Kaelynn expected more resistance in separating out their group for this first expedition. Obviously, every human would want to go down to the Worldgate, which would probably make Galena nervous about being left behind. Or worse, maybe they should be afraid of getting their ship stolen. It wouldn’t be so bad as being sold into slavery, but for Kaelynn the result would likely be just as deadly.
That wasn't what happened. They dropped almost all the way to the ground, low enough that they could extend a ramp from the cargo-bay and let her hobble out when the time came. It was only then that they had their first objection.
"I don't want to be the one to search this place," Janet declared. "Easy for all of you to dismiss what I read, but not so easy for me. How about you get me if it doesn't kill you?"
"Fine with me," Blake said. They didn't gather under the deck—with trees crowding close to the clearing and sounds of strange jungle creatures loud in their ears, watching the jungle around them seemed critically important.
Not that Kaelynn would be much use if anything happened. She wore her full rebreather, slung over a harness made of steel. It held up her tail at the same height as her legs—better than her usual vantage of a tank, but she was still shorter than anyone in the group. She'd found the best wheels she could for the biped, but they still relied on constant small adjustments in her tail-muscles, holding her body vertically so the harness could keep her upright.
As primitive as primitive came. Maybe her next model could use a gyroscope to keep itself upright, or even individual mechanical legs to let her walk instead of roll. But those things all took time, the one thing they didn't have.
My best hope probably won't come from anything I build. There's a song to make myself a pony, I just need to figure out the melody. And the words. Basically everything, really.
"I stay too," Galena declared, startling her back to reality. "I have heard stories of this place... Tenochtitlan. City of gold and gemstones. Treasures of the past. But curse to all those who try to rob it. Too many stories of creatures who didn't come back."
Blake's expression hardened. "And you're just mentioning this now?”
Galena shrugged, utterly unashamed. Like she wasn't even listening, really. "I didn't know for sure, never gone this far north. But it matches the stories. Strange stone, too tall buildings, overgrown. Stories say they seem abandoned, and they tempt the greedy with endless wealth. Really, they're guarded by a monster named... Ahuizotl—something. A strange beast, kin to nothing like him. Slew many who wished to carry off the wealth he guards."
Janet nodded. "That matches the books. He's called Ahuizotl in there. Though he isn't written like a guardian, more like a primordial evil, always trying to assemble some ancient device or relic. He's always stopped, but narrowly. Guarding sounds too noble. Either way, I'm staying here. I think you shouldn't go at all. but if something goes wrong, you might need a rescue. I've got tons of experience in the rescuing business."
She didn't elaborate. After a few seconds, Kaelynn broke the silence. "I want to go. I know it's probably not a good idea... traps and ruins or whatever. But we aren't trying to take anything. Maybe if this Ahuizotl is there, we can just tell him we're there to use the Worldgate and pass through without a fight."
Ryan shook his head once. He'd taken one of her favorite forms today, the hippogriff officer from Mount Aris. Granted, the swimming version of that creature was a little more fun to be around. But in terms of disguises, it was her favorite. That was probably why he wore it so often. "Doesn't seem smart to count on. If you go, I go, armed."
"Same," Jordan added, removing a dagger from somewhere—Kaelynn hadn't caught where. But she balanced it in a wing, with dexterity almost like a native. "Plan for the worst. Plus, no telling what we'll find on the other side. What's the map say about this one again?"
"Louisiana," Ryan said. "Didn't get more detailed about where. Given our luck it's probably some spooky cave near the center of the Earth. But maybe we'll get lucky."
"I was thinking alternate history where the south won the civil war," Jordan said flatly, as though her utterly absurd suggestion were perfectly natural. "But I like your idea better. Caves sound great, just no poison gas this time."
"You won't be a bat on that side. If it's a cave, you'll have to climb around on two legs like the rest of us."
"Two legs, how novel," Kaelyn muttered, wistful. "Do tell me what that's like." Of course, her equipment didn't have much sensitivity to volume. But it made her loud enough to hear, and that was something. "Guess the rest of us are going, then? Unless you want to wait up here."
Blake glanced briefly between Jordan and Galena, then shook his head. "I'm going. No weapons we've made so far can compete with fire if we have to. Unless you two birds can't hold down the fort while we're gone."
"Course we can," Galena began, but Janet spoke over her.
"Don't start buying into the lie. We're not birds, we're people."
There was little more debate to be had over the trip—despite all the tools they'd left behind on Earth, and all the exotic places they were equipped to go, they had almost none of it here. They were just supposed to be walking through some tunnels, after all.
Even so, it took about an hour before they were finally descending the ramp to the jungle floor. The passage was steep, enough that Kaelynn began accelerating towards the end, and she could barely stop herself. Even digging her forelegs deep into the dirt barely managed to finally bring her to a stop.
My legs just aren't strong enough for this. I'm not supposed to be carrying my own weight on the surface.
What she needed was to master the songs that would let her change back and forth between forms, the way the hippogriffs went from fins to feathers. Too bad she hadn't been able to make a single one of the songs do anything for her...
