Contents
Title Page
Before You Start...
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Epilogue
Continue The Adventure!
Also by Percival Constantine
About the Author
Copyright
The Spear of Destiny, believed to have pierced the body of Christ, is said to be an artifact of incredible power that will render the user unstoppable. And now the Thule Society, an occult order from the days of Nazi Germany, is after this weapon. Only Elisa Hill and her allies stand between this Nazi death cult and their genocidal plot! But when faced with ancient, forbidden magicks, does even the famed myth hunter have a prayer of success?
SPEAR OF DESTINY
A Myth Hunter Adventure By
Percival Constantine
BEFORE YOU START...
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PROLOGUE
1946
He felt the cold even through his winter clothing, moving carefully through the snow-covered mountains of the Himalayas. Walter Horn paused for a moment to reach into the pocket of his heavy coat and draw out a compass. The medieval scholar-cum-soldier opened the lid and saw the needle spinning all round.
“That won’t be much help to you, friend.”
Walter looked up at the voice of his partner, a man he had met just before boarding the plane for this expedition. Kenneth Hill was slightly younger than him, with a thick, black beard that now had flecks of snow covering it.
“What is this?”
“We’re in a part of the world largely untouched by modern man. The things that exist out here, they’re far beyond even your expertise.” Kenneth patted Walter on the shoulder and moved ahead towards one of the sloping valleys.
Walter’s brow furrowed. “If the compass cannot tell us where we are, how can you be so sure you know where you’re going?”
Kenneth paused and glanced over his shoulder. “Because I’ve been here before. I know these mountains like the back of my hand.”
Walter sighed and placed the compass back in his pocket, walking with haste to catch up to his companion. “I appreciate that my superiors felt you were the most appropriate man to accompany me on this expedition, but I must say I still don’t quite understand this situation.”
“Situation’s pretty simple, Walt. You retrieved the Habsburg Spear but told your bosses that you don’t think it’s the real McCoy. If you really think the Nazis have it, then it’s likely they’d take it somewhere it can be safe from their enemies. That’s why we’re out here in this damn cold.”
“But what makes you believe that the Nazis would have come to the Himalayas?”
“Because on my last trip out here a few years back, I stumbled on Agharti, their hidden city. There I was against a few dozen Nazi bastards,” said Kenneth. “Barely got out alive.”
“How did you escape?”
Kenneth flashed a knowing smile. “Let’s just say I had some help. But that’s a story for another day. Right now, we gotta get to that city.”
He turned back to the valley, carefully moving down the slope. Walter wasn’t quite sure what to make of the man. His superiors in Washington said that if there was a missing artifact, no man was more qualified to retrieve it than Kenneth Hill. In addition to his impressive physical prowess, Kenneth was also a man of great knowledge with degrees in fields such as archaeology, anthropology, and mythology. And he had been to the Himalayas on more than one occasion, the most recent of which led to his presumed death before he suddenly turned up again six months later.
Walter followed down the slope and once he reached Kenneth’s side again, the two men moved together from then on. They hiked through the valleys for what felt like several hours. Every now and then they would stop to rest, a rest that was mostly characterized by its silence. Walter would check his compass periodically, but found it still useless.
As day turned to night, they came to a ridge and Kenneth signaled for Walter to stay low. When Walter appeared by his side, Kenneth looked at him and held a single finger to his lips. He then took that finger and pointed over the ridge. Walter was shocked at what he saw. Just past the ridge was the mouth of a cave. And flanking the cave were two men in heavy winter clothing, just as they were. But what drew Walter’s attention even more were the stylized double-S marks, almost like lightning bolts, and swastikas on their arms.
“What should we do?” asked Walter in a low voice. He glanced out the corner of his eyes to his right but saw nothing there. Walter quickly turned his head and saw that Kenneth was gone. He turned his attention back to the cave and saw a figure moving on the overhang above the entrance.
Kenneth dropped down behind one of the soldiers and covered his mouth with one hand. With the other hand, Kenneth held a curved dagger and drew it quickly across the Nazi’s throat, the blood spilling out on the snow and staining it crimson.
Walter rose to his feet in surprise and the second Nazi spotted him. He shouted something in German but before he could raise his gun to fire, Kenneth drove the knife into his back. The Nazi’s chest arched forward and then slumped over. Kenneth waved for Walter to approach.
Walter jumped from the ridge and hurried through the snow, looking at the bodies, one of which Kenneth was in the process of dragging away from the entrance and tossing over the edge of the mountain, but not before taking the submachine gun off him. He gestured to the other and Walter understood, doing the same with the remaining body.
The disposal complete, Walter walked up to Kenneth, who bent down to use a handful of snow in order to clean off his blade. Walter stared down at the strange knife. It was a curved dagger with a very sharp edge. Kenneth felt his partner’s eyes on him and met his gaze. He raised the dagger up so Walter could get a closer look at it.
“Kukri,” he said. “Picked up a pair of them on my last trip to Nepal. Pretty handy to have in a fight.”
Walter drew his Browning service revolver. “I prefer this.”
