Jack Canyon and The Curse of The Spider Queen | CHAPTER NINE

Words: 3012

"Why?" Jack asked angrily as he moved around the room looking for a way out. "Why did you have to say that? Haven't you seen American movies? Every time someone says 'things could be worse' they usually get worse at that exact moment."

"We're in a jungle," Jacarei stated. "How could we possibly see any of your American movies?"

"I've seen a few," Adriana stated.

"That explains why you know of the American sense of humor," Jack responded.

"In case anyone has forgotten, the ceiling is going to crush us," Sophia interrupted their conversation.

"I'm working on a way out," Jack reminded her.

"Well, work faster!" Sophia yelled.

Jack continued searching the walls for any release to the ceiling that was closing in. He glanced up to see the ceiling was halfway down.

"What's this?" Jacarei asked as she knelt down in the middle of the room.

"What?" Jack rushed toward her to see what she was looking at. He knelt down and examined some of the loose floor tiles. "I should've checked here first."

"Symbols," Adriana noticed.

"I'm guessing we arrange them in a right order to stop the ceiling," Jack stated as he moved the tiles around, but they didn't sit right in the holes. "I don't get it."

"Well, you're about to," Sophia said, but it was about the ceiling. It was now only feet away from them, as they were all knelt down on the floor. "Figure it out, Jack!"

Jack looked at the backs of the tiles and then at the holes. He began to arrange them and fit them into proper holes. "That should do it!"

The ceiling was still closing in and only inches away from their heads.

"I don't get it," Jack said frantically.

Sophia stomped on the tiles with her hiking boot forcing the tiles in deeper. The ceiling suddenly stopped and receded back to the top. "It just needed a woman's touch."

"Quite a woman," Adriana mentioned to Jack as she walked passed him and made her way to the rising door.

Jack smiled because he knew Sophia was really an amazing woman. She had saved his hide many a time. Of course, he appreciated every time she did, because if she had not saved him, he would have been hurt or worse, dead.

Sophia was the last one out. She followed behind the remaining three men who were behind Jacarei, Adriana, and Jack. She hoped for an escape route.

Jack led the gang down a long and drafty corridor which came to an end where two other halls met as well. "I bet this is the way out."

"But which hall leads to the treasure?" Adriana asked.

Sophia pushed her way forward through the group to get to Jack.

Jack looked at his assistant for a moment before speaking. "What do you think, Soph? Which way should we go?"

Sophia examined each of the corridors for evidence of traffic. She checked the walls and the floors. "Interesting."

"What is it?" Jacarei asked.

"Scuff marks on each hall floor," she explained as she knelt down. "They're obviously here to throw us off track." She ran her fingers along the marks on the middle hall. "This way," she stated as she stood up from her kneeling and started down the hall.

"Hey!" Jack called as he moved to catch up with her. "How did you know?"

"The grooves are deep," Sophia explained. "Really deep, like something very heavy had been dragged down the hall several times. The other hall didn't have grooves deep enough, or as many."

"Clever girl," Jack said with a silly grin.

"Well, I did learn from the best," she replied sweetly, which was unusual for her. She caught a glint of hope in Jack's eyes. "My father taught me everything." She gave a cocky grin, for she knew that snuffed out the light in Jack's eyes.

The gang continued down the hall, but Jack stopped when he spotted a chamber off to his right. He moved inside to find skeletal remains, armor and helmets, and two bodies. Jack knelt down and looked at the bodies. "John," he said sadly as he lowered his head.

Sophia and the others returned when they noticed Jack was no longer with them. Upon entering the room, they discovered Jack's friend. "Oh, Jack," she said sorrowfully. "I'm sorry."

"Well, now, we didn't expect to find him alive, did we?" Jack asked sadly.

"I thought you did," Sophia replied.

"I knew it was impossible," he admitted. "A man can hope, though, can't he?"

Sophia put her hand on Jack's shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

"We'll take him out of here and give him a proper burial," Jack stated as he pulled something out of Baxter's hand. Then he stood and turned to Adriana. He offered her a small round metallic piece.

She took it into her hand and examined it closely before passing it to Jacarei. "That's pure silver?"

Jack simply nodded. "There's more."

"Take us to it," Adriana ordered him. "We had a deal."

"Follow me, then," he responded and headed down the hall after taking a look at John Baxter one last time. Marissa's body had been cradled against his. He led the gang down the hall as he continued to search for text on the wall that matched the drawings on the final page of the journal.

"Where is the room?" Jacarei asked with an annoyed tone. "You're wasting our time."

"My patience grows thin," Adriana warned.

"I don't know," Jack said with a hint of urgency in his voice.
"Jack, think of something," Sophia told him. "We're running out of corridor."

As they reached a dead end, Adriana pulled her dagger from its sheath. "You'll join your friend."

"Wait!" Jack cried out. "Look!" He pointed from the journal to the large wall. "They match."

