by V M Jones
“Go get some sleep, Boss,” he said noticing how tired his mentor looked.
As he slowly made his way to the couch where he slept, he kept going over the events of the past night. He tried to lie down and get some sleep but couldn’t. He felt responsible for the attempted abduction of Ansley but more so for the death of Euan. He should have been more careful. Something from the paranormal was after them yet he didn’t know why.
He needed answers but knew that until he had information from Dr. Ryan’s research, he wouldn’t be able to come up with a theory.
He got up and checked with his team about mid-morning.
“Nothing else has happened,” reported Aine dutifully. “I took over watch from Brody about 9:00 this morning.”
“That’s good,” replied Dr. McNamara as he tried to hide a yawn with his hand.
“The equipment hasn’t shown any activity since last night,” added Aine.
“What can we do to protect ourselves?” asked Brody with concern for their safety.
“I don’t know yet,” responded Dr. McNamara, “But I’ll figure something out. I can’t let anything like last night happen again. I suggested to Brian Corrigan that we have the excavation team work on the sides of the tower and stay away from the front. He agreed.”
The rest of the day went without any problems. As night began to fall, Dr. McNamara could tell everyone was starting to feel uneasy.
“I’ll take a watch tonight again,” he told the group feeling it was his duty.
“No, I’ll take the first watch,” said Brody abruptly. “Besides, the alarm on the equipment will notify us if there’s any increase in paranormal activity.”
Dr. McNamara relented and went to the couch to sleep. He hadn’t slept much the night before and was very tired. He drifted off to sleep within a few minutes.
Brody was sitting in a chair not far from the back door. Everyone else had gone to bed.
Aine walked over and sat in a chair next to Brody.
“Why aren’t you asleep?” asked Brody as he watched Aine sit down next to him.
“I’m not sleepy yet. Besides, I thought you could use the company for a couple of hours,” Aine replied trying to get comfortable in the old chair.
“I appreciate that,” said Brody leaning back and smiling.
“I brought my tablet with a movie I downloaded,” said Aine smiling back at him.
“Sounds good to me. That should take up some time,” he replied appreciating her company.
Aine set up a small table in front of them and turned on the movie.
Brody turned to his side and looked at Aine. He enjoyed working with her. Being around her.
Aine glanced over and noticed him looking at her.
They starred into each other’s eyes for a few moments.
Aine reached over and touched Brody’s arm. Her touch felt warm in the cool night. He reached over and put his hand over hers.
Brody leaned over his chair towards Aine’s face.
She leaned over to his.
As they were about to kiss the alarm on the equipment began to go off. Brody and Aine jumped up out of their chairs and ran over to the equipment.
The K II meter was spiking.
They heard a small pop as they saw a blue light begin to form just in front of the tower.
“What do we do?” asked Aine excitedly.
“I’m not sure,” replied Brody in unbelief.
He looked around for anything he could use to protect himself and Aine.
The blue light began to get bigger. Brody and Aine began to panic. They had to do something.
Aine pointed over to the mound of dirt that was being held back by the wooden wall built by the excavation team. The makeshift wall was all that was keeping the dirt from the mountainside from falling back onto the excavated area in front of the tower.
Brody and Aine ran to either side of the wooden wall. Aine was furthest away from the tower and Brody was nearest the structure. They each took a sledgehammer that had been used to drive the wooden spikes to hold the wall and began hitting the sides of the spikes to loosen them.
They could see a form starting to come through the blue light.
Suddenly the wooden wall gave way and the dirt behind it began to fall down towards the front of the tower. It poured into the blue light knocking the form back into it.
Aine stepped back out of the way from the landslide.
Brody had nowhere to go except back against the tower wall.
The blue light faded until it disappeared along with some of the mass of dirt.
The alarm woke Dr. McNamara who came running out the back door. Brian Corrigan and a few of his team also came running to the tower.
Aine climbed up to the top of the dirt pile over to where Brody was. The dirt held back by the wooden wall had nowhere to go except down around the tower structure. Brody was trapped between the small landslide and the tower itself, partially burying him up to his chest as the dirt poured down around him.
“Please help me get Brody out!” shouted Aine to Dr. McNamara when she saw him running towards them.
Both Aine and Dr. McNamara frantically began digging with their hands around Brody.
“What happened?” asked Dr. McNamara as he dug into the dirt.
“The blue light began to form again. Another apparition tried to come through so we let loose the pile of dirt to stop it,” replied Brody with difficulty.
“It seemed to work because it pushed the apparition back into the light and then faded,” added Aine as she continued digging.
“Good thinking you two,” said Dr. McNamara. “Although it almost cost you your life.”
They dug down to Brody’s legs. Dr. McNamara grabbed Brody under his arms and began pulling. Aine continued to dig with her hands as Dr. McNamara pulled.
The dirt around him soon gave way and they were able to pull Brody out of the pile. He lost his shoes in the process.
“I needed new shoes anyway,” said Brody looking at his feet. “Thanks to both of you for getting me out,” he added appreciating their efforts.
Brian reached the tower and looked at the pile of dirt in front that he and his crew had worked so hard to clear.
