“Not like any Greek I ever heard,” Columbus replied, crossing to the woman. “Who are you? What are those things?”
The woman rattled the bars but would say no more.
“Tell her we’ll set her free if she helps us,” Vespucci said.
Columbus glared at Vespucci, holding up the sword in his hand. “She already has.”
He brought the pommel down on the cage lock. The door broke open. The woman leaped down and began sifting through the bones for weapons.
“I wasn’t being serious, you fool,” Vespucci spat. “For all we know she’s in league with those demons.”
“Vespucci, how is it a man of your learned capabilities can be so ignorant when it comes to women?”
“Now, see here—”
A shriek echoed from the lit tunnel. A second followed a split second later, closer.
“They’re coming,” Vespucci stuttered.
The tension grew exponentially. Columbus grabbed a torch off the wall and looked around. Three tunnels led in opposite directions. “We go this way,” Columbus said, turning for the central tunnel. He stopped when the foreign woman called out.
“Exfugio?” she whispered.
“Isn’t that—?” Fanucio asked, amazed.
“Latin,” Nyx said. “It means escape.”
Columbus nodded to the woman. “Escape, yes. Do you know which way?”
She motioned for the sword. Columbus shook his head. The woman hesitated a moment before hobbling for the rear tunnel. Vespucci and Fanucio grabbed torches and followed.
The tunnel was cramped and wound through jutting rocks that drew blood when met with bare skin. Several times the group was forced to stoop low or sidestep areas too narrow to maneuver. They had barely gotten going when a chorus of piercing screeches echoed behind them. The dead creature had been found. Its brethren would be coming for revenge.
The woman moved with surprising speed despite her obvious fatigue. She also appeared to know where she was going. She was so quick Columbus feared they might be left behind. But every time they reached a fork, she paused before choosing a path. Columbus prayed it was more than guesswork.
Vespucci stayed on the woman’s heels with Nyx right behind. Columbus brought up the flank, driving his first mate hard despite his peg leg sinking into mud or scudding over rocks. Occasionally, the globe-pommeled sword would clang against those rocks, and the shrieks would grow louder behind them. Initially, it sounded like they were being pursued by one or two creatures, but the farther they went, the louder sounds of movement and hissing grew.
All at once, the tunnel opened and a set of steps carved from rock rose to a stone archway of some ancient design. As they passed through it, Columbus saw many graven images of terrifying faces and strange symbols. Immediately, the smell of fresh air hit them, and the torches flickered, buoying the strange woman and making it difficult for the others to keep up.
Only when they reached a long, stone corridor did Columbus glance back. He knew instantly it was a mistake. A handful of those wretched things were hot on his heels. The foremost one locked eyes with Columbus and raised its head, releasing its own chilling note. It sounded vastly different than the one before, though the effect was the same. Columbus, Fanucio, and Vespucci all stumbled to a halt, eyes glazing over, free will ripped from them.
Nyx appeared unaffected by the song. She raced back to the men, doing her best to break them from the trance, pleading with them to push on. It did no good. Columbus could see her lips moving but heard nothing.
As more creatures flooded the corridor, each opened its mouth to add its own discordant note to the hypnotic cacophony. Nyx looked panic-stricken as those horrid things stalked forward, eyes burning, talons lashing out, crooning in the near dark. She was backpedaling when something slammed into her from behind. She hit the dirt hard as the strange woman pushed past her and twisted the sword from Columbus’s grip. She swung it with such speed and ferocity the lead creature never had time to shriek. The blade split its skull in two.
The spell broken, the men woke from their thrall. Columbus looked up, stunned to see the woman wielding the blade, her skill and fearlessness beyond impressive.
Vespucci had already resumed running, urging the others on though he had no idea where he was going. Fanucio grabbed Nyx and pulled her to her feet, pushing her on as Columbus followed.
Columbus heard more screeches. With the woman already being pushed back, they would soon be overrun. It was clear there was only one thing to do. Columbus peeled the bandolier of jade balls over his head and threw the entire thing down the hall. It exploded in a blinding light. The creatures shrieked, but the woman was also blinded. Columbus grabbed her by the arm and resumed their flight.
