by M. Shaunessy
Chapter 1
The Jewel of Na’Tuka
As a boy, Mike Tippen had always admired archeology, the study of history, he had wrote a paper on Uno Pu’Do’s last expedition to the center of the galaxy. After he wrote it, he and his best friend Justin Jobbs entered the world of amateur archeology also known as treasure hunting. They took odd jobs looking for rare and valuable objects.
A tall brown-haired man in his late twenties, stood with-in the dense rainforest wearing long cargo pants and his favorite blue shirt. His friend Justin Jobbs, a few inches shorter than he was, walked behind him as a prickly branch barely combed his blond hair. They had a job on the jungle moon of Mota witch orbited the red gaseous planet Trigal in the Regor system. An ancient alien tribe called Entians inhabited the moon-like planet. They knew that probes discovered the moon shortly after the Xatu invaded the galaxy, but the Xatu were unaware of its existence, which was good for Mike and Justin. The Entians, unlike the Animuns, were a unique alien race. Just like Earth mythology, Dryads, A tree like creature of magic times, seemed real, as the Entians were wood like aliens. Their society advanced to the likes of tribal people. Simple, peaceful, but easily agitated.
Their client told Mike and Justin that Mota held a precious jewel, the jewel that the Entians called Na’Tuka. Legend has it that the jewel contains magical properties of fire, wind, earth and water which help created the Entians’ civilization. Mike and Justin did not believe any of that, they only wanted the jewel for their client. What he did with it was his own business. The two adventures found an ancient temple deep within the bulky jungle. They had to land their ship in an open area as the map they had took them in the dense jungle. They walked for thirty minutes until they came upon, what it looked like huge dying tree trunk that spanned five stories tall. As they came closer, Mike noticed strange carvings on the tree. Pictographs. He then knew that this must be the temple. The map that a Giber gave them showed them how to pass the traps that awaited the two.
The two entered the dark shrine as Mike turned on his Illumnistick, it glowed bright blue. Inside, they were in a small wood-like foyer with an opening in front of them and strange alien writing carved above it. The room also contained a stage like area to the left of the door. On the far wall hung a large circular ornament made out of bronze. More pictographs and symbols covered the ornament. It was the same as on the map as Mike looked at both. There was a faint smell of dead rotten carcasses but it did not bother them.
“Well? What does it say?” Justin asked as Mike tried to interpret the writings.
He had taken alien language in school, but it was a very hard subject even for a human. He gotten out is digital language pad and read from both trying to convert it.
Mike pondered and answered, “Only, tribe,” he looked down to the pad then back up as Justin adjusted his lucky ratty looking old Yankee’s hat, “Tribe members, enter, others,” he looked back down then to the warning over the door, “Will..”
“Will what?” His friend wondered looking at him impatiently as he leaned against a stone brick wall.
“Death, dead, Die! That’s it,” he finally answered.
“You’re kidding me right?” Justin asked worriedly, raising his brow.
Mike looked to him and replied, “What’s wrong? Scared?”
“No,” he said unsurely, “I’m not scared of an old out dated warning. You?”
“Not until when we pay off Mama’Halb I’m not,” he said.
Mike when through first as Justin crept up from behind. Something in his gut told him that this was a bad idea from the start. Suddenly Justin heard his friend scream horribly and panicked.
“Mike!” He screamed, as he was frightened.
He thought a trap had killed or even worse. Justin did not know what to do if he had ever lost his best friend. Ever since they were kids growing up in an orphanage, Justin and Mike had to look out for each other.
Mike popped his head out and said jokingly, “Gotcha.”
“Aw, man,” he said as he tried to get his heat to start beating again. Mike chuckled, “Don’t ever do that! You almost gave me a heart attack.”
“Where’s your sense of humor? Come on,” Mike said as Justin shook his head in disbelief and followed him.
They entered a square room where they saw an entanglement of vines attached to the walls and ceiling. There were tiny holes about the size of a small baseball drilled in the walls. There was another door on the other side of the room, but it seemed that someone sealed it off with no handles or any other way to open it. In the middle of the room, Mike noticed a small model of an old style windmill made out of carved stone, and wood that sat upon a tall square pedestal. Worn out cloth draped on the wood like sails on an old water ship, were on its blades as it lied motionlessly. It looked just as big as they were coming up to their neck. Michael knew that the Entians were primitive aliens, but they started to develop ways to increase their food supply ever since explorers discovered the moon. He did not realize that they had windmills now. Justin walked over wondering what it was. He placed his hand on the sweep, a set of clothed fans that circled the main windmill part, and try to move it, but it did not move.
