Time Castaways #1

by Liesl Shurtliff

  “I’d like to take this to the library,” said Matt. “If I can find some books in the library I could translate it. Could I, Captain?” He looked meaningfully at the captain. He seemed to understand.

  “Yes, I’d be very interested to know what it says. Go ahead, Mateo. Translate away.”

  “But—” Albert began to protest, but the captain cut him off.

  “Albert, why don’t you come into my cabin and take the Mona Lisa with you to the gallery? I do believe she’s in need of your expert care.” This seemed to appease Albert. The captain winked at Matt as he led Albert to his cabin.

  Matt went to the library right away. Wiley was more than happy to assist him and found some books on Sanskrit, as well as some sources about India and palm leaves and their uses in writing, including a scholarly article that said in some parts of India, palm leaves were often used to record horoscopes and Ayurvedic astrology, which really excited Matt. He dug into translating. It took him nearly half the night, but the message was short and eventually he had what he felt was a decent enough translation. It made his heart beat a little faster.

  What you seek lies within the walls of the temple, but beware the serpents who guard the sacred vaults.

  Matt did a little more digging about temples in India. There were several that mentioned snakes, but only one that mentioned snakes guarding any vaults.

  The only thing he didn’t find was any mention of a key or the Mona Lisa or video et taceo. Not that he was expecting it. It could be that these connections were never recorded in history, and the message seemed too clear and pronounced to ignore.

  What you seek lies within the walls of the temple . . .

  And he’d even found the message in the walls of the Vermillion! It couldn’t be a coincidence. Someone was giving them a clue.

  15

  Treasures and Snakes

  “Say that again?” Corey asked as they were preparing for travel. “Where are we going?”

  “Kerala, India,” said Matt, “to the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple.”

  “Say that fast ten times,” said Corey. He tried and by the end of it he was saying something like “Free-pad-mah-swampy Temple.”

  “What year are we traveling to?” Ruby asked.

  “Seventeen fifty-one,” said the captain. Matt felt a little dizzy. Nearly three hundred years from his time!

  “It’s a much bigger leap than I would have liked,” said the captain, “but the truth is, the vaults of these temples were frequently burglarized in the later centuries. I think it’s necessary that we go as early as possible in order to find what we’re looking for.”

  Captain Vincent had been delighted at Matt’s discovery. As it happened, the captain was quite familiar with the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. He’d been there several times before with Captain Bonnaire, which seemed to make him feel it was more likely that whatever the Mona Lisa key unlocked might be there. “She may have hidden it there herself!” said the captain.

  “I love India!” exclaimed Brocco. “Fantastic colors. And perhaps we could ride some elephants! Have you ridden an elephant before, Li’l Bullet?”

  Corey shook his head. “They don’t have elephants in the Central Park Zoo.”

  “Think Li’l Bullet and I might have time for some elephants, Captain?”

  “There will be time for elephants and other pleasures,” said the captain. “But our main mission is the temple. It holds massive amounts of gold and treasure in secret vaults.”

  “I like treasure too,” said Brocco.

  “So do I!” said Corey.

  “Is someone going to steal the treasure?” Ruby asked.

  “Someone is always stealing that treasure,” said the captain. “There are hoards of gold, jewels, and many sacred relics in the vaults, which are not very well protected. Thieves are constantly breaking in to steal it. The Vermillion has traveled there several times before, and we take what we can to keep it safe from the petty thieves.”

  “Time pirates to the rescue!” said Wiley.

  “Very good, then. Shall we prepare for travel? Brocco, have you prepared us proper costumes?”

  “I have,” said Brocco. He lifted a bulging bag and brought out several simple tunics and headdresses that didn’t look much different from what Matt saw some Indian people wearing around modern New York. They easily pulled them over their regular clothes.

  “So what are our positions?” Albert asked. “Do you need me to stand guard this time?”

  “Actually, I would like you and Jia to remain on the Vermillion with Pike this time,” said the captain. “Wiley and Brocco can stand guard, and I need the Hudsons’ skills for this mission, particularly Mateo’s.”

