Kraken Rising

CHAPTER 51

Yang felt the female HAWC at his shoulder. She was of no threat to him; he knew he could disable or kill her whenever he wished. His primary threat was the leader of this Special Forces group. But he was also his biggest opportunity.

He bristled at the thought of his missing men, and now needed to rely on Soong Chin Ling and Shenjung Xing for support. He had reservations about their patriotism, but he knew a quiet word reminding the pair of what lay in store for them back home, if they failed to remember where their true allegiances lay, would bring them back into line.

Yang inhaled the humid air of the tunnel, and watched the back of Alex Hunter. Following close to him was Dr. Aimee Weir. Perhaps this was why Yang had been chosen to lead the mission. It was payback or an opportunity for redemption for the failed mission to procure the child — Joshua Weir.

Their own top secret Advanced Soldier Program had stalled, stuck in a cul-de-sac of producing giants like Mungoi, but not being able to complement their strength with intellect. Their soldiers were little more than two-legged battering rams and what they needed was something better.

Yang continued to watch Alex Hunter. Where they were stalled, the Americans had succeeded with this man who was known as the Arcadian. With his own eyes Yang had witnessed the ease with which Hunter had defeated Mungoi, making the big PLA soldier, their most advanced breed, seem like an outdated model within seconds.

He felt his spirits lift. If this was an opportunity for redemption, he would seize it with both hands. He would secure the submarine for his country, and also the body of the Arcadian. He turned again, and smiled at the stocky female HAWC. She sneered in return. His smile broadened — he was right where he needed to be — on his way to the submarine, and now embedded within the enemy camp.

He sped up as he remembered an ancient proverb: patience is power. He could wait, and he would be ready to act.

Soong and Shenjung followed next, just in front of Jennifer, and Yang trawled behind them, with Casey on his shoulder.

“This way.” Rhino led them up a mound of broken rock that suddenly turned into age-worn steps. Even now it was clear that these had not been rough-hewn risers, but once were carved of something shining and smooth. The stumps of broken balustrades were of a dark stone that was ebony black, and could have been the finest polished marble. The stairs themselves were soft, carpeted by thick mosses that squelched as they stepped up on them.

They next crossed a wide balcony and then entered a curved tunnel. Overhead there were once polished lintel stones, each with their own intricate carving of a face with a different expression, now all with beards of lichen that they needed to duck beneath.

Alex stopped before one wall, looking along its length, feeling the sense of misery and dismay in the images portrayed. He exhaled slowly and then waited for Aimee to catch up. He motioned with a nod. Aimee followed his gaze and shined her flashlight along the carved relief, exhaling softly.

“An old friend,” she said.

“More like the ancient enemy,” Alex responded.

The coiled mass with an unblinking eye at its center dominated the wall. The Aztlantic carving style was a mix of raised glyphs, faces, but now the once benevolent visages were twisted in horror, fear, or pain.

Alex tilted his head back, staring upwards, feeling like he was seeing through the miles of stone to the ancient city he knew was buried just below the snow and dark ice. Many years ago, he had encountered a similar tableau to the one on the wall, but the scenes then were of the land, sunlight, and happier times. Now, down here, a darkness had not only permeated the lives of these forgotten people, but had even influenced their art.

“Wow.” Cate joined them, her mouth hanging open as she stared at the glyphs. “Amazing, isn’t it? It’s like the pre-Columbian stone artisan work, but different somehow. Not more primitive, just… different.” Cate walked quickly to the wall, laying her hands on some of the images. “I wish I could understand them.”

“Possibly the most ancient formal language ever known. A linguist who was with us, Professor Matt Kearns, said the Aztlantian words might even be the skeleton key — the root language for all languages.”

“And those who stayed in the city above, just sat there and froze in the dark.” Cate exhaled through compressed lips.

“No.” Aimee turned to Cate. “We found evidence in the city above, where the orthocone managed to find its way in, snaking in through cracks and holes, and snatching the remaining inhabitants in the dark. It would have been a nightmare.”

Rhino grimaced. “Like with Parcellis. This thing can get in anywhere, and it’s smart, been fucking with us the whole time.” He lifted his light to the coiling mass. “I bet that’s what happened to them.”

“We don’t know that for sure,” Alex said. “The creatures, these Kraken species, have made a home here for countless millions of years. And the Aztlantians must have been here for centuries as well. These structures take time to plan and build. They could never have created them if they were being constantly attacked. Somehow, they learned to coexist.”

“Maybe you’re right on that part.” Cate stepped back from the wall, shining her light along its entire length. “Everything, every image; it’s all about the beast.”

Aimee sighed. “The mighty Aztlan people, rulers of the world, before even the Egyptians lifted their pyramids, or the Persians built Persepolis. Who worshiped the sun, and the wind, and the sea, and were suddenly forced to believe in only one god, this thing, this monster in the dark.”

“Not just their god, it became their everything.” Alex hurried them on.

Aimee wandered along the wall, shining her light up and down. “Maybe they struck a bargain?”

Rhino grunted. “Striking a bargain usually means they had something to offer each other. Safety for the people down here, sure, but what would the monster get out of it? Other than free food, I mean.”

“Let’s keep moving.” Alex led them along the tomb-dark corridor. The air was thick with damp, and other than their breathing, there was near total silence.

“Look.” Rhino shined his light at the ground. At the edge of a puddle of murky water, there were boot marks in the moss. “HAWC boot; Blake’s, heading this way.”

