Shizuka Yanagi and the Necropolis of Acheron (Part 2)
Kurai and I stood overwhelmed, yet defiant at the line of gunmen before us. They outnumbered us five to one - not very good odds, I must admit. Suddenly, we heard a car coming up fast. A moment later, this car vaulted over a low part of the ruined wall and barreled toward us, coming to a screeching halt ten yards away. With the gunmen distracted, Kurai and I launched ourselves at them, trusting they wouldn't open fire amongst themselves. The gunmen were certainly trained in fighting, but Kurai and I learned the secrets of ancient martial arts. We engaged them as Aki and Shinku got out of the car - I should have realized that Shinku would pull a stunt like that. Kurai shouted, "Akari's over there, in that last car," to the girls. As they ran to the car, one of the men fired at them. The girls dove for cover, letting the bullets hit the car Akari was in. Akari's captor in the car shouted, "Hold your fire, you fools," and struggled to get to the front seat.
Kurai and I continued fighting. I found myself faced with the man who tailed me yesterday. "What's the matter," he said as he took his knee to my side, "did your gal pal from the Riviera leave you?"
I retaliated with an elbow to his jaw. "What," I asked, "you didn't care for my performance back there?"
"I wasn't buying it. Honestly, it was a bit forced."
"Oh, I can show you force," I said before laying him out with an atemi strike.
Aki and Shinku recovered from the ground and ran for the car Akari was trapped in, but the man in the car got to the driver's seat and pulled away just before they could reach them. Kurai and I finished off the rest of the gunmen and ran up to the girls. "Everybody in the car," Shinku said, "we've got to catch up to them."
Shinku put the pedal to the floor and caught up with them. The guy in the other car dodged and wove through traffic, which didn't slow Shinku down an inch. We were gaining on him, when he made a foolish move by going into the opposing lane as a cargo truck came head on at them. He tried to get back in their lane, but couldn't get ahead of the car beside them. With the truck's horn blaring, the car swerved off the road, narrowly missing a collision, but forcing itself into a ditch. We turned about and stopped to inspect the accident. The driver was unconscious, but Akari was still stirring, only with a few bumps and bruises. We climbed in after her and pulled her out. On her feet, she stumbled on a sprained ankle. "Ow, why is it that I always get injured when you guys are around?" she asked.
"Well, maybe you're just not suited to this lifestyle," I said jokingly. "Adventuring can be rough on you. Maybe you should take up something more gentle, like needlepoint."
Akari glared at me. "Hey, I'm still alive, aren't I?"
"That you are," Kurai said, "it's a good thing we came when we did. Otherwise, you'd still be in danger."
"I may be safe, but they still have Professor Anastopolous."
"Professor who?" I asked.
"Professor Anastopolous is an anthropologist here. He was working with us on our research of a certain artifact."
"Would this have to do with this 'Obolus' your kidnappers were demanding?"
"You mean the Obolus of Charon, yes."
"What's an Obolus?" Aki asked.
"It's a coin of ancient Greece," Akari replied. "Typical currency at the time, six of them were worth a drachma."
"And so the kidnappers wanted some coin?" Kurai asked.
"Not just any coin, the Obolus of Charon was specially made. This is no mere form of currency. On it, the face of Charon, ferryman of the dead, was stamped on it. We believe that a sect that worshiped Hades carried them, possibly for use in necromantic rites."
"Is this necromantic sect still around?" I asked.
"No, supposedly they dissipated with the advent of the Roman Empire in Greece."
"So what would anyone want with the Obolus, then?" Aki asked.
Akari replied, "What would anyone want with any rare artifact? Most likely, these guys work for some greedy collector."
"Or someone who deals with artifacts on the black market," I said, "like our old friend, Malpartido."
"Yes," Akari said, "but this doesn't seem like his style. It's too organized."
"That's true," I said. "Well, the police are finally making their way here. We'll let them take care of the rest of this incident. Right now, I think you need to go to a hospital, Akari. You're pretty banged up."
"Sure thing," Akari said, smirking, "just as long as Shinku doesn't drive again."
"Hey," Shinku protested, "I can rock a baby to sleep with my driving if I wanted to."
We got Akari to see a doctor. Like I said, she had little more than a few bumps and bruises, but her ankle was still sprained. They wrapped it up and sent her on her way. She stayed with us at our hotel. Aki and I let her have our bed, since her foot was in no condition to let her sleep on the floor.
The next day, Akari made a call to a Professor Ovid, the head of the museum and the archaeological study Akari was on. He was relieved to hear from her again, but had a surprise for her. Sitting in Ovid's office was the missing Professor Anastopolous. He claimed that the professor escaped last night. They both urged us to come visit them at the museum. Seems we were going to get some answers from these guys after all. When we arrived, Professors Ovid and Anastopolous welcomed us openly. Professor Ovid was a tall, slight man in his 60s who carried himself in a dignified and intelligent manner in his fine, pressed suit. His salt and pepper hair combed back neatly. On the other hand, Professor Anastopolous was more disheveled, portly, slightly younger. His hair, a tangle of silver that reached from ear to ear and crested on a head dominated by baldness, and wrinkled polo shirt told that the man had only been a few hours into his regained freedom. He seemed more jovial, less curt than his colleague. He also seemed very... how shall I say... gassy, nauseous? He kept pardoning himself, claiming that all the stress upset his stomach. Nonetheless, I had a few questions.
