 ADVENTURES BY MORSE Carlton E. Morse presents THE LAND OF THE LIVING DEAD featuring Captain Friday If you like high adventure, come with me. If you like the stealth of intrigue, come with me. If you like blood and thunder, come with me. Dr. English's entire party has been once more united. This time in the famous secret passage, we see for the moment from Maya Nahib, high priest of the sacred city of the priests of the living dead. With them is Mrs. Roberto Santos, who by her acts of saving Judah from the werewolf and smuggling the entire party through the sacred city, has proved herself finally to be a staunch, although somewhat mysterious a lie. The party has found a way of ending the menace of Maya Nahib. At the upper end of the secret passage is a great mountain lake gathered from the mouth of the passage only by a few yards of sandstone. In the heart of the sacred city and almost directly beneath the lower end of the secret passage, is a great lake of boiling lava, the living remains of a once great volcano. By releasing the water of the mountain lake into the secret passage and down into this crater of white-hot lava, the English party know that gas and steam will be formed in the bowels of the earth sufficient to blow the sacred city into eternity. Is that right, Captain Friday? Yes, but this means that our own lives will be endangered also. However, there seems to be no other way. If we don't destroy Maya Nahib and his agents within 12 hours, the high priest will destroy the civilization of the world. There's no choice. And so Judith, Mrs. Santos, Dr. English, Skip Turner and I have determined on this personal sacrifice. We have set the hour for the great catastrophe for 10 o'clock of the night before Maya Nahib is to strike against civilization. While waiting for the hour, we set out to hunt through the secret passage in search of the magnificent treasure room of the Chakota ancients, which we know is hidden somewhere in the passage. Judith and Skip found the room. Skip left Judith on guard and rushed back to get the rest of us when we suddenly heard Judith scream. We dashed back to where he left Judith. She's dead. Judith's dead and it's all my fault. Dr. English, it's all my fault. Pinned to the wall with spears. I shouldn't have left her. I shouldn't have left her. The Chakotas have killed her. I'm the man's name. Captain, help me pull these spears out of the woods. Skip, get hold of yourself. Look here. Look, the spears haven't touched her body. They've gone through her coat. But look how her head hanged. No, she's just fainted. Dr. English, Judith isn't dead. It's only a faint. What's that? Here, loosen the spears while I lift her down. Come on. Judith, what an experience. Look, she's opening her eyes. Judith, Judith, honey. Oh, father, father, they're after us. The Chakotas are after us. throw no spears. The Chakotas are guarding the treasure. They're killers all. Guarding the treasure? Judith, are the Chakotas in that treasure room? Yes. The spears came at me from all directions when I opened the door. But that is impossible. No one knows about the treasure. It's been lost for 400 years. But it's true. It's true. There are men over there in the shadows. When I stepped inside the room, I... Now, honey, just rest your head on my arm. There. Now, tell me what happened. It was awful. I... I stepped into the room and turned my flashlight into the dark. Suddenly the air was filled with gleaming spears. I... I couldn't see where they came from. They struck the door all around me, and I felt myself pinned to the door. Then I... I guess I fainted. It's all right now, my dear. There's something doggone funny going on here. If there is someone guarding the treasure, why haven't we been attacked? Our flashlight should have attracted their attention. I think I found your answer, doctor. Look there. It was a booby trap. A booby trap? What is it, Captain? Oh, I see. Yeah, see here? Wires along the ceiling and attached to the door. They evidently run out to some sort of spring traps in the back of the room. The moment the door was open, the springs were released, and a dozen spears came flying at the intruder. Then there ain't nobody in the room. That's right. And there hasn't been for 400 years. Pretty clever fellows, those old Chakota priests. Oh, Judith, you don't know what a close call you had, honey. What difference does it make, Skip? I'd just as soon die by a spears, be blown to pieces when we blow up the sacred city. Judith, my dear, don't talk like that. Yeah, here now. I talk about death with a hundred million dollars in front of us. Look at this mountain of gold and jewels. And pearls, Judith! Look at these great baskets of pearls. Yeah. Man, oh man, will you look here at it? This is what I call wallowing in wealth. I wonder what's in those bales. Big as a bale of hay. Robes. Priceless robes of the