The moon was full and rode high in the star-specked sky as Don slipped out of his quarters and crossed the courtyard silently and swiftly to the entrance. He wore only a warrior's loin-cloth and sandals, with a short stabbing sword slung on his hip. He opened the door, and sidled along the passageway which led him to the main barracks. Yaotl sneaked out of his quarters and followed him.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtu3F1HNWRw
All was silent as Don hurried across the main courtyard to the gates at the far end. Yaotl stayed in the shadow of the barrack-room walls while he stalked Don, who went out onto the deserted streets and along the broad avenue which led to the pyramid and, behind it, the garden where Dr. Smith waited impatiently. Keeping his distance, Yaotl followed.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDK0b0H4uX5
Don reached the door in the garden wall, but before he opened it he glanced up and down the avenue. Yaotl ducked into the shadows of the pyramid and pressed himself against the side. Don stepped into the garden and came face to face with Dr. Smith.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39p5vVfyTO
"I was beginning to worry about you, West," he muttered.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHg6sbxto0R
"I waited until the coast would be clear," Don murmured.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX1uEJDr0x6
"So no one saw you," Dr. Smith kept his voice down.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIoFy0vOprv
"No," Don replied softly.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqLNqsBHPnT
"There's no one in the garden, either," Dr. Smith hissed.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE80JBDnQDb
"Then why are we whispering?" Don asked out loud.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCKMSeZ7c5o
"Quite right, dear boy. Quite right," Dr. Smith replied, and led Don to the back wall, pulled aside the bougainvillea and showed him the carved snake on the stone. "I've tried to move it, but it didn't budge an inch," Dr. Smith said.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCJDpH2yJbM
"Let me have a try." Don squatted down in front of the stone, unsheathed his stabbing sword and scraped the surrounds of the stone with the tip. "Hardened clay," he said. Some of the chippings came away, and he thrust the sword blade in deeper and deeper until it was up to the hilt. Then he began sawing away at the clay. As he did he felt the stone give way. "You're right, Dr. Smith, look, the edges are beveled so you can get a grip on them." He showed Dr. Smith the slanted sides. "But it'll take a few minutes to clear it."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrRRCXMKyPx
"We're not pressed for time, dear boy---not yet," Dr. Smith replied.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYhcNu0T7QX
Yaotl watched the whole operation with great interest from behind a shrub.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYkSjt5wyX9
When Don had cleaned all the clay from around the stone, he could just manage to grip the beveled sides with his fingertips. He put the sword back into its sheath and glanced up at Dr. Smith.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmtq4gFxos
"Here goes," he said, squeezing his fingertips against both sides as he tried to pull the stone towards him.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBOK1gpQ1hz
To his surprise it slid out easily and he could soon put his hands underneath it. "No wonder," he remarked. "It's greased." And he lifted out the stone and laid it on the ground. He peered into the hole. "It looks like a manhole to a tunnel, but I can't see very well."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjy5JkN6aw
Dr. Smith took the pencil torch from his breast pocket and handed it to Don. "Use that," he said.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmtSwdnGSN6
Don shone the torch into the hole and explained that there was a six-food drop to the bottom of the tunnel which seemed to be about three feet high but handholds had been gouged into the stones so that one could get back up.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwsTJ7Joawy
Yaotl had been on the point of challenging them, but the torch had frightened him, so he stayed hidden.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1FjlVJ3sCf
"You stand guard, West," Dr. Smith said as Don wriggled backwards out of the hole.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB4ylime40K
"No, Dr. Smith, you stand guard. I'll go in."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡufu4pld2bl
"Then both of us will go," Dr. Smith insisted.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ30bsldkgsR
Don grinned. "You're hardly dressed for a speleological crawl," he observed as he handed the torch to Dr. Smith.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLQnjrxZwtz
Instinctively, Yaotl cowered back behind the bushes, wondering what magic Don possessed to be able to make light without fire.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWPCHnhqlN
Don turned around and slid, feet first, into the hole. Reaching the bottom of the tunnel would mean about a two-foot drop once he released the outside of the hole, as if the greased lining would not allow him to hold on.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjZzVXAb92C
"If all goes well, Dr. Smith," he said cheerfully, "I'll meet you at the garden gate again."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPzyCr9MEVY
"Good luck, West," Dr. Smith replied as Don let go and dropped from sight.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiEy6kwazm5
As he hit the bottom of the tunnel his feet shot out from under him and he grabbed the handholds to keep his balance.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYWaRiQj9xE
"Here's the torch. Catch," Dr. Smith called and threw it into the hole.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmgLLD1PaW
