The Mayan Priest (6 page)

‘How will anyone else know about this? We’re the only ones with this paper,’ queried Gillian.

‘Yes, but this disk is a very important symbol for Arun’s and treasure hunters in general. They will come for it even if only for that reason,’ said Dale.

‘We need to get to him before someone else,’ contributed Georgio as Dale stood up and left the room.

Gillian looked questioningly to Georgio. ‘Your father has many contacts. He’ll ensure he reaches Adam Housner before Arun’s men.’

Gillian nodded. She observed her father’s rigid posture and knew he was asking for a favour. Georgio grinned. ‘If he stiffens up any more, he’ll turn into a statue.’

Gillian laughed and waited patiently for her father to return.

‘It’s all sorted. My friend Air Chief Marshall Harris Barnes from the Royal Australia Air Force has sent someone to pick him up and they have kindly offered to bring him to us aboard an F-111 as it seems they have also been trying to break the same ring of criminals as us. With a speed of 1660 miles per hour and an approximate distance of 8938 miles, I would expect that he’ll be here in approximately eight hours, allowing for the time it will take to find him in the first place. In the meantime, we need to get back to San Antonio. We’ll be expecting the plane to arrive at the Brooks City-Base.

‘Ahhh, they’re here to pick us up,’ said Dale as both Gillian and Georgio stared at him in confusion. ‘What, did you both think we were going to walk back to Sam Antonio,’ Dale chuckled as Gillian snatched the obsidian box from the table but dropped it in her haste.

‘I’ll get it,’ offered Georgio as he leant over and paused for a moment. ‘I didn’t see this before,’ he noted as he handed Gillian the box, noticing that the inner compartment had been dislodged and a false base revealed.

Her heart missed a beat in excitement as she took out the loose substructure and found what seemed to be a diary. This was fantastic, her feelings akin to a child receiving a pile of presents on Christmas morning. She longed to read it, but the time was not appropriate, so she placed it back into the box for safekeeping. She decided to read the script when she returned to San Antonio. She would have a few hours to herself until the Australian arrived.

Gillian limped out onto the road and paused for a moment, turning to look at the house they had just left. She could not put her finger on it but felt that someone was watching her. Seeing no movement, she presumed it was a figment of her imagination, most likely as the result of exhaustion. She needed to rest.

CHAPTER SIX

Samuel sat in a room at the Hotel Aeropuerto adjacent to La Aurora Airport. He had failed his ahaw (Mayan ruler) by allowing the red-haired woman to escape. Ahaw had insisted he attend this dig due to the likelihood of rare and exciting riches and it was his duty to ensure things went to plan. The ensuing entrapment of the archaeologists and escape of the woman with the plaque had infuriated him, but Samuel had one thing in his favour. He had overheard the old man known as Richard tell the woman that he had unearthed a box at the base of the Temple of the Sun in Teotihuacán with matching inscriptions. It had sounded so important that he had rung his ahaw, on the way out of Tikal, who immediately deployed a contingency to capture her.

Unfortunately their first effort failed when Dale Bright simply replaced the helicopter they had destroyed, leaving Samuel feeling guilty. If he had captured her in Tikal then Ahaw would not have sent men to Houston, so the entire failure to date was his fault. He knew his ahaw would see it the same way and he dreaded the call he had to make.

Samuel’s fingers could barely dial the familiar numbers on his mobile phone.

He did not speak. Ahaw knew who it was.

‘You failed me, my son, but I’m not angry. It is not your fault alone although I have come to expect more of you. Nevertheless all is not lost. I have the location of her destination and expect you to do better next time.’

Samuel cringed. A second failure would surely spell his death.

He paid undivided attention to his ahaw and learnt that a plane would be sent to take him to San Antonio at which time a list of directives would be provided. He was expected to follow the commands faithfully without diversion.

