(Tellemicus's Note) This was a prologue scene that I had received from someone a long time ago and held onto. I finally decided to share this wonderful 'chapter' with you. Maybe someone might get inspired by it?
Harry Potter and the Return of Atlantis
Chapter One: That Which is Hidden
Korvettenkapitan Joseph Richter made his way quickly through the facility, shaking off the bitter cold as he held the carefully translated dispatch they'd just received. It was all he could do to keep himself from cursing aloud over the information the decoded communiqué held, the news was not something he wanted to particularly pass on.
Passing some of the scientists and archaeologists in the passage he watched them discussing something rapidly amongst themselves. Did they even care about the news he held or were they just concerned about whatever new discovery they made? Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and steadied himself. Getting angry at these men would do nothing to alleviate his internal suffering.
Going down the next hall of the facility, he knocked on the door, a swift enter greeting him from inside. Entering he came to swift attention and saluted with the ease of years of practice.
"At ease," the man behind the desk said sedately. Joseph relaxed and looked down at the older man, a strong figure that looked extremely professional in his uniform with intense green eyes looking out with unquestioned intelligence. His black hair showing a bit of gray at the temples, no doubt from having to run this madhouse of scientists and maintain the strictest security. These kinds of operations were not for the faint of heart.
"Konteradmiral," Joseph said and held out the clipboard with the communiqués, the man behind the desk reached out, taking them and started to peruse through the dispatches. The man's eyes got slightly wider, but then narrowed before stilling completely. The only sound in the office for the next few minutes was the man flipping the sheets back and forth.
"Well, that is that," Konteradmiral Albert Keller scratched his nose as he contemplated the words he just read. "We have no orders beyond keeping our research from the hands of the Americans and their allies. But the means are left up to us."
"Sir?" Joseph asked shortly.
"Ah, don't worry, Joseph," the older man said pleasantly. "I'm not one of those fanatics who would burn everything to the ground."
"That wasn't my concern, sir," he responded with a shake of the head. "I was just wondering- well-"
"You were hoping that we might be able to return?" Konteradmiral Keller laughed a little. "No, I think not. Berlin will fall to the Russians long before we can even hope to get back. And whatever weapons and technology we've managed to develop will not save our home. And I'm sure that almost nothing will save Berlin from its fate."
"So the war is over?"
"It will be soon enough," Keller responded, his eyes showing a haunted quality. "But, that does not mean we lose our duty to our country." Slowly the man started to tap a finger on the desk, his lips moving soundlessly. "Our supplies are due to arrive any day now, we know that they left on schedule. I want everything ready to go when they get there. If it can't be easily packed, we trash it. Draw explosives for demolition throughout the facility."
"And the ruins, sir?" Joseph asked, already making his own mental checklist. He already was running through everything he'd have to do, and what precautions to take.
"That is a hard call," Keller rubbed his nose, he looked even more thoughtful. "We have stumbled across something here, something incredibly ancient and powerful. Our archaeologists can tell us at that much. However, it seems something far too dangerous as well."
"I've seen the reports and what limited translations we've made, I'm not sure that whatever we found buried here is safe in anyone's hands," the Korvettenkapitan admitted before he could stop himself.
The Konteradmiral gave him a long look, before nodding, "I know what you're saying, and I must admit that I agree. Whatever power the builders of these great ruins held is best buried and forgotten, and based on the traps we have run across within these walls, I would agree. But I'm still loathe to destroy any history, we are not the Russians."
Joseph nodded, the man before him had received the reports of what the Russians had done to Dresden and other cities in eastern Germany. A clear disdain had developed in the naval officers stationed here for those destructive deeds. And he knew that Keller himself had come from a small town in eastern Germany, a place with a rich history and no military or economic value, the Russians had destroyed it as well.
"Set the charges to bury the entrance, we'll at least seal it up. Perhaps, someday, a future generation will come here and discover what secrets may have been held." The Konteradmiral sat a little straighter and shifted some of his papers before nodding. "Priority in loading as follow; personnel, research notes, and finally prototypes. We will not leave anyone behind in this forsaken wasteland, is that understood?"
"Yes, sir," he replied smartly.
"Good, I want the explosives in position in the next two hours," Keller said sharply. "I want everything packed in twenty-four. Once the U-boat gets here, we'll load up. Anything that can't fit on board, we rig with the last of the explosives. Get it done, dismissed."
"Yes, sir," Joseph smartly stood at attention once more, a hand shooting out. "Heil Hitler,"
The Konteradmiral gave him a very dry look, one that said it all. "Get out."
Joseph nodded and turned quickly and left the room.
Friedrich Fuchs quickly secured the last items in the crate, making sure the fit snuggly before taking a step back. With some difficulty he lifted the wooden lid into position and began to pound the nails in, making quick work of it he stepped back and nodded looked at the team in charge of moving the crates. Shaking his head he moved to the next crate, this one another mess packed by scientists. Why couldn't they have their things neat and in order?
Heck, why couldn't the scientists be of more help? So far the majority of them were complaining bitterly, not that it was anything really new. But now the complaints were about why was it necessary for them to have to pack everything up. Sighing, he just started to rearrange the crate, fitting things as neatly as possible and resisting the urge to pull out his flute and make quick work of the job. But there were too many people around to do that.
