by K. T. Tomb
Jeremy froze in his tracks. He tried to pretend it meant nothing, and he coyly studied Phoe and Peter’s reactions to see if they recognized the significance of the snake.
“I believe this represents the Midgard Serpent,” she said. “A creature of unbelievable size and strength. Midgard is the term used for the place where the humans dwell—or Earth, as we like to call it. During Ragnarok, or the Norse version of Armageddon, Thor is supposed to battle the Midgard Serpent in a fight to their deaths.”
Phoe took the bottle from Jonathan. “So, the bottle represents the Midgard Serpent, who just slithered under the door. The fur represents the fur that Thor wore. The clay wing has to symbolize the Valkyrie-like wings that some Vikings had on their battle helmets. I believe, depending upon which source you believe, that Thor wore a helmet with wings on it. The belt symbolizes the Belt of Strength. The hammer is a cheap knockoff of Mjölnir and the wedding veil symbolizes the time Thor was disguised as a bride. That’s what we have, which isn’t much.”
Peter’s eyes lit up with a revelation. “What’s the one thing they all have in common?”
Jonathan looked perplexed. “They all belong to Thor?”
“No. They are all cheap representations of things from Thor’s life!” Phoe seemed impressed with her answer.
Damn it, getting closer!
Jeremy stepped over to the veil. “All of them may represent Thor’s life, but this represents Thor’s deceit!”
He picked up the veil and placed it over his head, then suddenly ran toward the door. Before anyone could react, Jeremy passed through the door as if he were a ghost. He laughed at the thought of everyone else standing in shock, and maybe dire fear as a new, slight rumbling moved through the corridor. He could hear the other five alcoves receding back into the wall. Where there were five alcoves, now there were five passageways leading out of the corridor. Ha! But which one to take? Don’t tell them, Francis!
***
“Well, that sucks.” Phoe gazed into each passageway, following her flashlight’s beam. “There you go, Jonathan. There’s your labyrinth.”
“Cool.” Jonathan seemed oblivious to the potential danger with which they were faced. The dilemma of splitting up the group had now become all too real.
“Who is going to take Francis, or should we just leave him?”
“He’s the one that will lead us back to Jeremy, and our escape,” said Phoe. “You guys guard him, and we will have to explore these options one at a time.”
“What do you make of the wedding veil as a device that lets the wearer pass through walls?” Peter asked.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Phoe said. “It defies physics.”
“Which one should we take first?” Jonathan sounded ready to move on, and a bit miffed at Jeremy. Understandably so.
Before a decision was reached as to which passageway they should take, a distant thud resounded from the first passageway to their left. Peter listened at the entrance to clarify what could be making the sound. A loud growl echoed toward him.
“What was that?!” Jonathan asked, his voice trembling.
Peter stepped into the passageway next to where the sound came from, perhaps looking for a way to surprise whatever was moving through the one passage. However, as soon as he moved into the passageway—which had once held the hammer as an alcove—it returned to its original size and position. Worse, no one could follow after him.
“Shit, Peter!” Phoe was propelled backward. “Jonathan, you stay with me!”
“I’m not going anywhere alone! I’m with you, Ms. Phoenix! But what about him?” He pointed at Francis, who seemed just as shaken.
“Please don’t leave me here—I will help you in any way I can!” the Norwegian pleaded.
The sound of whatever lurked in the first passageway sounded like it was getting closer. Panicked, Phoe moved to the other side of the corridor, testing passageways until they hit the one that had contained the clay wing. As soon as they entered, a wall appeared behind them where the opening was a moment before. They heard light cries for help from Francis on the other side
“We can’t go back,” said Phoe, pulling on his sleeve. “Stay with me and don’t slow down, Jonathan! Let’s move now!”
Chapter Twenty-eight
Peter wondered how the passageway could produce light, but he was grateful it wasn’t pitch black.
He hated being alone. It seemed like he always ended up on his own, whether it was high school, college, retrieving the Head of Olmec, or running into a narrow passage. He always ended up alone. That feeling of loneliness surrounded him in the passage. Constrictive. Every decision he had ever made had left him alone in the end. He hated the solitude, but never knew how to be with anyone for long. He once thought he loved Phoe, but even that didn’t make him feel alive. She’d obviously made her decision to love her passion of finding relics. There was no room for love and romance... and hell, it would just make things uncomfortable for him, too. He knew she could never return his feelings.
He stopped walking and leaned against a wall. When he was ready to continue, he looked up and was surprised to see Phoe. He rubbed his eyes, because there was no way that what he saw could be real.
“Phoe?”
He found himself praying it really was her, because she was the only one in the world who could take his loneliness away. She walked up to him. There was no sign of Jonathan anywhere.
“Did you get separated from Jonathan?”
She just stared at him. She smiled softly, but said nothing. The whole situation was just plain weird.
“Answer me, Phoe! Where’s Jonathan?”
There was something wrong with Phoe’s eyes. They were no longer blue, but appeared to be golden and glowing. His frustration was building steadily.
“Answer me, damn it! I’ve had it with this roller-coaster ride! You will answer me...”
Or what?
