Part 14
Arnold, Stella and Miles follow the Elder into a small sacred shrine located within the temple. They stand and watch as the Elder paces back and forth in front of a bare pedestal.
Elder: Oh, this is bad...this is very, very bad...
Arnold: What's going on?
Elder: I'm afraid that in our fervor to retrieve you, young Arnold, we were careless in keeping ourselves hidden. The river pirate must have infiltrated our private sanctuary and stolen our most precious treasure.
Arnold: La Corazon...?
Elder: Yes. It is the sacred relic of the Green Eyes, the heart of our people. How we could have let it be snatched away by such an unsavory character! La Corazon is life...!
Stella: Don't worry, Elder. We've dealt with La Sombra in the past - we'll bring La Corazon back.
Arnold: And I'm going with you.
Miles: (to Arnold) Good idea, Arnold!
Stella: Not a chance.
Miles: (to Stella) Right...(to Arnold) bad idea, Arnold!
Arnold: But, Mom...!
Stella: Arnold, listen...you don't know La Sombra...you don't know what he's capable of. He's a ruthless monster that will stop at nothing to destroy the Green Eyes and take away everything they hold dear. If anything were to happen to you...
Arnold: Nothing will happen – I promise. Please, let me go with you...!
Stella looks at Arnold, who gives her a pleading, puppy-dog face. She sighs and smiles warmly at him.
Stella: Alright, you can come.
Elder: You must leave immediately – every second that La Corazon spends outside the safety of the temple walls spells dire consequences for the Green Eyes!
Miles: We're on our way.
After they prepare for the journey, the family of three meet the elder in the public square of the city, where they are greeted with the roar of the supportive crowd.
Elder: Please be careful.
Miles: Aw, come on, Xio – when have we ever let you down before?
Arnold peers into the crowd, but one familiar face is noticeably absent.
Miles: Ready, Arnold?
Arnold snaps out of it and nods, then waves to the others, and the three of them exit Templo de Los Ojos Verdes.
While outside the temple, the Schwartz family trek through the jungle in a single file, with Miles leading the way, Arnold in the middle, and Stella bringing up the rear. As they progress, however, it is Arnold that ends up leading the way, with Stella and Miles falling significantly behind the longer they walk. At some point Stella stops and leans against a tree, grabbing her chest. Arnold immediately comes to her aid.
Arnold: Mom, are you okay?
Stella: I'm fine. Really.
Arnold: You look so weak…
Stella: It's nothing…it's just…
Stella grips her chest even harder and kneels down. Concerned, Miles comes to her side as well.
Miles: Honey, are you oka—gahh…!
Stricken with pain, Miles also kneels down.
Arnold: What's going on?
Miles: Arnold…(groans)...there's something we haven't told you…
Stella: Ten years ago, when we vowed to save Eduardo's life, we made a promise to the Green Eyes to join them and become part of their tribe.
Arnold: Yeah, I know that. Eduardo told me.
Miles:…what he didn't tell you…was what that commitment would entail….
Stella: To become a part of the Green Eyes, we literally had to give…a part of ourselves.
Arnold: A part of yourself?
Stella: Yes…somehow…as we were initiated into the tribe...our fates became intricately aligned with that of the Green Eye's holy artifact.
Miles: The Green Eyes draw their life force directly from La Corazon…as long as it stays inside of the holy temple...
Arnold: What are you saying?
Miles: The longer La Corazon spends outside the temple walls, the more the life force is diminished..
Stella:…and the longer the life force is diminished…
Stella groans.
Miles: Long story short…we have to get that artifact back….
Arnold: Is that why you can never leave San Lorenzo?
Miles: Yeah...that's the gist of it...
Arnold: And...if I choose to stay...will I...?
Stella: That's what we're afraid of. That's why...we want you to return to Hillwood with your classmates. We want you to have a full life. You're still young….you have so much to experience…(groans)
Stella outstretches her arm and holds Arnold.
Stella: Our fate has been sealed, Arnold, it's our responsibility, no...our lifelong duty to serve the Green Eyes. We made a promise that we cannot afford to break.
Miles: We want to spend all the time we can with you…while you're here.
Arnold: You guys…
Arnold and his parents gather in a circle and they hug. When they are finished, Arnold notices that the gem in his necklace is faintly glowing.
Arnold: Look!
Miles: The necklace must responding to the presence of La Corazon.
Arnold points the necklace around, hoping to get a better reading. He moves around a bit, then pauses as the necklace blinks rapidly when he points it at a tall mountain several meters away.