Before hanging up the phone, his ruler also ordered him to ask the gods to forgive his failure and look favourably upon the next part of his mission. In particular he was required to pray to Xaman-Ek, the god of the North Star, depicted by a black monkey head. He needed to ask for direction and guidance in his journey and this had to be accompanied with the ‘blood-letting’ ceremony.

Samuel always came prepared, learning from experience that the failure to produce evidence of appeasing the deities after a flawed mission resulted in consequences. His first assignment almost five years ago was to send a traitor to mitnal, the ninth and worst level of the underworld. He had succeeded in releasing him of his earthly life but had forgotten to take the heart as proof of his victory. Ahaw punished him by leaving the head of his only friend Can-tel on his bed that evening. At first it had upset him, but he came to realise that it was the result of his own failings and the all forgiving Ahaw would accept his mortal weaknesses if he could demonstrate he had repented.

Reaching into the small bag he carried around his waist, Samuel produced a specimen jar and custom made threadlike, surgical steel spike. The balled end of the blood-letting tool had been engraved with his name and presented to him when he had been given the greatly desired privilege of defending their community from intruders.

His home was a vast labyrinth of rooms carved by their ancestors into the peak of Tajumulco some 13 000 feet from the ground. It afforded them views of the lower grounds where all of the lesser children of the gods resided. It was these people, jealous that Samuel’s community contained the chosen students of Hunab Ku, who had mounted an attack against them. Samuel was sent to assist in destroying their world and stop the spread of their evil influence.

Samuel took one long sniff of the revered powder to dull the pain and dropped his pants to his ankles. He then lowered his underwear and lifted his flaccid penis, rubbing it slightly until it was somewhat erect and easier to work with. Quickly locating the thick pulsing vein at the back of the organ, Samuel took the sharp spine and jabbed it into the membrane, pushing it until it had completely penetrated his entire manhood. He withdrew it immediately and placed the specimen jar underneath, catching the stream of blood as it spurted from the hole he had created. When the clear, yellow lidded jar was full, he rubbed a pinch of the white powder into the wound to staunch the bleeding.

Dressing the wound with gauze, Samuel then withdrew a few drops of blood from the container and placed it on a piece of paper which he burnt. The resulting flames and smoke would make its way into the sky where the Paua tun (the four gods that hold up the sky) would smell his scent and know that he had given up some of his very essence to request their forgiveness. The rest would later be presented to Ahaw for his consideration.

Samuel recalled the first time he had been requested to complete this special ceremony. Initially he had trouble with the pain, but with the insistence of his leader, Samuel had soon learnt the white powder greatly assisted him. He had also discovered that his own mind was a powerful tool in quelling pain and he had almost reached a level where he no longer required relief. The only problem was that he enjoyed it. It made him feel invincible and this gave him great confidence.

Recently, though, the red-haired woman had caused him to question himself. She had outrun and outwitted him, singularly causing the failure of his mission. He was not angry with her – women could not be held responsible for their own actions – but rather at his own lack of ability. Women were only useful as breeders and to provide amusement. They certainly did not have the supreme intelligence of a man, so he could not understand how she had out-manoeuvered him. It was something he would have to consider further.

Samuel gazed at his body. Until he had ventured from his home five years ago, his body lacked muscle and stamina. His skin had been white and translucent from the lack of sun and his eyes were unused to glare. Now he was tanned, lean and well defined. His hair was black, glossy and wavy and his skin was clear and healthy; however, he had not stopped there. He had learnt minimal skills from the ancient Japanese art of karate to assist in his protection and etiquette that allowed him to integrate more readily into the population he wished to walk amongst. His only flaw was the missing ear which had been taken from him as punishment for asking about the woman whose body he had come from. He never questioned his deliverance into the world again.

He quickly brushed his white teeth, untarnished from the ravages of sugar and corrosive drinks, and turned to see a rat scurrying across the floor. He reacted quickly, grabbing an exposed shaving razor from the vanity unit and spinning around, his unexpected movement momentarily startling the rat and giving him enough time to whip the blade across its neck. He had almost severed the spine and tendons and his right hand was covered in blood. Samuel smiled in pleasure. This would make a small but suitable offering to Hun Honshu and Xbalanque, the two hero twins of creation. He hoped they would consider him favourably and pass some of their bravery onto him.

