The Six Sacred Stones jw-2

by Matthew Reilly

  “So,” Jack said, coming over to Wizard’s desk, “when exactly do we need to have the Pillar in place?”

  Wizard tapped some astronomical charts with his pen. “Again, everything depends on Jupiter. According to these charts, the Titanic Rising will occur at 6:12 A.M. local time, just around dawn.

  “It’ll be difficult to see Jupiter due to the light of the rising Sun—so we’ll have to use an infrared telescope. The duration of the Rising will also be shorter than the one Zoe saw at Stonehenge because we’re on a different latitude—at the high latitude of Stonehenge, the Firestone received a flat, almost tangential blow from the Dark Sun. But at Abu Simbel we’ll be a lot closer to the Equator and thus more perpendicular to the Dark Sun, so we’ll receive a more direct hit from it. Which means it’ll be shorter, lasting about a minute.”

  Jack nodded. “Six twelve it is then.”

  Wizard asked, “How are you going with the location of the temple-shrine?”

  “I think we have a candidate.”

  Jack turned a book around for Wizard and the others to see. It showed the two massive temples dedicated to Rameses II and his wife Nefertari at Abu Simbel.

  The larger temple featured four sixty-foot-high figures of Rameses, all seated on thrones, while the façade of the second temple—one hundred yards from the first—featured six thirty-foot-high figures: four of Rameses and two of his favorite wife, Nefertari. Both sets of statues gazed out over Lake Nasser at a curious collection of pyramid-shaped islands that jutted above the flat surface of the lake.

  “What we have to remember about Abu Simbel,” Jack said, “is that it does not stand where it originally stood. When the Soviets built the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s, they knew that the lake it created would cover the statues. So UNESCO had the statues of Abu Simbel moved to higher ground, block by block, piece by piece. They erected the statues on higher ground, in almost exactly the same alignment as they originally stood.”

  “Almostexactly the same alignment?” Astro said, alarmed. “You mean the statues aren’t correctly aligned anymore? If they’re not—”

  “They’re a couple of degrees out,” Jack said calmly. “But the discrepancy is known, so we can account for it. You can see the difference in this picture: the original and present-day positions of the statues.”

  “They don’t look so big,” Astro said.

  “Trust me. They’re big.”

  The plane flew south.

  At one point on its journey, Iolanthe disappeared into the aft crew quarters to get changed into something more rugged.

  As soon as she was gone, Vulture spun to face West. “Huntsman. A moment with you. Can the British Royal be trusted?”

  Jack turned, gazing at the rear section of the plane.

  “Not at all,” he said. “She’s here to represent her family, her Royal House, just as you are here representing yours, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia—so I guess I trust her about as much as I trust you. Right now, we’re useful to her and she’s useful to us. But the moment we cease to be useful, she’ll cut us loose.”

  “Or cut our throats,” Zoe said.

  The American Marine, Astro, frowned, confused. “I’m sorry, but what are you talking about? Great Houses? Royal Houses?”

  Stretch said, “When we ventured out to locate the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, we did so in competition with the United States on the one hand and Old Europe on the other—France, Germany, Italy, Austria. The Catholic Church, knowledgeable in ancient matters, also formed part of this Old Europe coalition.”

  “Think of it as Old Money versus New Money,” Jack said. “America is New Money, recently attained and acquired. Europe is Old Money, wealth that is acquired through heredity, land ownership, family name. Remember Jane Austen: a gentleman does not work, he receives income from his lands.”

  Astro reddened. “I didn’t read Jane Austen in high school…”

  Stretch said, “While we like to think of Europe today as a patchwork of modern democracies run by and for the people, this is an illusion. Almost 55 percent of mainland Europe is owned by three families: the Saxe-Coburgs of the United Kingdom—which, through war and marriage, acquired the lands of the old Habsburg family of Austria-Germany—the Romanovs of Russia, and the Oldenburgs of Denmark, the canniest and most cunning royal line in history. Through multiple royal marriages, Danish blood runs thick through nearly all the Houses of Europe, and thus the Danish Royal Family controls a quarter of continental Europe all by itself.”

  “The Romanovs of Russia?” Astro said. “I thought the Russian royal family was executed out of existence in 1918 by the Soviets.”

  “Not at all,” Stretch said. “Two of the royal children survived, Alexei and one of the girls. And royals do not like to see other royals deposed—they look after their own. The surviving Romanov children of Tsar Nicholas II were sheltered by the Danish Royal Family in Copenhagen and ultimately married off to well-bred families. While they might not use formal royal titles like Tsar anymore, the Romanov line certainly still exists, just out of popular sight.”

  Stretch then turned an eye to Vulture, who was sitting a little too silently in the corner. “There is, of course, one other rather old Royal House that holds much sway in the world today: the House of Saud in Arabia. But it is not held in high esteem by the Great Houses of Europe—since its rise from obscurity in the 1700s, it has always been seen by the European Houses as a quaint band of tribesmen merely affecting royal traits. Even the discovery of oil in Arabia during the twentieth century, by which the Saudis gained enormous wealth and power, did not gain for them the respect they so desired.”

