which I have been told is a repurposed ancient temple, rescue my people as well as any others I might find, and cripple whatever is allowing them to kidnap people from across-” Alexander paused. He was going to say space and time, but decided to rephrase-”from normally safe places.”
“There are armed guards who are under some sort of magical compulsion. I don’t believe they are in control of their actions. My goal is to release them from whatever spell is holding them and use them as a second wave of assistance. We’ll figure out our next step from there,” Alexander finished.
“Yetis. Magical compulsion. Spells. Sir, I think you may have swallowed too much river water,” said Midshipman Rice.
“Incredulity will get you killed. It will make you hesitate when you should act. Magic is real enough. I told you to take things at face value, or you aren‘t going to make it home. Trust me,” Alexander said.
Much of the rest of the trip was silent. Half seen portions of mind bending trash from beyond grew less frequent. The tunnel began to get colder. Frost formed on the edges of the raft. The cave became a tunnel. Signs of ancient architectural structures were apparent. Alexander signaled the men to be silent as they floated into a vast underground reservoir. Mechanical pumping sounds thumped quietly in the dark.
The men began to paddle toward the pumping noise at Alexander’s direction. They turned out their lantern, relying on Alexander’s night vision to guide them. They maneuvered around vast pillars carved millennia ago as they made their way toward the now visible point of light near the pumping noise.
A platform had been built out of scavenged materials to hold several industrial pumps. Long power cords stretched from a small hole in the ceiling above providing power to the work lights zip tied to the scaffold. A single person dressed in ratty clothing was tending the pumps.
Alexander signaled the men to stop the raft behind a nearby pillar. It was big enough around to conceal the small rubber raft from view. He pressed the button on his goggles to activate his gill system and slipped into the water.
The water was cool and clear, far different from the transdimensional river. It was a small relief to not be swimming through trash from beyond the know world. Alexander came to the edge of the scaffolding and felt for the magic surrounding the enslaved worker. It felt to him like a string tied around the heart, connected to some distant web of whomever or whatever was giving the orders. The magic itself was incredibly simple. Alexander had seen some major mind control magic in his time. This was basic first year college grad school stuff-not at all what he was expecting.
Climbing out of the water without a sound, he slipped behind the worker, placed a hand over his mouth and grasped the spell with careful magic. He untied the string, but left it intact and connected to the rest of the network. With the spell in his hands he could see the entire structure of the sorcery. He made a series of rapid gestures and bound the spell to a fake mental signature.
“Quiet,” whispered Alexander to the now freed captive. “Do you know where you are and what has happened to you? Nod yes or no,” he said. The captive nodded yes.
“OK. I’m here with some friends to rescue everybody,” said Alexander. The freed captive relaxed a bit.
“I need information,” said Alexander as he removed his goggles. “I’m going to put these on you. The computer inside will walk you through what I need to know,” he said as he placed the goggles on the captive. He was going into shock, and Alexander didn’t have long.
Once the goggles were on his head, the AR expert system began a low level telepathic connection to gather information far quicker and more accurate than verbal communication could. After a few seconds, Alexander removed the goggles and placed them back on his head.
“I have to put you back under the spell, or they will know we’re here. I promise that everything will be OK,” said Alexander as he moved the thread from the fake mind back to the slave. He felt terrible doing it but stealth had to be maintained.
He slipped back into the water as the captive returned to work as if nothing had happened. He swam back to the raft and boarded as quietly as he left.
“How are they going to not know we were here?” asked Lieutenant Young.
“The goggles planted a post hypnotic suggestion to suppress the memory. What did I tell you about too many questions,” snapped Alexander.
“Sorry, Mr. Valtam. You must understand how out of our element we are,” said the Lieutenant.
“I do. You need to give me the benefit of the doubt. Now, more importantly, we have a partial layout of the temple, and a better idea of what is going on. Sir Waldron, my mechanical associate, has processed what information we have gleaned thus far. Sir Waldron, you have the floor,” said Alexander.
