A minute later, Jackson ceased to move. He was dead.
The high priest switched off the scepter, then nodded to the two men with stun guns. Quickly, they dragged the body from the assembly of speechless people. He cleared his throat and spoke:
“The threat to our society is now been purged. My apologies for the ugliness.”
There was only silence as the assembly of men and women digested the scene they just witnessed.
As the high priest walked back to the altar, the strange silence was suddenly broken. From under his robe, his cell phone rang loudly. His facial expression quickly changed from embarrassment to anger as he fumbled for his phone. Looking down at the display, he immediately recognized the name: Helena Romanos. His expression changed to frustration as he pushed the answer button. Turning to the audience, he excused himself for a moment.
“Yes, what is it? I’m in the middle of a ceremony,” he said, his tone hushed and agitated.
“It’s been found,” Helena blurted loudly.
“What’s been found?” he asked, now growing angered at Helena’s cryptic words.
“The scepter… Zeus’ scepter,” she shouted into the phone.
“What do you mean, Zeus’ scepter?” he asked, his mind not yet willing to accept her words.
“Just what I said: those archeologists who found Poseidon, claim they just found Zeus too. They’ve found a new chamber and feel it’s got to be him, Zeus’ that is. They said that because they found Poseidon’s trident buried with him, they’re sure they’ll find Zeus’ scepter with him too,” Helena responded, stretching the truth to add credibility to her report.
“So they haven’t actually found it yet?” he replied, his tone now skeptical and irritated.
“Karl, they’re one hundred percent confident of their find… and it all makes perfect sense. They found two golden statues inside the Atlantis pyramid indicating who the monument was built for: Poseidon and Zeus. They found one burial chamber with Poseidon inside. They just found another chamber. Who else could it be? It’s got to be Zeus. And if they found Poseidon’s trident, doesn’t it make perfect sense they’ll find Zeus’ scepter? And before you call me stupid again and tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about, this information isn’t coming from me. I didn’t make any of this up. This comes directly from the mouths of the archeologist.”
“First of all, you are freakin stupid. What have I told you about using my name over the phone? If anyone’s listening, our world could be exposed. I should have you severely punished for such stupidity.”
“Sorry sir, I guess I forgot with all this excitement going on. I won’t do it again… promise.” Reeling from the threat, she paused to collect herself, then continued. “Sir, what do you think? Isn’t this great news?”
His excitement of the news quickly diffused Helena’s infraction. A smile curled around his face at the thought of finally holding the prized scepter. His mind raced with visions of him ruling the world with the great weapon. His heart pounded and his hands now trembled as he re-grasped his phone.
“Sir, are you there?” Helena asked.
Her words snapped him from his dreams, causing him to refocus.
“Yeah, I’m here.”
“So what do you think, Sir? Did I come through or what?” Helena gloated, hoping to invoke some form of praise from the high priest.
“Yeah, I guess,” he offered reluctantly.
Helena felt wounded, but held back her emotions. The success of her future depended on her next words.
“Sir, I’m heading to Kythera now and should be there first thing in the morning. I think I could be of great value to you there. With my degree in archeology, I should be able to understand the details of the excavation better than most. I could keep you up to date on their progress, like what I did when they first discovered Poseidon.”
He thought about her words. She had proven herself useful with Poseidon’s discovery.
“Ok, get there ASAP. I’ll call you first thing in the morning after I’ve made a few calls. Don’t screw this up,” he said bluntly, then hung up the phone.
With his back to the audience, he noticed an eerie silence inside the cabin. He turned around to a sea of intrigued stares. He smiled, then moved to the golden scepter. Picking it up purposefully and holding it for all to see, he spoke:
“My friends, we all know our history. Throughout the ages, we have suffered at the hands of our enemies. We were nearly extinguished by the Romans and forced to renounce our lineage. Their treachery could not break our spirit. Their evil merely forced us to carry on in secret. For nearly a thousand years, we guarded our sacred history. Then, the Knights Templars tried to bring ruin to our secret society, but their evil too, was thwarted. Their fall became our revenge. Now, a thousand years later, we are at the steps of greatness and the world will soon know their place… at our feet.”
He paused for effect, then continued:
“Today is truly a great day for the Society of Arae. For nearly seven thousand years, the mystery behind Zeus’ lost scepter has gone unresolved. All leads, all searches have been in vain… until now. News agencies from Greece are reporting the discovery of Zeus’ burial chamber. Furthermore, experts are predicting they’ll find the great scepter buried with him. My friends, our wait is finally over.”
----- ----- ----- -----
The following morning…
In a small outdoor café, overlooking the shore of Palaiopoli, now renamed Atlantis, Helena sipped her coffee. Glancing back at the great white limestone pyramid, she felt a wonderful sense of anticipation as she plotted her next moves. Turning back toward the water, she stared out at the low waves lapping at the shoreline and allowed her mind to move from tangent to tangent. At that earlier hour, 6:15am, she was the café’s first customer. All was peaceful and quiet.
