Relic Hunters! (closed)

[haremfaery]

Drina settled Jesse in the car and handed him her pack. "There's more bark in there, chew as much as you want. It might take the edge off."

She used skills gained in her childhood to start the car. While other girls played with dolls, she was learning how to lift a man's wallet without him ever knowing. Many useful skills, she learned form her uncles. Like how to steal a car. She shifted into gear and

Perhaps if she did not have Rom blood flowing through her, she would not put any credence into the myths of the goddess Ix Chel. But she had seen many things in her life that science could not explain. They must stop Petrovic. She looked at Jesse again. She prayed to the Black Madonna, and Ix Chel that he would come out of this as healthy and cheeky as ever.

She had a good sense of direction, which was very helpful in relic hunting. Finding the lake should not be difficult. But what would they do when they got there? How could they stop Petrovic? They would have to get through his goons to be sure. She prayed again and sent curses to the Russian.

She patted Jesse's knee. "Stay with me, Jesse. I can't do this without you."

 

[DrStein]

Jesse gnawed on the offered bark. He was too woozy to complain about the taste. He closed his eyes and tried to keep his thoughts collected. He'd need his wits about him for what was to come. He smiled weakly at Drina and opened his eyes. "Sure you can. Just not as stylishly." The remedy did indeed help to dull the pain, but he was still pale.

He leaned back again and closed his eyes. After a moment, an image flashed before his eyes. Gathering storm clouds... Lake Texcoco... and Petrovic standing in the middle of it... Jesse's eyes flew open. "Find a marina at the lake's edge!" he said quickly.

He looked at Drina who was looking between him and the road in worry. "I-I know it sounds crazy, but... somehow I just know that Petrovic is on a boat. He's gone out to the middle of the lake. We need to get there, steal a boat, and get to him."

 

[haremfaery]

Drina snorted and shook her head. If he was still wisecracking, he was doing fine.

The car was a beauty, it handled so well and drove so smoothly. Still she tried to avoid bumps even though they had to hurry.

Drina glanced sideways at Jesse. "A vision from the goddess. We'll make a believer of you yet. But the middle of the lake would make sense."

She made a few false turns, but make it to the lake and a marina. She pulled up and parked at a boat rental. "You stay here. I think renting a boat requires a woman's touch."

She got out of the car and looked over the boat for hire. The owner came out, a short older Mexican with smile lines around his eyes.

She showed him her museum credentials and explained that she was here to authenticate an item the Museo de Mexico was interested in purchasing. She pulled out some cash happy that the goons did not take her wallet. He haggled, she flirted and talked about how he would be helping his city and his country. They got a little closer to an agreement. She touched his arm. They came to an agreement, then she coaxed him with extra money to be their pilot. That would give Jesse and she a chance to shoot the Russians and not worry about steering the boat.

She went back to the car and helped Jesse out. "Come on. I've hired a boat and a man to steer it for us." She pulled his legs out and put an arm around him.

 

[DrStein]

Jesse weakly followed Drina to the boat. As soon as they were on the lake, he took on his rifle and loaded a magazine in before loading a bullet into the chamber. If looks could kill, his expression at that moment as he prepared his gun would be likely to finish the job if the bullet didn't.

It was at that moment that their pilot looked over and saw Jesse for the first time. His eyes bulged out and he began speaking in rapid Spanish to Drina on the edge of panicking. "Calm him down," Jesse said, his voice still weak. "I'm not going to lose it when we're this close. Petrovic is..."

Jesse's voice trailed off as once more the sky filled with ominous, gray storm clouds when moments ago it had been totally clear. In the dimming light of the sunset, the clouds blocked out the light until it felt like it was almost midnight. Thunder rumbled in the distance, and the clouds shimmered with heat lightning. "Oh, this is just jake..."

 

[haremfaery]

Drina went to the pilot and put a soothing hand on his arm which he shook off and continued practically screaming at her in Spanish. When he slowed down to breathe, Drina soothed him and explained she had lied to him and was very sorry. They were on an important mission to regain important relics that a Russian...a Russian! of all people had stolen. They only needed him to pilot the boat. He himself would be in no danger and she would see to it that he was handsomely rewarded.

