"Some people risk to employ me, some people live to destroy me,"-Megadeth

Tima, The Republic of Feru, Afternoon of October 16th-

"Okay," so now what professor?" Baloo asked as he brought the Sea Duck to a halt in a parking space at Tima's airport.

"Well, we will need to get started," replied O'Bowens who then pulled a map of the city out of a satchel, "We need to go to the Monastery of San Dominic."

Baloo and Louie looked at each other skeptically.

Thom saw the look on their faces and said humorously, "Afraid you boys are going to catch on fire if you step on holy ground?"

"Lady I ain't been in a church for years," Baloo answered.

"That was for your sister's wedding right," Louie said.

"Yup," said Baloo who then added, "Why are we going there?"

"Because that is where the second half…," O'Bowens paused, smiled, and pulled something out of his left breast pocket and held it aloft for all to see, "Of this map is!"

Baloo and Louie began to salivate. The professor had a treasure map and that meant that they would be led to enough emeralds so Baloo could buy the Sea Duck and open up an air freight service while Louie could open up a nightclub.

"The second half of the map is hidden in the monastery," said Thom.

Baloo and Louie recalled the story that Professor O'Bowens had told them about the Temple of the Emerald King.

"So let me get this straight professor," said Louie, "The sole survivor became a monk, drew a map, ripped it in half, and the piece that's missing is in the monastery?"

"Correct Louie, he hid it somewhere on the grounds of the Dominican mission which, over the years, became a monastery and church."

Louie smiled slyly at Baloo and said, "Maybe a little religion in our lives could be a good thing Baloo."

Belette and Beauchamp-

The two mercenaries stood at the opening to the hangar and looked across at the two planes that had recently landed. The first was a two engine airliner that disgorged a flock of tourists and the other was a cargo plane.

"That's the one," said Belette as he pointed at the cargo plane, "The detector is picking up the signal from it."

Beauchamp gazed out at the plane through a pair of binoculars. He watched as the plane rolled into a parking space, shut off its engines, and lowered its cargo ramp. Two people, a male monkey and a female cat stepped out and were then joined by the pilot and co-pilot.

"It looks like they are going to leave it," Beauchamp said, "they are placing the wheel blocks down."

"The signal is still coming from the plane," said Belette, "The device is still inside it."

"That's no surprise. Verrat said he put it a crate."

"I heard my name being called," said Verrat who walked up to the two, "Have you found them?"

"Yes sir," said Beauchamp, "They landed and left their plane but they didn't take the tracking device with them."

"Understandable," Verrat said. Before the expeditions had set out, Verrat had tracked down Professor O'Bowens at the university and had managed to sneak the small device into a crate that O'Bowens' assistant had set aside. He had grabbed a case that held surveying equipment and placed the device inside, "They won't need the surveying equipment yet."

"You hid it with their surveying stuff?"

"It was the closest thing I could get my hands on," said Verrat who added, "I'll inform the professor."

Professor Le'Opard's group-

"Merveilleux," said Le'Opard to Chacal who had just relayed the news of his rival's arrival, "Tell Verrat to stay put and keep an eye on their plane."

"Oui," said Chacal who then sent word to his second-in-command.

"We shall head to the monastery and wait for O'Bowens. We will let him find the other half of the map for us and then we will take it from him."

"And if he resists?" asked Chacal.

Le'Opard looked at the jackal and felt somewhat unnerved. It wasn't just the scar on the side of his head from the bullet that had hit him during the Great War that made him feel uneasy. Rather it was the expression in his eyes that did, or lack thereof. Chacal had what could only be described as 'dead eyes.' They were cold and expressionless eyes that didn't tell a person anything. They seemed dark and devoid of feeling. It was the same type of feeling one got when they looked at a shark's eyes. With eyes like this, it was almost impossible to tell what was on the jackal's mind. Not for the first time did Le'Opard wonder if having such a man like Chacal around was a bad idea.

Le'Opard pushed the thought aside, deciding that the mercenary was well regarded as a professional who followed orders and decided to stress to him that he himself was in charge.

"I do not want O'Bowens or his people harmed Chacal."

"And if they fight back?"

"More than likely they have not brought any weapons with them. O'Bowens is not violent by nature," Le'Opard did not wish his former friend and partner to come to any harm even though they had had a falling out. "If his two pilots cause any trouble your men may subdue them but do not kill them unless they are a threat."

"Even an unarmed man can be a threat professeur."

"Yes, but let's not attract any attention to ourselves…understood?"

"Completely."

"Now gather your men, we will go to the monastery and wait."

Chacal did as instructed.

As their group drove to the monastery in the vehicles that his men had appropriated, the mercenary leader sent instructions to Verrat to ensure that the planes were fully fueled and ready to go at a moment's notice. He then caught a glimpse of himself in the passenger-side mirror. The scar in the right side of his head shone clearly in the glass.

