by S. L. Menear
Lance hugged me. “Don’t worry. We’ll save them.”
It was dark by the time our helicopter landed back at Camp Baledogle. The team straggled into the conference room to plan our next move.
I studied a map of ley lines. “It has to be in one of those ancient caves near Johannesburg.” I tapped a spot on the map. “This area has an intersection of three ley lines. That might be it.”
Mike stretched. “Let’s get cleaned up, regroup, and fly down there tonight so we can get an early start tomorrow.”
Commander Metz walked in. “Welcome home. We’re glad you made it back safe. Sorry you lost one of the pilots.”
“Thanks, Bob. We’re running out of time. I’m hoping the Blue Dragon is in one of the Sterkfontein Caves thirty miles northwest of Johannesburg. We’d like to fly down there tonight. Is the Starr Corporation’s jet still here?”
“The pilots wouldn’t leave without you, and the jet is ready when you are. Have you talked to Professor Armitage since your rescue?”
“No, not yet.” I hesitated. “I lost my satellite phone in the crash, and Mike’s battery died.”
Bob handed me his satellite phone. “Fully charged and ready to go. Give him a call.”
I handed the phone to Lisa. “Better check it first.”
She took apart the phone and handed me a bug. “Good thing I looked inside.” She reassembled the phone.
Bob’s eyes widened when I handed him the tiny electronic listening device. “How did that bug get in there?” he asked no one in particular.
“Sweetwater has a mole in this base.” Lisa handed the clean phone to me.
Bob frowned. “We’ll check the phones from now on.”
I dialed Ben’s number and put the phone on speaker.
He answered on the first ring. “Did you find it?”
“No, we’re hoping it’s in that other Cradle of Humankind near Johannesburg.”
“I’ve been giving this a lot of thought since your adventure in that city under Tassili n’Ajjer.” Ben paused. “The primordial part of the riddle has to be an underground lake—one undisturbed by time. Besides spelunking gear, you’d better bring plenty of full air tanks and dive gear.”
“We have rebreather tanks. They’re lighter and last longer, but where do we dive?”
“The South African Cradle of Humankind is a network of limestone caves. It covers a hundred and eighty square miles, but don’t worry, there’s an underground lake in the Sterkfontein Caves—probably primordial. It’s in a chamber called Milner Hall. The lake’s depth is unknown because they banned diving in 1984 after a diver got lost and died.”
“Sounds like diving there is even more dangerous than most cave dives.” I glanced at Mike, and he nodded.
Ben said, “The caves look like Swiss cheese with lots of side chambers, so be extra careful. The diver’s body was found by rescue teams in an air chamber three weeks after he disappeared. That led to the discovery of another twenty-seven hundred feet of new passages—and more ways to get lost.”
“Any chance we can get permission to dive there?” Mike asked.
“Oh, hi, Mike. The Sterkfontein Caves are owned by the University of Witwatersrand. You could try asking them, but then you’d run the risk of alerting them to your plans if they refuse permission.”
“What are their hours of operation at the site?” I checked my watch.
“The caves are open to the public seven days a week with tours every half hour all day long. That means you’d have to sneak in late at night, lugging lots of dive gear.”
“Nothing about this mission has been easy.” I sighed. “Why should this part be any different?”
“You could look into whether our government has any leverage with South Africa, but time is running short, and going through proper channels takes days, possibly weeks. Use your best judgment.”
“Thanks, Ben. That’s good advice. Wish us luck.” I ended the call not really knowing if we were on the right track, but we’d run out of options.
“Let’s see what the Eye shows us.” I pulled it out, and it projected a hologram of a cave marked by a sign that read Dinaledi Chamber (Chamber of Stars).
“Chamber of Stars—easy peasy.” Banger grinned.
“Hold your horses, big guy.” I Googled the cave. “There aren’t any lakes in the Rising Star cave system, which is where that cave is located. And we already know the Eye won’t lead me directly to the Blue Dragon. We should look in the underground lake Ben mentioned.”
