Ann was in the antechamber trying to sleep, but every time she closed her eyes she had nightmarish visions of Penny's punishment, Don's death in a fight with Yaotl, her own public denouncement as a false god, with Ollin cutting out her heart, and Dr. Smith driven insane meandering in the garden babbling inanities to himself. With her eyes open, there wasn't much of an improvement. Both Dr. Smith and Don had impressed upon her the importance of her role as Nenetl, but the tension of playing the part was bringing her close to the breaking-point. She needed to do something, not just be something, to help them out of their plight. She sat up on the couch, put her elbows on her knees and held her head in her hands.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUQ6tBnzcWD
"Come on, Ann MacGregor," she said out loud, "you must not crack." She stood up and clutched her arms across her chest. Then she heard Dr. Smith arguing with the temple guard outside.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ23nxV0pFtt
"But I must speak to Nenetl," Dr. Smith snapped.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVEB6fRuCPA
"It is forbidden." The guard was adamant.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6t5wUoJFEc
"Rot and rubbish on being forbidden!" Dr. Smith exploded. "Get out of my way, you nefarious Neanderthal!"368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlWRGjmLAT1
Quickly, Ann opened the door. "Let my aged servant pass," she commanded.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9CPjaCoJap
In obedience the guard stood to one side, but said that Dr. Smith's presence would be reported.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGc6czMix9B
"So be it!" Ann slammed the door in the guard's face. Then she looked at Dr. Smith. 368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtjcKcpNt31
His face was ashen.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAEzFt7QgjY
"Dr. Smith, those stairs..." she began.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKGhCBursKD
Dr. Smith shook his head. "It's young West," he said.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJLO6A8SA4V
"What about Don?" Ann asked in alarm.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGIUEBXToQ
"I think he's dead," Dr. Smith replied in remorse, "drowned by Yaotl. And it was all my fault. Oh, the pain!"368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8vvWRDKMvv
For a moment Ann was stunned, incapable of grasping the enormity of Dr. Smith's statement. Then, as it sunk in, one word came through to the forefront of his mind. 368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6FORcOhsNl
"You said "think," Dr. Smith. Does that mean you don't know, that you're not sure?" she asked, clutching at a mental straw.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNiPzQ4Qhjr
Dr. Smith told her everything that had happened in the garden.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVYPXVvnok5
"Then there's still hope," Ann said, taking Dr. Smith's hand, "but this isn't the place to be," she added and led him up to the temple.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG4SUNPFI07
Inside the TARDIS Don looked for some cord, string, even a length of flex would do, but no, there were only printed circuits. Enough of sophisticated electronics that keep going wrong, he thought. Wherever we land next, let's get back to Boy Scout basics: a length of string and a knife with a thing for taking stones out of horses hooves. He went out into the tomb and shone the torch around. Under Nenetl's skeleton was a cotton sheet with a narrow silk border sewn into it. Don found the join, unpicked it and then carefully ripped the silk away from the cotton which had rotted over the decades. He carried the strip of silk over to the fresco and looked for someplace to attach it. The eagle's neck stood proud from the wall, like the eye of a needle, so Don stood threaded one end of the silk through it and tied a nice knot. He tugged the silk several times to make sure that it would hold. Then he pushed outwards on the wall and stepped into the temple.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHeZFo3fKTE
"West, my dear chap, you're alive!" Dr. Smith exclaimed and embraced him. "I was afraid you were drowned.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb1l2L9vw0l
"And I nearly was," Don replied and began to recount his adventure in the tunnel.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwlDEiDgpVi
Suddenly, Ann interrupted him. "The wall's closing," she cried in alarm.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrgk6L5gi3w
Don held up the strip of silk.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRmQyU5s9ZM
"It doesn't matter," he said, "the other end is attached to the fresco on the inside and, as the wall is counterbalanced, all we have to do is tug on this end and we're home and away."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo5CJjv461b
Dr. Smith thought this was an over-simplification but he said nothing as he still felt guilty about the tunnel.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKiR6YQhPIP
"Why don't you go through to the TARDIS while I go to the seminary and fetch Penny?" Don suggested.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLVBsNfOTtt
"No." Dr. Smith was adamant. "When we go to the other side of that wall we all go together. Splitting up is bad, bad idea."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡThcq2phbnb
Ann agreed and added that fetching Penny might not be as easy a task as Don imagined.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5tHkPxILhb
"Why not?" Don asked.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTNFnwS5fzc