ancient kings of La Jolla. What a treasure. Speaking of kings, Doctor, look, throw your flash over here. Oh. By Jove, Captain. It's beyond comprehension. Those mummies are the ancient kings. Oh, if only Robert could have seen this. And all this treasure belonged to the Chakota priests. Yes, Skip. Most of it was looted from Montezuma's slaves while Cortez was marching down upon his capital. Captain Judith, all of you, come here quickly. What is it, Doctor? What have you found? Oh, beautiful. Simply beautiful. Oh, Father. A giant Heela monster. A Heela monster on a yellow disc. Well, that disc must be ten feet across. The monster in the sun. That disc is of solid gold. And the monster across its face is pure jade. Well, Doctor, it must weigh tons. And that was stolen from Montezuma? Yes. And Montezuma must have known of the legend of the monster in the sun. Why, of course, the legend is as old as man. The coming of Cortez was prophesied in just such a manifestation. Come over here, Captain. I want you to see this. Judith. Yes, Skip. Oh, Skip. Isn't that beautiful? Why, it's the loveliest ring I ever saw. Where did you get it? Oh, this little gold box. Just look here. The pearls. Biggest pigeon eggs. The ring was laying right on top of the pearls. Oh, but it's beautiful. Judith, honey. Yes, Skip. Judith, will you wear this ring for me? But, Skip, do you think we should take it? Well, of course. All this stuff belongs to us. We found it, didn't we? Miss English, that is your engagement ring. Oh, Skip, you're a dear. I love it. I just adore it. I can read a few of the hieroglyphics, Captain. Back to the such a stupendous wealth of treasure. I can't realize it. Hello. Somebody's wearing a ring. Uh-huh. Isn't it lovely? Oh, any, uh, any significance? Of course it has. Hasn't it, Skip? Your dog gone tooting it has. Oh, Dr. English. I've asked Judith to marry me. That's as it should be, my son. And, my boy, as a wedding gift, I grant you one fifth of the treasure of the Chakotas. One fifth? I'll make you one fourth, coffee done Friday. I will not claim my share. Hey, Miss Santos, where you been? Miss Santos, you look ill. What's the matter? The city sleeps, Dr. English. We have one hour more in which to complete our task. Oh, now, Mrs. Santos, it's a time. Must we die now? Our Senorita English. Look here, Mrs. Santos. I'm going to tell him about the... Captain Friday, you have nothing to tell. What I thought... You have nothing to tell. Come now, the hour is near. There are many things yet to be done. You, you mean we're going to, to just leave this room full of treasure like this? We cannot take it without Senorita. Oh, but Mrs. Santos, all this wealth and beauty blown to pieces. We're buried under a million tons of earth. Come on, let's get out of this place. We're all getting morbid. Hey, Captain, look here, Dr. English. Poor fellow sitting over yonder by his cell. Tears on his face. Yeah, he's already sacrificed his son Robert. Now it looks like Judith's going to be sacrificed. Yeah, and his own life. I wish we could do something for him. But it's too late now. We're getting it, boss. A little more and we'll have a tiny of my place. Hand me those fuses. Oh man, look at them stars over here. Soft wind blowing. What a night for the right gal and the right fellow. Keep your eyes open. We don't want someone sneaking up on us out here on the edge of the lake. Yeah, I'm watching. I've seen a solar. Get out, get out. Somebody's coming. How many? Couldn't tell. I just saw a shadow moving his way. Listen. Captain Friday. Ah, it's you, Mrs. Santas. See, it is I. How is the work coming? We have the holes drilled for the dynamite. Get back at it, Skip. Yeah. Just half an hour more, Captain Friday. I know. I'm putting the powder in the holes now. It's a delicate job tamping the earth down around those caps. The fuses aren't any too long. We will have to make the best of it. Did you inspect the fuses and cups closely? There must not be any sleep. I have done my best, Mrs. Santas. The entire lake will pour down through the secret passage and into the crater of Boiling Lava within a few minutes after the explosion. Good. Only half hour after that should come the most stupendous explosion in the history of man. There. There. The last hole is filled and tamped down. I've braided all the fuses together. One match would like the whole worse. Still 20 minutes to go. Skip, will you go down to the mouth of the passageway and bring Judith and Dr. English up? Yeah, sure. They'll only take a minute. Mrs. Santas, what's happened? Are we gonna be let down? Captain Friday, you know as much as I do. It is in the hands of the gods now. I have done everything I can. But shouldn't it be here by now? You're certain you made the place it was to come clear? My instructions were definite. No, Captain. If anything goes wrong now, it would be because my unnaheep