Original: "Trafalgar and Boone," Chapter Sixteen

[geonncannon]

Moving right along! 67,937 words total.

Chapter Sixteen

The first time Ivy went out completely naked, she had to overcome the fear and anxiety of the act before she could even leave her front walk. Her mother grew up in an age when flashing the ankle was considered scandalous. Women in trousers were still given a sidelong glance in mixed company. But there she stood on the street outside her house, the wind hardening her nipples and caressing her most private curves, and no one glanced at her even once. In a way it had been an experiment; it seemed likely that her invisibility would fade at the worst possible moment, and what moment was worse than standing in public without any clothes on?

Her theory failed, but she found herself emboldened to start walking. She stood among commuters at a street corner and no one even turned their head. Occasionally people would look up as she approached, but then they would check left and right before furrowing their brow and going back to what they were doing. It was an interesting revelation at how people can sense someone is nearby even without sight. They heard her footsteps, they became aware of her breathing, or her passage disturbed the air. Soon she was more comfortable going out in the nude than she was clothed. Dressing was armor, caking makeup on her face so it would be seen was literally a mask between her and the world, and she felt separated from everything that happened when she was seeable.

At the moment she was striding confidently through the Heraklion airdock with her shoulders back and her chin up, scanning the crowd for signs of the leatherjackets. Her eyesight had changed after she became permanently invisible; shapes were sometimes indistinct if she didn’t hold her head still. Sometimes right after she woke up the entire world was a blur of colors and abstract objects. She’d lived with it long enough that she could manage. She barely even remembered what it was like to see like everyone else, and her invisibility let her see far more than anyone else ever could.

She let herself into the airdock security office, slipping through when someone else held the door open a moment too long, and scanned the chalkboard hanging above the departures desk. When the dispatcher left, Ivy stepped behind the desk and scanned her paper.

“Ooh.”

“What is it, Myra?”

“Felt like someone just walked over my grave, that’s all.”

The reports were written in English, to Ivy’s relief, and she scanned each page until she found the name she was looking for. She memorized the information and went back to the door. She rapped her knuckles against the wood. The heavyset man who had spoken to Myra came to open the door, but he blocked her exit. He looked out, shrugged, and shut the door again. Before he could get far she knocked again. He sighed, opened the door, and stepped outside.

Ivy ducked out behind him. He scanned the area with his hands on his hips, searching for the prankster as Ivy ran back to the Skylarker.

Bodhi, a member of Captain Crook’s crew, was smoking by the gangplank. She whispered, “Back onboard,” as she passed him. He casually smashed his cigarette and walked up the ramp. He secured the door behind him, nervous and fumbling. Ivy smiled, knowing he was anxious about the fact he was standing in a small room with a naked woman. Even if he couldn’t see her he knew she was there and his body was betraying that knowledge. She decided there were more pressing concerns than teasing the poor boy, and she slipped into the uniform she’d borrowed when she came aboard in Athens.

Ivy tugged the collar of her turtleneck up over her nose, covered her eyes with goggles, and pulled a knit cap low on her forehead so she wouldn’t be a headless specter when she met with the others. She found them waiting for her in the passerelle standing in front of a map of the world: Araminta, Leola, and Beatrice. The four of them were the only chance Dorothy and Trafalgar had of getting out of their current predicament unscathed.

“News?” Araminta asked.

“They’re here. According to their slip request, they expect to be parked here for a week. The question is what they’re looking for.”

Beatrice said, “The Palace of Knossos. We know the Watershed Society is looking for an ancient stone. Dorothy has done a bit of research on the palace here, but she’s never had the time or patrons willing to fund a full excavation. If I was looking for some ancient stone, that’s where I would look.”

Araminta looked at the map. The scale was such that she couldn’t see much detail on the island, so she walked to her command chair and pressed a few buttons. There was a click behind the wall and the map receded, replaced by another closer view of the Mediterranean. She used the nib of her pen to point at Heraklion. “We’re here. Where is this palace?”

