The 5th Amulet

by SJ Hailey

  Archer and Thorpe could hear Enzi screaming as the crocodiles started to eat him.

  ‘Thanks Thorpe.’

  ‘Call it professional courtesy, one thing I did learn in the Army, never leave a man behind.’

  ‘What did you get kicked out for anyway?’

  ‘They said I was inherently unsuitable for Army life.’

  ‘That is MP for violent and nasty, you don’t seem that type.’

  ‘I’m not. We were on a training exercise and our CO put us at risk, got two people killed. I punched him out.’

  ‘And they kicked you out for that, a bit harsh.’

  ‘Well it was a bit more than punched out, he retaliated and it was a bad fight. He walks with a stick now.’

  ‘Now that they will kick you out for.’

  ‘I suggest we leave before we become dessert.’

  Archer was not going to disagree; he tore some of his t-shirt, covered his wound, applied pressure. The boat was not far ahead, and Thorpe’s team had it prepped and ready. Archer decided to leave with them, not wanting to risk returning to the complex with such a heavy wound. One of the team patched him up, while Thorpe’s group took him back to the Arcadia.

  FORTY THREE

  The storm reached its height, the strikes on the four towers were rapid, at forty-five kilometres a second, it would get from London to Paris in seven seconds. The crystals on the tops glowing as the temperature from the strikes reached twenty eight thousand degrees centigrade, hot enough to fuse soil or sand into glass, but only causing the blue crystal to glow with the force of raw violent energy.

  The sky was black and grey, mixing and swelling as the rain precipitated persistently, huge droplets battering the undergrowth. There was no sign of it abating, La gente de la luz azul had assisted in unleashing a true leviathan of storms, it was spread over one hundred miles in diameter and reached fifteen miles into the atmosphere.

  Augusta Fabiola knew that the levels of energy stored beneath them were rapidly approaching maximum, if they did not discharge soon, the complex would do so automatically. Why had Osvaldo Roderigo not initiated the fifth amulet?

  Below in the chamber Mastasson was shouting furiously at Jacob, Osvaldo Roderigo and Katherine, ‘Get me down, this was not part of the deal, you tricked me!’

  Jacob stood near the dome, knowing he had little time to explain, ‘Vincent, you have control of the complex now, your hand and connection to the fifth amulet is the trigger to fire it.’

  ‘Trigger? I can feel no trigger inside this stone block!’

  Osvaldo Roderigo stepped in, ‘What Jacob means is that you ARE the trigger.’

  ‘What! Get me down, I’ve changed my mind!’

  ‘And that is exactly why the complex was designed this way. You cannot change your mind, this cannot be stopped.’

  As Mastasson screamed his objections, the three spectators retreated up the stone steps which closed and retracted behind them, sealing Mastasson in.

  Mastasson looked up and could just see the glowing obelisks, and far above, the keystone. Darkness outside disappeared as the lightning strikes ricocheted off the jungle. Beside him a curtain of thin blue translucent light was coming down from the hole in the roof above him, and fitting exactly round the dome in the floor. The curtain extended up to meet with the hatch that opened in the roof and allowed the keystone to leave. He looked down, and the walkway and dome he had stood on to insert the amulet began to retract.

  The dome separated into two halves, slowly pulling apart and revealing a large blue crystal in the centre, metres across. The eyelids of stone disappeared into the floor. Below the crystal and unseen to anyone but Augusta Fabiola a second set of lids retracted connecting the crystal in the floor, with the contained energy of the complex. Mastasson realised what he had done, and what he was to become. He began to scream, a deep primal scream of absolute terror, rarely heard by anything but voracious predators during a kill.

  Jacob, Osvaldo Roderigo and Katherine were standing near the entrance hatch on the right side of the domed chamber. Osvaldo Roderigo told them to look away from the centre of the room.

  ‘What about the people in the obelisks?’ Jacob was concerned for their safety.

  ‘They will be fine Jacob, the blue field protects them and there is another field which protects us from what’s coming.

