Me: Hello again, everyone! :D
Tintin: ... *cries* I want to go home... ;_;
Me: Awww... whassa matter, Tintin? :O
Tintin: Well... you're just so mean to me... T_T
Me: *le gasp* I am not! :O
Tintin: ... well... you like to beat me up... ;A;
Me: *cough who wouldn't cough* Oh, Tintin, I promise you'll get better! :)
Tintin: ... *sniff* Okay... ;w;
Me: Here, I'll even do the disclaimer! I, AkuRoku18, do not own Tintin, nor am I making a profit. There, you have to feel a little better now, right? ^w^
Tintin: I... I guess... :'(
Me: *thinking* Oh my god, he's so cute when he's crying... *nosebleeds*
Tintin: Um... AkuRoku18? Are you all right? :/
Me: *dies* *_*
Tintin: Oh my god! Call an ambulance! D:
My soul: Enjoy the fanfiction! Even though I'm dead... -w-
Tintin: No, soul! Get back here! O_o
Chapter 3
Snowy had been running quite some time searching for Tintin. He felt as if he'd ran at least 8 marathons. The little white dog eventually sat down heavily, exhausted. That's torn it! I can't seem to find Tintin anywhere! Where the devil could he have gone? As if on cue, a black car rolled up next to the curb. Three men got out and one had something, or someone, slung over his shoulder. Snowy eyed the object the man was carrying curiously. Why, that looks like… Tintin! What have those brutes done to him? Snowy wanted to attack the gangsters, but he didn't know what they would do to Tintin if he did.
The men walked into an alleyway, with Snowy following close behind, and the one carrying Tintin dropped the reporter on the ground. He said, "Let that be a lesson, you anói̱tos nearós!" The gangsters turned and left, leaving an unconscious Tintin behind.
Lick, lick, lick. Something's licking my face… Lick, lick, lick. It is quite bothersome… Tintin slowly opened his eyes to see that Snowy was repeatedly licking him. He pushed himself up off the ground and said groggily, "Thanks, Snowy." The little white dog yipped happily. He was glad his master was finally awake. Tintin stood up, but had to use the wall as support. "Ugh… awful stuff, chloroform… makes you feel terrible…" Snowy barked loudly somewhere behind the reporter. Tintin turned and asked, "What's up, Snowy?" But, the white dog was nowhere in sight. Just when Tintin thought Snowy had gone off to chase an alley cat, he reappeared again, this time with a banana peel on his head. Tintin had to stifle a laugh and asked again, "What is it, Snowy? Fancy bananas, do you?" Snowy shook the peel off and tugged at Tintin's pants, urging him to follow. Hmm… I guess he really wants something… "Alright, Snowy, I'll follow you, but if it turns out to be another one of those dirty bones, you'll regret it!"
Snowy huffed agitatedly and led Tintin to a stack of garbage cans. To Snowy, this must have smelled interesting, but the reporter pulled out a handkerchief and put it over his nose. "Great snakes, Snowy, did you really bring me over just to smell some trash?" He sounds annoyed, Snowy thought. But, nonetheless, Snowy insisted for Tintin to continue by head-butting his ankles. "Ugh, since when did I become demoted from reporter to trash inspector…?" Snowy leaped onto one of the garbage cans started to bark quickly and noisily. Tintin ran to the dog and clapped his hand over Snowy's mouth. He hissed, "Snowy! Quiet! Do you want to wake up all of Greece?" But the fox terrier wouldn't stop whimpering and scratching the can. "Is something in the bin… or behind them?"
Tintin removed his hand from Snowy's mouth (fortunately, he stopped barking) and started to move the garbage cans. Several he had to lift, but many were easy enough to shove aside. Eventually, he had moved all the bins and found something people don't normally find laying in garbage: a person. Tintin went to the man, checking his pulse. "He's alive, Snowy! But, how could he have survived, falling out of… a…" He looked up at the surrounding buildings. None had windows on them. "…window? He couldn't have jumped off the building… unless… of course! Someone put this fellow here and hid him behind the bins! Then, who is this man?" He paced back and forth. "A group of treacherous Greeks… an Italian invasion… and a mysterious chap hidden behind garbage bins… things seem to be coming together, but I can't make much out of it…"
"I may be able to help you with that," a voice said. Tintin whirled back on his heels, fists raised, but he was glad to see that it was the man hidden behind the garbage cans. The man was a little taller than Tintin himself with ruffled black hair and deep blue-green eyes. He wore some kind of military uniform with several medals pinned to the fabric. The holster for his gun was empty.
Tintin breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Thank the heavens! You gave me a right scare."
"My apologies." The man rubbed his head and continued, "Do you know how long I was out?"
"I'm sorry, I found you just now," Tintin said, shaking his head.