"I feel like I've been here before. Palenque?" Ryan was the first to step down off the ramp, scanning their surroundings with sharp bird-eyes. Kaelynn could see decently well with her mask, but she had no illusions about her abilities compared to the others. She was basically blind compared to the birds.
"Too big." Blake took a few steps up a nearby staircase. He had to strain to make it up each one, which promised all kinds of adventures for her. The wheels were built for that, to guide her up steps if she had to. But she still needed the strength from her forelegs to make it happen. "This place was built by giants."
Kaelynn took in the details of the nearby structures—all made of the same black stone, partially swallowed by the jungle. Most were just one story, but there was a ball-court nearby attached to a set of stands, then a pyramid that was even larger.
"Must be ceremonial," Kaelynn suggested. "Like the bathhouse in Paris. This portal had traffic once. And maybe a guardian too, which would make it like Paris in another way."
"It might," Blake agreed. "We should keep the chat to a minimum. Feels like we're being watched already."
Kaelynn couldn’t see any sign of that—there were plenty of animal eyes watching from the jungle. But they were adorable jungle cats, not the dangerous stuff. That was called an ocelot, wasn't it? Nothing that cute could be dangerous.
"Help me get her down the stairs, Blake," Ryan said, as they approached the foot of the pyramid. They needed no conversation to decide on that particular destination. If there was anything magical happening here, it would obviously be under the giant pyramid.
Blake nodded, taking hold near Kaelynn's shoulders. She squirmed at the pressure, but didn't argue. The path downward was just about as uncomfortable as she might've expected, dragged bumping and jerking over steps that were way too big. Ordinarily the high ceilings would've made a space feel luxurious and well planned. But here, it just seemed like they were wandering through a building constructed by aliens.
The stairs opened into a vast chamber, even more absurdly tall than the path inward so far. Strange sculptures lined the walls, in a style that was as eerily reminiscent as everything else they'd encountered so far. Stone figures with crossed legs and flat faces, grinning dragon heads, great birds and warriors wearing strange headdresses.
"Hold on a minute." Ryan let go of her shoulder, wandering off a few steps and gesturing at the wall. "Look at this. Does this face look like a horse to you?"
"No..." Kaelynn followed, wheels squeaking over the stone floor. But she didn't let anyone stop her. At least this room was mostly flat, without any sign of traps placed to kill them. "It doesn't look like... wait." She stopped beside it, looking up. The stone figure was quite a bit taller than any of them, even where Galena would've stood. But the face was unmistakable.
Human, or close to it. The figure rested on crossed legs that might've ended in hooves like a satyr, or maybe it just sat on its knees. Another warrior figure had a great set of feathery wings, but might've just been wearing the feathers on outstretched arms.
"That's not how they work," Jordan said, voice desperate. "We've seen Worldgates. You don't get to come here looking like that. You look like us."
Kaelynn waited long enough for Blake to power on one of their cameras for a brief recording, then shut it down again. They'd taken to doing that more and more lately as their batteries neared full depletion—keep things fully shut down at all times, and only power them on briefly for a few seconds of use. It was what she'd done to her phone when they arrived on that mountain peak, and what she hoped to do again in a few hours. Maybe this time with a more favorable result.
They continued through another doorway, into a room that glittered even in the dimly reflected light from Blake's glowing horn.
Kaelynn nearly bumped into her friends on her way in, who had stopped just through the narrow arch. She opened her mouth to shout some frustrated expletive, then trailed off.
It was a treasure room, like something right out of an Indiana Jones movie. Gold artifacts were arranged in piles, draped across stone models, or settled neatly on shelves. Scepters, bracelets, hair ties, glittering rings...
"Are these real?" Ryan asked, nudging one ring with a claw. He lifted it up into the air, then bit down on the edge. His eyes widened at the result, and he dropped it. "Oh God."
The treasure room had a single clear hallway running through it, all the way to another stairwell leading down. It was maybe fifty feet to cross, with a path of intricately carved stone the whole way.
"Remember why we're here," Jordan said. "We aren't going to take anything, remember? Our treasure is a way home."
"You say that," Ryan snapped, spinning on her in a blur. "But you don't know how much gold is worth. You know how much a kilogram bracelet or headdress would buy, Jordan? Just one of these things, and I'd be set for a decade. Or maybe there's no portal—think of the upgrades we could buy for the Bright Hawk. We could commission a foundry to make our own cannons. We could hire a skilled crew of mercenaries!"
"Or," said another voice. "Your greed could be your undoing, as it has been to all who defiled this tomb before you."
Kaelynn couldn't turn, not with any speed. She rotated painfully to face into the darkness, where Blake's horn outlined only a vague shape, hidden among the treasure. It was leonine in suggestion, though the glittering reflection of eyes didn't look right. All the way down on that sharpened jaw, evolutionarily absurd. But that wouldn't be the first impossible thing they'd encountered thus far.
The figure shook itself free of the gold and gemstones, scattering unimaginable wealth with disinterest. It advanced on them, towering over Blake. Taller than a human being would've stood, though not by much.
"If you thought you could escape the notice of this tomb's protectors, perhaps you shouldn't have come on such a large airship, hmm? The whole jungle saw you. Now that I know of your intentions, there can be no doubt of what happens next."