The leading dragon lunged, spat its horrid saliva onto my jeans. I jumped to one side and then bolted. Not knowing where I was headed, only that it was as far from my friends as possible, I covered the ground ahead with a desperate sprint. After a hundred yards or so, I slowed to steal a glance at the river. Both vessels were at full speed and out of harm's way, but, every single lizard now tracked me across the plain. There must have been fifty of them. They were fast enough to keep pace with my quickest sprint.
I dared not look round, for I could hear the chaotic thumps and hisses a few yards behind. A landslide rollicked about my heels. Whenever I put on an extra spurt of speed, the noise seemed to increase. I reached the crest of an incline, where my chest and shoulders felt as one solid mass of iron.
Starting downhill, I dove to stay ahead, but landed awkwardly. My shoulder and elbow scraped across stone; the pain struck, flared like a match-head as I rolled. Dazed, facing ravening lizards on all sides, I stumbled to my feet, as black shadow tore in front of me. It rose up like a cavern of the night.
A mighty bear! With a roar, it swung its claw at the neck of a lunging lizard. Blood sprayed everywhere as the lizard's head dropped to the ground. A chorus of roars rose all about me. Immediately, a multitude of bears raced to form a barrier between the lizards and me.
The first bear reared up once more. It toppled backward with another scaly foe in its clutches. After struggling upright, the bear unleashed a devastating swipe to the lizard's underbelly. It then turned to face me.
"Darkly!"
The barrage of growls sparked a tremendous battle. Each lizard hurled itself at the bears, open-mouthed, aiming for a decisive bite. The bears fended them off with claws and arms and sheer, brute power. Darkly tore himself free. With a twitch of his snout, he turned from the chaos and ran to my side.
He prodded me on toward the river. Roars and hisses faded behind. Though exhausted, I ran and ran until we reached water. The bed was steep, the channel more than thirty feet wide. No choice but to swim. But it was cold. I gasped as I waded in, and again as I submerged. Darkly slipped in behind me. His powerful stroke overtook mine in no time. He nestled up against me, so I climbed onto his back. The roars and hisses resumed from the riverbank. I spun to see seven or eight more bears lumbering toward the water's edge. A score of lizards were in hot pursuit.
Was I still the quarry?
Darkly quickened his stroke. The other bears gathered at the bank and turned to face the last of their enemies. As the lizards darted for the water--their element--the bears rose on hind legs to bar them. The ferocious struggle spilled three bears into the water. A huge lizard killed one bear in its jaws. Two more reptiles broke free and slithered into the river. With a last ditch lunge, another bear sunk its claws into the hide of a submerged lizard, and dragged it back ashore. One by one, a dozen more lizards fell under the bears' scything blows. The attackers finally gave in and slunk away over the grassland. After watching their enemies flee, the six victorious bears dipped into the water and followed us downstream.
I sighed and said, "God, please let that be--"
Darkly tipped me from his back and let out a deafening roar. Wash covered me completely. I rose to see the great bear clamp his fangs around the neck of a surfacing lizard. Spume and blood peppered the Kuti. Darkly gave no quarter. In moments, the writhing lizard ceased its struggle, while the bear continued to shake the carcass like a deflated inner-tube. I realized that was the last of them, the sly dragon that had sneaked underwater from the carnage ashore.
The other bears caught up. I climbed on Darkly's back once more and clung even tighter. Though shivering with the cold, I was reluctant to move. For I was on the shoulders of the mightiest animal of Apterona. And there I stayed, all the way down Kuti River, to the shadow of the great ziggurat.
Chapter 19
A crescent moon lent barely enough light for me to see the river banks as Darkly and I reached the Palace. The sharp sterns of two longboats jutted out across the water. They had been dragged halfway ashore and left carelessly. This at least suggested my friends were safe, and for that I gave a long, contented sigh.
By the time I slid from Darkly's back and squirmed ashore, he had carried me many miles down the Kuti. What instinct compelled the bear to entwine my survival with his own? What extraordinary lengths this animal had reached to protect a creature with whom it could not even converse? Or was the communication by entirely different means, of which we humans are scarcely aware?