  They heard the violent scream issuing from Mastasson, the sound permeating through the vibration prevalent in the chamber.

  At the towers surrounding the complex, positive lightning had been striking for over ten minutes, the repeated hits of energy travelling down their crystal cores and into the earth below. The black stones controlled and constricted the flow of power, directing it to the conduits buried in the valleys. These two kilometre long corridors of crystal and stone absorbed the energy, each molecule storing to its maximum capacity, ready to unleash on command. The two black stone shields in the fifth amulet chamber allowed the conduit to empty, in the only direction possible. The crystal in the floor directed the energy up and at the keystone, which refocused the energy into a tight spinning beam, then outwards to its target.

  Mastasson could not see after the blue light began to rise around him, his retina’s burnt out almost immediately, he lived for a few more seconds before his body was completely incinerated. He felt his flesh and muscle tissue begin to melt from his bones, before the nerves themselves disintegrated and his spinal cord ignited. After just a few seconds all trace of Vincent Mastasson had disappeared, carried away with the energy bolt, towards the stars.

  The energy bolt connected with the keystone, striking the first circle, the crystals refocusing and redirecting the energy to the next circle. Finally the five large crystals were struck with the full magnified energy and they pushed the immense power on out towards its target. All within milliseconds.

  The blue white energy bolt lit up the black clouds causing them to appear silver for just a few seconds as it passed through them. A path of clear sky was created as the heat evaporated any moisture that existed. Within seconds it was at the top of the atmosphere and approaching its target, the falling space platform.

  FORTY FOUR

  Ian Fisher watched the display with apathy, knowing that his inaction or ineptitude would cause the deaths of thousands of people and the suffering of countless others from radiation poisoning. He had opened the bottle of Glenfiddich whiskey he’d remembered seeing in the project leaders’ desk, breaking the drawer lock to access it. He was little concerned with the consequences, they were going to roast him anyway. He sipped at the generous glass, the twenty one year old single malt gave a balance of vanilla, toffee and hints of new leather, an interesting and pleasurable combination. The price label said one hundred and fifty dollars, and he was graciously enjoying every last cent of it. He thought that the effect of the drink had affected his eyesight, the display on his computer changing, something flashing rapidly. He sat up, getting a head rush from the change in position, and replaced his glasses to focus on the blinking text. He jumped out of his seat, throwing the contents of his glass up the wall, an expensive redecoration but he didn’t care.

  Augusta Fabiola could feel the sweat on the back of her neck, a narrow escape, the energy release just clipping the edge of the complex’s tolerance. Kevin could see the object disappear from his display, the text showing the object was destroyed, small parts burning up in the upper atmosphere, a trickle of small red dots, even when he magnified the display.

  Jacob turned and looked back towards the centre of the room; the energy beam had left no scorching or scarring anywhere. The obelisks and their occupants were unharmed, the blue shields slipping back into the floor. Kevin, Lucio Andres, Dalia Maria and Augusta Fabiola all exited their places, appearing warm but safe and all smiling.

  Katherine finally asked the question, ‘What happened to Mastasson, how was he the trigger?’

  ‘Perhaps you would like to explain Osvaldo Roderigo?’

  Leaving Katherine w
ith the old man, Jacob walked over and congratulated Kevin on his achievement, ‘Well done my boy, brilliant! How did you find it?’

  ‘Tiring but great, very warm.’

  ‘Well I think I may buy you a beer when we get home.’

  Kevin heartily shook Jacob’s hand.

  ‘Katherine, this place was not designed as a weapon, although it possesses great power. The builders wanted it to defend the Earth and its people from any objects that may threaten life, asteroids and comets. They built it so that at a specific moment we could harness and focus energy created by the Earth itself, and destroy virtually any object that was a threat.’

  ‘Jacob said something about Tunguska?’

  ‘Yes that was us, with help from others.’

  ‘You destroyed a comet?’

  ‘Yes, not perfectly, but it worked.’

  ‘And how can it not be used as a weapon?’

