Thank you for reading!
PART TWO
By the time there was enough light in the sky to see their shadows the next morning, Rick and Evy were ready to go. Izzy had been restless all night and so they had gotten very little sleep. Their poor girl had a worse night though. She just couldn't be consoled no matter how hard her parents tried, she cried for the lady in the dark.
As they left their tent they were surprised to find Maria and Luis crouched near the fire they had going already in the O'Connell's outdoor hearth. Alex was sitting by them eating a bowl of mushy grains for his breakfast. He smiled at his family as they approached. Apparently nobody could sleep that night, they were all up early. Maria stood up and smiled at them and went to the fire to pour them a cup of hot tea. Evy accepted it thankfully and sat beside her son on a stump. Rick took a small bowl of the grains from the pot over the fire and sat with his daughter to feed her some breakfast too.
Maria sat back down beside her friend and looked over to where they had abandoned their dig the night before.
"I really thought we'd find something this time." She sighed.
Evy looked at Rick and he nodded at her to go ahead. "Maria... we went back in last night and there's an old wooden floor under the stones. I fell through and I'm pretty sure there's a mummy in the cavern underneath."
Maria's eyes opened wide and she stood up as fast as Luis did. The two of them stared at each other over the fire for a few moments exchanging an expression that Rick and Evy could not interpret.
"Go get the Cuka." Marie spoke to her husband and he ran off quickly. She then went to Rick and Izzy, "If it's alright, I'll take our Izzy down to the elders. We don't want her underfoot while we go in there. She'll be safer with them."
"Sure, no problem." Rick leaned back so Maria could pick up his daughter. "Alex can stay with us though."
"I'll be right back then we'll go see this mummy of yours." Maria had the strangest smile as she turned and carried Izzy out of the abandoned village.
Evelyn finished her tea and stood up and grinned carefully at her husband. He sighed deeply and shook his head with a slight smile. He knew she wasn't patient enough to wait for the return of Luis and Maria.
"I'll go get the ladder. It's just behind our tent." He stood up and went to get the handmade ladder they had utilized a few times during their stay in Peru.
Evy walked towards the tunnel with her arm around Alex's shoulder. She was very excited for her son to see his first newly-discovered mummy. She was excited for everyone. She waited by the opening while Alex bravely went in and lit all the lanterns that had gone out in the night. Rick trudged up with the ladder, formed expertly from branches and bindings. It would work well enough.
Rick went into the tunnel and angled the ladder down into the hole while Evy impatiently clasped her hands together. Once it was ready, Rick handed Alex the flashlight and asked him to shine the light down for them once they were in. Alex agreed and watched his parents climb down the ladder into the cavern below. He lay on his stomach and flashed the light carefully into the darkness for his parents.
They just stood there for a few seconds and let their eyes adjust. It was a fairly spacious cavern, hidden so carefully into the hill behind the ancient village. It was clearly made by human hands but was strangely absent of any carvings or anything. Evy took Rick's hand as they approached the bundle that Evy had seen the night before in the shadows. Now she could clearly see in the light that her son held steadily that it was a wonderfully intact mummy. The cavern was completely dry and she hoped the preservation had been perfect. It seemed like the perfect environment.
She and Rick both leaned over it carefully and Evy reached down to touch a medallion that was around the neck of the body. They both gasped as they recognized the emblem of the Moon Goddess that they had found on the idol the day before.
Suddenly Evy's eyes went wide as she stared at her husband and she was flung to the ground. Rick looked down and saw the mummy suddenly sit up and fling itself in his direction. He jumped over it and grabbed his wife to her feet. He looked at his wife in shock and the mummy continued to thrash about and screech. The muffled sound was terrible and he covered one ear with one hand and pulled his wife with the other.
"Well, this is a new one honey! I didn't even see you read from any book either so I don't think this is your fault this time." They both jumped as the mummy flung itself in the direction of their voices.
"I didn't do anything!" Her eyes were wide open.
A few steps and they were at the ladder and Rick flew up it easily. Alex had already jumped to his feet, completely in shock at what he had just seen.
Rick practically pulled Evy up from the chamber as she climbed the ladder after him and he lifted her out and set her on her feet. He took her hand, reached for Alex's, and turned to the opening of the tunnel where unfortunately four incredibly determined-looking, unfamiliar, angry men with heavy golden swords were coming straight towards them.