Clearly the bond was utmost in the mind of the bear. He had, after all, whisked me to safety when his comrades were greatly outnumbered. It became apparent to me that our first encounter in the forest was more than mere chance. Had he ventured westward to meet me then? Was his intervention this time born from a similar compulsion--a shared sense of danger? Either way, no man ever had a more loyal friend.
It filled me with pride to see Darkly follow me ashore, his six companions in tow. Though he was the largest, the other bears were not much smaller. Just one of them, alone, was sufficient to make me feel safe; having seven bodyguards rendered me something of a celebrity. It occurred to me that being without a title had actually increased my popularity through time. Between the friends awaiting me at the Palace and my quadruped protectors here, I had never been a richer man.
"OK, chaps, stay close. We've got to convince a Kamachej to leave."
At the foot of the ziggurat, a slight breeze made orange torch light dance across the steps. Two palace guards leapt to block my way as we approached. I told them who I was and insisted they alert Puma Pawq'ar to my presence.
"What of the beasts that follow you?" one of them asked. "What business have they here?"
"Their business is my life, and contrary to yours, if you do not do what I say. So be quick about it," I snapped.
As my voice rose, so did Darkly. His eight foot height did the trick. The impertinent guard flew up the steps three at a time. I knew it would be folly to take the bears inside the ziggurat so I waited, still dripping, until my friends appeared.
But they never did. I shivered for an age before I lost my patience. The solitary guard also trembled, but not from the cold; the seven black behemoths proved too much for his resolve, and rather than accost as we started up the stairs, he wisely made way for the convoy.
A voice stopped me at the golden arch.
"Welcome back, Lord Basingstoke. My son told me you were blessed with survival, but even he gave you up for dead tonight. I am very pleased to see you alive."
It was Vichama Supay. The Kamachej himself had come to greet me. His kind words were wonderful to hear, but there was still no sign of my friends.
"Thank you, your Majesty. I would not have escaped but for these magnificent animals you see here. At their head is the bear to whom I owe my life many times over. Without doubt, he is the greatest warrior in the land."
"Indeed he is! Come inside, my friends. All of you, come. The great bears from the east have proven themselves our allies. Come, I will show you to a place where you can all find warmth."
Surprised by his generosity, I followed him along the corridor which led to the garden of red leaves and blue flowers. A nagging déjà vu accompanied me. Every now and then, an angular engraving on the wall aroused my curiosity. According to the time-traveler, this ziggurat was inspired by visitors from another world. I tried to imagine where their influence ended and man's began. The bears seemed oblivious to their amazing surroundings. To them, it was probably no more than a strange network of caves. While I marveled at the magnificence, Darkly kept his eyes trained on me--a telling reminder of nature's contempt for man's hubris.
There was still no sign of my friends. I thought it prudent to ask, "Your Majesty, where are the others?"
"They will be with you presently. They have much to do."
"Then has Her Majesty explained the situation to you?"
"Yes, my friend. Do not worry. I have taken care of everything."
I
wasn't quite sure what he meant by that, but it sounded reassuring. According to the old time-traveler, Vichama Supay had visited the precognitive plants before us. He therefore knew a disaster was imminent. Whether fire or water would destroy his kingdom it mattered not, for if he wanted to live, he had no choice but to sail with the fleet.
He led us past the stone seat where I had first met Chasca Quilla, on through the doorway opposite, and up three flights of steps to a square room with only one exit. The bears filed inside without a sound. A medium-sized fire raged in the centre, inside an elaborately perforated stone cube. As the rest of the room was dark, the flames' glow projected those shapes carved in the cube as dancing silhouettes upon the walls. One depicted a bear on his hind legs; one simply showed the face of the sun; another drew that ubiquitous line of right angles, which had no practical usage, yet seemed to be an intrinsic part of this adventure. It was no less than the fifth time I had come across it.
"My palace is yours," insisted the Kamachej. "I have many preparations to make before we leave but shall return shortly with the others. In the meantime, make use of the blankets piled in the far corner, and stay warm."