Samuel quickly placed the decapitated body and severed head onto a sheet of paper and carried it outside. He prayed before leaving it near the front door and moved back into the unit, suddenly caught by surprise as his mobile phone rang. In the five years he had possessed one of these strange machines, he was still unable to get used to it. He answered the phone tentatively and waited until he heard the divine voice of his supreme ruler.

‘Samuel, the plane is waiting for you in hangar three. It is a small jet with the name “Renalda” on the side. My further instructions are inside,’ his raspy, ageing voice forcibly demanded. His ruler was old, somewhere over seventy, but he commanded complete respect and conformance from all of his children, and they loved him. He was the provider of their shelter, food and water. He was their king.

‘I will go immediately, as you command.’

‘Do not disappoint me this time. Of course I would try and protect you, but I fear the wrath the gods will afflict on us if we cannot show them our loyalty. The council will also be upset. The sacred Juun (book) has long foretold of a discovery of a great treasure that will ensure the continuance of our community. It would be a shame to tell the populace that they have been deprived of this great treasure because you failed to defeat a female.’

‘I will find the woman for you, my ahaw,’ replied Samuel, the thought of failure never even entering his conscience.

Samuel zealously ensured he had removed any traces of his existence before walking the 450 feet from Hotel Aeropuerto to the airport. He had been to La Aurora Airport previously and required no direction to the outfield where the hangars were situated. It took only a few moments before he located Hangar number three, noticing that a lone figure of a woman was waiting for him at the door.

‘Welcome. You must be Samuel. My name is Alandra and I’m your pilot this afternoon’

Samuel looked at her in surprise. She was small and elegant with a nice waist and generous breasts. She moved fluidly and her speech was slow and articulate. He found it surprising that a good-looking woman had chosen to use her brain rather than her body. A woman pilot. He had never heard of that before.

He did not accept her hand in greeting as this would only lower him to the status of a female. Instead he nodded and ascended into the private plane owned by the wealthy and influential real estate baron, Haldon Renalda. Haldon was also a member of their council.

It never ceased to amaze Samuel how far and wide his ruler’s influence reached. He was truly a great man.

Samuel positioned himself at the rear of the plane, enjoying the luxury of the sumptuous cream leather and airconditioning which was a welcome relief after the humid weather of the tropics. He stretched his legs and relaxed only to be interrupted by an attendant.

‘I have been instructed to hand this to you,’ the young, well-presented man advised as he passed him a small parcel wrapped in inconspicuous brown paper. Samuel nodded and gingerly unwrapped the package to reveal an XREP Taser stun gun. It was a wireless prototype that could be fired from a 12 gauge shotgun. Attached to the base of the Taser was a note that detailed the time frames it took for vehicles to move about the Brooks City-Base and a tag that had five words written on it: ‘Bring her to us alive’.

Samuel grinned in delight. He knew Ahaw wanted to use her as an example to the community, most probably as a sacrifice.

The thought of a sacrifice caused shivers of pleasure to run through his body. It was an amazing experience and something the entire community looked forward to. Everyone dressed in his or her very best, the men in simple cotton pants tied around the waist and a tight, sleeveless vest. The women wore wraparound skirts and oversized tie-dyed blouses called huipil. There was a feast of fresh fruits, rabbits, turkey and deer and sweet maize cakes for supper. A rare delicacy of cocoa and milk were supplied to drink. It made a wonderful change from their staple diet of agouti, plain maize, squash, beans and amaranth.

They were given the day off work and the men, women and children were allowed to mingle. The spectacle was a sight to behold with 600 people filling a cavernous room the size of the hangar he had just been standing in. They would chant and cheer as their leader ascended the forty steps to the ornate stone altar followed by the sacrifice which was led up behind him by five guards and tied down, their chest exposed.