The Seven Swords of Diya: An Indiana Jones Fan Fiction - Part 2

Chapter 233: Cave, Kamchatka Wilderness, Soviet Union, 1960

Cave

Kamchatka Wilderness

Soviet Union

1960

"Since I'm new to all this... unseen supernatural realm and dealing with the apkallu... How... does it work?" Indy asked.

Lizavet was quiet for long moment. "How do the apkallu seek to control us?"

"Yeah."

"It is like a marriage... only instead of a commitment for love between two equal partners and the result is children... it is an agreement with darkness and the result is an illusion of power. The human is a powerless host. The apkallu and beings like them, need bodies or hosts. The apkallu lie and tell the humans that they will have great power. So the humans give up their free will - becoming slaves, like Edo."

"Edo was no one's slave," Indy retorted.

Lizavet swallowed. "Edo, the intelligence agent of the World War II Japanese Kempeitai was able to hide and search out the swords. He found me when I was hiding in the wilderness. He is considered powerful among men - but a lackey slave to the apkallu. I have watched him cast spells, and interact with the apkallu. He is darkly powerful. Even my shamaness ancestors would have been careful in their fight to put him and the apkallu who chose him back into their prisons." Lizavet's eyes flickered to the fire. "An alliance with the apkallu always leads to destruction."

Indy swallowed, remembering the Temple of Doom. "I think they tried to turn me in 1935... with a drugged drink."

"Most certainly," Lizavet answered. "They always want those who have... supernatural abilities."

"I don't. I don't even - well - before this - I didn't and still sort of don't... or can't believe in the supernatural." Indy confessed. "Shorty's grandmother made me sniff something before I came here. I was sort of hoping that all this stemmed from that accidental drug exposure."

Lizavet smiled. "Do you have the drug?"

Indy glanced at Emily. "Yeah. It's in my bag - the one that Em is sitting on."

Emily stirred. "Not asleep, Dad. Just gotta keep my eyes shut. Lizavet's poultice for my neck cut is keeping the pain down, but its impossible for me to deal with light. And...your coffee cup handle is digging into my hip bone."

"Aw, sorry, Em," Indy grinned. "Your mother always said I was a pain in the ass."

"The way you purposely forgot to tell her where we're going - I'd agree with her." Emily retorted in jest, moving her legs.

Indy took his artifact bag and removed a small pouch of herbs and a slightly dented coffee cup.

Lizavet took the bag and sniffed it.

"Be careful with that!" Indy urged.

"This is amazing!" Lizavet cried, sniffing the contents of the pouch.

"What? No! I don't need you seeing crazy things too!" Indy tried to take back the small pouch.

"She has a shaman elixir from the Qing Dynasty! It has not been seen or known in this region - since -" Lizavet swallowed. "Not since the KBG killed most of the elders from my tribe."

"What?" Shorty sat up. "Did Grandmother send food?"

"No!" Lizavet laughed. "Korotkiy - why did you not tell me that your grandmother was a shamaness who knows the secret Qing elixirs?"

Shorty swallowed. "Because... I... didn't know...?" He looked at Indy. "The Qing Dynasty - that's a long time ago, right?"

"They abdicated the throne in 1912," Indy explained. "But the rumor has it that there were still women shamans doing rituals in the Forbidden City until that point."

"1912. That's a long time ago..." Shorty mused.

Indy glared. "It was 1912, Shorty. Within my lifetime. I was 13. It was about twenty years before I met you."

Shorty and Em look at each other and repeated in unison, "That's a long time ago!"

Indy sighed and looked at Lizavet. "Are you gonna remind me how old I am too?"

Lizavet looked shyly up at Indy. "No, Papa... I was taught to respect my elders."

"Thank you, Lizavet," Indy replied. "I think..."

Lizavet giggled. It was an adorable musical sound that ended in a suppressed coughing snort. Then Shorty laughed, hugging Lizavet.

Emily leaned on her father's shoulder, snickering against his neck.

Indy grinned, putting his arms around his three kids. "Go ahead, kids, laugh. It's good for you. And I love hearing it." He paused, looking at the pouch and his coffee cup. "When can I stop seeing what I don't want to see?"

"Some people are not affected at all," Lizavet answered. "But on some people, the affects are permanent."

Indy picked up his empty coffee cup. "I wish coffee was permanent."

The volcano rumbled, shaking what seemed to be the entire earth.