Finishing as quickly as possible, he lifted another lid up and swiftly hammered it into position. That was the last of the things they were shipping out from this area of the facility. Shrugging his shoulders he moved with ease over to the loaders, intent on asking if they needed help when a younger man rushed in.
"Gefreiter Fuchs," the young man came to attention, his breath a little shallow, no doubt from running.
"What is it, Schutze?" he looked over the new arrival. The young man couldn't have been older than twenty, another boy drawn into this damned war.
"Korvettenkapitan Richter wants you in the antechamber, Gefreiter. Some of the archaeologists are causing problems, I was told to get you down there immediately."
Friedrich looked at the group of loaders who had paused to watch this play out, anything to take a break from moving the heavy boxes through to the docks. "Very well, let's go."
"Yes, Gefreiter," the young schutze nodded and turned smartly, leading the way out of the room and through the corridors with ease. It wasn't long before they reached a location that wasn't made by German hands, rather where the facility connected to the ruins they had discovered under the ice. The walls formed from carefully laid stone slabs that formed a hall which the two soldiers followed down until they reached a wide open room. A room they had identified as the antechamber. Though, every time Friedrich saw it, he thought it was something else and that the purpose for it was something much darker.
They quickly crossed the large room until they reached the group standing at the other end, the scientists stood out across from the group of soldiers who looked like they were ready to beat the scientists. Approaching he snapped to attention when he saw the man who summoned him.
"Gefreiter Friedrich Fuchs reporting as ordered, sir," he kept his voice level.
"At ease, Gefreiter," Korvettenkapitan Richter said easily. "I'm hoping that you can help us resolve this situation."
"Yes, sir," Friedrich nodded a looked around him, trying his best to figure out what was going on. "What is the situation, sir?"
"We ar-"
"They're going to destroy this place," one of the archaeologists, Wilhelm Peters, said loudly. "We can't let them. It would be wrong to destroy this history."
"We are not going to destroy the ruins," Joseph Richter said calmly, though his voice sounded as though he was about to break, "the charges are being placed around the entrances, not inside."
Friedrich rubbed his chin slightly, resisting the urge to say that he wished they were going to destroy this place. He could almost taste the evil in this dark place, and it wasn't pleasant.
"You are all the same," the archaeologist spat back and Friedrich sighed. Wilhelm held the common disdain most scientists had for the military, the belief that those who joined the armed services were idiots unfit to do anything else.
"Wilhelm," Friedrich spoke calmly. "You know me, you know these men," he gestured at those with the Korvettenkapitan. "We share your respect and awe at the ruins, and we understand that it would be wrong to destroy them."
"Bu-"
"But, the war has turned badly," Friedrich cut the man off, thinking of the news from Germany. It was not good, not in the slightest. And most of the men here had no idea why, they just thought it was because the Russian Army had finally broken through and was assaulting Berlin. They didn't know the half of it. "We will no longer be supplied, and there is a chance that our enemies may even discover this place. We must bury it so that this research does not fall into enemy hands."
"But this isn't the experiments," Wilhelm gestured to the grand ruins, the lights flickering slightly as they had since the German soldiers had moved them in. Nobody had been able to figure out why the lights did not last long in this place. Friedrich knew, not that he could share that information. "This is history. What danger is there here?"
The Gefreiter had to bite his tongue slightly. There was more danger here than any of these idiot Muggles could understand. Shaking off those thoughts, he focused on the man before him. "There is danger here, you know the reasons we are here, rather than close to home. It's because of what was found within these ruins, the Fuhrer himself ordered this expedition to find the source of the powers depicted on the walls." He glanced around, the language on the walls had been painstakingly researched and deciphered over the last several years, and everything pointed to the builders of this place having access to terrible power, if the words and pictures were to be believed. "If our enemies discover these secrets, it could only make the situation for us worse."
"I-" Wilhelm looked at his fellow archaeologists, a few of them nodding. They had lost several of their number over the last years, seeming 'accidents' claiming lives. None of them could understand that this place was warded by magic. Friedrich was certain that some of the wards here were more powerful than even those found in the Egyptian tombs the goblins continued to plunder.
"Korvettenkapitan," a voice called as a young Obersteurmann ran into the large room. He came to attention and quickly delivered his message. "U-530 has arrived, Konteradmiral Keller wants you to begin loading procedures now."
The man nodded and looked at Friedrich, "Get this finished and report to the dock."
"Yes, sir," Friedrich started to snap into attention but the Krovettenkapitan waved him off. Watching the man leave with the Obersteurmann, he turned back to Wilhelm. "We cannot linger here, Wilhelm. We won't destroy these ruins, but the secrets of these ruins will be for other men to unlock."
"We have an obligation, t-"
"And how would you remain alive, if we left you here?" Friedrich cut the man off. "The rest of us are leaving. This war is almost over and we all know it. We will not be supported in this wasteland and we cannot survive without regular supplies. You cannot ask the rest of us to remain, nor can we leave this facility intact for our enemies to find and capture."
"This is history, we cannot bury it again," Wilhelm protested.
"And we aren't, not completely," Friedrich countered, he pointed to the notebooks, "We have our notes, and ourselves, we can pass this on and someday another expedition will come, armed with our research and they'll find what secrets are held here. But it is not for us."
"I do-"
"Sir," one of the other soldiers standing there spoke up, directing his words to the archaeologist. "Enough, we're going to do our jobs and get out of here, if you want to be buried in here with your precious ruins, fine. We've wasted all the time we are going to." With that the man turned, "Lehmann, get the rest of the charges set, we blow them in thirty minutes."
