Jack and Black froze in the dense jungle. The mercenaries—Russians, judging by the clipped orders Jack barely caught over the comms—were closing in from three directions, their suppressed weapons creating only soft, terrifying clicks.
"Ambush," Black hissed, drawing his silenced pistol. "The 'Eye of the Mountain' is a trap."
"No kidding," Jack replied, his own pistol out, eyes darting. "Looks like someone else got a copy of Mansa Musa's final words. Or maybe they just followed the guy who smashed the stylus."
They fought a desperate, brutal action retreat through the jungle, their movements economical and deadly. Black used his training to calculate angles and ricochets, dropping two mercenaries with clinical precision. Jack, fighting more instinctively, used the environment—thick vines, slippery mud, and blindingly thick foliage—to his advantage, creating chaos and confusion.
They were forced down into a massive, water-filled sinkhole. They plunged into the freezing darkness. The mercenaries stood above, firing uselessly into the water, assuming the jungle had swallowed the two men whole.
(CUT TO: Subterranean Temple - Minutes Later)
Jack and Black emerged from the sinkhole, gasping for breath, into a massive, echoing subterranean cavern. The air here was icy, contrasting sharply with the jungle heat above. They stood on the edge of a vast, partially flooded chamber.
The chamber was a relic of ancient Incan architecture, but repurposed by something far older. In the center, rising from the icy, turbulent water, was a massive, five-headed Naga statue—a colossal, carved serpent, its heads rearing up, dripping ice water from their stone fangs. The water itself surged around the statue, turbulent and frigid.
"The Serpent sleeps forever," Black muttered, shivering, but his eyes were alight with archaeological excitement. "The Amaru legend. Mansa Musa didn't build this. He simply used it."
"Looks less like a place of rest and more like a high-altitude water park," Jack grumbled.
They moved quickly, scrambling onto the highest, driest piece of masonry—a staircase leading up the far side of the chamber. As they climbed, Black noticed a series of finely carved, almost invisible runes lining the chamber walls.
"This is the key," Black said, running his fingers over the runes. "The serpent's heads are a hydro-mechanism. This temple floods on a timed cycle. It's not a trap, Jack, it's a security system."
"Well, it's about to be a trap, because we brought company."
Jack pointed. Emerging from a secondary tunnel entrance were three more mercenaries, led by a large, scarred man Jack recognized from a file photo as Colonel Volkov, a former Spetsnaz commander and known treasure hunter. Volkov held a heavy assault rifle and a chilling, predatory grin.
"You have something that belongs to me, gentlemen," Volkov boomed in heavily accented English, his voice echoing in the cavern. "The location of the gold. Hand it over, and perhaps you don't drown."
Volkov's men opened fire, pinning Jack and Black behind a crumbling pillar.
"We have to climb!" Black yelled, pointing at the massive, frozen serpent statue. "It's the only stable structure above the water line!"
They dashed out, immediately taking cover beneath the enormous stone tail of the Naga. The water below was rising, and the cavern was filling with the roar of a powerful undertow.
(ACTION SEQUENCE: Climbing the Serpent)
Jack and Black began a desperate, terrifying climb up the rough, icy scale patterns carved into the serpent's body. The mercenaries were firing continually, the bullets chipping stone and ice all around them. Jack, hampered by his bad leg, moved slowly. Black, despite his immaculate suit, moved with shocking speed and precision, using the ancient carving techniques as footholds.
Mid-climb, Jack's handhold crumbled. He lost his grip and slipped, plunging down toward the icy water.
"Jack!" Black yelled, extending his hand just as Jack shot past. Jack's hand clamped onto Black's wrist with desperate strength. The combined weight sent Black's feet sliding out from under him. They both dangled precariously.
CLOSE UP: Jack and Black's faces, locked in mutual dependence, the mercenary fire continuing below.
"You owe me for this, Jack!" Black grunted through gritted teeth, slowly pulling Jack back up to safety.
As Jack scrambled back onto the statue, the water level reached the serpent's base. The five heads of the statue began to move, groaning on ancient pivots, and five massive streams of ice water erupted from their mouths, flooding the cavern floor and creating massive, artificial waves that threatened to rip Volkov's remaining men off their feet.
"The security system!" Black yelled, pointing at the serpent. "It's timed! We triggered it!"
Volkov, trapped on the main platform, realized he couldn't reach them. He turned his attention to what Black was looking at: a small, ornate mirror resting on a stone pedestal near the far wall. The mirror was cracked but functional, its surface reflecting a distorted view of the entire chamber. Volkov, recognizing the pattern, knew the mirror was a key to the puzzle.
The mirror was designed to show the one weak point of the entire Naga structure, revealing the location of the true vault.
Volkov ran toward the mirror, scattering his remaining men.
"He's going for the key!" Black yelled.
Jack was faster. He pulled a small, high-explosive device from his kit, set the timer, and hurled it across the cavern toward the mercenaries near the mirror.
(EXPLOSION)
The blast wasn't big enough to destroy the temple, but it was enough to shatter the delicate balance. The explosion ripped through the mercenaries, sending them flying. The shockwave hit the cracked mirror, shattering it completely.
Volkov screamed in Russian, defeated and furious. The destruction of the mirror meant the vault's location was again lost.
Jack and Black used the chaos to scramble into a small, narrow tunnel revealed behind the central serpent head—the final chamber, revealed by the security cycle.
(THE VAULT)
They entered a surprisingly small, dry chamber. In the center, nestled on a block of pure jade, was the treasure: not a massive hoard of gold, but a single, ancient, leather-bound book, its cover inlaid with jade and gold filigree. It was the Book of Mansa Musa—the full account of his empire, his faith, and his treasure.
Black rushed forward, gently taking the book. "This is more valuable than any gold. The true account of the world's richest man."
Jack, meanwhile, was looking at the roof. A faint, repetitive scraping sound was coming from directly above them.
"I don't like that sound," Jack whispered, drawing his pistol again. "Sounds like someone brought a heavy-duty drill."
(CUT TO: Train Car - Back in the Himalayas - Present Day)
The scene snapped back to the present. The scraping sound was real.
They were still trapped in the overturned, shattered remnants of the train car, somewhere near the roof of the world. Jack and Black realized that while they were fighting Volkov in a Peruvian temple, they were simultaneously reliving the memories that led them to that spot.
The scraping above their heads grew louder. The ceiling was cut open, revealing the face of Volkov, scarred and grim, staring down at them from the snow-covered wreckage. He had somehow tracked them to the crash site.
"You led me to the book," Volkov growled, aiming his drill. "Now, you will lead me to the treasure. Or you will be buried with your memories."
The ceiling above them began to cave in. The chapter ended with Volkov's final threat.