Did he just think her saying that? Her lips didn’t move. She moved closer.
What’s the matter, Peter? Aren’t I what you want? Maybe it’s not me you want. Maybe you just want to humiliate me the way I’ve humiliated you all these years. Don’t you get it? You’re a sad sack of a man that I keep around when I need something. You’re my puppet and my bitch! No matter how many times I abuse and use you, you will come crawling back on your hands and knees to appease me. You know how I feel about you, don’t you? I would rather be with Jonathan than you! You’re a lame joke!
He was having a hard time processing what was happening. He wanted to believe that it was some kind of hallucination, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that Phoe would say those exact words to him if she had the chance. The words hurt. He pictured Phoe having the same conversation with him thousands of times, but now, there she was, performing the speech he’d dreaded for years. He was a confident, successful man. How could he let one person destroy him the way she did?
Come on, Peter. Is that all you can do? Just stand there while I take your manhood from you? I control every movement you make. Just when you think you make a decision, that’s just me pulling your strings! Ha! You’re not even a real man!
He realized, increasingly, that none of what was going on around him or inside of his mind was real. What he didn’t know was how to stop it from continuing. He wanted out and he fought for a way out.
“Stop it, Phoe! You have no right to talk to me like that!”
She slowed but still crept toward him. Her moves were less and less human. Like an insect... She became fluid and smoother as she advanced. It’s like she can read my mind! He choked on a strong burning smell which made it hard to breathe. His head was clouded with what was real and what was not real. Confusion made it hard for him to concentrate. She pushed him against the wall.
He hit his shoulder and it actually hurt. “You’re not real!” he shouted.
His act of defiance only succeeded in amusing her. Your mother always wanted a girl, didn’t she? She rejected you, Peter. Hated yo
u for the fact that you’re a male. Why is that, Peter?
“Shut up!” He was out of control; had actually lost it! The barrier between fantasy and reality had become so distorted, he didn’t even know where he was.
Poor little Peter. Because your sweet daddy cheated on your mother with anyone who would have him, your mother despised all men. That includes you, Peter. You are a follower in need of something to make you feel like a man, but you lack the balls to work for it!
Peter tried to fight the despair, but eventually gave in. The precious release of letting go and letting life beat him up had totally encompassed him at last. He dropped to his knees in defeat and terrible despair.
You’re pathetic...
Chapter Twenty-nine
Phoe and Jonathan ran through the small passageway. Abruptly, she stopped and Jonathan almost ran into her. She had to stop, because about a foot in front of her was a deep chasm.
The chasm appeared bottomless. She picked up a small rock near her foot and tossed it down the hole. She didn’t hear it hit bottom.
“We have a problem, Jonathan.”
“Yeah. I see that. So, what do we do now?”
A hissing growl sound was growing louder behind them. The passageway continued on the other side of the chasm, roughly fifty feet away, but Phoe could see no way across.
“Do you think we can jump it?” Jonathan asked.
“You first, Jonathan... Let me know how that goes.”
“Ms. Phoenix! There’s nothing to think about! We need to do something and do something quick!”
Phoe remembered that the alcove-turned-passageway they went into was the one with the clay wing. Maybe we can fly.
Phoe pushed Jonathan back a little and prepared to take a running jump. She hit the end of the passageway with a head of steam and compacted her body as she left the ledge. She tried not to look down, but she couldn’t help it. It seemed as if time slowed down until she made it to the other side. She stood up, shocked at what she just accomplished and realized there was something more to the passageway than met the eye. Or perhaps less than what met the eye.
“Jonathan! You can make the jump! Run and jump! You can do it!”
“I don’t know! It’s really far! What about the laws of physics, Phoe?”
“Hurry up! There’s something behind you that may want you for lunch!”
Jonathan looked behind him and screamed more reminiscent of a young girl than an adult male. He took a running start and jumped. He screamed through the entire jump. He landed short, grabbing the ledge and hanging on for dear life. Phoe tried to help him up, but her right hand was suddenly in tremendous pain. She looked at the other side of the chasm from where they both jumped and saw a pair of red eyes coming out of the darkness. She gazed down at Jonathan.
“Jonathan! Did your father ever tell you there were no monsters?”
“What the hell? Can you help me up, please? And yes, he said there were no monsters!”
“He lied.”
Chapter Thirty
Peter put his hands over his ears to block out the incessant verbal battering by Phoe. He just wanted her to shut up! He told her to stop it, but she wouldn’t. He told her to stop, but he realized he needed to make her stop.
It’s up to him—not her. It’s always been up to him. He always allowed another to decide whether he’d be happy or not. Not this time!
It took every ounce of inner strength he had to stand up and face Phoe, who continued to taunt him. To laugh at him without mercy.
“I don’t need your approval, Phoe.”
Bullshit! Your world is based on my existence!
Peter smiled. “Not anymore. Leave me alone! You don’t own me!”
Phoe’s eyes started to glow orange and red, like sizzling coals. This new turn of events startled him. He turned to run deeper into the passageway. As he ran, fiery warmth came up fast behind him. He glanced over one shoulder and saw fire spreading quickly through the passageway behind him. He ran faster.
