by Justin Sloan
“That’s a pretty long distance, isn’t it?” Rohan asked, craning his head to see the map in the light of Nora’s lighter.
“Yes, but remember—indigenous people sometimes traveled much farther.”
The ground shook.
All noise stopped.
The wailing began again, this time more ear-splitting than before. Startled, Rohan dropped the green stone. He scrambled to grab it, but a hand reached out of the darkness and snatched it away.
It was the man from the forest.
The man in white.
Even now, Rohan couldn’t see his face. But he could tell from the man’s body that he wasn’t human. His skin was pale, and bits of bone and blood shone through. Black, matted hair hung over a face that was a mix between a living man and a skull.
“It’s you,” Rohan said, balling his fists. “I was going to thank you, but now I’m starting to rethink that.”
“Well, I’ll thank you,” the man said.
It was Altemus’s voice.
“You saved me many months of work,” the old man said, laughing.
“What’d you do with Tess?” Rohan shouted, feeling his fingernails biting into his palms as he clenched his fists.
“We have her in reserve,” Altemus said. “Anne has her, and she’s on her own special mission.”
But he didn’t take the time to tell them what that mission could be. Instead, he gestured with his hand, and the room swarmed with spirits.
Rohan and Nora shielded their eyes, and when they looked again, Altemus was gone.
Chapter 10: Temple Run
Rohan and Nora ran from the temple as the dark spirits assaulted them. Soon the walls of the city were falling around them, huge clods from the ceiling crashing to the ground.
“We’ve got to get out of here,” Nora said as they reached the bottom of the stairs. A giant stone wall toppled, and she barely flung herself to safety.
“You were keeping track of which way we came, right?” Rohan asked frantically. “Right?”
Nora stopped and pointed toward a hill. “I think we came that way.”
“Then let’s go,” Rohan said, taking her hand. “Come on!”
They dashed away just as a stone smashed the ground next to them.
Spirits swarmed the area, but Rohan took advantage of their addition. He reached deep inside and controlled the spirits, using them to knock boulders and stones away just before they struck.
“Rohan, stop!” Nora cried.
He slid to a stop and cursed.
Ahead of them was the demon. Seeing them, it lumbered forward. Each step shook the ground and sent chills up Rohan’s spine.
“I’m done dealing with you,” Rohan said when the demon was no more than ten feet away.
Focusing on his spiritual energy, he willed the spirits into his hand. Bright light swirled, pushing the demon back and gathering until the sordid had formed a large ball of energy. Rohan pushed outward and threw the energy ball at the demon’s face, where it connected in a gigantic flash of light. The demon moaned and stumbled backward.
Rohan jumped into the air and imagined the souls turning into a sword. They swarmed towards him, collecting in a glowing shape that grew narrow and pointed. With all his might, Rohan brought the yellow, gleaming soul blade down on the demon’s neck.
But the demon grabbed Rohan at the last minute and threw him, knocking him into Nora so that they flew back and struck a wall.
“I shouldn’t have trusted you!” Nora said, mid-roll.
“Always trust me,” Rohan replied, and then he ran toward the demon one more time, flinging the souls around him like daggers. One to the monster’s chest. Another to its neck. Another in each of its legs. The demon screamed and fell to its knees as Rohan struck it with another ball of light. And then the demon fell over, quaking the earth as its eyes went dark.
Rohan stood over the dead thing, heaving.
“No time to bask in your glory,” Nora said, grabbing him by the arm. Together they ran through the crumbling streets back toward the staircase that led out of the city. “But really nice job back there.”
“Of course,” Rohan said, forcing a smile.
“You okay?”
“Aside from nearly splitting my brain open with the force of a thousand souls, yeah, I’m just fine.”
“That was really impressive.”
They stole a fleeting glance at each other as they ran.
Then, out of the corner of his eye, Rohan spied a boulder falling toward Nora’s head.