Beatrice reached out and moved the pen about a centimeter. “It’s right outside of the city. Heraklion probably grew from the caravans coming to see the king back in the day. The problem is that they’ll see us coming no matter how we approach. Air or land, they’ll see us. It used to be a fortress. They built the place to see intruders before they got close enough to cause problems.”

Leola said, “Do they have any idea we’re coming?”

Ivy said, “They knew you got away in Athens, and they knew about the Skylarker, but they were pretty confident the ship was just a standard passenger service. When I left their ship in Athens, they didn’t think you were worth much concern.”

Beatrice said, “I’ll see what I can put together to act as a distraction. It may have been a fortress thousands of years ago, but now it’s a ruin. A little magic could go a long way toward a successful raid.”

“Can you conceal the ship?” Araminta asked. “If we could just fly over the site without being seen...”

“Possibly,” Beatrice said, “but it would take all of my energy. I’d be wiped by the time we engaged the enemy. I’m assuming we’ll have to fight their captors.”

Leola nodded. “I’ve seen you fight. I would like to have you on the ground fighting alongside me more than I’d want magic tricks.”

Beatrice seemed to weigh the comment for any hidden insult before she nodded carefully. “Thank you, Leola.”

Ivy said, “I could go in first to see if the coast is clear...”

“You’d have no way of contacting us,” Araminta said. “Besides, it’s too dangerous. Wait. You can’t conjure us out of sight... could you make them see something that isn’t there? The airship will still be visible but if there was, say, the insignia of the Archaeological Advisory Committee? We can make them think we’re there to investigate reports of an unauthorized excavation. We fly in from the north to scare them while you and Leola come in from the south.”

Beatrice chewed her bottom lip as she considered the plan. “I believe that would be possible. The difficult thing will be projecting the image onto the gondola while you’re in the air and I’m on the ground. But I think it can be done.”

Ivy said, “I want to be on the ground, too. No telling when an invisible agent will come in handy.”

“Okay. Just make sure we know where you are if the bullets start flying.”

“My blood turns red as soon as it leaves my body.”

“Really.” Beatrice shrugged. “Okay. So that’s the plan. We’ll head out now. Give us thirty-five minutes to get into position before you come in guns blazing. I’ll do what I can to manifest the proper AAC credentials on the body of the airship, but if they start shooting...”

Araminta said, “We’ll maintain an altitude that makes it moot. Sounds like we have a plan, ladies. Do you want to take a few members of my crew with you?”

“No. The smaller our ground force is, the better.”

“Okay. Then let’s get this rescue underway.”

#

Portions of the corridor’s roof had crumbled away or been knocked down, letting in enough light that they didn’t need to use their torches. Dorothy paused at a plinth which held an ornate vase carved in the form of a lioness, its lips curled into something that looked almost like a smile. Dorothy touched the detail, brushing her fingertip along the smooth limestone. Orville came up beside her and frowned at it.

“Does this provide a clue to what we’re searching for?”

“Not as such. But it’s--”

Orville picked it up and hurled it against the wall. Dorothy closed her eyes so she wouldn’t see the priceless artifact shatter, then turned her glare on Orville.

“You’re a bastard.”

“And you are wasting time.” He shoved her shoulder to force her to continue. “We’re here for one item and everything else is decoration. We’re not interested in ridiculous baubles.”

Dorothy said, “It would serve you right if some other idiot who collects clay goddess figurines arrived here six months ago and destroyed your precious stone as a ridiculous bauble.” She pressed her lips together and grimaced, leaning forward to spit out whatever had suddenly appeared on her tongue. The first bat wriggled free, and then an entire swarm flooded forward. She threw herself against the stone wall, unable to scream as the colony of bats - dozens, hundreds of winged black vermin - flew forth and vanished into the shadows. Even as it was happening she knew Milena was to blame, but that did nothing to help her terror.

Finally the swarm ended. She clutched her chest and tried to catch her breath, panting and trembling at the sensation that was sure to bring her nightmares if she survived this ordeal. Orville leaned down and pinched her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes.

“Never forget you are my prisoner. If necessary I can hollow out your mind and let Milena drive you like a car. Do you want that?”

