Some animals here, like the takahe, simply wanted to go back and try to give the people a second chance there.  It is a personal decision which most animals here would never consider.  You can see that there are a lot of perks to being in the Garden and not a whole lot of motivation to go back there.  Our fate involving the people is always a very uncertain thing,” Eldey said trailing off.  

He excused himself to get a drink from the brook which flowed through the Garden.  It seemed that something was bothering him, but I didn’t want to ask and offend him; especially after he had expressed such genuine care for me during my time here.

Astuto came over beside me, watching the great auk walk slowly over to the brook and cleared his throat.  “I don’t know how much you know about the extinction of Eldey’s kind, the great auk, but all of this talk of going back to help the people has mixed emotions for him.  You see Tortoise when one of us here in the Garden decides to go back there, there are ‘rules’ as you put it; a certain rhyme and reason as it were.”

 “What kind of rules are you talking about?  You mean more than just the rule that you have to start out where you ended…I mean went extinct?”

 “Let me try to explain this by asking you a seemingly trivial question Tortoise,” Astuto said softly.  “Which came first; the chicken or the egg?” 

I said half laughing, “Are you going to ask me why the chicken crossed the road next?”

“Huh?” Astuto said with a blank look on his face.  

Seeing that the dodo was serious about the chicken or the egg question I responded, “It’s a trick question.  If I say the chicken, you will ask where the chicken came from? If I say the egg, you will ask who laid the egg?  It’s just one of those riddles that have no right answer.”

“That’s where you’re wrong Tortoise.  That question has an answer.  You see, when an animal leaves the Garden, it still has the directive to “be fruitful and multiply”.  When an animal leaves here to return there, one becomes three.” 

I felt my face scrunch up in confusion, and it was obvious to Astuto who continued with a sigh, “What I mean is, if I were to become a Lazarus species and return there, I would start off as three of my kind; a male, female, and an infant, or being a bird, an egg.  You see Tortoise, the question has a direct and sensible answer,” Astuto clarified puffing up his feathers to show the absurdness of my thinking.

Under my breath, I retorted, “Well you were the one who didn’t know that the chicken and the egg crossed the road to get to the other side.”

“You are a strange one, Tortoise,” was his only reply.

“Thank you for clarifying one of life’s mysteries to me Astuto, but why does discussing the Lazarus species bother Eldey so much?  Shouldn’t he be content and happy to stay here in the Garden?  I mean, what’s not to like here?” I asked, sweeping my front leg toward the breathtaking scenery surrounding us.

“You see; many of us here have struggled, like you, with resentment about being forced here because of the disregard of the people for our well-being.  I honestly wasn’t always on board with helping people like Eldey.  Sure I’ve made my peace with my extinction, but Eldey has always wanted to do more,” Astuto explained, “You see he did go back.” 

“You mean to say that Eldey went extinct twice?”  I asked.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I am saying.  When Eldey went extinct and came to the Garden he was adamant about going back to help people once he found out that he had that choice.  Having been here for a century and a half at that point, I tried to tell Eldey it was a bad idea, but he insisted.  Eldey said that he saw people who were trying to save the great auks.  He saw a renewed compassion on the part of the people that hadn’t been there before.  He said many of the remaining great auks died off due to a volcanic eruption during a nesting season, not because of the people.”

“So, what happened when he returned back there, to the Atlantic Ocean I mean?” I prodded.

“Eldey formulated a plan to go back to Eldey Island, which was once a great auk breeding colony.  He returned hopeful and was in the midst of hatching the egg amidst a group of smaller seabirds when a group of sailors sent by a collector pulled up on a nearby shore.  Eldey started toward the men, hopeful that this would be his chance to save his kind and show the people that conservation could work.  Unfortunately, this hope was short-lived.  

As Eldey got closer to the men, he saw they had a bag and several clubs.  He still held onto the hope that if he didn’t run, they would simply take him back to England to be observed.  Eldey’s mate, on the other hand, panicked and headed toward the sea to escape the men but got stuck between some rocks.  One of the men drew back his club and…” Astuto sighed, seemingly deciding whether to finish his sentence or not.

Even though I couldn’t hear Astuto’s thoughts as he could mine, I knew the answer before I asked, “So she didn’t make it? What about Eldey himself and the egg?  Did they survive and make it to the collector?”

“Sadly, no.  One of the other men accidentally stepped on the egg in the nest.  At the sight of this, Eldey fled toward the ocean still holding onto the hope that he, himself, could somehow find someone who would be more compassionate.  He never made it to the ocean and a big part of him died on the rocky beach that day.  There’s a pain in suffering and in facing your demise, but to do so twice is more than most can bear.”

“What did you say to him when he came back to the Garden?  This place must have helped him deal with his loss, right?” I inquired of the dodo.

“For a long time, he never spoke to me or anyone else.  But after a time, more and more animals were going extinct at a faster and faster rate.  This seemed to motivate Eldey, and he again expressed a strong desire to help the people.  He knew simply starting again on Eldey Island would be in vain, so he brainstormed many ideas that could possibly work.  He was figuring out other options and seeing what choices we have here. I told him it was too much for one animal to take on alone.  That’s when we realized there was an option we’d never considered,” said the dodo cocking his head and looking straight into my eyes. 