Stella: Looks like we find our thief. Let's go.
In no time, they reach the foot of the mountain. Arnold looks up and marvels at its sheer height.
Arnold: So La Sombra's somewhere on this mountain?
Miles: Actually, it's a volcano. But it's dormant; it hasn't erupted in years.
Stella: Lucky for us.
Stella begins to scale the mountain and Arnold and Miles do the same, following after her. They reach the first ledge, a ridge in the side of the dormant volcano, and Arnold's amulet goes off like crazy. Nearby they spy a tiny cave.
Stella: This must be it.
They enter the cave and walk for a bit until they find themselves a the top of a winding staircase. At the bottom of the staircase, they find themselves in a dark lair, lit only by the light of their amulets. There are two rows of tombs along each end of the chamber, and a cool breeze blows from an unknown source.
Arnold: This is...?
Miles: A crypt where the Green Eyes bury their dead. It's a very sacred place; only a chosen few of the living are allowed inside.
Arnold: But why would La Sombra want to raid a crypt...?
Stella: Miles, look out!
La Sombra appears from out of the shadows and swings his cutlass, narrowly missing Miles. In retaliation, Stella kicks the weapon out of his hand and goes to Miles side. La Sombra growls and is only visible due to the faintly luminescent La Corazon clutched in his arm..
La Sombra: You three have meddled in my affairs for the last time!
Stella lunges for La Corazon, just as La Sombra tries to pull it out of her reach. But La Sombra accidentally drops the artifact, and as it hits the ground, Stella and Miles simultaneously buckle in pain. La Sombra notices this, and as he walks over to where La Corazon had fallen, he places his foot on the item, and presses down, as if he is squashing an insect. This causes unbearable pain for Stella and Miles, and they can do nothing but collapse on the crypt floor. Arnold watches in horror as La Sombra not only desecrates La Corazon, but is literally killing his parents.
Arnold: Stop it!
La Sombra ignores Arnold's plea and grins evilly, exposing his gold tooth, as his green-eyed greed is converted to a source of power which sucks away at Stella and Miles' life energy. Arnold grips his amulet and, feeling the anger brewing inside of him, stands between La Sombra and his parents, acting as a shield. Arnold holds out his amulet and points it at La Sombra, who is likewise aiming La Corazon at Arnold, and the two stand off in a power struggle; a beam of green light shoots out from both items, creating some sort of energy tug-of-war between them.
Arnold: You already stole my parents from me before...you're not taking them from me again...
La Sombra: Grr...you foolish little Goody-Gringo...!
Arnold: The name...is Schwartz...!
La Corazon suddenly becomes very hot in La Sombra's hands, and the heat elevates to the point where he is forced to release the artifact, and it once again falls to the ground; this time La Corazon cracks down the center upon impact, and ceases to provide luminescence. La Sombra is sent sailing clear across the crypt, and right through the wall on the opposite end. After the struggle, Arnold's amulet ceases to blink and he blacks out, collapsing as a lifeless heap on the ground.
Miles and Stella: ARNOLD!
Suddenly, the entire tomb begins to shake. Stella and Miles get to their feet and look around in confusion.
Stella: What's happening?
Miles: I think...the volcano is erupting...!
Stella: Then we've got to get out of here!
The husband and wife duo hurry and use their amulets to seek out their unresponsive son and the damaged La Corazon,. Miles picks up the lifeless Arnold while Stella takes hold of La Corazon, and together they make a mad dash out of the crypt and back into the jungle, just as the volcano is starting to ooze its first streams of molten lava, destroying everything in its path.
Meanwhile, La Sombra finally awakes, and finds himself in a well-lit small circular room literally surrounded from all sides with gold, jewels and treasure, which are packed endlessly high on shelves carved into the stone walls. He stands up and looks at the treasure, laughing hysterically, to the point where it seems that he has lost his mind. Unfortunately, as La Sombra hastens to grab as many items as he can, there is a violent tremour, and the wall from which he had entered the treasure room is closed in by giant boulders.
La Sombra: No...NO...NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
La Sombra slams helplessly on the boulders, but they will not budge. Lava seeps into the repository from all around, melting the treasure down into puddles that rain down upon the trapped thief, extinguishing the torches providing light and leaving La Sombra alone in the darkness as he is faced with the ultimate poetic justice.
Back at the Temple, a gong is being rung, signifying that the volcano has erupted, and everyone is running about in a panic. The tremours caused by the volcano are in turn causing an earthquake within the sacred underground city, and statues and buildings are toppling over as a result. Stella and Miles make their appearance amidst the pandemonium, and are greeted by Xiocese the elder.