The corridor spilled into an even larger one with ornate stones on all sides. It gave Columbus a scintilla of hope. Men built this. It had to lead somewhere. As the screeches behind resumed at a more furious pitch, Columbus led the women down a final corridor and finally saw an oval doorway at its end, sunlight pouring in. Vespucci bounded through without hesitation, followed by Fanucio and Nyx. Hisses flooded the room, and a gasp of air was followed by the first utterance of a note. Columbus covered his ears just as the woman pulled ahead. At the last second, she grabbed Columbus, and they both jumped through the doorway to whatever waited beyond.
They tumbled down a steep hill, rolling through sparse stalks of grass until they landed hard at the foot of a beach. Gasping, blinded, and utterly exhausted, Columbus looked up with relief only to find himself surrounded by a new group of foes. Men and women with fair skin, dressed in the same uniforms and facial gems as the woman. As soon as they saw the sword in his hand, a shout went up, and several golden staves rose to attack.
Chapter Seven
“I do believe we are overdressed for this occasion,” Columbus quipped as the stave-wielding party in scarlet bodysuits filled in around them.
“I vote we retire to find better attire,” Fanucio said.
“Excellent idea. Let’s do that.”
As soon as Columbus moved, more staves were shoved in his face. He wanted to tell the holders where they could put it, but they looked like a serious lot. Grim-jawed, each bearing a multitude of scars, their stout forms obvious under the thin, reflective material. Alert, well-spaced out. No question. These were warriors, but which country did they represent?
The situation remained tense until the woman stood and began issuing orders in her foreign tongue. The others seemed shocked but relieved to see her. On her command, they lowered their staves, but only slightly. As Columbus’s eyes continued to adjust to the light, he got his first real look at the woman. Her hair was the red of deep fire, of embers kissed by a lover’s breath. A line of freckles danced among those small gems. Even covered in grime and guts, she was truly beautiful. And for half a second, Columbus forgot where he was. Then the woman barked orders at a male and female warrior—clearly twins. They peeled off to cover their flank. Nyx gasped when she looked back and saw that aperture was the mouth of a giant stone face cut into a mountain several hundred feet high.
The woman continued issuing orders until she heard others approach from the beach. Over a dune, the biggest man Columbus had ever seen appeared. He had to have been over seven feet tall with legs like powder kegs and a chest thick as a mast. Around his heavy-set eyes glittered those same patterned gems, only he bore more than any. The man must have been mute because when he stopped in front of the woman, his hands spoke for him.
The woman watched, then shook her head adamantly. She pointed to Columbus, using the same phrase she’d uttered inside the cavern, “Anak-Ta Eleece.”
The giant sneered, his meaty fingers snapping crisply. Columbus and his crew waited. At last, the woman turned.
“Vester gladias,” she said to Columbus.
Latin again. It sounded so formal coming from her.
She repeated the phrase. The giant and others stood firm behind her.
“I believe she wants our weapons,�
�� Nyx said.
“I know what she wants,” Columbus snapped. “I’m not certain I want to give them to her.”
At Columbus’s hesitation, the giant stepped forward, a golden stave appearing in his hand. With a single twitch, the weapon began to hum like a hive of angry bees. Columbus didn’t want to see what happened next. He gave the order to drop their weapons but added, “I’ll be wanting those back.”
Once the weapons were collected, the woman motioned for them to follow. They headed through the dunes toward the sound of surf. As Columbus passed the giant, the man gave him a withering stare.
The bigger they are the harder they hit, Columbus thought.
The dunes gave way to a vast sea of crystal blue waters peppered with a handful of islands in all directions. Some were massive with arching mountain ranges, densely forested. Others were flat and barren as deserts. Columbus and their crew were in awe.
“Look.” Fanucio gaped.
He was looking skyward. Columbus looked up and his mouth fell open. The sky was the color of sapphire with only a smattering of clouds that appeared almost opaque. Even odder, an intermittent shimmer raced across it like quartz lines in some mountain stream.