“Hey, don’t touch that,” Mike warned as Justin quickly withdrew his hand, “It could be bobby trapped.”
“Ok, so what does this thing do?” He asked.
“Let me check the map,” Mike said as he glanced down on the map, “Ah-hah,”
“Ah-hah what?” Justin wondered as he went over to his friend.
“It says here. Wind must flow to the gods,” Mike translated, “I get it, It seems that they’re four rooms in this temple dedicated to the four main elements, you know air, water, earth, and fire.”
“All right,” Justin complied, “So how do we open the door?”
Mike thought long and hard, repeating the translation in his head and out loud. He knew of the Entians’ history and culture and remembered that their wind god Chepois lived in the east, past the vast Blue Mountains. He did not really believe in gods like that. He took out his digital compass that brought last year and tried to find east. Surprisingly enough it pointed to the sealed door. He smiled and looked at the windmill once more. There were two handles just below of the model. Mike faced it and grabbed the handles, but which way to turn it he thought. He looked at the fins of the wheel and saw that they slanted so the wind caught them on Mike’s left. He then got it. With all his might, he turned the rusty, heavy, plinth slowly counter-clockwise.
“I Hope you know what you are doing,” Justin said unsurely.
“So do I,” he replied as finished the rotation.
At first, they heard a clicking sound, followed by a rumbling sound. Suddenly wind dust and vine debris enter the room form the west wall. The hurricane-like wind was strong enough to blow Mike and Justin against the other wall. They coughed from the dust and debris that they did not noticed that the tiny windmill was working. It twirled wildly on its axel and at the same time, the sealed door started to slide up in to its groove. Once the door was completely open, the wind finally died down.
“Open sesame,” Mike coughed a bit more trying to catch his breath.
Justin nodded and commented, “Those Entians have a strange way to protect their things.”
They got themselves together and preceded on though the next room. Mike heard something up ahead as they walk towards it. Justin heard it too, as it was sound of rushing water, or maybe a waterfall. They got to the other room and before them; they saw a pool of water and three waterfalls, one in front of them and two on either side of them not more than five feet away. The water was coming out of a mouth what it looked like tree trunk with eyes. They walked out onto a peninsula, surrounded by bubbling water.
The water was to dark to see as Justin wondered, “You think these are hot springs?”
“Don’t know,” replied Mike looking at it, “I don’t see any steam.”
&n
bsp; Justin crouched down to the water and placed his index finger in the water. It was cold, not a hot spring that he thought, and suddenly something under the water bit him as he screamed.
“Eeow!” He exclaimed as he quickly removed his finger from the pool. His finger was bleeding as he sucked on it.
“What!? You ok?” Mike wondered worriedly as he looked to his friend.
“Something bit me!” He said as Mike looked to the water. He saw some weird looking fish swimming the cool water. He could not really identify it because of the mucky texture of the pool.
“The pool must be swarming with meat eating fish,” Mike said to him.
“Meat eating fish? Ok, that’s it!” He exclaimed, “I’m out of here!” He turned to leave the room.
“Hey, where do you think you’re going?” Mike asked stopping him as Justin turned his head.
“I’m not going to risk my life for a stupid jewel,” He replied.
“Stupid?” Mike argued,” Justin, this jewel could help us pay off Mama’Halb in full, and I’m gonna need your help to get it. So will you stop acting like a baby and give me a hand?”
Justin thought for a moment and wondered. “What if we get killed?”
“Will you stop worrying?” Mike requested, “If we do get killed then all of our problems will be solved, but I don’t like that option, so we’re going to get this jewel. Remember, in our business there’s going to be life threatening risks and great rewards. Frankly, I like the rewards part.”
“I don’t know how you talked me in to this business in the first place,” Justin said as Mike smiled to him.
Mike did not really con him. At first, when they began their business, Justin though it was great idea. That was until their first job. Justin did not like the idea of people was out to kill him, but in the end he has knew that Mike had good instincts and agreed to stay with him. They both looked around the room figuring how to go on. Mike looked to the map again, but this time it did not say much except nonsense gibberish.
