I awoke to Nate gently patting my shoulder, hearing him say it's time to eat. I sat up, dazed, trying to reorient myself to my surroundings, as I was used to sleeping on boxes in an alleyway. I hadn't felt this good in a long time. Nate tossed a basket of bagels on my lap.
"You're going to need fuel for today," he announced. Once we got ready, the three of us drove out of the city in a cheap rental pickup truck. I sat in the cramped back seat while the two bickered over nothing of any particular importance. I could see trees lining the horizon. I knew of this jungle, but I never had a reason to go here. As tree roots started to make the dirt road more bumpy, I couldn't help but wonder what I've gotten myself into.
What do these two do for a living that has them travelling to places like this? I pondered.
Despite not knowing why we're going to the jungle, I was excited. The truck came to a stop after
going down a long tunnel of trees. Towers of leaves were now blocking the sun, causing it to feel damp and cold. As I opened the door to get out, Nate stopped me, indicating he had gotten me some boots early this morning, which are in the box on the other seat. On top of the box was a backpack containing various survival supplies, including a flashlight that recharges when you shake it, some flares, and a small knife. After tightly lacing my new boots, I stepped out of the truck. When my feet touched the ground, I started to experience a rush of adrenaline the likes of which I've never encountered before.
The boys went to the back of the truck, which contained a tarp covering what sounded like several small bits of metal, although I wasn't exactly sure what this large brown lump contained, as I hadn't seen them load it. Nate tore off the tarp, revealing several pistols, rifles, and grenades.
"Whoa, what will we be needing these for?!" I nearly shrieked.
"Ya know, just in case we get in trouble," Sully informed.
"Exactly what kind of trouble are we talking about? It's not like we need all this to defend ourselves from tigers," I teased.
As Nate slung a rifle around his shoulder, he turned to me with a smirk.
"In this business, you make plenty of enemies. Our client just happens to have quite a few."
"Can I meet this client after we're done?" I questioned.
"Maybe, if you follow through with the job," Sully promised.
"So… where's mine?" I asked, gesturing to Nate's pistol mounted in its holster.
"Not here," Nate snapped. "I doubt you've had any experience with these, and this isn't exactly the best place to teach you. If we get into a fight, just hide somewhere until it's done. I'll teach you some other time."
"... fine," I pouted. I was hoping to get my own gun, but I could understand Nate's reasoning. They're pretty dangerous, and I'd be devastated if either of them got hurt because of me.
We made our way down the bumpy path, with Nate and Sully cutting away branches and vines with their machetes which had been stored under the guns. Nate and I chatted while hiking. We found we had a lot of common interests, like foreign cultures and pirate lore. He and I went on for what seemed like hours, with Sully commenting every now and then.
We came upon an opening containing a small outpost, peppered with several small shacks, each with an armed guard standing by the doorway. There was a small stream in front of the cave, which had a small dock built outside of it. Attached to the platform was a pole to which a small canoe was anchored. The stream forked at the left side of the landing. The right side of it journeyed deeper into the forest, while the other side went toward a nearby waterfall. Each landing had a high, arched bridge going over the stream, connecting the camp together. Directly across from our path was a large rock wall with a wide cave entrance, lined with ornate carvings from an ancient civilization; Olmec, perhaps?
What are we doing here? I contemplated.
"See? Trouble," whispered Sully.
"Okay, Sully, you go behind the buildings on the left, and I'll take the ones on the right. We need to take these guys out as quickly and quietly as possible. Lillian… you hide behind the bushes over there," Nate instructed, pointing to a shrub in front of a tree.
I reluctantly crept behind the bush Nate pointed to and watched them work. Sully snuck up behind the guard who was posted at that shack. He wrapped his arms around the guard's neck and squeezed until the man stopped moving. He started rummaging through papers and maps, looking for anything useful.
