02x05 - The First American

[bunniefuu]

What a frigid, barren landscape.

There's no living creature in sight.

It's the world from 35,106 years ago.

Without our uniforms,
we'd have likely frozen to death already.

So, what is this place anyway?

The bottom of the sea.

What? Here?

Are you making fun of me?

But it's true.

The Bering Strait's shallow areas
are surfacing above the water.

During the last ice age,

a massive amount
of the Earth's water turned into ice

and ended up on the land.

I get it.

So sea levels have dropped.

Siberia and Alaska are connected by land.

In geography,
this area is called Beringia.

Apparently, this situation lasted
from 34,000 to 14,000 years ago.

Since it was originally the sea floor,
you won't see any big trees here.

Thick grasses grow here in summer,

but it's autumn now.

The season is about to turn into
a long winter and never-ending nights.

In a few more hours,

a lone hunter should appear
from the northwest.

He'll freeze to death here.

So our mission this time
is to prevent that, right?

Exactly.

That's perfect training for you.

I'm leaving it to you,
so do what you need to do.

Really?

Acting like a mentor now, aren't you?

Headquarters?

I'd like the materials to build a hut.

Late Stone Age,

in the style of the Arctic region.

Talk about fast delivery.

-Let us help you.
-Buyo.

Buyo-h*.

Is this everything?

Yes.

We have mammoth and reindeer bones.

And caribou hides.

So, how do we build the hut?

I've done my research.

As for the place,

this seems like a good spot.

First, we need a hole 30 centimeters deep
and two meters in diameter.

Got it.

Make it a little deeper.

Got it.

I'm confused. Who is the assistant here?

We line the logs along the hole
to build the frame.

Get them to send you
the finished thing next time.

Can such a simple construction
protect people from the harsh Arctic cold?

Caribou fur has air-filled spaces,

so it acts as a thermal insulator.

Now, put bones on top of it as weights

and secure it to keep the wind out.

And we're done!

Let's go inside.

Let's do that.

Bon?

Is it really true?

Will someone really show up here?

That's what the orders said.

This isn't an environment
where people can survive.

Who could travel
through such a ferocious blizzard?

And for what purpose exactly?

THE FIRST AMERICAN

It's warmer inside than I thought.

That's the wisdom of people
who live in cold places.

What's on your mind?

Nothing much. I was thinking back a bit.

About earlier events.

What?

It's all so strange.

What's this thing?

You can call it a "Roots Detector."

I found it in the Time Patrol catalog
and ordered it.

We can find out many interesting things.

Hold this plug.

-Like this?
-Yeah.

Now, I'll grab the other one
and press start.

Wow, it's counting back time really fast.

One hundred years.

One hundred and fifty years.

Two hundred years.

What exactly are we checking?

Well, it's surprisingly recent.

What is it?

The year 1643.

Born in the 20th year of Kan'ei
in Tanba Province, Kuwata District.

Hirayama Gonbei.

This man is one of my ancestors
from 14 generations ago.

Really?

Don't be surprised.

He's also one of your ancestors
from 13 generations ago.

So does that mean we're distant relatives?

Wow, what a coincidence.

It really is a small world!

Oh no, it's nothing that impressive.

I have a dad and a mom.

Of course you do.

In other words,
I have the blood of two families in me.

Just like everyone else.

Each of my parents has their own lineage.

The same goes for their parents,
and so on and so on.

Throughout 14 generations,

there will be a blending
of 16,384 distinct family lines.

That many?

And if we count
four generations per 100 years,

in the span of 650 years,

over 100 million family lineages
have been mixed.

Broadly speaking,
everyone in Japan is related.

Everyone is related?

Pretty neat, right?

I'd love to test it out with others.

Hello? This is Bon.

Sorry, I forgot I had plans
with my classmates.

With Yoko and the others?

I'll guard your house. Have fun!

No need to.

I'll be back soon.

Let me introduce you to Thomas F. Brown.

Hello! I'm...

I'm Bon Namihira.

Nice to meet you. I hope we get along.

Impressive.

Your Japanese is very good.

I met Thomas at a summer camp.

Cool!

I see.

We moved to Japan
for my dad's job two years ago.

You speak so well after two years?

He really is amazing.

Thomas says his ancestors can be
traced back to the House of Plantagenet.

In the very distant past.

Plan...

What was it?

"Plantagenet."

An old British royal dynasty.

But he's American.
How is he related to the British...

That's because America was founded
by settlers from Europe.

Exactly.

Yeah, right.

Hey, mind if I test something out?

No, I don't think it's possible.

But maybe in a very distant past...

18,000 B.C., NAME UNKNOWN

There's no way!

It goes too far back for it to be clear,

but this man, who lived
many millennia ago in northeast Asia,

is Brown's and my common ancestor!

We share an ancestor!

With Namihira?

You're kin to a descendant
of the British royalty?

I can see him
being your ancestor, Namihira.

Japanese people are descendants
of the early settlers in Asia.

Yet the idea that Brown's ancestors
resided in Northeast Asia?

It's absolutely inconceivable.

But I was sure this device was accurate.

This makes no sense.

It's been a while.

Hey! You took my boat without asking!

It's your fault for not going home.

You left without your Timeceiver,
didn't you?

We've got new orders.

Jump on quickly.

Well, okay.

Aren't I an excellent assistant?

I guess so.

What the...

Yumi?

The blizzard has stopped.

What a breathtaking aurora.

What is it?

He'll be here soon.

Look, over there!

I can hardly believe it.

All alone, in a place like this?!

He looks really weakened.

It's like he's completely
drained of energy.

Don't give up!

He'll notice us.

It's unlikely.