Alex nodded. “All going in one direction — and no one coming back. Means if they’re anywhere, it’s still up ahead.” He turned to his HAWCs. “Be ready; they may have walked into a trap.”

Alex slowed the pace, wary now, and reached out with his senses. He could feel the void long before he saw it.

“It’s opening out.”

“How can you tell?” Jackson asked. “We lost all the sensors.”

Alex kept staring directly ahead. “The echo isn’t as compressed as it was only a moment ago, and it’s taking longer to bounce back to us. In here, its bounce is muted by the low ceiling — not anymore.”

“Got it.” Jackson didn’t sound convinced.

“Wait here.” Alex switched off his flashlight and vanished into the darkness.

He moved lightly along the corridor, his flashlight off, as his eyes were perfectly dark-adapted — another side effect of the Arcadian treatment. He stopped when he was around a bend and away from the group. He stood silently, listening and waiting, trying to draw forth a sense of his surroundings. The heavy stones blocked many of his senses, but he was sure he could detect life… and not that of the monstrous creature that waited outside for them. He hoped it was Blake. The man was a good HAWC, and not one to easily walk into an ambush.

Alex moved on, quickly now, further along the corridor until a soft light started to permeate the darkness. He exited the tunnel, and found himself in a huge room, like a cathedral, many hundreds of feet across. The ceiling was high enough overhead that it had its own bioluminescent biology fixed to it. Along all four walls there were small alcoves, like window-sized pigeonholes. He guessed there might have been more levels higher up.

He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, concentrating — there was the essence of life again, but nothing close by. He turned to the passage he had just exited.

“Yo, come on in.”

Aimee was first in, followed by Cate, and then the rest of the group. Aimee wandered out towards the center. She saw that Shenjung and Soong remained joined at the hip, as though frightened one or the other was going to be snatched away.

“Oh my god,” Cate said.

Aimee followed her gaze with her own light. There was a giant carving in the far wall — more than a carving — instead a mighty statue that seemed to be breaking out from the very rock. It was a human figure, in a dress-like tunic, holding a huge stone sword. The long ages had colored it green with many varieties of moss and lichen. Only two spots remained clear of the mossy covering — the eyes. Both gleamed in the beams of light.

“Is that gold?” Jennifer asked.

“Probably,” said Aimee. “Antarctica is a very old continent, and has rich deposits of the metal. Makes sense for them to mine it.”

“Many ancient races found it something they could work quite readily,” Cate said.

“A treasure,” said Yang, lifting a small pair of field glasses to his eyes.

Casey’s lip curled. “That’s all you’re taking away from this? Maybe you can lug some home — I heard it’s not that heavy.”

Yang lowered the glasses and turned front on to her. “Idiot. You see, but do not understand. It is a sign of an advanced civilization. They were able to mine the metal, smelt it, and then work it into such an ornate design.” He waved a hand up at the huge being. “This statue alone would have taken decades to create. If something catastrophic happened to them, it either happened very slowly, or very quickly. We need to learn from this.”

Casey sneered. “Yeah, you’ve seen what’s outside, right?”

“He’s right,” Aimee said softly. “Everything we learn is important now. Keep your eyes, and minds, open.”

“Whatever.” Casey turned away.

Cate craned her neck, shining her light above them. “This room is like a church. The roof is arched, and looks carved. This civilization must have been monumental for centuries.” She turned. “Was it like this in the city above?”

“No,” said Aimee. “It was well beyond this. It was magnificent, and would have rivaled anything in Egypt or ancient Persia. But, the creature found them, or they found it while digging in their basements. They broke through into the caves while excavating. Found the labyrinths leading down to the sea. The creature rose up and pursued them into their most private places. They tried to appease it for a while, feed it. But it grew ever more hungry, and eventually stopped waiting to be fed, and decided to feed itself.” Aimee sighed. “From what we were able to translate, we found out that finally they decided to fight. Sent an army down to make war on it, led by two brave warrior brothers.”

“They were sent to hell to make war on the devil,” Alex said. “Of the two thousand warriors that went down, only one man returned.”

Aimee sighed. “And then the climate changed and the cold and dark set in for good. They had two monsters to contend with — the never ending cold, and the monster from the depths.” She shivered.

“They came down to where the monster lived then?” Jackson asked.

“No choice.” Alex turned. “They were buried alive. A hundred feet of ice and snow eventually covered the city — no sun means no food. We found evidence of cannibalism. Those that stayed were going mad, or were getting picked off in the dark.”

“Ugh, makes me sick just thinking of it.” Cate grimaced. “Being alone in the dark, and having this thing snake its way in, silent, invisible, its cold touch meaning a horrible death. Eaten alive.”

Aimee nodded. “Some got out, others didn’t. Looks like many chose to risk coming here — taking a slim chance at life, or dying in the darkness.” She turned back to the massive statue. “Looks like it worked out fine, at least for a while.”

Shenjung and Soong edged closer. The Chinese engineer cleared his throat. “It may not have been the creature,” he said. “Consider what causes civilizations to collapse: war, but there was no competing clan down here, unless they split into factions, which is unlikely. Climate, again unlikely, as this environment has been static for millions of years. Interbreeding, causing genetic weaknesses, is a possibility. Maybe even mutation.”

“That’s a great thought — evolution, or devolution.” Jackson grimaced.

“Let’s find our people, and then search for a way out,” Alex said. “Spread out, look for traces — two by twos, and stay in sight of each other.”