It has been quite a few years since I met the ancient computer Koeus in person. When I saw it, it revealed secrets to me; answers to questions that had burned in humankind’s inquisitive consciousness for centuries, generations after generation. Knowledge that no man, in his lifetime, would ever dream of knowing, and would likely move mountains to know at least a fraction. Most of this scientific ecstasy I will disclose here in this testament. 

When I first heard of Koeus, it was a relatively new discovery, being found a week beforehand. They first found Koeus during a mineral mining operation in Mid-Brazil. From what I had researched, it happened when a miner had chipped away on a wall deep inside the cavern. While she was chipping away at it, the entire section of the wall collapsed. When the dust settled, there was another gigantic cavern behind where the mine wall once stood. But weirdly enough, there wasn’t a cave-in, nor were the neighboring walls affected. On the far side wall of the cavern, there was a monolithic computer-like machine.  

This computer was instantly famous before I ever heard of it, especially in the peculiar way they found it. Along with this came another hushed tall-tale like rumor, one of a mining worker using the computer and it turning the worker insane. A sense of intrigue had struck me when I heard about it, and specifically about its impact on archeology, especially in getting an understanding of ancient man and their establishment of ancient civilizations along with other such accomplishments. 

At this time, I had recently earned a master’s in anthropology, and was establishing myself as an up-and-comer in archaeology. I also worked on a few projects here and there around the world with a few well-known figures. But even with my credentials at such an age, I found it a weirdly hard-sell to get sponsorship in my quest. Until the Massachusetts Institute of Technology under the helm of Dean Arnold Armatige granted me the opportunity. With this, I and twenty other volunteers headed out into the heart of Brazil. 

It was two in the afternoon when we landed near the mine; we had flown a full day and a couple odd hours. From there, it took another few hours to get to the site. The mining site was far from the outskirts of any civilization. From a view of the surrounding mountains, it looked like an undone seam on the cloth of the world, or like a deity with the strength of millions of men took an all-mighty blow with an enormous hatchet. Up close, it resembled a giant well to nothingness. It stretched as far as the naked eye could see from top to bottom. Right next to the pit was a shaft with a cage inside that took you to the underground levels of the mine. 

It was the third level where the crew found it, under many tons of earth. The only light source stretching wearily from the artificial light on the ceiling of the mines. Having reached our level, it was a three mile walk down a tunnel to reach our destination. The entrance to the cavern was oval in shape and clear cut, with the intricacy of a grand doorway of some elegant mansion; my first indication of queer happenings in the lair of Keous. My compatriots and I carefully went into the cavern, but by the time we were a few steps into it, it engulfed us in pitch darkness, our only source of light now coming from the lanterns and flashlight we brought down with us.

We made our way through the darkness and got a feel of our surroundings. They had assured me that before we entered, no one had tampered with the cavern. From what I could ascertain with my observations by flashlight, that it hadn’t been touched for nearly eight to ten million years, predating humanity by a good four million years. But what was most bizarre was that it would be so far up to the surface. 

In the middle of the room stood a podium with a gilded plaque affixed on top. The plaque had writing burned into it. It was an archaic alphabet from a dead language long since forgotten to history, but it bore a striking resemblance to the Grecian alphabet. In fact, it resembled it so much that I could accurately translate it into English, mostly. I pointed my flashlight toward the plaque while the group huddled around me and I began reading aloud.

The lore described an alien tribe that had landed on Earth a few millennia removed from the dinosaur's extinction; they had set up a colony as a trade and scientific hub, although the text didn’t go into specifics. But by rough estimation and by the text itself, I assumed that between the time they first landed and the dawn of man, the aliens had left Earth for unexplained reasons and the text ended with quote, “the great database Koeus, along with other contributions to the legacy of this planet were left by the noble race…”. 

As I finished reading, I slowly looked upward along with the crew. At the end of the cavern, there mounted the computer “Koeus”. It was as big and imposing as Stonehenge. The computer was embedded into the cave wall, and nearly the height of it too. The computer looked unscathed from the sands of time, which was itself an oddity. For tons upon tons of earths and the forces of nature should have at least provided some good wear and tear to it. A throne carved from stone lay a few feet away facing it, with a helmet-like device perched on top branching out from the back. 