“Where are we?” Columbus asked.
“Don’t you know?” Vespucci replied. “You’ve found your buried kingdom, Columbus. Congratulations. I suspect the shimmer we see is the barrier we passed through earlier, holding all of this in place.”
For a moment, Columbus couldn’t breathe. Had he truly found it? If so, it was nothing like what he expected. He turned to the woman who was still watching him. “Is this…Atlantis?”
To his disappointment, she shook her head, which only prompted Vespucci to laugh.
“You’re asking her? These people are barbarians. Look at their clothes, their rudimentary weapons. Face it. The stories of an advanced civilization might have originated here, but they’re a far cry from the truth. As I’ve always said, Atlantis is a myth. One you bought hook, line, and sinker. I hope it was worth the lives lost getting you here.”
Columbus turned to hit the man, but held off. He knew those words stung for a reason. Most of his crew had died following his orders. And while that was part and parcel of being a seaman, few had signed up knowing Columbus’s true intention. Would they have come with me if they’d known the truth? He didn’t want to think about it. Guilt was an achor with an impossibly long chain. Let it run too deep and it will drown you quicker than the heaviest swell.
The moment was interrupted when a discordant note echoed from the mountain. Columbus, Vespucci, and Fanucio all winced and covered their ears. Surprisingly, none of the warrior men reacted.
The woman issued more orders, directing them to the water.
“Imagine,” Vespucci scoffed. “A woman in charge.”
Nyx smirked as she passed. “Maybe this is an advanced civilization after all.”
Vespucci grabbed Columbus and pulled him close. “I see an opportunity here. Tread carefully and you might be able to repair your relationship with the monarchy.”
“You speak for Spain now?”
“If not I, then who?”
Columbus jogged forward to draw even with the foreign woman. He asked her a question in Latin. She responded curtly before the giant drew her away.
“What’s that about?” Fanucio asked.
“I asked if the big one was her husband or if she was single.”
“You didn’t!”
“I find—with many primitive types—sex is always the best diplomacy.”
Fanucio groaned until Nyx spoke.
“He asked about our safety,” she said.
Columbus eyed the girl. She speaks Latin too? Who is she?
“She said the sirens rarely venture out during the day but admits they’re unpredictable when riled,” Nyx continued.
“Sirens!” Fanucio said. “So, it was their song that bewitched us. We’re fortunate. I heard many a tale of sailors falling prey to—”
A clamor from within the mountain silenced him. Columbus heard more screeches, followed by something else. The foreign woman shouted. Her warriors fanned out, aiming their golden staves toward that giant stone mouth as Columbus and his crew hunkered down.
A cry spilled from the mountain, followed by a stream of hisses. An instant later, two small forms shot out, rolled down the hill, and crashed onto the beach. First, one popped up, shaking off sand, followed by the second. Both burst into laughter.
“Those vile singing creatures nearly killed us!” Monday said.
“I know!” shouted Tuesday gaily. “What a grand adventure!”
Columbus sighed with relief as the Pygmies helped each other to their feet. When they turned and took in the scene, however, their smiles died.
“Either the sunlight deceives me,” Monday said. “Or these new fellows are holding our slaves hostage.”
“Hmm,” Tuesday replied. “We can’t have that. We have a reputation to consider.”
Columbus recognized the looks on those cherubic faces. “Monday, Tuesday,” he warned in terrible Pygmy. “These people were welcoming us to their homeland. Remain calm and let me handle this.”
The Pygmies attacked instead.
“Damn,” Columbus muttered. “I really must brush up on my Pygmy.”
The ferocity of the Pygmy attack surprised the warriors. First, the small foes used their spears to catapult inside the warrior ring. Then they followed up with some dizzying strikes to knees and heads. When Tuesday lowered his spear to run one warrior down, the man depressed a button on his golden stave, and a reddish barrier repelled the African’s weapon.
