Part Eight

"The Nazis have sponsored multiple expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic and several mountain ranges," said The Solution, frowning. "Including the Himalayas. Could they have found something here, closer to home?"

"Viking hacksilver," guessed The Infiltrator. Being pragmatic, or perhaps merely hopeful.

"The architecture of these ruins - which the Nazis here are obviously paying a great deal of attention to - remind me of the works of what the Greeks referred to as the Elders," said Aaron. "They were truly ancient, a pre-human culture predating Zeus and the other Olympians and at least the most recent ice age, and maybe all ice ages. Because of their age and their strangeness, they were left out of the myths, except for a few vague and sometimes contradictory references. They were technologically advanced enough that they developed concepts well beyond what even empowered geniuses have come up with so far, which is why the old gods struck them down and removed all - or nearly all - of their works. These advancements included their knowledge of geometry, which was partly non-Euclidean.

"Notice that the geometry of these ruins isn't Euclidian. The style matches nothing made by Man. At least, modern humans. "

"I'll give you that," said The Solution, though reluctantly. "Or part of it. Even in their current state there's something... off about these stones and the way they fit together. That doesn't mean those ruins are... alien. The geometry is obviously weird. Maybe all this was just made at the direction of a madman. Some of those Roman Emperors were... very eccentric."

"Quite possibly," said Aaron, nodding. "However, what I'm saying is that even if these structures were made at the direction of an insane human, long after the Elders died, that the mad human responsible for it was influenced by works which long predated modern humans."

Aaron frowned, obviously thinking hard.

"That construct the Nazis are now focusing on reminds me of... something; I just can't think of what. Perhaps because it is so alien my brain is refusing to remember. Maybe if the ruins around it were completely cleared..."

"You're not seriously suggesting we wait for those Nazi occultists to finish their work, are you?" said The Infiltrator, obviously alarmed.

"No. Actually, they seem to be finished with clearing what they are interested in, and are currently working to restore and possibly modify some essential part of it."

"That post," said Molly, with a shudder. "It... extends beyond any height you can achieve in our world."

"The question is," said Commander Zero, carefully and thoughtfully, "is their work here likely to... do something significant enough that we need to stop them?"

"That I don't know," said Aaron, with a shrug. "I don't know how much longer they'll need to complete what they're doing, either, though they look close. My suggestion is to watch for a while, see if we can determine what they're doing and how long they'll need to finish the work. Notice there are few guards around, mostly just the researchers and a few laborers. The Nazis will likely have diverted troops to the camp and barracks, the SS base on Rügen and the scene of the battle on the beach. If these... researchers are close to some discovery, we should be able to at least damage what they have built before leaving, and still have time to meet the sub."

"That sounds quite workable," said Commander Zero, nodding. "Meanwhile, we watch to see if we can determine what it is they actually are attempting. However, at the first sign of returning troops we quickly do what damage we can and move to our boat."

"Sounds like a plan," said Cobber, though he was obviously uneasy.

* * *

The occultists directing the work and their assistants had stayed behind when the majority of their guards withdrew to the camp in response to the attack of the commandos. However, there were, indeed, still a few guards around, patrolling uneasily. The team was therefore very careful to keep quiet. Fortunately, the guards showed a great reluctance to approach the illuminated area around the pillar, or - conversely - to venture far from it. They kept well clear of the ruins, as well, which restricted their path around the altar.

The soldiers gave no help when the white-robed men and their assistants began assembling additional equipment inside the illuminated circle.

"Those are very strange looking antennae," said The Infiltrator, frowning.

"They also remind me of... something," said Aaron, also frowning. "Can't think of what just now."

"So it's safe to say this isn't some sort of fancy radio station," said Commander Zero, dryly.

"Definitely not," said The Solution. "The Nazis are funding multiple, odd studies, including antigravity. This is likely connected with one of those."

"I just wish I could think of what they remind me of," said Aaron, sounding irritated and desperate. "Not so much in their details but in their overall arrangement. There's something... familiar in that pattern, but I can't identify it."

"They're like the ruins," said Sutter.

"Yes. In both form and... function."

"You remember something now, don't you?" said Molly, as Aaron halted, looking worried.

"Yes. We need to stop them immediately."

They were too late. Even as the team advanced, even as they dealt with the uniformed guards, the researchers - apparently oblivious to the intrusion - finished their construction and threw a master switch. There was a whine from the equipment on the ground with the batteries, and the sound of high voltage moving through wires, and a strange glow from the apparatus on the table. Not just from the tubes of the uncased devices, but from the connected wires and the antenna array. Then an even stranger glow came from the volume above the top of the post. The brazier vanished. The glow above became hollow, showing a bizarre darkness at its center. Though that darkness came... something. Several somethings.

"Oh," said Aaron, stunned at a sudden realization. "That's what they were doing."

"What are those?!" screamed The Solution, clawing at his eyes.

"Don't look!" said Aaron, immediately following his own advice. "Turn away or risk madness!"