"Yes, Unterfeldwebel," the man said loudly and started to move, running his wires with the speed and grace of an experienced demolitions man.
Friedrich watched, with muted humor as the archaeologists rushed from the room, apparently their convictions weren't so steady anymore. Turning back towards the hall leading deeper into the ruins, he suppressed a shiver, he could almost feel the dark magic surrounding him. What was this place?
"Unterfeldwebel, I'm going to check deeper into the ruins and make sure they are clear."
The man looked up and nodded, "We won't blow the charges until you're clear, but make it quick, Gefreiter."
Friedrich nodded and turned back to the hall, pulling his flashlight out, he made his way down. While the electric lights were strung in the halls, it was well known that they wouldn't be reliable and he didn't want to go through this place in the dark. A grim expression on his face, he started down the hall. Coming to the first intersection he turned right and shook his head, the lights had clearly died here, putting away his flashlight he pulled free his flute, tipping it slightly he let the familiar piece of birch slide into his hand, like a comforting friend.
Waving it with ease he spoke softly, "Lumos." Instantly, the hall was bathed in light emitting from the tip of his wand. Starting off again he was carefully watching his steps, he knew that there was no one down here, but something was compelling him to take one last look. This was a place of deep and powerful magic, comparable to the tombs of Egypt he was sure. While he had never been to those fabled tombs, he had a vague notion of them from rumors he'd heard.
This place felt more like Durmstrang with the magic literally humming around him, though the feeling was considerably darker than his old school. Walking down the hall, he let his thoughts drift to the past briefly. He'd only graduated from Durmstrang five years ago; it was hard to believe it had been so little time. But then, things felt longer when you were in a place crushed with war, both Muggle and magical.
The war in the magical world had just been getting worse. And as the war in the Muggle world got more intense, Grindelwald just grew in power. The dead from the Muggle world served to increase the ranks of his Inferi army. It had not been pleasant, and that was the reason Friedrich had joined the Muggle Germany military, why he had enlisted in the Wermacht. It had been the easiest way to escape the magical war going on in Europe, and despite the horrors he'd seen during the Muggle war, it at least was not as bad as watching the dead rise and fight.
But, that was coming to an end. He had heard the rumors and he remembered the reports of the American and British army finally crossing the Rhine. Everything in Germany was unraveling, and even he could tell that Hitler was a madman. And, with the descent of Germany, Grindelwald became that much more powerful. While Muggle Germany had held undisputed power in Europe, the Dark Lord and his followers had been forced to be careful and keep a lower profile. Any attempts at overt action would have been crushed by the Wermach, and Waffen-SS. No, Hitler and the NAZIs had been the only thing that made sure Grindelwald couldn't move to openly.
He'd gotten news, not by owl obviously but through other sources, from his magical friends back in Europe. Grindelwald's attacks grew bolder as the Russians rampaged across eastern Germany. Inferi were almost openly moving among both magical and Muggle populations and no one could tell the difference in the war-torn country. The resistance alliance of European wizards was crumbling as the Dark Lord pressed harder, and even now there were reports that Grindelwald was subverting the Muggle populace.
And there was a rumor running around that Hitler's madness was the work of an agent of Grindelwald or even the man himself. It was supposedly a ploy by Grindelwald, a way to destabilize the Fuhrer of Germany and weaken Muggle rule. Some witches and wizards were even claiming that now 'living' Russian troops were working for Grindelwald, raiding magical communities across Eastern Europe. Friedrich wouldn't doubt it, with magic it would be an easy matter to take over commanders of a group of soldiers and suborn them to their will.
Something that wasn't possible with German soldiers. In a bitter twist of irony, the symbol chosen by Hitler and the NAZIs, the broken cross, had ties to older magic, specifically magic originating in India of all places. The magic, while it couldn't block the effects of the Imperius curse, did seem to help resist it, giving those wearing the symbol a natural 'resistance' to the effect, even those that were non-magical. And it severely limited the amount of time the curse could be maintained on an individual.
Reaching the end of the hall, Friedrich paused. The hall just ended, there was a large slab here, but no one had been able to open it. The magic practically hummed aloud here, and no electronic machines would work within a ten foot area of the door. Whatever was behind it was sealed with very powerful magic. But for some reason, he knew the way around the door.
Stepping forward, he could feel a pull, a knowledge that he knew he shouldn't have. Holding his wand aloft, he let the soft glow of the lumos wash over the images carved into the stone. There was something drawing him here. He didn't realize it before, but whatever it was, it was calling to him. Wand drifting out, he pressed it against the door and let his magic flow out.
He abruptly stopped, what was he thinking? He was no curse breaker, he had no desire to plunder the tombs and treasures of those long past. Sure, he could appreciate places like this, and even have a slight fascination with them. But they were buried and sealed for a reason. Still, he could almost hear a voice, whispering to him. He must be going insane, too much time spent on this frozen continent.
Friedrich was about to turn away when he stopped. Reaching out one more time, he started to rhythmically tap on the door with his wand tip. With each tap, the light of his lumos was getting brighter and brighter. Before he knew it, there was a sudden flaring of light, as if a camera was flashing in his eyes. The lumos was gone and purple dots danced in his vision. But he didn't need to see anymore, he seemed to be able to feel the area around him. It was hard to explain, but he could feel when the wall started to recede, the stone folding into itself.