Kenneth shrugged and picked up the submachine gun, pulling the strap over his shoulder. “Whatever works for you, I guess.” He took the remaining submachine gun and tossed it to Walter. “C’mon.”
They moved into the mouth of the cave, which connected to a tunnel that led down. A few lights had been installed to illuminate the path and the two men stepped cautiously into the depths of the Himalayas. The further they got from the surface, the louder the sounds from within could be heard.
The tunnel ended in a massive cavern far larger than Walter could have imagined. The Germans had surrendered almost a year previously, but to look upon this sight, one would think they were still in full service. There were dozens of soldiers moving about the large cavern, performing duties on some sort of giant device in the rear. It was metal, with a giant dome on top and a brim. It almost looked like a giant safari hat.
“The hell?” whispered Kenneth.
Walter shook his head. In all his time during the war, even when he was still living in Germany, he had never seen anything like it. But what shocked him even more was the white circle painted on the side, a circle that contained something that resembled the swastika. But though the swastika was rotated, this symbol had straight lines forming a cross. And the legs weren’t straight
lines but rather curved, each one reaching to the edge of the cross.
“The Thule Society? But the Nazis shut down all esoteric organizations,” said Walter, his voice still hushed.
Kenneth scoffed. “Seems there’s a lot you don’t know, pal. You see that guy up there?”
Walter saw what Kenneth meant. One of the men in uniform had a bald head and a dark mustache. The scholar recognized him immediately as Dietrich Eckart, once the leader of the Thule Society. Until his death over twenty years ago. Or supposed death, it seemed.
“The Thules never went away, just went underground. You’re lookin’ at the real power behind the Nazis,” said Kenneth.
Walter watched Eckart’s movements carefully. The man should be pushing eighty by now, but he looked to be in his fifties, the age at which he was said to have died. “How is this possible?”
“Magic.”
“I don’t believe in—”
“Well, believe in your own eyes, professor,” said Kenneth.
An SS officer brought Eckart a small, ornate box with the symbol of his organization carved on the top. The Thule patriarch took it from him and carried it over to a table. He raised the lid and grinned as his eyes fell upon the object inside. Eckart reached inside the box and drew out the head of a spear. The metal looked old and worn, with a gold plate wrapped around the center.
“That’s it,” said Walter. “The Spear of Destiny.”
Eckart placed the spear back in the box and closed the lid. He shouted something to the soldiers and they gathered up supplies, taking them over to the large metal object. A ramp lowered from it and they moved inside.
“What is that thing, some kinda vault?” asked Kenneth.
Walter’s voice was hushed. “I don’t believe so…”
The device lit up with strange lights all around the side. There was a rumble that sounded like an engine roaring to life. Walter realized that what they were looking at was a vehicle of some sort. And if they didn’t act now, they may lose their chance to obtain the Spear of Destiny.
“We can’t let them escape!” he said in a hushed exclamation.
“Way ahead of you.” Kenneth readied the submachine gun and rose from his hiding place, spraying the cavern with ammunition. Walter followed his lead, standing as well and firing round after round into the SS troops.
Several soldiers were eliminated immediately, but others took cover and returned fire with their own weapons. Eckart watched it all happen with a deathly calm gaze. He raised the lid once more and took the spear from its container, grasping it tightly in his hand.
Walter rushed at Eckart, turning his gun on him. The Thule continued his approach, never breaking stride even as the bullets from Walter’s gun slammed into his chest. Once within reach, Eckart grabbed the barrel of the gun. The barrel must have been scorching, but Eckart didn’t seem to notice. He tore the gun from Walter’s grip and threw it behind him. It struck the wall of the cavern and clattered to the ground.
Eckart wrapped his fingers around Walter’s throat, raising him into the air and slamming him against the cave wall. Walter tried to pull the old man’s fingers, but his grip was like steel. Breathing quickly grew difficult and Walter knew he didn’t have long to go. He stared into Eckart’s eyes and saw an emptiness there he’d never known before.
Kenneth had moved from several points of cover and retrieved discarded weapons whenever he ran out of bullets, quickly resuming the fight. He saw Eckart squeezing the life out of his partner and drew one of the kukri. Kenneth threw it with pinpoint accuracy, the kukri striking Eckart’s bald head, the blade embedded in his skull.
Eckart dropped Walter and reached for the kukri, gripping the hilt and in one swift motion, pulling it free. He dropped it to the ground and turned his attention to Kenneth Hill. Eckart strode towards his new foe, his grip tightening around the spear.
Kenneth tried to force him back with shots from the submachine gun, but they had no effect. Once the ammunition was spent, Kenneth took the second kukri and lunged at Eckart.
The German deflected the blade with his spear. He swung his arm, the back of his hand striking Kenneth across his face. With the spear in his grip, the blow hit harder than normal and Kenneth felt pain running all along the side of his head.
“Vermin,” spat Eckart. “You have no comprehension of what you have gotten yourselves into.”