She could tell he wanted an answer, so she said, “No.”

“No what?”

“No... please.”

He grinned. “The word you’re looking for is ‘master.’”

Orville was suddenly pulled from her and slammed against the opposite wall in a single smooth motion. His eyes were wide with outrage, but Trafalgar ignored it as she pressed her forearm against his throat. Daniel pulled his gun, but Orville croaked at him to stop. Milena and Mircea both looked eager to jump in but neither of them had permission.

“You will not humiliate us for your amusement. You will not belittle those whose assistance you require. We are helping you because it is in our best interest, but there is a line you would be wise not to cross. You need the darkness in my mind. You need me to be your host. Very well. If you ever lay a hand on Lady Boone again, I will force your demented twins to put a bullet in my brain.”

Orville sneered, but Dorothy could see the threat hit home. “Fine.”

“Apologize to Lady Boone.”

He took a deep breath, but then he looked past Trafalgar’s shoulder. “I apologize, Lady Boone.”

She nodded, and Trafalgar let him go. He glared at her as he massaged his throat. “I will not forget that, Miss Trafalgar.”

She didn’t flinch. “You would do well to remember it, sir.”

He grunted and motioned them forward, preceding them into the darkness. Trafalgar offered Dorothy a hand, pulling her away from the wall. Daniel and the twins brought up the rear.

“Brava,” Dorothy said. “I shall have to think twice about crossing you in the future.”

Trafalgar said, “A silver lining to this debacle, at long last.”

Despite herself, Dorothy had to chuckle. “When we find this stone, he has to place it in your mouth in order for it to work. Right?”

“That seems to be how it worked last time.”

“Then when the time comes, I will do my damnedest to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Trafalgar said, “Hm. Does that mean we are no longer reluctant allies, Lady Boone?”

“It means...” She thought for a moment. “It means that when this is all said and done, I imagine you and I will have a markedly different relationship than we did before. And I’m not entirely certain that is a bad thing.”

“Nor am I.”

Ahead, Orville had stopped half in sun and half in shadow, bent forward slightly at the waist to examine a section of the wall. “Boone. Trafalgar. Look here.” He stepped back and pointed. “There is something here.”

Dorothy got closer and saw that there was indeed a seam in the brickwork. “Does anyone have a knife?” No one responded, and she rolled her eyes. “For heaven’s sake, either you want me to do my job or you don’t. I require the tools of my trade if I’m going to be the least bit successful. We don’t have time for you to be paranoid about every little thing. If you would like, you could stand wa-ay over there and skip the knife to me across the floor.”

Daniel stepped forward and held a knife out to her hilt-first.

“Thank you.” She inserted the blade into the seam and worked it back and forth. “There’s definitely some give here. Trafalgar, if you can try to find the other side?”

Trafalgar stepped forward and examined the wall. Within a minute she had found the other end of the blockade. Together they began muscling it free, grunting and straining against the stone. Sweat quickly began to drip down Dorothy’s face, and she saw it beading on Trafalgar’s brow and upper lip as well. She looked at the Weeks brothers and sighed.

“Would either of you gentlemen like to help?”

“Women’s sufferage, and all that.”

She smiled condescendingly at him, then grimaced as she returned her attention to moving the blockage. The slab finally came free, and Dorothy stepped out of the way so Trafalgar could slide it along the wall. Stale air flooded out and they all retreated a step. Dorothy and Trafalgar knew all too well the threat of dangerous spores that could be carried on that exhale. She untucked her ascot and shook it loose before bringing it up to wrap around the lower half of her face. When she saw Orville and Daniel watching her she sighed.

“I would suggest you take the same precautions, gentlemen.”

Daniel said, “We’ll be fine.”

Trafalgar masked herself with a handkerchief and stepped into the opening. There was a wide concrete lip just inside the door with a series of rough-hewn steps leading down. Dorothy turned her torch back on and held her hand out to see how far down the light reached. She could see a landing fifty yards down where the stairs turned to the east.

