Dawn of the Epoch

Chapter IX - Treasure Trove

After regrouping and putting themselves together as best as they could, the smaller band of explorers retired to the drill site. They ate sparingly of the few sandwiches and crackers that they had. They drank a little from the water and chai jugs. They plotted a course of action.

Hunter conjectured, “We will find something behind that display. Cerberus guards things. He guarded something back there. With him dead, we can find out what.”

“We’ll find something alright,” Tiyana replied with a gloomy twinge of sarcasm. “but I say we check it out anyways. Hunter had a point earlier about the rescue operation topside. They might miss us altogether with their exploratory hole. Also, who knows how long it will take to find a decent percussion drill and get it here? We can’t take the crew though. Too many people died already.”

Hunter spoke up, “You’re right, too many people died because of our pursuits. This is our problem not theirs. I’m going to get the rest out safe and sound if it kills me. We go it alone from here on out.”

“Agreed.” Said Hongo.

All three of the leadership trio’s hearts sunk as they watched their crew nibbling on bread and crackers, stoically bearing their grief at the loss of their companions. They spent another night in the labyrinth getting poor sleep and having gruesome nightmares. The next day, the trio offered the most comforting words they could muster to the crew and departed for Cerberus’s lair. Before leaving, they tended to Shenouda’s injury. Shenouda looked worse as time went on. Tiyana saw beads of sweat drip down her forehead. Shenouda’s skin took on an ugly pallor. Tiyana could tell that she had a fever, but she told no one except Hunter. They had no antibiotics.

“We will get her out of this mess as soon as possible.” Was all that Hunter knew to say.

At the former lair of the great worm, they found a chance to peruse the writing covering the walls.

“I don’t understand any of this.” Said Hunter. “How about you Hongo?”

“Nothing Mr. Price. I do not even think this is an African language.”

“Well, I’m not the linguist of the family, but I’ll just start reading, looking for patterns, see what I find.” Remarked Tiyana.

They all studied the walls. Hunter got distracted first.

“Hey, there’s no writing on this wall, behind ol’ Hades. You know where the ice melted.”

Tiyana did not turn her head from the cryptic petroglyphs, “Yeah?”

“Yeah, I’m going to check it out.”

“Alright.”

Hongo eventually got bored as well and started gutting and filleting the snake that he had killed the day before. Many of the live snakes died with the beast, but the rest vanished.

Tiyana said, “Hunter, there’s so much writing here, it would take ages to decipher any of it. I’m not a linguist.”

From inside the former display case Hunter said, “Sweetheart, there’s about a two by two foot box of sand in here. It’s right in front of this wall.”

“Really?” Tiyana said as she walked over and looked at it. “Strange how it is just sitting there in the middle of all this rock. The edges of the box are too straight for it to be natural. Someone made that sandbox.”

“But what’s it for?” Asked Hunter. Just then they heard a loud crash of rock on rock.

“Hey Hongo, what are you doing back there, bwana?” Hunter yelled.