My group and I marched toward the chair for closer inspection. When we got there, we inspected the helmet. The helmet seemed to be wireless, the only clue to its use being a hole big enough to stick the top of the helmet in. Above the hole were two handles, one for each hand. I looked further up. The dormant computer looked as intimidating as a sea monster from sailors-tales passed down from ship to ship. I sensed the monstrous girth of the technological beast in person, something that the photos lacked. I and my collection of other like-minded volunteers stood in silence, absorbing the atmosphere and the fact that we were before the grandest archeological insight of the pre civilized world since the discovery of the dinosaurs. 

As we stood there, my curiosity grew for this marvelous computer. Before I knew it, I had sat down on the stone throne and gripped the helmet. I then promptly put the helmet on. For a few a half minutes, nothing of interest happened. As the suspense grew down, the computer suddenly burst to life. The deafening roar and the surprise from me and my compatriots was like a jet engine had screamed to life next to you. Then, blue lights engulfed the whole cavern with the occasional tiny, flickering red light piercing into the blue dyed atmosphere. From the adrenaline, curiosity, and anticipation, I unconsciously put my head, with the helmet on, into the hole and placed my hands on the handles.

A shock went through my body when I put it in the hole. After that, I had full control of the computer telepathically for I spoke not a word or gave it any physical commands. It was like Koeus had known what I wanted to research even before I thought of it. It knew what I wanted to know before I even knew I wanted to know. Not only that, it burrowed the knowledge into my brain, and remembered it like they were my own memories. Few words can fully describe the feeling of using Koeus or the intricacies of the computer. With the few moments harnessing Koeus’ power, I’ll attempt to describe to you what I learned from the achievement of prehistoric technology. 

From what I remember, a long time ago, the Lorum was a major colonial power around the time the first signs of life emerged on Earth. The Lorum set up Earth as a colonial trade post, but then resources were found that made Earth a key post. In fact, Earth was one of their “crown planets” and became well known throughout the cosmos as a valuable planet. Especially for its mining, mining of minerals long since sucked up from their world, minerals precious in commerce and manufacturing. 

They were a scientific species like us. While they were here, they were experimenting. They tested many things, and some tests and experiments led to the construction of that very marvel of machinery. I found them quite similar to us, especially in their manner of curiosity, like their theories and experiments on evolution and on the improvement of the very technology they wielded. 

But unfortunately, when the Earth was depleting of resources, when the last of minerals was mined, when the planet wrung dry of all of its worth to them, they left it. Leaving behind only this computer, and plants which I suspected would later evolve into plants that we grow, nurture and harvest today, and some other fragments that showed their footprint on this Earth.

With that, my vision ended. I yanked my head out of the hole, and promptly took off the helmet device and placed it back on to the backrest of the stone throne. In the process of this, the computer quieted from its jet plane roar to a dull roar, and then silenced itself to resume its slumber once more. After that, me and my crew walked out of that carven in silence. The silence continued as we walked the few miles back to the cage and went up to the light of day; a swarm of reports from every TV news network from all around the globe greeted us and asked us questions about the computer from centuries ago. 

As I have stated, it has been a handful of years since that trip. My crew and I garnered some notoriety for our expedition. After that I was the head of some more high-profile digs and discoveries, but the thought of Koeus still lingers in my mind. Of its towering size, how it functioned, and of my first interaction with it. But also of something else. For as my vision ended of the Lorum’s departure, I noticed that among the items that they left was an open vial of some clear liquid that was dug half-way into the sand next to the rising and descending waves of a beach long since consumed by the sea and forgotten. The ship's departure rumbled the ground and tipped the vial enough for the waves to grab its side so its contents spilled out and hungry waves gobbled them up. 

I still wonder, from time to time, of whatever happened to that liquid. Of its reaction to the sea. And in some part of my mind, of its connection toward the greater scope of evolution and maybe of the creation of precursors of intelligent life itself. For that I may need to consult Koeus.