'Yes,' he said as he revealed the glistening black idol beneath the cloth. “Yes…”
Then abruptly he spun on his heel and began walking toward the eastern log-bridge.
'Demolition team,' he called in German as he walked, 'are those chlorine charges set yet?'
'Three more minutes, Herr Obergruppenfuhrer,“ a man called from over near the battered ATV.
'Then you've taken three minutes too long,' Anistaze barked. 'Finish laying them and then meet us at the riven'
'Yes, Obergruppenfuhrer.'
Anistaze keyed his radio. 'Herr Oberstgruppenfuhrer?
Do you read me?' Oberstgruppenfuhrer was the highest of all the SS ranks—General.
“Yes,' came the reply.
'We have it.'
'Bring it to me.'
'Yes, Oberstgruppenfuhrer. At once,' Anistaze said as he strode across the eastern log-bridge and plunged into the rainforest.
Race and Van Lewen ran down the spiralling path.
They came to the bottom of the crater, hit the fissure, bolted down its length. Then along the riverside path, guns up. Mist everywhere.
As Race ran down the path, his radio earpiece suddenly burst to life:
'—-an Lewen, report. Repeat. Cochrane, Reichart, Van Lewen, report—'
It was Nash. Their radios were working again. The Nazis must have turned off their jamming system, or at least taken it out of range.
Van Lewen spoke as he ran. 'Colonel, this is Van Lewen.
We've lost Reichart and Cochrane is wounded. But the Nazis have the idol. Repeat. The Nazis have the idol. I have Professor Race with me now. We're on our way back to the village.'
“You lost the idol?”
'Yes.'
“Get it back,” was all Nash said.
Race and Van Lewen came to the western log-bridge. They stepped cautiously over it, guns up.
The village was deserted, cloaked in fog. No Nazis in sight. No rapas either.
Immediately in front of them, they saw the dark shape of the ATV turned up on its side. To their left, they could see the shadows of the various buildings of Vilcafor rising out of. the fog.
Van Lewen took a step toward the ATV.
'Colonel… ?' he said.
He was answered by gunfire - G-11 gunfire from the three-man Nazi demolition squad who had been left behind in the village to plant Anistaze's chlorine charges.
Race dived left, Van Lewen dived right, both of them raising their M-16s, but it was no use. They couldn't see a thing in this mist.
Race clambered back to his feet just as he saw a Nazi commando burst around the side of the ATV, his G-11 raised and ready.
Then suddenly—bam!—a loud, single gunshot rang out from somewhere behind Race and the Nazi's head just snapped backwards in a spray of blood and all Race could do was stare in stunned awe as his assailant fell to the ground, dead.
'What the ' he turned in the direction of the gunshot.
Suddenly a rapa burst out of the fog right in front of him, bared its teeth and leapt at his throat.
Bam!
The rapa jolted sideways in mid-flight as it was hit in the side of the head by another speeding bullet—killed instantly. The big animal's carcass slid to a halt inches away from Race's feet.
What the hell was going on!
'Professor!' Doogie's voice cut through the mist. “Over here! Come on! I've got you covered!'
Squinting through the fog, Race caught a glimpse of the roof of the citadel, and there—perched on top of it with a sniper rifle pressed against his shoulder—he saw the silhouette of Doogie Kennedy.
From his position on the roof of the great stone fortress, Doogie had a great view of the village.
Through the thermal sights of his M-82AIA sniper rifle, he could see everyone in the town as if it were daytime.
Each figure appeared on his scope as a multicoloured blob—from the vaguely human-shaped blobs of Race, Van Lewen and the two remaining members of the German demolition team, to the trapezoidal but heatless shape of the ATV; to the ominous, four-legged shapes of the cats.
