The now clean and dripping wet Jack turned to see Coi standing upright and as the beam of sunlight blasted through the dense canopy, her buckskin clothes that cling to every part of her body like a second wet skin caught Jack off guard. He swallowed so hard that he thought he’d ruptured his throat.
“Uh…attraction? I don’t understand…I mean…”
Coi smiled that great smile of hers “I am attracted to you Jack and I wanted you to look at me…and I almost got us killed because I let my guard down and was only thinking about how you might be looking at me…if I was appealing to you.” Jack started to speak but Coi quickly spun and shot a quick glance over her shoulder.
“However, that will not happen again.” she pointed to the fallen tree that Jack had decided to make what would have been a fruitless run towards.
“The tree is hollow and can be used for shelter. The tree has natural things that your people call chemicals that it produces that keep most small dinosaurs away as well as out of it…it is hollow all of the way through. We can crawl through, or walk along the top. However on top we can be seen.”
Jack looked at the surprisingly candid Coi and smiled as he nodded in agreement.
“On top is faster and hopefully with the rexes crashing through the jungle, most everything else is headed in the other direction.”
“Agreed.” Coi smiled and turned once again as she climbed up the river bank and Jack couldn’t help notice her narrow waist as he helped her up “The canopy will keep us from being seen by divers.”
He had let the moment slip by…sort of. And cursed his stupidity for jumping in the river and letting those razor honed teeth break up their moment as Coi’s words rang in his ears…
“However, that will not happen again.” Jack climbed up behind her and muttered “Way to blow it Jack.”
Coi looked back “Did you say something Jack?”
He grinned sheepishly “Nothing important I guess…just cussing myself out for nearly getting eaten by oversized fish.”
“I see.” She replied and spun back to lead. What Jack couldn’t see was the slight smile on her lips.
Chapter 12.
Jack looked at his watch and decided that buying that expensive self-winding watch now had been smarter than getting that battery powered one he had been looking at, the time he had returned from his last tour of duty.
“Nearly four, think we’ll be there soon.” he glanced at her questioningly “Maybe?”
Coi smiled warmly as she reached through a large bunch of vines and pulled them aside to reveal a cliff wall, not more than fifty yards in front of them.
This mesa however, was a far cry from the smaller lift that had been built for them at Mesa 4. All around the rubble that fell from the mesa, were long tree sized stakes at varying angles to stop any sized dinosaur from entering. Some pointed stomach high on a rex, while others head high on triceratops sized creatures. Once they passed through those, there was a line of raptor sized, sharpened lances that protruded in all outward directions. As they approached, a five foot section of the lance wall swung inward to reveal a path for them to enter to the inner debris field near the lift area. There were wide stairs to the top of the field that leveled out and a much larger basket was already awaiting them.
Coi had explained the debris was left just in case a dinosaur did get through the barriers, that even a rex would have a difficult time climbing the loose rocks to the top. Jack noticed even with all the protection, the Mayans had a cave to retreat to, just in case.
From the ride up the view of their lines of defense were staggering; they had obviously been here quite a while.
“Impressive.” Jack muttered as Coi slipped her arm through his.
“Wait until you see our bridge system.” She slowly turned him to their left as the elevator basket rose to the mesa level and covered platform that extended on all sides of the basket once it was fully raised and locked into place; the Mayans were obviously excellent engineers.
This world’s jungles had two to two hundred and fifty foot trees that formed a green canopy that looked as if one could walk across it, but now and then taller trees could be seen. There were few open areas and on the way to Coi’s people, all Jack had seen were the beautiful beams of light that managed to penetrate the canopy.
From Coi’s much higher mesa, Jack could see much clearer to the other mesas to the south and west. Between them, here and there, were the towering giant trees at least one hundred feet higher than the jungle’s canopy.
For the first time Jack could see the huge vine bridges that had taken centuries to weave and grow.
“Back home we have something like this that we called covered bridges.” he chuckled “but nothing that long.” A Mayan opened the woven reed door and the two stepped out as the man gave Coi a strange half bow, half salute.
Coi smiled “Our ancestors wove them around the taller trees for support…” she smiled at the handsome adventurer “again it was Jan’s people. Oh I know Jan isn’t their leader, but we call them Jan’s people because she was their ambr…uh..amby…”
“Ambassador?”
“Yes ambassador…to our people. Now that she decided to live with your people she can be yours if you’d like. I was the ambassador to them, and now to your people.”
“Why ask me?” Jack looked puzzled.
“Because you are now your people’s leader. I understand that your doctor and professor paid for your expedition, but since some of Jan’s people and some of mine came to your mesa to live, they all look to you as the leader,” she laughed “your men always did and even Edward and Doc said that you were in charge.”
Jack was stunned “Well…” he snorted “would have been nice if someone would have told me. Wait, you said you were the ambassador to them?”
“I too have decided to live among your people if you’ll allow me to…if my father will allow me to that is.”
Jack frowned “Why ask me anything, all these people are free to come and go if they want. They can live on our mesa if they want; we have plenty of room. You needn’t ask my permission.”