“To be honest,” Dorothy said to Trafalgar, “regardless of the circumstances, I can’t help being a little excited. This is my favorite part.”

Trafalgar smiled. “I think no less of you.”

“Good. So... shall we, into the abyss?”

“Might as well.”

Dorothy made sure her makeshift mask was securely in place, then held the torch out in front of her as she led the way down into the palace’s depths. The walls of the hidden stairwell were uncomfortably close. Though there was enough clearance that the stone didn’t scrape her shoulders Dorothy nonetheless felt the urge to turn sideways. Her feeling of claustrophobia, the sense of being completely enclosed, increased when they took the turn and could no longer see the entrance. The torchlight, which had been so brilliant up above, now seemed little better than a candle.

“How far down does it go?” Orville asked, and she thought she detected a touch of anxiety in his voice.

“Hard to say,” Dorothy said. “There’s another turn up ahead. It could go down for miles.” She’d never heard of such a thing, but there was no reason to calm his nerves.

Trafalgar said, “There’s a staircase in Lima with no end. It was built to entrap the king’s enemies. They discovered a hidden passage and knew it must lead somewhere important. So they began to descend, and eventually began to fear there was no bottom. Their greed forced them to continue onward. They had already spent so much time climbing down that they knew there had to be some reward. Down they went... into the bowels of the earth. Some say they are still walking.”

“Be silent,” Orville growled.

Dorothy bit her bottom lip and glanced over her shoulder. Trafalgar winked at her and Dorothy smiled back.

Unfortunately Orville’s discomfort was short-lived as they soon reached the base of the stairs. They were in a long and narrow room which stretched out to either side, one wall smooth limestone while the other was rough-hewn rock of the cavern. Dorothy approached the smooth wall and held the torch above her head to illuminate a carving directly ahead of the stairs. It depicted an axe with double blades standing above a Greek word.

“Labrys,” Dorothy said. “The labyrinth. My god.” She held the light out to the left, then to the right. “This is the labyrinth.”

“Significance?” Orville asked. The terror had faded from his voice and was replaced once again by impatient boredom.

Dorothy scoffed. “You need me to tell you the significance of finding the labyrinth? You truly are a child playing with toys in his sandbox, aren’t you?”

“Careful.”

She sighed. “The myth claims that King Minos had the labyrinth built to imprison his disfigured child, the Minotaur. I’ve always believed differently. And now that you’ve come along with your information about powerful ancient artifacts being hidden here...” She moved to the right so she could see a little further along the wall. “I believe the Minotaur was here long before Minos and was the island’s original ruler. Minos overthrew him and kept him in this prison. Or alternatively, the Minotaur anticipated his loss and retreated into the labyrinth with his riches so his opponent could not reach them.” She was breathing heavily. “This could be the discovery of a lifetime.”

“Take us to the center of the labyrinth,” Orville said.

Dorothy laughed. “You can’t be serious.”

Daniel took out his gun and aimed it at her head. Dorothy looked down the barrel and held her hands out to the side.

“Either I die here or I starve to death in a few days inside that maze. I prefer quick and mostly painless. This is the labyrinth, Mr. Weeks. This is the oldest trap known to mankind. It was built as a prison and the door was left open. Why? Because the prisoner would never find his way out. Even if I could somehow make it to the center of the maze and get your precious stone, we would never escape. Not in this lifetime, not in five lifetimes.”

Orville stepped closer to the wall. “But we’re so close. There must be something we can do. Some way we can... we can...”

“This is not a puzzle that was intended to be solved.”

Daniel grimaced and holstered his gun. “Perhaps not eight thousand years ago. But we have advantages King Minos did not.” He swept his coat aside and reached into his pocket. He fished out a small block of clay and a jumble of small wires. He crouched and wedged the clay against the base of the labyrinth wall. “Whoever built this maze didn’t anticipate the advent of gunpowder and explosives.”

Dorothy lunged at him. “You madman! You mustn’t...” Her legs shattered underneath her and she fell to the ground. She cried out in pain and surprise, then slapped her palm on the stone floor. “Call off your bloody psychic dogs! This imbecile is about to kill us all!”