The handsome reward seemed to help the pilot's nerves somewhat. He had no love for foreigners. But when the sky darkened, he went off again and Drina had to calm him once more.

She went back to Jesse, he was in a cold sweat. She had to get him to a hospital, but they had no time. First they had to live through this. She pulled a flask from her backpack, said a little prayer, took a sip and splashed a little bit in the deck. "Irish Whiskey." She handed it to Jesse. "The goddess knows we are here to stop Petrovic. We are here to help her, and she is here to help us." Drina said with more confidence than she felt.

She looked across the lake to see if she could spot the Russian's boat.

 

[DrStein]

Jesse took the offered flask and quaffed three mouthfuls in a row before capping it again. "If she was going to help us, giving us a boat with artillery would have been a good start."

In the distance, another boat came into view. Jesse squinted his eyes and spotted a figure at the bow who appeared to be holding his hands up to the sky in prayer. Petrovic! "There he is!" He held up his rifle and prepared to line up a shot. Just when he thought he had it, his vision blurred and he started seeing double. A sudden dizziness overcame him and he lurched forward slightly. "Damn! Can't get a clear shot."

As if on cue, the rain began to fall. It was a drizzle at first, but by the time their boats came parallel, it was a torrential downpour. One of Petrovic's goons had seen them coming and was about to leap on board their boat when Jesse regained his senses just long enough to fire off a round. The bullet hit the man in the chest with a splatter of blood and he toppled over the railing into the lake.

"Petrovic!" Jesse shouted over the storm. "That was just a warning shot! I'm coming for you, you bastard!"

 

[haremfaery]

"The goddess what what she can, I am sure." Drina told him.She let him keep the flask. He needed it more than she did.

She pulled out her pistol. She wondered how many were on Petrovic's boat. The rain made it difficult to aim. She wondered if the goddess brought the rain to help them, or if Petrovic had been able to conjure it to hurt them.

She took aim at a dark shape on side of the other boat and when the skies lit up she fired. She winged whomever it was. She accepted that as better than a full miss. But it was Petrovic who needed to be shot, to stop him from completing whatever ritual he was conducting.

She tried to see through the rain to where the Russian was standing in the prow. She felt powerless and hated it.

"Jesse, what can we do?" She thought of ramming the Russian boat, but that would down them as well and she had promised the pilot he and his boat would be safe. The poor man was cowered ducked down behind the wheel.

 

[DrStein]

Jesse hefted his gun and sneered. "We make like pirates and board their vessel to plunder the booty." Even for him that was a bad joke, but from his slurred speech it seemed that was the best he could come up with. He vaulted over the railing and scrambled on the slippery deck of Petrovic's boat. Another goon came up behind him and grabbed him in a bear hug. In the struggle, Jesse dropped his rifle. He tried to fight back, but the pain in his arm was getting worse. He slipped again and his weight threw his attacker off-balance, hitting his head off the railing and knocking him out.

Jesse didn't bother going for his rifle. He couldn't focus enough. He drew his revolver and made his way to the bow. There was Petrovic, speaking in a language he didn't understand and holding the stolen dagger and stone table aloft. Around his neck was the necklace and at his feet the other three relics. Jesse took a wide stance as he heard Drina fighting another goon. He took aim... and snarled in pain when Petrovic suddenly wheeled around and threw the dagger, which landed in Jesse's shoulder.

Jesse dropped backward onto the deck. He dropped his revolver as well. His vision was starting to tunnel. Petrovic towered over him, a sadistic grin on his face. "You are too late, Mr. Moore. The ritual is complete. In just a few moments, the power vill be mine. Vhen lightning strikes me, I vill have Ix Chel's power." He placed a boot on Jesse's chest and pressed down, pushing the breath out of him.

Petrovic reached down and extracted the dagger with a sickening squelch. He raised it up for a killing blow. "Goodbye, Mister Moore."

Jesse grabbed the flask Drina had given him, swiftly uncapped it, and flung the whiskey right into Petrovic's face. Petrovic roared like a wounded animal and dropped the dagger as he clutched at his eyes, trying to get the burning liquid flushed out.