  “Me?” said Matt, feeling a little self-conscious, particularly since Albert was scowling at him. “What do you need me to do?”

  The captain bent down and lowered his voice. “The key, Mateo. I’m hoping you might sense whatever it is that it will unlock.”

  “You mean foremember?”

  “Precisely,” said Captain Vincent.

  Matt nodded. “I’ll try my best.”

  The captain clapped him on the shoulder and shook him a little. “That’s my boy!” He straightened up and pulled the compass out of his sleeve. “All right, crew! Prepare for a quantum time leap!”

  The crew positioned themselves. Corey took hold of the end of the table. Ruby first held on to a chair, then changed to a wall, and finally settled for crouching right in the center of the floor. She was clearly trying to choose the area where she’d be least likely to get trapped in a trunk or something.

  The ship was shrinking fast, almost as if it were eager for this particular mission. The floor planks swelled slightly, then quickly shrank smaller than before, as though they were elastic or rubber. The top of the ship opened up like a convertible and rolled down the sides. The captain’s cabin door split open for a moment, revealing all that was inside—his bed and desk, the slashed paintings—and then all folded in on itself like a collapsing pop-up book. Matt found himself seated in a simple rowboat, grasping an oar. The boat rocked violently from side to side for a few moments until it finally settled.

  “That was weird,” said Corey. He shook his head and then looked around. “Where did Ruby end up this time?”

  “Get your feet off my face!”

  Matt looked down and realized that his feet were resting right on Ruby’s head, smashing in her cheek. Somehow she had ended up at the very bottom of the rowboat, beneath all the benches. Matt quickly lifted his feet, and he and Corey helped Ruby up. She rocked the boat a little until she finally sat down on a bench, muttering curses under her breath that Matt was certain their mother would punish by washing her mouth out with soap.

  “Let’s row, crew!” said Captain Vincent. They all began to row the little boat toward the shore. It was lined with small cottages all surrounding a golden temple that rose above everything else. It looked like a giant treasure chest, a gleaming tiered tower of gold, ornately and intricately designed.

  The sun was low in the sky. Matt guessed it was early evening. There seemed to be a great deal of motion and excitement on the shore, throngs of people and a procession of elephants elaborately decorated and painted.

  “Ooh! Look at the elephants!” said Brocco. “And there’s people riding them!”

  The people atop the elephants were also elaborately dressed, wearing gold headdresses and beaded gowns and tunics. They were riding the elephants toward the water.

  “That’s the royal family atop the elephants,” said the captain.

  “What’s going on?” Matt asked.

  “It’s the Painkuni festival,” said the captain. “This is the tenth day of the festival where they will perform the arattu, or ‘holy bath.’ They bring idols out of the temple and bathe them in the sea. It’s very sacred, but it’s also a good time for thieves to get into the vaults of the temple as it won’t be so heavily guarded.”

  They hit sand, and the captain and
Brocco hopped out and pulled the boat onto the shore. Pike tied the boat around a wooden pole stuck in the sand, knotting it as expertly as any sailor.

  “Albert, Jia, Pike, you’ll remain here,” said the captain.

  “Yes, sir,” said Jia. “We’ll keep the Vermillion safe, won’t we, Albert?”

  Albert folded his arms and kicked his feet into the sand. Some of it sprayed up onto Matt’s tunic.

  They headed up the beach, and soon they were pushing their way through the crowds moving in the opposite direction. The air was spicy and earthy. Matt was pressed between bodies. A woman carrying a smelly bucket of fish with flies all over it knocked into him. Animals seemed to be loose everywhere. Stray dogs chased chickens and goats. There were monkeys, too, running along the thatched roofs and swinging in and out of windows. Some even hopped onto the shoulders of people, using them for a ride, or in some cases, stealing hats or food.

