by Terry Mixon
The heavy stone slid a few inches when she shoved it. Jess put her back into it and it opened almost a foot at the head. Time to grab a picture of the man of the hour.
What she saw inside froze her in place. The dried human husk was expected. His clothing was not. It wasn’t primitive at all. It looked similar to the woven shirts men wore today. It had buttons. And what certainly looked like a nametag, though the lettering was unfamiliar to her.
“Harry,” she said softly. “You need to come in here and help me right now.”
He peered through the opening. “You look fine. Come on out.”
Jess shook her head. “No, there’s something really strange in the sarcophagus. A man with strange clothes. Modern clothes.”
He looked suitably doubtful. “In a secret room at the bottom of a previously undiscovered Mayan pyramid? I read that book a few years ago. Pure fiction.”
She stepped back to the opening and handed him her camera. “Then what is that?”
Harry stared at the image on the screen. “Is this some kind of joke?”
“Do I look like I’m laughing? Get in here and help me.”
He hesitated a moment, cursed, and handed the camera back to her. “I sure as hell hope we don’t live to regret this. Or not live at all.”
The two of them widened the opening in just a few minutes. He took off his pack and forced himself through, leaving it beside the entrance.
He stepped carefully through the priceless art on the floor and played his flashlight into the sarcophagus. “Holy shit. It really is someone in modern clothes. Sort of.”
She grabbed his hand when he started to reach into the sarcophagus. “Wait. It might look intact, but it’ll probably turn to powder if you touch it. Help me move the lid aside so we can see the entire interior. If we can keep from breaking the lid, we might be able to cover him back up. They might be able to recover him later.”
They managed to get the lid off and leaning against the side of the sarcophagus, revealing the corpse completely. He looked as dried out as an Egyptian mummy. His clothes seemed mostly intact and looked far too modern to be possible.
Jess started snapping pictures. His shirt was light in color. Perhaps it had once been white or tan. The nametag was over his right breast pocket. A real pocket. The letters didn’t look at all familiar. The shirt had buttons that looked like some kind of plastic.
“How long has he been down here?” Harry asked. “The Mayans have been gone a long time, right?”
“Abel was sure this place was late classical, so AD 700 to 900. This site has been abandoned over a thousand years.”
“Then where the hell did this yahoo come from?”
“I’m an orbital engineer, not an archaeologist. Or a science fiction author. Actually, this kind of seems more like a Dane Maddock adventure. If we survive, you can write a letter to David Wood and ask him how he’d set up this kind of story. I’d love to hear what Bones has to say about it.”
The dead man’s pants were more like shorts. Jess checked the fly, which caused the fabric to powder. It used buttons, too. She pocketed the one that came off in her hand. He wore low-slung shoes that didn’t use laces. They looked like leather. A satchel sat just below his feet.
Harry looked at the man’s shirt closely. “He has a patch of some kind on his shoulder.”
It was too tight for her to see any details. His shoulder was only a few inches from the side of the sarcophagus. She put her camera into the space and took half a dozen pictures, changing the point of aim slightly each time.
“Are we about done?” Harry asked. “The hair on the back of my neck is standing up. Something’s about to go down.”
She prayed, opened her backpack wide, and slid the satchel into it. The thing came apart, but the contents were inside. She tossed her camera in, cinched the pack tight, and strapped it onto her back. “Ready. Let’s get the lid back in place, get the rope tied off, and get out of here.”
It took all her strength to lift her end, but they got the lid back in place. She sighed. They’d done it.
That’s when a sharp shock sent dirt flying off the walls and made the ceiling groan.
“Time to go,” Harry said. “Run.”
She slid through the opening and watched the ceiling with growing horror. There were cracks and they were growing. “Do you have the rope ready?”
“Nope. Hold your breath.”
He snatched up his pack and rifle, grabbed her in his arms, and hopped over the lip of the well.
She screamed as they fell into the darkness. The fall seemed to last an eternity, but it couldn’t have been more than a few seconds. They slammed into the water and the force of the impact tore her from his arms.
Jess lost her flashlight, plunging her into pitch darkness as she floated in the cool water. She held her breath and let her head figure out which way was up. She exhaled and felt the air going up the side of her face. She righted herself and kicked for the surface.
The air tasted wonderful when she finally reached it. She took rapid, deep breaths.
Harry broke the surface to her left. “Jessica!” His voice echoed weirdly.
“Over here.”
Something splashed into the water beside her. Something big. She swam to the side as rocks from above fell into the water. The chamber had collapsed. The man and his secrets now rested under tons of rock and dirt.
The two of them came up against a wall of stone and she waited to see if the whole cavern caved in. The rocks finally stopped falling and they were still alive.
“Well,” she said. “That was a little more exciting than I prefer. I don’t suppose you managed to hang onto your light. Mine is at the bottom of the pool. It wasn’t waterproof, either.”
“Mine is.” A bright light came on, pointed at the ceiling. She could see where the well pierced it. Or where it used to be. A massive boulder plugged it now. If that had fallen on them, they’d be dead.
