The Lost Continent (5 page)

A knock came at the door. Shah glanced to Basati who left the wall he had been leaning against to answer it. Almost immediately, a young Indian woman with short hair and glasses barged into the room.
 

“You can't just—” Basati began to protest, but cut himself off when he saw the man who followed her in. His commanding officer.

“This woman is free to go,” he said, motioning to Elisa.

“But sir...” said Shah.

“I said she is free to go.”

“And just who is this?” asked Shah, referring to the new woman.

“Professor Lakita Rai of the archaeological studies department at Mumbai University,” said the woman. “Professor Hill is a guest of ours and she is here on sabbatical for research purposes.”

“That doesn't excuse the weapons she brought in,” said Shah.

“As a matter of fact, it does,” said Lakita. “Those aren't weapons, they're ancient artifacts I requested the Professor to bring with her.” Lakita held up a copy of a form and handed it to Shah. “Perhaps if you had bothered to check the proper documentation, you would see they had already been approved for entry by your organization.”

Shah muttered something under his breath in Hindi as he turned away. Elisa smiled, the superior officer apologizing to her profusely. Lakita continued to glare daggers at both the two agents.

“I have a car waiting outside. Would you be so kind as to bring Professor Hill's luggage out to it? And be careful, those artifacts are worth more than your life.”

Once they climbed inside Lakita's car, Elisa burst into laughter. Lakita just smiled as she started the engine and pulled away from the airport.
 

“I was starting to wonder how I was going to get out of there,” said Elisa.

“Maxwell Finch always makes sure to cover his bases, you should know that,” said Lakita.
 

“Well, I can't thank the both of you enough, Professor,” said Elisa. “Speaking of which, how were you able to get approval on such short notice?”

“A retired myth hunter from Calcutta now works with the customs department,” said Lakita. “And you can call me Lakita. But don't start celebrating yet, we still need to find the Churchward Tablets before this Davalos character does.”

“So I take it Max filled you in on all the details.”

“He did.”

“Good, saves me the trouble of having to explain everything,” said Elisa. “First thing's first though, I need to get a shower. Several hours in a plane is not my idea of a good time.”

“You can shower at my apartment and after that, we'll begin our search,” said Lakita.

“So you know where the tablets are?”

Lakita shook her head. “No, but I have a lead.”

Elisa looked out her window and caught sight of something in the side mirror. She turned the mirror a bit to get a better view, then glanced over her shoulder. Lakita took notice and glanced at her passenger.

“Something wrong?”

“That car has been following us since the airport,” said Elisa. “Think customs would have reason to put on a tail?”

“Not any I can think of.”

Elisa glanced forward and returned her eyes to the mirror. “You see that small road coming up on the right?”

“Yes.”

“Take it.”

“What?”

“Now!”

Lakita had just barely passed the road when she turned sharply to the right, skidding along the center line before stepping on the gas and accelerating down the small street. In the mirror, she saw the car behind them do the exact same thing and follow them down.

“Great...” muttered Elisa. “Must be the Order.”

“How?”

“They probably have someone inside customs as well,” said Elisa. “Think you can lose them?”

“I-I'm not sure, I've never done anything like this before.”

Elisa looked up at Lakita. “I thought you were a hunter?”

“I don't do field work!” said Lakita. “I just handle research!”

“Congratulations Lakita, you do field work now.”

“My lucky day...” she muttered.

She took another sharp right down a side street and raced down the hill. The car went right into oncoming traffic and they had thankfully avoided a collision, moving down through another alley. At the end of it, Lakita turned left.

“Did that work?” she asked.

“You've got a rear-view mirror, don't you?” asked Elisa.

“I'm too scared to check!”

Elisa looked in her side mirror. “They're still on our tail.”

“Still? After all that?”

“These guys are professionals, you're gonna have to do a bit more to lose them.”

“Like what?”

“Is that an expressway entrance coming up ahead?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Get on it.”

“We just missed the turn!”

“There's still time, go!”

Lakita turned sharply, driving over the lines and up the ramp. She pushed forward in the car, weaving in and out of lanes. But further up ahead, she saw a sea of red lights.