Taking a step forward, he marveled. The door was suddenly open. It had faded as if it were never there. He briefly wondered if the door was some sort of 'folded' area, an illusion made to look like a wall but in fact was just a passage. Maybe this was something like the wall to Diagon Alley that he'd heard about from a few English wizards.
Stepping within the newly opened room he looked around, well, not really looked, he knew this place, somehow. It was really confusing, but it was also magic. Long lessons at Durmstrang about such things and he knew to be careful, this was a situation where the dark arts was clearly in use. Still, he was curious, and there didn't appear to be anything dangerous. Just a, well, it wasn't an altar but it looked like one and felt like one, but he knew it wasn't. What sort of altar had a crown on it?
Looking at it carefully he shifted his vision carefully; it wasn't particularly beautiful, though it was striking. The object seemed to evoke the idea of power, majesty, and the will to rule. Taking another step forward, he once more waved his wand and muttered the light spell. His eyes drawn on the crown as his hand started to move for it.
"Power," a voice whispered to him. "You fear for your home, your family. Just wear me and you'll have the power to save them."
He paused, almost snatching his hand away. What sort of crown was this? It was like it was speaking to him. He had never before seen such a device. Looking at it closely, he weighted his options. The shadows seemed to draw in around him before rushing towards the crown, the ghostly image of a person starting to form over the crown.
"I can give you strength to beat the upstart," the voice said, slightly stronger. "Trust me, listen to me, I can give you what you desire. Just put me on, I will teach you magic the world has long forgotten. I can give you power to defeat the man you fear."
Friedrich felt his hand start to move again, his throat felt dry and yet he spoke, "Who are you?"
"What does it matter? All that matters is what I can give you," the voice said, the shadows wavering, becoming distinct and then dispersing. The image seemed to rise out of the crown, coming closer as his hand neared.
"How?"
"Long forgotten," the voice whispered, the voice resonating with power, desire. "Buried, sealed away by those who feared what I offered."
A finger touched the device; it felt cold to the touch. Friedrich rested his hand against the crown, his fingers starting to curl to pick it up. He froze in place. This thing…it felt wrong, evil. Everything he learned at Durmstrang screamed at him to drop his hand, move away.
"Don't be afraid," the shadow whispered, seeming to wrap around his hand and hold it in place. "Young wizard, there is much to be shown, much to learn."
"I-" Friedrich wavered slightly, a cool feeling creeping up his arm. It was reassuring, as the voice was. In a distant part of his mind he knew, he could tell it was a compulsion charm, a strong one. The desire to put the crown on became unbearable. Lifting it smoothly from the alter he raised it slowly, his eyes looking over every facet. "You can give me the power to overthrow Grindelwald?"
"That and so much more," the voice promised.
This was powerful magic. What sort of power was this? Lifting the crown, the final distance he settled it on his head. Instantly, he felt a presence assault his mind, his very soul. Almost immediately his Occlumency shields shot up, only to be shredded in a moment. A powerful being washed over him, rushing into his soul and gaining hold, he felt his will start to fail. Suddenly, his left arm started to burn angrily, screaming in pain he reached for it.
Where he touched it, it felt as though his fingers and hand burned. His body started to quake and the voice which had been so tempting screamed in pain. With a surge of willpower, he reached up and ripped the crown from his head, throwing it aside in agony. Slumping against the altar, he took huge gasping breathes. He wasn't sure how long he was like that, it felt like an eternity.
"Gefreiter," a voice said loudly, a flickering light was shown on him as a hand shook him. "Gefreiter?"
Looking up, he saw a young Schutze staring at him, one of the men that was part of the demolition team, shaking himself he nodded. "Yes?"
"We've been looking for you. It's been over an hour since you left. We were afraid something had happened to you," the young man responded and helped him to his feet. Looking around Friedrich noticed two more soldiers, both part of the team as well. Nodding briefly he shook himself, ignoring the burning from his arm, he offered a little smile.
"Tripped and knocked myself out," he lied smoothly. "Sorry to make you worry."
"This place doesn't have the best footing," one of the others agreed. The third was looking at something else though, the crown which lay discarded on the floor, lying at a strange angle. The soldier finally shrugged and moved over to it, reaching out to pick it up.
"Don't!" Friedrich managed to rasp out, "Don't pick it up."
"But, Gefreiter," the man protested.
"Shouldn't we give it to the archaeologists?" the first asked.
"No, why bother them? They should be packing the rest of their materials." Friedrich shook his head briefly. "Leave it."
"Yes, Gefreiter," the first two responded swiftly. The third still had his arm outstretched, almost as if to pick it up. "We need to get back. The Unterfeldwebel wants to blow this place immediately."
"Alright, lead the way," Friedrich pointed to the passage, the flashlight almost burning out. The first soldier immediately left, followed by the second. He made to follow when he heard a strange sound, turning sharply he saw the last Schutze pick up the crown. "No!" his hiss was ignored and the man started to put it on. Reacting instantly, his wand was in his hand and he stunned the man, the flash of red light illuminating the room.
Less than a second later, the first two were back in the room, looking around and seeing what he was sure was a strange sight, him having a stick pointed at an unconscious man, crown still clutched in an outstretched hand.