“Ah, but you’re forgetting how late it is now and how long it takes to fly to Johannesburg from here.” Banger checked his watch. “It’ll be well into daylight by the time we reach the caves. We’ll have all day to look around before we’ll get a chance to sneak into the lake.”
Sterkfontein Caves
We arrived at the site at nine in the morning local time, on day six of our seven-day quest. A sign for the tour instructed people to leave handbags and luggage behind due to tight passageways. I turned around and headed back to our two Range Rovers that were loaded full of dive gear and other luggage.
Mike caught up with me. “Why’d you do a one-eighty?”
“No bags allowed. I need a big shirt that’ll cover my belly bag and leather pouch. I can’t leave any of this stuff behind, so I’ll wear the bag with the sphere under my shirt and they’ll think I’m pregnant.” I opened my suitcase.
“We’d better hide some spelunking gear under our clothes too.” Mike keyed his hidden mike and recalled the team.
After spending a little time hiding ropes, mini lights, and small tools under our clothes, we headed back to the cave entrance and followed a tour group down several flights of stairs to narrow passageways carved into the limestone. We walked deep into the cave system, occasionally entering wide caverns with high ceilings and numerous stalagmites and stalactites.
Banger stuck close, checking me for signs of claustrophobia, bless him.
The farther down we went, the higher my heart rate soared.
When I spotted a sign for the passage to Milner Hall, I stopped in front of my team and whispered, “That way.”
I ducked under a rope, and they followed me down a dark, narrow passage with many curves. After the fifth or sixth turn, my flashlight illuminated cobalt-blue water. It glistened between limestone walls covered with erosion marks and dark horizontal waves.
I spoke softly so my voice wouldn’t carry too far. “Looks like limited access to the lake between honeycombs of limestone. It’s easy to see how a diver could get lost down here.”
“Are you feeling any ley lines or energy pockets?” Lance looked down at the water.
“No, but let me try something.” I dropped to my knees and leaned down, dipping my fingertips into the water. “The water tingles and not just because it’s cold. There’s strong EME here.”
“What if one of those chambers that only opens for you is somewhere along this rim?” Lance asked. “Might save a lot of time if I hold onto you while you run your hands along the side just under the water.”
“It’s worth a try, but nothing’s ever that easy when Atlantis is involved.” I had to rearrange my belly bag behind me before I assumed a prone position with Lance holding my ankles. Reaching over the edge, I stuck my right hand in the water and ran it over the stone side.
We’d just started our little experiment when a male voice said, “Everyone turn around and put your hands on your heads.”
Lance helped me up, and I faced four security guards armed with handguns.
The leader asked, “What are you doing in this restricted area?”
I stepped forward. “It’s my fault. I wanted to see the primordial lake, but then I dropped my phone into the water when I was taking pictures. My friends were just helping me try to retrieve it. Sorry.”
“You violated the rules, and now we must escort you out,” the lead guard said. “Come with us.”
He and his men herded us down a passage, guarding us fro
m the front and rear. We were deep inside the cave system, and it took two hours for us to reach the exit. Once outside, the guards led us to an office.
“Search them in case they took bones or relics from restricted areas,” the site manager ordered.
It only took a minute for them to discover our spelunking gear hidden under our clothes. When a guard reached for my belly bag and leather pouch, I stepped back.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t let you touch those. You might get injured.” I unzipped the belly bag. “Let me show you.” I whispered commands to the sphere as I pulled it out.
The guards drew their weapons, and the sphere zapped their handguns with its laser. They dropped their superheated pistols onto the floor and raised their hands.
“I assure you, nothing we have is from your caves, and we have diplomatic immunity.” I showed them my passport, and the team members pulled out theirs. “We apologize for any inconvenience we may have caused.”
“Your immunity does not entitle you to ignore our laws. I’ll call the police, and you’ll be expelled from the country.” The manager eyed the sphere, hovering in front of me. “Put that thing away.”