  There were beggars, too, which wasn’t shocking to Matt. He had seen plenty of people begging on the streets of New York, huddled against storefronts and subways, holding signs or shaking cups of change, but those people seemed practically well-off compared to the beggars here. Some of them were younger than Matt. A little beggar girl who couldn’t have been more than five or six moved through the crowds with hands outstretched. She was filthy and barefooted. As she approached them, the captain reached inside his jacket and pulled out a few coins, dropping them into the girl’s cupped hands. She immediately clasped her hands together and without a word or even a grateful smile scampered away. Matt understood why soon enough. His small act of generosity quickly attracted the attention of other beggars, like sharks to blood. Soon there were dozens of outstretched hands in front of the captain. The captain tossed coins into hands until he was quite out, but the mob only seemed to grow more desperate, pressing in on them. Finally Brocco lifted his gun and shot into the air, and the people scattered, creating a clear path for them.

  “So much need here,” said the captain, seemingly not at all disturbed, “and that temple is full of riches that could feed the entire country.”

  “So why don’t they?” Matt asked.

  “It’s supposed to be for their gods,” said the captain. “To take it, even to feed the hungry, would be sacrilege and incur their wrath.”

  “But we’re about to take the treasure,” said Ruby. “Will we incur their wrath?”

  “That depends. Do you believe in their gods?”

  The temple loomed in front of them, and as they came closer, Matt could make out the many statues on every layer, seemingly holding up the entire structure. Stone steps led up to a large archway where uniformed men with long sticks stood guard.

  “How are we going to get inside?” Ruby asked. “They don’t just let anyone in there, do they?”

  “Oh no,” said the captain. “And that’s not where we want to go anyway. We have a different entrance.”

  “How many times have you been here?” Ruby asked.

  “A few,” said the captain. “Though not since I became captain of the Vermillion. It was a favorite place of Captain Bonnaire’s.”

  They walked around the temple and then beyond it where things became quieter. They went through a village with dusty streets and rickety homes, a few lanterns flickering in windows as the sun in the sky lowered. The captain took out a piece of paper, a map, Matt realized, and consulted it. They walked a bit farther and finally stopped in front of a small hut. It was lit by a single candle. A man opened the door and beckoned them forward. The captain whispered, “No one speak. He believes we are gods come for our treasure.”

  The man was old, frail, and tiny, shorter than Matt, even. He spoke in a language Matt did not recognize at all, which annoyed Matt. It was like there was a part of his brain that itched to understand and he couldn’t scratch it. Next language for his 12/21 project, perhaps.

  The captain said nothing to the man. He didn’t have to. The captain simply showed him the Obsidian Compass, and his face suddenly grew awed and fearful. He bowed deeply to the captain and beckoned him and all the crew to come inside. He kept his head down, not looking at any of them.

  The house was warm and full of pungent, spicy odors—curry, cinnamon, and jasmine. The man motioned toward the table and began to shift it. Brocco assisted him, and then the man lifted a rug that uncovered a square wooden grate. He lifted the grate and made a way for them to enter.

  The captain went first. The man held out his lantern. The captain took it without saying a word and descended a narrow set of crumbling stone steps. Brocco followed after the captain, and then Wiley, each of them disappearing into the darkness.

  “This doesn’t seem at all safe,” whispered Ruby.

  “The captain wouldn’t lead us into any real danger,” said Corey, and he stepped down. Ruby went next, and Matt followed after her, stepping carefully down the crumbling, uneven steps. When they reached the bottom, they each took out flashlights and moved them around the space. They were in a narrow, shallow tunnel that clearly hadn’t been used in many years. Cobwebs brushed their heads. (At least Matt hoped they were cobwebs.) The tunnel was fairly straight, and after about ten minutes of walking they came to a stone door.

  “That was it?” said Corey. “There weren’t any booby traps or anything.”

  “Patience, Corey,” said the captain. “We haven’t opened the door yet.”