"What i-" the second man asked but he was quick, reacting with speed and skill he Obliviated the three of them.
"You walked in and found me shaken, having just woken from unconsciousness, the Schutze over there," he pointed at the one he stunned, "clearly stumbled and knocked himself out, much as I did. Remember nothing about my wand, or the crown." His instructions were crap and he knew it, but that crown had shaken him. There was something very evil about it, he just wanted to be away from it.
He knew better as well. Over the last couple of years he'd been in the Wermach he'd made several mistakes with his magic, mistakes that he had to quickly cover with hastily modified memories of his fellows and superiors. Thus he'd become very proficient with 'Obliviate' as a result. This had to be his worst since his first time having to do it during Basic Training back in Germany.
A moment passed and the two standing Schutzes snapped back to reality, they shook themselves a little before the first looked at the man on the floor, "Dammit, Walter, always tripping."
"Let's get him out of here," the second said irritably and went over, grabbing the downed man's legs. The first agreed and lifted the man's upper body before looking at Friedrich.
"Go on, I'm right behind you," he assured the pair and started to follow them from the room, falling behind as best he could he waited for them to get a lead before he turned back. Looking back in the room, he saw the crown lying there, almost innocently, on the floor. He could swear he heard the whispering in his head again, the voice promising power, and the shadows seemed to form once more. Looking away sharply, he fixed his gaze on the ceiling. "Reducto!" he didn't shout, he whispered, but it was the fiercest whisper he'd ever done.
The stone ceiling gave a terrible groan, the stone almost shrieking as it buckled slightly and started to collapse. A moment later, the section of the room the crown was in was under a pile of rubble. Not as deep as he'd like, but still burying the crown. Turning quickly, he started at almost a run down the hall, silently wishing they were blowing the ruins, almost praying they would. Whatever was down here was sealed for a reason, and it needed to stay sealed.
Turning, he rushed back up to the antechamber, passing the demolition squad as they carried their unconscious fellow out. Nodding to the non-com, he entered the German constructed part of the facility. He wanted out of here, and quickly. This place was cursed.
Reaching over, he rubbed where his arm had burned when he'd put the crown on. Curious, he looked down and saw the slightly burned Hakenkreuz of NAZI Germany.
FIFTY YEARS LATER…
Alvaro Ramos let out a heavy breath and swore that it froze on contact with the frigid air. Damn, but it was cold out. Shaking a little, he wrapped his arms around his body and looked at his friend standing beside him. She looked to be almost frozen as well. What little of her face showing through the hood of her parka were a healthy red and her breath coming out in white mist every few moments.
"Relax, Darya," he patted her arm, though he was sure she couldn't easily feel it through the layers of clothing. "We are almost in, and it's going to be easy from there."
"I'm not nervous," she said sharply, glaring at him. "I'm cold, it's freezing here."
"I thought Russians are supposed to be used to the cold," he teased, smiling a little.
"My parents defected when I was eight, you idiot," she growled and rubbed her arms with both hands, clearly trying to warm up. "Florida is not this cold most of the year."
He laughed a little; he had met his friend when he'd gone to college in the United States, having managed to secure a student visa. He had always been interested in archeology; his grandfather had gotten him interested in it at a young age, despite his parents' protestations. They kept claiming that his grandfather was just making up wild stories, claiming conspiracy theories. Oh, they knew that grandfather had been a German who had escaped to Argentina before the fall of Germany, but his parents felt that his talk about an installation and ancient ruins in Antarctica were nothing more than crazy talk. After all, who could truly live on this frozen continent?
Smiling, he moved over to the team that was working to open up the long buried tunnels. The tunnels they had identified using a ground based radar system. The tunnels which his grandfather's journals had led him to. Most people had thought him crazy when he had started to put together this expedition. They thought he was some kind of conspiracy nut who believed that NAZIs had secret moon bases and performed experiments with aliens. Thus it had been hard to get funding for this, but ever since the journals arrived, he wanted to get down here and check this out. He needed to.
Looking at Darya again, he smiled brightly. She had agreed to come with him. She may have called him crazy a few times, but had come anyway. She shared the same passion for archeology as him, she wanted to know the secrets of past civilizations, to find out why and how they existed.
"Alvaro," someone called. Looking away from his friend he watched the figure come closer.
"Bryan," he nodded and waited for the man to get closer, the three of them formed a kind of closed circle when he got there. "How's it going?"
"I think we're through," the man shivered a little. Bryan Johnson was their entry expert. Slightly older than them, he had experience on entering old ruins for the first time. Something that Alvaro admitted he and Darya lacked. He'd managed to convince the man to come along, it hadn't been easy and he had to make some concessions, but he'd done it. The fact was that no one else was even willing to consider coming on a wild goose chase to the south. Bryan had been an unbeliever as well, until the radar images popped back up and showed the beginnings of the underground complex. The man had lit up like crazy. "But Richard isn't comfortable with the hole, he's insisting we wait."
"Richard is never comfortable, and is always overcautious."
"We pay him to be," Darya pointed out crossly, now rubbing her hands together. "What good would he be as our guide down here if he wasn't?"
"Exactly," Bryan agreed. "But, I think I've got him convinced to let us do entry."
"How?" Alvaro said briskly.
"I argued that if we could get in, make sure the place is at least structurally sound, it would make an excellent base camp, rather than out here on the ice." Bryan shrugged. "Richard went for it."
