Return To Primordial Island by Rick Poldark (namjoon book recommendations TXT) 📗

his belt and joined him, throwing his back into it. Peter saw the muscles in the Zehhaki’s arms and legs flex, and he was surprised when the statue actually moved.

Jason wheeled around, responding to the sound of the statue’s stone base grinding against the floor. “Brilliant!”

Peter and Ghenga pushed the statue until it swiveled, facing where Jason stood. After it wouldn’t swivel any more, Peter and Ghenga stopped pushing. Sweating, Peter wiped his brow with his forearm, while the enlightened Zehhaki didn’t appear fazed.

“Maybe to open the secret door we need to face all of the statues towards this area,” offered Jason. “Just like in the cave painting.”

Peter smiled. “I was thinking the exact same thing.”

They teamed up, swiveling the heavy stone statues one-by-one until they all faced the spot where the tracks ended. It was grueling work, and Peter’s back began to complain. When they finished moving the last statue into place, there was the grinding of stone and an area in the floor began to sink.

Peter, Jason, and Ghenga all ran up to the spot and saw the sinking stone form a staircase leading down.

Peter elbowed Jason. “You’re getting sloppy. The door was in the floor.”

Jason gawked in awe. “Amazing,” he gasped.

Peter made a sweeping gesture with his hand towards the sunken staircase. “Your turn.”

Jason nodded. He produced his flashlight, clicking it on, and unsheathed his knife. He cautiously descended the staircase one step at a time, shining the light down into the opening. Peter saw him vanish into the floor and decided to follow behind him. Ghenga followed behind Peter.

Peter ducked his head to avoid smacking his skull on the ceiling, and he found Jason standing in a room about seventy-five feet long and fifty feet wide. When he reached the bottom, he noticed a large stone altar occupying the middle of the room. In the closest, right corner sat a fire bowl with a good-sized flame dancing in it, illuminating the room. On the wall to the right were three cave paintings depicting different figures. In the furthest right corner lay the corpse of a large ape. In the furthest left corner stood a pedestal holding a small statue.

“What do you make of all this?” asked Jason, surveying the room. He switched his flashlight off to conserve the batteries, as the fire bowl produced enough light.

Ghenga stepped into the room. Peter stepped aside to make way for him when his right foot began to sink. Panicked, he lifted it, but the stone continued to sink several inches into the floor. “Oops.”

Jason turned to face him. He looked down at the sunken stone panel. “What did you do?”

The grinding below partially masked grinding from above as a stone wheel slid across the exit to the cavern above, sealing them inside the room.

Peter stood there looking sheepish. “I didn’t mean to…”

Ghenga looked around, his dewlap bobbing. The fire bowl reflected in his massive black eyes as the flame danced.

“Great,” said Jason. “Now we’re stuck.”

Ghenga produced his crystal orb and held it out with both clawed hands. Peter placed his palm on top of it. “Ghenga, it would appear we’re trapped.”

Ghenga swallowed several times. ‘We go forward.’

Chapter 14

Jason immediately strode to the opposite wall, running his fingers along it. “There’s a seam.” He traced it with his fingers. “There’s a secret door here.” He looked down at about waist level. He bent over, inspecting the stone. He blew dust out of a small hole. “This looks like…a keyhole.”

Peter inspected the cave paintings on the wall to the right. He carefully wiped the dust away with his hand, causing some of it to go airborne. He sneezed, suddenly and loudly, startling Ghenga, who recoiled. The painting in the middle clearly depicted the Simian King. The one to its right depicted a female, as featured with large, bare breasts and a less muscled body. The painting to the left depicted a smaller ape, lighter in color, clad in bamboo armor—likely a juvenile. It held what appeared to be a torch. Peter figured it was the fire of youth, or something like that.

He looked underneath the paintings. Directly below each was a small tablet representation of the painting above it held fast in crude metal brackets. Under each tablet was a keyhole. “I found three more keyholes,” said Peter, trying to tug the tablets free of their brackets. “They seem to unlock these tablets.”

Jason was now standing over the large ape-like corpse in the corner. Although its frame was large, its flesh had atrophied and its skin was taut from desiccation. “We have a dead body here.”

Peter’s head jerked in its direction. “Is it going to be a problem?”

Jason closed his eyes, focusing. The death orb illuminated under his shirt, casting an icy blue light. His eyes opened. “No, it’s dead, as in the not-moving variety.”

Peter turned to find Ghenga inspecting the altar in the center of the room. The Zehhaki was particularly interested in the massive hourglass sitting on top. He picked it up, shaking it, shifting the black sand sitting at the bottom. He made to turn it over, but Peter stopped him.

Ghenga’s body stiffened. Peter shook his head. “No, not yet.”

Ghenga placed the hourglass back onto the altar. He produced his crystal orb. Peter lay his right palm on it, re-establishing the neural link. “Not yet. Starting the timer may trigger something. I want to know everything we’re dealing with before we set anything in motion.”

Ghenga didn’t answer. Rather, he backed away, bowing slightly in a gesture of deference.

Peter clapped his hands, rubbing his palms together. “Okay, let’s think about this for a moment.”

Jason shot him a look.

Peter noticed. “What?”

“Oh God,” said Jason. “You’re actually enjoying this.”

Peter ignored the remark. He stepped back, surveying the room, his mind processing