They were backed up against the rear wall quickly and Evy and Alex both looked down into the cavern and he could see the mummy, squirming and screeching as it rolled around at the bottom of the ladder. The three O'Connell's looked at each other desperately, not sure how they were going to get out of this one.
Suddenly a familiar voice shouted angrily from the opening of the tunnel. It was Luis and a few of their diggers but strangely they were no longer garbed in their traditional work wear, they wore leather armour and wielded some very impressive looking obsidian daggers. Rick and Evy looked at each other in shock. There was obviously something the group hadn't been telling them.
"Quillya! This is between us! Let them pass. You would kill an unarmed family? You don't think that would send every official in the north to our mountains including the Brits and the Yanks. Do you really want that?" Luis yelled at the men with an angry look on his face none of them had seen before. He was generally so mild mannered and soft spoken.
The Quillya warriors all looked at each other and then the O'Connell's. The leader turned his back on the family and charged at Luis with a loud war cry that reverberated in the tunnel. Luis backed out of the opening and lead the attackers away from the entrance so the three of them could make their escape.
Rick looked back to his son seeing their opportunity to make a run for it and the boy smiled smugly at him as he pulled a stick of dynamite out of his pocket.
"Where did you get that? I've told you it's not a toy! It's dangerous Alex." Rick challenged quickly of his son who was looking down into the chamber and watching the mummy thrashing desperately around the bottom of the ladder. Not that he wasn't grateful his son had the explosive but he didn't think his little boy was quite old enough to be playing around with it yet.
"I...er...borrowed it." Alex grinned, using his own parents line against them as he pulled a shiny metal lighter out of another pocket and lit the fuse once he attached it.
"And where did you get that?" Rick watched as Alex quickly threw it down into the chamber.
"I won it in a card game in the village when we were there the other day. Some American traveller..." Alex started to move towards the entrance and took the hands of both of his parents to make them start moving. "C'mon Dad. Let's go Mum!"
"I left you alone for less than an hour! How did you..?" Rick now started to run as he continued to question his son.
"I have a really good system..." Alex ran as fast as he could. "The one you taught me..."
"Boys... we can talk about this later." Evy was also running as fast as she could towards the natural light of the tunnel opening pulled along by her husband.
Luis and the rest of his crew had baited the warriors outside and once the O'Connell's had cleared the tunnel they stopped for a second in shock as they were witnesses to a battle going on in the clearing between two factions of well-armed warriors.
The group of people they had come to know so well had all discarded their cotton clothing for leather armour. The sounds of the golden swords of the masked invaders clanking against obsidian daggers rang out clear in the air.
Suddenly they heard the explosion and turned back to see the tunnel collapsing in on itself. A secondary rumbling from deep within the earth a few seconds later nearly shook them off their feet. The battling ceased as everyone looked around feeling something strange in the earth. Rick grabbed his wife and son and backed them away quickly as they watched the ground collapse in on itself further and then a fountain of water and rocks raged high into the air.
It gushed intensely for a few minutes and then a torrid river of water flowed out of where the tunnel had been. It raged towards the cliff face where it poured over the edge and flowed with purpose into the barren valley below. The lost water had been returned. A bank was already forming on either side of the new river as it cut through the dry, sandy ground easily.
Suddenly all the Quillya warriors sprinted for the hills from which they had descended into the abandoned village and disappeared into the raggedy trees as quickly as they had appeared. Luis and his tribe let the invaders go.
Luis came towards the three of them and Rick grabbed him angrily by the shoulder pad,
"Who the hell were they? And where's my daughter?"
Luis backed away from Rick's grasp. "Maria has her. You know she would protect your daughter with her life. She went with the elders to safety when our scouts signalled they had seen the Quillya warriors approaching. She is safe. And so are you for now. You're welcome."
Rick's expression eased some of his anger as he realized the man spoke the truth. Luis had just saved the three of them.
"Thank you." Rick mumbled, but his gratitude was sincere.
Luis was then distracted and mesmerized by the running water as it flowed over the cliff's edge and into the valley below. They could already see the water pooling where the lake had been a thousand years ago, it was filling up again. He had tears in his eyes.
"How did you...?" He could barely talk for the emotion in his voice, he gestured to the flowing water.