Elder: You've recovered the holy item! But…oh, my word…..
Stella: Elder, you must tell the Green Eyes to leave immediately!
Elder: But we have nowhere to go! And I trust our Mountain God shall save us once again.
Miles: Don't you understand? If you stay here, you'll all be killed!
Elder: Take Arnold to the sacred shrine room….and bring La Corazon with you.
Stella gives Miles a skeptical look, but having few other options, they decide to abide by the Elder's demands. As they make their way to the sacred chambers, Helga spots them carrying the unconscious Arnold, and instinctively follows the group.
Helga finds herself inside the holy chamber, where Arnold has already been laid to rest on top of the flat surface of the pedestal situated in the center of the room; the cracked La Corazon has been placed above his head. Helga immediately grabs the Elder by the collar to get his attention.
Helga: What did you do to Arnold...?
Elder: I have done nothing! Arnold, he...I'm afraid that he has been mortally wounded in trying to recover La Corazon.
Helga: What? NO!
Helga approaches Arnold, who still remains unresponsive. Stella and Miles are standing in the corner of the shrine, and are holding each other impatiently while peering out at the chaos unfolding throughout the rest of the city.
Stella: Elder, please! We don't have much time! We have to evacuate now!
Elder: In a moment...
Miles: But Elder...!
Elder: Shh…!
The Elder proceeds to chant in his native language as the temple trembles around them. The situation has reached a fever pitch outside the holy chamber, and the lava creeps ever closer, merely a stone's throw away from seeping into the secret city. Helga rests her hand on Arnold's hand and sighs forlornly.
Helga: Oh Arnold….I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for everything I've put you through. You're right – I don't hate you. I've never hated you. I...only acted that way in front of you because...I was just hiding my true feelings. I know doesn't amount to much now but...I love you, Arnold. I just wish I had the courage to tell you sooner….
Helga rests her head on Arnold and cries. Suddenly, as if by magic or some divine intervention, Arnold's eyes shoot wide open. Slowly he sits up, which gets everyone's attention in the room. Helga is elated. The Elder smiles.
Elder: It has begun. The Mountain God has awakened.
Helga: Arnold! You're alive….!
But Arnold does not acknowledge Helga, or anyone else for that matter. Rather, Helga is surprised to see that Arnold's eyes are shining a complete, solid, emerald green. The holy artifact, La Corazon, has also become animated, and has not only repaired itself in a flash of light, but actually started hovering around Arnold's head, glowing a bright green hue. Helga stands back as La Corazon orbits faster and faster around Arnold. His entire body glows green as a wave of energy shoots outward and spans the entire Green Eyes temple.
Outside the temple, the wave of energy resonates all the way to the mouth of the volcano, then shoots upward, towards the sky. Almost instantaneously the lava begins to subside and harden, the rumblings cease, and the smoke clouds dissipate, revealing a clear day. The volcano has been silenced.
After several seconds, La Corazon gently floats into Arnold's hands as both he and the item cease to glow. Arnold's body relaxes and he closes his eyes. Cautiously, Helga, Stella and Miles approach the boy.
Helga: Arnold...?
Slowly, Arnold opens his eyes.
Arnold: What's...what's going on?
Relieved, Helga clasps her hands together and laughs as tears stream down her face; Stella and Miles take Arnold into their arms, then help him to his feet. The temple-dwellers, emerge from the buildings and the entire city erupts in cheers as a near-catastrophe has been adverted. As they walk past him, Stella and Miles look at the Elder, who simply smiles.
Miles: Elder...how did you know...?
Elder: Simple. It has all been foretold in the prophecy.
Stella: The prophecy? You mean...that girl...?
Elder: She is the one of which the prophecy spoke. A wayward goddess would find her way by embracing that which she feared the most. She would vanquish her fears in the face of peril, and awaken the Mountain God, restoring peace once and for all to the Green Eyes.
Arnold exits the shrine to the praise and jubilation of the Green Eyes. As the procession carries him away, with Stella and Miles following, Helga surreptitiously approaches the elder.
Helga: Look...I have a confession...
Elder: You're not a really Coyolxauhqui.
Helga: Wait..you knew?
Elder: Well, duh. I may be an old man in a dress, but I'm not a fool.
Xiocese winks at Helga and follows the celebratory crowd. Helga smiles, shakes her head, and follows as well.
End of Part 14!