Ann explained about Penny's refusal to marry the Perfect Victim and described her punishment for denying his wish. "Knowing Ollin, she's bound to be guarded," Ann concluded.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwnCcQlqVXq
"And knowing Yaotl, she won't be in the seminary," Don added. "He'll keep her a prisoner in his quarters. So, wait for us in the antechamber, it's more comfortable up here." He winked at them and started towards the brocade curtain.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIpLRg98Pbg
"Beware of Yaotl, West," Dr. Smith felt obliged to warn him. "He's a sly, wily devil."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfNd0bxpaJf
Don stopped and grinned.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT1hSs7cUEY
"But I'll have the psychological advantage, Dr. Smith. He thinks I'm dead," he replied and hurried away.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbc9gQtpR1r
Ann and Dr. Smith hid the silk strip behind the curtain in praise of Tlaloc, the God of Water, which still covered the entrance to the tomb.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdbwonI891P
Ann and Don were right on all counts. Ollin had two guards accompany him and Penny from the seminary to the barracks and Yaotl's quarters, where he told the warriors to stay outside with Penny until he commanded them to enter. He went inside and Yaotl, after paying his respects, told the High Priest of the events in the garden. Ollin congratulated him on his success and added that, with Don dead, the others were at their mercy.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Y2xeMrfE3
"The rewards I promised you shall be yours," Ollin said. "And when the Perfect Victim is sacrificed to Huitzilopochtli and the sun's light shines again on our land, then I shall proclaim you commander of our armies."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO7BQTCS8d7
"I shall serve the High Priest well," Yaotl assured him.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVo6H2s3KZf
"Let your service begin now," Ollin said and ordered the warriors to bring in Penny. "I leave her in your charge, Yaotl," he continued. "Do not let her escape nor release her to Tetzal, whose faith in Huitzilopochtli falters."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFUCdgtG8nw
Penny demanded to know why she had been taken from the seminary, but Ollin was evasive and would only say that it was for her protection.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM6VW9t7Ald
"Does Nenetl know that I am here?" Penny insisted.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkYwxuseY3n
"A true god is all-knowing, and all-seeing," he sneered.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjLELyScgKw
"As the Great Spirit's handmaiden, I demand to be escorted to the temple and shown into her presence," she persisted.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSL4JIatzWg
"And so you shall, at the appointed time."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFLs2SXk09n
Penny shivered involuntarily at the cold menace in his voice.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSXvbn6GQQ
He turned back to Yaotl. "Guard her," he ordered, and limped out of the quartes with the two warriors.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7VCOYoj7P1
Yaotl pointed to the bedroom. "You may rest in there."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy3rY5wk8pf
"I'm not tired," Penny said and sat on a cushion.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡveORUE0XkS
Yaotl shrugged. "Nor am I, nor shall I be, while I'm charged with you," he warned, facing her with his back to the entrance.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKPSqR5zeu6
Don had just enough time to tuck into the shadows of the main barracks when he saw Ollin and the warriors coming through the passageway from the courtyard. He waited until they had gone past before he slipped into it and stealthily made his way, back pressed against the wall, towards Yaotl's quarters.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYY2roKzYUA
"Do you know where Don is?" the Chosen Warrior was asking Penny.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ61oTL1vXyT
"You'd be surprised," Don thought, but he didn't catch Penny's reply.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK4vauBcSy1
"Then I shall tell you. He's dead," Yaotl announced.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJCa9suFqeu
"I don't believe you!" Don heard Penny shout.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAk1p2FSCGd
"The old man was there when he died," Yaotl continued. "He knows it to be so. Now have seven warriors, one whom was the servant of a god, challenged my right to command," his voice rang with pride, "yet I alone survive."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHTfp79veCM
"Not true," Don said as he stepped up behind Yaotl and hit him with a cross-handed, double-razor chop on either side of his neck which made the Chosen Warrior's eyes almost pop out of his head before he collapsed unconscious on the floor. "Good commanders never jump to conclusions," Don added, grinning.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt376k59csv
"Don!" Penny gasped. "I knew he was lying. He tried to make me believe you were dead."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnFpKfKzNbT
Don put his arm around her. "He was a couple of seconds short of being right," Don replied and then asked if she had her everyday clothes with her. Penny pointed to a bundle on the floor.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwOHfHb5emo
"They made me bring everything from the seminary."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIZNuDZzG5M
