Curse of Atlantis

by Petersen, Christopher David

  He paused a moment, looked to see if Javier was listening, then continued.

  “Yup, there’s just no comparison between the two. If I were a king, I’d want my rivals to be impressed by the size and greatness of my city… the bigger the better. I don’t think I’d settle for a quaint little island nook like Kapsali. No way… I’d definitely pick a monster of a location like Palaiopoli and build a huge metropolis that starts at the shoreline and rises up through the valley so that when dignitaries come to visit, they can see every house, every monument, every building, even before they step foot onto land.”

  He looked over again. Javier’s hands were in his lap and he was now listening intently.

  “And if I were going to build a pyramid in my name, I’d want everyone to see it. If I built it in Kapsali, the damn pyramid would probably be hidden by all that rugged terrain. And what would be the point of that? On top of that, its remote location would make it nearly impossible to construct.”

  Jack paused for effect, then continued.

  “Nope, I’m thinking if I were King of Atlantis, I wouldn’t waste my time with Kapsali. Maybe I’d build an outhouse there or burger-stand, but definitely not a pyramid. In my mind, it’s a no-brainer. I’d pick Palaiopoli. Access to the mountains is easier if I wanted to build it high and the valley is picturesque if I wanted to build it low.

  “Yup, I’m glad we’re done with this area. Not that it was a waste of time, mind you. It gave us the experience we all needed to fine tune our skills. But now that we’re sharp as tacks, we should be able to find that pyramid on Palaiopoli in no time.”

  Jack looked to Javier. Slowly, he saw a subtle nod from his friend and a slight smile.

  “You’re right, Jack!” Javier blurted out. “It makes sense. It all makes sense. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. If I were King of Atlantis, I too would pick Palaiopoli. It’s got to be there!”

  Javier stood quickly, now energized by his own words. Turning to Jack, he said, “What are we waiting for? We’ve got some more planning to do.”

  He hurried off past Jack, now optimistic about the future. As Jack followed close behind, Javier stopped and turned. With an appreciative smile, he said simply, “Thanks.”

  ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~

  The following morning, Jack stood outside a small roadside café in the seaside city of Palaiopoli and sipped his coffee. As the others waited for their breakfast, he scanned the landscape inland of the city and tried to envision a pyramid. Moving from mountains to hills to valleys and back, he took mental note of the land’s natural layout and contemplated the easiest location to build such a grand structure.

  Looking to the northeast, he considered the large mountain that stood high above the city. As part of a ridgeline that extended to the west, he quickly discounted it due to its height. Towering at nearly a thousand feet in elevation, it was far too high for a tsunami to reach.

  He looked directly to his north at the valley that sloped upward to another mountain range a couple of miles away. Aside from a few subtle outcroppings of stone, the landscape seemed relatively benign.

  To his west and south, the terrain turned dramatically different. Mountainous and rugged, the many hills seemed to be separated by ravines that reached far inland, allowing accessibility to the more remote locations.

  Scanning the area to the south, his eyes caught a smaller pointed hill that stood off from the higher mountains that surrounded it. He considered its location and size and made a mental note to point it out to Javier and Burt before they left.

  Continuing his visual search, he located the mountain that had caught his attention the day on the boat ride. With the smaller ridgelines that seemed to end abruptly as it ascended higher, something about it seemed peculiar, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it.

  “Jack, ready to go?” Darrien called out from behind him. “The others are waiting in the car.”

  Turning quickly, he replied, “Yeah, give me a minute. I’ll be right there.”

  As Darrien began to walk away, Jack added, “Hey amigo, what do you think of that mountain out in the distance?”

  Darrien stopped and looked in the direction Jack was pointing.

  “It’s pretty tall, way higher than the elevation the tsunami would have reached, don’t you think?” he responded.

  “For sure, but look at the area in front of it,” Jack continued.

  “What about it?” Darrien replied, taking a sip of his coffee.

  “Maybe I’m wrong, but there are a couple of ridgelines that slope upward and dead-end way before the top. Do they look natural to you?”

  “I’m still not following… natural? That whole area below the mountain looks like part of the main mountain. Nothing unnatural about that if you ask me,” Darrien replied.

  As Jack stared at the mountain, Darrien grew impatient.

  “Jack, we’d better go. Javi’s in a real hurry this morning.”

  With a simple nod, Jack turned and walked with Darrien, his mind still left behind at the base of the mountain.

  ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~

  Checking his watch, Javier looked up at Jack and Darrien as they rounded the corner. Excitedly, he called out, “Come on guys, times a-wasting.”

  “Told you he was in a hurry,” Darrien said quietly to Jack as they neared.

  Jack smiled cordially to Darrien, then turned his attention to Javier and Burt as they sat in the open Range Rover.

  “So what’s the plan for today? There’re quite a few targets in the southwest,” he said, pointing toward the mountains behind him.

  “Last night, Burt and I went over the data and found a couple of locations that I think look very promising. The first is that pointed hill off in the distance,” Javier said, now pointing.