"Well, it makes sense," Alvaro rubbed his own hands together, monkey see, monkey do. "He would want something more stable than the tents, and he's always been uncomfortable with our distance from anything else down here."
"Well, I agree and his idea that we should be basing ourselves at McMurdo is impractical, we're too far out," Bryan said, more to himself. The man had a habit of that.
"So, how long before we can go in?" Darya asked.
"Another half an hour," Bryan shrugged and looked back at the people still digging, off to the side was Richard, his parka an obvious color. The man apparently noticed them and came over without a word; they quickly expanded the circle letting him in.
"Heard you agree with us doing entry, Rich?" Alvaro smiled, though it was probably hidden behind his scarf.
"Yes," the man nodded and pulled out a sheet which was printed from the radar image, holding it up he pointed towards the image. "This appears to be a large room, if we can set up in there and use it as shelter, I am completely for entrance. But it had better be structurally stable."
"Don't worry," Alvaro said with a grin, "it will be fine."
"Don't you tell me not to worry; I don't like how early in the season we've mounted this expedition. It is near the dead of winter on this continent and yet here we are." Richard growled. "I don't know who your backers are, but I don't like this in the slightest."
"I don't know them all either," Alvaro admitted honestly and with a shrug. With the nature and target of his expedition, he'd been forced to look outside the box for funding. It hadn't been easy, but eventually he found some backers. He wasn't sure about all their motives, and to be honest they were a little more shadowy then he would like. But what little research he'd been able to do on them suggested they were a group of rich conspiracy theorists wanting to find a secret NAZI base more than anything truly 'dangerous', so he'd taken the money with good graces and went to work.
Apparently though, these people also had pull and had been able to get his expedition launched months before they should have been able to, getting clearances to travel at a dangerous time of year.
"I want base camp set up today, nothing more," Richard finally said. "I'll admit that I'm no expert on excavations, and that this is more Bryan's field, but I'll be damned if I let you run wild down there."
"I'm with you, Rich," Bryan said, his gloved finger tracing the map as well. "Alvaro, Darya, I'm making this clear; I run the show down there. No running off halfcocked, understood?"
"Absolutely," Alvaro held his hands up, smiling a little as he did. "I want to do this right, and I don't want to die for it, or lose anyone else either."
"Great, then slow and steady," Bryan chuckled. "Heck, with this kind of ruin, it could be extensive and time consuming, we may be setting up a station here for a long time."
"Don't get us excited," Darya said softly, her eyes lighting up. "Do you realize what may be down there, how it may change our world view?"
"Of course I do," Bryan snapped angrily, then looked a little sheepish. "Sorry, it's just that sometimes the people I do work for think I'm just some kind of glorified spelunker and not an archaeologist as well.
"Its fine," Darya assured him, shivering once more. "But, can we at least hurry this along? I'm freezing to death."
"I'll go check and see how we're doing," Bryan nodded, turning he started off towards the dig area.
"Why don't you go wait in one of the tents, Darya?" Rich said pleasantly. "No reason for either of you to be out here at the moment."
Alvaro nodded, "Sounds like a plan, I just wanted to stretch my legs anyway."
"We'll be there soon, Alvaro, don't worry."
Alvaro stretched, arms splaying behind him as he stood up from his desk. He'd spent the morning cataloging the artifacts, what few had been found so far, brought back. It had been exciting work to say the least.
The most shocking discovery, and probably the least world shaking had been the abandoned equipment they'd found. It had been true; apparently the NAZIs had a base here and did extensive archaeological research. Even Alvaro had been sure that the idea of a NAZI base in Antarctica was crazy. What possible, logical reason could there be for establishing something down here? The answer became quickly apparent.
The writings were amazing, almost a cross between several of the major language groups. Though sharing the most with Egyptian, some other symbols were prevalent from other cultures around the world, but they were few and far between. But what the writings seemed to talk about, or at least allude to, was impressive and clearly the reason for World War Two-era Germany being interested. The idea of the power that this ruin supposedly contained; the power, it seemed, to command nature itself.
It seemed deeply rooted in the occult, but Hitler was now well known for his desire to dive into the occult world, and this would be like a candy store to the man. Symbolism was everywhere, clearly showing this was a place of great mystical power or at least that the people who built this mighty structure believed this to be a place of great power. Alvaro wasn't a person to believe in the supernatural after all.
Exiting his tent, Alvaro made for the mess tent, trying not to smile to brightly as he looked at the ten or so tents scattered in the room. The room was clearly meant to be the entry hall for whatever this place had been, so it was large. Which was perfect for setting up half a dozen tents for use, the even better part was that it seemed to be incredibly well insulated. Despite outside temperatures, the temperature in the ruins were kept comfortable with only minimal heaters. Sometimes Alvaro swore that the way this place kept warm was almost magical, but he always shook off those crazy thoughts quickly enough.
Entering the tent, he grabbed a bottle of water and sat at a table opposite of Darya. Her brown hair was pulled back into a tight pony tail as she slowly ate a sandwich and read a book splayed in front of her. Smiling he popped the top on his bottle and watched her read. He wasn't too proud to admit that he enjoyed just watching her; he was just too frightened to admit to anyone but himself that he was in love with her.
"Are you going to just watch me, or are you going to say something?" Darya spoke with a slight laugh and looked up at him.