strength was greater than ours. But why not tell the whole story to the others? It would at least give them some last minute hope? No. Why raise hopes that may never come to pass? When it does come, we'll be time enough. But if it doesn't come, if it doesn't come, Mrs. Santas, then we go to our death with my unnaheep and his agents. I made it clear that the lake would be blown into eternity at ten o'clock whether it came or not. Are you going to send Dr. English and Judith and skip to their deaths without any explanation? They've put their lives in your hands. Oh, here they come now. If you insist, there is still 15 minutes. Please, they'd want it. Very well, then. I will tell them all that they could wish to know. Good. They deserve that much. Well, here they are, Captain. Oh, there you are, Mrs. Santas. How's it going, Captain? Dynamite's all in. Nothing to do but wait now. How much time have we, Mrs. Santas? Still 15 minutes, Senorita English. Listen, I have a few things to explain to you before Captain Friday touches off the dynamite. A lot of good and explanations are going to do us now. True. Still, I do not know a better way to spend the last 15 minutes of my life. Confession is good for the soul, they say. Get on with it, please, Mrs. Santas. In the first place, I want to tell you about Maya Nahib, Dr. English. Maya Nahib is not a Chicota Indian. He's not a Chicota? No. Maya Nahib is an Englishman. Mrs. Santos, what are you saying? Are you telling us that a civilized white man could kill and ravish and destroy with all the brutality of a savage? That I tell you, Maya Nahib is a white man. A very devil of a white man. In the last minutes of their existence, before the lake water flows into the pit of boiling lava to blow the sacred city from the face of the earth, Mrs. Santos unfolds a story. The story of Maya Nahib, the evil high priest of the brothers of the living dead. Mrs. Santos has just revealed the startling fact that the great priest is a white man. Maya Nahib is an Englishman. Before the war, you knew Maya Nahib as Sir Sexy Brookfield, Earl of Lexington. Sir Cecil, the famous ethnologist? The same. Mrs. Santos, that's impossible. Sir Cecil was killed in the war. He was not. He disappeared and he was supposed that he was killed. Well, that is not true. He was a psychoneurotic case. His madness took the form of hallucinations. He believed himself a reincarnation of one of the ancient Chikota High Priests. Oh, that's terrible. As a sane man, he was an inspiration to learned scientists. He was ruthless. Or he might have continued to his death as Maya Nahib, the high priest, say for one thing. And that? With his madness came a terrible obsession against civilization. All civilization. But especially England. Do you remember the message he sent by the werewolf to his agents in the room of the stairway to the Sun five days ago? In five days' strike to wipe out civilization. But wipe out London first. It was an obsession. Mrs. Santos, how did you happen to be in that room that day with a werewolf and a master? Many monasteries had captured one of the masters. I took his robe, covered my head and face, and attended the meeting as a spy. Unfortunately, Captain Friday caught me out. That was a courageous thing to do, Mrs. Santos. There is no time for praise, Dr. English. We have only eight minutes left. Until his madman came to the throne of the Sacred City, the great mysteries of life, which the original line of Chikota masters were preserving, had been saved. But Maya Nahib, or Sir Ceci, abused his power. That was fatal. No, I begin to understand many things. See, the change soon became apparent. Mystics all over the world became alarmed for the safety of mankind. They sent their best men to the Sacred City to defeat Maya Nahib. They were killed one by one. My husband, Roberto Santos, your own son, Robert English. These are but two of the many brave men who died trying to curb Sir Cecil's power. And Robert never told me a word. He was on the road to keep silent. I took over my husband's work. And Robert came down here and rejoined forces. Then he was killed in San Francisco. And in desperation, I brought all of you into it. I needed friends badly. You were a straw to a drowning person. I asked you to me. We're grateful you did. And now it looks as though I had led you to your death. We're glad to sacrifice ourselves, Mrs. Santos. We are succeeding where everyone else has failed. Mrs. Santos, only four minutes more. I guess there's no use hoping. Four minutes. Keep your eye on me, watch. On the exact second. Dynamite the lake. I'll take care of it. We have four minutes left. Ask me any questions you like. Well, Miss Santos, it don't matter now, but what did that dying Chacota priest, Ixcon, mean when I whispered to you, if you'd save Tula, you must strike it once. Oh, no. I'm sorry, Miss Santos. It don't