“Watch out!” he cried. He grabbed a nearby soul and deflected the boulder. The action drained him of his energy, causing him to collapse.
Every muscle in his body ached, and he wanted to be out of the damn city.
Nora extended her hand, and he took it. Together, they climbed up the stairs and watched as the entire city collapsed.
Behind them, the entrance had caved in, leaving them in darkness.
They pushed their way through the darkness, sweating and panting and yelling for each other, until finally emerging again in the simmering jungle.
The burst of sun disoriented Rohan. He steadied himself against the base of a nearby tree, trying to process everything they’d just been through.
“We lost the orb,” Rohan said, exhaustion and hopelessness taking over.
“It was all… pointless.” Nora held her face in her hands.
A coughing sound came from farther up the path. Could it be Altemus? Rohan picked himself up, feeling every muscle in his legs resist, his lungs burning. He was shivering, but he wasn’t cold.
“Altemus!” he managed to yell. “ALTEMUS!”
“No,” a voice said with a heavy accent. “Not anymore.”
Nora was beside Rohan then, helping him to walk, and they found the source of the voice—the man Altemus had inhabited. His eyes were sunken like a cadaver’s, and the glimmer from them was almost gone. His grizzled, rotting skin smelled like death, and a faint spiritual glow hung over him..
“Altemus is long gone,” the man said. “Him and his woman.”
“They’ve gone to Machu Picchu,” Nora said. “Correct?”
“Yes,” the man said. He coughed, then opened his eyes with what appeared to be great effort. “He thought it, while in me. He means to…” he coughed again, “do such horrible things.”
“I’m sorry this happened to you,” Rohan said.
“Don’t be sorry for me,” the man said, straining. “Be sorry for... the world.”
His eyes took on a cold stare, and a few seconds passed before Rohan realized he wasn’t glaring, but was dead. With his free hand, Rohan closed the man’s eyes and turned to assess Nora.
The man’s body glowed and a yellow spirit floated out. The face was hard to see, like a fog hung between them, but it was clearly the man in a more youthful state, with flowing black hair and a faint smile.
“Good luck,” Rohan said. “The afterlife isn’t such a bad place.”
Rohan reached deep inside and imagined shaking the spirit’s hand, calming him. Then, with a shimmer, the man disappeared.
Rohan closed his eyes, taking in the buzzing of mosquitos and insects. It was a welcome noise compared to the eerie silence of the lost city. “So... Machu Picchu. It’s not close, is it?”
“No.”
Rohan opened his eyes and breathed deep. “That’s what I thought.”
Nora started up a path. “We’ll go back to Cusco, resupply, eat, and maybe Marcos can help us.”
Rohan nodded, and after a second to clear his mind, he followed her on their trek back.
Not that it mattered, Rohan thought. Altemus had the orb and was already way ahead of them. Now that the evil bastard was a spirit, he could travel much faster. Knowing the old man, he was probably already halfway toward destroying the world as they knew it.
“Wait… here,” Nora said, leaning against a tree for support. Her skin shone with a light layer of sweat. “You don’t happen to have
any water, do you?”
“We lost everything back there,” Rohan said as he sat on a large stone beside her.
“Would it be so bad if we just stopped right now?” she asked. “You know, if the world ended while we were here, in the forest?”
He looked at her and hoped she was joking, but her face conveyed pure exhaustion.
“Let’s put it this way,” he said. “We’ve both seen parts of the underworld, and letting Altemus win in any way means bad things for our world. There’d be no escaping his evil.”
“Yeah, I was afraid you’d say that.” She sighed heavily and then pushed off.
“Thought you needed a rest?”
“We can rest after we stop that bastard.”
Rohan found himself smiling in spite of his exhaustion. Among the many reasons he was starting to like her, that attitude was up there.
As they journeyed back, he expected Los Defenderos to stop them. After all, this was their forest. But there was no sign of the gang members, and the trip back was uneventful. That made Rohan uneasy.
