The Lost Kingdom

CHAPTER TWELVE

Hayden saw disbelief mingled with suspicion make a dangerous mix in Kirby’s eyes. In the end, though, the man’s what-the-hell attitude won through and he found a neutral spot to stare at above their heads.

“Long time ago now. Even then my dad pitied him. Believe me, I was only eight, but I knew. Kids know. They pick up on everything, it’s crazy.” Kirby shook his head as if picturing his own son. “Grandpa John talked a lot about his sea voyages — he was a salty old dog. He spoke of his rescues, mostly, of which there were many. And how he commanded a ‘wolf pack’. Typhoons and unknown waters. Islands that can rise or sink depending on the time of year.” He shook his head. “But that was only the start of it. As he aged, he became less sure of his faculties and less able to keep his secrets, and Grandpa John started to give some away. Not that it mattered anymore. The war was long over. But that one voyage, that damn voyage to Taiwan, it became the only thing he ever talked about.” Kirby took a deep breath.

Hayden sat down on the couch. “Go on.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Grandpa John sailed to the straits of Taiwan on the orders of the US government at the time. He told the story as though he were given a map with directions, a map that led straight to the lost continent of Mu.”

“Hang on,” Smyth said. “I don’t even know what this Mu is.”

Hayden spoke fast, not wanting to dam Kirby’s flow. “It’s believed that early in our planet’s history an extremely advanced technological civilization existed which was called Mu. It was destroyed by a natural disaster, probably flooding.”

“Of course it’s a myth,” Kinimaka said. “Which makes Mr. Kirby’s story here all the more interesting. You say the government gave your grandfather this map?”

“Yes… and no. It wasn’t exactly a map. To explain I first have to shed light on something else. The Niven Tablets. Have you heard of them?”

Hayden swung the term around her mind, a trawler’s net trying to snag a memory, but came up only with snippets.

“More history,” she said. “Wasn’t William Niven an explorer? Or an archaeologist? And he discovered something previously unheard of, right?”

“He was by profession a mineralogist, but in 1894 became involved with archaeological discoveries. Sorry if I’m droning on a bit, I’ve heard this a hundred times. He discovered prehistoric ruins in Guerrero for the American Museum of Natural History. He was a respected, connected man. In 1911 he discovered ancient ruins near Mexico City, the old home of the Aztecs, buried beneath layers of volcanic ash, rocks, pebbles and sand, he said the result of an obviously cataclysmic event. He found twenty thousand objects, so they say, most of which now reside in a private museum. Two thousand six hundred of these objects were known as the Niven Tablets.”

“I never heard of them,” Kinimaka admitted.

“They’re very real,” Kirby said. “Or they were. Surrounded by controversy since their discovery, the Niven Tablets contain symbols, writing, that has never been deciphered. Associated with Scandinavian petroglyphs and widely interpreted, the translation remains positively unknown even today. Also called the Andesite Tablets, they all bore very similar markings and were said to have also been found in India and Egypt.”

“Let me guess,” Hayden said. “The tablets are said to be written in the lost language of Mu.”

“Give that girl the prize.” Kirby pointed at her. “But seriously, you guys want a drink? If I were you I’d be reaching for the friggin’ whisky by now.”

“I’m good,” Hayden said, just as Kinimaka and Smyth both agreed to black coffees.

Kirby rose and walked out of the room. Hayden pulled a face at the two men. “Really?”

“It’s been hours,” Kinimaka complained. “I’m withering away.”

Smyth snorted. Before he could comment Kirby was back with a plate of Oreos and a bowl full of Lays chips and separate dips. The Hawaiian’s face lit up. Hayden waited patiently whilst both he and Smyth tucked in, trying to absorb everything so far. She wondered how the Niven Tablets and the USS Queenfish might intersect, but couldn’t quite figure it out.

Yet.

Kirby returned with four coffees, and when she smelled the strong aroma Hayden was glad he’d ignored her.

“Thank you.”

“No worries. Anyhow, it was postulated that the markings on the tablets had their roots in the lost continent of Mu. After its ancient destruction various survivors are said to have found their way to Egypt and India and other places and recorded what had occurred, you see. Some say it’s just another deluge theory. Others say a hoax, me included. But even I say: Two thousand six hundred tablets, a hoax? Really? I doubt that even the craziest fame-seeking conspiracy nut would craft that many, don’t you?”

“If nobody could read the markings how did they decide it was the lost language of Mu?” Kinimaka said with a full mouth.

“Circumstance,” Kirby admitted. “Tablets with the exact same markings had been found before in India, Egypt and Sinai by another man who told Niven what they were.” Kirby coughed. “Whatever you say, whatever you think, the mystery of these tablets still remains unsolved today, international, and more than a little intriguing.”

“All right.” Hayden drained her coffee. “So where are they now? We’ve had what? Another hundred or so years to study them. Surely somebody has a theory.”

Kirby smiled. “Unfortunately the tablets were lost. Niven sold them and they disappeared aboard a shipment from Mexico to the United States.”

Hayden turned sharply, met the man’s eyes. “The United States?” A link between the sub and the tablets was beginning to form.

“Yes, in the 1930s all two thousand six hundred tablets vanished whilst heading for the US. All that remained were the rubbings.”

“I guess nobody thought that odd at the time.” Smyth snorted.

Kirby spread his hands. “So it would seem. There were no enquiries made.”

