“This was what I dropped last night.”

“What is it?”

“Looks like a baton or wand of some kind,” Hanson said.

“Is this what you were looking for?”

Oscar wiped a dirt smudge from the implement. “One of many things, Heidi, one of many.”

“Should we keep searching?” Starkey said.

“Your work for now is done, everyone. I must have my liaison inspect this. If this is what I think it is, we’re one step closer. Come, let’s get back to the cars.”

While loading their equipment into the vehicles, a trespasser lurked behind the shrubbery. It stamped nearer to the cars and peeked through the jungle threshold. Black, feathered wings poked through areas of the leaves.

“Let’s head out,” Oscar said. “All of you return to the RV. Head back to the city and find somewhere to basecamp. Wait for me.”

Starkey tugged the door open. “How long do you think you’ll need?”

“At least two days. My friend lives in quite the remote location. I’ll call the minute I leave.”

“We’ll wait for your call then.”

The two cars started wheeling through the foliage, bumping and rocking over the wooded terrain. Behind them trailed the winged phantom as it hovered over the ground. It emitted a loud snarl that rang across the jungle, stabbing the ears of the unsuspecting crew.

“Whoa! What the hell was that?” Hanson said.

The car jerked sharply from his reaction. Heidi looked behind and saw their ghastly stalker flying beneath the trees overhead. “Oh my God!”

“What?” Starkey said anxiously.

A dark angel flew alongside them, shrieking. Hanson hit the accelerator to elude their pursuer while Oscar watched from behind, frantically slowing the vehicle so he trailed behind the chaos. Manius rummaged through the back cargo area and retrieved his rifle, then took aim at the beast and shot it. The bullet struck its ribcage and seeped into its icky, gooey flesh, the creature completely unhindered.

“It can’t be…” Oscar said.

The angel wailed loudly and caught Hanson, preoccupied steering the car. The vexing sound waves permeated his audile cavity, causing his head to swell and explode. Blood and brain matter burst across the air, showering his terrified colleagues.

“Shit! Take the wheel!” Manius shouted.

Starkey frantically jerked the wheel while the vehicle misaligned, albeit too late, and the car crashed headfirst into a broad tree trunk. They flew from the vehicle, forcing Oscar to slam his brakes. The angel swooped down again, thrashing at the others as they attempted to flee. Manius wildly aimed his rifle while following its erratic actions. Oscar readied his own gun and snuck along some trees, watching in awe. During the angel’s tirade, it flew over to the other car and started rifling through the cargo area.

It’s after something, Oscar thought. He crept closer to the vehicle, keeping his eye on the monster. It heard a branch snap, and looked up directly in line with Oscar. The intrepid hunter froze in place and stared into its volcanic red eyes. The angel rushed forth and snagged its fingers across Oscar’s midsection, yanking the cylindrical relic from his belt. Thrown off his feet, Oscar blindly took a shot at it. The angel ascended high into the sky and took off, leaving the horrified archaeologists to regroup.

“What in God’s name was that?” Starkey said, practically winded.

“What the fuck is going on?” Heidi screamed, yanking off her bloody lab coat. “We’ve almost gotten killed twice now because of you, Oscar!”

Val Hagen didn’t say anything for a moment, yet wore a contended smirk on his face. “Incredible,” he said to himself.

“Oscar? We have to get out of here,” Manius said, grabbing his arm.

“Did you see it? It knew exactly what it was looking for. They know.”

“I’m done with this,” Heidi said angrily. “When we get back to town I’m takin’ the first flight back home. I’m not dying for this.”

“Suit yourself, my lady. When I return to Norsden you’ll be compensated for your time.”

She gave him a hostile stare, and stomped back toward the vehicle.

“We’ll need a ride back to the RV,” Starkey said. He salvaged the remaining supplies from the wrecked car while Oscar hefted himself back into the other car and waited for them. He took out his phone and pulled up a picture of the ancient cylinder.

“Could it be? The beings he spoke of? Unfortunately I’ve hit a snag, however, I’m certain that piece is the item I’ve been looking for.”

The others remained silent during the brief aftermath, and upon gathering everything they could recover, they boarded the vehicle and drove off through the jungle. Heidi and Manius had their weapons ready, keeping vigilant eyes on the ground and sky. Starkey cupped a hand over his water bottle and rubbed off his dirty face. “Well, you certainly know how to keep these digs exciting, don’t you?”

“That is a skill you can’t learn in lecture,” Oscar said.

* * * * *

An overhead light came on in the living room of Tarik’s two-story brick house in Arondale, a northwestern city in the Matherland region of Gesnia. It flickered abruptly, and shorted out. “Ah, crap,” he said, trudging tiredly through the living room to the kitchen. He started brewing a pot of coffee, and opened the door to the front porch. Tarik walked to the side storage area and grabbed a box of light bulbs from a shelf, then went back inside to change the bulb. He saw Kori traipsing through the hall reading the myth book again, stubbing his toe in the wall as he walked nonchalantly to the living room.

“He either just woke up, or he’s been reading that damn thing all night,” Tarik said quietly. He finished changing the bulb while Kori sat down at the breakfast table, his big, blue eyes glued to the book. “So, big guy, ready to cook some breakfast? Kor?” Tarik walked over to the table and slowly pried the book from Kori’s hands, nearly jerking him out of his chair.