"I was enjoying the view," he said in a joking voice. It was true, but it was easy to disguise your feelings when you smiled. "Besides, you looked engrossed in your book, didn't want to interrupt."
"I have been reading the same line over and over again," she admitted sheepishly. "My mind is stuck on room three. What are we going to find there?"
"We'll know soon enough, Bryan was having them clear the hall for the last week after all, but it's slow progress. The hall seemed to have collapsed for some reason, Bryan can't figure it out. The rest of the structure is so sound, but this one area seems weak." Alvaro shrugged, absently playing with the bottle cap.
"Maybe the NAZIs found something and wanted to bury it for good?" Darya suggested.
"Now you sound like a conspiracy theorist, what could they possibly want to hide in this ruin?" Alvaro fixed her with a hard stare, though he was sure his lips were twitching towards a smile.
"How would I know?" Darya said plaintively, "I mean, just getting used to the idea that the NAZIs were even here in the first place is a bit of a shock."
"At least it proves my grandfather isn't crazy," Alvaro pointed out, leaning back he glanced over as the tent flap opened and one of the team members came through, ignoring them. It was just a 'local' hire, someone to do 'grunt' work, the man barely looked at the pair. Turning back to his companion he shrugged, "Did you get a chance to look over the glyphs from room eight?"
"Yeah," Darya carefully slipped a bookmark onto her page before closing her book up and pushing it away. "But it's so unreal, the kind of power that's being depicted."
"I know, that kind of stuff has always been the realm of gods, not men," Alvaro sighed. "This place brings up so many questions."
"You think this might be a temple?" Darya asked, her eyes bright. "If it is, I can't picture for what deity, or even what ancient civilization may have built this."
"Not a temple, not from what we've seen so far." Alvaro leaned forward, setting his bottle to the side he looked at his friend intently, mind working this over carefully, running through all the crazy theories he'd had over the last month they'd been here. "This is more of a tomb than anything else. Look at the images carved in relief over the hallway, they show someone being buried and sealed."
"But the powers of whatever they sealed are impossible," Darya countered, her eyes suddenly getting wide. "You don't think we've discovered a tomb for gods, do you?"
Alvaro whistled, he hadn't even considered that one, "Wow. I don't know what to say in response to that, because I'm not sure. I don't recall any burial sites for actual gods, though..." he trailed off, thinking over possibilities.
"What?" Darya finally said after a minute.
Focusing back on her, Alvaro started slightly, "I'm not sure, you raise an interesting point, and it is shaking my perceptions."
"That can happen," Darya shrugged and offered him a smile.
"This discovery, I know it's going to change the world, Darya. I can feel it."
"You won't find me arguing," she agreed and reached out, taking his hand in hers. "Think about it, an ancient civilization existed on Antarctica, it changes our entire world view. Look at the language groups represented in this place, the architecture. Who knows what else we'll find, we've just been exploring the areas that were already opened up by the NAZIs! What else will we possibly discover deeper in?"
"We can't even tell how extensive the facility is. The radar we originally used to map out barely showed most of this room," he gestured around the tent. Pausing mid-sweep he started to laugh, "Okay, you know what I mean."
"Well, it is strange to have tents set up underground like this," Darya admitted. "What do you think the response will be when we send what we've found back?"
"I think a larger team will be sent," Alvaro sighed, giving her hand a squeeze he let go. "That's actually concerning me, we need to send a team back to McMurdo for supplies, and when they report what we've found, we'll most likely have a military unit dispatched."
"Secret NAZI base," she said with a nod.
"Exactly, never mind that most of the stuff we've found is useless crap that was used for archeology in the 1930s and 40s, it won't matter to them." Standing up, he went over to the table, grabbing an energy bar. Pulling the wrapper off he made his way back to the table, "Not to mention several archaeological teams rushing in to get in on our discovery."
"But won't we have priority? I mean, this is our discovery," Darya pointed out. "Though, I'll admit that my weak point was the legal issues of archeology. Heck, I'm not even sure I can remember most of the laws concerning what is really archeology versus grave-robbery."
"It varies from country to country," Alvaro said with a grin. "And honestly, I'd say we should have priority, but Antarctica isn't like most countries. There has been no real archaeological exploration here, so there are no 'real' laws defining anything."
"Joy," Darya rolled her eyes and growled.
"Exactly, I'm not-" Alvaro was cut off as the tent flap opened and Richard came through.
"Hey, Bryan sent me to bring you two," he said hurriedly, the man had become remarkably excited over the discoveries they made. While Richard swore he would never become an archaeologist, he had definitely been bitten with the archeology bug. Every discovery seemed to make the man proud, and it was obvious to see that he was enjoying the mystery as much as Alvaro, Darya, and Bryan.
Not waiting a moment later, the pair jumped up, book, food and water left forgotten as they followed after Richard. Entering the hallway, they proceeded deeper into the complex, coming to the first intersection of hallways, they turned right. Before, they couldn't go more than a couple dozen feet before the hall was blocked by fallen debris from the ceiling. Now, it was cleared to the sides, or moved out of the area entirely, a few wooden posts were set-up to be stabilizers, but there wasn't much. Moving past, they reached the end of the hall, pausing when their flashlights flickered badly then died.
The failing of their electronics had been a miserable experience over the last month. It seemed that everything and anything electronic acted badly down here. Lights failed, computers didn't want to work, equipment shut down.
