by S.J. Armato
“Ha,” laughed Merless. “Well then, hurry up and take them. Let’s get out of here.”
Mr. Oddley dragged himself and the tablets, except for the broken one, out of the chamber, back into the main part of the cave, and out into the fading light of the snowy mountain. He sat on the ground exhausted as Merless paced back and forth, muttering to himself about the great and wonderful things he was going to do, and about all the money he was going to make, and about how he was going to be the most powerful man in the world.
Finally, the chopper came into view, and minutes later began to lower its basket. Mr. Oddley was standing and bracing himself against the windstorm created by the helicopter’s blades, while still clutching the tablets, when Merless, with a cruel smile, ripped them from his hands and stepped into the cage.
Mr. Oddley tried to follow, but Merless shoved him to the ground. “Sorry Oddley,” he said. “This is where we part. But don’t be sad, you’ll be making history, because you’re about to be the last victim of the Pandoran crystals.”
And with that the chopper rose high into the sky and faded into the twilight, leaving a stunned and frightened Mr. Oddley behind.
Chapter 25
Back at her apartment, Liza was the only adult in the room, but she sat on the floor like a child, rocking with her arms around her knees, while Maggie, Molly, and Tim were engaged in a heated debate over the seriousness of the situation and wondering what they should do next.
“It’s o-o-obvious, isn’t it, we have to go to the Police,” exclaimed Tim. “He’s been kidnapped!”
“I have to agree with you. This is serious,” said Molly. “I’ll call.”
“Yeah well, and do you think they’re gonna believe a bunch of kids?” asked Maggie. “How about you two start by telling them all about the Magic Crystals.”
“Look, we have to do some–”
Finally, Liza looked up and said. “The toy shop means everything to Oscar, and these magical toys of his are his life. If we go to the Police, and we do manage to convince them... then that all ends. I... we... can’t do that to him. There must be another way.”
Well, if there was, it wasn’t immediately apparent, so they sat in silence, thinking.
***
Mr. Oddley had crawled back into the cave. In there, at least, he was sheltered from the wind. He took his cell phone from his pocket. Damn, the battery was dead!
He switched on his head lamp, grabbed his supply pack, and made his way back into the cathedral–which, if you remember, was well lit. He sat and inventoried his supplies:
One head lamp, half charged
Two bottles of water
Two PowerCrunch snack bars
Lots of rope
And, of course, his sanskrit translation book. Not much to work with. He’d have to be frugal with his food. Water wouldn’t be a problem, there was all that snow out there, after all. On the plus side, at least he was wearing warm clothes and wouldn’t freeze. On the minus side, he was feeling pretty scared and miserable.
Think Oscar, think, he told himself. There’s got to be a way out of this. You can’t give up and you can’t let Hugh Merless win.
No, he wouldn’t give up. He’d been through worse, had been at death’s door and he had fought his way back. Finally, he decided the best thing to do was to look around and see what he could find. He started walking toward an area he and Merless had not explored earlier, into a room that was lined with what looked like copper paneling. Its entrance was framed by a series of lightning bolts.
***
Liza was on her phone for the fiftieth time today, listening to the same recorded message: “Hi, You’ve reached Oscar Oddley at Just Like Magic. I can’t get to the phone right now. Please leave a message and I’ll call you back as soon as I can.”
“Is that helping? huffed Molly.
“I guess not,” confessed Liza, “but it’s nice to hear his voice.” She put the phone down.
Then, unexpectedly, her phone rang. Everyone fell silent and held their breath. The phone kept on ringing until Maggie finally piped in, “Uh, Liza, shouldn’t you answer that?”
As if shaken from a deep sleep, she gasped and answered. “Hello?”
“Liza? Thank goodness you’re safe. And the children? Good, good. Listen, I’m still in the cave. Merless stranded me here. Yes, I have a little food. But listen, listen, the Pandorans discovered how to capture lightning within their crystals. Yes, electricity. Thousands of years ago they developed a kind of battery. And I’m using one to power my dead cell phone.”