"He did it." Rick pointed and smiled at his son. They would still talk later, but Alex had been the one responsible for the explosion that released the water.
"Then you are our hero young man. You have restored the water to our valley and in time this will be a lush paradise again. We will thrive! We shall be in your debt for all time." Luis bowed his head to the surprised young boy. All the diggers behind their chief respectfully dropped to one knee in gratitude.
Alex looked around in bewilderment at the sudden attention. His parents held hands and watched him relish in the adoration, they were as proud of him as the tribe was. And not just now. They were always proud of him.
"Daddy!" A familiar little voice called out from behind them.
Rick turned to see an old woman among the group of elders returning carrying their daughter on her back with a sling. He and Evy rushed over to take her appreciatively from the old woman who just beamed toothlessly at the little girl. They took turns hugging her and then went with Maria to watch the river cascade over the cliff in a beautiful new waterfall. The woman had tears falling down her cheeks as she watched the new river rushing over the cliff.
Izzy was struggling in Rick's arms to get down. It was something she rarely did, she would stay in her dad's arms all day if allowed, so Rick was intrigued. He put her down and the little girl took his hand and pulled him away, back towards the cave that was now the mouth of a river. When they approached the opening Izzy turned to her father and pointed. He couldn't understand what she was saying as she babbled too excitedly, looking back and forth between him and the newly formed river mouth.
Evy came over too, wondering what was going on.
"She wants something in there. She's still obsessed." Rick looked questioningly to his wife.
Evy put her hand on Rick's arm, and placed one finger over her lips for him to be silent. After a few moments they both heard it.
"There's crying in the tunnel!" Evy said, "Maria! Come over here!"
Before he could stop his wife she had waded into the rushing water and fought the current carefully to go into the cave. A bit of a bank had formed already so she crawled up and disappeared into the dark opening.
"Evy! Wait!" Rick shouted. He couldn't follow her with Izzy in his arms and he couldn't put the girl down because she would most likely just try to follow her mother. He was stuck helplessly.
Maria came running over and saw Evy just as she disappeared into the tunnel. She nodded at Rick and without hesitation followed his wife into the river mouth.
The large group of people who had been watching the new waterfall start to fill their valley again all came over to see what was happening. Rick put a hand around Alex's shoulder as the boy came to stand near him. It seemed Alex was already getting a bit overwhelmed of the hero worship as he seemed to want his father's protection from the horde who followed him already.
They all heard a terrible screech and a great deal of splashing and then silence. Rick handed Izzy quickly to her brother and then jumped into the river at the same time Luis did. They rushed forward to help Evy and Maria who came into view and were struggling to manoeuvre a large bundle in the flowing water. Rick and Luis took the burden from their wives and hauled it to shore.
The bundle suddenly started to squirm and Rick dropped his end in shock. It was the mummy, who had obviously survived the explosion, covered in mud and clay and still wrapped in a tightly-woven linen. It writhed and fought ferociously.
Rick stood back and watched in shock as Luis suddenly started to cut away at the cloth and he wondered what the hell the man was doing. He was ready to run back to their tent and grab his shotgun to blast the bloody thing away. Evy came to his side, still dripping wet, and he put his arm around her waist protectively as they watched Luis and Maria work together to start to expose whomever was in the shroud.
Maria cut the medallion off the mummy's neck and showed it quickly to her husband. She stuffed it in her belt pouch and went back to cutting away the wrappings. They didn't seem at all frightened, in fact they performed their task with an amount of deification. Evy could see Maria's hands trembling as she cut away the linens.
The crowd gasped as finally the woman in the wrappings was freed from her bindings. She wasn't all shrivelled and dried up like a mummy should have been in Rick's opinion, in fact she was a woman of outstanding beauty and Evy heard him gasp. She was not surprised or jealous at her husband, even she could admit how beautiful the woman was. Alex stood staring with an open mouth.
The woman who had been the Mummy stood up gracefully and the entire field full of people all fell to their knees and bowed their heads. After a thousand years of being trapped underground she was finally released from her captivity.
Evy and Rick both knew right away that this woman was someone of very significant importance but they were surprised to see her casually stretch her stiff limbs. She seemed very human to them.