Jesse grabbed the dagger off the floor of the boat and sat up, driving it hard into Petrovic's thigh. The Russian let out another agonized howl and his fist crashed into Jesse's face, causing his vision to temporarily black out. In that second he felt two powerful hands fasten around his throat. He vaguely saw Petrovic snarling down at him and strangling the life out of him. His vision was blacking out again as his lungs burned for air that he couldn't get. His arms and legs started to grow heavy and his strength ebbed away. This was it. He was going to die.

 

[haremfaery]

Drina could do nothing but vault onto the other boat after Jesse. She had no time to watch him as she was immediately set upon by one of Petrovic's goons. He wrestled the pistol from her, but she used a combination fo the street fighting she learned as a child and some esoteric (at least to Westerners) techniques form the Orient. The goon came at her, she grabbed his wrist and elbow and threw him overboard.

She finally could look to Jesse. Petrovic was on top of him strangling the life out of him. She snatched up the rifle from the deck. She could not shoot with Petrovic so close to Jesse.

"Petrovic!" She called out to him. He paused and looked up, enough for Drina to change the shot. She was angry she could not draw out his pain, but this must be expedient. The sky was not looking any less angry, in fact the waves were smashing high enough to slosh on the deck a bit. She took the shot. Petrovic looked surprised. The force of the shot flung him backwards where he skidded across the deck. She walked to his body and yanked the necklace from him. "So much for you getting the goddess's power.

She ran to Jesse and cradled his head. She ignored the rain streaming down, soaking her through. "Speak to me, Jesse." She tried to shield him from the worst of it with her body. "You have to get up, we have to get out of here." "Jesse please." She looked up at the sky. "We did this for you. Take Petrovic if you want, but you cannot have Jesse."

 

[DrStein]

Jesse faintly heard a gunshot and the hands released from his neck. He gasped in air desperately, coughing so hard he thought he was going to hack up both of his lungs. He was in pain but it seemed far away, like it was happening to someone else's body. He saw a blurry image of Drina over him. Was she crying? She was soaked by the rain, making it hard to tell.

"I think... this is the one... I'm not coming home from..." he whispered. He was feeling cold now. "I'm even starting to hallucinate... I see a giant snake with feathers..." He choked out a laugh at that before a crash of lightning and a deafening thunderclap followed. In that moment, Jesse knew he wasn't hallucinating. His eyes widened as they attempted to focus. He weakly lifted a finger and pointed behind Drina.

Descending from the clouds in sinewy, graceful coils was an enormous serpent like a boa constrictor with a head the size of a car. Huge bird wings grew from its body, but never flapped to keep it aloft. Instead of scales, its body was covered in brilliant emerald green feathers with gold and red plumage. It was at once one of the most beautiful and terrifying things Jesse had ever seen. He didn't know how, but a name entered his mind and he knew it to be correct. He said it aloud at the same time as Drina. "Quetzalcoatl."

The serpent looked down on them with golden eyes that glowed faintly of their own light. It didn't speak... not exactly. Jesse heard its voice in his head. "I had hoped to bury the idol at the bottom of that river forever back in the jungle. But you two have proven most resourceful." Jesse's eyes widened. Ix Chel hadn't been helping them. It was the feathered serpent all along. "Our time among the mortals should be over. The one you call Petrovic would steal a forbidden power to walk amongst you as one of us. That cannot be allowed to happen."

The great serpent's body coiled around the two boats as it... "spoke" to them. "We thank you. Keep these devices from those who would use them for evil, and we will continue to dwell in our realm until the time is right for our return. Until then, I shall grant you a reward for your deed. You will not die this night, Jesse Carrol Moore."

The serpent began to rise once more into the air and Jesse was blinded by yet another crash of lightning that struck the lake only a few feet away. The thunder shook his body to the bones and for a moment if he had died. He slowly became aware of the fact his breathing was normal again. He was exhausted, but no longer in pain. He opened his eyes, afraid of what he might see, and there was Drina still kneeling over him.

Jesse sat up and looked around. The serpent was gone. Petrovic lay dead on the deck with the six relics strewn about him, save for the dagger still in his thigh. The storm clouds still loomed in the sky, but the rain had stopped. Jesse stripped off his shirt and looked at his shoulder. The knife wound was gone, replaced by a scar that looked months, if not years old. He unwound the bandages on his arm and found the same. He looked back at Drina. He couldn't come up with a smart-ass thing to say, so he just stared at her trying to comprehend everything he had just seen.

