Page 41 of Wild Temple (Tyson Wild Thriller #84)

T he platoon leader shook his head. "This bad omen. This as far as we go.”

“What!?” Caspian exclaimed, irritated.

"The spirits are angry.”

Caspian tried to keep his cool. “The spirits aren’t angry!”

He didn't believe in any of it.

The platoon leader just shook his head.

"It’s cloudy and foggy,” Caspian said. “It’s not the spirits."

"Man die. Angry sky.” He pointed to the totem. "A warning.”

Caspian looked at the carvings on the totem with a wrinkled face. "That's not a warning. And even if it is, I’m paying you damn good money. If you want to see it, you’ll get us to the temple.”

The platoon leader didn’t like the idea. But after a slight hesitation, he told his men to press on .

More whispers drifted through the platoon. The men didn’t like it.

Eventually, the train got rolling again. With a gun at my back, so did we.

A freshly dead monkey rotted at the base of the totem.

Maybe it was a bad omen.

We continued climbing up the mountain, marching through the fog. The air was still, and the jungle went quiet. I didn't hear a sound for the entire time we were in the haze—not the chirp of a bird, not a varmint in the bush. It was spooky.

We finally cleared the fog and emerged onto a level rise. Towering trees loomed overhead, weaving a dense canopy that turned the afternoon sun to dusk.

At first glance, it was easy to miss. Just more vines, moss, and jungle.

Then shapes emerged.

Ivy-covered stone slabs, thick with tangled vines, presided over the land. Hidden beneath the green weave were long-forgotten glyphs and carvings. Faint, like a whisper. Unreadable.

The temple was carved into the mountain. A giant face, chiseled into the stone above the main entrance, surveyed all who approached. With a cracked smile and narrow eyes, it was hard to tell if the figure was happy or angry. Was the grin a welcome or a warning?

It was easy to see why the temple had remained undiscovered. It would be impossible to see from above. Wind, rain, and time had ravaged the rocks, eroding them away to appear as barely more than natural features. Camouflaged by time.

"This is it,” the platoon leader said. "This is as far as we go.”

Caspian frowned at him, but the man had lived up to his end of the bargain.

"No enter,” he continued in broken English. "Very bad.”

Caspian laughed. “That's the whole reason we came here.”

The platoon leader held out his palm. "You give money now.”

He knew how to say that.

Caspian was in a rather precarious position. The platoon of eight men surrounded him with AK-47s.

After an annoyed grimace, Caspian dug into his backpack and pulled out a fat stack of cash. He put it in the platoon leader's palm.

The soldier's eyes rounded, and a slight smirk tugged his lips. He fanned the stack of cash to make sure it was all there, then dealt it out in equal shares to his men.

Satisfied, he signaled them to head back into the jungle and return the way we came.

Fury reddened Caspian’s face. "Where are you going!?”

"The deal was Pura Jiva,” the platoon leader shouted as he walked away.

"I’ll give you double if you get us back safely.”

The platoon leader and the rest of the squad ignored him. They disappeared back into the jungle, slipping away into the fog. Like ghosts, they were gone.

"We’ll just be going with them," I said, turning back down the mountain.

"You're not going anywhere," Caspian said, pointing his rifle at me.

His two thugs quickly surrounded us.

I didn't think my little shenanigan would work, but it was worth a try.

"You should consider yourself lucky,” Caspian said. “I'm going to let you explore the temple first. I knew there was a reason I kept you alive.”

Caspian wasn't urging me to enter the temple first out of the goodness of his heart. Brooke’s grandfather had warned of booby traps and dangers within.

One of his goons shoved me forward.

JD’s concerned eyes found me. “Be careful in there, brother.”

“What are you waiting for?” Caspian barked, urging me on with his gun.

Brooke looked tormented.

“How about releasing these restraints?” I said, holding my bound wrists out.

Caspian didn’t look inclined to do so.

“Where am I going to go? ”

He finally relented and nodded to one of his goons. Richard drew a tactical knife from his belt and cut the flex cuffs free.

“I need a flashlight,” I said.

Caspian glared at me.

“How am I supposed to see in there?”

After a momentary hesitation, he dug a flashlight from his backpack while the others kept their weapons aimed at me.

Caspian tossed me the light.

I checked to make sure it worked, then stepped toward the entrance of the temple. My sore feet climbed stone steps that could have been natural formations or carved into the mountain. This place was unlike any other temple. It was like it had emerged from the mountain on its own.

At the entrance to the cave, I shined the light on glyphs carved into the stone walls. Symbols on the stone floor were covered with years of grit and grime.

I looked back at the entourage. They all stared at me with wide eyes—some curious, some concerned.

My flashlight beam slashed the darkness as I stepped inside.

Hewn from a cave in the mountain, the temple had only revealed its secrets to a select few over the eons. It was designed to keep its secrets for centuries more.

This place was old. Really old. Pre-Hindu.

Probably built around 1000 BC or earlier.

The written language consisted of glyphs reminiscent of ancient Egypt—unlike anything else seen across Southeast Asia.

Built by a civilization long since forgotten.

One that had no name in modern history books.

One whose legacy was reduced to whispers and rumors.

A slight breeze drifted through, like a breath of air. An exhale. There must have been another opening in the cave system that created a draft. It had the effect of creating a low, ominous groan. The sound was disturbing enough to ward off most who dared venture into the dark abyss.

Several steps into the tunnel, my flashlight beam raked across the floor, revealing a pit that spanned the width of the passageway.

It was the first challenge to thwart the unsuspecting.

It had once been covered with stone tiles, loosely mortared together.

One wrong step, and you’d fall to your doom.

Most of the tiles had fallen away over the ages.

My flashlight beam revealed the bones of many who’d misstepped.

The pit was too long to jump across.

A long column in the center of the pit split the difference. The platform was just wide enough for a foot—a touch point on your leap across. Nothing more. Not a place to linger. With two skillful strides, one could traverse the chasm.

But there were no assurances the column could support my weight. Thousands of years of erosion could have weakened the stone.

The primitive glyphs carved into the walls were deep enough to grip with a finger, but that would be precarious at best .

I stood at the edge, contemplating my next move. This is where most would turn back—anyone with half a brain.

This is where you proved yourself. Bravery. Skill. Ingenuity. The ancient ones were watching. Were you worthy of the elixir of Mata Vaya?