“As you wish, Captain Grant.” The mercenaries reluctantly dropped their weapons to the floor. The Rangers ran over and forced the mercenaries onto their stomachs so they could be disarmed and searched one at a time.
“When you’re done, bring the leader to me,” said Grant.
Under guard, the man was marched over with his hands secured behind his back.
“I remember you from Mount San Fernando,” said Grant.
“And I remember you.”
“Who are you, and what are you doing here?”
“My name is William Charles. I am a former British soldier now in the employ of Peter Roth. As for why I am here, it should be rather self-evident, even to you.”
“I guess Mister Roth still holds a grudge against me.”
Charles snorted. “After you wounded him, Mister Roth doubled the reward on your head.”
“I didn’t shoot him.”
“I did,” said Maclean, waving his MP7 at Charles.
“It doesn’t matter which one of you did it; the price for both of you, alive, is now ten million dollars,” said Charles.
“It’s so nice to be wanted,” said Maclean.
Grant looked over at the captives. “Is there anyone else out there?”
Charles shook his head. “We’re it. Whatever it was, it killed four of my men.”
“Did any of you see it?” asked Elena.
“No. I don’t think so,” responded Charles.
“How did you get here so fast, and how did you know we were here?” Grant asked.
“We have ways of monitoring all U.S. military flights around the globe. When the plane you were traveling in flew out as far as Bouvet Island before heading for the South American mainland, we knew we had reacquired you. As for how we got here, we flew onboard a prototype hypersonic aircraft.”
“You have to have an escape plan,” said Maclean. “What is it?”
“A ship will anchor off the coast tomorrow and send a boat ashore to take my men and you to safety.”
“I guess they’re in for a rude shock when they get here.”
Charles shrugged. “We’ll see.”
Grant looked over at the Ranger guarding Charles. “Take him back with the others and have them blindfolded and gagged until we get off this rock.”
“This way,” said the Ranger, taking Charles by the arm and leading him away.
“He was pretty talkative,” said Maclean.
“Either he doesn’t expect any of us to live, or he still thinks he can somehow overpower us and take us prisoner,” said Grant.
“How safe do you think we’ll be in here?” asked Elena.
“That’s a good question,” said Grant. “I think it depends on how many different ways there are to get in here.”
“Captain Grant, I think you need to see this,” said Hayes, somewhere off to the right in the gloom.
Grant, Elena, and Maclean walked over and joined Hayes. “Did you find something, Jeremy?” asked Grant.
“My God, yes,” said Hayes, switching his flashlight back on. The back of the cavern became a long, concrete, rectangular room. They stood at the edge of a walkway, which ran the length of the chamber. In the middle of the space lay a pool of ink-black water, which almost came up to the walkway.
“What are we looking at?” asked Elena.
“My friends, we are looking at a previously undiscovered, top secret Nazi U-Boat pen,” said Hayes.
“It doesn’t look overly large,” said Maclean. “I’ve seen the pictures from the war of the U-Boat pens in France, and they were huge. I bet they could only get one sub in here at a time.”
“Still, it’s a fantastic piece of engineering,” said Hayes.
“How did they get in and out of here?”
“There must be an underground channel that leads out to sea.”
Elena shone her flashlight on the wall and started walking across the walkway.
“I wonder when it was last used?” mused Grant.
“At the end of the war, several Nazi submarines surrendered to the Argentine authorities well after hostilities had ceased,” said Hayes. “For all we know, they could have come here first.”
“How did the Germans build this base without anyone noticing?” said Maclean.
“Before the war, they claimed a vast swath of Antarctica and called it New Swabia. They may have decided during one of their expeditions to build this installation. I suspect they found this cave and modified it to suit their needs.”
Grant strolled down the walkway after Elena, shining his light inside a vacant row of offices and workshops. He stepped inside one and found a dust-covered paper sitting on a desk. Grant picked up the paper and blew off the dust. He shook his head in awe when he saw it was a newspaper from Argentina, dated September 1948.
“David! David, come here,” said Elena, her voice filled with excitement.
Grant joined the woman. “Now what have you found?”
“Jeremy’s right,” she said. “The Germans built this base over an existing site.” Elena moved her light along the wall. Where the concrete stopped, the rock wall was decorated with carvings. There were engravings of animals and people as well as hieroglyphs, which looked like the ones on the map and the temple inside Mount San Fernando.
“Unbelievable. I wonder if there’s more to this island buried under the glacier?” said Grant.
“I don’t doubt it.”
Grant ran a hand over his chin while he stared at the engravings. “This has to be what Susan wanted me to see.”
“If it is, she must have powerful psychic powers hidden deep inside her subconscious that she is using to guide you.”
“Don’t let Jeremy hear you talk like that; he’s likely to have a brain aneurysm. Now, all we have to do is find a way to stay alive long enough to figure out how to help Susan.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“We’re not done. I can feel it in my heart that this is just another stepping stone. Susan’s leading me somewhere, but this isn’t it. Come on, let’s rejoin the others, and let Sergeant Wright know what’s going on. If there is an underground channel leading out to the sea, those things may find it and try to come up through it. We need to be ready for that, and any and all eventualities.”
