Tomb of Zeus (Atlantis) (27 page)

“Well, that’s it then. No sense hanging around, I guess,” he said.

Helena nodded simply.

As they proceeded on their easterly course, a mile in front of them, a polar bear heard the sound of the snowmobile. Hungry and desperate for food, he moved in the direction of the noise.

----- ----- ----- -----

Although the snows from the previous night had long since ceased, the winds from the storm continued. As they swirled around, they created momentary whiteouts that made Jack’s driving more difficult.

Up ahead, a large crevasse lay covered with a thin layer of snow. Four days before, it sat exposed and conspicuous. Under clear conditions, the chasm of ice might be detectable. Now, as the winds pushed the snows of the previous storm across the ice sheet, its presence had all but disappeared.

As Jack negotiated the dips and bumps in his path, Helena sat behind him, balancing in her seat as she held the radar device.

Jack looked down at his GPS. He noticed they had drifted off course slightly. As he turned to correct the error, a large blast of wind rushed across their path. Instantly, they entered white out conditions. H
e squinted inside his goggles, but it was no use: the path ahead had completely disappeared.

Suddenly, the two felt the snowmobile shutter. The snows around them began to fracture and break away. Instinctively, Jack opened the throttle as he felt the machine drop. Helena gasp, then shrieked in horror. The snowmobile impacted the edge of the crevasse, ejecting Jack over the top, as Helena slid forward into the controls. The machine hung for only a moment, then fell backward into the hole, the entire event taking less than a second in time.

Stunned, Jack rolled to his knees, then stood and looked around. He saw nothing. As the wind gust slowed, the whiteout began to clear. Instantly, the reality of the situation struck him.

H
e raced to the edge of the crevasse and peer in. Fifteen feet down, at the bottom, Helena lay unconscious. Suspended just above her on blocks of ice, lay the snowmobile. Desperate now, he took in the size of the crevasse, examining it for a path to its bottom.

At ten feet wide and twenty feet long, it appeared like a long gash in the ice. The sides of the vertical cave were fractured blocks of ice that looked unstable and ready to break away. Jack knew that any attempt to climb down could easily dislodge one of them and crush Helena below.

Frantic now, he shouted,
“Helena! Helena, wake up!”

There was no answer.

He shouted again,
“Helena, wake up!”

Still no answer or movement.

Jack tossed a handful of snow down at her. It momentarily coated her face and jacket. She remained unconscious.

He watched her chest expand
, and breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of movement.

“Ok, she’s alive at least,” he said aloud.

His mind raced for a solution. Without any means of rescue, he continued to shout her name, frantic now for any kind of reaction.

Jack heard a noise. He listened
harder and studied Helena’s face. Inside the crevasse, all was quiet. The sound was coming from behind him. He spun around. Instantly, his heart raced. Fear raged inside him. Thirty feet away, a polar bear grunted a low guttural growl.

Jack stood perfectly still. The bear sighted him and stopped momentarily.

“
GO! GET OUT OF HERE!
” he shouted, hoping to startle the bear.

The large animal snorted once, then charged.

Jack had nowhere to go and he knew it. He looked over his shoulder at the fifteen foot pit of ice, then back at the bear. It now charged with ferocity, growling and snorting with each powerful stride it took.

Twenty feet away…

Fifteen feet…

Ten feet…

Jack had run out of options. He could stand and be mauled to death or jump into the crevasse. He spun back around and leaped in. Aiming for the snowmobile, his feat hit the seat. Instantly, he absorbed the shock with his knees, then rolled forward, somersaulting over Helena. He landed on his back against an ice wall, with his feet in the air. Looking up he saw the enraged bear darting back and forth along the top edge of the chasm.

Jack rolled to his feet. He felt a sharp pain in his side, but ignored it.

“Get out of here!” he shouted frantically, over and over.

The sound
of frightened prey only incited the bear to greater frenzy. He charged back and forth along the top surface, roaring as he ran. Jack realized his mistake and remained quiet.

Then it hit him: Helena’s gun. He rushed to her side and pulled up her coat. Quickly, he reached for the snap
of the side holster and pulled the weapon. He pointed it at the white monster and waited. The bear stopped and stared momentarily.

Suddenly, the bear’s predatory instincts raged inside him. Frantic to get to Jack, it began to paw at the edge of the crevasse, checking for stability. Several chunks broke off and he backed away. Moving to another spot, he tested
the edge once more. As his powerful shoulders pounced on the icy surface, his twelve hundred pound weight was too much for that one location. The area under him crumbled and gave way. Instantly, the bear fell fifteen feet to the bottom of the narrow trench.

Enraged, the ferocious savage reared up on his hind legs, scratching at the icy walls to stabilize his stance. A second later, with his prey now in his sights, he charged.

Jack’s fear exploded inside him. For a moment, he felt paralyzed with terror. A split second later, he heard the gun roar. The bear let out a painful groan. Jack’s mind focused. The bear was still alive. He now pointed the weapon and deliberately squeezed the trigger. Three more rounds entered the bear’s chest. It growled in defiance, then collapsed to the ground. Jack watched for a minute, the gun still pointing and ready. The bears breathing finally ceased. He was dead.

Jack exhaled a long sigh of relief, then turned his attention to Helena. The loud shouts had been enough. Her eyes were now parted. She looked dazed, but seemed to be coming out of here unconscious state.

“Helena, are you all right? How do you feel?” he asked quickly.

She stared at him a moment, struggling to regain her faculties.

