Seeking Ancient Treasure

Everyone was sitting in the playroom upstairs despite the fact that it was a pleasant summer day in Neopia Central. Tavie was sprawled out on the Island Kacheek Chair she'd gotten on her adoption day and had a plastic container full of ash sitting on her lap. Two little eyes on top of the pile blinked up at her and she poked the side of the container.

     "I'm bored," she muttered.

     "Maybe next time you get a petpet you won't take it to the secret lab. Just because Mama gave us the maps doesn't mean we gotta go." Hiyouji looked up from where he was playing fetch with his doglefox. "What'd that thing start life out as anyway?"

     "A yellow stego," Tavie replied with a shrug. "I thought I could make it cuter."

     Loli giggled as she cuddled her snoogy which was fully enjoying the attention despite the fact that his expression remained mournful. He lay in the floor in front of her looking for more attention. "I thought it was a disco feepit," Loli wondered out loud.

     "It was," Hiyouji answered giving his Ruki sister a reproachful look, "till she took him back."

     "I thought the feepit was cute."

     Tavie nodded in agreement. "She was."

     "Then why'd you take it back, then?" Loli questioned.

     "I don't know!" Tavie erupted, yellow eyes narrowing. "I don't know why I have an obsessive need to make lab rats out of my petpets, okay? I was just saying that I was bored! Geez!" She flopped back against the chair, pouting, her arms crossed.

     Her brother and sister chuckled at her outburst. "We're just teasing you," Loli told her. "Don't be so sensitive."

     A few minutes of silence passed between them before the Scorchio spoke up. "What about a treasure hunt?" Hiyouji suggested.

     Loli made a face. "You mean that booth over on Krawk Island? That thing is so rigged."

     "Of course it's rigged; they're pirates," Hiyouji replied, rolling his eyes. "No, I mean real treasure - Geraptiku treasure."

     "You mean the deserted tomb? We're not allowed in Geraptiku. Mama said it's too dangerous," Tavie said, putting her ashy petpet aside to join the others on the floor.

     "Not if you know what you're doing," Hiyouji argued. "We'd do the research; find out all we can about the people of Geraptiku. There's bound to be volumes of books about them in the Faerie Library - it's the oldest library on Neopia. It might tell us how to go about finding the treasure."

     "I don't know... " Loli bit her lip with a protruding fang. "If Mama finds out..."

     "She'll be so happy with the neopoints and rare items we find that she'll have to forgive us," Hiyouji finished for her. "You gotta admit, treasure seeking is the best way to beat the summer blues... .and we might find a grey paint brush." He knew the Korbat loved all things dark and gloomy.

     "Alright, I'm in," she said finally.

     "Me, too," Tavie agreed.

     "Great!" Hiyouji jumped up. "Then let’s catch the next transport to Faerieland and start finding treasure!"

      Faerieland: Researching

     Truthfully, being a Ruki, Tavie was the only one of her siblings who needed transportation to Faerieland. Hiyouji and Loli, being Scorchio and Korbat, were perfectly capable of flying to the cloud island. Every fifteen minutes a cloud-bus, a long bus looking contraption made of cumulous clouds, took off from Neopia Central and carried those pets unable to fly to and from the cloud kingdom. It was decided, then, that Tavie would wait on the cloud-bus while Hyouji and Loli flew in an effort to conserve the few neopoints they had between them.

     "Besides," Loli pointed out, "with wind gusts and all, you'll probably arrive at the gates before we do. You'll have faerie magic helping you out."

     It was true. Their older brother was strong and a good flyer, but being as young as she was, Loli was still getting her wind bearings. And so Tavie had consented and loaded onto the next available cloud with a group of other travelers and arrived a good two or three minutes before her siblings.

     She sat against the cloud brick wall of the city gate and watched for them, spotting them flying towards her just as an acid green puff of gas issued from Jhudora's Cloud. When the duo emerged from the fumes, both were coughing and Hiyouji was clinging to his sister's foot while she attempted to right herself.

     "She does that on purpose, I think," Loli muttered angrily. They could still hear the distant cackle of the Dark Faerie's minions. "It's rude."

     "Well, she is a dark faerie... " This statement earned Tavie a dark look.

     Hiyouji rolled his eyes. "Can we just get to the library?"

     It was extremely crowded, just like every other place in Faerieland, but they finally made it to the Library Faerie.

     "What can I help you find?" she asked, looking up from her crossword puzzle.

     "We'd like information on Geraptiku, please," Tavie requested politely. She was the one with all the charm and personable nature so she was the one that her siblings had elected to do all the talking.

     The Library Faerie smiled, causing her horn rimmed glasses to slip down her nose. "Treasure hunting?" she asked, righting them.

     "What?"

     "Well, that's usually why pets look for information on Geraptiku. Of course, most of them just fly in and take the risk."