  “Old Money only respects Old Money,” Jack said.

  Vulture said nothing, but the look in his eyes suggested that he agreed.

  “So, these Royal Houses, what’s their link to the Machine?” Astro asked.

  “Think of royalty throughout history,” Wizard said, “going all the way back to primitive tribes. What made one tribal family worthy of greater respect than all the other families of the tribe?”

  “Strength. Their ability to fight on behalf of the tribe.”

  “Sometimes, yes,” Jack said. “But not always.”

  Astro shrugged. “What else is there then?”

  Wizard said, “More often it was the family that held some kind of sacred talisman that was regarded as the head family of the tribe. It might be a mace, or a crown, or a holy stone. The ability to fight was often collateral to the ability to maintain possession of a sacred object.”

  Jack said, “Macbeth slays Duncan and takes his mace, thus Macbeth, as holder of the mace, becomes king.”

  Wizard said, “And the Three Great Houses of Europe have always held something that has made them greater than other noble households…”

  “Pillars,” Astro said, getting it.

  “Exactly,” Wizard said, “and the knowledge that goes with them: hereditary knowledge, passed down from generation to generation, about the use and purpose of those Pillars.”

  Jack added, “And the fact that our Princess Iolanthe is the current Keeper of the Royal Personal Records means that she is a key holder of that knowledge.”

  Astro said, “So if there are only three European Houses, does that mean they only have three Pillars?”

  “I believe so,” Wizard said. “But—”

  “—but that doesn’t mean we don’t know where the other three are,” Iolanthe said from the doorway at the rear of the main cabin.

  Everyone spun.

  Iolanthe was the picture of calm and not, it seemed, the least bit offended that they had been talking about her behind her back.

  Now dressed in a cream jacket, Oakley boots, and slim cargo pants, she strolled back into the cabin and slid onto a spare couch.

  “If I may contribute to the discussion,” she said. “Throughout history commoners have actively sought someone to look up to. Someone of higher birth, of noble blood, of superior sensibility. Royalty. Those who would will
ingly undertake an obligation to keep safe both the people and certain important objects. And because royalty are known to subscribe to a higher standard of honor, they are trusted to do so.

  “The common folk, on the other hand—knowing in their hearts that they themselves are too fickle, too greedy, to stay true to any such notion of honor—seek a family of renown who will. Thus the strong rule and the weak get ruled over, by their own choice. It is the natural order of things. It has been so since humans began to walk upright.”

  Lily gazed at Iolanthe closely.

  The strong rule, and the weak get ruled over.She had heard those words before: uttered by a deranged Vatican priest named Francisco del Piero, the man who had raised her twin brother, Alexander, to be a despotic and cruel ruler.

  Wizard had heard those same words, and he too gazed at Iolanthe with watchful eyes.

  Astro said, “If people love royalty so much, why is democracy so embraced then? Look at America.”

  Iolanthe snuffed a laugh. “Look at America? Why, Captain, for the last two hundred years, your country has been steadily and unequivocally marching toward monarchy.

  “The problem is, your rulers have no talisman, no treasure, to hold on behalf of the people. So you get bold usurpers seeking to create a kingdom: Kennedy’s father, Joseph, wanted to establish a line of Kennedy presidents: John then Robert then Edward. In recent years, the Bush family—aided by its friends in the House of Saud—has succeeded in creating a lineage, and indeed plans to install a third Bush on the throne. But it has no talisman, and thus no kingdom. Although perhaps when this adventure is over, it will, and thus it will take a seat at the table with the Great Houses of Europe.”

  Jack said, “So right now in this race we have: us, the good guys, aided by the New Money wannabes from Saudi Arabia and America; you, the royal dynasties of Europe; and China, aided by who-knows-who. So where do, say, the United Arab Emirates fit into this world view?”

  “Newer Money, that’s all,” Iolanthe said. “A puny desert tribe that only recently found itself sitting on massive oil reserves.” She shrugged apologetically at Pooh Bear and Scimitar. “No offense.”

  Pooh Bear growled, “Ma’am, in the words of my young friend, Lily, get bent.”

  Scimitar just bowed. “We take no offense at all, madam.”

  Jack said, “So what about other countries? Like Australia, for instance.”

  “Still a colony of Britain,” Iolanthe said dismissively.

  “China?”

  “A nation of corrupt officials and a billion ignorant rural peasants. Fat, slow, and bloated. By the time it advances to the level of the West, we will have reached Mars.”

  “Africa?”

  “The slavelands of the world. Useless now, as it has already been thoroughly plundered. Nowadays African nations are like whores, willing to sell themselves and their armies to anyone with hard currency.”

  “Japan?”

  “An interesting case, for the Japanese standsui generis in our world, in a category of their own. Even the most humble commoner there has a deep sense of honor. But their pride is their weakness. Japan is the most racist nation on Earth: the Japanese sincerely believe themselves to be superior to all other races. This got them into trouble in World War II.”