"Pity. Ah, no worries. All that matters is that you found me, and now I can get back to work…" The man began to walk briskly past Tintin, but the young reporter grabbed his arm. The man turned to Tintin and snapped, "What do you need, young man? If it is nothing of importance, then I bid you good day."
"Wait! You must tell me what happened to you! After all, it's not every day you find someone unconscious in the trash."
The man sighed and said, "Fine. I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Nileas."
"Yes, I remember you; you were one of the guards standing outside of Ioannis's door when I came to interview him!" Tintin exclaimed suddenly. Then he realized he cut Nileas off. "Oh! Sorry. Continue."
"Tis true. I was outside of Führer Metaxas's office when you came. But, my military days are over. I can no longer serve a man as corrupt as Metaxas," Nileas said, with anger rising in his voice.
"What do you mean? I knew Metaxas was a dictator with little regard for his people, but corrupt?"
"Aye. Führer Metaxas uses the military to scare his people into thinking he is a great ruler, but that's beside the point. You saw how he denied the accusations that the Italians are about to encroach our borders. He just wants the people to believe they're rumors."
"Hmmm…"
Nileas sighed again. "Well, that doesn't really answer your question, does it? You really wanted to know why I was sleeping ever so peacefully in the trash."
"Yes," Tintin answered.
"Well…" Nileas looked around, as if someone were watching the two talk. Then he whispered, "I'm part of a secret society that is dedicated for a parliamentary republic in Greece. We believe a totalitarian government is not a fit political system in Greece."
"Oh?" This was the first time Tintin had heard someone consider a parliament in this country.
Nileas continued, still whispering, "Yes. We are called 'Naó tou Poseidó̱na.'"
"'Naó tou Poseidó̱na'? The restaurant?" Tintin asked, confused.
"That is our base of operations. We use the restaurant guise to attract people to our cause."
Tintin asked, "But, isn't what you're doing similar to what Metaxas does? I mean, your using—" But Nileas cut Tintin off abruptly by grabbing his shirt collar and practically tackling him to the ground.
"Do not ever, ever compare us to that man. We are doing this for the betterment of Greece, not ourselves," an infuriated Nileas hissed.
"R-right! H-how foolish of me…" Tintin stammered. The sudden attack startled the young reporter. Nileas stood up and pulled Tintin off the ground.
"You should leave Greece. You're interference is not wanted," Nileas growled.
The Greek whirled on his heels and prepared to leave, when Tintin called, "Wait! Perhaps I can help you?"
"No," Nileas replied quickly. "I've told you; Greece does not need your help." Then he really left, walking out of the alley into the streets of Athens.
"I say, Snowy. These people really don't want us here, do they?" Tintin asked the little white dog. Snowy yipped. "Well, I have no idea where the Order of Hades is and the fellows at the 'Naó tou Poseidó̱na' don't seem to want our help." He sighed. "I guess we have no choice but to leave. Come on, Snowy."
October 13, 1940
Tintin had packed his bags and was prepared to leave, but he decided to take a little tour of Athens before the plane left. He had no chauffeur anymore, so he asked the desk attendant if a good museum was near to the hotel.
"A museum?" the attendant asked. "Well, I know there's one in Exarcheia, in central Athens. It's called 'The National Archaeological Museum of Athens.' It's not too far from where we are. Go a few blocks north till you find Patission Street, and follow that street to the east. You can't miss the building."
"Thank you. Come, Snowy. We'll do a little sight-seeing before we leave," Tintin said. The little dog barked excitedly. The two walked out of the hotel and traveled north, as the attendant said, to Patission Street. From there, they turned right and followed the street. It wasn't a very busy street, but parked cars lined the sidewalks. "Athens really is a pretty place. It's a shame we have to leave so soon." Eventually, Tintin and Snowy reached the museum. The building wasn't hard to miss with its many pillars, flat roof, and sprawling garden. Tintin had to gasp at the sheer size of the building. "Great Snakes! What a building!" Snowy barked in agreement.
They both walked up to the door. When Tintin opened it, he had to gasp again. The walls were lined with artwork. Pedestals lined the walls with statues of various gods or important people. Even the ceiling was decorated. "Incredible! Stupendous! Prodigious! How else can I describe it?" Tintin asked himself. He kneeled down to Snowy and said, "Well, at least I can write about the amazing museums in Greece, eh, Snowy?" Snowy barked.
At that moment, a museum guard strode over to the boy and his dog and said loudly, "Boreíte! Den boreíte na échoun ta skyliá edó̱!"
"I-I'm sorry?"
Realizing that the young man couldn't speak fluent Greek, the guard said slowly, "You… uh… no can have… dog… in museum."