     Tavie cleared her throat, a blush tinting her green skin. "Oh, well, we were just curious. There's not much known about them, you know."

     "That is true. Well, you'll find our collection small, but it might help you on your search. You're looking for the Aisle 15, Row 10. It's at the very back of the library on the second floor."

     The trio nodded and ducked between flying books and scattered pets. Climbing the gold wrought staircase, they seized their prey with enthusiasm. Three musty and dust covered books lay on the floor before them ten minutes later, their yellowed pages turned with explicit care.

     "I've got nothing," Hiyouji announced grumpily and slammed his book closed causing a cloud of dust to rise around them. "What about you?"

     "Same here," Loli answered with a sigh.

     Tavie said nothing for several moments and then closed her own book. "Nothing."

     "We could always try the Island Mystic. He might know some stuff, too," Loli suggested.

     The two older siblings looked at one another. "I doubt that," Tavie replied, "but Jhuidah might. Maybe we should see her first. And... I guess we could try the Mystic."

     Mystery Island: Learning the Story

     After a short stop over on Krawk Island where they procured a boat to Mystery Island the sisters and brother arrived in the Harbour and procured a map from the Tiki Tack, following the trail to the Island Mystic. They'd try there first before going on to Jhuidah where the actual information probably lay.

     Before they had even knocked on the driftwood door of the Mystic's hut, the door had opened and he stood in the archway, making a funny little bow. His appearance was odd to say the least.

     "Welcome to my little hut!" He greeted them enthusiastically and ushered them in. "I guess you came here to have your fortunes told, eh?" And then, without waiting for an answer, he picked up a pile of pebbles and threw them across the floor, into a chalk drawn hoop. "Well, here it is: You will slowly make a decision to play with your Aishas. Remember to come back tomorrow."

     With that he was trying to guide them out of the hut and back onto the beach.

     "But... that... we... " Tavie was trying desperately to stop his movements and get a word in. "Sir, we didn't want our fortune told."

     He froze mid-step, bone pierced brow furrowing. "No?"

     "No," she repeated, shaking her head. "We wanted to ask if you knew anything about Geraptiku?"

     His eyes widened at the sound of the city's name and he made a gesture with his hands that they should lower their voices. "Why?"

     "Curiosity, mostly," Tavie answered, half truthfully. She was curious now.

     He glanced over his shoulder and then strained up. "Well, haven't you ever heard that curiosity killed the meowclops?! I know nothing. Go home!" And with that the door was slammed, unceremoniously, in their faces.

     "Well, then... " Hiyouji glanced at his sisters and then back at the Mystic's hut.

     "To Jhuidah?" Loli asked fluttering by their heads.

     "To Jhuidah," they agreed unanimously.

     As they approached the steam filled glade, they saw the dark haired island faerie stirring the contents of the pot, mumbling something under her breath. When Tavie cleared her throat, she looked up and smiled sweetly. "Welcome strangers! Do you seek the use of my magical cooking pot?"

     Tavie shook her head. "Actually, no... we were hoping you might be able to help us with something," she replied politely. "My brother and sister and I were looking for information on Geraptiku and we noticed that the Faerieland library didn’t have much to go on.”

     “Hmm... well, I suppose a little information couldn’t hurt. So long as you don’t plan on doing anything silly like raiding the tomb,” the faerie added. The three of them shook their heads and settled in to listen. “Well, many, many years ago Geraptiku was a thriving city. It used to cover most of Mystery Island, but you wouldn’t know it now. Lots of people on the island think it’s a place of bad luck and they won’t even say the city’s name, which is silly. It was just a bad turn, that’s all. Everyone seemed to have disappeared mysteriously in the middle of the night. The jungle claimed most everything there was of the city, but the temple’s still there as well as their petpet store, though I don’t see why.”

     She shook her head. “Anyway, the tomb’s got a stone on top of it that’s supposed to be an eye of judgment. They call it kalahnto. That’s what most of the islanders are afraid of.”

     She resumed stirring the contents of the cooking pot. “Now, go along unless you’ve got something to offer Pango Pango. I’ve got work to do.”

     The three pets got to their feet and walked along the path back to the harbor. “Well, what do you think?” Loli asked, flying circles around their heads.

     “Sounds freaky,” Tavie answered with a shiver. “Disappeared overnight?”

     “That’s just a legend,” Hiyouji said confidently. “Just something to scare tourists. And you gotta admit, it worked on you.”

     “Well, it doesn't look like we're going to find anything else. No secrets or anything," Loli pointed out with a heavy sigh. "Maybe we should just give it a go and see what happens."

     The other two shrugged and adjusted their course from the path that would take them to the harbor to an overgrown one that led into the lost city.

          Geraptiku: Entering the Darkness

     At the entry of the city, a wooden archway proclaiming the name GERAPTIKU they met a group of travelers - an emaciated looking Mynci and frustrated Skeith supporting an injured Nimmo. "What happened?!" Tavie exclaimed, rushing over to the injured pet and pulling out a vial of Healing Potion X from her bag of neopoints.