While Sully searched his assigned shack, Nate snuck through a window of the other shack and slunk up behind the other guard, who was standing in front of the outer wall. Nate grabbed the guard's arm and swung him into the inside wall, knocking him out immediately. The slam garnered the attention of the guard patrolling outside the cave, who ran over to check on the commotion. Nate hid under a table to avoid getting caught, and Sully was still distracted by searching the other shack. I knew I had to do something to protect Nate, so I grabbed a rock and sprinted for the shack where Nate was hiding. I ran up behind the guard and slammed the rock against the back of his head, knocking him to the floor, unconscious. Nate looked up at me from under the table, a look of pleasant surprise on his face.
"Hey, he was mine!" Nate complained
"Yeah, sure he was. Why were you hiding under the table, then?" I joked.
"He looked pretty big, I wanted to be able to get the jump on him!"
"Sure, Nate. You wanna hold the rock to look big and strong for gramps over there?"
"Psssh," Nate scoffed, flipping his drooping hair out of his face. I was pretty sure his hair was enchanted, because it always seems to return to that styled spike.
The two of us walked over to the shack Sully was searching through.
"Well, this is definitely the place. There's pictures of the thing all over the place in here," stated Sully.
"What are we even looking for out here?" I questioned, swatting mosquitoes away from my face.
"The Head of Kutu. It's a small, golden head-shaped artifact; it's said it can bring the dead back to life. Our client wants us to find it so it doesn't fall into the hands of his enemies, who've been amassing forces against him for quite awhile," Nate replied.
"You don't think it actually works… do you?"
Sully interjected, "Kid, you wouldn't even begin to believe the things we've seen, so I'd say there's a pretty high chance this thing does what we've read."
It sounded pretty outlandish to me, but I decided to go along with it.
As we headed into the cave, which contained nothing but a dark void, Nate and Sully pulled out their flashlights. I took mine from my bag and gave it a little shake, causing the bulb to shine to life. I was surprised at how bright the thing was, despite it not having traditional batteries. As the lights shone down the cave, all I could see what a long, pitch black hallway.
After walking for what seemed like an eternity, we came upon a massive circular stone door containing the same carvings I saw outside. On each side of the door were small clay platforms, each featuring a little imprint in the shape of a foot.
Nate pulled out a beat up leather journal, which I could see was filled with detailed pencil sketches. He flipped through the book until he landed on a page with a picture similar to what lay before us.
"Hey Sully, go stand on that other platform. I'll get this one," instructed Nate as he ran to the block on the left.
The boys both hopped on the platforms, but nothing happened.
"Okay, now stand on one leg with your foot on top of the marking, like this," Nate said as he balanced on one foot. Sully did the same, although he didn't seem to have the same coordination as Nate, since he was wobbling quite a bit.
Suddenly, the platforms they were standing on started to sink into the floor. When they became parallel to the ground, the giant door started to roll away, pebbles and dust raining down as it did.
Nate pulled a tattered map from his bag and started to lead us forward. I peeked around his arm, glancing at the parchment covered in landmarks and scribbles.
"Do you know how to navigate?" Nate asked after he caught me staring.
"I can read stars, since I did most of my traveling at night." I admitted.
"Wow, didn't know a kid like you would be interested in that kind of thing," said Sully, slightly grinning.
"I love anything having to do with space, so I love the idea of using it to travel," I smiled.
"Sully can read celestial maps as well. Maybe you two can learn a few things from each other," Nate suggested with a chuckle.
I hope I can use this common interest to finally get Sully to open up, I thought.
I turned to him with a grin but he grunted in response. I turned my attention back to Nate's journal, wanting to look through his notes.
"Can I see that?" I asked pointing to the book, which Nate had stored in his satchel.
"Sure, if you don't mind looking at my scribbles," Nate said as he handed me the book.
When I opened the journal to the first page, I was greeted by a small photo of a young woman. She had dirty blonde hair that was pulled back into a ponytail and was donning a blue button down shirt. Her face had a certain charming glow that could make just about anyone smile.
"Who's this?" I asked Nate, smirking.