Harry played his light around, revealing that they were in a natural cavern. “If there’s a connection between the courtyard pool and this one, it’s under water. Let me go look.”
He pulled out his compass and they moved around until they were at the southernmost wall. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
She watched his light vanish into the depths with more than a hint of trepidation. What if there wasn’t a way out?
That question had a simple answer. They’d die.
Jess sighed. It wasn’t as though she had any control over what happened now. She had no choice but to wait in the dark and hope for good news.
* * * * *
Harry dove, his light showing the wall as it plunged toward the bottom of the pool. He could see something glittering dully in the sand below him and to his right.
He made it all the way to the bottom quickly and easily. With all his gear, that was a forgone conclusion. He shed his rifle and pack next to a low opening in the wall. He could feel a sluggish current coming from it.
Then he looked into the passage. It wasn’t too tight, but he didn’t see it widening, either. It made a turn just at the limit of his light. He set his flashlight on the sand and undid his boots. He’d be able to swim easier without them. He tied the laces together so that he could carry them around his neck when the time came to go.
That took him to the limit of his air. He grabbed his light and headed back to the surface.
“Did you find anything?” She asked as soon as he broke the surface.
“A tunnel,” he said as he caught his breath. “It looks natural. I left my gear down below and came back for more air. I’ll get further that way.”
“Do you think it leads to the courtyard pool?” She sounded half-hopeful and half-afraid.
“It goes in the right direction, so maybe. There’s something that reflects light in the sand down there.”
“Offerings, probably. Jade, I’ll bet. They probably threw other things into the well as gifts to the gods, but they might not have lasted t
his long.”
He was as oxygenated as he could get. “Be back, hopefully with good news.”
Harry dove back down and veered toward the glinting object. It looked like polished stone, so it was probably jade. He tucked it into his pocket. That’s when he spotted something near the wall. It gleamed like silver, but more dully.
The object wasn’t big, so Harry stuck it in his pocket, too. Then he kicked his way into the passage. It led him around the turn and into a tighter area. He took a chance and swam into it. The tunnel was only three or feet across at the narrowest point, but he thought it opened back up.
He turned off his flashlight and let the darkness enfold him. Yep, there was dim light from ahead. The two pools did connect. They might survive after all.
Harry turned his light back on, but it didn’t work. Crap, the water must’ve gotten into it. This would be fun. He turned around and felt his way back. He kept a hand on the stone above him so that he’d know when to head up.
Once the roof turned into a wall, he went up. He was almost out of air when he broke the surface.
“Are you okay?” she asked. “What happened to your light?”
“The water got to it, I think. Rest assured, I’ll be leaving a negative review about my experience on the Rainforest website. I went far enough to see light on the other end. I think we’re good to go.”
“But you’re not totally sure? Great. We get to swim into a dark tunnel and hope it stays wide enough for us to make our way through. If not, we drown.”
Grim, but true enough. “We can’t tread water forever. I’ll make the trip all the way and come back for you.”
He could hear her breathing heavily in the dark. She sounded on the edge of panic. Her voice was steady, though.
“No. I’ll go with you. We’ll make it together or not at all. I’m a decent swimmer. How do we do this?”
“I’ll take you down, grab my stuff, and lead you through. Hold onto my belt and follow my lead.”
Once he was certain that she had a tight grip, he dove down, following the angle he’d used before. His hand felt the wall and he kicked his way to the sand.
He found his boots, slung them around his neck, grabbed his pack and rifle, and headed in. She kicked along behind him, but her grip on his harness was slowing him down.
It felt like an eternity before he felt the turn in the tunnel. He followed it around and into the narrowest area he’d explored. The grey glow of light ahead lured him on.
The brightness grew as he kicked his way forward, but the tunnel narrowed again. At least he could see it. This would be tight.
Harry tugged Jess forward and gestured for her to go first. If he couldn’t get through, he’d only kill himself.
Once she was through, he shoved his gear to the other side and pulled himself into the narrow opening. He got stuck almost immediately. He struggled to push his way through, but didn’t budge.
Jessica had stopped even though he’d motioned for her to go on. She grabbed his hand in hers, planted her feet on the rocks, and pulled. That gave him just enough leverage to tear free. She spun and launched herself into the growing light.
He grabbed his stuff and followed. His lungs screamed for air, so lunged for the surface. He made it. Barely.
The two of them gulped air and looked up. It was fifty feet to the roof of the cavern, then maybe twenty more to the opening. There was no way they were climbing those walls, either.
“You should’ve left me,” he told her, “but thanks. You saved my life.”
“So, we’re even. And you’re welcome. Now what? That’s a long way up.”
“We call for help.”
His pistol was soaked, but the damned thing was almost indestructible. “Hold your hand out.”
Harry locked the slide back, letting the chambered round fall into her hand. He held the pistol up to the light to make sure there was no dirt or mud in the barrel. That had the potential to blow the weapon up in his hand. The water wasn’t doing it any good, but it would fire. Of that, he had no doubt.
Once he was sure it was clear, he took the round back from her, put it in his pocket, and let the slide chamber the next round.