Taking a sip off her coffee, her peaceful respite was interrupted by the sound of her vibrating phone. She stared at it momentarily with nervous anticipation as it moved across the table top with each cycle of vibration. Picking it up, she stared at the number. Feelings of animosity as well as excitement, conflicted her thoughts.
She reached for the phone and pressed a button.
“Good morning Sir, so glad you called. I’ve got some great ideas I wanted to share with you.” she answered in businesslike tone.
“I’ve already made arrangements. This is what we’re going to do,” he started, rudely ignoring her comments.
“But Sir, I think I have some great ideas that could help out,” Helena persisted.
“Never mind that. At 8am your time, you’ll meet with one of my assistants at the Papyrus Café on the northern side of Atlantis. He’ll have all your paperwork ready and will explain the details of our plan. I’ll be checking on you periodically and will be expecting results,” he stated bluntly.
A moment later, Helena heard the sound of a disconnected line, then a dial tone. She stared at her phone in disbelief.
“What a complete ass,” she blurted in anger. “Who hangs up a phone like that? I’m so sick of his crap.”
She took a deep breath and tried to exhale her frustration. While she calmly finished her coffee, she could only speculate on the high priest’s plans.
----- ----- ----- -----
Atlantis, Greece
The Papyrus Café
Helena sat outside the café in a private table she selected, away from other patrons. As she sipped her coffee, she noted the time: 8:10am.
“Hmm, late,” she muttered to herself, disapprovingly.
Moments later, a casually dressed man with gray curly hair in his early sixties, entered the small patio of tables and headed for Helena. She stiffened slightly at the sight of the man, and smiled. Without a return smile from the approaching stranger, she adopted a businesslike posture and stood up to greet him. She extended her hand:
“I’m Helena Romanos,” she said, her voice devoid of emotion.
“I’m Christian Laikos,” he respo
nded. He motioned with his hand, “Please, have a seat.”
Helena stared at him a moment. She had a sense of familiarity about him.
“Do I know you?” she asked.
“Our community is small. I’m sure we’ve crossed paths before.”
Helena only nodded.
“Karl Sita called me last night. We’ve worked out a plan. I’m sure I don’t need to remind you of its importance,” he said, cryptically.
Helena nodded once more.
“For you the plan is very simple: you’ll be tasked to monitor the progress of Zeus’ excavation,” he stated flatly.
“That’s what I’ve been doing already,” she responded eagerly. “I plan on disguising myself as a tourist. That should get me close enough to the action where I can start asking questions. I’m sure I’ll be able to keep Karl up to date with the most recent info, way faster than if we’re just depending on the news to report it.”
Christian smirked in condescension.
“You’re response is spectacularly naïve. I’m guessing you really don’t know what Arae is capable of, do you? Suffice it to say, you’re about to get... as the saying goes, a crash course.”
He scanned the area around him, insuring no one was close by, then slipped a manila envelope across the table.
“Inside this is your new identity, as well as other related documents: passport, driver’s license, some cash, etcetera. We’ll be employing your archeology degree, as well as your other “assets”.”
“What do you mean, “other assets”? What do you want me to do?” she asked suspiciously.
“I won’t comment on the plan outside of your role, but in a nut shell: you’ll be adopting a new identity. You’re new name will be Helena Galanos. We kept it close to your original name so you wouldn’t get confused,” he said, in insulting tone. “You’ll be employed by the Department of Tourism as an inspector of antiquities. Starting tomorrow, you’ll be hand delivering temporary permits to Javier Arista with the threat of pulling them at any time. This will keep them “motivated”, if you understand my meaning.”
Helena ignored the earlier insult and smirked in understanding.
“We’ve just learned that Mr. Arista has brought back a close friend: one Jack Roberts. Jack was instrumental in helping Mr. Arista locate the great pyramid and Poseidon’s tomb. They were inseparable at the time of their search. We suspect they’ll have the same relationship this time as well. This is where we’ll employ your “other assets”. We expect you to seduce Jack. With you holding both, the temporary permits and his emotions, we’re quite certain he’ll be free with information, allowing us to walk in and take the scepter.”
Helena was stunned. She hadn’t expected the twist in the plan.
“So you want me to be a whore?” she blurted angrily.
Christian quickly scanned the area, insuring Helena’s outburst hadn’t drawn attention. Satisfied no one heard, he gave her a one word answer:
“Yes.”
Helena felt outraged. Although she really didn’t have a problem with the society’s request, it was their insulting image of her that pained her the most. There was no question now of their opinion of her. With Christian watching her, she forced an unaffected expression across her face and stared back.
“No problem,” she said simply.
Christian nodded.
“Good. Get to work, then. Tomorrow night we’ll be expecting our first update. Call me at this number.”
He slid his business card across the table. She picked it up and read it. Suddenly, a look of understanding crossed her face.
“Christian Laikos, Director, Department of Tourism,” she said aloud. “Now I know why you seem so familiar. I’ve seen you on TV. You’re the big man at the D.O.T., aren’t you? How convenient.”
He stared back coldly and responded:
“Nothing we do at the Society is by chance or coincidence. Everything is by design. That’s what makes us superior.”
