The Eternal Chamber

by Tom Hunter

  “Nevertheless,” Samuel said. “If we encounter anyone else, I feel it would be better if we were to attempt to capture them alive. They know this cave system better than us. It could save us a lot of time if we were to interrogate them instead of kill them.”

  “We will do our best.” The Director turned and strode down the corridor after his soldiers. Samuel made to follow him, but Basile pulled him to one side, trying to get as far away from listening ears as possible.

  “Do you believe him?” he whispered. “More importantly, do you trust him?”

  “I’m not sure,” Samuel replied, “but what choice do we have? We can’t leave on our own and I want to know what’s so important about this place that people are willing to die for it.”

  Basile sighed. “Me too,” he confessed. “I just hope it was worth all this bloodshed. Come on. Let’s go and see what’s lurking in the catacombs.”

  They crossed the chamber to go into the corridor, following the archers.

  “The crossfire destroyed so much of the interior of this chamber,” tutted Samuel in dismay, stopping to examine a shattered carving. “I would have thought the Ministry would have cared more about protecting the site. At least the men who attacked us used arrows.”

  “And not a single one hit any of the artifacts,” Basile observed. “All the damage was caused by the Director’s men.”

  Thirty-Four

  Shafira gazed out over the complex of rectangular holes, walls, and tents that was the excavation site as Josh expertly brought the helicopter down close to the landing strip. This was it! She was finally out in the field, free from the constraints of an office. If only it were under better circumstances…

  When they’d safely touched down, Josh switched off the helicopter’s engines, swiveling in his seat to face Shafira as the loud whine decreased. “What’s the plan, Stan?”

  Shafira adjusted her uniform, making sure that her Ministry badge was clearly visible.

  “Hopefully Samuel won’t have left the site yet,” she replied. “Since he’s your friend, do you think you could come up with some excuse to get him away from the Director so that I can talk to him alone, warn him that he can’t trust anyone until we’ve solved the mystery of what’s going on here?”

  “I can do that,” Josh nodded. “What do we do if he’s already left though?”

  “Then we’ll have to fly to the cave site,” Shafira decided. “I brought some files with me so that if I do have to face Director Haisam, I can pretend that they were too important to wait.”

  “Is he likely to buy that?”

  “Maybe not,” Shafira sighed. “But he did initially ask me to accompany him. I can tell him that I reconsidered his offer after I did more research into the site and wanted to see it for myself. After all, it’s the female prerogative to change my mind!”

  “I really hope you know what you’re doing,” Josh warned.

  “I wish. I’m making it up as I go along,” Shafira admitted. “That’s why I’m lucky to have a friend like you by my side. I couldn’t have got here without you. Do you remember where the cave is if we have to fly out there?”

  Josh winced. “Not really. I was just going where Samuel told me to. The biggest problem is that damn camo-tech hiding the cave. We could be right on top of it and not know. There weren’t any obvious landmarks that would be able to give us a clue to where to go. It took us forever to find it first time around and that was with the assistance of Samuel’s map. Since he lost it when we almost crashed into the cave, I wouldn’t want to risk running out of fuel trying to find the site again.”

  Shafira tapped a finger against the dashboard as she thought. “All right. Cross your fingers that McCarthy is still on site. If we’ve missed him, we’ll just have to search his tent to see if he’s left any clue to their whereabouts.”

  “I guess that’ll work,” Josh agreed, before indicating to the men that were coming towards the helicopter. “Looks like they’ve sent out a welcoming party. Let’s go and see if they can tell us where Samuel is.”

  Josh and Shafira disembarked, and headed over to meet a single, tall figure dressed in a patterned headscarf and gray tunic.

  “Marhaban,” Shafira greeted as they met, holding up the ID in her wallet so that they could see that she was from the Ministry. “I’m looking for Samuel McCarthy or Basile Rossignol. Are they here?”

  “I’m sorry, ma’am,” the man replied. “You’ve missed them. They left with one of your fellows and some soldiers a few hours ago. But surely you’d know that?”

  “I was caught up on another assignment,” Shafira explained, as Josh looked at her sharply. “I’m running behind, which is why I had to commandeer a helicopter. I have some important documents for the Director. It is imperative that I get them to him.” She glanced away and then back again, smiling at the man as she batted her eyelids at him. “I don’t suppose you could tell me where they’ve gone?”

  “I have no idea, miss.” The man shook his head. “But he might have left a note in his tent. Would you like me to show you where it is?”

  “That would be very helpful. Thank you,” said Shafira, as their guide turned to lead them through the camp, out to where Samuel’s tent was pitched.

  “Call out if you need any help,” offered the worker, holding open the tent flap for Shafira and Josh. “I’m working nearby.”

  “I will.” Shafira thanked the man again before ducking inside the tent. Her smile faded as she took in the state of Samuel’s tent. “Oh my goodness. How on earth is Samuel supposed to find anything in this place?” She moved over to a table, picking up a dirty T-shirt that was covering some equipment, holding it at arm’s length.

  “Samuel’s never been the world’s tidiest person,” Josh told her. “Claims that disorganization is the sign of a brilliant mind, but I think he’s just lazy.”