 

[haremfaery]

Drina was just as dumbfounded. She had experienced strange things in her life, many strange things, but they were whispers, hints. This...how could anyone deny this?

But then, what did it mean? Were all of the old gods real?

"Thank you." She whispered to Quetzalcoatl. Then she bent down and covered Jesse's face with kisses.

When she stopped, she wondered if the pilot had seen the serpent god. She looked over at the other boat. The pilot looked confused, but not like he had seen the visitation of an ancient god.

She stood up, "What are you doing lying there? We have a god's bidding to do." She bumped him with her boot. "You get this boat back to the marina, I'll gather the relics." She paused, should we dump the bodies overboard? What are we going to tell the police?"

Quetzalcoatl may have saved Jesse's life, but He sure left them with a mess on their hands. She wanted a nice cool bath in the best hotel in the city, not a grilling by the local policia. This was all self defense, but how could they ever explain it and escape jail?

 

[DrStein]

Jesse lifted a brow at Drina as he lifted himself up. "We aren't telling the police anything. Let them find this shit themselves. They take the relics back to the museum, and they throw Dracula there in an unmarked grave."

He took Drina's hand and ignored any protest or argument she made and just took her back to their boat. He went to the pilot of their boat and took out a handful of Belize dollars. "For your trouble. Just go get that exchanged at a bank." He couldn't quite remember the exchange rate, but he knew it close enough to figure that it was an impressive sum.

The boat took them back to the marina, and they returned the stolen car. Jesse of course insisted on going back to the mansion to loot it before the police arrived. When they were done, they went to a hotel. Jesse collapsed onto the bed and took his shirt off again. He looked once more at the new scars on his torso, still seeming very confused.

"Drina... you saw what I saw, right? What the hell does this all mean?" Jesse had been raised Catholic, though he hadn't been to church in years. Though he wasn't aware of it, he was closer to being a deist these days than a practicing Christian. But seeing Quetzalcoatl out on that lake had shaken up his world view.

 

[haremfaery]

"Wait." Drina said. She walked to the relics and picked up the tablet. "We must make sure no one will be able to try this ritual again." She couldn't bring herself to smash it. It went against everything she valued. She stuffed it into her pack and let Jesse hustle her along without further protest.

The pilot nodded and took the money. He looked shaken but that was all.

Back at the mansion, Drina actually helped Jesse pick out things he could easily find a buyer for. Things that did not necessarily need to be in a museum. She herself packed some things that _should_ be in a museum. The curators at the museum in Naples would be very pleased. She might get a bonus for this. Correction, she would insist on a bonus.

Later, at the hotel, Drina sat on the bed next to Jesse. She traced on of his new/old scars with a gentle finger.

"I did see, Jesse. I saw Quetzalcoatl. I heard him in my mind." She shook her head. "I have no idea what this all means. I have faith. I pray to the Black Madonna. I have heard of and experienced things beyond our material world, but never, never have I felt that anything Divine has spoken to me." She kissed his cheek and stood up.

"I want to take a very long bath. Perhaps later we can talk more about this, over many tequilas. I think alcohol might help." She grinned.

 

[DrStein]

"Take your time, doll," Jesse said softly. That he didn't ask to join her showed just how badly the whole experience had shaken him up. Just a few hours ago he was knocking on death's door. Now, he felt perfectly healthy if a bit confused.

After Drina closed the door, Jesse put his shirt back on and wandered out of the room to the hotel bar. It took a bit of trying, but he managed to haggle the Belize currency in his pocket for two bottles of wine and a pair of glasses. Drina had suggested tequila, but it always left him with the worst kind of hangover. In this case, he wanted something a little more... classy. Once this was over, they would part ways again and he wasn't sure when he'd see her next.

He came back up to the room and sat out on the balcony with his shirt open. He uncorked the first bottle as he heard the bathroom door open. "Out here, doll," he called to Drina. A part of him hoped she had come out wearing only a towel again. "I got us a little something." He craned his neck back to see her and held the open bottle and a glass up in invitation.

 

[haremfaery]

Drina would have to put her clothes out to be cleaned. She doubted she'd need them for at least a day anyway. She walked out of the bathroom clad with nothing but a towel and a smirk.

