Tonwen wiped the sweat from his brow once more before he walked up to the edge of the hole and opened fire once more. Just as before, the metal grew to a hot glow and then began to push further downward into the ground.
“Replace, refill, repeat, is it really that simple?” Hastelloy asked over the hum of the disruptor firing.
“Simple? There is nothing simple about retuning this disruptor to fire at the exact frequency to simultaneously bore a hole in the rock and liquefy the metal at a rate to coat the sides to a thickness of a quarter inch,” Tonwen said as if he were taking great offense to the oversimplification of his efforts.
“I guess not, but you certainly make it look easy,” Hastelloy commended. “I’ll have Gallono and Valnor come in here to help speed things along. I want to get this done and get the exiles moving again. Pharaoh isn’t going to like hearing that the people he banished to die in the desert have taken up residence only three miles away. How long do you need to reach the target?”
“We have enough material to go three hundred feet down before needing to turn the tunnel and head for the rock formation,” Tonwen said. “It should only take a day to reach the target, and another day to hollow out the chamber. Once that is completed you can move on while Gallono, Valnor, and I finish the interior construction.”
“Excellent. I don’t know what I would do without you,” Hastelloy commended as he patted the science officer on the back before making his way to the exit door. “I need to pay Tomal a visit, so keep at it. I’ll be back before you know it.”
Chapter 57: Hastelloy in the Reeds
Patiently, Hastelloy waited among the reeds in the river. His adrenaline level rose as he sensed his opportunity to swim to the next cluster of vegetation. A set of guards moved out of view to his left several minutes ago and were now well out of range to spot his movements. Hastelloy took one stroke toward his destination but immediately stopped when he heard two men talking as they approached from his right side. He cursed under his breath.
Hastelloy grabbed the broken reed he used as a breathing tube, put it in his mouth and reluctantly lowered his head below the water’s surface once more.
There he stayed; counting his blessings this pair of guards didn’t stop right next to his location to have a long talk about the meaning of life like the last set of guards. Finally, the voices trailed off into the distance, and Hastelloy returned to the surface.
He looked over at the sun, which now hung low in the western horizon. He almost yelled out in frustration with the realization that he spent half his day in the water. Swimming back across the river took no time at all. The difficulty came when he neared the city perimeter.
A seven-foot high wall ringed the city with a gate house in the middle of each side. The walls served the dual purpose of keeping out enemies and keeping everyone else in. The only vulnerability was the river shore, and Pharaoh clearly saw that weakness and took steps to remedy the situation. There was an almost constant parade of guards patrolling the water’s edge.
Little by little, Hastelloy made his way from one thicket of reeds to the next. At a maddeningly slow pace, he progressed up the river. Hastelloy looked down at his hands and feared his body was now wrinkled beyond any hope of repair. The damage was not just aesthetic. His body was now hypersensitive to touch. Even the gentle breeze in the evening air caused him discomfort.
For probably the hundredth time, Hastelloy evaluated the prospect of making an all out sprint for the tents that lay about 300 yards away from the shore. Other than the vegetation along the river shore, there was absolutely no cover until he reached the tents. He estimated it would take him about one minute to cover the distance. Hastelloy shook his head to remove the notion from his thoughts. In daylight hours a man sprinting across the flat sands would be easily spotted.
He looked down at his arm to see the brand put there the day he left the city. The scar made him realize that entering the city during the day would do him no good anyway. There wasn’t any hope of blending in with the population as long as he was unable to cover his upper body with a blanket. The city was in the middle of a scorching hot desert, so who in their right mind would walk around with a blanket over their shoulders during the day?
Night time was a different story. Temperatures fell quickly and often dropped to near freezing. Night time would allow him the perfect opportunity to enter the city while covering his branded arm and not raise any suspicions.
Hastelloy quietly swam into the next cluster of reeds and stopped to gain his bearings. He let out a soft sigh when he realized he was within throwing distance of the stone quarry where he spent countless days cutting and hauling the enormous pieces of rock to build the pyramid.
He noticed a new row of logs had been laid. Rather than leading to the pyramid, however, this one was pointed towards a large rock formation that Hastelloy had pointed out to Tomal before leaving the city.
Next, Hastelloy’s eyes spotted a cluster of men standing on a ridge overlooking the quarry. He instantly recognized the two prominent figures as Tomal and the new Pharaoh. Tomal stood with his hand clasped on Pharaoh’s shoulder. With his other hand, the engineer pointed to the rock formation at the end of the log road. The single piece of rock was gigantic. On the eastern side of the formation it rose to a height of 70 feet. Adding to the mass was the fact that it was nearly 250 feet long and 20 feet wide. With a few additions and modifications, the mammoth piece of stone could easily be made into a fitting memorial for the ‘great man’ who built the pyramid.
Hastelloy observed a wide smile extending from ear to ear on Pharaoh’s face. He appeared to like the symbolism of the proposed monument. The size and scope of the project was impressive. Best of all, with the exception of some very large stones that needed to be cut and moved to the base of the eastern side to serve as paws, all the building material was already in place. The artisans simply needed to remove the excess to bring out the head and face of Neferhotep atop the body of a lion. The ferocious creature would protect his creation for all eternity. What was not to like about the design?