Coi looked at Jack strangely and sighed. Finally she gave him a smile and put her arm back through his and led him out through a gated wall and through some brush and trees. They suddenly broke out of the undergrowth and before them was a vast stone plaza.
What Jack saw stunned him…it was a city with large flat stone pavement that spanned from building to building. There were several small parks, and some large two and three story structures, and they were built of futz.
The two and three story buildings had wooden spikes protruding from their roofs and long wires and vines zigzagging from roof top to roof top. Jack nodded, he didn’t need an explanation for their purpose as several divers glided effortlessly above in the hot afternoon breezes, but never even attempted to dive on those walking below. The houses or streets that were close together had long straight beams that crossed over from above; they had the limbs cut from all sides but the tops. They had been sharpened so that no diver that flew overhead was going to land on those, or attack the people below.
However Jack saw no sign of anything that he had considered as the Mayan culture that he was familiar with.
They strolled the streets that were alive with shops and stores of all kinds that lined what seemed to be the main streets of a city that Coi said numbered nearly eight hundred. There were shaded streets, like all of the mesas, they too had lush growths of trees and brush, but here it was kept clean and park-like. Like Jack’s crops, they too had identical setups, but much larger.
It wasn’t until they had walked through many blocks of the city that Jack’s curiosity got the best of him.
They were walking towards a high futz wall that towered above the closest buildings and a giant wooden gate with a small human sized door in it.
“You know Coi…” Jack wondered if he should even bring his inner reflections up “back on my world, well…the Mayans built huge stone temple
s and houses. Massive stones, complex pictograph writings, and…”
The two guards at the door did the same greeting as the lift operators had done earlier.
“As I was saying, perhaps you might have something…” Coi laughed and swung the smaller door open and pulled Jack through it.
Jack’s jaw dropped…
“Holy shit!”
There before him and all the way to the southern edge of the nearly treeless mesa were huge megalithic stone temples, several house-like structures; but far too large to be houses, and some sort of unusual structures Jack couldn’t recognize. This area was more open, but on every structure were large wooden canopies and under the canopies were what appeared to be men manning some sort of large ballistae that were well placed around the area.
Coi smiled “We are quite safe Jack, those guards are quite good in their aim. Of course over the years the divers have taught the next generation not to bother us…this is a place of danger to them.” she sort of winced “However now and then maybe an injured one might decide that we’re easy prey…and of course die with a wooden shaft through it.”
She pointed to the guards “They practice hitting targets dragged across the open areas, and I might add, hit them every time. However this area is far too large to suspend wire or vines. ”
“You have an impressive civilization Coi.” he kept eyeing the structures in the distance that appeared to be more like what he was used to seeing.
“Thank you Jack,” she pointed toward the three largest temple-like structures that Jack had seemed to affix his gaze on “This is how my people used to build until the English taught us how to improve the strength of our futz. Learning how to create structures…uh…engineering?” Jack nodded “Engineering frames before putting on futz, we can build up to three heights…stories. I am sorry for…” she frowned “lack of words, I do not use many of these terms in everyday life.”
Jack smiled “For a second language your English is better than mine.”
As they walked arm in arm, several of the closest Mayans made the same gestures at the couple and Jack tried his damnedest to return the same gesture in return…which resulted in even stranger looks and soft girlish giggles from Coi.
Several men in grandiose robes and gigantic multi-colored headdress approached and repeated the gesture, however this time Jack decided that he’d been giggled at enough and just nodded respectfully.
The men were obviously of some import and each seemed to frown as they noticed that Coi had her arm locked in Jack’s. It seemed as if Coi was looking strangely at them and now and then could be noticed shaking her head, but would stop as Jack looked at her.
Finally one of the men frowned and with a confused look on his face…
“You majesty is everything all right…”
A second still slightly bowed at the waist looked up and said “You seem to be acting strangely.”
Jack smiled at the elder, the smiled vanished as he looked at Coi, and then back to the group of elders…and then back to Coi who was now frowning.
“Majesty? Majesty of what?”
The elder that was leading the rest gave Jack a curious look “Why her majesty is our chief’s daughter…and the future queen of all Mayans.”
Jack slowly turned to see Coi roll her eyes, do a slow deep sigh and opened them to see Jack’s mouth agape. “Are you trying to catch a diver in this?” She reached up and gently closed his jaw as she smiled sweetly and was obviously embarrassed by all of this.
“And you intended to tell me when…your majesty?”
“I’m sorry Jack, I was so afraid of how you’d treat me. The English started with bowing and made it almost impossible for me to function in their society. I thought that you might look at me differently if I was just myself.” She smiled warmly “I had Tazen tell all my people to treat me as if I wasn’t a princess. Jack, I really didn’t want anyone to treat me special and your people were new, so Tazen and Jan told their people to ignore me.”
Jack removed his arm from hers and stared at her.
“I’d treat you just as I have been, with respect and admiration for who you are…I don’t understand your…”
“And you didn’t just pull your arm from mine?” Coi smiled as she slid her arm back through his as the elders obviously didn’t approve of her actions.
