Dark Tales Of Lost Civilizations (21 page)

“Why does he think that?”

“Warrior code, mate. Haguyu has researched warrior code for years. It would not be uncommon, almost expected, for Lieutenant Chagatai to have sacrificed himself near the resting place of Genghis, to serve and protect him in the afterlife.”

“I see,” Aaron frowned. “Imagine the stories Chagatai could have told, serving so close to the villain Genghis.”

“Shh. You want to be lynched? Genghis is a war hero to the Mongols.”

“He pillaged and murdered most of Asia.”

“Genghis was a symbol of power and the potential of the northern barbarians to mobilize and conquer. He brought Mongolia together. Vile as the bloke might have been, these folks revere him. Watch your tongue around here, mate.”

“Sorry.”

“The Golden Horde always let one live to witness and spread the news they were to be feared.”

“Effective advertising,” Aaron quivered.

Duncan drew the tour to a halt in front of a smaller tent at the end of the row. “For decades, Haguyu has followed a trail of corpses south by southwest from Karakorum. His examinations have dated each of the findings back to the early thirteenth century.”

“Genghis’s funeral procession…”

“Exactly right, mate. He’s mapped out the pattern and followed the trail for hundreds of kilometers. His mantra has been that if he could find Chagatai, he could find the Khan himself.”

“So if he keeps following the trail of bodies, eventually he will find the Lieutenant.”

“Look around you, mate.” Duncan motioned to the mountains and desert. “If you’re travelling southwest, does this not look like a dead end?”

“I suppose.”

Duncan disappeared through the nearest tent door. Aaron followed. Inside, a blanket draped over an uneven object in the ‘room’ center. Duncan tugged at the far side of the sheath, revealing a decayed skull. Browned patches of flesh and tissue covered the cheeks, chin and ears. The jawbone remained intact.

“Aaron, I’d like you to meet Lieutenant Chagatai.”

Aaron’s mouth fell to a gape. He removed his baseball cap, wiped sweat from his forehead, and repositioned the cap off center. “What? Where was he? How do we know this is him? Why isn’t he in a museum somewhere?”

Duncan returned the blanket gently over the corpse. “Easy, mate. If we get him to a museum, then every pig’s arse search team will flock to our side.”

“I thought Haguyu wanted all the help he could?”

“Oh he does. But he also wants credit for the find. And the bloke deserves it really. Stef has already sent off a sample and his DNA matches a collection of corpses found near the remains of a village in northeast Kazakhstan.”

Aaron looked from the covered body to the Australian, “His family.”

“Spot on, mate. Slaughtered by his own blade at the command of the Khan. This body was found at the bottom of the nearby lake.”

“In the lake? Why?”

“If Chagatai was the last soldier standing, and had intentions of offing himself, he likely could not have buried himself, now could he?” Duncan flipped back the opposite end of the blanket. The sight of decayed foot bones churned Aaron’s stomach. Through the center of the right foot, a clean but narrow penetration resembled the size of a coin slot to a vending machine. Duncan directed his attention to the fracture. “See there? Chagatai did not want his body found, so he swam to the bottom of the lake, drew his sword, and drove it through his foot into the rocks and deadwood.”

“His body would not be able to float. A brilliant suicide,” Aaron marveled.

“Riding with the Golden Horde for most of his life, Chagatai knew a thing or two about dead bodies. Over time the sword rusted and broke. His buoyancy had been long gone by that time of course. But the corpse remained in good condition for being down there so long.”

Aaron scratched his nape, speechless.

“I know it’s a lot to take in.”

“It’s unbelievable.”

“Very believable, mate. And quite incredible I’d say.” Duncan escorted Aaron from the tent to the edge of the dig site. Laborers worked to the rhythm of a half-dozen spades. Qachi supervised, barking commands more than making use of his own shovel. Duncan continued, “Since Chagatai was discovered, there’s been revitalized energy. These men are native volunteers, not slaves as you might think with Qachi over there spittin’ the dummy.”

Aaron did not anticipate a language barrier from the only other person at camp that spoke English as a first language. “Duncan, what’s your role around here?”

“The Archaeological Foundation of Australia offered me a grant to come and assist in the research. To the group, I’m the cook.”

