Runner Up

Written for the Daily Flash Fiction Challenge with a word limit of 300.

The prompts: This story must contain the words: scroll, doubt and vase

Runner Up

Professor Jenkins knew he was dusting off a rewrite of history.

Up to this point, the Dark Side Expedition had turned up little more than fossilized bone fragments; proving only that the moon had once supported animal life. It was hard for people to get excited about ancient cockroach remains on the moon. That didn’t count as life, at least not in the biblical sense – in God’s image and such.

The vase changed everything. Bugs didn’t make cookware. This could only mean one thing. Intelligent life had once lived on the moon.

For years there had been speculation. Now there could be no doubt. This vase would change history. It would change the way man viewed his role in the universe.

And most importantly, it would change the way people viewed Professor Jenkins.

No more following in the footsteps of the “great” Doctor Frank Boas – direct descendant of the legendary Franz Boas, the founder of modern anthropology.

Yes, up until this moment, Jenkins was the career silver medalist of anthropologists. Now, as he made his way back to base camp, he imagined how it would all unfold. First, the teams would throw him a big party. Next, he would be whisked back to earth where there would be a parade. His name would be in every history book written from this point forward.

As he approached the camp, he could tell right away that something was up. He cleared the airlock and was immediately swept up into a wild celebration. At first, he thought that news of his discovery had somehow reached the camp ahead of him.

He stopped a reveler and asked, “What’s going on?”

“Haven’t you heard? Doctor Boas has found an ancient scroll with alien hieroglyphics on it! It’s the Rosetta Stone to the universe.”

Word count 298