Little did Pharaoh know, a separate construction project was already under way involving the very same rock formation. This little project; however, would remain hidden from the knowledge of mankind for thousands of years.
Hastelloy heard footsteps growing near. Another patrol must be approaching he thought. Once again he stuck the reed in his mouth and ducked under the water. Below the water’s surface he could hear splashing. He groaned inwardly at the realization that a family was taking an evening bath in the river. He would need to remain submerged for quite some time. His pruned skin began to ache even more at the prospect, if that was possible. Hastelloy consoled himself with the knowledge that nightfall was approaching quickly and that would be his time to move. Till then he simply had to remain unnoticed.
Eventually the playful family finished their bath and returned to the city. Slowly, Hastelloy rose up out of the water. His eyes had no trouble adjusting to the darkness that had set in with nightfall. A set of guards passed as the family was leaving, so the coast was clear for his ingress into the city. With slow measured steps that were careful not to cause splashes, he made his way onto the sandy shore.
Once his feet hit dry land, he spotted the set of footprints in the sand left by the family and proceeded to follow them. A set of footprints leading from the waters edge to the city would usually be cause for suspicion, but the complex jumble of large and tiny footprints the family left behind was the perfect cover.
Hastelloy’s body trembled uncontrollably from being in the water for so long combined with the falling temperatures. In the first empty tent Hastelloy came across, he grabbed a set of dirty clothes piled in the corner to dry himself off. Next he grabbed a heavy blanket and threw it over his shoulders. The sudden rush of warmth was a welcome sensation.
Without wasting any more time, Hastelloy made his way toward Tomal’s tent. From a distance he saw the front door was flanked by g
uards, guards who would recognize Hastelloy’s face even if his brand was concealed. That being the case, he took a long walk around to approach the tent undetected from the rear.
Hastelloy peeked into the tent through a small gap where two pieces of fabric were tied together around a support pole. To his relief, he saw Tomal sitting alone at his table eating dinner. While counting his blessings that something finally went right for a change, Hastelloy unfastened the tie strings enough to allow his body to slip through the gap and into the tent.
Tomal heard the soft commotion. He sprung to his feet and pulled a sword from its resting place on the table and made ready to attack the intruder. His aggressive posture relaxed when he recognized the assailant was actually his captain. Tomal instantly returned the sword to its original position on the table and greeted Hastelloy with a soft whisper.
“It’s good to see a friendly face,” Tomal said.
“You are awfully jumpy for a man in your position. I saw you and Pharaoh earlier today overlooking the new construction project. It seemed to me like you two are best buds again.”
“I trust that man about as far as I can throw him and that isn’t far. That snake will look you square in the eyes and greet you with the warmest smile while one of his guards slips a dagger into your back. I figured now that he has my detailed plans to build the guardian lion, my usefulness is at an end.”
“You can’t let yourself get killed or otherwise removed from this project. I need you to make sure the laborers don’t encroach on the work we’re covertly doing from the inside.”
“Why do you think I have a sword next to me while I eat?” Tomal said with a bit of anger as he glanced toward the blade. “I think we’re safe from the workers getting too close to the chamber whether I am overseeing the project or not. The body of the beast is only going to get larger as we add legs and paws. Most of the chiseling and stone removal will come at the head. It’ll be quite impressive when it’s finished I think.”
“Impressive enough that no one will be tempted to tamper with it for a long, long time I expect,” Hastelloy added.
“I still have reservations about hiding the Nexus inside such a landmark. It will only draw unwanted attention to the hiding place,” Tomal insisted.
“On the contrary, we need the hiding place for the Nexus to be an iconic fixture that people will never want to alter or destroy,” Hastelloy stated. “Civilizations tend to level lackluster monuments over time and reuse the materials. Look around you. These people use stone for all their construction. A large freestanding hunk of rock big enough to hollow out and hide the Nexus inside would be a prime target to cut up and use in building monuments. We need to make sure no one is tempted to do that here.”
“If that’s the case, we should take the easy approach and make the hiding chamber deep underground. I see no reason to have it at surface level and take the chance of it being discovered one day,” Tomal protested.
“I can control, for the most part, what people do on the surface and the outside of the monument. In contrast, I have absolutely no say in what the tectonic plates below the surface of this world do. In our short time on this planet we’ve already observed a massive volcanic eruption, which leads me to believe earthquakes and other destructive acts of nature are fairly common. If I have to assume a risk in hiding the Nexus in a concealed location, I’ll assume the risk I have some measure of control over rather than trusting Mother Nature to be kind and gentle,” Hastelloy instructed.
“Very well, sir. I’ll make sure no one comes within a depth of five feet from the inner chamber you’re hollowing out,” Tomal replied.
Hastelloy noticed Tomal’s face suddenly contort to an expression of concern. “There’s a more immediate problem we need to deal with right now though. Pharaoh is well aware you and the other exiles took up settlement just across the river. He’s not about to let that stand. He probably planned to attack all along, but now it’s personal. You may as well be flashing him with your bare ass from the other side of the river. It’s a direct affront to his authority and he’s moving to correct it.”