They reached the river and found no sign of the speedboat or Ricardo, which meant they’d have to follow the river until it led to the jeep. If he wasn’t waiting for them there, they’d be stuck.
At least now they knew which direction they were supposed to go. The river was a wonderful guide, and although Rohan was so tired he almost wanted to just topple over into the waters and be done with it, they were making progress.
“The Jeep won’t be much farther,” Nora said.
That sounded great to Rohan, but when they finally did reach the Jeep, it was toppled over as if it had been rammed from the side. And to finish the job, the right front tire had a large knife sticking out of it. No sign of their guide Ricardo anywhere.
“I thought there was a reason Los Defenderos didn’t follow us,” he said, anger rising. He wanted to punch something.
Nora shrugged and tapped him on the shoulder. “At least they didn’t take our ride.”
Looking at the Jeep on its side, Rohan said, “How is that good news?”
She climbed up the side of the Jeep and reached in, then came back with a bag of granola bars and two bottles of water. He could’ve kissed her right there, but his instincts led him to the water and food instead.
“Altemus has the lead,” Rohan said, around a mouthful of granola bar. He looked up at the sun that was now moving past the center of the sky.
“We’ve got a long walk ahead of us,” Nora said. “Let’s hope he has no idea what he’s supposed to do with the orb yet.”
“He’s smarter than that,” Rohan said. “He’ll know exactly what to do, which is why we’ve got to get going.”
She took another gulp of water, then turned to move on, but stumbled over a root.
Rohan stepped forward and caught her, holding on to her longer than was probably called for in a saved-you-from falling kind of way. Their eyes met, and lingered.
“Thanks,” she said, clearing her throat and standing on her own. Her cheeks reddened, and Rohan wanted to kick himself.
“I—”
“Yes?” She looked at him, worn out. But… was that a hopeful look he saw in her eyes?
“We’ve been through a lot.”
“Yeah, of course.” She held up a hand. “Really, it’s okay.”
She continued down the path and he followed her, wondering what in the world was going on with his emotions, and if she was feeling them too. Had she wanted him to make some sort of move, out here in the jungle like this? No, he convinced himself, that would be crazy. But he couldn’t understand why she was walking so fast now, not waiting for him or even glancing back to make sure he was keeping up.
He was too tired to really worry about it, though. When they stopped Altemus, maybe then he’d have time to figure out his emotions and deal with hers.
Chapter 11: Return to Cusco
By the time they reached Cusco, the sun was dangerously low in the sky. Whatever had happened, or hadn’t happened, between them on the walk back was long forgotten.
From the city, Nora estimated that it took approximately six hours to reach Machu Picchu, meaning they had to find Marcos fast. They’d lost everything, and would need more food and drink and a way to get to Machu Picchu before sunrise.
They made their way along dark streets, careful to avoid the large groups of teens who’d stare at them, foreigners, dirty and exhausted. When they finally reached Marcos’s house, Nora put her hand to her mouth and said, “Oh God.”
Rohan looked came up behind her and saw what she was looking at. The door had been kicked in, and was hanging from one hinge.
“I’m—I’m sure he’s okay,” Rohan said, and took the lead to go in and check.
The place was completely torn apart. Marcos’s Peruvian flag was ripped to shreds and all of his drawers and cabinets were looted.
Knowing it wasn't safe to stick around, they slipped away from the house just as nightfall swept over the city, and made their way to a small market on the edge of town. The market was lit up by strings of lights on the wooden vendor stands, and it was a cool, breezy night.
Rohan waited for Nora, pacing in the dirt as he tried to think of a Plan B.
“We’re screwed,” Rohan said. He had a horrible scratching sensation in his throat as he thought about Altemus winning. “We've lost.”
Nora bought a bunch of red bananas from the vendor, and Rohan noticed her hand shaking as badly as his. She was just as discouraged, but she was being strong, trying not to show it.
“What next?” he asked, hoping she had something.