“Who did this?” he demanded looking at the others.
Brody pointed at Aine while Aine pointed at Brody.
“Sorry about that Brian but it was the only thing they could do to stop whatever was trying to come through the blue light,” said Dr. McNamara apologetically.
“I guess it couldn’t be helped,” Brian said with a sigh.
“At least we stopped another attack from the paranormal,” said Brody trying to justify the mess.
“Aye, you did,” said Dr. McNamara as he nodded his head in agreement.
The three began to re-adjust the equipment that had been knocked down by the mini landslide.
After they were satisfied that the equipment was working properly, they sat down.
“You two have had enough excitement for the night,” said Dr. McNamara. “Go get some sleep. I’ll keep watch.”
“No, it’s my turn,” said Brian interrupting him. “They’re not going to get anyone else on my team. Besides, I already have enough of a mess to clean up.”
Dr. McNamara, Brody, and Aine went off to bed.
9 first steps into an old world
Two days after going to the museum in Dublin, Dr. Ryan was back at the Murphy home outside of Cahir
Dr. Ryan sat down with Dr. McNamara, Aine, Brody, and Brian.
“While you were gone we lost Euan. Two soldiers passed through a blue light from the tower and tried to abduct Ansley. Euan tried to stop them and was killed by one of the soldiers. They almost had Ansley to the blue light but were stopped just before passing through the portal,” said Dr. McNamara with a solemn demeanor.
Dr. Ryan was devastated. He recalled meeting the young man just a few days before.
“Can I see Euan’s body?” he asked wanting to pay his respec
t.
“He’s already gone. We’ve been working with Garda Bracken from the Cahir station. He took Euan’s body to the morgue and will keep things under wraps for as long as he can. Probably no longer than a week,” replied Dr. McNamara in a quiet voice.
“It was his first dig. It shouldn’t have ended this way for him,” Brian said shaking his head.
“We should notify his family. Yet I don’t want to jeopardize any chance of getting Tevan back. It’s good we have an ally inside the Gardaí. That will buy us some time,” said Dr. Ryan still visibly upset at the young man’s death.
“I hope you found information that will explain what’s been happening around here,” said Dr. McNamara with a sigh.
“In fact I have,” said Dr. Ryan as he leaned forward in his chair. “The two men dressed as soldiers will make sense once I tell you what I have found from my research. With your expertise in the supernatural and the events of the past couple of days, I think we can piece this puzzle together.”
Dr. Ryan proceeded to tell them of his research from the ancient book. He retold the history of the buried kingdom and its relationship to the tower behind the Murphy home.
“Liam, from what I have told you, what do you think the connection is between this story, Tevan’s disappearance, and the attempted abduction of Ansley?” asked Dr. Ryan.
“My guess is that since the king and the witch were using the occult to control the kingdom, more than likely they are the ones behind the current supernatural occurrences,” replied Dr. McNamara.
“And now that the protective symbol has been removed, it must have given them some limited access to our world,” said Dr. Ryan as he began to understand the relationship.
“Aye, but why do they need the lad and Ansley?” Dr. McNamara asked thinking out loud.
“Well, they’ve been in the netherworld for centuries with no way of escape,” Aine pointed out.
“And they are going to do whatever they can to get out of the netherworld,” Brody quickly added.
“We know they both have enough ambition for power and control no matter what the cost,” said Dr. McNamara as the group seemed to be forming a hypothesis. “I suspect that they need Tevan for some kind of spell to help them get back into the real world. I’m not sure how they can use Tevan but it won’t be good. We can’t let them use him or anyone else.”
After coming to a consensus of a plausible theory, they sat down with Patrick and Ansley and did their best to piece together what had happened to Tevan and where he might be.
“The tower we’re excavating is likely the northeast corner of a complete castle,” said Dr. Ryan, gesturing with his hands.
“The metal object that Declan removed from the tower was a protective symbol that had been placed there to keep a witch named Faelan, an evil king named Dubhshlaine, and their army trapped inside the castle. Its removal has somehow provided the evil king and witch access to our world,” said Dr. McNamara elaborating on their theory.
“We aren’t sure why Tevan was taken or the reason behind the attempted abduction of Ansley but they have something to do with them trying to get back into the living world,” said Dr. Ryan glancing from Dr. McNamara to the Murphys.
“So the soldiers that tried to take me were under the control of this Faelan,” said Ansley realizing what had happened.
“Aye, and Tevan is probably in the netherworld because of her,” replied Dr. McNamara, nodding his head.
“Can you get into the castle and get Tevan back?” asked Patrick.
“We should be able to get into the castle within a few days,” said Dr. Ryan reassuring him.
“The problem is that Tevan may not be in the castle in our world,” said Dr. McNamara trying not to frighten them. “He may be in another world or dimension.”
“Then he might still be alive even after a week without food?” asked Ansley feeling a little relieved.
“I’m sure he is,” replied Dr. Ryan giving her a nod.
“If we went into the castle now, we would find it unoccupied,” said Dr. McNamara. “Our plan is to explore the castle to get its layout and design.”