Jacarei and Adriana moved to the wall and looked for themselves.

"See?" Jack asked.

"Get it open," Adriana ordered.

Jack searched the crevices in the wall for a release lever or button. "There is nothing here."

"You better be mistaking," Adriana stated as she put the dagger to Jack's throat.

"Just give me a minute," Jack pleaded as he pulled away and searched the bottom of the wall. That's when he spotted a small stone that was poking out. "This must be it." He pressed it and the door hissed as the air was pushed out of the room.

Adriana smiled wickedly as the door slowly slid open and revealed a room that was empty except for the sarcophagus in the center.

"It's her," Jacarei said in shock. She followed her leader inside as they all encircled the coffin. It was greatly detailed with a feminine head that wore a crown with a spider-like design on it.

"Open it," Adriana ordered her remaining men.

Without question or hesitation, they moved to the sarcophagus and wedged the lid off, which released a dust that consumed the trio. Piercing bloody screams pervaded the entire temple.
Jacarei, Sophia, and Jack stood back and watched in horror as the three men were eaten alive by an ancient form of acid. Adriana was the only one who wasn't shocked. She had an evil smirk on her face, which caught Jack's attention.

Jack nudged Sophia and motioned toward Adriana, so Sophia could see the pleasure on the Brazilian woman's face.

Jacarei waited for the three men to completely disintegrate before moving around the room.

Adriana moved to the coffin and kicked the top off. She knelt down and took into her hand the Spider Amulet, which was made of pure gold. It was a gold chain with a gold spider figure that had a jewel in the middle, an emerald.

Jack and Sophia moved closer to the open sarcophagus to take a look.

The remains of a woman resided inside. She wore garments that were decayed, but on top were silver and gold armor and jewelry. If the woman were alive today, she would be showing plenty of cleavage. The breastplate on the body was like a v-neck and very low. It was made of large gold plates accented with silver and various jewels like diamonds and rubies. There were cuffs of aged gold on her wrists with spider- and web-like designs etched into them.

"This is her," Jack said. "This is definitely the Spider Queen."

Adriana put the Spider Amulet around her neck which caused it to glow bright.

Jack and Sophia stood up from examining the Spider Queen's body and looked at Adriana.

"I don't like this," Jack said, wary.

"Not at all," Sophia agreed.

Jacarei had stumbled upon a lever that opened a door in the back, which led into the treasure vault. She was in her happy place and dove into the jewels and gold and silver. She was in heaven.

Adriana put on the Spider Queen's armor piece-by-piece, while Jack and Sophia stood back. She had the entire suit on, and then grabbed the sword, which had spiders on the handle. She smiled devilishly at the duo as a trap door overhead opened and dropped down three mechanical spiders.

"This just isn't our day," Jack said as the spiders attacked. He jumped back as a large and sharp-pointed spider leg came crashing down near him. Those spiders were the size of a car.
"What are we going to do?" Sophia asked frantically as she dodged another spider.

Jack rolled out of the way as one of the spider's legs punched through the wall he was against. "Why are you asking me? You're the one with the plans."

Sophia picked up a sword from the floor which looked Spanish. She stabbed at the metal exoskeleton of the spider. The sword slipped the second time and pierced the jewel in the head between all the eyes. That's when she realized the jewel powered the machine. "Jack!"

"I'm kind of busy," he cried out as he rolled under the body of the spider.

"The jewel on the head," she told him, but was interrupted as the final spider lurched at her. "The jewel powers it!"

"What?"

"The jewel on the head!" She screamed and pointed at the spider.

Jack spotted the jewel and jumped onto the back of the machine. It bucked and tried to toss him off, but he held tight.

"Bareback Jack," Sophia muttered, which had another meaning other than a cowboy who rode his horse bareback. She blushed slightly at the thought and turned her attention back to the problem at hand.

Jack was tossed through the wall, and the spider followed him. He quickly rose to his feet and picked up a broken brick, which he hurled at the spider's head. He missed. "This is just like horseshoes," he told himself.

Sophia's back was against the wall as the spider charged itself at her. As it leaped toward her, she ducked. The mechanical spider crashed into the wall, smashing its jewel brain.

Jack picked up another stone and threw it with a great force, but missed by mere inches, again. "Son of a--"

"I'll get it," she said. "You were always a lousy shot. No wonder you don't carry a gun." She picked up a head-sized stone and chucked it at the green glowing jewel on the spider's head. CONTACT! The jewel smashed to bits and the machine fell motionless to the floor.

"Not bad," he told her.

"We have bigger issues to deal with," she reminded him as she turned and saw Adriana still standing there. Sophia raised her sword and was ready to attack.

"No, wait!" Jack cried out as she raced toward Adriana, but she didn't listen. It was too late.

Sophia met Adriana's powerful backhand, which sent the dirty blonde haired girl into the wall. When she fell, Jack noticed her back had hit a sharp piece of metal.