“Fuck,” Kinimaka breathed. “What a fucking mystery.”

“And it doesn’t end there,” Kirby went on. “The USS Queenfish, captained by Grandpa John, sailed for Taiwan in 1945, about ten years after the tablets disappeared. His ‘map’, he later babbled to us, was taken directly from the Niven Tablets.”

Hayden somehow managed to stop her mouth from dropping open. “What? How?”

Kirby shrugged. “I don’t know and would rather not speculate. But you asked what Grandpa John was doing in Taiwan. He was using the ‘lost’ Niven Tablets as a map to find the mythological continent of Mu, the first civilization of Man.”

“So it’s between Taiwan and China?” Kinimaka realized. “That ain’t gonna go down well.”

Hayden stored that insight away until later. “But why sink the Awa Maru? She was just passing by at the—” it dawned on her and she clammed up quickly.

Kirby nodded. “You’re thinking ‘Eureka!’ aren’t you? I can see it in your eyes. Yes, Grandpa John says the ship spotted his submarine on their radar and questioned its presence. They reported it to whoever the hell was in charge. Grandpa received orders to fire upon it and, later, to salvage whatever may be aboard.”

Hayden thought about it. “So the destroy order was given merely to mask the sub’s real intentions? Searching for this lost kingdom, the sub was supposed to be a ghost. The US gave the sub up and called the sinking a mistake. Then, knowing through reports that a huge treasure was aboard the Awa Maru, and also the Peking Man fossil, they cut their losses and commandeered those also. Did they give up the search for Mu? And what happened to the Niven Tablets?”

“Grandpa John, he babbled a lot. An awful lot. I can’t comment on the accuracy of what I have told you.” Kirby tried not to look embarrassed. “I can’t say even if any of it is true, though certain historical events like the disappearance of the tablets and Niven’s claims and the sub’s mysterious presence in Taiwan do back him up more than a little. Did the States steal the tablets? Did they decipher the writing? They could just as easily have worked off the thousands of rubbings that were made, though admittedly not as accurately. He mentioned the fossil and the gold bullion too but, to be honest with you, by that time we were all finished listening to his ramblings. Once he passed away my father drew a line under it all and never spoke of it again. Me? I got on with my own life.”

“You remember it all very well,” Hayden commented. “Maybe you wished it to be true? I just think — an eight-year-old kid listening to all that. Archaeology. Mystery. Lost kingdoms. Government conspiracy. Did you take it to heart a little?”

“Maybe a little,” Kirby admitted. “But then I grew up, graduated, and real life became more important that a fantastical dream world. Hey, now I’d rather hit the gym than pick up a Kindle. Ya know?”

Hayden nodded at his physique. “I can see that.”

Kirby grinned. “Membership includes a free guest if you’re interested.”

“Maybe some other time.” Hayden rose, ignoring Kinimaka’s puppy-dog look. She was about to shake Kirby’s hand when an unanswered question poked at the back of her mind.

“Sorry. Just one more thing. Did your grandpa ever say what happened to the Niven Tablets after he lost the captaincy of the sub?”

“It unloaded its secret and looted cargo onto a United States destroyer in the dead of night. Very clandestine stuff. Unbelievable really. Spies and conspiracies and super government agencies. It’s only now that real people are beginning to believe that all this stuff really does go on.”

Hayden said nothing.

Kirby continued, “Grandpa John may have been disgraced in the eyes of the world but he was still the true captain of that submarine. He took one for the team, so to speak. He had an interest in the tablets, since he’d followed their directions so far. The archaeologist who looked after them — I don’t know his name — told Grandpa that they would be sent back to America and locked away until they were needed again. They had to let the dust settle, you see, and keep the tablets safe.”

“It wouldn’t do for another US sub to be spotted in the exact same area,” Smyth hypothesized.

“Exactly. Well, they were sent to some vault somewhere and then forgotten about, I guess. Who knows? There are so many secrets these days, layers upon layers, like old skeleton bones crushed beneath the passage of so many years.”

Hayden raised an eyebrow as he waxed lyrical. “Thanks for your help, Mr. Kirby. We’ll be in touch if we need anything else.”

On their way back to the car, Hayden stopped and turned to the other two. “You guys thinking what I’m thinking?”

Smyth cast his gaze down. “Not unless you’re thinking about texting a thousand-dollar hooker called Lauren.”

Kinimaka glared. “Or about jamming that guy’s gym bag up his own—”

“Okay, okay,” Hayden interrupted quickly. “So maybe we’re not all reading from the same script. But Dudley’s looking for a second vault, right? He’s already grabbed one of China’s great treasures — the Peking Man, which is linked to Mu and the tablets. Could it be that he’s now after their greatest — the Lost Kingdom?”

“By using the tablets,” Smyth barked. “But why? Kirby said there were rubbings that still exist.”

“But not as accurate. Which the Pythians need. And maybe he just wants to destroy the tablets, who knows? Either way, guys, we have to find out where those tablets were stored and we have to go there. Right now. Dudley and his crew need to be stopped.”

Smyth reached the car first. “Theory’s sound,” he said. “I’m all the way in.”

Hayden reached for her phone as she climbed inside. Her first call was to Karin Blake, who would make high-level enquiries as to the whereabouts of the Niven Tablets. She was so engrossed in her work that she didn’t feel the chill that hit her full in the face — the air vent aimed right at her.

Not for the first fifty miles anyway.