Helena only nodded. She glanced over her shoulder at the great pyramid, far west of her position. She felt eager to get started.
“You know, I was thinking. Why don’t I just start today? I’m here. Why wait?”
“Let’s just say, your position is currently filled.” His eyes suddenly turned cold and he continued, “but tomorrow, it’ll be open.”
Helena swallowed hard at the reality of the statement
Chapter: 4
Helena looked at herself in the full length mirror and nodded approvingly. Although her form-fitting khaki pants and polo shirt accentuated her shapely five foot six figure, the style of clothing produced the right amount of professionalism. Grabbing a hair-tie from the dresser, she pulled her wavy black hair into a tight pony tail and secured it with the colored elastic.
She checked her watch: 9:15am.
“Ok, they should be settled in for the day’s routine by now. Time to pay ole Jack a visit,” she said confidently.
Inside her rented cottage, she stared at the photos of both Javi and Jack one last time, insuring she was familiar with their faces and backgrounds.
“Ok Jack, let’s just see if we can’t fix that broken heart of yours, eh?” she joked aloud, then added, “This should be easy.”
She checked her look one more time in the mirror, then headed out to her car.
Thirty minutes later, she pulled into the great pyramid’s utility parking area. With three utility trailers to choose from, she picked the middle trailer and parked. In the passenger seat next to her, she grabbed her backpack filled with necessary paperwork and equipment, her fake I.D. and her cell phone and stepped from the car. She spotted a man leaving the trailer in front of her.
“Excuse me. I’m looking for Javier Arista and Jack Roberts. Do you know where I can find them?” she asked in a very businesslike tone.
Dunixi Kanelos stopped and stared for a moment, caught off guard by the woman’s beauty. He realized his behavior and quickly acted nonchalant.
“They’re both around here somewhere. Follow me. I’ll help you find them,” he said now going out of his way to help her.
“I’m Dunixi Kanelos, by the way,” he said stopping and extending his hand.
Helena shook it firmly and responded, “Helena Galanos.”
Duni spotted her badge.
“The D.O.T, huh? You’re not shutting us down are you?” he asked in flirtatious tone.
“I have to follow certain protocols. If I find activities or procedures out of place, I’ll be left with no choice but to shut things down,” she replied bluntly.
A nervous expression crossed his face. Any idea he had about casual friendliness quickly vanished upon realizing Helena was all business.
“I think Javi and Jack are in the far trailer,” he said, now also adopting a businesslike personality.
They both walked silently across the parking lot. Reaching the trailer, he opened the door and went inside with Helena following close behind.
“Ah Dunixi, just in time. I was just reviewing…” Javi stopped himself in midsentence at the sight of the stranger standing behind Duni.
“And who might this be?” he said, smiling as he walked to greet her.
Moving passed Dunixi, she extended her hand and introduced herself.
“I’m Helena Galanosa, Inspector for the Department of Tourism. I’m here to discuss your applications for future excavations.”
“The D.O.T? My God that was fast. I only made that broadcast a couple of days ago. To be honest, I didn’t think I was going to hear from you guys for months. I’m really impressed,” Javi responded while shaking her hand. He stopped shaking it for a moment and added, “You are here because of my broadcast, aren’t you?”
Helena smiled.
“Yes, Mr. Arista, your request for help was indeed effective… but only to a certain degree,” she said, cryptically.
Hearing voices, Jack stood up from a small cubicle at the far end of the trailer. He spotted Helena and immediately made his w
ay toward her.
Helena watched as Jack approached. He looked taller and brawnier than the photos revealed. In her mind, she found him somewhat attractive.
“Hi, I’m Jack Roberts. Did I hear something about the D.O.T?” he asked, with a cordial smile.
“Hi Jack, I’m Helena Galanos… and yes, you did hear something about the D.O.T. I’m an inspector for them,” she replied, now producing a wide smile.
Jack noticed her perfect white teeth and the softness of her hand as they shook and he was suddenly reminded of Selena Arista. He felt a bit guilty that he found her attractive.
“So Helena, what exactly did you mean when you said my news spot was only effective to a certain degree?”
She let go of Jack’s hand and answered the question: “Well, Mr. Arista, as you probably know, there’s only so many permits we’re allowed to give out. Unfortunately, there aren’t any more permits we can approve for this year.”
Javi’s face sank with disappointment.
“Bummer, I guess I thought you were here to give us approval,” Jack said, saying the words that Javi was thinking.
“Fortunately, we’ve developed a workaround. As long as everything checks out and all the protocols are met, I’m authorized to approve temporary permits.”
“Temporary… what exactly is temporary?” Jack asked suspiciously.
“Basically, I can write you temporary permits lasting for three months at a time. Upon their expiration, you can apply for new permits and as long as you convince me that good progress is being made; that future work will maintain proper excavation protocols and that everything is fully documented; I will consider approving the new temporary permits.”
“You’ll consider?” Javi responded in surprise. “That’s kind of disappointing. I was hoping for something more certain, more defined than vague and improbable.”
Tomb of Zeus (Atlantis) Page 6