Most of those who heard him followed his order. Most. The experimenters, being closer and having worked towards this, mostly did not. Nearly all of them simply died, with horrible screams or even more horrible silences, as they looked upon what they had summoned. Those few who were nearly able to comprehend what came through the portal met the worst fates. All others among the workers and their guards fled, including those soldiers still conscious. Eerie, shimmering lights filled the area, and these threatened the sanity even of those who did look away.

"What... do we do?" shouted Commander Zero, shielding his eyes so he only saw Aaron. Who had shifted to his winged form.

The angelic empowered turned to face the pillar, his eyes closed, his face at first contorted but quickly serene.

"If these... remember me... I may be able to persuade them to leave."

He took a deep breath, steeling himself, and strode forward, eyes still closed. Towards that circle and pillar.

The creatures were difficult to parse, hard to resolve. They were so alien in their form that comprehending their form was almost impossible for nearly all of those observing them. Which was likely a blessing for the observers.

"I apologize for the disturbance," said Malak. loudly. "By the time I realized what their machine was for it was too late to stop it. Those directly responsible are all dead."

One of the strange creatures made odd sounds. These were less like language than what language might have been if created by something which thought in dimensions humans couldn't even imagine.

"Thank you for your forbearance," said Malak. "You have my word their device and all records connected to it will be destroyed."

There were more alien sounds. Then the weird, undulating shapes dove into the dark volume above the post. Malak immediately hurled one of his spears at the stone pillar. The darkness in the air above it flickered and vanished as the pillar simply fell to shards, the explosion from the spear seeming muffled. However, he didn't stop there. With wings and spears, Malak completely trashed the devices on the table and then the diagrams the investigators were using.

Aaron turned to the others as they timidly approached. He was panting and sweating.

"They... don't like to be disturbed," was his only explanation, before he collapsed.

"Well, we will make sure your promise is fulfilled," said Commander Zero, to the fallen winged man, "then we need to get out of here. Not only are we running out of time with the sub, but there will likely be investigators from the base."

* * *

As the others made certain all equipment and records were destroyed, Malak recovered quickly and changed back to Aaron. This was fortunate, as carrying his winged form through the underbrush would have been, at best, difficult. Though he was obviously exhausted he could at least walk this way.

"That... interruption of what the occultists were doing may have been more important than destroying the training grounds," was one of the few things he said, as the team made its quiet way through the woods towards the shore. "Those... creatures might have taken vengeance on the entire world over that disturbance."

"I'm just glad you recovered so quickly," said Commander Zero. He gave Aaron a sick smile. "Dragging you wings and all through this heavy undergrowth is more than I want to think about, just now."

However, as they again approached the beach they again saw SS soldiers.

"I could..." said Aaron, voice barely above a whisper.

"No," said Commander Zero, emphatically but just as quietly. "You go ahead and secure our boat. If we can't get off this island then we're all dead, anyway. We'll watch the soldiers. They may just leave if they don't see anything."

He gave the other a speculative look.

"That is, unless you can make us all invisible."

"No more than one or two at a time. So I would have to make multiple trips. However, I don't think that will be necessary."

The soldiers came to sudden attention and looked down the beach, away from where the boat was hidden. A large figure was walking calmly towards them.

"Tallman!" said Molly. She glanced at Aaron. "Of course! Malak said he couldn't do anything more for him! He must already have been recovering on his own!"

On command from their senior member, the soldiers opened fire. Tallman had little to fear from their rifles, but equally little tolerance to being shot at. He demonstrated that besides being strong and tough he was also fast and agile. He quickly closed the distance to the soldiers and began bodily tossing them into the woods. None landed near the team of saboteurs, but were sent in the another general direction.

The remainder of the troops soon decided that this was not for them. They broke and ran. A bit belatedly, the same individual who had ordered them to fire now ordered a retreat. They ran past the hidden saboteurs, as those Tallman had tossed into the woods regained their feet and joined them. The sand around the big man was littered with dropped weapons and other equipment.

"You horrible little man!" shouted The Infiltrator, as he ran out of the woods. "We thought you were dead!"

"I was badly hurt," said Tallman, as he finished bending the barrel of an MP 40. He tossed it aside to take a hug from The Infiltrator. "You can blame Aaron. He and Commander Zero and I agreed on this ploy ahead of time, knowing I could recover from being seriously injured, but might need a while."

"So you gave it to him," said Cobber, nodding to Commander Zero. "Agreeing to hide the body, knowing it was to protect him while he recovered!"

"Guilty," said Commander Zero, with a slight smile. "Now, we need to get to our boat."

* * *

Fortunately, that was the last delay in their progress. The team found the boat, got it into the water - this time not bothering to hide the tracks they left - and made their slow, quiet way out to where they could already see the conning tower of the sub. Commander Zero used a light on the boat to signal the sub, which answered with a single blink of a hooded lamp.

"Okay, they see us, and it looks like they're surfacing," said Commander Zero, quietly. "We just need
get there, no hurry."