by Bill Craig
Otto Haustfrau stood on the island below, trying to stay dry by walking in a narrow area below the body of the Zeppelin. Franz was below as well, the two of them set as guards to protect the morning lines so that the ship could not be set adrift in the storm. While technically they were the captain’s men, they were under strict orders from Sturmbannfurher Klausen to secure the safety of the airship.
Otto was nearing the edge of the island when he heard a blood-curdling scream from the far end. Grabbing up his rifle he ran towards the sound. Had something happened to Franz? Otto skidded to a halt, his eyes going wide in terror as Franz’s head thudded to the wet ground in front of him. He didn’t even have time to scream before huge talons ripped into his body!
Chapter Eighteen
Lightning ripped across the darkness of the sky thunder crashing so loud it made the earth shake. Raindrops beat heavily on the canvas tents. Jake Fortune looked out into the darkness. He had the flame turned down low in his lantern so the glow would not backlight him to anyone that could be concealed in the darkness.
There was danger out there, lurking in the shadows, hidden by the darkness of the night. He could feel it. He suddenly wished that they were farther away from the swamp. He couldn’t explain the sense of foreboding. But it was there. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
He thought about his last conversation with Glory Newkirk. She had agreed to dinner if they survived this expedition. Jake chuckled to himself. It was progress. She had hated him at first sight. She had eventually started to accept him. Maybe saving her from the Nazis had tipped the scales in his favor. He pulled out a cigar and bit the end off, spitting it outside the tent before firing it up.
Smoking helped him think, and right now, he had a lot of thinking to do. The Nazis were gaining on them, that was a fact. And as soon as the storm let up, he was pretty sure that they would be in the air. Chac had shown him the map earlier and they had plotted out the quickest course to reach their destination and the mysterious Temple of Kukulkan.
He still wasn’t sure how he felt about gemstones with magical powers. But giant emeralds would be worth a lot of money. He considered that for a long time. Jake Fortune shook his head. He was being paid to get Glory Newkirk back to New York alive. That was what he needed to focus on.
Wolfgang Schmidt was looking out the window of the Zeppelin when a bright flash of lightning illuminated the outside world. He was looking down towards where one of the ground guards should be, but the man wasn’t there. Schmidt frowned as he squinted into the returning darkness. He headed for the control room.
“Bern, Schrade, go down and check on the security team on the ground,” Schmidt ordered.
“Yes, Sir!” they replied, grabbing their guns and heading for the hatch. Bern pulled the hatch open and Schrade tossed out the rope ladder. Bern was the first on to start descending. Schmidt watched them descend into the shadows below as the storm railed around the airship.
Heinrich Bern closed his eyes against the stinging rain that battered his body as he made his way slowly down the swaying rope ladder. He could feel the added weight making it more stable as Arnold Schrade started down after him. The wind howled around him as he slid his foot inside the rope to the next rung of the ladder. Lower and lower he descended, until finally his boot touched muddy ground.
Bern breathed a sigh of relief. He held the ladder steady until Schrade was on the ground beside him. Lightning flashed again and thunder roared above their heads. Given the fury of the storm, Bern was happier to have semi-solid ground under his feet.
The airship above was too fragile in the face of the storm that raged above them. One lightning strike could destroy it, blowing the hydrogen gas bags in an instant. He turned and walked towards the rear where one of the guards was supposed to be patrolling. Schrade headed in the other direction.
Bern turned on his electric torch and shined it around, searching for the guard. The light couldn’t penetrate the darkness and rain very well. He muttered a curse and he aimed it towards the ground to see where he was going. He could see boot prints in the mud as followed the trail that the man had obviously walked. Then the boot prints disappeared. Just like that, they were gone. What had happened to the man? Bern scratched his head.
Then he heard a loud splat to his left. He spun, shining the light to the left. His mouth dropped open and his eyes widened in horror as the light gleamed off the dead man’s eyes. The head had been torn completely off of his body. Bern spun and started running back towards the ladder. He could hear the sound of something big coming after him. He let out a scream as sharp claws ripped into his back, stumbling forward and falling to the ground, his blood quickly mixing with water and mud as he rolled and tried to climb to his feet.
A giant fist slammed down on his back, driving him back to the ground and snapping his spine. He could no longer feel his legs as thick, slimy fingers closed around his neck and lifted him into the air. Bern barely had time to scream before his head was ripped off!
Schrade heard the scream and spun, his fists tight around his rifle as he ran towards his fellow scout. Lightning flashed and he saw a huge creature holding Bern in the air and ripping his head off. Schrade lifted his rifle and fired, knowing that the gunshot would carry to those above in the Zeppelin. The mysterious creature dropped Bern and jerked as the bullets punched into its body. It started to waver, and then it faded off into the downpour.
Schrade continued to run, not sure if there were more of the strange creatures about or not. Nor did he want to find out! Schrade jumped up onto the dangling ladder and started to climb, wanting to reach the safety of the airship above.