"Thank you kindly, your Majesty."
He left with his two torchbearers. As he turned, I glimpsed his peculiar face. It was far less humorous than I recalled, and this time appeared harsh, resolute in the quivering glow. Contrary to all I had been led to believe of his ancestry, Vichama Supay struck me as a noble man who took his responsibilities seriously. There appeared no malice in him at all. For that I felt a modicum of hope, for the people of Apterona would need a truly extraordinary leader in the upcoming days.
The huge wooden door closed behind him. As I dragged seven cotton blankets around the fire, a metallic click intrigued me toward the door. I found it was locked.
That's odd. I hope they don't take too long.
The bears were already at rest on the blankets. I stripped down to my underwear and wrapped myself tight in an extra sheet, huddling next to Darkly as he lay flat on his stomach. Despite the rather strong smell of wet bear, I was soon comfortable.
"Bet you never expected to get a room here, did you, boy?"
The bear twitched his snout and pricked his ears. He didn't take his eyes off the door for an instant.
An intense scratching wrenched me awake. How long had I been out?
I had no way of telling. Many hours had passed, as the fire was barely aglow, but it felt like only seconds since Vichama Supay had left. Relativity! The old man's right--the subconscious is a good analogy for time travel.
Darkly feverishly scratched at the door. He appeared to be testing for frailties around its edges. No dice. It'd take a battering ram. I couldn't blame the fellow for trying, though.
I wondered what could be keeping my friends so long. The Kamachej had sounded so thorough. Surely he hadn't forgotten about me. And were the others not anxious to see me alive after such an ordeal? As I sat there rocking under the warm blanket, calm while the bears grew more impatient, I felt sure the door would be unbarred, flung wide at any moment.
Minutes passed. Orange embers peering through holes in the fire trough provided the only light in the room. I decided to get dressed. Sodden when I had removed them, my jeans and t-shirt were now only slightly damp, another clue I had been asleep for some time. I wore the blanket as a cape.
As the bears began to growl, I started to worry. With time being such a crucial factor in the exodus, I felt sure there could be only one explanation for me being left in here so long. The Kamachej did not want me to escape.
The idea turned me inside out. Not only was I trapped in a stone cell, probably never again to see daylight, the others would never know of my return. Worse still, perhaps they were imprisoned as well. The rumors I had heard about the Kamachej of old going to any lengths to ensure no one ever left Apterona--those warnings I was quick to dismiss after a few kind words from him--suddenly stung my pride. Vichama Supay had duped me with the greatest of ease. More than that, he was prepared to see his whole civilization wiped out to uphold an ancient edict. What utter madness!
Pacing from wall to wall, I summoned every synapse in my brain to figure an escape. When that failed, I pounded on the door alongside the bears. No reply. Claustrophobia tightened around me, squeezed. To avert panic, I took a slow, giant breath and settled.
That's it, then.
A moment later, I insisted aloud, "No--that is it!"
It might otherwise not have occurred to me. After a fire burning for hours, where was all the smoke? The room was clear. There had to be some sort of chimney or ventilation duct above the fire! I surveyed the ceiling. There didn't appear to be a hole, so I folded four or five blankets into thick wedges, positioned them on the rim of the fire and climbed up to inspect.
I was right. Lines of grid-like slits cut diagonally into the metal tile above, allowing the smoke to escape into the higher chamber. There must have also been an ingenious manipulation of the air flow through these rooms, as I felt a slight updraft through the grid, sufficient to channel all fumes from the room.
The tile hardly budged as I lifted. I tried again, this time maintaining the pressure. The thing finally lifted free and slid to one side. As Darkly came across to sniff my boots, I said, "Sit tight, boy. It's time for me to save your hide,"
Hoisting myself up, I suddenly realized how difficult it was going to be. Not a torch on the wall nor a fingertip of moonlight illumed the higher level. The room was utterly black, a mystery!
All right, what now, Basingstoke?