I zipped it back in my bag. “I was just trying to protect you. No need to call the police. We’ll leave right away. And again, my apologies.”
My team followed me out the door, and I hoped the guards’ fear of the sphere would prevent them from picking up their weapons and detaining us. We rushed to our vehicles.
“You know they called the cops the instant we left the building.” Mike glanced back. “We need to disappear fast.”
I glanced at my guidebook. “There’s a back road that leads to another site. Maybe we can hide there.”
“Lead the way. We might get a chance to come back here late tonight.” Mike looked over his shoulder, scanning the road behind us.
By the time we arrived at the next site, the aroma of hot food reached our noses. A meal truck was parked nearby.
“Let’s grab some lunch and decide what to do next.” Banger sauntered toward the vendor.
We sat around a picnic table and studied the guidebooks while we munched on hot meals.
Mike glanced around. “May as well search this site, but keep your eyes peeled for local cops.”
“Before we do that, let’s switch our license plates with ones from other vehicles.” I pulled out my multi-purpose tool and began unscrewing a plate on the Jeep parked to our left.
Soon we had replaced our plates with ones from nearby SUVs.
“Better drive to a different site so nobody will notice their plates are on our cars,” Lisa said.
We drove to one of the many sites in the vast cave system. After several hours of fruitless searching and talking to anthropologists, we regrouped for another meeting.
“We may as well check out that Chamber of Stars the Eye showed us. It’s dark now, almost eight—still a long time before we can dive in the underground lake.” I pointed at a spot on the map. “The Rising Star Cave isn’t far from here. It might be closed after dark, but we could sneak inside.”
Thirty minutes later, Lance distracted the security guard, and the rest of us ducked inside the cave entrance. About a hundred feet in, I bumped into a fit man in his early thirties as he rounded a corner. He wore an ID badge that indicated he was an anthropologist. Perfect.
“Sorry.” I smiled my best smile. “I guess I’m a little too eager.”
He extended his hand. “Hi, I’m Dr. Phil Berger. What are you hoping to see here?” he said with a Boston accent.
I squeezed his hand. “Samantha Starr, and we’re hoping to solve a vexing riddle.”
He glanced at my wrist and hand. “That jewelry looks ancient. How old is it?”
“Probably twelve thousand years, maybe more.” I looked into his eyes. “If you help us, I’ll arrange for you to be the lead anthropologist on a huge find under Tassili n’Ajjer.”
He furrowed his brow. “I haven’t heard of a find there.”
“That’s because we just found it two days ago. It’s part of the Lost Sahara Civilization.”
His eyes lit up. “No kidding? Well, maybe I can help. What’s the riddle?” He seemed genuinely interested, especially since I dangled our recent discovery under his nose.
I took a shot. “We’re searching for an arid enigma and a primordial paradox cloaked in eternal darkness.”
“Interesting. And if you find it, then what?” He seemed intrigued.
“Then we need to find an ancient artifact called the Blue Dragon and deliver it to a murderous man before noon tomorrow or he’ll feed our friends to hungry lions.” I blinked back a tear.
Phil tilted his head. “He’ll really kill them?”
“Yes, the man is pure evil.” I squeezed his arm. “Please, can you help us?”
“Wait—did you say the Blue Dragon?” He looked as if something had jogged his memory.
“Yes, the Blue Dragon. Is that familiar to you?” My voice rose in hope.
His face brightened as he said, “I hate to tell you this, but you’re looking in the wrong country. Dragon’s Breath Cave is in the Kalahari Desert.”
Twenty-Six
“Are you saying that cave fits everything in the riddle?” My heart raced as I searched his eyes.
He nodded. “I’ve been there. It’s hidden in the desert—an arid enigma because the cave leads down to a vast primordial lake under the sand, and it’s cloaked in eternal darkness. The lake sends a mist to the surface—hence the name Dragon’s Breath Cave.”