"So, Professor Anastopolous, how did you manage to escape?" I asked.
The professor nodded. "Last night, they left me bound up in a boathouse - Miss Hoshi can attest to this. The guard duty was thin that night, most of them went to escort Miss Hoshi for a trade off. I presume you were the ones who met them there."
"Yes," I said, "we met them at the shrine of Dodona. Please continue."
"Well, they tied me up in this chair in a small, locked room. It was terrible on my stomach; the rumbling and such. Anyway, since there were few guards there, I figured it was as good an opportunity as I was afforded. I wriggled my way out of the ropes. My grandfather, he was an escape artist. He taught a few tricks to his dear grandson. As soon as I was loose, I crept out a back way. No one noticed me, I think. So I ran. As soon as I was far enough away, I called the police, then Professor Ovid."
"Did the police apprehend them?"
"No," Professor Ovid interjected, "when they arrived, no one was there. It was the same thing at Dodona. They were gone. Only the guy in the car with Akari was caught."
"Why did they abduct the both of you, Professor?"
"I'm not sure. Perhaps they thought the two of us would make a sufficient hostage in exchange for the Obolus."
"You knew they wanted the Obolus?"
"Yes, they kept asking Miss Hoshi and myself for any information about the Obolus we might have." Akari nodded to confirm his story.
"I see, is the Obolus here, in the museum?"
"Yes," said Professor Ovid.
"Wouldn't it have been easier for them to break in and steal it from the museum?"
"You would think," Professor Ovid continued, "but this is one of the foremost museums in the field of archeology. We have many valuable artifacts here and a state of the art security system, straight from the United States, to safeguard them. Plus, we have a watertight security force here. We even had to turn you away when you first arrived, Mr. Yanagi."
"Well, at least, I know it was nothing personal, then. May we see this Obolus?"
"Certainly. Perhaps you'll feel more confident in our security when you see the great lengths we go to protect our artifacts." Professor Ovid led us below the main floor, where all the exhibits were displayed for the public, into an area swarming with guards and dotted with checkpoints every twenty yards. "I'll admit," Ovid said, "we didn't have this much security until we recieved trouble from these individuals."
"How long have they been bothering you?" I asked.
"For as long as we've had the item in our possession, about a month ago. One of them even had the audacity to offer us money for it, as if history and heritage had a price."
"How far did they go with their 'negotiations'?"
"Up to veiled threats, until now. They must have abducted Anastopolous and your friend after they left the museum, that is, if they got them both at the same time."
As we walked, I noticed that Professor Anastopolous was several paces back from us. When I looked back, he smiled. "Pardon me," he said, "I'm still quite, eh, flatulent. I thought I should be courteous and walk behind all of you. I only regret that the security guards can't be spared." He chuckled. I just shook my head.
Finally, after deactivating numerous alarm systems, we arrived at a large vault. The guards waited for Professor Anastopolous, then opened the enormous steel door and escorted us in. We found ourselves immersed in the great treasures of Greece's past. Professor Ovid even pointed out to me the fabled Helm of Agamemnon. Numerous lock boxes, all numbered, lined the rear wall of the vault. A guard produced a key to Professor Ovid, who went to one of the boxes and opened it. The contents of which were a silver coin, encased in glass. A thin, haggard face was stamped on the front. "This," Professor Ovid said, "is the Obolus of Charon. This relic will help chronicle the cult of Hades that was destroyed by the Roman Empire millennia ago." I stood dumbstruck at how someone could resort to threats, kidnapping, and violence over a simple coin, even if it is ancient. By the delighted expressions on Akari and Professor Anastopolous' faces, I could guess that, at least, someone finds it valuable enough.
"Oh, that's right," Professor Ovid remarked, "this is the first time either Akari or Professor Anastopolous have seen the coin in person." Professor Ovid put the glass case back in the lock box. "Anyway, that's what this has been all about, and it's here, safe and sound, in our vault. I really am in debt to you all for rescuing Akari. How about I make it up to you by taking you to the finest restaurant in all of Preveza?" Not a soul turned down the offer, except for Professor Anastopolous. He still complained about his stomach, so he decided to retire to his home instead.
That night, we had the finest greek food I've eaten. Since we had accomplished what we came here for, I decided to follow Aki's example and just enjoy myself. We'd stay a few more days, then head home. It seemed like a simple open and shut case.
...which meant that something just had to go wrong.
After dinner, Professor Ovid received a call from the museum. His face went white with shock. When he hung up, he said, "Someone has broken into the vault." We made a mad dash for the museum. Going past the security measures and a couple of guards just recovering from unconsciousness, we got to the vault to discover what was already obvious: the Obolus was gone. Professor Ovid filed a report with the police and then called Professor Anastopolous' house with no answer. He became fraught with worry. We said we'd go to his house and check up on him.
When we got there, we found the house had been ransacked. Furniture had been overturned, pieces from ceramic vases lay scattered on the floor. All the signs of a struggle were there. The one thing we didn't find, which didn't surprise us at this point, was Professor Anastopolous.
To be continued...