Aaron chuckled, “That’s assisting research?”

“The team works hard. They got to eat. I was told when I got here to help out as I could. They think Aussie cuisine is exotic.”

“Is it?”

“Next to Mongolian cuisine?”

They exchanged a smirk.

Aaron scanned the scene. “There’s only manual digging here? Where’s the bulldozers?”

“Kidding right? We’re hours from what even the
locals
consider civilization.”

Aaron reached for his cell phone, tapping and sliding his finger across the screen.
Still works out here. Stef must have some high powered satellite equipment.
Digital blips were drowned out by Qachi, pointing and shouting amongst the laborers.

“Why do the volunteers put up with Qachi?” Aaron asked.

“Haguyu funds the operation, which means free meals for the work staff. Qachi throws his weight around because he’s the son of the boss. He hasn’t been here long… Haguyu dragged him here for an extra set of hands, because he’s close.”

“Dragged him here?”

“He’s more of a thug than an archaeologist. Doesn’t quite have the passion, knowledge, or the delicate hand for this sort of thing. He only works hard so his work can be completed sooner and he can go home.”

Aaron switched his attention from Duncan to the smart phone.

“What’re you doin’, mate?”

“I found a cell phone application on the flight. It records speech from different languages and translates it to English on the screen.”

“Pig’s arse, that’s something.”

The pudgiest of the diggers yelled excitedly in Mongolian dialect. Laborers congregated around him.

Duncan observed over Aaron’s shoulder. Black text on white backdrop replaced the hourglass cursor, translating the laborer’s words. ‘
Look. Something here.’

Duncan patted Aaron’s shoulder. “Let’s go.”

Haguyu rushed from the large tent at an impressive speed for someone of his years. Stef accompanied, toting a large camera. Duncan and Aaron joined them on the high ground. Qachi wrestled his way to the front of the laborers, clawing at dirt like a dog intent on burying a bone. An off-white bulb made way to a pair of long, narrow adjoining bones.

Stef spoke in Mongolian, directed at Qachi. She mimed a motion of sliding something onto her hand.

Qachi paid no heed and dug bare-handed, until attaining a two-handed grasp on the long bone.

“It looks like a knee,” Aaron said.

Stef repeated the instruction to Qachi. Aaron’s phone displayed ‘
gloves.’

Qachi secured his footing and pulled back with harsh force.

The foursome observing from the high ground protested in unison. “Qachi!”

A single cracking sound freed Qachi’s prize. He fell into the workers, a dislodged upper leg in his hands.

Stef held a hand over her eyes. Haguyu shook his head. Duncan turned to Aaron, “After nearly eight hundred years, the Mongol people still aren’t known for gentle demeanors.”

Qachi presented the leg bone to his father. No one spoke. All eyes watched as Haguyu stroked his Fu Manchu, perusing the size and condition of the leg. He turned to Stef, spoke in his native tongue, and Stef followed Qachi into the large tent with the disembodied leg. The leader instructed the laborers to orchestrate efforts around the newest discovery. Duncan made for the pit. Haguyu held an arm to halt him.

“Not you. Food.”

Duncan bowed and dismissed himself. Haguyu lifted the rim of Aaron’s Royals cap with his index finger. “You dig,” the elder instructed.

Qachi joined Aaron in the pit. Aaron felt alone amidst the chatter of the Mongol natives. He thought to check his cell phone translator program, but did not want to spark Qachi’s curiosity.

First were the hips and other leg, then the upper body of the specimen was exhumed. Stef came and went, snapping photographs with every pass through. Qachi turned sickeningly pleasant in Stef’s presence, only to resume sternness with her departure. Aaron expected a recess after the corpse had been unearthed, but Qachi demanded the diggers continue and glared every time Aaron paused to stretch or wipe his forehead. The smell of cooked meat taunted him for what seemed like hours, and he breathed relief when Duncan finally made the announcement to eat.

Dinner consisted of boiled potatoes and an unidentified spiced meat, grilled “on the barbie.”
Duncan’s culinary skills weren’t half bad.
He hoped meal time would provide opportunity to mingle with Stef, but she attained a minimal serving, flashed an uncomfortable smile at Aaron
(Was I staring?)
and returned to her examinations in the large tent. Haguyu indicated the radius he wanted excavated. Duncan stopped to eat only after all had been served. Aaron ate quickly and thought he’d occupy the last of his meal break small talking with Stef. A hand caught his shoulder near the entrance to the large tent, and Qachi guided Aaron back to his shovel.