  ‘Look down into the chamber, do you see Mr Mastasson?’

  Katherine stepped cautiously forward, seeing no blue light from below, she leaned over, and could only see the black cylinder.

  ‘I don’t see him, he’s gone, no body, nothing. Vaporised?’

  ‘Yes. The only way to trigger the complex; is by inserting the fifth amulet into that cylinder. But in doing so you are committing your very life to save others.’

  ‘So he made the ultimate sacrifice?’

  ‘Yes he did, but without realising it. I told him he would control the power of the complex, which was true.’

  ‘But you did not tell him of the consequences of it, you tricked him?’

  ‘No I told him what he wanted to hear, and it was a version of the truth. Had Mastasson not taken the amulet, then either I or Jacob would have done so.’

  ‘You would do that?’

  ‘That is the commitment of being a member of La gente de la luz azul, to protect and sacrifice.’

  ‘So every time this is fired someone has to die? Why build it with that function?’

  ‘I think I understand the reason. History has shown many leaders who will use great and powerful weapons against their perceived enemies. But none of them were prepared to sacrifice themselves in order to achieve their goals.’

  ‘Too selfish?’

  ‘I think so, only someone who is selfless can use the fifth amulet.’

  ‘Mastasson was not selfless.’

  ‘No, he was selfish, and he paid with his life. But in a positive way, he prevented a disaster, so his death served a purpose.’

  While they were talking the keystone had silently returned, lowering itself back into the centre of the room, its crystals no longer visible, the floor perfectly flat. The four obelisks withdrew back into the floor, regurgitating their respective amulets, leaving only the black pyramids showing. Augusta Fabiola collected them, and wrapped them delicately, replacing them in the rucksack, noticing they were not even warm.

  Osvaldo Roderigo walked down to the other chamber, and retrieved the fifth amulet, which was lying on the walkway in the floor. It had fallen out of the cylinder, clean and black, with no sign of Mastasson’s damaged arm inside it. The keystone was already in place above him, the chamber was back ready for the next time. He placed the prized amulet in his bag, and casually slung it over his shoulder, he was never expecting to leave this chamber today, but he was and would see his children again.

  Katherine noticed her necklace had stopped glowing, as had all the other occupants of the complex, she held it up looking at it. Augusta Fabiola saw her, ‘It will call you again, will you answer?’

  ‘Call me here?’

  ‘Yes, when you are needed.’

  ‘I will come, and I will see you again, even if it does not call. To talk about my mother.’

  ‘That would be nice, she would have liked that.’

  La gente de la luz azul all followed back up the stairs to the surface, passing the perforated corpse of Christophe Laurent on the stairs. Jacob and Katherine left him where he fell, they did not want to carry him back with them. Laurent would remain as a warning to others. Ironic he should become a relic, a body to be discovered by future explorers.

  The storm started to dissipate; the clouds broke up as the powerful atmospheric disturbance dissipated. Jacob knew that it would linger for hours yet, and the rain would continue to fall miles from them, and swell rivers for hundreds of miles. He also knew that the rainforest would cope, as it always had, and that their manipulation of the weather, for a brief period, would have no long-term effects on the environment.

  The group moved back to the wall, passing the bodies of Enzi’s men and knowing that Archer had done his job, and they could travel safely back to the Osprey and away from the area. There were no speeches, comments or laughter, the group absorbing the enormity of their achievement, not dwelling upon it. The jungle was quiet, the storm moving away and the once deafening thunder strangely absent. No one spoke on the return walk to the aircraft, until Katherine broke into a run near the Osprey, a beeping audible above her rapid movement through the bushes.

  Jacob caught up with her, ‘What is it?’

  ‘Proximity alert, we have company. An E3 Sentry, a way off, but definitely closing on our position.’

  ‘They must have detected the complex’s pulse.’

  ‘Hard not to, considering the size of it.’

  ‘So they know it is here, or will do soon.’

  ‘Even with the lake over it, if they follow the emission point of the pulse back, they will find it, a Sentry can see everything.’