  “Wow, what a coincidence. I was just going to mention it to you,” Jack responded.

  “It’s the most obvious location in the area. It has the right height, shape, and access,” Burt said, cutting in before Javier could respond.

  With an excited grin, Javier continued.

  “The next likely target is that mountain over there,” he said, pointing again, this time to a mountain almost due west, that was situated alongside a ravine.

  “Hmm, I saw that one too. It’s kind of far away though, don’t you think?” Jack said.

  “It is, but we’re speculating that the soils in front of it were deposited there because of the tsunami. We know the tsunami must have taken the path of least resistance, so we’re speculating it flowed up the valley and was redirected by the mountain range to the north, pushing it over the smaller ranges to the west. As it picked up debris from all those mountains, we think that most of it was deposited along the ravines and smaller hills.”

  “I get it. It basically swirled counterclockwise around and out of the valley,” Jack said, summing up their prediction.

  “Exactly. So, if we think along those lines, there are several most likely choices that fit our criteria,” Javier said.

  “What do you think the chances are we find the pyramid today?” Darrien asked.

  “I don’t want to jinx us, but I’d say pretty good. These two locations today have the closest resemblance to a buried pyramid,” Burt said.

  “So, what’s the plan? Are we going as a group or are we splitting up, two guys per mountain?” Jack asked.

  “If we had another GPR device, we’d split up, you and me at one location, and Burt and Darrien at the other. Unlike the Kapsali region, our targets are spread out far apart, so with only one device, we’ll be going as a group,” Javier explained. “It should still go fast, though. We’ll just run our tests concurrently… Burt and I each taking a different sensing platform. We should still be able to analyze two mountains a day.”

  As the four drove off, Jack’s mind drifted off to Serena. He felt tormented as he thought of her suffering at the hands of her captors. He tried to visualize her the day they kissed, her soft sweet face radiating with beauty, but his mind
wouldn’t allow it. Each time, his mind saw her not as happy and well, but as a worn and beaten victim.

  He tried to push the image from his mind, but the intensity of it burned away at his heart. His feelings for her were growing with each day and the feeling that he might never see her again tortured his soul.

  In his saddened state, he felt drained. With strength and determination, he refused to be overcome by the debilitating emotion. Fighting the feeling, he closed his eyes and concentrated on her smile and the happy times he envisioned for their future. Little by little, as the sadness faded, it was replaced by hope and determination.

  ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~

  Javier walked with a purposeful stride. After weeks of work and exercise, he had dropped considerable weight. Although he still had trouble keeping up with the three men, for the first time since they began searching, he was now only a short distance behind as they hiked up the side of the mountain. Energized by the hope of success, he ignored his body’s cry for rest and pressed on.

  As they made their way through the heavy brush and boulders, Javier and Burt stopped to take readings on the soil. With each test they completed, their excitement grew as the readings showed positive results.

  Cresting the top of the hill, the four men dropped their packs and rested momentarily. Sitting on a tuft of grass, Javier took the opportunity to test the soil once more. With his trowel in hand, he began to dig a hole. Burrowing down six inches deep, he retrieved another soil sample and matched it up with the Munsell Color Chart.

  “Well?” Burt asked anxiously.

  Javier smiled a great smile. “So far so good,” he said, with conviction.

  Looking down toward the city of Palaiopoli, Javier felt confident he had picked the correct site.

  “Look at that view from up here: Completely unobstructed. If I were the King of Atlantis, this would be the location I’d choose to build a pyramid. Look down there at the ravine,” he said, now pointing. “It’s a natural valley that flows right into the city. They had easy access to this site. This has got to be it,” he finished enthusiastically.

  Javier’s energy and spirit were infectious. No sooner than he finished, the other three stood and prepared to run their series of analyses. Jack and Darrien removed the heavy equipment from their packs and began to assemble them. Burt joined in, removed his computer equipment from his pack, and set up the various programs for analysis. As the three hurried in their tasks, Javier began to set up grid lines made from string, used to guide the path of the GPR unit.

  Within a half hour of the arrival at the top, the equipment was set up and positioned for testing. Javier smiled as he turned on the radar unit.

  “Ok, guys, this is it. Keep your fingers crossed,” he said, excitedly.

  “I’m crossing my eyes as an added measure,” Jack said, jokingly.

  With a slight chuckle, Javier began to push the radar unit along the ground as Jack followed with a can of spray paint to mark possible targets beneath the soil. Motioning Darrien for help, Burt grabbed the ECM device and headed for the opposite side of the grid.

  With each foot he crossed over, Javier’s excitement grew. Near the half-way point, nervous sweat built on his forehead as he watched the display for activity. As he called out reflections below the surface, Jack marked them off with the paint. Nearing the end of the first row, Javier slowed to a stop.

  “What is it?” Jack asked, now anxious for information.

  Javier didn’t answer. He simply stared at the display.

  “Javi, what do you see? Is it significant?” Jack pressed further.

  Javier was about to speak, but suddenly began to back up. He took several steps back, then slowly advanced, keeping his eyes glued to the display.