  The captain pushed on it. It opened easily, revealing what looked like an ancient underground palace. Huge pillars and archways made various tunnels and paths. The captain stepped out of the doorway and into the space. Matt waited, his eyes half closed, waiting for something terrible to happen, but nothing did. The captain consulted his map again. “There are six vaults,” he said. “Each has incredible amounts of treasure, but we are looking for a very specific vault. Of course some of them are cursed.”

  “Cursed?” said Ruby. “What kind of curse?”

  “Oh, the usual. Seven years of bad luck or a plague on all your family. Something like that.” The captain didn’t seem to think this was anything to worry about. He forged ahead into one of the tunnels. Matt kept waiting for something to attack them, a mummy or a giant ax, but all was quiet and calm. They walked in a maze of tunnels until finally they came to a door. It was large and had what looked like brass snakes all over it.

  Beware the snakes . . . The warning from the palm leaf rang in his ears.

  “Cobras,” said the captain, brushing his hands over the serpents. “They are believed to be the guardians of the sacred treasure inside the karllaras, the vaults. This is a different vault than I’ve been to in the past. I’m not sure exactly how it opens . . .” The captain reached up and pulled, but nothing happened. He looked and felt around all over the door.

  “Maybe the key is to open the door,” Matt said quietly.

  “Yes, but where?” said the captain. “I see no keyhole. There’s not even a doorknob or latch.”

  Matt studied the door, zeroing in on the snakes and how they were placed. He imagined how they would move if they were really alive. Right now they were sideways, some of their bodies broken apart. If they were shifted upright . . . “Here,” said Matt. He reached up and turned one of the snakes clockwise, then another counterclockwise. He did the same again, shifting the snakes until they were in their proper positions. After the fourth snake the door make a loud click. The captain pushed on the door and it opened.

  “Mateo, you genius!” the captain beamed. “It would have taken me ages to figure that out.”

  The captain lifted the lantern into the cavern, illuminating the space. Matt gasped. The cavern was stacked floor to ceiling with gold and treasure—stacks of gold bars, piles of gold coins, pottery, jewelry, gems of all colors, shapes, and sizes, some as big as Matt’s thumbnail. A suit of gold body armor was strewn across the dusty floor, cobwebs between the arms and legs. A little farther back, on a high pedestal, a life-size gold statue of a man in an elaborate headdress sat on top of a jewel-encru
sted throne. The pedestal was dark, so it looked to Matt like the idol was levitating and made a chill run down his spine. Matt wondered if it was one of the temple gods standing guard over all the treasure. What would happen when they crossed the threshold? He imagined the god incinerating them on the spot, or cutting off their air supply.

  The captain stepped inside the vault, but nothing happened. He brushed his hands over a pile of gold, scooping up a handful of coins and dropping them again.

  “Should we start loading up, Captain?” said Brocco eagerly.

  “Yes,” said the captain absentmindedly. He was gazing all around the room. Matt could tell he was searching. “Take as much as you can carry. We don’t want this to fall into the hands of petty thieves.”

  They all set to work, filling their packs with as much gold and jewels as they could carry. Ruby layered the bottom of her pack with gold bars, then coins and handfuls of diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires. Corey’s eyes shone like jewels themselves as he stuffed more in his pockets.

  But the captain gathered no treasure. He was looking around the vault, searching with a careful eye. Matt remembered his purpose on this mission. He was supposed to be looking for the thing the Mona Lisa key might unlock. He was supposed to recognize it, foremember it. He walked around the vault slowly. He had read that there was supposed to be a special kind of energy, a “spiritual charge” in the vaults that one could feel only if they were very lucky. But if it was disturbed, disaster would follow. It wasn’t clear what that disaster might be, and Matt wasn’t sure if he could feel the “special energy,” but he decided it was best to err on the side of caution and try not to disturb it.

  Matt moved quietly and cautiously, weaving in and out of the mounds of treasure. He saw a few interesting things, a gold bow and arrow, a flute that looked to be made of an ivory tusk, but he saw nothing that the Mona Lisa key might unlock. There were plenty of chests full of treasure, but most of them were open, and if they did have a keyhole it was too big for what he knew they were looking for.