From the Memoirs of Jake Sommers, Pilot, US Navy.
September 7, 1940
I still cannot believe what happened to me. It has been 5 years now, but I still cannot believe it.
I was a pilot with the US Navy. I had been sent on a mission to the moutains that stand between Austria and Switzerland. It was believed that the Germans were building up their armaments, in violation of the Treaty of Versailles, and hiding the new weaponry in the mountains of Austria. It was my job to fly over the area and take pictures, to see if the suspicions and rumors were true.
The mission started off without too many difficulties, but, within a few hours of my flight, I ran into a very nasty storm. Within moments of encountering it, I and my plane, were tossed about as though we were a child's toy caught in a whirlwind. Snow, ice and freezing rain hammered my aircraft, weighing it down with the build up of heavy, frozen condensation. I struggled to maintain my bearings, and control of my plane, but, very quickly I realized that I was in deep trouble. The controls became sluggish, and I could feel the engine was struggling to keep going, but, somehow, I managed to maintain a small portion of control.
Then, as the clouds parted for a moment, I saw the mountain looming in front of me.
I wrenched the stick to the left, hoping to turn away, but, at that moment, the engine died, and I knew I was beyond salvation.
As it happened, my wrenching of the stick and thrown the plane around, and aimed it downward, so what should have been a fatal crash, instead became a crash landing into a pocket on the mountainside. As the plane hit the ground, I braced myself for impact. The nose crumpled instantly, sending glass flying back into my face, slicing little cuts into my cheeks but, thankfully, missing my eyes. Suddenly, as the impact continued, I felt something pierce my left shoulder, and white hot pain raced through my body, making me scream in pain even as I felt something pierce my left leg as well. I blacked out, for how long, I don't know, but, when I came to, I was in pain the likes of which I had never felt before. My left shoulder was on fire with agony, as was my left leg, and I could smell my own blood. I had to take a few moments to prepare myself to move, but, when I was ready, I grabbed the emergency first aid kit, and stuffed the hole in my leg and shoulder with guaze soaked in antiseptic, which made me moan in pain. I then wrapped them both as best I could, and prepared to leave the plane. I knew if I stayed outside in the cold, I would die. I had to find shelter.
The moment I put my left leg on the ground, I knew I was in more trouble than I had thought, for my left leg would not support my weight. I needed a crutch, or a support of some kind. Thankfully, one of the wing supports had broken off and, with a little luck, would prove to be a usable crutch. So, with my first aid kit and supplies clutched to my chest, supported on my crutch, I hobbled away from my plane, toward the mountainside.
Initially, I had hoped to put the plane between me and the wind, and somehow build a shelter around it. But, as I approached the other side of the plane, I saw a cave in the rock face. I knew it would provide better shelter than the wreck, so I made for it. Upon entering it, I found that it was really only a wide cut in the rock, and one that led deeper into the mountain. I thought I heard something echoing from the darkness, so, with my flashlight bobbing before me, I made my way along the path. I knew I was feverish, and that I would likely die if I did not get myself to someplace warm, with medical attention, soon. My only hope was the sound coming to me from the end of the tunnel.
I plodded on for what seemed like hours, my feverish mind making monsters out of the shadows around me. As I walked, the strange chanting sound became louder and louder, making me wonder if I had not crashed on some sacred mountain of monks of some kind. Finally, after what felt like an eternity of walking, I exited the cave, and found the most amazing site I think I have ever seen in my life.
I had entered a spacious moutain valley that, despite the raging winter storms outside, was filled with lush, green grass and dotted with flowers. At one end, I noticed a grove of trees, and I could hear birds singing. My wondering, feverish eyes took note of several cows and goats grazing on the grass, as well as a few horses, and even a decent sized garden filled with all manner of vegetables! Near the forest, I saw a large, sturdy cabin, with smoke coming from the chimney....a clear sign that the valley was inhabited. The chanting was clearer now, filling the valley with its sound, and I could tell that it was coming from near the woods. As they were only a few paces from where I was, I started hobbling towards them.
By the time I reached the woods, I knew I was close to being unable to walk. My legs felt like a ton of lead had been poured over them, and my wounds were afire with an agony I cannot begin to describe, but, I kept on, forcing myself to keep moving, for to stop was to die. I was sure of it. Just when I thought I could go no further, I found the source of the chanting, and stood amazed at what I saw.
