Matsuo Shin and The Lost Tomb
Matsuo Shin and The Lost Tomb is story 8 of the continuing adventures of Matsuo Shin
Plot Summary
Acting on a tip from Paisley, Matsuo and Thorn arrived in Greece searching for Cora, who had disappeared from the manor. Moving through a market on their way to finding the way out of the city, Thorn spotted an interesting looking pottery vase on display at a booth. Although Matsuo impatiently pulled her away, she just had enough time to buy it from the old man selling the antiques. Walking away, the two did not realize that they were being watched from a nearby building by a pair of dark suited men, one of whom talks to another individual on a cellphone, instructing him to "grab the girl."
Reaching the temple, Matsuo and Thorn found Cora collapsed inside. Bringing her out in the fresh air, Matsuo instructed Thorn to fetch some food from the jeep they used to get to the location. Putting down the pottery she had bought, Thorn did as she was told. After waking Cora, Matsuo learned she left the manor because she was an outsider, with no reason to be there and had come to beg an answer from Athena. So she had returned to the temple to pray and fast.
Matsuo tried to reassure her of her place in the world, but the two were suddenly ambushed by the man in the dark suit. Taken by surprise, Matsuo was kicked in the face, while one of the men grabbed Cora. The other tried to grab the vase, but Matsuo pulled out his gun and fires, shattering it. Grabbing one of the shards, the men hightailed it, although Matsuo managed to wing one of them in the shoulder. Thorn returned just in time to learn what happened, and both Matsuo and Thorn ran to catch up with the two men.
They arrived just in time to see the two men hop into a plane marked "Quickly Airlines." Matsuo managed to jump onto the plane just as it took off, but a third man walked out, and after a fight, dislodged Matsuo, who landed on the ground. As Thorn ran to make sure Matsuo was alright, the two of them watched as the plane flew away into the distance.
Back at the hotel room, Matsuo was angry that he couldn't save Cora, but wondered why the men took her. Thorn was upset with her new vase being broken, but as Matsuo began to berate Thorn for paying attention to such a trivial thing, he noticed what appeared to be writing on the inside of several the shards. With her help, he managed to put together the shards they had, revealing what appeared to be a map and some writing. Looking over it, Matsuo was able to identify it as ancient Greek and translate it: "In the farthest eyes of strange gods, lies forever he who ruled all in eternal rest and all that he obtained." Puzzled by this, Thorn asked who the script referred to, to which Matsuo responded with a "man who was once called Great."
Upon waking, Cora found herself in a dark room on a plush chair. On the other side of the room, she saw two men being berated for failing to procure the right girl. When one of the men complained that he was only told to kidnap the girl, and not which girl, he was shot in the knee, which frightened her. The other man asked what they should do with Cora. Walking out of the shadows, Allan Harrison looked Cora in the eyes and told them to keep her, as she might be useful.
Matsuo explained how after his death, Alexander was buried in the city of Alexandra, which most equated with Alexandria in Egypt. When Thorn then suggested they go to Egypt after the kidnappers, Matsuo pointed out that the map on the vase didn't correspond to any known city in Egypt, even those of ancient times. Pulling out his laptop, Matsuo was able to identify the coastline shown on the map was not Egypt, but somewhere along the Indian coast. However, due to the piece taken by the kidnappers, he was unsure of which part of the Indian coast it was. However, he found references to the "eyes of strange gods" in an old temple near a small village named Mayapore. Deciding to take this chance and hoping they'd also find Cora, Matsuo and Thorn boarded a plane to India.
Meanwhile, Allan was becoming more frustrated as his piece of the map showed three cities, all of which could be the Alexandria they wanted. When one of the men suggested asking Cora about it, Allan merely told him her time was earlier than Alexander's. A phone-call interrupted them, and one of Allan's men reported that Matsuo had left for India. Allan looked at Cora, and said they would all will be taking a little trip.
When Matsuo and Thorn arrived in Mayapore, they learned that the temple was located not far from the remains of Pankor Palace, and was supplied with transport to allow him and Thorn safe passage to it. Arriving after a short trip and a frank discussion of their relationship, Matsuo and Thorn found themselves at the half buried temple. While Matsuo searched for a way in, Thorn sensed that they were not alone in the jungle. Finding a hidden catch, Matsuo opened the temple, in the process finding the remains of large statue with a missing eye.
Before Matsuo can do anything, however, he was caught from behind by one of Allan's men. Using his Lonchiki skills, Matsuo managed to disarm and knock him out. Another tried to grab Thorn, but she on used her powers, melting his gun. Grinning, she began to burn him to death, but Matsuo managed to calm her down, instead merely injuring him. Climbing the statue, Matsuo reached in and pulleds out an oddly carved crystal. Realizing that there may be more of the kidnappers around, Matsuo and Thorn quickly exited the temple, only to come face to face with Allan, who had a gun to Cora's head. Matsuo and Thorn were forced to go with Allan's company.
At the camp, Allan ordered Matsuo to decipher the map for him. When Matsuo asked why he didn't do it himself, Allan said that he was using Matsuo as a scapegoat should something go wrong. Grudgingly, Matsuo looked through the crystal over the vase map, the reflection of which narrowed down the location to one in the north. As he said this, however, Thorn and Cora elbowed the guts of their guards while Matsuo tossed the table at Allan. Running for one of Allan's jeeps, the trio drove from the camp with two motorcycles chasing them. Matsuo gave Cora the wheel, suggesting she just hold it in the center, and managed to telekinetically dislodge one of the men. The other's motorcycle melted under Thorn's powers and Matsuo retook the wheel. Thorn wondered where they were going, which Matsuo says they're going to the lost tomb.
Arriving at the foot of a large hill, Matsuo found a depression which could hold the crytal from the statue. Pressing it in, the trio watched as the side opened up, revealing a long hallway. Going down, they managed to avoid a falling floor trap and a false door before arriving at a large stone door. Forcing it open, the three were amazed, finding themselves in a pure gold room filled with ancient treasure. Taking a few artifacts, Matsuo was about to approach the golden sarcophagus containing Alexander's remains when he heard a gun cock back. Looking behind him, he found Allan, along with his remaining men. Allan had placed a tracking device on their vehicle, and had been following them the whole way. He then commented on how there was one too many treasure-hunters, and shot Matsuo.
Matsuo was only injured in the shoulder, but it was enough for Thorn to transform into Sailor Adrastea and summon hellfire, burning all of Allan's men alive. As Allan tried to escape, Matsuo tackled him to the ground and began to fight with him, disarming him and breaking his arm in the process. However, Allan was able to blind Matsuo with some dust and kick him off him. Escaping, Matsuo saw that Adrastea had thrown Cora aside, powers out of control and threatening to burn them all alive, as well as destabilizing the entire structure.
Running over to Adrastea, he tried to calm her down, only for her to burn off part of his jacket in anger. As the temple started to collapse inward, Matsuo tried again, embracing Adrastea and kisses her on the lips, which snapped her out of it and returned her to Thorn. Grabbing her and Cora, the three escaped just before the tomb collapsed, sealing it forever.
Although they escaped, Matsuo found that Thorn was very upset that she nearly killed him because of her senshi side. However, Matsuo told her that it doesn't matter, and that he loves her anyway. Holding her close, he gave her another kiss as the sun slowly set on the jungle. It was only as they looked around later that they discovered that Cora was once again gone.
Items Discovered
- Golden Statue of Aphrodite
- Golden Mercurial Idols - Early Silver Millenium