"That's a really good friend of mine. Her name's Elena. We met a few months back, although I unfortunately haven't seen her in a few weeks." As Nate explained this you could see his cheeks grow faintly red.
"She seems more than just a friend," I teased.
"Trust me, if you saw those two together, they're more than just friends," Sully added.
"I hope I'll get to meet her!" I stated.
"We'll be meeting up with her tomorrow, so make sure you get up early enough to see her," informed Nate.
We continued down the long tunnel while I scanned Nate's doodles. He had drawings of statues and symbols and little notes on the sketch. Looking through these pages created a spark of interest in this type of job. Solving puzzles and discovering artifacts hidden away for thousands of years would be a life I'd love to live.
We came upon another wall. This one featured a very small hole which led to a tunnel. I could barely see what was on the other side, but I had a feeling I'd be the one going in there. I started to grow anxious as I walked closer to the hole. I've managed these tiny spaces before but never had tons of crumbling rock above that could crush me instantly.
"So… any volunteers?" I joked nervously.
"Sorry Lillian, you're the only one who can fit through. From what I read in my research on this place, there should be a little switch somewhere in there, and you'll have to find it. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find exactly where it is, but I'm sure you'll be fine," Nate said.
"Great… well, I guess there's no use stalling," I said as I reluctantly crawled into the tiny space in the wall.
The tunnel was extremely claustrophobic, with barely enough space for me to move. The air was dense with dust, making it difficult to breathe. Flashlight in hand, I started forward. After crawling for what seemed like ages, I came to a fork in the path. I shone a light down both paths; they seemed identical. I tossed a rock down the left one, causing the ground to fall, revealing a pit of spikes below. There were several small bones in the pit; I was glad I wouldn't be joining them. Just to be safe, I tossed another rock down the right tunnel; nothing happened, so I deemed this one safe.
This maze of tunnels seemed to go on for miles, but it had actually only been a few feet. I had to repeat the rock test several times until I finally got to a switch at the end of the tunnels. Having no choice, I pulled it, causing a hidden tunnel to open up to my left, which featured a faint light at the end. Just as the new path was revealed, the tunnel behind me began crumbling. I crawled as fast as I could to escape being crushed beneath the mountain. Suddenly, my backpack got stuck on a sharp rock jutting out from the wall. I tried to take it off, but the tunnel was too small for me to get the strap around my arm. I pulled as hard as I could, causing the straps to break.
I began moving again, leaving behind my belongings. My hands and knees were burning from having to crawl so fast, but it's worth not being crushed to death. Just before the tumbling boulders reached me, I escaped the tunnel into a small room, rocks and dust following me as the path completely collapsed behind me.
Luckily, I was able to hold onto my flashlight while crawling. I shook it, bringing it back to life, revealing a small lever on the wall. I pulled it, causing the wall behind me to drop into the floor. Having no other way to go, I ventured down this new corridor, which led to another fork. Both led to a faint light, but I could hear loud footsteps running down the hall to my right.
I sprinted towards the footsteps, not slowing until I had reached their source. It was Nate.
Grabbing me in his arms, he started shouting, "Lily! Oh my God, are you okay?! I saw the tunnel collapse!"
I was taken aback by his sudden embrace. This genuine hug, something I hadn't ever encountered, made me feel… safe.
Is this what having a dad feels like? I pondered.
Warm tears poured down my cheeks, but I wasn't sad. It might've been from the shock of almost being crushed to death, but I think it's from happiness, a very foreign emotion.
"I'll be goddamned, kid! What the hell happened?!" shouted Sully, finally catching up with Nate. Although he tried hiding it, he looked worried.
Catching my breath and wiping the tears from my face, I recanted my terrifying experience. Nate had a look of deep concern on his face as I spoke, but it turned to one of relief as I finished.
"I'm glad you're alright, although it looks like you got pretty scraped up from that, huh? I'll get'cha cleaned up once we're done here," Nate said.
We continued down the hall I had came from, toward the distant light at the end.