“How long do we have until he attacks?” Hastelloy asked.
“Even as we speak, he’s building barges to move his army across the river. If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say you have two or three days.”
“Damn,” Hastelloy exclaimed. “The village isn’t a defendable position at all. Even with disruptor rifles I don’t think we can hold it against a direct assault of that magnitude. I’ll need to come up with something else.”
“Why,” Tomal asked with a flat tone bereft of any compassion. “Those exiles have already seen too much. They’ve seen the Lazarus; in fact, they helped disassemble it. They’ve seen our advanced weaponry in action as well as the Nexus. I’m sure all that was a memorable sight not soon forgotten by those people.”
While Tomal talked Hastelloy casually made his way to the hastily created back door.
“The exiles know too much,” Tomal continued. “Pharaoh’s attack will eliminate all of them and remove that liability. Hide Tonwen, Gallono, and Valnor down the shaft to make sure it’s not spotted and allow yourself to be killed in the fighting. The Nexus will regenerate you and all our current complications will be resolved. It’s perfect.”
Hastelloy crouched down and crawled his way to the outside. He turned around to refasten the tie strings and Tomal moved closer to assist from the inside. With the reassembling complete, the two looked at each other through the narrow gap.
“It does present an easy way out doesn’t it?” Hastelloy thoughtfully acknowledged, and then disappeared into the darkness behind him.
Chapter 58: Going According to Plan
Professor Russell turned his head as footsteps once again approached from behind. Deep down he knew it was Dr. Andre, but he couldn’t push aside the sliver of hope that it was outside help. Help that was coming to deliver him and his people from the madman he considered a friend just a few short hours ago.
“Do not get excited; it is just me again,” the stale voice of Dr. Andre chimed. The good doctor walked around to face the professor head on. “You looked like you were about to pull a muscle trying to look behind. If you would like to have a word with me just ask. I am happy to accommodate your comfort.”
“In that case, I’ll take a queen sized bed and a release from this paralysis beam,” Frank barked.
“Now there are limits to what I am willing to do,” Dr. Andre replied. “Walking around to the front of my friend so he does not have to careen his neck is easy enough to do. Lugging a mattress through the tunnel and hoisting it up and down the ladders on my own is a bit much.
“As for releasing you from captivity?” Dr, Andre continued. “I spent months luring the three of you here. Now that the trap is successfully sprung I cannot let you go before our objectives are met. That would make no sense.”
“What makes no sense is trapping us here,” Professor Russell protested. “We’re just searching for answers to age old questions. If you wanted to thwart our discovering the new chambers, why not simply deny our dig request? You’re the director of the Egyptian Organization of Antiquities. You had the authority to stop us before we even got started.”
“I do have that authority, but that is not the point,” Dr. Andre stated. “The chambers in the Great Pyramid and Sphinx have been hidden for ages. Keeping them concealed is not hard. The tough part is controlling the circumstances in which they are discovered and revealed to the world.”
“Why is now the time to come out of hiding? Why were we targeted for this?” Professor Russell pleaded. “We’re just an archeology professor, a research assistant, and a washed up pilot. How is incarcerating us going to play a role in revealing these discoveries according to your controlled timetable?”
Professor Russell paused for a few seconds to gather his composure. The stress and danger of the situation was getting the better of him. “You know what. I don’t even care about all that. I just want to know
how this situation ends for the three of us.”
“How do you eat an elephant?” Dr. Andre asked from out of nowhere.
Professor Russell cocked his head to the side and furrowed his brow. To say the question was unexpected was like calling the Grand Canyon a small hole in the ground. He recovered quickly from his surprise to deliver his response. “One bite at a time I suppose.”
“Exactly,” Dr. Andre said. “Now let me ask, how do you reveal the most shocking news the world will ever hear?”
“By extension of your previous analogy, one small news release at a time,” the professor slowly responded.
“You mean a little news tidbit like a three person team goes missing while working on a research project at the Great Pyramid?”
“Working the media is tricky business,” Professor Russell cautioned. “These days any piece of news or short video can go viral and reach the entire planet in no time.”
“Oh, we are not going for the mass media outlets here,” Dr. Andre replied. “Certain people know the three of you are here. We will start by getting their attention.”
“Who’s we?” Alex demanded.
“In due time my dear.”
“We have nothing but time in here. We’re already your captives and know your precious secret. What’s the harm?” Alex asked.
“You know what we want you to know, and . . . “
Dr. Andre’s reply was interrupted by the soft hum of machinery starting to move. Everyone in the chamber snapped their attention to the locked door, which was now in the process of opening.
A glowing halo appeared around the circular vault door as light from the other side shined through. The pace of the door opening was painfully slow. It was as if the mechanism knew it protected something of profound interest and was reluctant to let it go.
While the opening grew wider, the light differential dissipated to the point Professor Russell could see into the chamber and noticed the back wall was covered from floor to ceiling with sophisticated computer and display equipment. As the door widened further, a metallic cube with an orb emitting a soft blue glow came into view.
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