***
Gritting her teeth and using every ounce of strength in her, along with a burst of adrenaline which came because of the creature glaring across the chasm at her and preparing to jump, Phoe managed to pull Jonathan up to safety.
They ran as fast as they could through the passageway, until they came upon another chasm. This one was a mere ten feet to reach the other side. Compared to the previous jump, this one seemed incredibly easy. The ledge they landed on opened into a wider passageway than before. Thinking salvation could be near, they ran until they came to a dead end.
“Now what?” Jonathan worried.
“Look!” Phoe pointed to four men coming out from a secret passage in the wall. They each wore pendants around their necks. The familiar swastika and Hammer of Thor graced each pendant.
Phoe aggressively approached the men, making it obvious she was ready to do battle. When they didn’t heed her warning, she launched into an attack that relied on quick punches and kicks. It appeared she was gaining the upper hand, when a deep male voice resounded from nowhere.
“Do you think they inhaled too much?” asked the voice.
“They came very close,” said another similar voice. “Let’s try to bring them out of it.”
Everything suddenly got blurry around her. When she could focus her eyes again, she found herself lying on a stone table. Strapped down, the men she fought were no longer present. Instead, two men wearing the same pendants stood nearby. Craning her neck, she soon discovered Jonathan strapped to a similar table, and the other had Peter confined to it. The struggle to understand what was real versus a hallucination seemed to have been lost. They were really present in something and somewhere that wasn’t real, couldn’t be real.
One of the men appeared to be in his mid-fifties. The other man was Jonathan’s age.
“What’s going on here?” Phoe couldn’t raise her head for long, as she quickly grew dizzy.
The older man approached. He had a pleasant smile and a nature which seemed to calm her. “There is nothing to worry about. You are safe. As are your companions. As soon as you entered the passageways, you were exposed to a non-lethal dose of a hallucinogenic gas.”
Phoe feigned feeling relieved. “Oh, thank goodness. I thought I was going crazy. You can let me go now. I feel much better.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that. You’ve stumbled upon something that can never be seen by anyone’s eyes except members of The Brotherhood of the Hammer. I’m glad you speak German, because it is so troublesome to try to understand Americans.”
His last statement made no sense to Phoe at all. Why would he say that? I can’t speak a word of German—much less understand it clearly. But, I also understand him perfectly in English... So why would I even wish to speak German?
It sounded like Jonathan and Peter were waking up.
Peter groaned. Jonathan sounded as if on the verge of severe panic. She could hear the wheezing of his panic.
“Excuse me, Mr. Brotherhood person.” Phoe smiled sweetly at the older man.
He walked back to her. “What would sie gerne meine Liebe?”
She did a double take. Did he just mix German and English together?
“I’m sorry, could you repeat that?”
He looked at her as if he couldn’t understand her.
“Was meinen sie? Nicht sprechen sie Deutsch?”
“He’s wondering why you don’t speak German anymore,” said Jonathan.
Phoe forced a peaceful smile. “Jonathan, dear... Please tell him that we’re here to become members of The Brotherhood of the Hammer.”
Jonathan cleared his throat. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Okay,” he said, drawing in a deep breath. “Da muss ein Irrtum vorliegen. Wir sind hier, um sich anzumelden Die Bruderschaft der Hammer.”
The younger man approached Jonathan with the older one close behind. When they arrived at the table they mumbled to each other and did a lot of pointing, first a
t Jonathan, then at Phoe.
“Wer sponsert euch in der Bruderschaft?” asked the younger man.
Jonathan glanced in Phoe’s direction. She remained silent, praying Jonathan seized the solo role in this conversation. This was his chance to shine.
“Jeremiah Ruddoc.”
Chapter Thirty-one
Unbound, Phoe stretched out her neck and legs as she smiled at Jonathan. She and Peter deferred all of the talking with the Germans to Jonathan—who had also been released, as had Peter—who seemed to be the new best friend of the Germans.
I still don’t understand how I could have understood that German guy!
The two German men waved goodbye as they made their way through a long, winding well-lit rocky corridor. They kept their voices low.
“Spill it, Jonathan. What were they talking about?” asked Phoe.
“Well, I told them what you told me to tell them, and the old guy asked who our sponsor was. I told him it was Jeremy Riddick, but I used his other name, Jeremiah Ruddoc because I figured there was a reason he had changed it.”
Peter chuckled. “Mr. Riddick will be most unhappy when he finds out!”
Phoe shushed him. “You do realize that we are in some serious shit if Riddick is trying to breathe life back into Nazism, don’t you?”
“Good point,” Peter agreed, turning serious again. “Phoe, I’m also concerned about this gas we were exposed to in the alcove corridor. A mere hallucinogen? Last I checked, there is absolutely nothing on this planet that can cause someone to spontaneously speak and understand a foreign language.”
Phoe nodded thoughtfully, noticing a new opening in the room. “A mystery for another time, I’m afraid. We have arrived... I think?”
Jonathan peered into the passageway over her shoulder. “What are you... holy shit!”
The small corridor seemed to go on for nearly a mile, opening to a large basin. The rocky ceiling above seemed at least one hundred feet high.