41
Grant asked Wright to join him and his colleagues.
“Yes, sir,” said the sergeant.
“Sergeant, before we begin, I’d just like to say I’m truly sorry that you lost four men today.”
“Thanks, sir. I don’t mean any disrespect here, but I’m positive the four of you know more than you’re passing on to my men and me. And before any more of my soldiers die, we deserve to know what we’re up against.”
“He’s right,” said Maclean. “We’re all in this together.”
Grant looked Wright in the eyes. “Sergeant, the creatures we encountered on the ship were unlike anything we have ever come across. They are highly advanced robotic killers and seem to be almost invulnerable to small arms fire. High explosives, on the other hand, seem to be able to destroy them.”
“Why are they here, and who built the bloody things?”
“Two damn fine questions. I honestly wish I knew the answers.”
“Sergeant, while your men were securing the prisoners, we stumbled across a World War Two German submarine pen,” said Maclean. “I suggest you place a couple of Claymores down there in case those things find the underwater tunnel the U-Boats would have used to enter the pen and decide to come after us.”
“Where is this sub pen?”
Maclean pointed to his right. “It’s about one hundred meters that way.”
Wright looked back at his men. “Radek, take two Claymores and secure the area.”
“Where, Staff Sergeant?” asked Radek.
“One hundred meters to your right is a tunnel leading out to sea. Make sure nothing can get out of the water without being ripped to pieces.”
“Hooah, Sergeant.”
“
Now that that’s in hand, I think we had best address our current situation, which, while bleak, is not an unwinnable one,” said Grant. “There’s plenty of wood at the pen that we can use to build fires to keep warm. The only problem I can foresee is one of water and food. All our rations and extra water bottles are with our packs, which are still outside, and I’m not going to risk anyone’s life just to get some MREs. We’ll just have to go hungry for a few days. As for the water, I suggest people learn to conserve what they have with them.”
“The prisoners, sir?” asked Wright.
“They have water on them. Have your men ration it as well.”
“David, this cave is huge. What if the robots find another way in?” said Elena.
“It’s a very real possibility. Therefore, from now on, we’ll go to fifty-percent manning. Sergeant, make sure you include Mister Maclean and me, but not the two scientists or the other civilians, on the duty roster. Whoever is on shift should have one of the M203s and all its ammo.”
“Hooah, sir.”
“One last thing. No one is to go anywhere by themselves from now on. That includes going to the bathroom. Those things are intelligent and as black as night. So, it’s a matter of safety in numbers.”
Wright nodded and turned to pass his orders to his men.
An hour later, with several bonfires burning, Grant sat down with one of the M203s in his hands. He looked over at Radek, who was watching the prisoners, and gave him a wave. The Ranger waved back.
“So, all is quiet?” said Maclean, resting his back against a rock.
“For now,” replied Grant. “Let’s hope those creatures have given up for the night.”
“Captain, please, life is never that simple. They’ll be back. However, this time, we’ll be better prepared for them.”
Hayes leaned forward and warmed his hands over the fire. “I wish I could have gotten a piece of that robot today to study back at the lab.”
“Be careful what you wish for, Professor. You may still get your chance,” said Maclean.
“Did you see the way it repaired itself?” said Grant. “It reminded me of that orb we found in Libya. And we all know that kind of technology doesn’t exist anywhere on the planet.”
“Why would extraterrestrials send robots to kill the crew of an illegal fishing vessel?” asked Hayes.
“I don’t know. But it’s the only conclusion I can think of that fits the facts.”
“Hey, I’m supposed to be the conspiracy theory nut,” said Maclean. “I’m not disagreeing with your hypothesis, but I’m with Jeremy on this one. Why would they want to kill the crew?”
“Maybe it was a warning, or maybe they did it to test out new technology,” said Elena. “Ships have been discovered all throughout history with their crews missing.”
“Like the Mary Celeste?” said Maclean.
“Precisely.”
“Elena, there’s a myriad of reasons why a ship could have been abandoned,” said Hayes, “from mutinies, to pirates, to storms. All of which could explain why a ship was found without its crew.”
“Okay then, what about the mysterious disappearance of the lighthouse crew from Eilean Mor in the Outer Hebrides in 1900? They vanished without a trace, and as far as I can recall, pirates have never sailed that far north.”
“Mass suicide?”
“Now you’re making things up.”
“Well, whatever happened on that ship, let’s not let it happen to us,” said Grant.
“Amen, brother,” said Maclean. “Say, have you checked your sat phone recently?”
“No, why?”
“Because mine’s not getting an outside signal. What about yours?”
Grant checked his phone. His wasn’t registering a connection either. “Odd, it should still work from in here.”
“There could be iron in the rocks interfering with your signal,” proposed Hayes.
“I’ll try it near the cave entrance the next time I’m up,” said Grant, putting his phone away.
Elena brought up her hand to her mouth and coughed. “Sorry, gentlemen, but I have to go to the bathroom.”
Grant stood. “I’m on duty, so I guess I’m your chaperone.”