Eckart raised his arm, holding the spear in a reverse-grip so the sharp tip pointed down at Kenneth’s head. But before he could strike, Walter tackled him from behind. Eckart stumbled forward with Walter on his back and when he hit the ground, the spear slipped from his grasp, clattering along the cave floor.
The two German men grappled on the ground, with Walter now on Eckart and driving his fists into the old man’s face. Eckart was far stronger than his age and appearance made him seem. He struck back, head-butting Walter with such force that the younger German stumbled, disoriented.
Eckart rose to his feet and grabbed Walter’s head. He squeezed it hard, placing his thumbs over Walter’s closed eyelids and pushing in. Walter screamed, feeling the pain as Eckart was about to crush his eyeballs.
But then Eckart’s grip became slack and Walter was able to pull away. He saw Eckart standing there, staring down at his chest in shock. And from the center of his chest was the point of a spear.
Kenneth pulled the spear from Eckart’s back and the Thule collapsed to the ground, his eyes fixed in an open position. He examined the spear’s bloodstained surface and watched as the strange artifact seemed to absorb the crimson liquid inside itself. Kenneth couldn’t describe the feeling of having his hands on this weapon.
There was a thundering noise and both Kenneth and Walter looked to the strange vehicle. Seeing their master slain before them had apparently been enough to convince the rest of the Thules to depart.
The vehicle rose off the ground, hovering for a moment before rising higher and striking the ceiling. The entire cavern rumbled with the blows and Kenneth and Walter exchanged nervous glances before they both ran for the tunnel that they entered through.
As the vehicle burrowed through the mountain, the rocks came down behind them, crushing Eckart and any remaining soldiers. The two heroes charged up the tunnel as fast as their legs could take them, rushing for the surface.
Just ahead they could feel the cold, night air and some flakes of snow blew in and landed on their face. They ran faster, pushing their legs harder, both too frightened to look behind them to see how much time they had left. But the sound of the cave-in told them they didn’t have long before they would be crushed, too.
Once they reached the entrance, the two men jumped and the cave completely collapsed behind them. They landed face-first in the snow, laying there for a moment before rolling over onto their backs. Slowly they sat up and viewed the remains of Agharti. Up in the sky, they saw the lights of the strange vehicle as it rose above the wreckage before flying off into the clouds.
Kenneth looked down at the Spear of Destiny, studying the inscription on the plate. “Nail of Our Lord,” he read aloud. And then he saw the nail fused with the spearhead. Kenneth passed it over to his partner. “Think this is what you came here for.”
“Indeed,” said Walter, examining the strange artifact. He saw that Eckart was nearly invulnerable while holding it. More than that, he could feel its power as he held it within his grasp. He didn’t quite understand what it was, but he knew that he had to ensure it never fell into the wrong hands again.
CHAPTER 1
Present Day
Elisa Hill flipped in the air so she would land on her feet. She hit the ground in a crouch, her hand placed in front of her for balance and she looked up. Strands of her dark hair had escaped from the rubber band that held the mass of it back and her crystal eyes stared through them at her target.
Standing in the forest across from her was a beautiful young Japanese woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties. She had high cheekbones and her long, ebony hair perf
ectly framed her face as she gave her opponent a smug smirk. The woman called Asami held out her arm and, with her palm facing towards the sky, beckoned Elisa with a wave of all four fingers.
Elisa broke into a sprint, racing towards her opponent. She jumped at a tree, springing off it and swinging her leg. Asami grabbed the leg and threw Elisa to the ground. She recoiled her fist but as she attempted to deliver the punch, Elisa grabbed Asami’s wrist and twisted her arm. Elisa was on her feet, pinning Asami’s arm behind her back.
Asami struggled with the hold. With one hand pinning Asami’s arm behind her, Elisa wrapped her free arm around Asami’s neck. The Japanese warrior summoned all her strength and jumped, flipping in the air—taking Elisa with her. When they hit the ground, Elisa struck first, sandwiched between Asami’s weight and the ground and the impact made her lose her grip.
Elisa groaned as she felt the pain race through her body. Asami stood first and offered a hand to her partner. Elisa weakly opened her eyes and managed to give a shake of her head.
“No thanks. Think I’ll just lie here for a while.”
Asami chuckled, panting a little. “Oh c’mon, you wuss. I barely touched you.”
“Yeah…tell that to my back.”
“Get your lazy ass up already.” Asami reached down and took hold of Elisa’s arm, forcibly pulling her up. Elisa protested but stood, groaning the entire time. Once on her feet, Elisa placed one hand behind her back and stretched, arching her chest forward.
“Damn, I’m outta shape.”
“Oh bull.” Asami walked over to a duffel bag not far from where they’d been sparring. She procured two bottles of water from it and tossed one to Elisa. “We’ve been at it pretty much every day since you left Burroughs.”
Elisa unscrewed the top and poured the water down her throat, pausing for a moment. It had been a few months since she resigned from her position at Burroughs University. Pulling double-duty as an adjunct professor and a myth hunter had put a strain on her responsibilities and Elisa came to the realization that she was better off devoting herself fully to her extra-curricular activities.
Spear of Destiny (The Myth Hunter Book 4) Page 1