“We’ll come get you, Oscar,” insisted Liza.
“That may not be necessary, I need to explore first. I never thought I’d find myself back here again. There’s so much more to these people than I ever imagined. They developed some amazing technologies based on their crystals. And this place is not merely a cave. It’s a dwelling or shelter of some sort carved out from within the mountain. They must have–”
Suddenly, there was silence.
“Oscar, Oscar, are you there?” exclaimed Liza. But there was no answer. The phone connection had been broken.
“Liza, Liza?” No answer on his end either. Then Mr. Oddley noticed the crystal he had managed to attach to his phone had turned from a bright yellow to a milky white. Evidently, its power was drained. He wondered if it was rechargeable. Then he smiled to himself, thinking how laughable it would be if it were inscribed with a picture of an animal beating a drum. An energizer beaver, perhaps? Well, he would try to find another one. But first things first.
“So,” Mr. Oddley mumbled, “as I had started to say, these people must have provided another way out of here. This maze of huge rooms and corridors must have been a place where the Pandorans congregated. So, it is only logical it was accessed from ground level.” His excited voice rose and echoed in the silence. He looked around. “OK Oddley, now you’re scaring me. Stop talking to yourself.”
He stood, surveyed the room, and pointed around with his index finger. “Which way, which way? Hmm, that way. Let’s see what’s over there.”
***
“We’ve got to go,” snapped Molly.
“Of course we d-do,” crackled Tim.
“But how can we go without telling our parents?” popped Maggie.
“By using the old three-step-bamboozle,” said Liza.
“The three-step what?” asked Maggie.
“Bamboozle. Listen, you call home and ask if you can stay at Molly’s. Molly calls home and asks if she can stay at Tim’s. Tim calls home and asks if he can stay at Maggie’s. OK?”
Everyone nodded.
“Then, Maggie calls home and says she and Molly are going to Tim’s instead. Molly calls home and says she and Tim are going to Maggie’s instead. Tim calls home and says he and Maggie are going to Molly’s instead. Are following me?”
“Er, uh, maybe. I guess,” lied Maggie.
“Anyway, here’s the last part. Maggie calls home and says she’s not sure if she’ll be staying at Tim’s or Molly’s. Molly calls home and says she’s not sure if she’ll be staying at Maggie’s or Tim’s. Tim calls home and says he’s not sure if he’ll be staying at Maggie’s or Molly’s. Your parents will be so confused by this time they’ll have no idea where you’ll be staying... and they’ll be too embarrassed to ask. Got it?”
“Not really, but it sure sounds sneaky,” said Molly with just a touch of admiration.
“I was once a kid too, you know,” sighed Liza. “It’s complicated, so I’ll walk you guys through it one phone call at a time. OK Maggie, you’re up first.”
***
Mr. Oddley found himself facing a translucent blue paneled... wall? Window? Door? Yes, obviously a door, because when he touched it, it slid open to reveal a dizzying spiral staircase leading down. A vertigo inducing down. He wondered if it led to ground level. That would make sense, wouldn’t it, that the Pandorans created an entry point at the base of the mountain? Who builds structures that can only be acce
ssed from the roof? He started to descend, slowly and carefully, making sure the old planks were still sturdy enough to bear his weight. They were, thankfully, and here, as well as all the areas he’d explored, there was sufficient light.
When he reached the next landing, he found himself facing a red door. This one had ominous carvings of two human hands held upward, palms facing out. Was this a pictorial warning? A warning not to enter? And if so, why? Still, warning or not, he felt an overwhelming desire to go through the door. He reached out to touch it, and it slid open. Amazing technology, he thought. OK, but now... what was he looking at? The room on this level was as large as the one above, but this one contained a mountainous pile of crystals. They varied in size and shape, but each glowed and sparkled as brightly as the ones he had originally found.