“So what you’re saying is my ‘situation’,” I said air quoting as Eldey had done so many times since my arrival, “… is the option you hadn’t considered before?”

“Yes, that is where you come in, George,” said Eldey from behind me.  I wasn’t sure how long he had been there but the sadness in his eyes again flickered with passionate optimism. “If you are willing to join us on our mission, you would be able to start off anywhere in your species’ range, which for you is simply Pinta Island.  But you would have the ability to communicate with each of us who undertake this mission.  You are an integral part of this mission.  I understand if you choose not to join us, but we are asking you to consider it.” 

“How would I be able to communicate with all of you?  Would I have to take a cell phone from the CDRS or something?” I asked.

“That is not exactly clear, but we know you will be able to do so… at least for a time,” Eldey explained.

“May I ask what the downsides are to saying yes to joining you on whatever mission you all are planning?  I feel you’ve been a little vague on some of the specifics,” I said.

Eldey and Astuto exchanged a brief look of concern.  

 “For each of us in the Garden, going back means adding potential hardships to our memories, which is a reason so many don’t choose that option.  Double extinction is a fate few have ventured toward.   Added sadness isn’t something we need to worry about here.  Even though we are at peace here in the Garden now, we can all recall each and every act of cruelty we experienced back there,” Astuto said sadly.

“Well I don’t know how adding one more bad memory for me would be that terrible.  Plus all I’d be adding is the memory of my own demise right?” I asked.

There was another long awkward pause and Eldey slowly continued, “Well George, for each of us here in the Garden that is the case, but for you it is different.  You see since you have not officially gone extinct back there yet, and you are not yet here eating of the tree of eternal life like us, you are in an ‘interesting’ position,” Eldey air quoted, mocking me, mocking him, trying to cut the tension of the situation.  “If you would be killed during this mission, you would be extinct, for real, with no hope of ever coming back here to the Garden.”

Wow, that didn’t seem fair.  This seemed like another heavy burden to bear, which I wasn’t expecting.  For them, it was a matter of discomfort, but for me and my kind, it meant real extinction?  For 40 years I had been hoping not to see another day of loneliness back at the CDRS.  Every day I woke up was the beginning of the worst day of my life.  There was no hope, and I had begged for my own demise.  But knowing that it could be a fate worse than death, seemed like an even more difficult pill to swallow.  I found myself in a place more difficult than I had been facing back at the Charles Darwin Research Station.  What was I supposed to say?  Go extinct or go really extinct.  I would be deader than a dodo.

“What happens if we can complete our venture without me being exterminated?  Is there any chance that I can make it back to the Garden or are we talking about a no-win situation for me?” I asked.

“There have been a few others that have been in your position in the past.  Most have chosen to simply go extinct in their planned time, but a few creatures have volunteered.  Once you leave there, come here, and go back there, you are stuck there unless you can complete the mission you have started…or are killed,” Astuto said matter-of-factly.

 “Have you ever heard of the Gigantopithecus or the Plesiosaur?” Eldey asked.

“Yeah, you know; Bigfoot, Sasquatch, Yeti, Skunk Ape or Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster?  We don’t know how much you know about these creatures, but they are some of the ones who tried to do what we’re trying to have you help us do,” the unmistakable voice of Martha burst in.  “What did we miss?  Did he decide to help us?   Everyone is on their way to the gathering place to hear his verdict when he is ready, but there’s no rush…unless you already know your answer,” said the passenger pigeon bobbing her head up and down while frantically pacing back and forth.

This was a strange turn in the conversation, and I had no idea of how Bigfoot could possibly fit into the Garden of Eden and saving mankind.   Like a lot of things since I arrived here, they just didn’t make sense.

Turning from the hyperactive, little pigeon back to the two, larger birds, “You mean Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster?  How in the world do mythical creatures fit into the Garden of Eden and a 200-pound tortoise saving the earth?” 

“Well, they aren’t exactly … mythical.  They both tried the same mission that you are attempting and to this point, they have been unable to get back to the Garden,” Astuto explained.

“They are real then? Why hasn’t any person ever caught them then?  I mean those are two large well-known creatures you’re talking about.  It’s not like Martha hiding amidst a flock of pigeons in a crowded city.” I responded.

“They are large, and that has been part of their problem.  You see, they are in the same position that you will be in if you come here and go back there, except they are feared by the people.  Fear makes people do horrible things.  Nessie the plesiosaur was stuck alone in the depths of the North Atlantic awaiting her ultimate extinction for quite some time before we approached her with the same proposal we are giving to you,” Eldey explained.

“I tried to warn her that people might fear her, but she wouldn’t listen.  She thought she knew better than an old fuddy-duddy dodo bird.  As a ‘boomerang species’, Nessie got to choose where she would return within her species range,” Astuto added, seeing if I was following his logic.