“This is so embarrassing,” said Elena.
“It’s nothing to be embarrassed about; everyone has to go.” He shone his flashlight at a tall rock for her to step behind. “That looks like a good spot for you.”
While Grant stood guard, he recalled what Charles had told him about a ship arriving tomorrow to pick them up. A plan began to form in his mind.
“David, could you come here?” said Elena.
“Pardon?”
“I think I’ve found something.”
Grant moved around the boulder, and saw Elena tugging at a slender, square-shaped rock half-buried in the sand. He got on his knees and moved his light over the stone. There were hieroglyphs and drawings on it. Grant dug in the sand with his hands until the rock began to come free. With a grunt, he yanked on the stone and pulled it from where it had likely rested for a millennia.
“This is exquisite,” said Elena, moving her fingers over the carvings.
“Let’s get back to the fire,” Grant said, taking the stone.
Elena sat down next to Hayes. “Wait until you see what I found.”
“Please tell me it’s a porcelain toilet,” said Maclean.
“No. Something far better,” she replied, smiling
Grant handed Elena the stone before tapping Maclean on the shoulder. “Cover them, while I go have a chat with our prisoners.”
“Will do,” replied Maclean, taking hold of the grenade launcher.
Maclean drew his pistol and walked over to the mercenaries. “Radek, remove the prisoners’ gags and then sit them up.”
“Yes, sir,” replied the broad-shouldered Ranger.
Maclean took Charles’ water bottle, removed the cap, and let him have a swig. “Now, Mister Charles, I’d really like to know more about your extraction plan before your friends arrive.”
“Untie me and remove my blindfold, so we can discuss this face-to-face,” said Charles.
“I may not be the brightest person on the planet, but I’m far from being a fool. The blindfold and restraints will stay on until we hand you over to the proper authorities for a speedy trial and an even quicker execution.”
“Don’t be an idiot. You have no idea of the power the people we work for possess. There is still time to save your family from retribution,” warned Charles. “Untie us, and I promise that your family will survive.”
White-hot anger erupted from deep inside Grant. He stepped forward and with all his might, he struck Charles across the face with his pistol. “The last person who threatened my family was eaten alive by a bear. I’d hate to have to leave you four tied up in here when we leave. How long do you think you’d last against those creatures?”
“Oy, Yank, I don’t want to die like that,” blurted out Angus.
Bingo, thought Grant. He looked at Radek. “Replace Charles’ gag.”
“Don’t you say a damn word, Angus,” yelled the mercenary before his gag was yanked back in place.
“Okay, Angus, I’m open to taking one of you with me when we leave,” said Grant. “When exactly is your ship going to arrive tomorrow? How many men are on board, and how were you going to let the ship know you had accomplished your mission?”
“Keep your mouth shut,” snarled Muhammad.
Radek moved behind the man and reapplied his gag. Grant pointed at the last merc, and Radek silenced him as well.
“I’m not a patient man, Angus. Tell me what I want to know,” said Grant.
“You promise you won’t leave me behind.”
“You have my word.”
“The ship is the Patagonia, and she is scheduled to be here no later than 1800 hours tomorrow. Her crew are merchant sailors who work for the Roth Corporation. I’m not aware of any more hired guns being on the vessel.”
“And how will you
contact her?”
“Charles is carrying a sat phone on him. It has the ship’s contact information already programmed in it.”
Grant grinned when Charles began to pull at his bonds, his shrieks muffled by his gag.
Radek walked over, pushed Charles down on the ground, rummaged through his pockets until he found the phone, and tossed it to Grant.
“Thanks,” he said, thumbing through the phone’s directory.
“So, are you going to cut me loose?” asked Angus.
“Who said anything about cutting you free? You’re no better than your murderous counterparts.”
Radek hauled up the man’s gag and tied it tight.
“Ranger, when you get the chance, search them again,” said Grant. “I trust them as far as I could throw them.”
“Will do, sir,” replied Radek.
As Grant walked back to his friends, his mind was putting the last touches on a plan to get them off the island. If Angus was telling the truth, and luck was on their side, taking control of the Patagonia would come down to a matter of skill and timing.
For the first time since landing on the island, Grant felt that things were turning his way.
42
A silvery beam of moonlight shot down through an opening in the roof into the cavern.
“Looks like the clouds have dissipated,” said Grant as he took a seat next to his friends.
“Let’s hope tomorrow brings a better day,” said Elena.
“It just might.”
“How so?” asked Maclean.
“One of the mercs was more than happy to divulge their extraction plan to me,” said Grant. “I think we can seize their ship without any bloodshed and hold up there until the Farragut arrives.”
“Anything other than this dreary cave would be an improvement,” said Hayes.
“At first light, I’ll go over my plan with you and Sergeant Wright,” said Grant to Maclean. “I’m sure it can work if the opposition is taken completely off guard.”
“We both know that no plan survives contact with the enemy, so keep it simple, and I’m sure we can pull it off,” said Maclean.
“David, while you were away, Jeremy and I found some awe-inspiring carvings on that stone,” announced Elena.
The Founders Page 19