Chacal had taken a bullet to head in 1916 at the Battle of Verdyn. He had led his company in a charge into no-man's land when a Reichlander sniper had fired on him. By rights he should have died, but quick action by a nearby medic had kept him alive long enough for some of his men to get him to a field hospital.

He was operated on and the bullet was removed however, the projectile had caused enough damage to his parietal lobe that he lost almost all of his ability to feel physical sensations. As such he was virtually immune to pain.

An unforeseen side effect to this was that he now was able to push harder and faster than a normal person. The damage to his parietal lobe somehow caused the area of his brain that controlled reflexes to improve. He now had abnormally quick reflexes and was in turn able to generate more speed and power into his punches and kicks.

His inability to feel pain coupled with his quick reflexes and increased force allowed Chacal to be an even deadlier soldier. He returned to service in early 1918 and fought in several major battles. He was wounded once more in an assault on an enemy trench but kept fighting. The bayonet to his left shoulder did nothing to hinder his ability to personally kill 18 Reichlander troops. By the end of the day his company had routed a force three times its size and gained over 600 meters of territory including two lines of trenches. For his actions he was later awarded his nation's highest honor: the Legion de Honneur.

The period of peace in the post-war world forced Chacal to find new outlets for his skills. The drawdown of the military led to thousands upon thousands of soldiers without a calling. He left the army, gathered up a number of other disillusioned former service members from various countries, and formed a mercenary group. He didn't care who hired him or why. His only concern was that he and his men had work for their skills.

Over the years his organization's reputation grew and soon his contact information was on file with various governmental agencies (for work that they didn't want to get involved in) as well as with some of the world's larger corporations. His skills had been used by such corporations as Khan Industries of Usland and Riebolt Enterprises GMBH of Reichland (the fact that he fought against Reichland didn't deter him from working for a Reichlander company as he viewed the work as being strictly professional). Currently he was working for the Mineversal Corporation. The Usland-based company was the disputed number one biggest corporation in the world, a distinction it shared with Khan Industries.

The jackal did intend to comply with the professor's instructions to not harm O'Bowens and his people but out of habit, he checked his two sidearms. His primary pistol was an Usland made Bolt M1911 .45 caliber while his secondary was an MAS model 1873 revolver. The first was a gift from an Uslander officer whose unit he had fought alongside of in the last months of the war while the other was his own service revolver. Complimenting the two firearms was what he considered to be his signature weapon: a trench spike. The spike had the handle of a normal knife but the sharp, tapering spike of a bayonet. Completing the spike was a bracket that connected the hilt of the knife with the top of the handle forming into what was commonly known as a 'knuckle duster.' It gave the weapon the appearance of a blade with brass knuckles attached.

The rest of his men were armed with a variety of pistols, rifles, and even a couple of Reichlander-made submachine guns that had been specifically designed to clear the trenches of the Great War. These were all just in case O'Bowens and his friends became uncooperative.

The Monastery of San Dominic-

"Here we are everybody!" said Professor O'Bowens to his fellow adventures, "The monastery was built in 1531 by members of the Dominican order of friars and the Hispanian soldiers who they accompanied. It started out as a small mission but over time it became the monastery you see before you."

Baloo looked at the large, off-white building that stood at the center of a large square. The building had two tall bell towers that had crosses atop them. In between the two towers was a large cross with an image of the body of Christ on it. The façade of the building had carved images of angels and saints that stared out at passersby. Attached to the church portion of the monastery was a high wall that wrapped around the block in which was the monastery itself.

"That's a big church," said Louie.

"It isn't the biggest one in the city," said Thom, "There are a couple that are larger plus the cathedral.

"So who are we gonna talk to inside" asked Baloo, "Don't these monk guys take vows of silence?"

"Actually," said the professor, "That notion isn't entirely true. Some religious orders do have strict rules about speaking. They limit speaking to communal prayers and religious discussions or if they are visited by outsiders. The vow of silence really means that they refrain from talking when it interferes with their spiritual meditations."

"Spiritual meditations?" asked Baloo.

"That means that they spend time in quite thought and prayer," added Thom, "They contemplate."

"Contemplate what?" asked Louie.

"God."

"I've been doing some contemplating myself," joked Baloo, "I've been contemplating getting some food!"

"These monks only eat one full meal a day," said the professor, "Of course their definition of a meal may be different from yours."

Baloo's stomach rumbled. "Well let's get in and find this map so we can celebrate over some food."

Outside the Monastery-

Professeur Le'Opard watched as his former partner entered the monastery's church. He had his men covertly surrounding the block, waiting for the group to emerge with the map. From there they would allow them to go unmolested back to the airport.

His main plan was to follow them all the way to the temple. Of course things often didn't go to plan and as such he may have to either go in and find the map himself, if O'Bowens couldn't locate it, or he would have to physically take it from him if he and his people were spotted.

"Professeur," said Chacal, "My men are in position and waiting for your order."

"Bien, now all we shall have to do is wait."