  ‘We have to tell Osvaldo Roderigo.’

  ‘Tell me what Jacob?’

  Jacob informed him of the approaching spy plane, and the possible consequences of its appearance.

  ‘We have to go back Jacob. And destroy the complex.’

  ‘You cannot destroy it! It’s invaluable, irreplaceable.’

  ‘It is discovered, you must understand, we cannot have any government with access to this technology. They are not ready.’

  Jacob understood Osvaldo Roderigo’s reason, he knew what men were capable of with conventional weapons. He was sure they would find a way to exploit the technology for malevolent means, as Mastasson had.

  ‘What do we do?’

  ‘You get out of here, I will destroy the complex.’

  ‘How?’

  ‘There is a place where you put all amulets from this complex, and that will signal a sequence to destroy itself.’

  Jacob went to tell Katherine what was happening, when he looked around and saw Osvaldo Roderigo already running back towards the complex, his backpack with all the amulets, firmly held in place.

  FORTY FIVE

  The E3 Sentry was based on a four engine Boeing 707 airframe, a design tried and tested. Known across the world as AWACS, Airborne Warning and Control System, and applied to many different aircraft, but the E3 was distinctive. It had a huge rotating black radar dome, which looked like a pair of plates glued together. Having this object mounted on top of the aircraft gave it some unique flight characteristics, but even with this the E3 had a near perfect safety record. This aircraft had flown from Manta Airbase in Ecuador, where it was supporting the war on drugs, patrolling the border area. With its arsenal of electronics it could see, hear and detect anything for hundreds of miles.

  The aircraft had already been on station for over six hours, travelling to the coast of Panama to oversee an air strike on a confirmed terrorist camp. The crew had photographed, scanned and processed every aspect of the target, confirming underground structures, surface to air missile units, and attack aircraft. As they flew at a safe distance and high altitude the fourteen mission specialists aboard provided real time imaging and analysis for the command centre in the Pentagon. Once the threat from the island was assessed as real, and there was no contradiction with any known special operations, the order was given.

  The E3 remained on station, while a C130 loaded with a MOAB proceeded to target. With Two F16’s in support it unceremoni
ously dropped the twenty one ton weapon out of its rear door. The MOAB drogue parachute deployed, dragging the cradle and the weapon out of the rear of the plane, after a few feet the cradle fell away and the guiding fins deployed to guide the weapon to target, using GPS.

  The E3 watched and monitored as the MOAB fell over four miles, increasing speed, until it made contact with the reinforced roof of Mastasson’s office. The velocity of the weapon pulverized the concrete and continued into the elevator shaft; free-fall took it right to the basement. When the eighteen tons of high explosive detonated, the force of the blast destroyed every single part of the structure that had survived Mastasson’s excessive incineration. The mushroom cloud that emanated from underground ballooned up above the island, causing a media frenzy in Panama of a possible nuclear accident. The US issued a statement with the Panamanian government regarding the actual cause later. There was a reason it was nicknamed the mother of all bombs.

  With the task complete, and no detection of anyone, or any structure left intact on the island, the E3 turned southeast, heading for routine patrol of the border. The pilot warned the crew of possible turbulence from an unusually large thunderstorm that was developing over the coast of Ecuador. There was an immense amount of RF interference and the radar images of the area showed an intense amount of electrical activity. The E3 adjusted course to avoid flying into the projected path of the storm, and updated its patrol path with Manta Air Base accordingly.

  They were just on the edge of their sensor range when a huge energy emission came from the jungle, a blue light that filled the flight deck, even from over one hundred fifty miles away. The pilot requested permission to investigate, and was informed that recent intelligence had flagged a possible site of anti-satellite weapons in the area.

  The pilots were both experienced and the odds of any such technology being in the Ecuador rainforest were quite remote. However, orders were orders, and they requested to launch their drones to inspect, to stop having to fly into the storm over the area. Manta base authorised the use of the experimental drones without hesitation.