A female warrior also raised her stave, releasing a blast of energy that sent a cloud of sand exploding into the air at Monday’s feet. Before she could get off a second blast, Columbus grabbed her, flipped her on her back, and ripped the stave from her hands. Nyx leaped onto the back of a third warrior as Fanucio planted a peg leg between his thighs with devastating effect. Vespucci winced but raised his hands when confronted. He wanted no part of this fight.
Columbus swung the stave, clocking one warrior across the cheek before he spun toward another. The woman shouted to quell the fight. Columbus’s stave started to lower. That’s when the giant blasted him. The shot struck Columbus in the chest and catapulted him ten feet backward. His torso was a smoking mass of carnage. He couldn’t breathe.
Nyx screamed, followed by Fanucio. “You didn’t have to kill him!”
Columbus gasped. The pain was worse than anything he’d ever experienced.
The giant was moving forward to finish him off when the woman shoved him aside. She dropped to Columbus’s side, horrified by the extent of his wounds. She shouted at the giant, using that phrase again, Anak-Ta Eleece. It seemed to finally register. The other warriors shared glances of confusion and dismay. Only the giant appeared unrepentant. Then the woman held out her hand. The giant shook his head without emotion. The woman shouted again. This time, a young female warrior with short, curly hair, dashed over, ripping a lanyard from around her neck before handing it to the woman. A young male warrior—clearly her twin—tried to dissuade her to no avail.
Columbus’s gasps came more frequent now, each breath harder to take in. Blood filled his mouth and lungs. It felt like he was drowning.
The woman loomed over him, whispering words he didn’t understand. She held the lanyard by the crystal that hung at its end. No. It wasn’t a crystal. It was a vial filled with dark fluid. The woman cracked it in half before pouring the fluid over Columbus’s wounds.
For the second time, Columbus felt like he had been set ablaze. He howled, working his crew into a new fury. As smoke hissed from his wounds, he felt dizzy and nauseous. He reached for his chest, desperate to wipe it clean, but the woman grasped his hands.
“Curare,” she said. “Quievi.”
Her eyes were filled with compassion and worry. Columbus felt himself ease. The instant he did, the pain began to ebb. The fiery sensation fa
ded, replaced by what felt like a thousand needles tickling his body. Soon, they itched. He tried to scratch, but the woman stopped him again.
Columbus heard Nyx sob, but his breath was growing longer, the drowning feeling fading away.
“I don’t believe it!” Fanucio exclaimed. “His wounds are healing.”
Vespucci leaned in for a closer look, riveted. Even the Pygmies stopped struggling against their captors.
Finally, Columbus sat up. He looked at the faces around him. His crew was stunned, but not the warriors. Their faces betrayed only some odd sadness. Or was it resentment?
The woman sat back and sighed with relief. Columbus pulled his torn tunic open and looked down at his chest. The wounds were gone.
“What did you do to me?” Columbus asked.
The woman shook her head, beyond exhausted. She struggled to her feet and stalked toward the beach. Columbus and his crew were set free.
“Consequi,” the woman said to him, signaling Columbus to follow. He looked to the mountain and then to the giant who held their weapons. He nodded.
When they reached the surf, one of the warriors raised a thin whistle to his mouth and blew a single, high-pitched note and waited. Columbus touched his chest again. Amazing. Even his old scars were gone. When he looked up, he saw the woman was watching him.
“I guess this makes us even,” he said. She tilted her head. “Aequare. I saved you, you saved me.”
The woman said nothing, turned back to the sea. Columbus reached out and touched her arm. She looked at his hand, then him.
“Gratias tibi ago. Mihi nomen est Columbus.”
“Elara,” she responded.
“Elara,” Columbus repeated before a smile cracked his face. “A beautiful name for a beautiful woman.”
Nyx rolled her eyes as Fanucio muttered, “Here we go again.”
Columbus held Elara’s gaze until she looked away. Had she blushed? Columbus thought so. Then he saw the giant glaring at him.
“Quod nomen est ejus?” Columbus asked Elara.
“Dion.”
“Big guy, Dion. Think he and I will be friends?”
Christopher Columbus and the Lost City of Atlantis Page 8