"Dammit," Alvaro slapped his flashlight a few times but Richard stopped him. The man just shook his head and sighed.
"We already knew about it, I forgot to tell you," Rich leaned to the side and picked up a kerosene lantern, "Whatever is around this room kills electronics quick, Bryan had us move everything away after we lost four flashlights in rapid succession."
"Wonder what causes it," Darya said wonderingly before her eyes locked on the 'doorway' to the room. "Oh my! The stone…it looks…fused."
"Wha-" Alvaro started, and then paused when he looked at the wall. It did indeed look as if the wall itself had fused together to make this opening into the next room. "Amazing, how could an ancient civilization do this?"
"Didn't notice that last time," Rich said, idly he reached out and ran a hand down it. "It's smooth."
"I'll be," Alvaro shook his head, "I can't wait to see what's in here."
The trio entered, and looked around the surprisingly sparse room. In the center was a stone dais, nothing was carved in it or in the walls. In fact, part of the dais had been taken out by a pile of rubble from the ceiling, a pile which two men were clearing at the direction of Bryan.
"Well, this is a bit of a disappointment," Alvaro muttered. A week's worth of work to clear the passage to this room, all for nothing but a blank room with a stone dais.
"Yeah," Darya agreed, he hadn't meant for her to hear what he said. She just continued on, ignoring his glance in her direction. "But it makes you wonder, this room clearly had some significance, based on the fusing of the rock at the entrance. We haven't seen that anywhere else."
"I guess," Alvaro said, slumping his shoulders slightly in disappointment. "But I was kind of hoping for a Rosetta stone or maybe a map to this place."
"Mr. Johnson, we found something!" a voice said loudly, and they all turned to face the pair clearing the rubble. One of the two was staring intently at something as the second waved Bryan over.
"What have y-hey!" Bryan shouted and rushed forward, grabbing the stretched out hand of one of the workers. "What do you think you're doing? We've told you we need to do this by the book, don't just touch stuff." The man Bryan held just continued to struggle, to reach forward.
Alvaro moved closer, taking a look down at what had been uncovered, his eyes widening. It was a crown. Just a simple item; not covered in gold and gems but rather simply shaped from metal but still managing to look menacing and powerful with ease. He could almost feel an aura around it; something that seemed to make it the center piece of the room, despite being buried in debris.
"That must be it!"
"What?" Darya glanced at him briefly before her eyes focused back on Bryan holding the man back.
"This room was to hold the crown," Alvaro said fervently, he felt like an excited schoolboy. "That's why this room is so important. And it says something about what this place was, though it does seem to lean weight towards the idea that this was a burial place for a king, not a god. Sorry, Darya." Bryan finally pulled the man back, the man interposing himself between everyone else and the crown.
"I'm not sure about that," Darya countered. "It could be either way."
Satisfied that the crown wasn't going to be compromised and that Bryan had the situation well in hand, Alvaro turned and faced his friend, "Why would there be a crown here if this was a burial place for a god?"
"Perhaps it is a symbol of whatever god they worshiped, and possibly buried, here," she countered.
"The crown seems very simple for a god to have used from what I'm seeing. No embellishment, just simple and straight to the point." Alvaro didn't bother to look back, rather he just gestured. "It doesn't even seem like the crown of a very powerful ruler, no jewels or precious metals at all. I can't wait to get a closer look at it, it could potentially tell us about what kind of culture these people had. Perhaps there is something written or engraved o-what?" he broke off, Darya wasn't paying attention. Her gaze was focused behind him, her eyes going wide.
Spinning on a heel, he watched in something akin to horror as Bryan suddenly grasped the crown and wretched it from it's still half buried state. Metal screamed against rock as the simple crown was pulled free. Not even a moment passed before Bryan put the object on.
"What the hell are you doing, Bryan!" Alvaro barely noted that in his anger he'd spoken in his native language, not English. Pausing, he collected himself, after muttering a few curse words in his native tongue and started again, "What are y—?"
Bryan reached out smoothly, his palm flat against the dais. The moment his hand touched, a flash of light burst out, filling the room with an unearthly glow. Images and runes started to glow on the dais spreading out until the entire room was covered in the glowing symbols, each a different color of the rainbow.
"Oh-" Darya said, her voice soft as a loud humming filled the room.
Another bright flash followed and all the symbols and images seemed to shatter, falling apart they fell from the walls and dais, breaking like shards of glass against the floor as the room became dark. The kerosene lamps providing flickering light, a light which seemed was strangely subdued. A moment passed and even that light went out, leaving the group in almost absolute darkness. There was only a soft glow still coming from the light at the end of the hall.
Then, a light filled the room once more. It hovered above the dais, Bryan stood in front of this, the crown carefully lying on his head. His eyes were cold, distant, and seemed to see everything; they seemed to judge everything and find it wanting.
Bryan fixed them all with a cold stare before waving a hand broadly. In an instant, Alvaro felt himself slam into the wall, hitting with a dull crack. He caught a glimpse of the others being in the same position. His vision was going blurry. He watched his companion for the last several months give them each a look of disgust before moving past them and into the hall, the little ball of hovering light following obediently behind. Later he would never sure if that was due to the light leaving or him falling unconscious.
Thousands of miles away, a dark haired boy in the smallest room of his home sat up straight, grasping his head in pain. His breathing was heavy and his mind filled with images of snakes, old men, and green lights.