Tomb of Zeus (Atlantis) (28 page)

“So now what? The crystal said it would be right here, but obviously it isn’t. I just don’t get it. It
should
be here,” she said, her tone filled with frustration.

“The crystal didn’t ‘say’ anything. We just interpreted it wrong,” Jack replied.

“So you think there really
is
a pyramid here somewhere?” she asked, her voice sounding hopeful.

“I’m certain of it,” he responded resolutely.

“So how do we find it?” she asked, still puzzled.

He turned and grinned coyly.

“It takes a pyramid to find a pyramid,” he responded cryptically.

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

Kalispell, Montana

The Rocky Mountains…

Karl Sita stood behind the simple stone altar and smiled to his audience. Cloaked in their white robes, they waited anxiously for him to start the meeting. He reached forward and placed his hands under the two foot long golden scepter, then lifted it reverently into the air. All bowed in respect.

He lowered the scepter back into its cradle and nodded

“My friends, this is a great time for the Society of Arae. Although Zeus’ scepter still remains elusive for now, my team informs me that they’re very close to its discovery
. I expect to hear word any day of its find. Very shortly, the world will bow at our feet.”

All nodded excitedly at the news.

“Sir, news of Zeus’ chamber in Atlantis has been sketchy at best. No one seems to know anything about their progress,” a man shouted from the back of the room.

Karl nodded.

“Yes, the team responsible for its discovery has indeed been tight-lipped with the media. Thankfully, we have people inside helping with the excavation,” he said. He paused for effect, then continued. “From the news reports, they claim that progress has been slow and plagued by death and tragedy. While there have been some minor inconveniences, progress has been anything but slow. I’m happy to tell you my people have indeed broken through to Zeus’ chamber.”

Suddenly, the audience erupted in gasps of surprise. Karl raised his hands and the excited crowed quieted their voices.

“What they found was profound. The chamber was not Zeus’ burial chamber, but was in fact, a shrine dedicated to his life and death. Inside, they found a celestial map etched into the great walls. The map and the surrounding hieroglyphs detail our lineage. No longer will the fabled planet be spoken of in speculation. Today, we have confirmation: Arae does exist!”

More gasps from the crowd erupted. Once again, Karl raised his hands.

“But Sir, what of Zeus’ scepter?” another man shouted out above the noise.

Karl nodded, and continued.

“The shrine was most revealing. Written on the walls in hieroglyphics, my team found the
real
location of Zeus burial site. Believe it or not, Lord Zeus is buried in Greenland.”

Shock and surprise spread amongst the audience.

“Yes my friends, you heard me correctly: Greenland. According to what was written, he was buried in a golden pyramid. As we speak, I have a team in place right now, investigating the area. They tell me that with their systematic methods of search, it’ll only be a matter of time before they find it. I’m expecting word any day now,” he finished with great enthusiasm.

One cloaked man stepped forward. He stared at Karl with deep respect, then turned to the audience.

“All hail,
Lord
Sita!” he shouted. “His greatness will deliver us to everlasting power.”

As cheers from the audience echoed inside the stone building, Karl stood in awe of his new title.

“Lord Sita! Lord Sita!”

As the shouts grew louder, so too was his need to fulfill their prophecy. Even more than before, he needed the scepter. Nothing else mattered.

Atlantis, Greece

The Great Pyramid

One week later…

Inside Zeus’ chamber, Javi, Jack, Duni and Helena, once again studied the walls and tablets, searching for clues to Zeus’ elusive pyramid. As Javi and Duni worked to translate the vast amounts of hieroglyphics, Jack and Helena inspected antiquities that adorned the room.

On a small portable table, Jack delicately poured the contents of an ancient urn, onto a plastic sheet that covered the table top. With small brushes and tweezers, he and Helena picked through large quantities of precious gems and small gold carvings and trinkets, placed in the chamber as a symbol of Zeus’ greatness.

Jack studied a small gold coin no bigger than an American dime. On one side, the image of Zeus was carved. On the other side, he saw a pyramid.

“Javi, could you come here a moment,” he asked.

Helena’s eyes darted to the coin. Instantly, she became intrigued.

“What did you find, Jack?” she asked.

He held out the small coin in the palm of his gloved hand. She stared at it a moment with excitement.

“The pyramid… it’s on the coin. Are there any clues of its location?” she asked, now
with great interest.

“None
that I can see, but then again, I’m not the expert either,” he responded.

Javi walked to the table. He leaned over and studied the coin.

“Fascinating,” he said, now drawing a magnifying glass from his pocket.

He took the small gold piece from Jack’s hand and examined the face of the coin further.

“This is impressive,” he said aloud, lost in the coin’s splendor.

“Javi, I know it’s impressive, but are there any clues about the
pyramid’s location?” Jack asked with growing impatience.

Standing up, he stowed his magnifying glass, then said, “I’m not sure. It shows the pyramid floating in water. I wonder what the significance of that is. Does it suggest th
at pyramid was built near to water, the same as this pyramid? If so, we were definitely looking in the wrong location. On the other hand, I could be reading too far into its meaning. The water could simply be symbolic of something.”

“Of what?” Helena asked.

“One can only guess. They were tremendous mariners, so maybe their love for the sea had something to do with it,” he responded.

“I’m t
hinking it’s a clue,” Jack said resolutely. “We searched thirty square miles of that upper ice sheet and found nothing. I’m betting it’s near the shoreline, the same as this pyramid.”