Don grabbed it and shone the light first in one direction and then in the other. The base and sides of the tunnel were square but the top was vaulted. One way was about ten feet long and ended at what seemed to be a wall. In the other direction the tunnel stretched beyond the range of the torch toward the temple. Don crouched to enter the tunnel but the bottom was too slippery so he got down on all fours realizing that, joking aside, he really was in for a time-consuming speleological crawl.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy94BMw5yHm
With the lit torch clamped between his teeth and protruding from his mouth, Don made his way along the tunnel.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8dmMmfPIeS
Dr. Smith watched as the light reflected off the walls faded, until it disappeared altogether. Having regained his courage now that Don's magic light had gone, Yaotl watched Dr. Smith as he bent down to examine the stone. He tried to lift it but it was too heavy. Then he noticed the two handles hewn in the back and realized that it could be slid into place from the inside, convincing him that he had not sent Don off on a wild goose chase.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡad0fVqn2lO
Silently Yaotl crept away towards the garden door which he opened and slammed shut. Dr. Smith heard the noise and re-arranged the bougainvillea, but part of the stone stayed visible. Then he sauntered away along the path. Yaotl selected one that would enable him to intercept Dr. Smith. He wandered along it, admiring the night sky. When he met Dr. Smith he smiled. "I greet the aged servant of Nenetl." He bowed. "It is a pleasant night to walk abroad."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg5sNn7Ckg0
"Indeed it is. I couldn't sleep so I thought a stroll in the garden would be agreeable," Dr. Smith replied.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6H49dPePz7
"We are well met," Yaotl said, "for I would talk to you about Don, with whom I must soon dispute the command of our armies." He walked down the path Dr. Smith had come along, making sure that he was on the wall side.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFo3NSTRWia
"Oh, yes?" Dr. Smith was obliged to turn back.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9oeHRs0gjn
"I do not believe I can defeat him," Yaotl admitted, "for as the servant of Nenetl, he has powers of which I know nothing."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvRDAzICtgr
"True," Dr. Smith concurred, glancing at the partially visible stone out of the corner of his eye.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Aav8j3OLN
"Thus we are unfairly matched in any contest," Yaotl stated.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCDXnY4Xp3
"Inevitably, I would suppose."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMt7LwbR3m5
"Then what am I to do? Of all Aztec warriors, I am the most fit to command." He edged his way towards the tone. "I have proved myself time and again, but I am no match for the servant of a God."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Zgav2qRjg
Dr. Smith took Yaotl by the arm and tried to steer him away from the stone. "What you say is true." Dr. Smith tugged at him gently. "And I shall ask Nenetl to demand that Don renounces his role as a Chosen Warrior."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK6W31L6BMi
"You would do that for me?!" Yaotl exclaimed and, breaking away from the Doctor's grip, stepped backwards onto the stone. "Ouch!" he cried.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2tVCsrSgbi
"What's the matter?" Dr. Smith tried to look startled.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHXcIgcKun
Yaotl swept the bougainvillea aside revealing both the stone and the hole. "What negligence is this?" he demanded. "The stone must be replaced."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1flxh073KE
"I'm sure that whoever purloined it did so for a very good reason," Dr. Smith said and suggested they left it where it was.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwhn1HUmi9J
"But this part of the garden will be ruined!" Yaotl protested.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpaiOq4YZ7Z
"Why should that be?" Dr. Smith asked.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmk1GzC0cKN
"There is a tunnel which is used to irrigate the garden. My father's father built it."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBN3heymFCy
"I am aware of that," Dr. Smith remarked dryly.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk7ZS81gJ3S
"This entrance was made so that the tunnel could be inspected and cleaned from time to time," Yaotl explained. "But if the stone is not put back the next time the sluicegate is opened the water will pour out and flood this area. No, it must be replaced." Yaotl picked it up, slid it back into the wall and then tapped all around the edges with the heel of his fist to ensure that the stone was firmly in. He stood up and smiled at Dr. Smith. "Forgive my insistence, but I am proud of all that my father's father did."387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ63GTrPPTsU
"You have good reason to be," Dr. Smith replied.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgELYsOLq0Q
"You will speak on my behalf to Nenetl?" the Chosen Warrior asked.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfDHBwQTBbK
"Of course, of course. I have given you my word," Dr.Smith sounded sardonic.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcDjjY9GCzV
"Then I shall bid you a peaceful night," Yaotl said, bowed, and strode away towards the garden door.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAb5z796gCo
Dr. Smith watched and waited until Yaotl had gone outside, then he tried to pry out the stone but he didn't have the strength. If I am wrong and it is only a tunnel, at least Don can push the stone out from the inside, he thought, but Yaotl's sudden appearance troubled him nonetheless.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ahfQZI3on