Aaron dug, slowed by a full stomach. Marinade across Qachi’s goatee became a source of amusement for Aaron and the other volunteers. In a matter of minutes, Qachi’s spade stopped inches deep with a
clunk.
His brown eyes grew wide and he waved Aaron over.

A second corpse so close by, exactly what everyone had hoped. The mass grave of the funeral procession!

“Think it’s the slaves?” Aaron asked as Duncan offered a hand.

“Could be the soldiers too, mate.”

“Or both.” Stef appeared, speaking from behind a camera.

“The soldiers would not have been buried with the slaves,” Aaron protested. “They were a prestigious class.”

“Chagatai alone buried them,” Duncan said. “He could have put them all together out of convenience.”

“An elite soldier would not have been that disrespectful.”

“He killed his own family. Don’t think the bloke cared much for respect.”

Within an hour, the team revealed the top half of another skeleton. A larger bone already identifiable as a horse skull lay even deeper. Haguyu pushed the team onward into dusk, instructed Stef to prop spotlights for as long as the generator would allow, and all hands worked into the night hours.

By eleven, Aaron was ready to collapse. Duncan agreed to share his tent, but when he admitted to sleeping ‘in the nick,’ Aaron decided to go for a walk. He wandered the handful of dormitory tents until spotting Stef’s silhouette across the slant of cloth.
She’s still up.

Aaron adjusted his cell phone before poking his head through the draping entry. “Hello.”

“No sleep for you?” Stef kneeled by a battery operated lantern-shaped flashlight. She lowered an old book, unimpressed with the interruption.

“No one warned me Duncan sleeps ‘in the nick’.”

Stef tilted her head.

“He’s naked. It’s a bit awkward.”

She returned to the book.

“What are you reading?”

“I study about Sword of Khan. Are you excited for discovery today? You come at good time.”

Her thick accent and broken sentences were adorable. He had never met anyone from Poland. Stef’s smooth, porcelain skin contrasted her dark lashes.
If they’re all this beautiful in Poland, I know where my next vacation will be,
he thought.

“Why you stare?” Stef blushed.

Dammit. Again.
“Sorry, yes I am very excited. What does your book say about the Sword?”

“Book do not say. Book do not talk.”

Aaron felt like Duncan, with nuances of his language missing his target. “Sorry, what does the book read?”

Stef giggled. “I made a joke, silly.”

“Oh.” He smiled. She returned one.

“People believe Sword have great powers. It can hold a soul. Made from metal of a meteor.”

“Do you believe the Sword has special powers?”

“No,” she giggled, “It is legend. Only rumor. But Sword could be useful for study. Blood on Sword could tell a lot.”

“Good point,” Aaron said, “It could potentially have DNA traces of people all across Asia.”

“Yes.” Stef beamed.
My God, even her teeth are flawless.

“Do you believe it was made from a meteor?”

“Maybe yes. Maybe no. If yes, could be valuable to chemistry.”

“New elements for the periodic chart, I hadn’t thought of that.”
Maybe the Sword was radioactive. Maybe it strengthened Genghis or poisoned its victims. Maybe it glowed in the dark or shot fireballs…
Aaron’s imagination answered far-fetched possibilities,
why not?

“It would be honor to take first photos of Sword to share with world. A dream for me,” she added.

Aaron shook his head in agreement. “Oh definitely. You’d be famous.”

She again showed Aaron her teeth.
Perfect teeth.

“You speak English good.”

She rolled her eyes, “Well. I speak well. Not good.”

“See what I mean? You speak better than I do, and it’s my only language! And you speak Mongolian too!” He retrieved his cell phone and held it at arm’s length. “May I?”

“May what?”

A flash of light illuminated Stef. The cell phone mimicked a sound of an instant camera.

A crease formed between her eyes, “Why?”

“Look,” Aaron spun the screen to face her. “When I said you should be on the other side of the camera, I meant it.”

“Flirt.” She reddened with embarrassment.