I must say for a dodo bird, he was quite…well quite astute.   

“The ability to choose your return location is what separates you and them from one of us, already extinct animals,” Eldey added.

“Well, that and the fact that I can really go extinct and die forever and you can’t,” I scoffed.

“Well yes; that too.  As I was saying, Nessie decided to come to the Garden ahead of schedule and her return location was in Scotland where sailors had known about her kind because of their breeding grounds in Loch Ness for some time.  She had hoped that, by starting in a smaller location than the Atlantic Ocean, she could befriend and eventually approach the Scots. Her attempt at returning was a total failure.  Her girth and ferocious appearance made approaching the people of Scotland a ruefully, unwise choice. She approached a small girl washing her toy off in the loch.  The girl seemed genuinely intrigued by Nessie and beckoned the plesiosaur closer,” Astuto explained.

“You see George, younger people seem to be the most accepting of things hard to understand.  The girl actually reached out to pet Nessie’s snout, but as she reached her hand out, her mom screamed, “Help!  It’s a monster!  It’s the Loch Ness monster, and it’s trying to eat my baby!” The people quickly rushed to the shore screaming and shaking sticks at Nessie.  Of course, Nessie retreated under the waters of the loch and was unable to attempt further communication with that little girl.” Eldey explained.

“Now Nessie is stuck fleeing the people she wanted to return to help.  Even though Scottish law protects Nessie from hunting, people are seeking her for the wrong reasons that won’t help our cause.  Now she can either be captured and put on display in some zoo or be killed by one of the people seeking personal fame,” Astuto explained shaking his head regretfully.

“I had hoped Pat would have better luck on her mission,” Eldey continued.

“Pat?  Who’s Pat?” I asked about adjusting to an apparently random topic change.  All I could think to guess was, “Bigfoot?”

“Pat is the chosen name of the Gigantopithecus, better known as Bigfoot or Yeti.  She named herself after Roger Patterson who was the first person she tried to communicate with,” Eldey explained.

“We thought about using you Tortoise even back then in 1967,” Astuto explained, “We knew the last Pinta Island Tortoise died in an Australia zoo earlier that year.  But we thought because Pat looked more like a person and was less intimidating than a thirty-foot dinosaur swimming around in the murky water of Loch Ness, she would have better luck.” 

“Well, is an eight-foot-tall hairy ape-man that much less scary than a dinosaur?” I mocked, “I mean I’ve seen people run away from tiny lizards back at the CDRS.”

“Yes, I have to agree.  People’s reactions are very difficult to predict.  I did not think the people would respond to her as dramatically as they did.  I thought given the fact that she looked similar to the people, they might accept her more willingly.  I also had hoped that she would be able to communicate with them using sign language which she had mastered before her ‘boomerang mission’ began.  Having opposable thumbs and individual fingers would give her a greater communication advantage with the people over creatures like us,” Eldey said, showing off his tiny wings.

 “Unfortunately for Pat, on the day she tried to approach the man, Roger Patterson, in the woods of northern California, she startled his horse causing him to fall to the ground. Pat panicked and ran away for the entire world to see.  She has good reason to be fearful of the people.  She is constantly being hunted by people seeking fame and fortune. Pat has been trying to find a place to hide, but no matter where she tries to hide, even on other continents, people are always looking for her,” Eldey explained.

“That’s why we chose you.  Tortoises are about the least intimidating creature in the world.  Very few people suffer from chelonaphobia, the fear of turtles, and I’m pretty sure Fausto isn’t one of those people.  You are the least scary creature who has ever been in your ‘unique’ circumstances and many people already have compassion for you.  If you were to die, people around the world would take note.  The trick will be for us to arrange your death at the Charles Darwin Research Station, since you are in a zoo, bring you back here, and then boomerang you back to Pinta Island,” Astuto went on.

“I still don’t understand what you’re asking me to willingly sacrifice my life for?” I asked, seeking clarification.

“Our mission is to go back and rescue Pat and Nessie and to help people understand what they are doing to creatures like us.  People aren’t aware of how they are affecting some of us.  Even zoos, as well-intentioned, as they might be, aren’t able to reach the people like we might be able to.  We can’t give you all of the specifics, because we have never tried anything on this scale before, but we want to help those who we were meant to live in peace with,” Astuto continued.

“You mean the people?  You want to restore things to how they were…I mean how they are here in the Garden?” I asked, trying to tie everything together.

“I know this is a lot to ask,” Eldey added, sensing my uneasiness.

“How long do I have to make a decision?” I asked.

 “You have until you go to sleep again to give us an answer.  After that we won’t be able to hear your response until it’s too late, about 23 years from now,” Astuto clarified.

“Take your time and think it over,” Eldey said, placing his little wing on my shell. “We have all made sacrifices to get to this point, and I am sure there will be many more sacrifices to make.  Although you may not care about most people, I know that some people like Fausto have sacrificed much because they do care about you.  Think about him as you weigh your decision, George.”  

With that, there was a flash of light.