  “Help me sift through this mess,” Shafira replied testily. She began sifting through books and papers on the table next to her. “If Samuel’s out in the middle of the deserts with those thugs, we need to let him know. They could be agents of the Bruard.”

  “Speaking of the Bruard, don’t you think you should have warned that worker about what’s going on?” Josh asked as he rifled through some paperwork.

  “Like he was going to believe me,” Shafira pointed out. “I’m not supposed to be here as it is. What if they demanded proof that we’re not the frauds? They could ring my office, who’ll tell them that I’m supposed to be back in Cairo. No, if the Bruard are here, then they’re with Samuel looking for the cave. The camp is safe, at least for the time being.”

  “Fair enough,” Josh agreed. “But Samuel’s a likeable guy. I’m sure the team would help us out if they thought he was in trouble. We could get to the cave much faster with their help.”

  “Maybe,” Shafira said, “but who can we trust? Whatever Haisam’s mixed up in, it’s big. For all we know, the camp could be rife with spies and agents left to make sure that no one interferes. Do you want to risk telling the wrong person our suspicions? The best thing to do is find out where Samuel’s gone and get there as fast as we can. So keep looking for clues. We might get interrupted at any moment, especially if someone’s decided to ring the Ministry to check on my story.”

  Josh and Shafira redoubled their efforts, the occasional sounds of a voice or a chisel against stone their only companions as they searched for a clue to where Samuel and his team had gone.

  “Shafira!” Josh beckoned to her. “Over here.”

  He held up the device containing the geo-map Samuel had used to show the Director where they were going. “This should have a record of all the recent searches Samuel’s carried out. The chances are high that he’s used it to locate the cave site so they could plan out their return route.” He tapped on a few buttons to bring up the map. “Dammit! It’s password-protected. What do we do now?”

  “Give it here.” Shafira held out a hand for the device. Hitting a few buttons, she passed it bac
k to Josh. “There you go.”

  Josh looked at the display and saw that Shafira had unlocked the map.

  “How did you do that?” he gasped. “Have you taken up hacking in your spare time?”

  “Nothing like that,” Shafira laughed. “But hang around offices for long enough and you soon find that the same old passwords get used over and over. There are people who still use ‘password’ would you believe, while there are others who think they’re being clever by using a sequence of letters or numbers or even their name written backwards without realizing that just about everyone else is doing the same thing.”

  “So what was Samuel’s?”

  “1q2w3e4r,” Shafira replied. “It looks random, but it’s just the first few keys from the top two lines of the keyboard. Now what were the last plotted coordinates?”

  Josh called up the log of previous searches. “Yes!” he crowed. “Gotcha!”

  “Have you found the cave?”

  “Yes,” Josh beamed. “I recognize the area. I know exactly where we’re going and this time I won’t nearly crash into the rocks.”

  “Excellent. Let’s get going then. I just hope that we can find a way to warn Samuel without alerting the Director to our suspicions.”

  Josh and Shafira grinned at each other, but their joy turned to dread as they heard someone opening up the tent and coming in.

  Thirty-Five

  “Who are you?” demanded Shafira, as an unfamiliar man walked into the tent. Short and stocky with black hair and eyes, there was something about him that raised her hackles.

  “Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” he countered. “You’re the ones rifling through Samuel McCarthy’s tent.”

  Josh and Shafira exchanged a glance as she indicated the badge attached to her lapel. “Shafira Khouri from the Ministry of State for Antiquities,” she announced. “And you are?”

  “Waleed at your service.” Waleed sketched an elaborate bow, but Josh was unimpressed.

  “Do you have a surname, Waleed at-your-service?” he asked.

  “Just Waleed will do,” came the evasive reply. “But I’m curious. What is a Ministry official doing here when we had no less than a Director arrive today?”

  “I have an important message for Samuel and the Director,” Shafira replied. “It’s on a need-to-know basis, so I can’t say further than that.”

  “Of course, of course. I understand.” Waleed shrugged expansively. “I am but a humble worker, here to support Samuel in any way that I can. Still, if it is such an important message, I don’t understand why you weren’t here sooner. Surely you must appreciate how difficult it will be to find Samuel in the field?”

  “There were some complications,” Shafira told him coolly. “Which means that it is crucial that we get to McCarthy as soon as we possibly can.”

  “Complications like… the Bruard?” Waleed raised his eyebrows, looking from Shafira to Josh and back again to gauge their reaction.

  Shafira’s eyes widened, while Josh shook his head.

  “You don’t need to worry about me, my friends,” Waleed reassured them. “You are not the only ones to suspect Bruard involvement in this excavation. I’ve been working undercover for Basile. We suspect that there are Bruard spies in the camp. I’ve been tasked with discovering their identity. Perhaps we can combine our knowledge and work together?”

  “A word, Shafira?” Seeing that she was about to tell Waleed everything, Josh pulled her to one side.

  “This is it!” she whispered excitedly. “This is exactly what we were looking for. I knew that something big was going on. It’s the only way the Director could have been compromised. If this Waleed has information on the Bruard, we need to know about it.”

