Tomb of Zeus (Atlantis) (24 page)

“It’s just part of my master plan to
rule the world,” she responded nonchalantly.

Javi chuckled and said, “Whatever your reasons, we’re all extremely appreciative. You’re a real asset to the team.”

Helena only smiled.

Jack stared at the middle screen and studied the photos. Spread across it were close-up snapshots of ancient Greenland
taken from the crystal globe with the golden scepter lying at the far edge of a northeastern peninsula. He looked over at another photo of a modern topographical map, detailing the surface contours for that area. As he studied the minimal elevation gains in that region, he voiced a concern.

“I know we’ve discussed this before, but something just doesn’t seem right.”

“Jack, we’ve been over this a million times. We know the area’s relatively flat, but this is the exact location the Atlantean’s claim the golden pyramid was built. It’s got to be there. It may just be hidden from view. The icepack that stretches across most of Greenland can run hundreds of feet thick in some areas. The pyramid could actually have been built in one of those little valleys, then filled in by ice over the millennia,” Javi responded.

“I know. Something just feels strange about it. I just hope the airborne radar can pick up the pyramid as it flies over,” he added.

“Trust me Jack, if there’s a pyramid made of gold there, our radar will find it. Heck, I could probably find it myself with one of those Walmart hand-held metal detectors,” Duni joked.

Helena stared at the middle computer screen. Her eyes drifted lower. Just behind the bottom edge, she envisioned the tiny listening device she planted months before. She knew “ears” were listening.

“So Javi, could you run down our itinerary one more time? I just want to be clear about the timeline in my mind,” she asked for the benefit for those listening.

“
Certainly Helena,” Javi replied gladly. “We’re scheduled to leave Athens in three weeks. We’ll first fly to London, layover till the following day, then catch a flight to Reykjavik Iceland. From there, we’ll wait another day, then fly to Illulissat Greenland on the lower east coast. This is where it gets
real
expensive,
real
fast,” he said, his eyes now widening.

“We’ve chartered a private jet to fly us to the northeastern peninsula of Nord.”

“I’m sure happy for that,” Duni responded nodding. “Ferrying all our supplies by helicopter would’ve been such a pain. I’m betting it would’ve taken weeks to accomplish.”

“Another great idea from the lovely and talented Miss Galano
s,” Jack complimented.

Helena smiled uncomfortably at the false claim.

“From the Airfield at Nord Station, we’ll be helicoptered to the expedition site where hopefully, the camp will have already been set up by the crew Helena hired,” Javi continued. “With all the stops and layovers, that should put us at our destination on the first of May. From that point forward, we’ll be making daily flights by helicopter over the suspected search zone. There’s really no schedule for this per se, but we’re figuring spending at least a month making low passes over the area with radar. The search zone will be set up on standard east-west grid lines, and two helicopters will be working the area from opposite ends of the grid and moving inward toward each other. If the radar picks up an area of activity, it’ll be recorded where we’ll then head out on snowmobiles for further analysis.”

“What if we don’t find anything?” Helena asked in worried tone.

“We will. I’m certain of it. A golden pyramid that size will send the radar off the charts when we cross it,” Javi replied confidently.

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

One month later…

Nord Station, Greenland

May 1
st

Javi, Jack, Duni and Helena stood inside the airport service building and waited on the signal to board. Staring out through the windows, they watched the two-man crew pre-flight the Sikorsky S-61 helicopter. With a wave of the pilot’s hand, the four left the small building and headed across the frozen aircraft parking area. Although they were warmly dressed, the frigid below-zero temperatures bit at their exposed skin, causing their cheeks, lips and noses to sting slightly as they ran.

Once the four were aboard their aircraft and belted in, the pilot conferred with his co-pilot as the
y worked through their departure checklist. Minutes later, the twin jet engines roared to life. Seated in the back, four hearts pounded with excitement as they started their new adventure.

For the next half hour, the four watched the flat barren landscape coated in ice. Small hills and valleys appeared, but were almost imperceptible at their one thousand foot elevation. Traveling along their easterly route, they notice cracks in the ice sheet that seemed to hide deep and dangerous crevasses. At some locations, the
y saw small streams of water flowing across the land for miles. The new and beautiful landscape seemed almost peaceful and serene inside the safety of the helicopter.

Suddenly, the co-pilot called to their attention.

“Excuse me folks. If you look out the right side, coming up shortly, you’ll see a polar bear in search of food.”

Instantly, all eyes moved to the right-side windows. Seconds later, the fourteen hundred pound behemoth was seen running away from the sound of the aircraft.

“I know you guys have all been briefed on polar bears. Don’t let the sight of this guy running, fool you. He’s not afraid of humans, just the loud noise of the helicopter. If you were down there right now without a gun, he’d hunt and kill you,” the co-pilot warned.

An eerie silence spread through the aircraft at the profound words spoken.

Several minutes later, with the sight of shoreline extending for miles, the co-pilot announced their proximity to ‘Camp Zeus’.

“Camp Zeus in sight:
five miles straight ahead. Prepare for landing,” he shouted over their headphones.

Helena smiled at Jack. She held his hand tightly in excitement.

“Love the name,” she said to him.

“I thought it was appropriate,” he responded proudly.

“Very befitting,” she replied.