Schrade had only managed to scramble up a few rungs of the ladder when taloned hands caught his waist and tore him off the dangling ladder. Schrade screamed as he pulled his pistol and jammed it into the body of the creature that had him in its grasp. He fired several rounds to no avail. He felt tremendous pressure on his waist, and then everything went black. The creature dropped him to the ground in two pieces before vanishing back into the rain and darkness of the storm.
Wolfgang Schmidt vomited out the hatch as he watched his man torn in half by the strange creature below. He grabbed at the ladder, and began yanking it up, not wanting to give the strange creature a change to use the ladder to come up after the men in the airship. What manner of demons haunted this hellish place?
Suddenly, Klausen was beside him demanding to know what was going on. What were those shots? Why was Schmidt pulling up the ladder? What the hell was going on?
“There are creatures down there,” Schmidt whispered, still in shock from watching his man ripped in half.
“What are you talking about? I see nothing,” Klausen told him imperiously.
“I did. I just saw a creature rip one of my men apart. No one else will go down before daylight, and I will put a bullet into anyone who tries to order them to,” Schmidt said, coldly. Klausen backed up a step.
“I won’t put . . .” Klausen started to say. Suddenly, he was looking into the barrel of a Walther P-38.
“You are insane, and I will shoot you as quickly as anyone else who needlessly orders men to their deaths. Bern and Schrade are on my conscience. I won’t add any more to it,” Schmidt hissed. Klausen nodded, spun on his heel and stalked off. Schmidt would guard the hatch all night if he had to. He suspected that he would die in the morning, but he was prepared for that. Klausen would no doubt put a bullet in his head. Thunder rumbled ominously outside the cabin of the zeppelin.
The sun had risen in a clear blue sky. Jake Fortune was up with the sun and rousing the rest of the camp. The night had proven uneventful, but that didn’t mean that the day would be. Esmeralda was whipping up breakfast. The smell of cooking food was making his mouth water as Gloria Newkirk came strolling up to him.
“Good morning!” she sang, cheerily.
“Good morning to you,” Jake said, before taking another sip of coffee. Coffee helped him deal with cheerful mornin
g people. He was not one himself.
“We should make valuable time today,” Glory said, as she stopped next to him.
“Yes, we should, but then so will the Nazis if they survived the night,” he pointed out.
“You always have to be the glass is half empty type of guy, don’t you?” Glory shook her head.
“I am what I am,” Fortune shrugged.
“I can see that.”
“We need to break camp and get moving.”
“On that, we agree.”
Jake watched her walk off and smiled to himself. Mike and the others already had people breaking camp and Jake would help Esmeralda tear down the cook’s tent. From what Chac had told him the night before, they were about two days away from the site which was hidden in the foothills.
They would cover as much distance as they could today. Tomorrow, they would reach the city. Jake looked around at the jungle that surrounded them. He could feel eyes on them, even if he couldn’t see them. He had a bad feeling, but it wouldn’t stop him from doing the job he was being paid for.
The jungle was silent this morning. No drums. No animal noises. It was as if it was awaiting something. Chac frowned. He suspected that other native Mayans were out there observing the expedition. He wished that he could make contact with them and let them know that these American people were not the enemy. The enemy followed in the great airship. Chac looked back at the line of people following him. They were depending on him to keep them safe. He would do so to the best of his ability, but he could not predict how the ancient Mayans would greet them. He would have to do the best he could to keep them all alive!
It had been a long time since he had traveled this deep into the homeland of his ancient ancestors. Not since he was still a young boy, more than a decade before. He could still speak the language and the dialect, but he had no idea if any of the friends that he had made had survived. Life in this region was hard, harder than anything that civilization had to offer. Chac offered up a silent prayer to the Feathered Serpent that things would work out.
The wind was working against the Zeppelin this morning following the storm of the night before. The craft was making less time than if they had been marching along on the ground. However, they were still over the swamp at the moment and none of them wanted to set foot in that morass again. Not after seeing what was left of the four men that had been on the ground during the night.
Klausen had been avoiding him since their confrontation the night before. Schmidt was glad for it. He was sure that Klausen had lost his mind over the jewels called the Eyes of Kukulkan, and was beginning to think the same about Hitler and his inner circle. They called themselves Black Sun, the Inner Council of the Nazi Party. He was sure that Himmler was the true power behind Hitler. Still, the jewels would have monetary value that would allow him to live like a king if he could get his hands on them. Now that, was something to think about!
Jake paused to take off his hat and wipe his brow. They had been moving steadily upwards into the foothills for more than two hours. He was just as glad to have the swamp behind him. The place had been unnerving. He agreed with Mike, the swamp was a bad place.
“How much farther?” Glory asked from behind him.
“I don’t know. One, maybe two hours? The map shows a crevasse leading into a valley between two mountains. Chac says it isn’t far, but he doesn’t know how far. It’s all guesswork at the moment,” Fortune shrugged.
“Do you think the Nazis are still pursuing us?”