  On the opposite side of the grid, Burt's and Darrien's movements reflected those of Javier’s and Jack’s while using the ECM device. Holding the long rectangular beam by its strap, Javier watched his handheld computer for spikes in the display that indicated a change in conductivity in material below the surface. As he slowly followed the last row in the grid, he called out to Darrien to mark the spots with paint when he saw anomalies spike on the display.

  Burt kept his eyes glued to the screen. Nervous anticipation began to build as they neared the end of the row. Suddenly, he stopped. Looking across the mountain top to Javier, he saw the same activity taking place fifty feet away.

  “Mr. Samuelson, what is it?” Darrien asked.

  Looking at his display, he said simply, “Nothing.”

  ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~

  Jack waited impatiently for an answer from Javier. Excited by Javier’s initial response, he pressed him further.

  “Javi, you’re freaking me out. What the heck did you find?”

  Javier glanced at Jack then over to the opposite side of the mountain at Burt and Darrien. As he watched them work the ECM device, he suddenly realized they were no longer running their search within the grid lines he’d laid out earlier.

  “Jack, do you see that?” Javier said, his voice now low and serious.

  “Yeah, they’re analyzing the ground. Why?”

  “Because they’re not analyzing within the search grid lines,” Javier replied, still staring.

  “You think they found it? You think they’ve found the pyramid?” Jack asked excitedly.

  Javier turned and stared at Jack for a moment, his mind searching for the right words. Not finding them, he said simply, “No.”

  “No?” You don’t think they’ve found the pyramid? Well what the hell are they searching for? It’s got to be something big. Burt’s searching outside the grid pattern,” Jack responded.

  “If I’m not mistaken, I believe they’re simply confirming the same thing I’ve found over here… an underground spring,” Javier said.

  Jack searched Javier’s face for insight. He felt confused by the answer.

  “Javi, I’m still not following. What’s the big deal about an underground spring? If there’s a pyramid under us, it obviously has affected it,” Jack said.

  “There’s no pyramid, Jack,” Javier responded, his tone now sad and disappointed.

  Jack thought for a moment about the factors involved, then said, “I think I’m getting it. If the spring existed seven thousand years ago, they never would have built a pyramid on this site and if the spring developed after the pyramid was built, the sheer weight of it would have caused it to collapse as the water undermined the underground structure supporting the pyramid.”

  “Correct,” Javier replied, unable to say much else.

  “But what would make you think there’s a spring down there? Surely you’d need to do more tests than just this one to confirm your suspicions, right?”

  “Ordinarily, yes, but I’ve run into this exact condition before. I recognized its unique readout on the display. I’m certain Burt suspects something too. He’s moved off the grid and is now following the reflections along the spring’s path,” Javier said.

  “Wow, this sucks. So, what now?” Jack said, his voice now sounding disappointed.

  “Cross this off our list and move onto the next one,” Javier responded dryly.

  “I’m sorry, Javi. I know you thought this was the one and I hate to sound like an old cliché, but there will be others,” Jack said.

  “I know there will be, Jack. Let’s just get out of here, before I lose it,” he replied.

  ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~

  Within two hours of making their disappointing discovery, they had packed their equipment, drove to their next location, and hiked to the top of the mountain to be analyzed. Like well-oiled machines, they had set up their equipment, and began to run the same tests they had practiced so many times before.

  As Javier worked the GPR device on one side of the newly laid out grid, Burt ran the ECM unit on the other side of the lines of string. Up and down the lanes, they slowly moved the equipment, taking their reading and marking the ground for further investigation.

  The hours passed and the f
our worked tirelessly, stopping only for water as the hot sun bore down on them. With each test that was completed, Burt and Javier made basic assumptions with the data, then planned for their next test. By late afternoon, the truth of their search was realized.

  “Well, I guess that’s it then,” Javier said, staring at the computer screen.

  “You know, for a while there, I really thought we had something,” Burt responded, trying to lessen the pain of reality.

  “No pyramid?” Darrien asked, hoping he had heard incorrectly.

  “Unfortunately no, Darrien, there’s no pyramid beneath us,” Burt said, fielding the disappointing question before Javier had a chance to respond.

  Jack looked directly at Javier. He could see the desperation in his eyes. Quickly, he tried to think of something encouraging to say.

  “Don’t worry guys, we’ll find it. One of these mountains is that pyramid,” he started. Pointing to the area around them, he continued, “Isn’t it exciting when you think about it? Seven thousand years ago, if we were standing here, we’d see Atlantis spread out across this valley. We’d see roads, buildings, monuments, and thousands of people.”

  “You know Jack, the scrolls did say Atlantis was a great naval power. I’m betting that bay would have had hundreds of ships out there too,” Javier said, momentarily distracted from his sadness.

  “Yeah, I never thought about that, but you’re right,” Burt said, now equally fascinated by the new conversation.

  Quietly thinking about the last exchange, Jack added, “If you listen, you can hear the sounds of life down there in that town. I wonder what it would have sounded like seven thousand years ago.”