  “Don’t go buying what he’s selling,” Josh warned. “He seems a little too upfront with his suspicions. Be careful that he’s not just spreading honey to trap flies. We know nothing about him. For all you know, he could be a Bruard agent himself, left on duty here to head off anyone who suspects what’s happening.”

  “I’m not a Bruard agent!” Waleed protested, making Josh and Shafira jump. He smiled obsequiously. “I’m sorry, but I couldn’t help but overhear. I know you have no reason to trust me, but believe me, I hate the Bruard as much as you do. It’s thanks to them that I was placed under supervision in the camp. It was Basile who saw through their lies and set me free. I owe him and I’d like to help him as he helped me. If you could only let me come with you, I promise that I’ll prove to you that I’m on your side.”

  Shafira bit her lip in indecision, glancing at Josh, who frowned and shook his head.

  “Look at this.” Waleed pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “Basile trusted me with the comm signal code to his and Samuel’s radio equipment. He wouldn’t have done that if he hadn’t wanted me to help. When we get within range, I can help you contact your friends without alerting any traitors who may be with them. What do you say? Shall we go defeat the Bruard?”

  “I really don’t trust this guy,” Josh cautioned, but Shafira waved away his concerns.

  “You can come with us,” she decided. “But the first sign of any trouble and we’ll throw you out of the helicopter. Don’t think we won’t!”

  “Don’t worry. I won’t give you any trouble,” Waleed grinned.

  As Josh and Shafira left the tent, Waleed surreptitiously grabbed one of Samuel’s hooded shirts, throwing it on to conceal his appearance as he followed them to the helicopter.

  Thirty-Six

  Samuel paid close attention to the ancient surroundings him as his party made their way deeper into the catacombs. He swung his Maglite around, trying to take in all the details, as exciting new discoveries greeted him with every step.

  When they’d first entered the corridor that lead away from the entrance chamber, stone pillars had been placed every few feet decorated with simple carvings that only hinted at what would be found further down the passageway. Romans loved symbolism, rarely using decorations that didn’t hold multiple meanings, and as they got further into the cave network, the rough pillars gave way to Roman mosaics interspersed with statues of Seshat and Moneta, benevolently watching over passersby.

  “I didn’t realize that Romans had such gaudy taste,” Basile remarked. “I had no idea that they used such bright colors in their designs.”

  “It’s cool, isn’t it?” beamed Samuel. “This is a remarkable example of Roman art and architecture. We can thank whoever sealed the caves off from the outside world for them being so well preserved. Most people think of Roman culture as being all white and bland, but they loved color and used it on everything.”

  “Look at those images.” Basile pointed to a detailed mosaic. “Who were those people?”

  “I’d need to examine the surrounding iconography to identify them accurately,” Samuel replied, going over to look at the picture. “But at first glance, judging by the clothing and how they are positioned, these are either Pharaohs or important aristocrats, indicating that whatever was stored in this place was reserved for the rich and wealthy. This figure here appears to be dreaming, while if we look over here, this one is examining the stars. Of course, back in those times, astrology was considered to be a science, so the positioning of the stars and planets in this picture will have a specific significance.”

  “What else can you tell us?” Overhearing Samuel and Basile’s conversation, the Director held back to walk alongside them.

  “Anything I say now is only a preliminary observation and may prove to be inaccurate once I’ve had a chance to carry out further investigation,” Samuel cautioned. “But based on what I’ve seen so far, I believe that the design at the start of this corridor dates towards the end of the Egyptian dynasty. I can confirm that theory once I’ve had a chance to date the sarcophagi in the entrance chamber, assuming there’s anything left after your men shot the place up.” He glared at the Director, who ignored the jibe.

  “However,” Samuel continued, “as we’ve
progressed further into the cave network, we’re seeing Egyptian work giving way to an increasingly heavy influence from Roman styles, giving us a blend of the two cultures that would have naturally occurred after the Romans conquered the area.”

  “Seshat. She is Egyptian, is she not?” mused the Director, lightly waving his hand in front of the face of one of the statues.

  “Yes, although I would have thought you’d know that already,” frowned Samuel.

  “I wonder whether she was included as a form of rebellion, a desire to go against orders from the invaders. I can’t imagine anyone being willing to share their culture with those who have overthrown them.”

  “You’d be surprised. The Romans were very laid back when it came to the gods. They viewed local deities as having their counterpart within their pantheon, so didn’t have a problem with cultures maintaining their own religions and forms of worship. They would have seen Seshat as being simply another Roman goddess known by an Egyptian name. Allowing those they conquered a certain level of autonomy was one of the reasons why they were so successful at taking over vast swathes of land.”

  “I see.” The Director nodded and then turned to join his soldiers up ahead, leaving Samuel and Basile to examine the mosaic further.

  “This is incredible, Samuel,” breathed Basile. “But I have to say that I’m impressed by your restraint. Why aren’t you rushing ahead? Surely this is just a fraction of what we’ll find later.”

  Samuel’s reply was lost as there was a sudden thud. The sound of a metal blade swiping through the air was closely followed by a cry of alarm.

  “Because of that.” Samuel pointed to the ground where a spike had suddenly burst through, narrowly missing a careless soldier.