It felt like slow motion as Jack rushed to Sophia who lay still on the floor. "Sophia? Are you okay?"

"How bad is it?" She asked as she tried to stay strong.

Jack let tears roll down his face. He could see the blood dripping onto the floor. Jack didn't have to say anything, yet she still knew how bad it was.

"Don't cry," she told him sternly. Even dying, she was her old self. "You'll just make a mess."

"Oh, Soph," Jack spoke softly. "Why did you not listen? Why must you be so hard headed?"

She placed her hand on his cheek. "I should have told you long ago. . ."

"Sophia, don't speak," Jack said through his sobs. His heart was slowly breaking with every breath she took, because with each one, it could be her last.

"Just shut the fuck up and listen," she cried. She waited for him to get silent. Her breathing grew shallow. "I. . . I love you, Jack Canyon. I should never have let you go, but I know the reasons behind your actions, now. Emily. . ."

Jack pressed his face to her bosom as he cried. It was like the past was repeating itself. Emily had been his assistant and died in the field. Now, Sophia was going through the same thing.

"Jack," Sophia said hoarsely. "Tell me that you love me."

"I love you, Sophia. I always have. I just wish I could have spent more time showing it to you. I mean--"

"Jack, just shut up and kiss me," she stated coldly.

Jack looked at her through teary eyes and kissed her lips. He could feel her breath from her nose upon his cheek. Then he felt it fade until it stopped. It was their last kiss. Even though she was gone, Jack could hear her voice in his head.

"Get up, Jack!" Sophia's voice rang through his head. "Stop the Spider Queen. Do it! GO!"

Jack sprung up and didn't realize he had the sword in his hand. He moved forward toward Adriana who gave him a smirk.

"Come to defend your girlfriend?" Adriana asked. "Don't cry too much. You'll be joining her soon enough."

Jack swung the heavy sword at the woman's head with as much force as he could muster. He missed as she side-stepped and kicked him in the back. The pain was horrible. He fell forward and onto his knees.

"Too easy," she teased as she pulled her sword up to his neck. "You should spend less time watching movies and more time learning real skills."

"Nah, movies do just fine," he said as he knocked back her sword with his. "Where else can you learn such marvelous skills without leaving your home?" He struck again and again.

"But you never learn the correct way," she replied as she knocked the sword from his hand. "Why must we keep returning to this same place?" She put the sword to his throat.

"So, before you kill me, tell me something. Who are you?"

"I am the Spider Queen," Adriana stated. "Don't you believe in reincarnation?"

"Not really."

"Pity," she said. "I have been searching for this place for half my life."

"Well, you found it," Jack told her.

"Kneel before your queen," Adriana said as she pushed him down to his knees with her sword. "Any last words?"

"Yeah, you found your tomb, so you might as well stay here."

From behind her, Jacarei thrust a sword through Adriana's gut. Without hesitation, Jack pulled the dagger from Adriana's sheath and stabbed through the amulet and into her heart.

"She won't be returning," Jack spoke as Jacarei helped him up.

"I'm so sorry," Jacarei stated. "I had no idea about all this." The entire temple began to shake violently around them.

Jack was lost for words at the moment. He could only manage to say, "Thank you for saving my life." He picked up Sophia's lifeless body and carried her out.

Jacarei followed Jack toward the exit.

The place was falling apart and the doors were closing, too. They had to hurry or they would be trapped and die.

Jacarei stopped at the exit door. "Come on. Open it!"

Jack spotted the trigger on the side. He kicked it with his foot and the door slid open. "Go!" He followed Jacarei outside and they continued to run upstairs to the jungle floor. They both turned to see what looked like spider legs falling down. "Her palace. It was shaped like a spider."

"I hate spiders," Jacarei said as she shivered.

The ground around them began to cave in, forcing them to race further away or fall into a cavern. The crumbling ended at the edge of where Araneae City was. The jungle had consumed the entire city. Jacarei and Jack with Sophia still in his arms stood at the edge of the crater.

"What do I do now?" Jacarei asked.

"Make a good life for yourself," Jack said as he set Sophia down. He pulled out all the money he had. "This should help."

"What will you do?"

"I don't know," he said looking down at Sophia's body. His eyes filled with tears again. "I'll just have to put my life back together."

"Good luck."

"You, too," Jack told her as he picked Sophia back up. He turned and headed in no distinct direction. He didn't care how long it took for him to get back home. Nothing matter anymore since Sophia was gone.

Jacarei stood on the cliff and stared out of the massive disaster zone. The jungle had been her home and now she had to pick up and start over in another place. Maybe she could find a nice town. She was a good singer and dancer. Then again, she could write a novel: "The Tales of a Bandida: The Curse of the Spider Queen." It had a ring to it.

Jack never looked back. His heart was shattered beyond repair. First Emily, then Sophia. How was he going to tell Mr. Stone about this? His mind raced with so much. He wished for just one more day with the love of his life.