The solution came swiftly. After all, I had but one useful sense at my disposal. Touch. I inched across the stone floor on my hands and knees, icily alert, until I reached a wall. Tracing this, I figured the room's dimensions were similar to those of my cell. I felt my way to where the door ought to be, and was relieved to find an open space in the wall.
So far so good.
Following the room's perimeter from outside, ever to the left, I hoped I might come across a flight of stairs. Now very cold indeed, I threw the blanket over my head for a hood, gripping it tightly about my chest. My free hand trembled across the freezing wall. A stale odor filled the air.
A first step...down.
I exhaled, shuddered. Where would this lead? After negotiating two short flights and cornering once, I glimpsed a faint amber glow far down the corridor. It seemed ethereal, a mirage, and I remained cautious.
The passage forked at the end of the corridor. A solitary, slow-burning torch lit this junction from the left hand wall. I lifted it free, thanking Providence once again for its intervention. But why had a light been left there, when the rest of the level was in total darkness?
One branch turned right once before meeting an impressive staircase interspersed with many platforms. The gradient was not steep, the flight a uniform ten feet across. After each dozen or so steps, a flat stone area staggered the decline, each decorated by two exquisitely carved statues. I paused at each and every platform. To my astonishment, the figures portrayed a sequence. They tell a tale.
Another torch glowed further down. My own burned a pungent sulfurous oil. While perfect for long-lasting combustion, its smell lingered a great deal longer, much to my regret. I was transfixed, though, by the story told down either side of the staircase.
Allow me to summarize.
The tale concerned the coming together of man and bear, after the arrival of the extra-terrestrials, from bitter enemies to great companions in an unprecedented cooperation between the two species. Even a hunting partnership developed between men and bears. It could be called a domestication of the bears, but perhaps equally so the domestication of man.
The final two portrayals were identical to the great statue watching over the market ellipse of Yaku. It showed a man and a bear side by side, the latter alert, his snout raised to sense the many dangers facing them.
So, the extra-terrestrials had ushered in an era of civility, of hope, of possibilities. The two
dominant species of that time together as great companions? Only creatures of noble bearing could have conceived it. This bond between man and bear was clearly as old as civilization itself, but had since been strained, even broken by religious dogma. Nonetheless, Darkly protected me as he would one of his own. This, I felt, was nothing less than an ancient loyalty re-forged. By some inexplicable vestige of that instinct the bear and I had become close friends. Such was the strength of the kinship between our two species long ago.
Briefly level, the passage rose again at the bottom of the steps. The amber glow I had glimpsed on the way down belonged to two more torches on the way up. This place has been visited recently. The corridor widened. My heart raced. At the end, shrouded in shadow, a raised platform barred the way.
I had an inkling of what to expect. My torch illuminated patterns on the walls and floor remarkably similar to those in the visitors' crashed vessel. While initially a riot of swirls, the shapes soon adopted angular designs. The decor just before the dead end could easily have been Incan or Aztec.
My eyes widened as I crept. I felt as one trespassing on the most sacred of ground. The gods of Atlantis? Two gigantic skeletons, sixteen feet long, with twelve arms laid across their slender chests, rested at peace just a few inches away. They were identical to the one entombed in their craft. The sight was at once surreal, inspiring and sickening. What had happened to these extraordinary ambassadors? Where had they come from, and why were they kept here in secret, deep in the innards of the ziggurat?
Inspecting the skulls more closely, I noticed something very suspicious. A similar, jagged depression on the side of each head, as if something hard and blunt had hit them. A solution sprang to mind which, to my surprise, seemed to fit the history of Apterona as told by the old time-traveler.
The creatures were murdered!
This would account for their sudden disappearance long ago. More troubling was that the original Kamachej had sought to hide their bodies. This pointed not only to his complicity in the murders, but to the heritage of his crime having been passed down to his successors, including Vichama Supay, as part of a distorted, dangerous ideology. That he had visited this tomb recently suggested that whatever he now had in mind was linked to this travesty of power passed on by his forebears.
The Basingstoke Chronicles Page 15