As the helicopter neared, it passed over
, then circled the camp. A half mile from the shoreline, allowing for advanced warning from approaching polar bears, the camp was situated on a large plateau. On the east side, it sloped gently down toward the sea. On the west side, it angled up for a half mile to the ice sheet that covered nearly the entire peninsula. Looking down at the camp for the first time, they marveled at the sight of the city of tents and wooden structures that would house humanity and store supplies and equipment for the next four months. Although it seemed crude and uncomfortable, the exterior of the camp was deceiving. With generators to power electricity, satellite connectivity to maintain communications, and many modern conveniences set up in the tents and buildings, their long stay would be anything but intolerable.

As the helicopter slowed to a landing, off in the distance,
a tall, rugged-looking man stood and waited for the rotor blades to stop. When the side door opened, he rushed over and helped the four out.

“Hi, I’m Ron Cotterman from Adventure Outfitters. I’m your camp resource manager. Anything you need, just let me know,” he shouted over the whine of the jet engines as they began to spool down.

Jack shook his hand and smiled.

“Can you have someone turn up the heat around here? It’s freakin freezing,”
he joked.

Ron laughed and replied, “Sorry Sir, but how about some hot coffee?”

Jack turned to Helena and smiled. “I’m liking this guy already,” he said.

“If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you guys around. I think you’ll find your stay here fairly comfortable,” Ron shouted, proudly.

For the next hour, he gave a tour of the makeshift facility, showing the tents they’d be sleeping in and the two small woodened buildings that housed their electronics in one, and search equipment and supplies in the other. Parked between the two buildings, four snowmobiles sat ready for use on the upper ice sheet. With their introduction complete, Ron handed them two rifles from the equipment building.

“This is polar bear country. No one should ever stray outside this camp without a rifle. Even when you’re up on the ice sheet on snowmobiles, I strongly advise you
to carry one. The snow machines are fast and can easily outrun a polar bear, but that’s only if you’re on them and moving. If they sneak up and surprise you, your only recourse will be these rifles,” he warned in ominous tone.

All four nodded nervously.

“Any question?” he asked, changing back to a cordial tone.

“Yes,” Javi responded. “When can we get started?””

Ron stared for a moment with a puzzled expression, then smiled.

“Mr. Arista, this is your show. I’m just here to guide you and take care of the day to day operations. You guys can do whatever you’d like,” he responded respectfully.

“Perfect,” he responded. “How about a tour of the ice sheet?”

“Absolutely. The machines are brand new. I think they could use a
little workout,” Ron responded happily.

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

For the next few hours, the team surveyed the upper ice sheet. With Jack and Helena on one snowmobile and the other three on their own machines, they followed Ron as they skirted the perimeter of the thirty square mile search area.

Heading out on a westerly course, the flat landscape reminded Jack of the farmlands he remembered seeing in the Midwest. Although there were small hills spotted from time to time, the majority of their views were of flat barren ice and hardened snow.

Thirty miles out, they began to see mountains far in the distance. At Jack’s request, Ron stopped for a break and to spend a moment reading the land.

“What do you think, Javi?”
Jack asked.

“Flat, awfully flat,” he responded.

“I wonder if they could’ve been mistaken about the location of the scepter on the globe,” Jack speculated.

“What do you mean?”

“I wonder if the pyramid could be one of those mountains, kind of the way Poseidon’s pyramid turned out. It makes me wonder if maybe the crystal could be wrong, that maybe they placed the scepter in the wrong location, but never fixed it on the globe,” he continued.

“Anything’s possible Jack, but these Atlanteans were exceptional people. I’m certain if there was a mistake on that crystal, they’d probably have
tossed it and created a new one that was accurate,” Javi responded. He scanned the search area once more. Shaking his head, he continued, “No, I’m certain that pyramid’s right where they say it is. The topographical map shows a few valleys under all this ice. It’s got to be in one of them.”

Ron listened
to their conversation, all the while scanning the area with his binoculars. Suddenly, his face went flush.

“Oh Great!” he blurted aloud, lowering
his field glass and squinting.

“What’s the matter?” Helena asked.

“We’ve got a visitor,” he responded, now pointing.

Off in the distance, a lone white mass was beginning to take shape. As everyone stood and watched, the reality of their expedition became apparent.

“Is that a polar bear?” Jack asked, surprised.

Ron handed him the binoculars, nodding in confirmation. Jack lifted the glasses to his eyes and watched momentarily.

“Wow, he’s moving fast too,” he said, growing worried.

“Yeah, I’m thinking he’s hungry and
we’re his lunch,” Ron responded half joking.

“How far out do you think he is?” Duni asked.

“A couple of miles, I’m guessing. He’ll be on top of us in just a few minutes,” Ron responded. “We’d better get moving. No sense hanging around and creating a situation.”

“Agree
d,” Javi said, simply.

Moments later, the five left in a hurry and headed south, now refocusing on their visual inspection of the search area. Five minutes after they left, the massive animal slowed his pace to a stop. He breathed in the air, catching the scent of the five humans that still lingered. As he lowered his head to the ground, he placed his nose into a fresh footprint and inhaled. With a low growl, he voiced his disappointment.

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

With their initial inspection complete, the team descended off of the upper ice sheet and onto the camp plateau. After spending nearly five hours without many visual cues, the camp was a welcome sight. Parking between the small wooden buildings, the
y hurried inside to get warm.

Once inside, the smell of coffee permeated the air.

“Boy, could I use some of that,” Jack said excitedly.

“It’s fresh, Sir,” a man shouted from behind a computer screen.

He stood and walked over to greet everyone.