As he walked further into the room, the crystals began to pulse, and he began to feel strange, foggy. A cacophony of jumbled thoughts flooded into his head, as if a thousand people were shouting at him. He spun around wildly, trying to locate the origin of the voices. He was quickly becoming disoriented, but not so disoriented that he couldn’t stumble his way back through the doorway and to the stairs. But once there he realized he was shaking so badly and his vision was so blurry that he was afraid to descend for fear of falling. So his only option was to go back up.
He climbed... he stopped... he listened. The voices were gone. The only sound was his labored breaths. What in heaven was that all about?
***
Hugh leaped from the helicopter, clutching the tablets in his hands, and burst into his lab. He was fuming and cursing to himself. Only moments earlier, he had realized that, yes, he had the supposed instruction manual for the crystals, but in his haste he had forgotten to take Oddley’s translation book. So, basically, what he had was useless. No way around it, they would have to go back. But not until the morning. The chopper couldn’t fly into the mountains at night. An angry red rose up in Merless’ face, like a thermometer registering the fever of his fury. Then one of his workers made the mistake of trying to calm him down, telling him everything would be all right. He was rewarded for his efforts by being whacked on the head and having his rubber nose ripped off, which basically meant he was fired. One clown down.
***
Rob and Daphne were having an argument. Their very first, in fact, because Rob had always called the shots and Daphne had always accepted him being the big gun. But no longer. OK, Maggie had tried to hypnotize her, but she had also treated her with respect, told her she was not dumb, was indeed smart, and just needed to believe in herself, to learn to respect herself. She knew Maggie was right.
“What’s gotten into you?” demanded Rob.
“I guess just a little bit of self respect,” Daphne replied.
“Well, get rid of it, now!”
“Oh Rob,” she smiled sadly. “I hope you grow up someday. Goodbye.” And with that she turned and left. Left a bewildered Rob-noxious standing alone, speechless and confused.
Whoa, time out, he thought. This is impossible. I just got dumped. He needed quick validation on just how awesome he really was... and then he thought of Mr. Merless. That crazy rich guy loved him, saw his true potential, had practically adopted him. A few inspiring words from Hugh would surely clear his head.
***
Back in the cathedral-like room, Mr. Oddley was busily engaged in assembling a puzzle, which were the bits and pieces of the broken tablet Merless had left behind. It was slow and tedious work, as many of the pieces had broken into cornflake sized fragments. But Mr. Oddley was knee deep in a mystery, and was determined to uncover the truth. An hour later, he stood over what he had been able to salvage of this ancient writing and consulted his translation book. And after he had deciphered what he could of this admittedly incomplete manuscript, he paused, paced about the room mumbling to himself and returned to recheck his original work. Same results, and not good ones.
If the Pandorans were correct, the crystals he had dubbed Incredimite were in effect thought amplifiers that gave the brain the ability to control inanimate objects. So, it wasn’t the crystals themselves making the toys perform as magically as they did... it was the brain of the person being affected by the crystals that made the toys respond as they did. Mind over matter? Telekinesis? Sounded good, but apparently it came with a price. It appeared that the crystals themselves possessed a primitive consciousness, and while a tiny bit fused to a toy presented no obvious danger, touching an entire crystal could short circuit the body’s neuro pathways and could kill. Mr. Oddley could attest to that, as he himself had almost died when he had first discovered the crystals. This was a clear example of more is not always better.
But now, an even scarier scenario had arisen. Merless’ people had unwittingly mutated the crystals into a new strain. One that, as indicated by Merless’ recent unpredictable and violent behavior, allowed the crystals to manipulate their hosts instead of killing them. Little by little Hugh’s mind was being taken over. Taken over by a presence whose only purpose was to replicate more of itself. And if this contamination should spread? Well, that would be bad, really, really bad.
So, judging from that huge stockpile of crystals, it appeared the Pandorans must have realized what was happening and tried to rid themselves of this menace by stashing it away. But, apparently it was too little, too late. They were already hopelessly contaminated... as now, perhaps, was Merless.