“What do we do now? There's a traffic jam.”

“The shoulder,” said Elisa.

“What?”

“Come on, get on the shoulder!” she yelled. “These guys are serious, Lakita. They'll have no qualms about killing us in broad daylight during a traffic jam.”

Lakita nodded, moving onto the shoulder and racing past traffic. Behind her, the car kept pace, following her lead. And she noticed something else—behind their tail was another car, one with flashing lights and a siren.

“Ignore the cops, they're the least of our worries,” said Elisa. “Get off at the next exit.”

Lakita did and at the end of the ramp sat another police car. Lakita swerved to avoid it, skidding past and the tail did the same. The cop who followed him, however, ended up crashing into the second officer.

Elisa looked over her shoulder. “Just the two of us again.”

“Elisa?”

“What?”

“Bridge construction.”

“What do you mean by—” Elisa turned around and saw the work crew up ahead. “Shit. Get around them!”

“What?”

“Now!”

Lakita uttered a quiet prayer as she swerved past the construction crew, a few of them jumping to safety and the side of her car scraping against the guard rail. The car behind them attempted the same stunt, but went through the guardrail, crashing into the water.

Elisa began to laugh as she hugged Lakita. “Not bad!”

“That...that was lucky...” muttered Lakita between breaths.

“Lucky...Laki, I kind of like that,” said Elisa. “Now how about that shower, Laki? If they're trying to kill us, that means we must be close.”

“I'm so...happy?” asked Laki.

Elisa chuckled. “Relax, this is how this kind of thing works.”

“This is your life?” asked Laki. “I've never had someone try to kill me before.”

“Welcome to the life of a myth hunter,” said Elisa.
 

Laki leaned against the wheel and continued to breathe heavily. “I think I'd like my old life back.”

Elisa rubbed her new friend's shoulder. “Relax, you'll do fine. It's always tough at first.”

Laki glanced up. “How old were you when you started doing this kind of stuff?”

Elisa shrugged. “I don't know...twelve maybe?”

Laki's eyes widened. “What?”

Stubby slumped in his chair, a half-finished bottle of gin on his desk, the only light coming from the glow of the small television screen. His eyes were shut, occasionally the sound of snoring coming from his throat. His impromptu nap came at an unfortunate time, for it meant he didn't hear the sound of the bell at the front of his shop.
 

The door had been locked.
 

Stubby shifted in his sleep, his body trying to make itself comfortable in the large chair, the leather squeaking as he moved. The glow of the television screen reflected off a long, thin metal object that eased closer to its target.

The edged side of the katana sword came right up against the front of Stubby's throat, coming to rest right on his Adam's apple. A gloved hand reached around Stubby's head and clamped over his mouth and nose. Stubby woke immediately, struggling for breath and the mysterious swordsman released his nose.

“Easy there, Mr. Stubby. Never startle a man who has a sword pinned to your throat. Might not end so well for you if you catch my drift.”

Stubby recognized the voice and he mumbled the name into the man's glove. The swordsman released the shop owner's mouth to allow him to speak and he said only one word: “Seth.”

“Right you are,” said Seth. He jumped over Stubby's head and landed perfectly straight on the desk. The tip of his sword now lightly touched Stubby's forehead. Seth wore a black trench coat over a three-piece white suit. His shirt was black with a mandarin-style collar and he had long, silver hair.

“The hell do you want?” asked Stubby.
 

“It's quite simple, really,” said Seth. “I want to know what you told Hill and where I can find her.”

“Hill? I got no idea where she is. She's still pissed at me after the
last
time I gave her up to you.”

“Ah, the werewolf incident, I remember it well.” Seth ran a finger along a scar across his left cheek. “She gave me this.”

“Right, so why the hell would she come to me again after that?”

“Because you know things, you're networked with all us crooked little myth hunters,” said Seth. “And word from the grapevine is both her and Davalos are after the same thing, something the Order wants their hands on.”

“Right, so what do you care?” asked Stubby. “Since when do you work for the Order?”

