1) “The Fields of Yaru” (pilot) (Egypt)
Within the dark labyrinth of an archaeological dig in the Egyptian desert, Gill, a spunky Australian archaeologist, and her Egyptian colleague, Mez, open a sarcophagus. They are disappointed to find it has already been looted and only contains a few artifacts. One of them, a papyrus roll, reads like a curse. It directs them to a clue in the tomb’s hieroglyphics, which leads them to two tunnels. Against Mez’s advice, she enters the second, narrower tunnel. Exiting it, Gill falls into a corridor, surprised to see torches on the wall. There, she must fight off several sacred cobras. It is only when she follows a funeral procession led by a priest and followers in ancient Egyptian clothing to a grand hall that she realizes she has been transported back in time. She witnesses the complex rituals conducted by the gods in the Egyptian afterlife. A person’s life is weighed on a scale and must balance itself out with a feather from the goddess of Truth. Otherwise, the soul is given to Ammit, a horrible monster. Once a person is judged pure, a beautiful landscape appears and the person is reborn in a sacred lake. Spellbound by the experience, will Gill be able find a portal back to the present and continue her adventures around the globe?
2) “The Bat Cave” (New Mexico)
Gill and Mez wrap up a day’s work in the lofty cliff dwellings once inhabited by the ancient Mimbres culture. They discuss Gill’s father, Patrick, who disappeared years ago during one of his digs. Just as they are leaving, they discover a black and white pot with a stylized bat and a hole in the middle. This “kill” pot sucks both Gill and Mez in through the hole, where they meet the “Three Sisters,” representing the main foods of the Southwest: corn, beans, and squash. The “Creator” firmly roots them into the ground and the sisters morph into their namesake plant. Unfortunately, a mountain lion shows up, and it is up to Gill and Mez to distract him. They lead him on a dangerous chase. Only with the help of a real, live bat will they be able to escape.
Our intrepid heroes go back in time twice: once to 1940, when the Lascaux cave was first discovered, by a dog, and then further back to prehistory. There, they meet the artists who created these beautiful cave paintings in southwestern France, as well their subjects: the horses, mammoths, and bison. The story will tie in with the present danger threatening this fragile masterpiece and world heritage site. Gill starts to get an inkling of what may have happened to her father.
Gill finally takes a trip back to her native land. She reunites with her mother, Julia, who never wanted Gill to follow in her father’s footsteps and doesn’t let her forget it. While on a “walkabout” in the outback, Gill and Mez see the animals drawn in “the Dreaming,” come to life and become their guides into the Aboriginals’ ancestral stories and ceremonies.
Gill’s family being originally from Ireland, the next stop is naturally the Emerald Isle. Gill makes the acquaintance of some distant cousins there and does some sightseeing. The ancient standing stones dotting the landscape become a time portal to a place where Gill and Mez witness the ceremonies of the druids and which opens Gill’s eyes to her own heritage.
Stone soldiers are reborn to defend their emperor from Gill and Mez. Gill’s martial artistry rescues her and Mez. They run into some “foo dogs” (lions who guard the entrance to shrines and temples) who are willing to help them discover what lies in the emperor’s long unopened tomb. Gill also gets a lead concerning her father’s destiny.
Gill and Mez descend in a small diving capsule in order to discover if any traces of Atlantis remain underwater. The bizarre, prehistoric, deep-sea creatures that inhabit the ocean floor attack them, including a giant squid. It shoots black ink, momentarily covering the capsule’s window. When it finally clears and the capsule resurfaces, they lose control of it and crash land on the shores of Atlantis. Or is it some other long-lost civilization?
The petroglyph of a humpbacked flute player at the austerely beautiful and isolated Chaco Canyon leads Gill and Mez to an encounter with the real Kokopelli, an important figure for the Hopi and Pueblo peoples of the Southwest. They get a close-up look at what Chaco’s ceremonial center, Pueblo Bonito, once looked like and who lived there.
Following some ancient footsteps, Gill and Mez meet our famous Australopithecus ancestor, Lucy. They find out more about our family tree and how it branched out. Gill continues her search for her father. It seems he crossed paths with a mutual acquaintance in this past time. This gives Gill the proof that he must have used time portals as well and somehow got stuck in one somewhere, sometime….
Watching a game of Ulama being played by some young boys and girls in present day Mexico, Gill and Mez are transported to the stone courts once used by the Aztecs. They experience this mortal sport being played in its infancy, where both men and women participated. Did Gill’s father get caught up in one of these deadly matches, and end up a loser/victim?
Gill scuba dives in the Nile near Abu Simbel. Nearby, stand two colossal statues of the Pharaoh Ramses II that had been moved in order to save them from the rising waters of the Aswan Dam. She makes a surprising discovery underwater.
12) “Hari’s Cave” (India)
Gill follows a playful monkey, Hari, into an ancient Indian cave. Going against his better judgment, Mez goes in after her. Once inside, Hari teaches them about basic Hindu beliefs and Indian traditions like dance and yoga. Gill remembers her father telling her he had studied under a yogi once…