This was scary stuff, but what scared Mr. Oddley most was a feeling, an almost overwhelming desire, to go back to the crystals, to see them, touch them. Even from this distance he could feel them calling him. He could resist them now, but he knew climbing back down the stairway, his only exit out, would bring him dangerously close to the crystals once again. He needed to descend those stairs, no way around it, but would he be able to resist their siren song then? He wasn’t sure, but he had to try.
Mr. Oddley collected his gear and started down the steps, slowly and carefully and singing:
“Row, row, row your boat,” to distract himself.
“Gently down the stream.” It was working.
“Merrily, merrily, merrily merrily.” Almost out of danger.
“Life is but...”
A dream? At this moment more like a nightmare, because as he passed by the red door, his hand quickly and inexplicitly shot out and brushed the panel and the door slid open. The voices returned with a vengeance, and he found himself stumbling into the room. He felt like a puppet on a string being led forward, pulled forward against his will. In a frantic panic-driven burst of will-power, he forced himself back toward the doorway, and up several steps, before he collapsed in a semiconscious heap of fear and confusion.
***
Liza had packed all four kids into her car. Four kids? Yes, because Daphne had joined them. Why, you ask? Well, because Liza knew, through Rob, that Daphne had lots of experience in mountain climbing, and even had her own gear.
“Well, guys” mused Liza. “I’m taking the four of you on a dangerous rescue mission into the mountains, at night, during the winter, without your parents permission. Now, what else could I do to get myself arrested for kidnapping?”
“It’s not kidnapping. We want to go,” offered Maggie.
“Yes, but would the Police see it that way?”
“Don’t know, but we’ll write to you in prison,” said Molly.
“Thanks a heap!”
***
They drove into the parking area, which was, of course, empty. Because no sane person would go hiking up this mountain at this time of year, but here they were, five crazies, getting ready for their climb.
Liza was not relishing the thought of the five of them rock climbing in the dark when suddenly, she had a thought. She remembered something Oscar had said to her during their brief conversation earlier in the day. The cave is an internal structure or shelter of some sort carved out from within the mountain. And she arrived at the same conclusion he had: reasonably, a building must have an entr
ance at ground level.
But where? After so many years that entrance would no longer be visible. The scenery around the mountain had no doubt undergone radical changes. The yearly cycle of the growth and decay of grass and tree leaves would have hidden any path and doorway. But, an entrance must still exist. The trick now was, how to find it!
With a flashlight held below her chin, a spooky looking Liza explained all of this to the kids. And it was Tim who came up with a brilliant idea. “Didn’t s-some ancient civilizations build their homes and stuff with doorways that faced the r-rising sun?”
“Hmm, good thought,” said Daphne. “And since more than half the mountain faces a river, that’s less area for us to scout. No one would build an entrance on the water. How would anyone get in?”
“Um, I have just one little question,” said Molly haughtily. “Does anyone actually have a clue in which direction the sun rises?”
“Well, uh, somewhere along the area that faces the land,” said the always logical Maggie. “But, Molly, I think I understand what you mean. That’s still a large area to cover.”
“True but...” said Daphne. The kids were on a roll. “Some entrances to buildings were lined with trees on both sides. Kind of like a path. So maybe some traces of them are still here? Does anybody see tall rows of trees? Can anyone...”
And that’s when it all broke down, and the roll they were on got a flat. You see, it was night time. Yes, the moon was out, but they could barely tell a tree from a rock in this light, let alone distinguish specific objects.
“Let’s get in the car guys,” said Liza. “We need to wait until morning, until sunrise specifically. Then we can begin our search.”
Back in the car, Liza gave each kid a blanket, and they curled up the best they could, and one by one drifted off to sleep. Then in the silence, broken only by Molly’s snoring, Liza dialed Oscar’s phone several more times. No answer. She closed her eyes but sleep did not come.
***
Or maybe it had. As the first rays of sunlight flashed through the windshield, a bleary-eyed Liza opened her ears, and finally her eyes, to the whirring sound and the passing shadow of a helicopter flying above them. She shook the sleeping kids and said three words that immediately brought them back to the land of the bright-eyed, “Merless is here!”