     "Went looking for treasure," the Mynci answered with a dry grin. "I got lost and only barely made it out and never found a single neopoint. Took me near five days. He," at this point he indicated the Nimmo between them, "set off a booby trap not too far into the tomb. I was going to get him to the Tiki Tack and see if they could help him."

     The Skeith growled under his breath. "I got to the treasure room alright, but there wasn't a thing there. Tub of lies whoever said there was treasure there," he told them angrily. "I oughta show him what for."

     "You'll have to wait till we get back to civilization for that, big guy," the Mynci said rolling his eyes. "Anyway, I would suggest turning around, but if you're determined, then I'll say this; look out for the fifth step past the second door. It's a doozy."

     The three weary and injured travelers left them there then and headed into town. With cautious glances at one another and a few prayers for luck, the siblings headed towards the looming, black stone tomb.

     Hiyouji pushed the stone door open, but it only moved a few inches. "Ladies first," he said, gesturing towards the blackness.

     "Not on your life," Loli replied, shaking her head. Tavie found a discarded torch to the left of the door and picked it up, handing it to her brother.

     "Light it and get going. We'll follow. This was your idea, after all."

     Making a face at his sisters, Hiyouji took a deep breath and blew flames on the torch, the end of which ignited. Steadying his nerves, he took the first few careful steps into the darkness, followed closely by Tavie and Loli. Tall, flickering shadows danced across the stone walls. By the looks of it, many writings had been placed on the walls, but they were written with strange symbols and indecipherable. The paint that decorated them had chipped off until only the embedded carvings were left. They continued along until they reached the second door and managed to force it open and slide through before it closes behind them.

     "Fifth step, remember?" Tavie reminded them. Hiyouji held up a finger and then pulled a marble from one of his pockets and tossed it across the floor. It bounced and rolled until it hit the fifth stone in the floor. Then the walls seemed to open up and a slew of arrows flew from each direction until they slammed into the opposite wall and clattered to the floor. The siblings flattened themselves against the door and waited for things to quiet down.

     "Think it's safe?"

     "Let's see... ah... no."

     "Safer than before."

     They shuffled forward, each picking up a discarded arrow, just in case. Through tunnels they traveled, twisting down one hall to another wondering when they'd hit a dead-end. There was no way the tomb had been that big. In the lead, Hiyouji heard the noise first and shown the light in the corner to see an odd looking petpet with a bone through its nose. "What the... "

     The critter squealed and ran away, leaving something behind. "It's a necklace with a tooth... or something... " Hiyouji held it up for the others to see. "Want it?"

     Both girls shook their heads and he pocketed it, continuing on.

     Down another set of corridors they found yet another stone door. Pushing it open, just like before, they crowded in. As the door slammed shut, something besides their torch lit up the darkness. Shimmering and floating above the stones was a ghost hissi roared at them. "ME HUNGRY!"

     The three of them screamed and tried to get out of the door, but it wouldn't open. With no other choice, they ran as fast as they could (with the exception of Loli who flew) through a number of other halls and catacombs until they realized they were no longer be followed. Coming to a halt in yet another chamber, they all grabbed at a stitch in their sides from having run so hard. Loli fluttered down to the cold stone floor and panted.

     "I have never flown so hard in my life," she gasped. "Just leave me here... save yourselves."

     "Don't be stupid," Tavie snapped and picked her exhausted little sister up. "I'll just carry you. It's not like you weigh anything."

     "Thanks... I think."

     "Uh... guys... " Hiyouji seemed reluctant to break up their argument, but held the torch up high so they could see their surroundings. "Do you see what I see?"

     All around them, mound upon mound of treasure glittered in the firelight. It was the most amazing thing they had ever seen in their short lives. Chests overflowing with neopoints, piles of rare and unbuyable plushies, exotic looking baubles... anything a pet could ever want.

     "Did we... did we actually find it?" Tavie whispered in amazement.

     "Yeah," Loli muttered. "I think we did."

     "Wooohooooo!"

     They screamed and whooped in joy, hugging one another and then running to fill their pockets and bags with as much stuff as they possibly could carry. Arms full, they turned to one another, the same question floating across their mind.

     "How do we get out?" Tavie voiced.

     "Uh...."

     "How about we just follow the exit sign?" Hiyouji suggested nodding towards a wooden arrow with the word 'EXIT' painted in bright red paint. It led them down a short tunnel and out a secret door onto the path back to the harbor.

     Doing their best to avoid meeting anyone on their way back to their boat, they dumped their booty into the floor and climbed in, making their way in near silence back toward Neopia Central and home. But none of them could keep the grins from their faces even as they faced the idea that their owner would be terribly upset at them for having broken the rules and going to the Deserted Tomb on their own.

     Still... It had been a great day.

The End