“I don't, I only represent my own interests,” said Seth. “But if the Order
and
Hill are both after this, that means it's big. That means I want in. And
that,
my friend, means you're going to help me.”

“Go fuck yourself, Seth. Even if I did know anything, I wouldn't tell you.”

“Dear, dear Mr. Stubby...” Seth drew his sword back and hopped off the desk, slowly pacing around the small office. “We both know how this works. You tell me what you know and if you don't, I start skinning body parts. I'm sure you don't want that, now do you?”

“Davalos and Hill are two of the best, while they're distracted with the tablets, why don't you pick some other game to go after? No competition and you can easily make some good cash.”

“Mr. Stubby, I haven't needed the money since I killed my parents when I was ten. It's not about the money, it's about the challenge.” Seth slowly looked up at Stubby, emerald eyes peering through the silver strands of hair combined with a crooked smile. “Now, what's this about tablets?”

Stubby silently cursed himself. He had let it slip without even realizing. “I-I don't know what you're talking about, I didn't say anything about any tablets.”

“No use backtracking now, I heard you loud and clear,” said Seth. “What tablets are they after?”

“Seth, buddy, you're hearing things! I don't know anything about any tablets, honest!”

“Mr. Stubby...I can hear your heartbeat,” he said as he came closer. “If you're not careful, that thing's going to pound right out of your chest.”

“I-it's cause you scare the shit out of me, that's all,” said Stubby. “Plus, just
look
at me. Not like I'm the healthiest guy in town. I got high blood pressure.”

Seth's blade dropped lower to the ground, the tip scraping against the concrete floor and drawing sparks. “Mr. Stubby...you
know
I don't like being lied to. It's...unbecoming.”

Seth lunged forward, the sword scraping up from the ground before he thrust the blade into Stubby's shoulder, pinning him to the chair. “Argh, you bastard!” he screamed as Seth twisted the blade slightly.

“Language, Mr. Stubby.”

“Jesus...what's wrong with you?” asked Stubby.

“I just want to know the answers to two simple questions. The first is where are Davalos and Hill and the second is what are they after that the Order wants so bad?”

“Look...Seth, I'll level with you, okay?”

“Oh really? I thought you were
already
telling the truth?” asked Seth.

“Okay, before I wasn't but now I am,” said Stubby. “Listen man, they're on a wild goose chase. You get into this, you're gonna come out with nothing. They're after a myth.”

Seth cocked his head to the side. “Do I need to remind you what we call ourselves? Myth hunters, emphasis on
myth
.”

“Yeah, but not like this, not something as big as this,” said Stubby. “Lots of people have tried, no one's ever found a trace. It was all a hoax from day one, I swear!”

Seth slowly drew the blade from Stubby's shoulder. “A hoax, you say?”

Stubby breathed a sigh of relief. “Yeah man, honest. Nothing but a huge myth.”

“Hill was last spotted in the Caribbean,” said Seth. “What was she tracking?”

“The Keystone of the Naa'cal.”

“Well, well, well...” he muttered. “They're after Lemuria, aren't they?”

Stubby nodded.

“And the tablets you mentioned...?”

“The Churchward Tablets, yup,” he said. “The Order thinks the legends are true, that Lemuria actually existed. They're after the Lost Tribe of the Naa'cal.”

“So what's Hill's interest?”

“Her parents, they spent most of their careers trying to uncover the truth of Lemuria,” said Stubby. “Lost a lot of money and respect in our world for their trouble.”

Seth removed a black handkerchief from his overcoat and wiped the blade clean of Stubby's blood. “So Davalos wants the money the Order is paying, the Order wants the Naa'cal, and Hill wants to redeem her family's name.”

“About sums it up, yeah,” said Stubby.

“But why is the Order so interested in the Naa'cal?”

“I don't know man, ask one of them!”
 

“Believe me, I intend to,” said Seth. “Now then, where have they skipped off to? It's obvious they're no longer in the Caribbean. Davalos was last seen in Mexico so where does that put them now?”

“Where Churchward found the tablets,” said Stubby. “They're in India.”

“Beautiful.”

“Look man, you're not seriously going after them, are you? Don't tell me you believe in that bedtime story!”