“That way we will know how to move around the castle when we get into the netherworld where Tevan is. Right now, the only way to get into their world is the same way that Tevan did, which is being captured,” said Dr. Ryan nodding at Dr. McNamara.
“That wouldn’t give us control over the situation. We prefer to find a better way in without the king and the witch knowing we are there. We know it’s possible to get in so there has to be a way out. We’ll figure it out,” said Dr. McNamara reassuring them and crossing his arms.
“Please do whatever you can,” pleaded Ansley as she clasped her hands. “I just want him back.”
The group left the Murphy family and went to follow up on their various tasks. Dr. McNamara and his team began researching all they could find on portals to the supernatural world. They also had been researching and tracking solar and lunar activity for any possible connection to increased supernatural activity.
“There’s going to be a lunar eclipse in about a week,” reported Aine with a worried look.
“That’s not a good sign. Taking Tevan a couple of weeks before a lunar eclipse is not a coincidence,” said Dr. McNamara as his eyebrows narrowed showing his concern.
He immediately left to find Dr. Ryan.
“I’m worried about what King Dubhshlaine and Faelan are planning,” said Dr. McNamara upon finding Dr. Ryan near the tower. “It was a lunar eclipse centuries ago that they were going to use in an attempt to conquer the world. They abducted Tevan just prior to another lunar eclipse. But it’s not just a lunar eclipse, it’s also a blood moon.”
“That bothers me as well,” replied Dr. Ryan as he glanced up towards the sky.
“With the seal removed from the castle tower, and the abduction of Tevan, plus a lunar eclipse, it all spells trouble. King Dubhshlaine and Faelan are definitely planning something,” said Dr. McNamara growing very uneasy.
The two agreed that the lunar eclipse was the deadline for completing their rescue of Tevan and stopping King Dubhshlaine and Faelan.
Dr. Ryan focused his attention on the excavating of the castle tower. The plan that he and the IPP had been devising would require exploring all of the passageways of the castle in the living world to provide a map of the castle for those who would attempt a rescue of Tevan in the netherworld.
Dr. Ryan had borrowed an experimental digital recording device from the museum. It was about the size of small computer that was connected to a battery pack. Attached to the computer module were two cameras located on the front and back of the helmet. Microphones extended from either side of the backpack holding the device. A sonar antenna was attached to the top. Floodlights shining to the front and back were attached to the top of the helmet to provide lighting for the cameras. The device recorded digital visual, audio, and sound waves to get an accurate dimensional view of the room or chamber being explored. The device synced up with a computer downloaded with software that could interpret the data and create a 3-dimensional picture of the structure being explored.
Dr. Ryan had used this new technology on another excavation site. He felt it would be a tremendous help to have a digital map when it came time to rescue Tevan. He called it the DRD, dimensional recording device.
Under normal circumstances, Dr. Ryan preferred a painstakingly slow approach to excavation. However, with Tevan’s life at stake and the upcoming lunar eclipse, he was motivated to find an entrance into the castle.
After a few days, the excavation of the castle tower was at a stage that the face of it was in full view. There was no heavy equipment so the excavation team from the museum used picks, shovels, and wheelbarrows to remove the dirt in front of the tower. They had dug down the sides of the tower to try to locate the top of the castle walls.
As a result of the excavation they created a large ditch with gentle sloping sides. They finally excavated the tower to a point w
here the entire top of the castle tower and four meters down the sides were completely visible. The tower was approximately 8 meters in diameter. They had uncovered another loophole on the face of the tower which also had the protective symbol placed above it. The excavation team had been careful that it was not removed.
The trap door on top of the tower was found and cleared. A ladder was placed against the tower wall to provide access to the top of the tower.
Dr. Ryan sat down with Dr. McNamara and his paranormal team to discuss the exploration of the castle.
“After reading what Prince Nuallan and his army went through, I’m sure we are going to have some encounter with the supernatural,” said Dr. Ryan cautioning the others.
“I agree,” said Dr. McNamara nodding his head.
“I will need two others to go with me into the castle. I need Dr. McNamara’s expertise in the supernatural, so we will need one of you to help with the equipment,” he said looking at Aine and Brody.
“Brody, I need you to continue your research on portal generators and keep all the equipment running top side,” said Dr. McNamara.
“I guess I’m the lucky one,” said Aine as everyone was looking at her.
“Liam, what can we do to protect ourselves from any attacks from the unseen world?” asked Dr. Ryan worried about their experiences from the past several days.
“You mean besides running?” said Dr. McNamara with a smile. “We really don’t have any defensive equipment but once we get an idea of what we’re up against, we’ll figure something out.”
“Somehow that doesn’t make me feel any safer but we’ve been in some dangerous places before haven’t we,” said Dr. Ryan reflecting on previous adventures with Dr. McNamara.
“Aye, we have. The Scotland dig was memorable,” said Dr. McNamara with a grin.
“I’m trying to forget that one,” replied his colleague with a sigh.
He then returned to discussing their exploration of the castle.
“This first expedition will also be a test of the air inside the castle. It’s been buried for centuries and we can’t be sure of its oxygen content or if it’s still breathable. We’ll have to take some tanks of air this trip just to be safe. We’ll communicate with the surface through the hands free radios.”