“Sorry Gramps. Yeah, sure. Could you make me a bowl of cereal?”

Tarik weaved his hands as if casting a spell. “Poof! You’re a bowl of cereal.”

Kori set his hands on his hips. “I wish you could do that for real!”

“Come on, I told you a man’s got to be self-sufficient. Your food’s not going to cook itself. Just like your clothes won’t fold themselves, and your butt won’t—”

“I get it, Gramps! So what’re we gonna make?”

Tarik handed the boy a skillet. “Crack us some eggs and I’ll chop some veggies. Make us a couple omelettes.” He chopped some peppers and onions, then checked on Kori’s progress. “Hey Kor, you like eating glass?”

“Huh? No.”

“Then I suggest you practice your egg-cracking skills. There’s shells in there.” Tarik took a spoon and fished out some of the shell bits.

“Aww man, sorry ‘bout that.”

“It’s okay, bud. You’ll have a million more chances to practice.”

Kori started to microwave some oats, and sat back down to his book. The microwave beeped, and he reached inside to retrieve the bowls. Clumps of steaming oats spattered all over the hot plate inside. “Aww come on!”

“What’s wrong?” Tarik said. “Whoa, looks like a war zone in there. You forget to check the power level again?”

Kori groaned. “Maybe.” He cleaned up the mess while Tarik set up their plates at the table.

“You know, I’m thrilled you’re so devoted to your studies, but I really think you should consider taking a break for a while. You know, experiment with other things.”

“Like what?”

“Well, learning to boil water would be an ideal starting point.” Kori made a face at him. “What I mean is try to find other hobbies that interest you. It’s okay to enjoy more than one thing in life.”

Kori shrugged. “I just wanna be smart.”

“You are, boy. You’re one-third your dad’s age and already three times smarter than him! I just think it’d be good for you to open yourself to other things. You like camping and cartoons, right? Well, you ever try rock-climbing, or drawing?”

“I’m only eight.”

“So? I wasn’t much older than you when I lived in the mountains. I was on my own for ten years, runnin’ around just like—”

“Why’d you stop?”

Tarik shook his head. “I’m just saying, it’s okay to have different interests. You can be good at a bunch of things. Promise me you’ll think about it?”

“Sure.”

“So listen, since I got today off, I got an idea. How’d you like to hit the museum later?”

“Really?”

“Yeah, maybe after we knock out a little workout at the gym.”

“Oh, man,” Kori said, his eyes rolling.

“What do you say, buddy? Just give it a shot. You said you wanted to get strong like your dad. What’re you afraid of?”

“Nothin’. Just not real good at it.”

Tarik began cutting his omelette. “That’s no biggie. Everyone starts out like that. Practice is how you get better, just like how you got so smart by reading a lot. Same principle. How ‘bout it? We can go light, just so you can get used to it again. We got a deal? One hour at the gym, then as long as you want at the museum?”

“Okay.”

“Thanks, buddy.” They resumed their breakfast, and afterward they started to clean up. “You should still be able to walk after we’re done,” Tarik said with a laugh.

Kori’s head jerked up. “Wait, what?”

* * * * *

Around mid-morning, Tarik and Kori half-completed their workout at the neighborhood gym. Tarik bench pressed while Kori curled a light dumbbell as he read his book in the other hand. Tarik hefted the barbell back onto the bench and walked over to Kori, whipping at him with his sweat towel. “Hey, remember our deal, Shorty. You need to stay focused.”

“Right.” Kori tossed the book into his bag and picked up the other dumbbell.

“Alright, form looks pretty good, big guy.” Tarik started working his shoulders with another set of dumbbells. “Remember Kor, you can always alternate body parts if you’re feelin’ tired. Try switching between an upper body part and a lower body part.”

“Got it.” Kori began doing some dumbbell deadlifts, grunting with each rep. “Man, too heavy.” He set down the fifteen-pound weights and tried ten-pound ones.

“Alright, nice work. We got about fifteen minutes to kill, let’s do some sparring,” Tarik said.

“Aww man, I hate that part!” Kori sluggishly followed Tarik to the other end of the gym and found a vacant arena. They put on their gloves and began to warm up.

“Lifting weights is only part of the battle; you have to apply what you learn in real life. No telling when you'll need to use it.” Tarik swept his leg over the mat and Kori jumped up, nearly tripping upon landing. He stumbled, caught himself, then swung around to kick Tarik’s leg. “There you go!”

They wove around one another, lightly jabbing and kicking, testing one another’s strengths. Eventually Kori ran out of steam, and took several hits. He collapsed on the mat, huffing for breath. “No more, Gramps. I’m too tired.”

Tarik pulled off his gloves and sat down with him. “You did pretty well after being out of it for a few months. Your body’s not as used to it. It’ll come back in no time though.”

Kori pushed up on his arms. “No way.”

“Why not?”

“‘Cause I’m never doin’ this again.”

Tarik held up a finger. “Never say never, Kor. Like I said, remember what you learn. You’ll thank me later.”

“Like, in fifty years?”

He slapped Kori on the back. “Sooner than you think, my boy. Good job.”

They left the gym and walked through the parking lot to the truck.

“Gramps, can you put me in the seat?”

Tarik laughed, and lifted Kori up into the seat. “Good, the soreness means the training’s working. How ‘bout we grab a couple burgers and hit the museum?” He pulled the car out of the lot and got onto the main roads.