Jake Dakota, Part 13:
Mom Always Said Not
To Explore Strange Pyramids

       The climb up the stony pyramid wall wasn't too difficult. In fact, it would've been downright fun if Bradford and his goons weren't along for the ride. Of course, a lot of things about this whole expidition would've been more fun without them. We reached the top, then paused at the door, decorated in thick strands of spider web and accompanying globs of things I didn't want to know about.
        Bradford made an impatient sound. "You really need to keep moving, Mr. Dakota," he sighed. "I'm taking on the un-gentlemanly trait of impatience at present, and I can say you are directly contributing to that."
I opened my mouth to reply with something tremendously witty, something so biting, it was sure to make Bradford surrender right then and there. But I looked at Karen, and a flicker deep in her eyes told me to wait for it. It told me to ride this ordeal out and wait for the right opening, and not the most convenient one. So I clammed up.
        Speaking of openings, I finally found the resolve to push my way through the webbing and into the awaiting temple. No spiders the size of bears descended on me, but I couldn't shake the feeling I was covered in them. I looked...nothing there. Just that creepy feeling I always got looking at spiders crawling around like they owned the place. Gave me the creeps.
The webs gave way to a hall, wider than the door itself and lined with smooth, intricate carvings etched into its walls, laced with centuries of vines and vegetation. The artwork depicted such gentle scenes as natural disasters raining from the sky and wars with other tribes. Scary to look at, but Karen took it all in with fascination. Despite her fear, she was still a student of the game. And she loved it.
      "Incredible," she whispered.
      "Yes, quite," Bradford said curtly. "Let's move on, shall we?"
      "You realize, Mr. Bradford," Karen began, her voice like ice. I reminded myself not to ever get her mad. "...that this temple is full of booby traps. The Nivadi people didn't just put their most prized treasure out for the average Joe to grab."
      "That's where you come in handy. And Mr. Dakota as well. You see, he goes in front of you, since his limited mind is only good for moving his body into the line of fire. But, we lose him and we're down to..." He glanced slyly at his bodyguards, who were too busy admiring or blankly staring at the wall carvings to notice. "Well, we'll burn that bridge when we get to it."
Not three more steps, and Karen stopped me. Her grip on my arm was strong. Something disturbed her about this section of hallway.
     "Booby traps," she repeated.
     "Where?" I asked quietly.
      Karen looked up, down, all around. Her eyes settled on a particular carving to our right. It showed a man stepping towards a pattern of criss-crossed lines, both vertical and horizontal. It looked like a tic-tac-toe square for someone with a lot of time on their hands. Whatever it meant, it was right where we stood.
      Karen reached behind her to the opposite wall, breaking off a sizable piece of branch. She balanced it in her hands for a few seconds, testing its weight. Satisfied, she lobbed it about five feet in front of us. From the ceiling, floor, and both sides came about ten sharp-ended poles of hard wood. Dust flew from them, and tattered cloth hung from some to remind us this was a really bad way to go. They shot out at such speed, Karen jumped, moving closer to me. I placed a reassuring hand on her back, then looked back at Bradford. Another sound caused me to turn my attention back to the "welcome mat," as the poles retracted in unison, whatever mechanism grinding to pull them back into their waiting position.
Bradford laughed out loud. "Well, well! This is going to be a very interesting journey, isn't it? Mr. Dakota, I suggest you find a way for all of us to avoid this amusing obstacle. Time is of the essence."
       And once again, the little weasel leveled his gun at me for motivation...

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