“I am not their queen as the English would call me, I am but a princess.”
“Yep! And I see that your elders do not approve.” Coi smiled at her elders and pulled Jack along “On the other hand, I am their princess, I can pretty much do as I want…” she turned and smiled at the men that were still standing there in shock “bye guys.”
“Bye guys?”
“I picked that up from Jan.” Coi giggled like a little girl that was having fun teasing a boy in her school “Silly…you have to remember that we have adopted your language, much of your society and traits. Many do not even speak the old language anymore. At first it was looked down upon, but now we have come to realize that we are a new society along with those from the other realities.” She chuckled musically “And it’s much easier to understand one another when we trade or visit.”
Coi pulled Jack along the wide open streets toward the three large temples. As they passed a huge stone structure there was a shout. Coi turned and waved as a tall man in elaborate robes walked toward her…along with a dozen huge men with spears.
No one bowed to Coi this time and as they stopped the man looked at Coi’s arm though Jack’s. He tried to pull it out, but Coi held it fast.
“Coichuchulan…” he looked at Jack with neither a sneer, nor friendship, it was more as if Jack was not there, except…“You have your arm through this being’s arm because?” he looked at Jack with distain “Sir, kindly remove your arm from my daughter.”
“DADDY!” the leader shot his daughter a ridged frozen stare as again Coi stopped Jack from removing his arm.
Jack looked at Coi. “Daddy?” the color drained from Jack’s face as he realized that Coi had pulled his arm upward and it now was pressed firmly against her rather soft left breast. In Jack’s mind all that he could think of, was…
“Oh great…it’s daddy……yea…”
Chapter 13.
With a nod of his head the pair were led to the overly large structure that Jack was quickly becoming aware of that this was Coi’s home and the Mayan palace. Two guards led, and ‘daddy’ and the rest followed.
Once in what appeared to be a rather large and ornate room, the couple sat as the guards left leaving the three alone.
Jack had been commanded to sit on a long plush sofa like seat and Coi quickly sat next to him and again pulled his arm away from his body to slip hers’ in and gripped it tight. This time Jack seemed to notice that hers’ was trembling as her father walked toward them.
Jack was in such turmoil mentally that he didn’t know whether to worry or smile. Coi’s father had spoken to them in prefect English, spoken to the guards in what Coi whispered to him was ancient Mayan. Now he took long plodding strides toward them and was dressed in white and gold adorned silk robes with a huge headdress adorned with gold, emeralds, and turquoise. He was impressive, and quite honestly worrisome. Not so much for Jack, but he feared that Coi was deeply in trouble.
The white haired chief removed his headdress and placed it on a standing rack, carefully adjusted it, and stepped back to make sure it was straight; a man of precision. He turned and looked at the pair as Coi had scooted about as close to Jack as was humanly possible. Slowly he paced carefully placed steps with a stone face that worried Jack.
“Sir…” Jack spoke as he rose, but Coi pulled him back into this seat as the chief waved him down.
“Sir!” Jack pulled free from Coi and stood as the chief stepped to within a foot of the adventurer. He looked deeply into the chief’s eyes, his weathered face that was framed by shoulder length snow white hair.
“Sir, your daughter and I are friends, I mean no disrespect, nor do I
mean to insult you or your traditions.”
The stone faced chief looked at Jack, and then slowly his gaze drifted to his daughter.
“It would seem that the man that you have chosen for a friend jumps up to defend your honor.”
“He’s like that daddy.”
The chief looked back at Jack and his head nodded “Then it would seem that a man like this is worthy of my daughter’s company. However…”
Coi leapt to her feet and ran to her father’s arms “I missed you daddy.”
“And I you my child.” he pushed Coi back to arm’s length and a grin appeared.
“I would think we have teased your gentleman friend enough.”
He reached around Coi and extended his hand “I am…” he looked at his daughter “ok, Quta…” again he smiled, “the name is much longer, but you English seem to have such a difficult time with our language and names…Jack isn’t it?”
Coi smiled as Jack shook ‘daddy’s hand “We are sorry Jack, I could see daddy was going to give you a hard time in front of the guards and people walking about.”
Jack nodded “I understand sir, had I know that you daughter was a princess, I would have…”
Quta smiled “With my Coi, it would have mattered not Jack. My girl is headstrong and has a rather determined way about her. However, I would have preferred that she decide to choose a Mayan to be, uhhh, friends with. You seem to have smitten my daughter and she has impeccable tastes…and in the past rejected every Mayan suitor.”
DADDY!” Coi’s bronzed beauty turned a brilliant red as Jack sputtered…
“Oh, no! We…er, aren’t…” Jack took a breath “We are friends, sir…friends.”
Quta smiled at his daughter and made some sound that Jack couldn’t decide if it was a harrumph or a snorted half laugh as he looked at Coi and turned to walk away. Over his shoulder he chuckled “Of course you’ll join us for dinner.”
“Sir, I’m not sure if I…”
“He will daddy, thank you.”
As Jack looked quickly to Coi, the chief laughed “Of course you will Jack, I know my daughter.”
Jurassic Portal Page 8