The exalted woman carefully studied Rick, Evy and Alex with Izzy still in his arms. They were not bowing to her and she was intrigued why. Her clan was not defending her against them so they must be friends to her people. Her gaze lingered longer on Rick than anyone else and she nodded her approval at his handsome face and trim physique. His wet clothing still clung to his well-muscled body leaving little to her imagination. The beautiful woman glanced over to Evy and knew immediately that this man was not available for her curiosity. His soul was already claimed by the woman standing next to him. It would be pointless for her to try to even try to seduce him as she sensed quite definitely the bond between the two was unbreakable.
Suddenly Izzy struggled to get out of Alex's arms and he had to set her down. Once he did the little girl sprinted to the woman so fast that neither of her parents could catch her before she ran to the unknown revered woman and reached her arms up to be lifted.
Rick was within arms reach as he watched in horror as the mummy-woman picked up his daughter but then surprisingly held her quite lovingly. Izzy wrapped her little hands around the woman's neck, her legs around the woman's waist and put her head on her shoulder.
"One thousand years in the dark and my first bare touch is the loving embrace of a child. That seems to make it all worth while." The woman spoke finally, her voice was smooth and majestic. She spoke in the ancient language of her people but Evy understood her perfectly and Rick picked up on the gist of it. The woman looked at the girl in her arms and only Rick heard her say, "Thank you for listening to us... Thank you removing Quillya's idol."
He reached out to take his daughter, still a little uncomfortable with the mummy-woman holding her, though there seemed to be no imminent threat from her. The woman smiled when she saw him standing there and the little girl reached back out to him as well.
"You are her father. She has your eyes, such a strange shade of blue I have never seen. I can tell you are from far away and I thank you for your help in releasing me from that prison. I can feel the strong mutual love between you and this child." She smiled at the tall, tanned man and then at his daughter. "I feel the love you have for her mother as well. And that is your son? You are so blessed. There is a rare, strong love between you all."
She handed the little girl back to her father and smiled affectionately at them all.
This was definitely not like any mummy they had encountered yet.
"That is very true. May I respectfully ask your name?" Rick smiled quickly at his wife, who approved his use of the ancient language with a smile back, and he shifted Izzy in his arms so the little girl could look at the woman very recently freed from her confinement.
"I am the Priestess Kasani, sworn to the Lake Goddess Copacati. These are my faithful servants the Cuka clan." She stretched her arm towards the large group of people with pride.
Rick and Evy turned back to the crowd and were in shock as the entire clan was staring adoringly at them. It made Evy so uncomfortable she took her daughter from Rick's arms and held her close.
Maria finally approached the Priestess in a crouch and then looked up at her in awe. The Priestess Kasani smiled at the woman and beckoned to her to stand.
"You are my descendent?" She asked, "You are of my true blood... I can sense it."
"The maternal line has remained unbroken. I am your direct descendent through my mother's lineage." Maria stood now proudly as the Priestess looked her over.
"Excellent. You will suffice. I must go speak to my Goddess. It has been too long...I shall return at sundown to the village and we shall rejoice at my release."
And with that, the Priestess ran nimbly to the new riverbank and jumped into the water and swam downriver until she disappeared over the falls. A large chunk of the group ran to the cliff edge to see how far they could watch her go. None seemed concerned that she was in any danger from the fall.
Maria just stood and watched as the Priestess disappeared and then turned back to Rick and Evy. She smiled with tears in her eyes.
"Your daughter discovered our Priestess Kasani. Your son returned our water. We owe you everything. We can never repay you for what you've done for us all. You will have our respect until the end of our days in this valley." Maria wiped her eyes.
"Could you tell us the truth about what just happened here... please?" Evelyn spoke to the woman she had known for over a year now. The woman she trusted completely, or so she thought.
Maria looked to Luis for permission and he nodded as he approached them.
"Let's go back to the tent. I'll tell you everything." Maria started back across the centre square towards their living quarters. She stopped suddenly and turned around, "I should have told you everything from the beginning. I apologize, I never realized then I would trust you so completely. I hope you can forgive me."
Evy was really hoping she could too.
The O'Connell's followed Maria and Luis and could not help but notice the looks of awe and adoration on the faces of the Cuka warriors and villagers who watched them go. It made them all a little nervous and uncomfortable, it had probably just been a coincidental series of events that had led to the discovery of the water and the Priestess.
to be continued...
