The Vilcabamba Prophecy: A Nick Randall Novel (24 page)

Chapter thirty-four

The dome that housed
the power station was larger than Randall had anticipated. From their view at
the Tablet Room, it had appeared small in relation to the other structures in
the city, but up close, it was massive. The dome was perfectly smooth and was
made from a single piece of metal alloy. There were no perceptible seams or
rivets anywhere and it glowed with a familiar bluish-gray hue.

“Well,
Dr. Randall?”
Dumond
asked.

Randall
walked around the structure until he found the control panel. He recognized
several of the symbols and realized that he was becoming more familiar with the
strange language. Pressing several buttons in sequence, Randall read a small
display embedded in the wall that confirmed his worst fear. Fifty-two minutes
until the event horizon swept over them. Making matters worse, he wasn’t
exactly sure what would happen. Without realizing it, Randall muttered under
his breath, “Shit.”

“What
was that, Dr. Randall?”

Randall
recovered quickly. “There are a few new symbols here that I need to decipher,
but I’ll figure them out.”

Randall
punched several more keys and a panel slid open silently in front of them. The
group flinched at the sudden movement. The open space now revealed what Randall
had been looking for: the ignition switch into which the medallion key would
fit to operate system. He stepped to the side, “Here you go,
Dumond
.”

Dumond
pushed his way past Randall, who
took several steps back and moved next to Sam.

“Very
good, Dr. Randall. Colonel, bring me the medallion.”

Taking
the medallion from the container,
Dumond
turned it
over in his hand and smiled. Randall could sense
Dumond’s
distrust as his gaze shifted between the medallion and Randall’s eyes.

“Why
don’t you do the honors, Professor?”
Dumond
asked.

Randall
was startled by the offer. “No,
Dumond
, you’ve won
the day, you should do it.”

Dumond’s
smile broadened at Randall’s
response. “Did you really think I wouldn’t figure it out?”

“Figure
out what?”

“I
know there’s a reason you want me to use the key instead of you, and I don’t
think it has anything to do with allowing me the glory of the moment. There’s a
failsafe built into this system, isn’t there? If this isn’t done correctly, the
person using the key is injured or killed. Isn’t that the case, Professor?”

“I
don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“
Ackers
, bring her to me,”
Dumond
said, motioning to Sam.

Ackers
grabbed her by the wrists and
violently pulled her toward the control panel.
Dumond
handed her the medallion. “Take it!” Sam grudgingly complied. “Now use it to
engage the system!” Sam’s hand shook as she inched the medallion closer to
panel.

“Wait!
Yes, you’re right, there’s a fail-safe, and we don’t have the entire key.
There’s a shaft that fits into the back of the medallion that operates the
system.”

“Where’s
the rest of the key?”

Randall
hesitated.

“Tell
me or I’ll kill your daughter.”

“Chief
Yupanqui
from the jungle tribe has it. When I met
him, he had what I thought was a walking stick, but based on what I’ve read
here, it must be the rest of the key that’s needed to operate the system.”

“Colonel,
get the Professor’s notes.”

Dumond
reviewed the notes and compared them
to the symbols on the screen of the control center. For a moment he seemed
confused. Then a grin slowly snaked across his face.

“So,
you were keeping secrets from me. And to think I spared your daughter’s life.
Dr. Randall, your services are no longer required.”
Dumond
turned to
Ackers
and nodded.

The
Colonel released Sam’s arm and swung his weapon up to shoot her, but instead,
he felt a burning sensation in his left arm and squealed in pain. Instinctively
looking down at his wounded arm, he saw an arrow projecting through his
forearm, the head leaving a ragged, torn flap of skin on the exterior. He
looked up just in time to see another arrow arcing through the air. He sidestepped
it right before impact, watching it harmlessly strike the side of the power
dome.

Randall
turned to look in the direction from which the arrow had come. Silhouettes of
small warriors dotted the courtyard of the Tablet Room above, and arrows rained
down on
Dumond’s
men, striking like venomous serpents
protecting their den from intruders. The mercenaries turned to face their
attackers.

In
the ensuing commotion, Randall grabbed the medallion, grasped Sam’s arm and
pulled her away from the mercenaries. “Run, George!”

The
three ran around the large dome-shaped building, seeking to put as much
distance between the raging battle and themselves as they could. Realizing that
time was short, Randall knew that they needed to make it to
Yupanqui
and his men. The only hope of stopping
Dumond
was to
get the medallion to the tribe.
Yupanqui
already had
the shaft. If they could get the medallion to him, he could start the system
and complete the reunification before the volcano erupted.

“We
need to get the medallion to the Chief,” Randall said.

“But
we’re running the wrong way!” Sam responded

“First,
we need to put some distance between us and
Dumond
.
This way!”

Randall
made a sharp right turn at the first intersection they reached. His plan was
simple enough: lose
Dumond
and his men in the maze of
streets, then zigzag their way back to the Chief at the Tablet room. With a
little luck, they could make it to the tribe in time and get their help to
escape before the volcano killed them all.