She glanced around the market, waiting, and then froze. “There.”
Sure enough, someone was hiding in the shadows, eyes staring right at them. Nora took a step closer, and the man backed up, but just enough so that a sliver of light found his face. It was Marcos, but not as they’d left him. This man’s hair was sticking out in clumps, his skin was covered in a thin layer of dirt, and his eyes darted about, looking for any signs of danger. He had looked like a movie star when Rohan first saw him; now he looked like a lunatic.
Marcos waved them over to an alley between a row of wooden stands.
“How’d you know he would be here?” Rohan whispered as they followed.
“I didn’t,” Nora said. “But it was a good guess. This market is where he used to take me, back… before. I don't know. Once I was lost here and a vendor took pity on me and gave me a red banana. Since we were feeling lost now, my instinct was to buy bananas. Maybe Marcos knew that, too.”
They joined Marcos in the shadows.
Rohan had a hard time imagining this crazy person ever being with Nora. Putting him together with that suave man he’d first met was almost unthinkable.
“You—you’re back?” Marcos said, a hungry look in his eyes. He backed up against the wall again, looking around frantically, as if he expected Los Defenderos to ambush them in the alley.
“It’s going to be okay,” Nora said, putting a hand on Marcos’s arm. “We need your help.”
“Nora.” Rohan leaned in and whispered. “An hour ago, I would have been all for asking him for help. But do you think it's such a good idea now? I mean, look at him—”
“No, you can count on me,” Marcos said. “Anything you want, just ask. I’m your man.” He stepped forward. “I assume you found it? What you were looking for?”
Nora looked like she was about to say no, when Rohan blurted out, “Yes.”
She looked at him with narrow, calculating eyes. He wanted to tell her that he didn’t trust this man, and that he wanted to see why he was so curious about their success.
Rohan nodded and gave his pocket a suggestive pat, hoping Nora would play along.
“Good, good.” Marcos motioned for them to follow him.
They went into what appeared to be an abandoned building, and then made their way up some stairs. At the top, Marcos found an old table on its side, which he righted. He pulled several
papers from his pocket and laid them out on the table. They looked just as grimy as him.
Rohan studied them—the paper was parchment, and on it were drawings similar to what they'd seen in the space that housed the orb, back in the lost city. Incan paintings of birds, towns, and men holding up what looked to be the orb, worshipping the sun.
“Marcos,” Nora said incredulously. From the look in her eyes, she was as surprised to see the papers as Rohan was. “How do you know about the images?” Nora started to lean forward, but Marcos held up a hand to stop her.
“Ever since you left, this occupied all my time.” He looked at her with intense longing, old passion still in his eyes. “An obsession, of sorts. I thought, for when you returned... if I had this ready….”
Rohan shared a confused look with Nora. This was new.
“See here,” Marcos said, pointing to the top paper, where a circle eclipsed another. “I believe this is the sun, rising. You saw something similar in the lost city, did you not? If so, then the ritual has to be done at sunrise.”
Rohan thought it strange that Marcos would know this. “I didn't know you were an expert in all things Vilcabamba,” Rohan said. “Why didn't you tell us this before we left?”
“Rohan, stop,” Nora said under her breath.
“If Altemus tries anything before sunrise, it won't work,” Marcos said.
“Exactly,” Nora said.
“Then we better get going,” Rohan said. Nora started to walk back toward the market, but Rohan grabbed her. Not taking his eyes off Marcos, he gestured for him to go first. “After you.”
Marcos’s posture changed and the corners of his mouth pulled into a frown. “Thing is, Ronan—”
“It’s Rohan,” he corrected the man.
“Whatever. Thing is, I promised them a life, and since I plan on doing this with Nora, that leaves you.”
Rohan took a step toward the man, but found a pistol pointed at him.
Marcos clicked the safety off and smiled. Without moving his eyes, he said, “Nora, I want you to step outside for this. Then we’ll be on our way to Machu Picchu.”