"How terribly obliging of them." Don picked up the bundle and led her across the courtyard to his quarters, where he gathered up his ordinary clothes.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzigWcVGNAz
"Where are we going?" Penny asked.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP58ArgrZIB
"To the TARDIS. Where do you think?" he answered.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7CjlJ7XLu
As they left Don enquired how Penny had found her school. She made a raunchy face. "Not much better than yours in 1960s England."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1EAUSClp6Y
Dawn streaked the sky as Ann waited anxiously in the antechamber with Dr. Smith, who was scribbling mathematical formulae on a pocket notepad.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsuroCkepIA
"I hope they're all right," Ann said.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuK9HhOhiWM
"I've come to the conclusion that young West is a remarkably resourceful chap," Dr. Smith remarked, grimacing as he rechecked his calculations.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOMxLOKq9mp
"I just want us to get away as quickly as possible," Ann confessed.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe2C4qN8X1X
Dr. Smith looked up a them. "And history?" he asked.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfGMggbCLl7
"Can remain unchanged," she replied.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxtWo052AUS
"No rewriting?"368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoO251heWdX
"No rewriting."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpvxX06QxAR
Dr. Smith nodded and tapped the notepad with his pencil.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhsefELECbp
"It won't be easy, my dear. It won't."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKfkQBtA2Bi
Ann looked puzzled. "What won't?" she asked.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS1youLwOjc
"Opening up the wall. I've been doing some calculations and I don't believe we have the strength," he replied.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtIIouWIa94
"Dr. Smith, I barely touched the wall and it began to swing open."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjPbI8dERTM
"From the inside, Ann," Dr. Smith reminded her, and explained that the pressure of her hand upon the inside of the wall was both a force outwards and upwards because of the counterbalance but now with the strip of silk attached to the fresco, the first force was downwards to the foot of the wall and the second one was outwards.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwQzPwFSqw1
"But where is the upwards thrust?" he asked her.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiTbjPDg6Mt
"The counterbalance swinging down will supply it," Ann replied.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFXVDKMFcB9
Dr. Smith shook his head. "No, my dear, things don't tend to move unless..."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwxIblfkYD6
"....you start the ball rolling," Ann finished for him.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFmJpBVekXj
"Well put, Ann," Dr. Smith said. "And downwards and outwards is not the same thing as outwards and upwards. What's more," he added, "that bit of silk is almost one hundred years old and it won't take too much strain."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0NHaqf1Avn
"What can we do?" Ann asked.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE9cD8vPwsf
"Try," Dr. Smith replied, as he slipped the notepad back into his pocket.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvdF4UTRDtz
At that moment Penny and Don came breathlessly into the antechamber. "Anyone for the Skylark?" Don gasped.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡryqpUnnZ6W
Ann and Dr. Smith exchanged a quick apprehensive glance and the four of them went up to the temple. Ann took the silk from behind the curtain as Dr.Smith looked at Don.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlt2XcJmg7D
"I'm sorry, my dear fellow, but this may not work," Dr. Smith said apologetically. "And we can't put too much load on the silk because it will break."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ70mVgFidMg
They began tugging on the silk, but nothing happened.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFCRnnrPr1x
"What if I push in at the top of the wall while you pull out at the bottom?" Don suggested.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMvgzk3eETV
"It's from the inside out, West, not from the outside in," Dr. Smith said. "You're up against the law of..."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcA14ZUbYCC
"Inertia!" Don exploded. "Of all the stupid things to overlook. I only had to put it around the doorknob of the TARDIS or something and it would have pulled the counterbalance in."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUl8QW2kCJ
None of the others said a word.368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEiMSF7Yrgb
"All right." Don looked at each of them in turn. "I'll do the tunnel and the climb again and open the wall from the inside."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1LkOoscGyN
"The stone has handgrips on the back. Fit it in the wall again, just in case," Dr. Smith cautioned and gave him the pencil-torch. "And, West, a final warning----Yaotl."368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgMFiZ7uRaJ
Don grinned and looked at Penny. "When last seen the Chosen Warrior had deserted Huitzilopochtli for a Greek God whose name is Morpheus. Right, Penny?"368Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6vqAdL6Tha
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