I was standing on the edge of a clearing, in the midst of which stood a ston altar of some kind. At one end of the alter was a small statue of a woman holding a candle, which was lit, and on the other end was another statue, this one of a man, also with a lit candle in his grasp. There were also candles at the four points of the compass, each one a different color, and, overall of it, in a dome like shape, was a blue, transparent glow. But, what amazed me most, was WHO was in the grove, chanting.
Three women stood around the altar. They were each long haired and lovely, truly beautiful, and each dressed in robes, or gowns, that resembled the clothes of Ancient Greece. About each woman's torso, just below their breasts,which in each case were amazingly large and round, was wrapped a golden cord, from which hung a dagger. It seemed odd at first that they would wear the cords so high on their bodies. Then, I noticed one of the most startling things yet.
All three of them were pregnant, very pregnant! They all looked so heavily pregnant, that, had they all started to give birth at that moment, I would not have been surprised. The great, round, fertiley expectant orbs of their bellies bulged forth proudly from their otherwise slender frames. So amazingly lovely, so pregnant, were these three women that, in my feverish mind, I wondered if I was hallucinating the scene before me. Such beautiful, pregnant women in such an odd place, was almost too much for my fevered mind to comprehend. But, hallucination or no, they were my only hope for survival. So, I staggered forward, vaguely aware that their chanting contained names like, "Diana" and "Isis," names I recognized from my studies in mythology while at university.
I had only taken a few steps into the clearing, when I realized the chanting had stopped. I looked up, and saw all three girls watching me, their eyes wary, radiating power. Then, one of them, a dark haired, dark eyed beauty that made me think of a Gypsy, stepped toward the edge of the blue dome. She drew her dagger, cut a line in the light, which she stepped through, and made her way toward me. As she approached, I could only stand there, swaying on my feet, and drink in the beauty of her finely sculpted, smooth olive-skinned, dark beauty, and marvel at the fluidity of her walk, in spite of her very pregnant state, as she swayed toward me. I found myself thinking how wonderful it would be to make love to such a wonderfully ripe, fertile, pregnant beauty.
The raven haired beauty stopped when she was just beyond my arm's reach and, holding the dagger out toward me, said, in a clear, musical voice. "Who are you, who dares enter our sacred grove and disrupt our ceremony?"
I tried to answer her, to tell her I meant them no harm, that I came in peace, but I felt darkness overtake me, and I fell forward. I thought I would hit the ground, but, instead, I felt arms wrap about me, and my body pressed against something round, firm, and warm, then I was gently laid down. Through the haze that was before my eyes, I saw the dark eyes of my challenger looking down at me, deep into my eyes, with gentlness and concern. I saw her turn her head and, through the roar in my ears, heard her call the names, "Lyria" and "Rhianon" before I succumbed to the darkness.
I was unaware, at first, of how long I was unconcious. I had moments of brief, hazy attempts at lucidity in which I felt myself being carried by several hands, then being laid down on something soft. I was vaguely aware of someone removing the bandages from my shoulder and leg, stripping me, then warm water being poured over me. Soft hands moved over me, and I smelt soap, then, I was gently toweled dry and lifted again, only to be placed on another soft surface. I smelt old, sweaty, wet socks, and some floral scents, as well as a pine like odor, and felt something being spread on my shoulder and leg, then binding being attached to cover it. Blackness took me again for a time, and when I came partially awake again, it was to the sound of soft prayers and chanting surrounding me. I had the vague impression of three women about me, but, their bodies seemed oddly shaped, their bellies to big and round, and, as I succumbed to the fever once again, I dismissed it as more hallucinations.
Then, after what seemed an eternity of hazy, dark dreams and illusions, I awoke feeling exhausted, but clear headed. I raised my head from the surface on which it had been resting, even though it seemed to suddenly weigh a ton, and tried to look around.
I was in a large room, with dim moonlight coming in from a large window. I could see a chair in a corner, and make out the dim shape of a dresser as well. Directly in front of me was a partially open door, through which I could see an even larger room, from which the smell of a woodfire came, along with the popping of embers, but I could tell nothing beyond that. I heard the vague sound of two voices in the distance,coming from somewhere else in the building, and I made to rise, but two small, gentle hands came onto my shoulders and held me down, moving me back to the surface upon which I had been laying.