“That man is my brother.”

“Then he will be guilty of fratricide as well as simple murder.” She pushed herself up, ignoring the psychic message that her legs were scattered around her in broken pieces. She stood and grabbed Daniel by the collar of his jacket and pulled him away from the wall. “Do you have any idea what an explosion in this confined space could do? Best case scenario, every wall remains standing but we are deafened if not obliterated by the blast. We are surrounded by stone on all sides, gentlemen, and our bodies are marshmallow compared to it.”

Orville said, “So your alternative is to simply surrender? Give up and return to the surface?”

Dorothy sighed and turned her torch to the labyrinth wall.

“Theseus,” Trafalgar said. “The king’s daughter gave him a ball of string so he could find his way out. She also gave him instructions from Daedalus, the builder of the labyrinth.” She tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. “Although if you’re correct and the maze was already here when Minos took control of the island, then any advice given by its purported builder would be false.”

“At this point I’m willing to take any advice, mythological or not.”

“Always forward, never left. Always down, never right.”

Dorothy looked at the wall again. “The only possible entrances are left or right.”

Trafalgar said, “Perhaps the riddle indicates there is no way out. If you have to choose wrongly simply to enter the labyrinth...”

“Perhaps.” Dorothy was emptying her pockets, noticing peripherally that her legs were miraculously once again intact. “We may not have a ball of string, but we certainly have the means to keep track of our progress. Coins, bullets, even knives so we can mark the walls as we pass.”

“Bullets?” Orville said. “Are you sure your intention isn’t simply to disarm us?”

Dorothy smiled sweetly. “I also said knives. If I try to get too clever you can always just stab me.”

He said, “And as a precaution, I will leave the Petric sisters out here to watch the exit, just in case you intend to circle around and leave us behind.” He looked at the bald women. “If either of them comes out of the labyrinth without me or Daniel with them, you know what to do.”

Milena grinned, showing a row of small white teeth. Dorothy sneered at her before she turned back to Orville. “Now then. If we’re all prepared, and if you’re truly determined to continue this folly... Mr. Weeks, I suggest you lead the way. Left or right?”

He bounced his hand so that the coins cupped in his palm would jingle as he considered which route to take. Finally he walked to the right. Dorothy and Trafalgar followed him with Daniel bringing up the rear. The sisters remained behind them, obviously anxious about being left behind in the staging area. Dorothy turned the torch back on and shone it over Orville’s shoulder to light the path ahead of him. The path was blocked by a door which he opened easily by placing his hands at shoulder-height and pushing.

A pungent smell greeted them as they stepped inside, standing in a cluster at the entrance. There was a light source somewhere, faint but bright enough that the torch was no longer an absolute necessity. Dorothy turned it off and stuck it into her belt to preserve the battery. The walls were a very pale blue, almost azure, and they seemed curiously inviting. She moved the light closer to the wall and watched as the beam bounced off thousands of small crystals that had grown embedded in the stone.

She had just opened her mouth to comment on how remarkable it was when the air was filled with a dull rumble. At first it sounded like a rockslide or underground thunder, more a feeling in their boots than a sound. Then it grew in texture, with an organic gurgling noise riding under the tremulous shudder. Dorothy saw the others scanning the path ahead of them, the narrow corridor that led into the labyrinth.

“What was that?” Orville spoke in a frightened whisper.

“I told you the myth,” Dorothy whispered, well aware that her voice carried some fear as well. “The labyrinth, for whatever reason it was built, served as the prison for...”

Orville spun to face her. He tried to conceal his fear with anger. “I bloody well know what you said, but that was eight millennia ago! How could any creature still be alive?”

Dorothy stepped past him and aimed her light the way they would have to go. “Humans have such a narrow view of time. The creature could have been hibernating, or it could have reproduced asexually. It may simply have an extraordinarily long lifespan. Whatever the reason, I think we must accept one thing as fact.” She swallowed as the roar diminished to a soft tremor in the stone. “I believe our presence here has woken the Minotaur.”