“Oh my god, I could kiss you.” And I did. On the lips. “Please, will you show us where it is? We’re almost out of time.”
“Out of time?” he asked, looking flummoxed from my enthusiastic kiss.
“It’s a long story, but like I said, two lives depend on us finding something hidden in that cave before tomorrow afternoon.” I gazed into his hazel eyes. “Will you please help us?”
“It’s a really long drive from here.” He paused. “I don’t suppose you have access to a jet?”
I grinned. “We have a Gulfstream G650 waiting for us at Johannesburg International Airport. If you’ll take us to the cave, we’ll pay you and see to it you get a free ride home.” I grabbed his hands and squeezed. “Please, we’re desperate.”
He glanced from me to my team. “How can I refuse a damsel in distress? Do you have any dive gear?”
“Yes, we have four rebreather units already filled and everything else we’ll need for scuba diving and spelunking.”
He hesitated. “I can’t get off work until this weekend, but I can give you directions if you need to go now.”
“Like I said, time is critical.”
“Then you’ll need to fly to Grootfontein Airport in Namibia and drive thirty miles northwest of the town to the cave entrance.” He paused. “I hope you and your people are expert spelunkers and divers. You’ll have to drag your tanks through a narrow system of caves with several drop offs that end in a final drop that’s a hundred and twenty feet down to a lake three hundred and thirty feet beneath the desert. It’s the largest non-subglacial underground lake in the world.”
“But won’t we need you to guide us? There must be lots of wrong turns.”
“No, there’s only one way down. There’s a guide rope installed, plus other ropes are in place to lower yourself down to each ledge that leads to the next cave and eventually to the last drop to the lake. There’s a raft positioned at the bottom of the final rope. Use your ropes to lower the scuba tanks down onto the raft. Nobody knows how deep the lake is, but it’s definitely more than four hundred and twenty feet.”
I hugged him again. I couldn’t help myself. It would be close, but we might succeed before the deadline. The Eye had steered us in the right direction after all.
Phil walked with us out of the cave. We stopped short when we spotted four police cars parked around our Range Rovers. Armed cops stood beside Lance, who was handcuffed.
I turned to Phil.
“This is all a big misunderstanding. Some guards at the Sterkfontein Caves were frightened by my artifacts, especially the sphere.” I unzipped my belly bag and pulled it out. “We don’t want to harm anyone. We’re just trying to save our friends. Please don’t tell them where we’re going.”
I spoke commands in Atlantean, and the sphere lasered holes in all the tires of the police vehicles. Then it zoomed up high, out of sight.
The cops trained their guns on us.
I whispered to Phil, “We’ll pretend we took you hostage. That way, you won’t get in trouble.” I slipped a tie-wrap over his wrists. “Stand in front of me.”
He did as I asked, and Mike, Banger, and Lisa blocked the cops’ view of us.
“Come out with your hands up!” a police officer yelled.
The cops held their hands outstretched in front of them, clutching their pistols.
Out of the dark sky, the sphere sent laser shots into each weapon, causing the cops to drop their handguns.
I led Phil to the police. “Uncuff my friend, and I’ll trade this scientist for him.”
The sphere hovered above the officers as one of them unlocked Lance’s handcuffs.
I nodded to my team. “Cuff the cops to their steering wheels.”
Once all the policemen were secured, I replaced the sphere in its sack, and we piled into our SUVs and brought Phil with us. About a mile down the road, we stopped.
“Phil, we’re counting on you to wait as though we dropped you off several miles from here before you go back and free the cops. We need at least two hours to clear customs and fly out of Johannesburg. Will you help us, please?”
“Is your offer still good for that discovery in Algeria?” He held out his hands, and I sliced the plastic cuff with my knife.
“Absolutely.” I squeezed his hand. “Expect to hear from Harvard Professor Ben Armitage.”
His face brightened. “I know Ben. We have a deal. Good luck in Dragon’s Breath Cave. I hope you save your friends.” He waved as we drove away.
Sweetwater’s Hideout
