The Secret of the Stones by Ernest Dempsey (reading fiction .TXT) 📕

he made his way to another large fire plate. This one was made from silver. Again, he dipped the torch into the ancient fuel, and the wall before him came to life in the fiery glow.

He repeated the illumination process at a third dish, this one made from what looked like onyx.

Allyson watched Sean’s progression from the safety of the elevator, amazed by the radiance of the room. As he made his way to the final saucer, Sean gave her a quick flash with his eyes. What did he want?

Again, he gave a quick look over to her left with his eyes toward the pedestal on the elevator.

The disc. Sean wanted her to remove the disc so the elevator would start going back up again. She shook her head.

He mouthed to her, “It’s okay. Do it.”

She looked over at Ulrich who was now standing directly behind Tommy, raising his gun to the back of Tommy’s skull. Sean was nearly to the last dish. Her eyes shot back toward Tommy and again to Sean. As soon as Tommy was executed, the guard would take that as his cue to kill Sean. Then she would be next.

“I really must thank you for your help in finding all of this, Thomas. It has been quite an adventure,” Ulrich finally said.

Tommy turned around to find a gun barrel between his eyes.

“Unfortunately, your services are no longer required.”

Sean gave her a quick nod as he ignited the final plate’s fuel. The guard stood directly behind him, raising his weapon as well. His thick face was completely vacant of any emotion.

Biting her lip, Allyson reached down and pried the medallions from the podium with her fingers. Immediately, the ancient elevator rumbled to life again, rising slowly from the floor.

Neither Ulrich nor Flattop saw Allyson’s sudden move. So when the giant mechanism started moving again, they both spun around instinctively.

Ulrich’s reaction was less shocked as he realized quickly what was happening. He twisted his arm away from Tommy and fired off two quick shots that narrowly missed Allyson, who crouched behind the stand of the rising platform. As he started to lunge toward her, something grabbed him by the ankle.

Tommy’s grip was firm, and Ulrich felt himself lose his balance, toppling over with a thud. Both elbows smashed unexpectedly onto the solid stone floor. Pain immediately shot through his arms, and the crash caused the gun in his hand to rattle free.

Across the room, the guard’s reaction to Allyson had been less coordinated. The big man seemed momentarily confused by what was happening. However, he quickly followed Ulrich’s lead, and he took aim at the woman.

A shot was never fired from the stocky man’s weapon though. Before he could pull the trigger, a sharp and burning pain shot across his head and face with bits of dripping flame flying past his eyes.

Sean had taken the moment of surprise and moved quickly, swinging his arm as hard as he could. The torch bashed against the man’s temple, sending sparks and fire swarming around the man’s head.

For a second, the large body staggered, dizzied from the strike. Instinctively, he dropped his gun and reached up to his face with both hands, screaming in pain. Sean followed the blow with another swing.

This time, the stocky man was ready. He recovered from the initial blow and raised his other arm just in time to block the flaming staff from hitting him again.

It was Sean’s turn to be surprised. He had not anticipated the strong man’s ability to stabilize so fast. After blocking his attack, the man grabbed the torch with one hand and Wyatt’s throat with the other.

Sean tried to pry the fingers loose that were cutting off his supply of air, but the grip was too strong. He swung wildly at the guard’s face, only getting in a few glancing blows that seemed less than ineffective.

The room began to spin as the lack of oxygen started taking its toll. His lungs screamed to breathe, but he could not force open his throat. With a last-ditch effort, Sean jumped and lifted both of his legs in a running motion, essentially stepping on Flattop’s chest then his face with both feet. The odd movement worked as Sean’s legs forced free the man’s grasp and sent him reeling backward toward one of the flaming urns.

Wyatt landed on his side and gasped for air, his lungs filling gratefully in relief. He only had a moment, though, as the guard had caught himself and was charging toward him like a bull. Tommy staggered to one knee with a hand still on the ground. Only a few feet behind him, another of the dishes burned brightly. The idea came just quickly enough.

Running at full speed, Flattop squared his shoulders into a tackling position, ready to drive Wyatt to the floor. But just as he was about to hit him, Sean rolled out of the way and caught the guard with his boot.

The man stumbled forward out of control, and before he could stop, he crashed into the fiery platter, sending it toppling to the ground. He reached out his hands to the floor as he fell, but they landed in the fire that now spread along the floor. The man let out a yelp and withdrew his hands, but when he did, his body collapsed into the flames. His black suit roared to life in a burst of yellow-and-orange heat.

He screamed and struggled to roll out of the flames as his entire body became engulfed. Finally, after a moment, the man was able to worm his way onto a part of the stone surface where the fire hadn’t reached, and he continued to turn over in the dust. A few seconds later, the