She padded out to the balcony, her long tanned legs stood out against the white towel. Her wet hair was piled on her head. Occasionally a drip slid down her neck.

She took the glass from him and let him pour. The she sat on the chair across from him, stretched out her legs and propped them on his thigh. Her position showed quite a bit of her legs, nearly all of them in fact. She was a woman comfortable with her body. Besides Jesse was a frequent lover and had seen it all before. She enjoyed giving him a little tease.

"Feeling better? I am. A long bath always does wonders." She took a tentative sip of the wine. "Mmm. Nice choice." She took a longer drink and sighed.

 

[DrStein]

Jesse gave a little grin at the sight of Drina in that towel. He poured her a glass before pouring himself one. "Physically? I'm great. Mentally? I still don't know what the fuck is going on. It'll be nice to take a break and try to get my head on straight. Or, failing that, I can just get splifficated." He sipped his wine as one hand went to Drina's legs, softly caressing them.

"Of all our adventures together..." he started, staring off into the lights of the city, "which one was your favorite?" He looked back at her with curiosity in his eyes. He took another gulp of wine and his hand went from a caress to massaging her calves.

 

[haremfaery]

"'Spliff-i-cated?" Drina raised her eyebrows. "I thought I was fluent in English, but some of your American words..." She shook her head.

"That is a very difficult question. My favorite?" She sipped her wine and thought for a bit. "Crete, I think...the amulet that supposedly held the key to the Minotaur's lair. Wasn't that the first time we...made love?" She remembered the bright sun, the cool breeze and the blue water. And Jesse's hot kisses and insistent hands.

She shifted her feet a little so the sole of one foot was very close to his crotch. She moved her foot back and forth brushing his cock through his trousers.

 

[DrStein]

Jesse laughed at her remark about "American words." He took another sip of wine and arched a brow at her. "Remind me to take you dancing in Harlem the next time you're Stateside. Not everyone there takes kindly to a white boys like myself, but my money spends as good as anyone else's."

As her foot stroked his crotch, a grin spread across his face and he downed the last of his wine before filling the glass up again and offering the bottle to Drina for more. "First time we weren't trying to trick each other out of something, yeah."

He continued massaging her calves, sipping down his wine almost mechanically as he thought about his own favorite. He refilled his glass a second time. Drina had learned just how much he could drink a few years after they met during an adventure in Morocco, wherein Jesse managed to get them out of a bar fight by making a bet with their three antagonists that he could out drink them all. All three were under the table on short order while Jesse happily put away an extra round and staggered his way out of the bar with Drina.

"My favorite... was that time in Polynesia about... four years ago was it? We were both looking for the same ruins, though I was out to sack the damn thing. A tropical storm kicked up and stranded us on a neighboring island." At that he started laughing. "My delicate Irish skin got burned like a catfish on a Cajun grill. Worse yet, it was so hot after the storm that we spent most of our time on the island walking around naked.

"And then, no sooner had I finished fixing our boat than you came up fully dressed with a crew of sailors you had used smoke signals to draw over and there I was, balls flapping in the wind with egg on my face." He laughed again, grabbed the arm of her chair, and dragged it beside him. He pulled her out of the chair and into his lap without spilling a drop from either glass. "I think you timed that. You just wanted to see me struggle to cover up before accepting the fact that there was no way to hide my family jewels until I had fished my clothes out of the boat. The sailors got a good laugh out of it too. Of course, when we got back to Honolulu, you made it up to me."

 

[haremfaery]

Drina topped off her wine. She had to pace herself with Jesse. She could hold her own in a drinking match, but she didn't want to spend the night in a drunken stupor, or wake up with a splitting head in the morning.

Drina laughed along with Jesse at the memory of his sunburnt naked body and him scurrying to hide it. "I always thought you were prouder of your body than that."

"What about that time in Arabia. You traded me to that Sheik for that lamp and a camel to make your escape." She pushed her toes against his crotch to show her annoyance. "You know, he had his women remove all the hair from my body from the neck down. They put a honey paste on the hairy parts, then lay strips of linen on it and literally rip" She reached over and pulled a few hairs from his forearm, "the hairs from your body. But then you did see the results when I caught up with you." The Sheik was accustomed to docile women and could not even imagine that she would attempt an escape, let alone be successful, but not after spending the night in his tent on a bed of silk. Thinking back, she had some rather fond memories of Sheik Yerbooty. the corners of her mouth curled into a smirk.