“Jack, the shoreline was nearly flat. If there was a pyramid in that area somewhere, it would’ve stuck out like a sore thumb,” Helena countered.

“She’s right,” Javi said. “The upper ice sheet had areas that were thick enough to hide a pyramid, but the shoreline was only covered with a relatively thin layer of ice and snow. If there was a pyramid there near the water, it would’ve been very obvious to see.”

“So the image on the coin is symbolic, then?” Helena asked.

“Probably,” Javi responded.

Jack’s face looked puzzled. Although their argument made sense, he couldn’t help but feel there was more to the story than the water being simply symbolic.

“You’re not buying it are you, Jack?” Javi asked, seeing the look on his face.

Jack shrugged.
“Something just isn’t adding up,” he replied, simply.

Javi nodded, then said, “Let’s set it aside then and examine it later. Sometimes, a single clue by itself reveals nothing, but when viewed with a larger collection of clues, the answer becomes clear.”

“Good call,” Jack concurred.

As Javi got back to his translations, Jack and Helena continued to examine the contents of the urn.

Nearly twelve hours had elapsed and the team agreed to cut out for the evening. Although they covered a great quantity of work, they were no closer to solving the mystery of Zeus’ pyramid than they were in the morning.

Five days later…

The previous days were marked by long hours and great disappointment. With each day that passed, they began to feel a nagging sense of failure.

Starting in early morning once again, the four set off into the pyramid. Jack followed behind the three, carrying the crystal globe in a special protective bag. As they entered the antechamber to Zeus’ shrine, Jack placed the bag on the altar. With Duni standing next to him, Jack unzipped the bag and retrieved the crystal globe. The sight of it instantly recalled his memory of its retrieval and his life-threatening ordeal at sea. He shook off the negativity and positioned it over the pedestal.

“Javi, can you get the lock on the door?” he asked.

“Certain
ly,” Javi responded simply.

As he walked to the far wall, he knelt down by the floor, then nodded to Jack that he was ready.

“Abracadabra,” Jack said jokingly as he lowered the crystal globe onto its pedestal.

Javi smiled at the humor and watched the crystal begin to sink lower in elevation. Helena stood impatiently, ill amused. Loud hissing of flowing sand sounded behind the walls. A moment later, the large stone door began to open with a great rumble.

With the door to the next chamber now open, Duni next, positioned a flashlight behind the crystal globe. Instantly, a beam of light shot out from its front and lit up a small area high up on the wall. Jack stared at its location in confusion.

“What the hell? How’d you guys get the light to point toward the floor?” he blurted. Looking over to Duni, he joked, “Don’t tell me I used the wrong incantation?”

Duni smirked, then stared at the crystal for a moment.

While Jack and Duni studied the problem, Javi pushed on the wall, searching for the round tile that would activate the lock. Seconds later, he felt the surface move slightly. He smiled, and pushed harder. The round tile slid into the wall several inches, then stopped. Instantly, the hissing sound of flowing sand signaled the lock to the next chamber being activated. He then stood and walked over toward the altar.

As he approached, he noticed the problem with the misdirected beam of light right away.

“Jack, you have the crystal upside down,” he stated, matter-of-factly.

Duni looked into the center of the crystal. His face suddenly changed at the reality of the problem.

“Upside down?” Jack responded, now confused.

“Yeah, right now, the pyramid’s pointing straight up. You have to spin the crystal around so the top of the pyramid is pointing down toward the pedestal. The light will then reflect downward on the far wall, instead of upward,” Javi instructed.

“Huh… n
o kidding? I never would’ve guessed that in a million years,” Jack replied in surprise.

Javi laughed at the reality of the situation.

“I guess I forgot this was your first time operating the door. It works the exact opposite of the other chamber above,” he said.

Jack spun the crystal around. He stared at the pyramid now pointing downward. Suddenly, all the blood rushed from his face. His expression turned blank.

“Jack, you ok?” Helena asked, noticing the change.

“Jack you don’t look good,” Duni added.

Jack lifted his head and smiled. The three stared back, unsure of what to make of his behavior.

“Jack, what is it?” Javi blurted, now impatient with Jack’s silence.

Jack pulled the crystal from the pedestal. Instantly, the door began to close.

“Jack, what are you doing?” Helena asked, now growing frustrated.

He placed the crystal back inside the protective bag and zipped it back up again. He stared at the three and smiled.

“We’re done,” he said
dryly.

“Done? What do you mean, ‘done’?” Javi shot back, puzzled.

With a cryptic grin, he responded, “I’ll tell you on our way to Greenland.”

Greenland,

Camp Zeus

One week later…

Camp Zeus radiated with excitement and energy. As the two helicopters circled to land, the sound of the pounding rotor blades only heightened the thrill of the new adventure and reinforced the promise of future success.

Ron Cotterman and Adam Taylor led the four to the two helipads. All smiles crossed the team’s faces. Waiting on Zeus One, Jack and Helena held hands and joked playfully. Waiting on Zeus Two, Javi carried on with pointless chatter to a barely listening Duni, who stood in place and fidgeted.

Guarding the safety of the four, Ron and Adam watched with great anticipation, now wondering if their mission was nearly complete. As they stood and waited on the two helicopters to touch down, they found it hard not to smile.