matter now. It's just curiosity. No, I will answer that questions in your turn. Tula had served her purpose as Maya Nahib's agent. He had sent her over the world recruiting agents, acting as emissary, striking here, then vanishing, only to strike again at some other five place. Finally, she got to be known over the world. That was not good. So Maya Nahib was planning to destroy Tula. That was what the priest, Ixcon, meant. Yeah, but what difference did it make to you? Why did it tell you? Two minutes to go. You'd all better be moving around the edge of the lake to that long flat section of high ground. Mrs. Santos, you know where it is. See, I know. Come, I will lead the way. One minute. I'll join you as soon as I light the fuses. I'll have to run for it. Listen. She's coming. She's coming. The plane. The plane. Captain Friday, we are safe. She's coming. Gracias a Dios. Gracias a Dios. Here, here, don't give away now. Get these people to the open space. Look, it's dropping flares to find the landing place. Hurry and touch off the ground flares. See, light the fuses, then join us at once. Yes, yes, hurry. I've only half a minute left. She's coming down. She's coming down. She's safely down. There she is. There she is. Tula has come. Tula has come. You might have the lake. The water's coming down on us. Get in the plane quick. Run for the plane. Everything is so mixed up. I don't understand what's happened. Here we are in an airplane piloted by Tula. Yeah, Tula, the girl who killed Robert. Tula did not kill Robert, Senior Turner. But I saw her. Did you see her fire the shot? Well, no. I had my back turned. But the moment after the shot, I turned and saw Tula with the gun. That was the werewolf's work. He killed your brother, Robert, and used Tula as a decoy in case the police were put on the trail of the killer. The moment after you had seen Tula, she was whisked away. The werewolf used Tula over and over again as a blind for his dirty work. That is the reason Tula's name is known in every police department in the country. Can you prove that, Mrs. Santas? I can remove every stain from her car. Oh, look. Look below. We're over the sacred city. The water is filling up the cauldron of lava. It's already throwing hot steam into the air. Tula, you better get this ship out of here quick. Things are gonna happen. Oh, the people must be going crazy down there. Poor things. It is the only way. We sacrifice these few to save the many. There, hear that? That's the first explosion. We are not out of danger yet. When the big blow up comes, the sacred city is gone. It's blown up. Yeah, but that whistle is annoying. That's part of the sacred city whizzing by. We've started a new volcano. Those are tons and tons of rock and dirt being thrown into the air. What if one of them should hit us? And it's just too bad for us. And that Tula Bateshaw can pilot a plane, Casey. Look how steady her hand is. Well, she's got plenty of nerve. Why, now he saw that she had splendid draining. She will get us through. Listen to that. We're leaving the fireworks behind. Oh, man, I'm glad of that. Diving and zooming among those hunks of the sacred city got on my nerves. At last. At last is he's over. The sacred city and his diabolical rule and my anaheba are no more. We are safe. And now, Mrs. Santus, may I tell them about Tula? Something more about Tula? You haven't heard anything yet. You may tell them. Folks, Tula is the daughter of Mrs. Santus. What daughter? But Mrs. Santus, why didn't you tell us before? Just a moment and I'll explain everything. So that's a mysterious link you've had with the brothers of the living dead, Mrs. Santus. See Dr. English. But Captain Friday will explain. At the time of the death of Dr. Roberto Santus, Mrs. Santus' husband, Maya Nahib also kidnapped their daughter Tula, then only 17. Maya Nahib hated Dr. Santus for his great Chikota discoveries. And he took revenge on the doctor's wife and daughter. He knew that he could make Mrs. Santus suffer most by making the girl one of his agents. But she didn't have to be an agent, did she? Well, with his ancient knowledge, Maya Nahib was able to rule Tula's mind just as the master attempted to rule yours, Judith. Oh, how awful. Yes. Maya Nahib kept his hold over her and sent her to all parts of the world to do his bidding. Always with the werewolf at her side to see that she didn't get away. And I have been fighting all these years to win my daughter Tula back from that horrible creature. It was a battle of minds. Mrs. Santus' mind against that of Maya Nahib. Still the balance was in favor of Maya Nahib. Until you came into the picture, Captain Friday. Yes. Yes, it was I who turned the tide of battle in favor of Mrs. Santus. You? What you do? Well, I, I'm afraid I went all out for Tula. I love Tula. Hey, I knew Doug on the way you was in love with that babe. Is that bad? Well, it's