“This will be loud. Plug your ears.”
He aimed the pistol out of the well and fired three shots. The sound echoed off the walls, even louder than he’d expected.
“Are you calling for help or just catching dinner down there?” Rex shouted.
“I am kind of hungry,” he said. “It’s damned good to hear your voice.”
“I thought you were gone, man. They blew up the whole pyramid. You got the civilians?”
“I have Miss Cook with me. Doctor Valdez didn’t make it. Did the boys get out?”
“Just before the thing collapsed. I left Leann with the civilians and came hauling ass back.”
A wave of relief rolled through him. “Thank God.”
“Are either of you hurt?” Rex asked. “We’ve just about got a rope secure. I’ll come down for you if I need to.”
“We’re fine. Rig one of the rappelling harnesses and we’ll handle our end.”
He looked at Jessica. “I assume you’re fine with being hauled out of here.”
“Hell, yes. The ride can’t be any scarier than having a pyramid dropped on you.”
“Probably not.”
Harry holstered his pistol and waited for the harness. When it came swishing down, he strapped Jessica into it. “Just hold onto the rope and they’ll get you out. Safe as houses.”
“Thanks for coming for me.”
“My pleasure. Haul away!”
They lifted her out of the well and quickly dropped the harness back down for him. Getting it on while treading water with his gear was a bit of a challenge, but he managed. “Pull!”
They lifted him into the bright sunlight. Ready hands yanked him over the rim of the well and he rolled over onto his back.
“Today has totally sucked. I’m charging my father extra.”
Rex pulled him to his feet. “Let’s get you into a tent to change into something dry. Sandra will help Miss Cook.”
“I want eyes all around us. If some of them made it out of the pyramid, I want them found. Nathan is too damned selfish to blow himself up just to get me. He probably had another way out. Find him.”
His people spread out as he lugged his waterlogged pack into the nearest tent. He’d be lucky if anything was dry. If not, he’d borrow something from Rex.
* * * * *
Nathan watched them fish his brother out of the well with mixed emotions. It would’ve been nice to have Harry off the playing field, but he wanted to see his eyes when he killed him.
He had his crosshairs on his brother, but wasn’t tempted to fire. He’d have too much trouble making it back to the LZ with Harry’s team hunting him every foot of the way. If the copter crew was even ready when he called.
No, not the time to take chances. “I’ll be seeing you soon, big brother,” he said softly.
When the others began fanning out to search the general area, Nathan knew it was time to put some distance between him and them. He’d have to report a complete failure. They’d missed the target and his team was captured or dead.
Well, that was occasionally the price of doing business. They’d failed, so they could take the fall with the local authorities. They wouldn’t talk. The money waiting for them when they got out ensured that.
Oh, well. He backed away from his hide and slung his rifle over his shoulder. He’d watch his brother for a while, and then call for a pickup when things calmed down. This was not over.
Chapter Six
Thanks to her waterproof pack, Jess had dry clothes to change into. The female mercenary left her alone to change, saying she’d be outside if Jess needed anything.
What she needed was a stiff drink and some time to grieve for her lost friend. Time she suspected she wouldn’t have. Not until they were safely out of this jungle.
She stripped off he
r wet clothes, twisted as much water out of them as she could, and packed them in a trash bag. They’d be nasty by the time she washed them, but that was a manageable problem. She then dried off and changed into the dry clothes she’d laid out.
The next thing she did was check her camera. It was dry and working, so she synced the pictures to her tablet, which was also intact. Thank God.
While that was happening, she eyed the contents of the dead man’s satchel. It was mostly still together, but she needed to secure it better. They’d be traveling in a hurry and the fall into the water might have irretrievably damaged something already.
She saw several wrenches and a flat-bladed screwdriver similar to the one on her belt back at the spaceport. The tip was removable. There were other tips that looked as though they could fit on the screwdriver handle, but their purpose was murkier. They looked electronic, but there was no indication of a power source. Or what they might do.
She examined the screwdriver handle. The grip had a removable base that revealed a hollow. It held what certainly looked like a battery. It had strange writing on it, similar to the nametag on the mummy. No signs of corrosion, so there must not be an acidic component.
After all this time, the battery was certainly dead, but examining it in the lab might tell them the power level it was supposed to deliver.
At the bottom of her pack was a notebook. It was about the size of a diary and seemed intact. The cover looked like leather, but it wasn’t cracked. The pages hadn’t come apart either, so she risked touching her finger to their edges. No, it wasn’t paper. It felt slick, like some kind of plastic.
Jess took a deep breath and opened the cover.
The first page had tight rows of handwriting in a language that she didn’t recognize. Maybe it was a diary. The beginnings of some of the paragraphs were different, so that could mean dates. The inside cover had a few lines of text, maybe the man’s name and how to return it to him if it was lost.
She took a chance and lifted the book out to lay it on the cot. She wanted pictures.
That’s when she saw the tablet under it and stopped breathing. She set the book carefully down and picked up the device. The surface felt like glass, but that didn’t mean much. It could be any number of materials.