  “But Japan has a royal family,” Zoe said. “The oldest continuous royal line in the world.”

  “This is true,” Iolanthe said. “It is old and noble and not nearly as weak as it pretends to be. Japan’s capitulation at the end of the Second World War almost saw the first modern destruction of a legitimate royal family. But the royal house survived. The Americans humiliated Hirohito but they did not disempower him. Because they were unable to find his talisman.”

  Jack frowned at that. This was something new to him. He leaned forward.

  “And that talisman was…?”

  “…something that I am not inclined to tell you about just yet, my dashing Huntsman.” Iolanthe gave Jack a michievous sexy grin. “You may have to employ other methods to prise that little secret from me—maybe you could romance it out of me. Alternately, you could just ask your American colleague here.” A nod at Astro.

  Jack raised an eyebrow at Astro. “Well?”

  “Search me,” Astro said.

  Iolanthe said, “In any case, while they might protest otherwise and say that they have moved on, the Japanese have not forgotten the profound slur of World War II. And such a prideful people hold a very long grudge. You turn your back on Japan at your peril.”

  For a moment, no one said anything.

  “The world is a complex place,” Iolanthe said softly, almost to herself. “Wars are won and lost. Empires rise and fall. But through all of recorded history, power has always been in a state of flux, ever transferred from one empire to the next: from Egypt to Greece and then to Rome; or more recently, from France under Napoleon to the British Empire to the current American dominance. But now—with the igniting of the Machine—it will be different. The transfer of power will cease. For now is the one and only time in history where total and absolute power will come to rest, forever, in the hands of one nation.”

  A COUPLE of hours later, the main cabin of the plane was dark and silent.

  The only person still at work in it was Jack, poring over a map of Africa by the light of a desk lamp, with Horus perched on his chair back. All the others had gone aft to get some sleep before the big day ahead—except for Lily; she lay fast asleep on the couch beside Jack.

  Horus squawked.

  Jack looked up to see Iolanthe standing in the doorway to the main cabin, dressed in a loose tracksuit, her hair tousled from sleep.

  “Command is lonely,” she said.

  “Sometimes.”

  “I was told you inspire loyalty in those who follow you.” Iolanthe sat down.

  “All I do is let my people think for themselves. Seems to work.”

  Iolanthe watched him for a moment, eyeing him closely in the darkness, as if assessing this strange being named Jack West Jr.

  “Few people can think for themselves,” she said.

  “All people can think for themselves,” Jack said quickly.

  “No. Not true. Not all of them can,” she said softly, looking away.

  Jack said, “You mentioned before that you might know the whereabouts of the other Pillars…”

  Iolanthe was roused from her reverie and she smiled at him, raising an eyebrow. “I might.”

  “It’s just that we have this Saudi Pillar, marked with a single dash, and your one, marked with four dashes, indicating that they’re the First and Fourth Pillars. We’ll be needing the second one soon, within the week.”

  “If we survive today.”

  “Let’s be optimistic and assume we will,” West said. “Where is it?”

  Iolanthe stood, touching her upper lip with her tongue. “According to my sources, the second Pillar is to be found in the jungles of central Africa, zealously and jealously guarded by the same tribe that has held it for over three thousand years, the Neetha.”

  “I’ve researched the Neetha. Cannibals. Nasty.”

  “Captain,nasty does not even begin to describe the Neetha. Nor does cannibal.Carnivore would be better. Ordinary cannibals kill you before they eat you. The Neetha do not give you that dignity.

  “It’s believed that a thousand Rwandan refugees fleeing the genocide in 1998 got lost in the jungle and stumbled upon the grounds of the Neetha. Not a single one of them emerged. To enter the Neetha’s territory is to enter a spider’s web.”

  “Another question,” Jack said. “What do you know about the last Ramesean Stone, the Basin of Rameses II? Wizard doesn’t know where it is.”

  “Nobody knows where it is,” Iolanthe said simply. “The Basin long ago disappeared from history.”

  “Do you know what it does?”

  “No. Not a clue.” Iolanthe turned to go.

  “I don’t trust you, you know,” Jack said after her.

  “Nor s
hould you,” she said, not turning around. “Nor should you.”

  She left the room. Jack continued with his reading.

  Neither he nor Iolanthe had noticed that Lily had awoken during their conversation.

  And heard every word.

  An hour later, the cabin lights throughout the plane came on, and a tone beeped over the intercom.

  “Rise and shine, people!”Sky Monster’s voice called cheerfully.“Jack, I’ve spotted a stretch of highway about forty klicks west of Abu Simbel. Nothing there but desert. Can’t land on the northern highway: there are several convoys of tourist coaches coming down it—they set out early each day from Aswan to get to Abu Simbel just after dawn. The western road should be long enough to act as a runway and far enough out to allow us to get in and out without anyone noticing.”