"Oh! Alright then. Snowy, wait outside, OK, boy?" Tintin said. Snowy whined, so Tintin continued coaxingly, "It's OK, Snowy! I'll only be a few minutes." The little dog huffed, but strode outside, found a nice tree to sit by, and lay down. "Good boy!" Tintin called. Snowy barked agitatedly.
"You…uhm… like tour?" the guard asked, gesturing towards a guide booth. There was one lady standing at the booth, talking in fast Greek to a bunch of people.
"Er, no, thank you. I'll manage alone," replied Tintin. Checking one last time on Snowy to make sure he hadn't ran off, Tintin began to walk round the museum, hands in his pockets. "I still want to know why the Order of Hades is plotting with the Italians… what's in it for them?" Tintin asked himself quietly. He stopped walking and stood next to a statue of the God of the Wild, Pan. That's when he noticed a shifty figure standing in the back of the room. "Hello… what's this chap up to?" The man seemed to look around, in case someone was watching him. He didn't seem to notice Tintin, so he started to walk to a door in the back. "Where are you going?" Tintin whispered, and began following the man discretely. The young reporter followed the man out the door into some sort of hallway. The path stretched for quite a few meters until it lead to another door. Tintin opened it, and looked around the corner to the right. No one was there, so he looked to the left. The man he was trailing continued walking to yet another door.
He knocked on the door three times and asked quietly, "Kaïnam, eísai ekeí?"
"Naí," a voice on the other side of the door answered, "Eínai óti sas, Leonidas?"
"Naí," the man said. The door opened and the man Tintin had been following walked inside. Tintin snuck up to the door, and hid behind some crates. The door had some writing above it, but the young reporter had to squint to see what it said. The writing read:
Táγματος του Άδη
Tintin looked down in thought and said loudly, "Tágmatos tou Ádi̱! The Order of Hades! I found it!" Suddenly the door opened and Tintin pressed his back against the crates, making sure his tuft of hair wasn't seen.
"Poios eínai ekeí?" a voice, presumably Kaïnem, asked quickly. When he heard no reply, he grunted and shut the door.
Tintin let out a sigh of relief. "Whew! That was a close one." He stood up and strode quietly to one side of the door. He knocked three times, just as Leonidas had.
"Poios eínai?" came the voice of Kaïnem again.
"Er… to ónomá mou eínai… um…" Tintin quickly thought of a name. "Pan. Egó̱… uh… eímai néos ..." The door opened again. Kaïnem cautiously looked around. When he looked Tintin's direction, he had a surprised look on his face, not just from seeing an intruder, but also seeing a fist smash into his nose. The guard crumpled to the ground, knocked out. "Sorry my Greek isn't very good," Tintin said sardonically. He searched Kaïnem's pockets and found a revolver; a Nagant M1865, to be precise. "I don't particularly like these toys, but I'd best be armed." He checked how many shots he had. All six slots were filled. "Excellent. Now, to work." He stepped over Kaïnem's unconscious body and headed into the corridor, gun at the ready. He found a staircase and decided to follow it down.
"… assure you, Sir Achille, we have found the date," an eerily familiar voice said. Tintin came to the bottom of the stairs and realized that he had found his way back to where he was captured. The voice behind the same door Tintin had been eavesdropping on only a day earlier was Abaddon Balthazar.
"Eccellente! Tell me, when Führer Mussolini plan for his attack?" the Italian asked eagerly.
"The date Benito Mussolini and the Italian army can finally attack Greece is October the 28th, sir," Abaddon said, confirming Tintin's fears.
"Perfetto, perfetto! Congratulations, Mr. Balthazar, you shall be rewarded accordingly!" Achille laughed coldly.
"I'm just glad we could do business, Sir Achille."
Tintin backed away from the door and ran up the stairs. He came to the top in a cold sweat. "October 28th! That's only about 2 weeks from now! I must warn Nileas! I don't care if he told me to leave or that he doesn't want my help! The 'Naó tou Poseidó̱na' must know! Better them then Metaxas!" He started running at breakneck speed to get out of the building. He went back the way he came, where Kaïnem was still knocked out. Tintin leapt over the Greek's body and sprinted to the right, the opposite direction from which he came. Eventually, he came to an alley way. One way went back to the streets, and one way went to a series of alleys. Tintin started to run back to the streets of Athens, when a group of gangsters suddenly appeared behind him.
"Ekeí eínai! Pyrovolí̱ste ton!" one of the men shouted. Tintin heard several gunshots, but kept running.
CRACK!
Tintin felt like his entire side had exploded. He stumbled in an effort to continue running, but the pain was unbearable. He clasped a hand to his side. When he drew it back, his hand was covered in blood. His blood. Tintin tripped again and fell to the ground. Panting, he lay in the alley, waiting for the gangsters to catch up to him, but they never came. He heard someone shouting in Greek. Before he blacked out, he saw flashing lights and people in white clothing. Then, nothing.