It's like he's almost unconscious.

His determination is the only thing
that keeps him walking.

You've got this!

Hang in there!

Keep going!

You can do it!

You've got this!

You can do this!

Don't give up!

Be strong!

Hang in there!

You're almost there!

He collapsed.

Just like Headquarters predicted.

With this, he'll wake up re-energized
in a few hours.

But just where was he going
in this blizzard?

I'll leave enough raw meat
for him to carry.

The snow is like a natural freezer.

It won't spoil.

And our job is done.

All right, let's go back.

Okay.

It doesn't sit right with me.

Buyo?

What's wrong, Bon?

I don't have the slightest idea
of what is going on here.

We don't know who he is,

where he came from,

or where he is going.

Then let's take a look.

Yumi?

You want to find out, right?

I do.

He came from that direction.

That's northwest.

Let's go back in time while we're at it.

This is five days ago.

Northeast end of the Beringia.

What's that?

A caribou herd.

They're heading southeast.

Look! A mammoth!

It's going southeast too.

Wait. Isn't that a village?

Who would want to settle down
in such a harsh environment?

I don't think they live here willingly.

In any case, let's thoroughly investigate
this situation.

Basically, they were early settlers

who lived on the northern coast
of the Kamchatka Peninsula.

Then the last ice age, known as
the Quaternary glaciation, struck,

and Beringia emerged from the sea floor.

The remains of marine animals and plants
piled up and enriched the soil,

creating lush grasslands in the summer.

Animals came, attracted by the grass.

Following the animals, the early settlers
from Kamchatka entered the land bridge.

They settled there,
and generations came and went.

However, summers in the Arctic are short,

especially in the middle of an ice age.

Animals would go off somewhere
every autumn.

The coast would be ice-sealed, preventing
the catching of fish and shellfish.

During the long and harsh winters
when the sun never rose,

people hid in their tents, surviving
on the food supplies gathered in summer.

Let's move the village.

Animals are leaving. We should follow.

You're kidding.

On that end of the world,

there are steep and high mountains of ice.

No one has ever seen what's beyond them.

But...

The winter god is nearly upon us.

Stay quiet and hunt!

Dear.

We're right.

The area where animals are wintering

must be a good place to live.

You're right.

Some people understand you.

I'm sure everyone else
will get it one day too.

Just don't do anything rash.

We're off to explore
the world east of here.

If the land there is rich,
we'll come back for everyone.

So he wasn't alone at first.

What happened to the others?

Let's go check.

At first, their expedition was going well.

But the blizzard
was growing stronger each day,

complicating the hunting.

One hunter,

and then another one, gave up

and went back to the village.

And then the last one too.

This is too much!
Let's go back to the village!

We can't!

If we turn back now,
it'll all be for nothing.

Do whatever you want.

It's better than being k*lled
by the winter god.

And that's
how he froze to death over there.

At this point, I'm worried
if he'll safely reach his destination.

I wonder about that too.

Want to watch over him?

Absolutely!

He's back on his feet,
and he's carrying the dismantled hut.

Aiming to the southeast
for an unseen new frontier,

with no hint of hesitation.

For now, he doesn't have
to worry about shelter.

But food is a real problem.

Clearly, hunting alone
would be impossible.

He looks pretty exhausted.

Should I leave some more raw meat?

Meat doesn't just lie around.

That would be unnatural.

We have to find a more natural way.

This is bad. It's a saber-toothed tiger!

-Check Card!
-Got it!

We're good to go!

Thank goodness.

I know!

Let's make that tiger help!

I never knew there could be
so many stars in the sky.

You don't get to see
a sky this starry in Tokyo.

Look, there's the North Star.

Wait. The stars have moved.

They have?

Where?

Just on the horizon's edge.

That's a lot of them.

It's like they're red fireflies
flying about.

These...

aren't stars!

These are dire wolves!

They're massive beasts


It's too big of a pack
to suppress them with the bio controller.

The saber-toothed tiger's left already.

Buy me some time!

Let me handle it this time!

Hey! Where are you off to?

Let you handle it?

Shock g*n hurts, you know.

It's not fatal, but still painful.

Next time, I won't hold back.

I'm not joking.

What's this?

I've brought a powerful ally!

Man, using a mammoth
was a stroke of genius!

I know, right?

I was the one who found it, you know.

He didn't hear a thing.

Unbelievable.

It's morning.

I feel refreshed.

A crevasse!

What should we do now?

He must cross it,
or he won't reach his goal.

What's he trying to do?

Oh no! We've got to help him.

Wait.

I'm sure

he'll pull through.

Come on!

Go!

You can do it!

Don't give up!

Just a little more!

Visibility is poor.

But he's walking
with a spring in his step.

Maybe he's sensed
that he's near his destination.

It's the mountains on Alaska's west coast!

He's finally made it!

He's moved to tears.

He made it from the realm of death
to a new land overflowing with life.

That's it!

All this time, we were witnessing
a historic event.

He's discovered the Americas!

Tens of thousands of years
before Columbus.

Which makes him the first American.

But is that okay? Did we change history?

It's all good.

The migration of early settlers
from Beringia to America

is a historical fact.

Let's see the next summer.

See? Just as I thought.

So he brought the people from the village.

Soon, even larger groups
will begin to migrate.

They're the ancestors
of the Native Americans.

Hold on a second.

What's wrong, Bon?

Maybe...

Just maybe...

I'll see you around, then.

Brown!

Namihira!

Brown, is there any Native American blood
in your family, by any chance?

Yeah.

I've been told there were some ancestors
on my mom's side long ago.

I knew it!

How did you know that?

Mankind is one big family.

Well...