“I think I’m fine,” she finally said. “Did you just shoot a bear?” she asked, still somewhat dazed.

Jack smiled.

“Yeah… stupid bear. I guess he must have missed the memo,” he said, cryptically.

“Memo?” she asked, now puzzled.

“Yeah… never bring claws to a gun fight,” he joked.

She stared at him a moment. Her eyes were now clear and her senses returning.

“You’re so weird,” she responded simply. “So now what?”

Jack looked around. He knew climbing the walls of ice was impossible. Lo
oking back at the snowmobile, he reached for the radio.

“I just hope this thing still works,” he said, his voice filled with apprehension.

He keyed the mic several times, then called to Camp Zeus.

“Hello, Camp Zeus. Anyone listening?”

No response.

He tried again.

“Camp Zeus, this is Jack Roberts. Is anyone there?”

“Go ahead, Jack,” the familiar voice echoed in the deep icy cave.

“I hope you’re afternoon is free… have I got a story for you,” Jack joked.

----- ----- ----- -----

Four hours later…

Inside the utility trailer, Helena sat on a chair and held an ice pack to the back of her head. The fall to the ice had left a large welt, but aside from a throbbing headache, she felt there wasn’t a need for further medical care.

Sitting around the small table, Javi, Jack, Duni and Helena, discussed the rescue.

“That was a long fall, Helena. I wish you’d consider seeing a doctor. You could be back here in a couple of days,” Javi said.

“No way, Javi. We have only a few more days left of our search. You guys could find the pyramid in that time and I’d miss it all,” she said, still lightly rubbing the bump with the ice pack.

“I’m even wondering if we’re going to find it,” Jack said ominously.

Helena shot him an angry stare. “What’re you talking about? Of course we’re going to find
it. I didn’t come all this way for nothing,” she snarled, her eyes now filled with intensity.

The outburst caught the three by surprise. They waited momentarily in the awkward silence for Helena’s disposition to change, now unsure of how to proceed. Jack reached out and touched her shoulder. Before he could say a word, she swatted his hand away abruptly.

“Don’t patronize me,” she blurted acidly.

“Whoa! Take it easy, Helena. We’re all friends here,” Jack shot back, shocked by the gesture.

Nervous tension hung thick in the air as the three waited on her next response. Seeing their confused stares, Helena forced a sympathetic expression across her face.

“Sorry, I guess this bump on my head is making me a little cranky,” she said, her tone now soft and respectful.

The three nodded in understanding, more than willing to put the unpleasant moment behind them.

“Are you sure we can’t take you to a doctor?” Javi asked again.

“I’ll be ok, Javi. I just need a little rest, I think,” she responded.

As she stood up to leave, she stared down at Jack, seductively.

“You coming?” she asked, her tone once again changing, now growing edgy and demanding.

Looking over to Javi and Duni, Jack’s conflicted eyes left little doubt about his confusion. He turned back to Helena and smiled.

“Of course,” he said simply, purposely replying with a neutral response.

As the two left quietly, Javi and Duni stayed behind.
When the door shut, Duni turned to Javi and stared. A puzzled expression crossed his face.

“What the
hell
was
that
all about? One minute she’s soft and pleasant, the next, she’s dragon lady. Then, in a blink of an eye, she’s sexy and romantic. Is that what I have to look forward to when I meet the woman of my dreams?” he joked, shaking his head in confusion.

“That
was
a peculiar display, I must admit. I hope she’s all right. I suspect that fall had something to do with her erratic behavior. I wonder if she has a mild concussion or something along those lines,” he responded.

“Well… I don’t kn
ow much about concussions, but if I were Jack, I’m not sure if I would’ve accepted her invitation into the lion’s den,” he joked further.

“He’ll be all right,” Javi said
simply.

“All I have to say is if he shows up tomorrow missing a limb, don’t say you weren’t warned,” he shot back.

----- ----- ----- -----

The following morning…

The weather had cleared and the helicopters sat on their makeshift pads, waiting for the four’s arrival. As Ron and Adam led them from the utility trailer to the aircraft, all seem normal once again.

“How’s your head this morning?” Duni asked.

“I still have a slight headache but I’m doin
g much better,” she replied.

Walking between Jack and Duni, Javi whispered, “I see Jack
’s limbs are all intact. I’d say the coast is clear.”

Jack shot Javi a puzzled glance, as Duni grinned.

“Inside joke,” Javi responded cryptically.

As Ron got the all-clear signal from the copilot, he gave the word to the four to board. Filing past both Ron and Adam, they stood motionless, almost as if they were holding themselves at attention. Jack smirked at the display.

“Good luck, Sir,” Ron said, as Jack walked past.

Jack saluted in jest. Ron merely nodded.

Once aboard Zeus One, Jack joked, “That guy
has
to be in the military. He’s
way
too serious and regimented for a normal human being.”

Helena merely nodded and smiled. Moments later, they departed, beginning the start of their fourteen hour shift.

----- ----- ----- -----

Four days later…

As Jack watched his monitor, he glanced out his window at the oncoming helicopter. Deep disappointment filled his mind. Moments later, the two aircraft stopped on the final grid line, completing the few yards of their search.

“I can’t believe this,” Helena shouted in anger. “Where the hell could it be?”

“I’m sorry, Helena,” Jack responded sympathetically, then added, “I knew something wasn’t right about this search. The maps showed there were only a handful of locations that the ice was deep enough to cover the pyramid. Once we searched them, we should’ve stopped right there. Everything else was just wishful thinking,” he responded in somber tone.