As soon has he was outside the garden, Yaotl did not walk towards the pyramid but went in the opposite direction. He came to the back wall which he followed until he reached the reservoir and the sluicegate. He chuckled as he released it, letting the water cascade into the tunnel.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEXh60kJNqf
"Now use your magic to save yourself, Don," he said and walked away.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsfDGtK0sra
The sound Dr. Smith heard was a whispered gurgling, but he knew exactly what it was. "West!" he cried out in horror, and ran towards the garden door, knowing full well that it was a futile gesture as no one would have the strength to close the sluicegate against the water pressure until the reservoir was almost empty.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMw0mwgUTSt
Don could not see the end of the tunnel when he had the first indication of trouble. It was a breeze coming from behind him which built quickly into a gust of wind and then he heard the water hissing and gurgling as it rushed towards him. Suddenly the water hit him and threw him off balance. "Go with it," he shouted to himself, "while there's still air," and straightening out he began swimming desperately with the building wall of water.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzmoghMYmhU
It had reached the height of the sides and had begun to fill the vaulted top before Don saw the wall at the end. It was solid. Lifting his head he shone the torch on the top looking for a trapdoor or a vertical shaft that would give him a chance to escape. There was none. The water level was about two inches from the highest point of the vault and still rising when Don touched the wall. He took the torch from his mouth, put his head back and gulped in two deep breaths of air, the last, he believed, of his life. He put his feet down to touch the tunnel's bottom and found that he could stand up straight. Although the tunnel was full, water still swirled past his feet. Completely underwater he reached down and touched the opening of a second lower tunnel. If I'm to die, I'll die finding out, Don thought and crouched down to force himself into it.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Hwjr5fKLO
He clawed his way along. His lungs were bursting as he reached the end and shot up to the surface in a small chamber with plenty of airspace. Just beneath the surface of the water there was a ledge against one wall. Don grabbed hold of it, gasping for air, then hauled himself up onto it. He shone the light onto the water: it had stopped rising. He played the torch on the ceiling and saw a three-foot square shaft directly above his head. On two opposing walls were nine-inch oblong stones projecting into the shaft and staggered at three-foot intervals. Don estimated that there must be eighty of them to climb to reach the temple. He decided to give himself a few moments more to catch his breath and shone the torch along the ledge. In one corner was a white circular object. Don reached out and picked it up. It was a human skull. With a shudder he put it back on the ledge and shone the light onto the water in the chamber. On the bottom he could see bits and pieces of a disintegrated human skeleton. I know who you are, Don thought, Yaotl's father and it wouldn't surprise me in the least if your son had tried to drown me by opening the sluicegate. But what happened to you? Don wondered as he stood up. Putting the torch back between his teeth, he placed one foot on the first stone in the shaft. Straddling the sides, Don started to climb, testing each stone before using it, first as a handhold and subsequently as a foothold. At the same time he mentally ticked them off.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ07cAYzZkWl
It was slow, arduous work and he had counted to fifty-seven when he saw the reason for Yaotl's father's death. A stone had broken away from the wall. Don paused. So far during the climb his weight had always been taken on two stones and most of the time on three. With a stone missing there was a twelve-foot gap between the foothold and the next handhold on one side. To negotiate it meant that there would be a moment when all his weight rested on one stone on the opposite side and if it snapped, he would join Yaotl's father one hundred and seventy feet below. It was too dangerous, so he backed down until he had a handhold and a double foothold, then he lifted one leg off its stone perch and put it against the wall in front of him. At the same time he leaned his back against the wall behind him and stiffened his leg to wedge himself between the two sides. Then he released his handhold and placed his palms on either side of his back. Gingerly he brought his other leg up to the front wall. Maintaining the pressure against both sides with his legs, back and hands, he inched his way up the shaft, past the broken stone until he could safely resume two footholds and a handhold again. Only then did it occur to him that when Yaotl's father fell, the stones must have torn him to shreds. Don swallowed and started up again.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSrcpUJXWkH
Sixty. Sixty-one. Sixty tow. Until seventy-eight, when the torch lit yet another small chamber. Don hauled himself into it. He took the torch from his mouth and looked around. Against one wall were some proper steps which led to the ceiling. Don mounted them, put his hands on the stone immediately above his head, pushed it up and slid it to one side. He took the two remaining stairs in a stride, and shone the torch on Nenetl's skeleton on the slab. Then he turned to the TARDIS and smiled.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhaXLF3BVq3
"Mid temples and barracks though we may roam," he sang quietly, "be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.' And he went inside.387Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3MVxz21enV
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