 

[DrStein]

Jesse finished the last of his glass to hold back a laugh. "I wouldn't have done it if I didn't think you could get yourself out of it. The man was a buffoon. He actually believed that crazy story I told about how I was raised in Ulster in a burrow carved out of a hill. Although, that lack of hair was a good look for you."

His face turned a little more serious for a moment. "You know... you're being very forward all of a sudden. And I haven't even been trying that hard to get you in bed since Belize. You usually aren't like this unless you want something from me. But I already agreed to let you keep the relics Petrovic stole." At that point he looked Drina right in the eye. "So what's going on here?" His arm was around her waist and he was certainly stronger than her. She couldn't get up if she tried. There was no menace or demand in his face or his voice, but he clearly wanted an answer. His blue eyes locked onto hers, never once breaking eye contact.

 

[haremfaery]

"What? You mean you aren't a leprechaun?" She laughed.

Drina raised her eyebrow at the 'lack of hair' comment. "It hurt and it was itchy when the hair grew back. I'll make you a deal, the next time something brings up to the near or middle east, I will find someone who knows the technique, and," She smirked, "We will _both_ have our hair removed."

"I expect the Mexican National Museum has the relics by now. And it seems other than the two of us, it was only a strange storm that passed over the lake..."

Drina looked at Jesse, his blue eyes intensely searching her dark ones. "Our adventure is done--it's a tradition isn't it? And...I held you in my arms and watched you die, Jesse. Now you are here, in the flesh..." She moved her legs away from his crotch. "I can be more demure, if that's what you prefer."

 

[DrStein]

Jesse smiled at that. He stood up, set his glass down and took his shirt off. "Didn't think you cared that much." He went back into the hotel room and flopped down onto the bed. "As for being demure... Didn't I tell you back in Belize not to change?" He put his hands behind his head and looked over at her as she sat out on the balcony. That cocksure grin was back on his face.

"It's not a question of you being demure, doll. I'm just... trying to make sense of all this." The grin was still there, but his words had a note of sincerity. "We've been rivals as much as lovers for years now. Though this is the closest I've ever come to dying and now you can't seem to keep your hands off me. I didn't realize I meant that much to you."

He gestured for her to join him in the bed. There was a gleam in his eye as he did so. "You have to admit, this has been a little different from our usual capers together. The other night in Belize... now this. I don't really know what it means yet. You know?"

 

[haremfaery]

"I didn't think _you_ cared that much until the hotel in Belize." Drina countered.

She stood up as he watched her from the bed. She slowly approached and let the towel fall. She slipped onto the bed beside him with her head propped on her hand. "I suppose I need to touch you to make sure you are really real. I don't know what this means either, but I think you think too much." Yes, it was very possible she was falling for this very frustrating, cheeky man. Usually she was the thinker and he was the doer, somehow their roles had gotten reversed.

"Now be quiet and kiss me." She leaned down and kissed the corner of his mouth.

 

[DrStein]

"First time I've ever been accused of that." Any further retorts were cut off when Jesse's hand went to Drina's head and pulled her in for a passionate kiss. His tongue licked at her lips as his free hand went around her waist and pulled her body flush against his. He felt her breasts press against the toned muscles of his chest and he let out a soft groan into her mouth.

His lips strayed down her neck as he rolled her over onto her back. He eventually went down to her breasts and began kissing and sucking on her nipples. His hand caressed her thighs and stomach, teasing at but never touching her where she needed it most. He traced a fingertip along the nerves of her bikini line, teasing her further.

His hands continued their insistent teasing as he looked up from her breasts and smiled at her. "Have I told you today how beautiful you are?"

 

[haremfaery]

Drina started to laugh but Jesse cut her off with a kiss. A passionate one. It left her breathless when he moved to kiss her neck. They were feeling their way back to the status quo between them. At least it seemed so.

It was her turn to moan. She bit her index finger and stretched beneath him, wriggling a little. "Mmmm, Jesse. No, you haven't. And you only tell me when I'm naked and in your bed." She smiled.