“Don’t speak and you will proceed,” Mike translated.
“What the hell does that mean?” Justin pondered looking to his friend.
“Don’t know,” he replied looking at the wooden statue heads. Each of them had different characteristics, “I am guessing it has to have something to do with these Entians’ heads. Don’t speak and you will proceed,” he repeated.
“Shut up,” Justin said as Mike looked to him quizzically.
“What?” Mike wondered to his friend thinking that he insulted him.
Justin looked to him and repeated, “Shut up. If you don’t speak you shut up. Right?”
Justin may have something there as he looked to the heads. Justin was never was much as problem solver but some days inspiration hits him like a truck. He wondered if the mouths would close it. It would shut off the water, but how to do it Mike wondered. Mike looked around on the floor, walls, and ceiling as his friend help to looked too. There were no levers in the room or any switches. Justin then saw three weird square tiles on the floor. Each had more weird symbols of an ancient Entian heads. They were indirect line of the falls.
“Mike!” He called, “I think I found something, look,” He pointed to the tiles.
Mike smiled to him as he looked and commented, “You see, I knew you‘d come in handy.” Justin smiled and nodded to him rhetorically. He looked at the map and at the symbols. “Togetherness,” he mumbled, “Alright, we have to step on all of them.”
“At the same time?” Justin asked.
“Yeah,” Mike replied, “One foot though. You get that one,” Mike pointed to the tile on his left, “I’ll take these two.” He then pointed, “On three. One, two, three!”
Justin placed his right foot on the tile as Mike placed both of his feet on the others. The tiles sank a bit and they heard a clicking sound. Soon they heard a loud grinding noise as the water pressure from the statues dimmed as their mouths closed shut. All of a sudden, the statue in front of them fell like a drawbridge as it splashed on to the water. It was safe to proceed. Mike gestured his friend to go ahead, but Justin was hesitant to wait for Mike to go first. Mike got on and crossed the newly built bridge into the next room as Justin followed.
They walked for about a quarter mile down hill though a long twisted dirt-like corridor until they got to a huge looking room filled with four big oak trees. A dim light was shining down on them from the small gaps in the ceiling. All of them were leafless and bare and stood about twenty to forty feet from floor to ceiling. Mike looked down and saw they were standing on cold sand. He took the illumniskick and shown it on the map and wondered.
“These Entians are getting far too weird for me,” said Justin.
“Water and air grows,” Mike translated.
“Grows?” Justin inquired, “Grows what?”
“Good question,” Mike replied looking at the trees. There were something a bit odd to him as he examined the trees. He thought how these trees would even grow in here. It would be impossible. He then thought of something as he looked back to the entrance then back to the dead trees, “Wait a minute, wait a minute.”
“What, what?”
Mike looked to his friend and replied, “The last two rooms were air and water right?”
“Yeah so?”
“If we could incorporate them in here,” Mike said as he paused a little, “Maybe it would do something,” He looked to the trees and noticed that they were bare, “Like grow leaves. Or open another door.”
Justin look towards his friend’s gaze and asked, “Ok, and how do we suppose to do that?”
Mike thought for a long time looking about the room. He noticed the faint paintings on the trunk-like walls of the Entian gods. One was pouring water from its mouth onto the ground. Another was either picking or placing leaves on a tree and the wall on the far side of the room had two gods, which seemingly was holding a door.
“I got it,” Mike said taking off his small backpack and placing it on the floor as his friend looked at him wondering what he was doing. Mike got out four empty cans they were using when they ate last night and handed them Justin. “Go back to the other room and fill these up,” he instructed.
“What for?”
“Just do it.”
“What about those piranha things? One of them almost bit my hand off.”
Mike looked at him in disbelief and replied, “Then just be a bit more careful.”
Justin nodded and agreed with him. Moments later he returned with the four cans filled with the water and handed two of them to Mike. He then instructed Justin to help him pour the water in front of the trees. Justin went over to the tree on the left side and poured the water. Michael did the same on the other side. Once they finished pouring the water, nothing happened.
“Ok, now what?” Justin asked as they felt a rumble, like a mini earthquake beneath them.
Mike looked up at the trees and they began to grow golden leaves at an exceedingly rapid rate. They did not believe what they were seeing. This was impossible. Was this some kind of trick? The rumbling died down and they were beside themselves. Justin looked at Mike, but his friend was in awe by what had happened. Mike heard legends about trees like this in his mythology class. He never realized that they would be real.