*
* * *

Ackers
ducked for cover inside the open control panel, his left arm throbbing in pain.
He cut the arrowhead off with his knife and pushed the shaft out the other side
of his arm, letting out a groan of pain. Taking off his shirt and tearing a
strip from it, he wrapped the wound tightly to slow the flow of blood. His eyes
were wild with rage. His only concern now was finding Randall and killing him
painfully and slowly.

Dumond
ducked into the control panel
opening. “
Ackers
, what are you doing, you fool! Get
out there with your men and get that medallion!”

Ackers
regarded
Dumond
with disdain, grabbed his throat, and lifted him several inches off the ground.
For the first time, he saw fear in his employer’s eyes. “Shut the fuck up, you
little
pissant
.”
Ackers
tossed
Dumond
aside like a rag doll, the smaller man
landing in a heap by the control panel.
Ackers
coolly
picked up his assault rifle and walked back out of the niche.

Grabbing
the first man he saw, he screamed into his ear, “Where did Randall go!
”

The
mercenary blinked in surprise and pointed in the direction the professor and
his group had run.
Ackers
released the man from his
iron grip and ran off in pursuit.

*
* * *

Another quake
rocked the cavern, shaking the city violently and causing rocks to plummet from
the cavern above.

“This
place is getting more and more unstable. We’re running out of time!” Randall
shouted.

“How
much time left, Dr. Randall?” George asked.

Randall
glanced down at his watch while he ran. “Forty-eight minutes.” There was a
slight pause. “How did you know that the control panel showed the remaining
time?”

“Your
response when you accessed the control panel. That’s the first thing I would
have checked and, judging by your reaction, I knew we were pushing it.”

“Dad,
exactly what happens in forty-eight minutes?”

“I’m
not exactly sure, but in forty-eight minutes I think this volcano is going to
blow!”

“Forty-eight
minutes! We’ll never get out of here in time!” George yelled.

“How
could they predict the eruption time of a volcano? That’s impossible!” Sam said.

“I
don’t know. Their technology is thousands of years ahead of ours,” Randall
said, almost out of breath.

So
far his plan was working. The group had zigzagged several times through the
streets and eluded
Ackers
and his men. Of course,
Randall thought,
Yupanqui’s
tribe was probably
playing a large role in keeping them occupied. Stopping for a moment to get his
bearings, Randall paused at the end of a row of buildings and motioned for Sam
and George to be silent and stay put. He walked gingerly to the edge of the
last structure on the street and slowly peered around the corner.

Just
as he suspected, the Tablet room was directly to their right and about 300
yards from their current location. Unfortunately, there would be little cover
for this last dash. He had unknowingly led them to what appeared to be a public
square, beautifully landscaped, but with very few structures.

“This
looks like a plaza. It must be where they all get together,” Sam said, sneaking
up behind her father. “Look over there.” She pointed to a small feature that
looked like a fountain, but instead of water, there was smoke.

“The
magma is leaching into the water system. It’s finding its way up through
fissures in the rock.”

“What
are we doing?” George asked, joining them. Seeing the large open space, he
commented, “This doesn’t look good.”

“George,
on my mark, we run full speed, no stopping! Sam, you’re the fastest, you take
the medallion. George and I will draw the attention of
Ackers’s
men. George, you run diagonally across the square toward that small building in
the middle. That will offer you some protection. I’ll run at
Ackers’s
men to draw their fire.”

“Are
you crazy? You’ll be killed!” Sam yelled.

“It’s
our only chance. Sam, count to ten after George takes off, and then make a
beeline for
Yupanqui
. If something happens to George
or me, you keep going. We need to get that medallion to the tribe. If we don’t,
they’ll never get out of here and return home. Hundreds or even thousands of
lives are counting on you, Sam. Promise me you won’t stop if something happens
to one of us.”

“I
can’t leave you!”

Randall
held his daughter by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Sam, I’ve already
cost Phil and Mike their lives, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if
thousands of other innocent people died as well. I need you to do this. Promise
me.”

Tears
welling in her eyes, she couldn’t speak. Instead, Sam just shook her head. “I
can’t, Dad, I just found you again.”

Randall
took a deep breath. She was stubborn, but he couldn’t blame her, after all, she
was his daughter. Finally, he spoke calmly and quietly. “Sam, you know I love
you and I don’t want to be separated from you ever again. But we need to get
the medallion to
Yupanqui
and his people. If there
was any other way, I would do it, but this is our only chance.”

Sam
stood, tears streaming down her face. She nodded in agreement.

“George
are you ready? Go!”

George
sprinted like an Olympic runner out of the starting blocks, his heart beating
like a jackhammer. At the same time, Randall ran in a zigzagging pattern toward
the armed mercenaries, waving his arm to draw their attention. His plan worked
a little too well. Those not directly engaged in the firefight with the natives
turned their attention to him. Small bursts of dust kicked up near his feet as
the soldiers fired round after round at him. Less attention was paid to George,
but at least one mercenary spotted him and began firing. Sam, waiting and
watching from the relative safety of her hiding spot slowly counted to ten.
Upon reaching the magic number, she clenched the medallion firmly in her palm
and made a mad dash directly toward
Yupanqui
.