the first time it's ever happened since I've been tied up with you. You gonna marry the girl? No, it's not part of the story. Anyway, the combined forces of Mrs. Santus' mind and my own was too great for Maya Nahib. Didn't you notice how Tula began to turn from being our savage enemy to a friendly ally? The first time was when she released me from the dungeon in the underground passage, remember? So that was Tula, hey? Yeah. Then she helped us overpower the guards at the end of the stairway to the sun. So you knew Tula was coming in a plane to save us and you let us go on thinking we was going to be destroyed with the sacred city. Yes, we didn't want to disappoint you in case she didn't come. Yeah, but Mrs. Santus, why didn't you tell us in the beginning that Tula was your daughter? Then we could have helped you more. Senorita English had told you that Tula killed Robert. Would you have had anything to do with me? Had you known that I was Tula's mother? Oh, no wonder you were frantic. Oh, I'm so thankful it came out all right. How brave you've been, Mrs. Santus. What, sir? I just turned on the radio, sir. Listen. Hey, listen, listen. Tremendous volcanic explosions are reported in the heart of the jungles of La Jolla, Chile. Earthquakes are being felt throughout South America, Mexico, and the United States. Reports of earthquakes have come in from as far south as Brazil. Scientists are puzzled by the sudden and unusual volcanic outbreak. The entire West Coast line of South and Central America is undergoing a drastic change, causing tidal floods and severe landslides in the Panama Canal. Stand by it. More late bulletins in just a moment. Jupiter, we did all that. See, it is too bad. But it is not one millionth the damage that would have befall in the world had we not done it. Yeah. Hey, Ms. Santus, what was Maya Nahid going to do to the world? Destroy civilization? That was his one ambition, to destroy the whole of civilization and start life anew. Yeah, but how? It's one thing to want to do something like that and another thing to carry it out. Oh, do not be misled. The high priest had the power to carry out his plan. Are you certain? See, you saw all these great black planes gather at the sacred city. Planes swarming in from all parts of the world like great black flies. This is one of the planes we are riding in now. Yeah, of course. Tomorrow morning at dawn, these planes were to have taken off from the sacred city to every part of the world carrying death. Death in great quantities. Hey, but what kind of death? Senior Turner, Maya Nahid got hold of the key to a scientific fact that ancient wise men have known from the beginning of time, he knew that by exploding a single cell in the human body, he could unravel the entire body is a needle unravels a sweater. The planes were to have been loaded with a scientific powder capable of breaking down flesh cells. Hunters of these planes were to fly over the entire world dropping this powder. The moment a speck of that powder touched the skin, the person attacked would begin to disintegrate. Oh, how terrible. So fast did the part of work that the entire world would have been dead before modern science would have begun research for something to combat the plane. Yeah, but what about the jacotas who were to distribute the powder? They were protected by a lotion spread upon their body. The powder lost its effectiveness after two or three weeks. All the jacota had to do was stay out of the infected areas during that period or else he bathed in the protecting lotion. Oh, that's almost beyond human belief, Mrs. Santos. I know. And yet it was true. Horribly true. Well, then the catastrophe predicted by the shadow of the healer monster on the sun was prevented after all. The catastrophe predicted by the healing monster on the sun has taken place, Senor Turner. Well, I thought the destruction of civilization was the catastrophe predicted. We certainly saved the world. What, Senor Turner? Have you stopped to think of what the world has lost? Well, no. The sacred city was the last living evidence of the birth of civilization. In the sacred city was all the history, the documentary evidence, the mysteries and the secrets of the past. Everything that the scientific world so longs to know. Don't speak of it. It makes me definitely sick when I think of the treasures we've destroyed. So the prophecy did come true. The prophecy was fulfilled. See, down to the last bitter dregs. The prophecy is fulfilled. And the stories finished. Next week, you'll meet Captain Friday and skip Turner deep in the strange death dealing dismal swamp of South Carolina. You'll hear the opening episode of It's Dismal to Die. A story of swamp life and the people who live on the verge of sudden and violent death. Watch for It's Dismal to Die next week at the same hour. You are listening to Adventures by Morse.