“Do you think they’re real gold?” Justin asked, but before Mike could answer, a rush of cold wind blew through the entranceway and blew off all the leaves. They floated down on the sand and before Justin could pick one up, they disintegrated in the sand.
“I guess we’ll never know,” Mike said as he looked ahead and saw that there was an opening where the wall was, “Let’s go,” Justin looked up and followed Mike through to the last room.
“I just don’t believe what I just saw,” Justin said doubly, “I mean trees that were growing golden leaves at that rate. It’s scientifically impossible.”
“There are a lot of things in this universe tha
t might be impossible that turned to be possible,” Mike replied as they walked down another corridor, “It’s called discovery. Too bad I did not have that that on video. Could’ve been worth something.”
The last room, the fire room as Mike said it, was narrow and long room almost like a hallway. Unlike the other rooms, the Entians made this one out of stone. Natured made, Mike concluded. On the other side of the room sat four multicolored jewels. Each sat in their own manmade stone cubbyholes. Both of them were in awe as they gazed upon them. Mike glanced down at the map again trying to read it.
“Ok, this says something about a not stepping on the fire god,” Mike replied.
“I thought you took ancient alien language?” His friend wondered.
He looked to Justin, “I’m a little rusty, sue me.”
He looked back to the map trying to make heads or tails out of it and then to the room. He noticed that there were faint symbols or writings on the wall witch made it more difficult to read to decide what to do. He looked ahead and cautiously took a step forward. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a blast of fire burned the map to ashes as they both gasp on horror as the quickly stepped back. Mike looked down and noticed weird tiles on the floor. Some of them had the same symbol that was on the map. It was the fire symbol. There were also tiles that had other symbols of the other elements. He then realized what the map meant by not stepping on the fire god.
“Stay here,” he warned his friend as he cautiously stepped on the non-fire tiles.
He carefully made his way across the room and it was standing before him, the crystals, but which one is the jewel of Na’Tuka? They all looked the same. Blue with red swirls surrounded the gemstone. He then noticed that each of them bared an elemental symbol. He looked to his friend who did not know either. He turned back to the jewels and thought that only if they had the map. It would have showed them the right one. He thought long and hard remembering what the map said as he tried to read it last night. His friend looked to him wondering what was taking him so long.
“What’s wrong?” Justin asked.
“They all look the same,” Mike replied frustrated.
“Well just pick one and let’s get the hell out of here,” he said to him impatiently, “This place gives me the creeps.”
“Keep your shirt on,” Mike shot back as he thought. Blue and red, the colors must represent the elements of fire and water. “Oh hell with it,” he took the Fire and water jewel and placed them in his pocket, but as soon as he obtained, them another earthquake arose. Another trap he thought. This one was stronger as the non-fire tiles started to give away.
“COME ON!” Justin shouted as Mike darted across.
Fire blasts shot up from behind as he reached his friend. They both ran back to the Earth Room as the giant limbs snapped and the sand started to swallow the tree like quicksand. They ran as fast as they could, but were slowed a bit as they across and up the long ramp. The quake didn’t stop as the roof of the hall caved in from behind, but luckily, they made to the Water Room. The two of statue’s head ripped open as gallons of water filled the room rapidly. Mike ran across the mini bridge, but before Justin could cross, snapped in two and sank. Mike ran to the other side as Justin stopped.
“Mike!” He shouted scarcely as his friend turned to him.
“Just jump over it and let’s go!” Mike shouted back.
The water flooded the peninsula as Justin stepped back, ran and jumped over the water gap. He splashed down on the floor, and almost slipped in the water. Mike turned and grabbed Justin’s shirt and pulled him on a dry floor.
They both ran to the first room when wind rushed at them. It was hard running against it, but that was far from their problem when wooden spikes slid out from the left and right walls, but worse more spikes appeared from the ceiling as well, slowly descending upon them.
“You gotta be kidding me?!” Justin shouted rhetorically as he looked up.
“Just keep going!” Mike shouted other the loud wind as they slow inched their way towards the opening.
The door ahead was sliding from its groove downwards as Mike reached it, ducked and got out. The entrance was closing halfway as Justin dove and tumbled into his friend. They both fell back in the main hall as Mike helped his friend up they saw two semi circular doors, with the elemental symbols carved in to it, were closing to make a complete circle and enclosing the outside entrance. They did not hesitate as they dashed outside. The door sealed the temple once more.