Sir Waldron stood on the floor of the raft between the four men and projected a three dimensional map of the Hyperborean temple.
“It’s only a partial map, I’m afraid,” said Sir Waldron. “This is based off of the memories of the poor chap working the pumps. He lacked access to the entire facility, but there are several interesting elements that it has revealed,” said the mechanical man. The three sailors were completely nonplussed by the robot, which didn’t surprise Alexander given their mode of travel.
Several images were projected alongside the map. A massive factory farm built in the lower level of the temple. Giant flat screen TVs running looping DVDs of Top Gear and Mythbusters in a great hall filled with lounging drunken Yetis. Humans of all stripes and cultures penned up and docile in darkened hallways. Piles of dead slaves frozen in the snow outside of the temple. A small group of young humans in modern clothing, seemingly uncontrolled, speaking to the Yetis on equal terms.
“I’ve processed the information and come to some startling conclusions,” said Sir Waldron. “First off, it seems that the Yeti are not alone in this endeavor. Human technologies have been applied to create a level of comfort the Yeti have never experienced. I am yet uncertain what the humans are receiving in return, but I believe them to be a cabal of magicians attempting to learn the secrets of long dead Hyperborea,” said Sir Waldron as he paced back and forth. “But I am also prone to wild conjecture, so take my assumptions on their motives with a grain of salt,” the robot added.
“It also appears that there are more slaves than initially thought. The farming activity appears highly technical in nature. They have most likely kidnapped experts in their respective fields in order to create an operation of this magnitude,” said Sir Waldron.
“Sir Waldron will be going with the three of you to act as tactical coordination and communication, as well as to provide real time mapping,” said Alexander. “I’ll be making my way here-” he said, pointing to a room on the map marked with a computer icon. “This is probably their command center. If it has what I’m looking for I should be able to do some very serious damage to their operation while simultaneously giving me the information about how to send everyone home,” he said.
“What about us?” asked Lieutenant Young.
“Avoid the guards and the Yetis, and make your way here-” he indicated a store room on the projected map. “The masters of this place have left a pile of fertilizer just lying around. They have also placed the motor pool in close proximity to the fertilizer storage. It’s like they’re asking us to blow up the entire place. Build a bomb and place it where Sir Waldron tells you. He’ll also help with the detonator; the tech is from my world. Can you handle that, gentlemen?” asked Alexander.
“Yes, Mr. Valtam, I believe we can,” said Lieutenant Young.
“What if we run across one of them Yetis?” asked Sterling.
“Aim for the eyes and face. They can take one hell of a beating before going down. Try not to be seen,” said Alexander. He hoped they wouldn’t have to tangle with any Yetis, but he wasn’t going to get his hopes up.
They rowed to the scaffold holding the pumps and secured the boat out of site beneath it. Alexander leapt from the boat to the scaffold. He was up the ladder to t
he hole in the ceiling before the other three were even out of the boat.
The next level was dark. Only a few lights illuminated the hallways that held the pipe system for the temple’s new facilities. Wires hung in loose bundles from the ceiling. Map information from the captive displayed in the corner of Alexander’s vision, along with sensory data collected from the sensor suite contained in his goggles.
He moved down the hallway and through several subbasements cluttered with industrial equipment. Shadows in the dim hallways allowed for enough camouflage from the oblivious ensorcelled slaves. The temperature grew much warmer the further up he went until it reached warm greenhouse conditions.
Farm Level One, as it was marked on his map, was the massive indoor factory farm indicated by the captives’ memories. Rows upon rows of fruits and vegetables were growing under growth lamps and careful conditions. Alexander saw state of the art processes and equipment in just a quick visual scan of the area. Hundreds of slaves toiled in the fields growing food for their savage vegetarian masters.
Alexander’s superhuman sense of smell also detected the pungent smell of liquor being distilled. It was no surprise-Yetis were known for their love of alcohol. It made sense that they would make it on site if there was someone to do it for them. Lap of luxury indeed,