“Yeah. They aren’t the kind of folks to give up easily. The storm last night may have slowed them down, but I don’t think that it stopped them.”
“We must reach the city ahead of them, Jake.”
“I know, kid. I’m doing the best I can to get us there ahead of them. But everybody needs a breather right now. We’ve been pushing them hard since we broke camp this morning. It’s nearly noon. Have Esmeralda hand out fruit to everyone. It will keep them going for a few hours,” Fortune told her.
Jake looked around. The forest was getting thicker the higher that they went. Soon, at least, they would have tree cover. That would be important soon. He had a feeling that it would be needed. He didn’t know why, but he was sure of it.
Chapter Nineteen
The path leading up into the foothills was narrow and winding. Animals prowled through the undergrowth all around them. Monkeys chattered down at them from above, sometimes hurling fruit at them. Fortune chose to ignore them because he didn’t want the sound of a shot to give away their position. Only rarely did they catch a glimpse of blue sky through the trees, though individual beams of sunlight filtered down to light their path.
Chac had point on the pathway followed closely by Fortune and then Professor Newkirk. Mike Rogers was behind her, followed by several of the bearers carrying their equipment. The rest of the security team were spaced evenly between the other scientists and bearers, with Shaw bringing up the rear.
They had traveled upwards for nearly three miles when noises of animals and birds began to fall silent. Even the monkeys had quit their harassment of the lowly ground walkers. Chac stopped abruptly. “What is it?” Jake asked.
“We need to stop and see,” Chac replied, his voice barely loud enough for Fortune to hear it.
Jake lifted his fist and clenched it, telling everyone to remain still and silent. They stood there waiting, trickles of sweat running down their faces. Several minutes passed. Then abruptly, the birds and other animals began to make noise again. Jake Fortune felt himself relax. Whatever danger had been lurking in the jungle had passed. “How long?” he asked Chac.
“Another two hours should take us to the edge of the city,” Chac explained.
“What do you think we’ll find there?” Glory asked, taking a drink from her canteen.
“If I was ever there as a babe, it has been a long time since I was last there, so I really don’t know. I do not remember,” Chac replied.
“So, take a guess,” Glory prompted him. Chac took a deep breath and let it out slow.
“There was a king named Tikal who was in charge before. If he still lives, I do not know. He was my father’s cousin, so we may have a chance if he still lives,” Chac shrugged.
“Do you think he will help us?” Glory asked.
“That will depend on you,” Chac told her.
Wolfgang Schmidt ordered the Fregattenkapitän to drop to the ground where he and his men could unload. They would follow the Americans from here. They were far enough inland from the swamps that he no longer feared the fearsome creatures that had murdered their guards over the swamp. Now they were in a race against the American team to find and recover the Eyes of Kukulkan. It had seemed like the winds themselves were against them this morning, battering at the Zeppelin and forcing it back down once more to the ground. They had gotten past the swamp and were far enough in land that he no longer feared the fearsome creatures that had attacked the men on the ground in the swamp.
Now, they would pursue the American expedition on foot, traveling the trail that the Americans were forging ahead of them. Schmidt no longer cared about his orders. All he cared about now was finding the two emeralds the size of his fists embedded in a golden statue of a Feathered Serpent.
Kutal, of the Eagle Knights, sat high in the bough of a tree, looking down at the game trail below him. While he had been instructed to watch for some sort of flying threat, he was more concerned about the people that were marching up the trail below him. The wind gods were with them today, blowing the trees and leaves around. They would keep the airship grounded and force both groups to approach on the ground. He lifted a special whistle to his lips and blew three times. He could hear the signal being passed along the trail, back to the city. He let the first group passing below go on unmolested.
Jake Fortune had caught the pattern of whistles in the trees above him. They were not made by birds. He knew that they were being observed by natives of the region. Chac had warned them of it, an
d he had noticed that their guide had picked up on the signal as well.
Jake reached down and pulled his revolver out of the holster and checked the loads. He didn’t bother checking the Colt automatic under his left armpit. He knew that it had a full magazine plus one in the chamber.
The higher they climbed, the warier he was becoming. He could feel eyes watching them and it was unsettling to say the least. “Chac, who is watching us?” he asked finally.
“If I had to guess, the Eagle Knights. They normally watch for threats from above,” Chac replied.
“So why are they watching us?”
“I don’t know. The good news is, they are not firing on us. They are deadly accurate with their bow and poisonous arrows.”
“Wow, that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy, Chac.”
“Be grateful that we have not encountered the Jaguar Knights. They are far more fierce warriors,” Chac replied.
“I don’t doubt that, my friend. I just wish they knew we were on their side.”
“Are we?” Chac asked.
“I’d like to think so. We don’t want the Nazis to get those stones,” Jake said.
“Nor do I. I think that they both need to remain where they are,” Chac sighed.
“I’m inclined to agree with you, Chac. I’m not sure that Professor Newkirk would. Her goal is to keep the stones out of the hands of the Nazis,” Fortune sighed.