They landed and fell on a grassy slope as Justin looked up and saw hundreds of wood like creatures arming themselves with a shock spears in their branch-hands. Mike looked at them. They could not be more than four feet tall. They were all different shades of brown with leaves as hair on top of their heads. Mike’s eyes then gazed over to a beautiful blond haired human woman walking over. She was wearing blue jeans and a sleek brown leather jacket that almost hugged on her perfect-like body. Mike instantly recognized her.
“Julia,” he said frowning.
She was Mike’s ex-girlfriend as she knelt down and held out her slender hand. He then remembered why he left her. She stabbed his back and betrayed him. It was no more than a couple of months ago were when they were on the planet Crystala. The entire planet was made out of crystals, but there were a rumor that a diamond depository was somewhere hidden in the caves. Mike and Julia went to explore them until two days later they had finally found them. It was beautiful beyond their expiations. That night as they made camp in the cave, Julia took their share and started a cave-in using her cutter. She then left him for dead. Fortunately, Mike communicated with Justin and he rescued him. He then realized that she was playing him like a fool.
“The jewel Mike,” she said.
Justin looked to him as he looked back knowing Justin’s expression. Mike sighed and dove in to his pocket he remembered that he had two of them, but witch one to take, as both were identical. He had to trust fate, took one out, and handed it to her.
“Here,” he said and then wondered, “Is this how our relationship’s going to be, you stealing from me all the time?”
She gasped and replied sarcastically, “Michael! I’m hurt,” she then smiled a bit, “But then again, you stole this gem from their temple.”
Mike looked angrily at her as she stood up and turned. While she had her back on the two, Justin promptly touched a couple of buttons on his remote wrist panel. Julia took out a whistle-like device that had a micro QWERTY type keyboard on its side. Mike recognized it as a soundlator. She used it to translate different types of sound into language. She typed a command into the soundlator then blew onto it like a whistle. They heard a creaking sound. Mike knew it was the Entian’s language. The Entians drew closer with their deadly spears ready to strike.
“I don’t think that means let them go,” Justin mumbled to his friend.
“Julia!” Mike cried nervously as she turned around.
“I’m sorry Michael,” she apologized smiling, “But in this business, its kill or be killed.”
She then heard a vacuuming sound of a ship’s engines, turned back round, and saw a golden ship. The Golden Condor looks as it says. This yellow-chromed four-seated spacecraft hovered above the small tribe. The wing tips gleamed in the sun as hit blinded Julia and the Entians. The Condor opened fired on the wooden tribe as they all scattered panicky back in to the jungle. Julia typed and blew quickly to get them back, but it was too late as Mike got up pushed Julia on the ground. They both bolted towards the ship’s ramp.
“God I hate her!” Mike cried.
Julia quickly got up, grabbed her gun from her thigh and started to fire at them, but they already climbed aboard. Julia screamed as a laser bolt hit her abdomen and fell on the ground, apparently dead. The Entians came back and fired their shock bolts on to the ship, but it was already too late as the Condor flew into the sky.
“Damn!” Justin shouted angrily as he to
ok of his hat and threw on the consol. They then sat in the cockpit as Justin continued irritably, “We were so close. And you had to give that bitch our jewel.”
“Did I?” Mike replied slyly as pulled out the other jewel.
Justin’s eyes widened and said to him, “How the hell did you?”
Mike grinned at his friend, gave it to him and asked, “Here, analyze it and make sure it it’s the right one. I hate going back there and retrieve the other one from those jackals.”
Justin took the jewel and placed it on a transparent tray. He pressed a few buttons as it started to analyze the gem. He prayed that the computer could correctly identify it as they waited for the results.
“Too bad for Julia, huh?” Justin said while they were waiting for the results.
“Well, like she said,” Mike said not liking what has happened to her, “Kill or be killed.”
The computer dinged a couple of times as it was finished. Justin read the computer screen’s results and smiled.
“It’s real alright, one hundred percent Bimend.”
“Good,” Mike replied, “Let’s get back to Sadr.”
Justin plotted the course and the Condor disappeared in the depth of space. They hoped to collect their reward and pay off Mama’Halb before dinnertime.
