Treasure Hunt

     Majere stuffed the gold piece in his pocket and fell to his knees in the sand. Very carefully, he brushed aside several layers of sand. What he found was astounding! More gold pieces! The more Majere dug through the sand, the more gold he found. It seemed to be endless!

     Too excited to sleep now, Majere made a sack from his helmet and filled it with gold pieces. He emptied the bows from his quiver and filled that with gold too. He shoved gold in every pocket. When Majere finally decided he could not possibly carry anymore, he brushed the sand back over the mysterious pile of riches. He then headed back in the direction of Sakhmet. Majere trudged through the sand all night long. When he finally reached the gates of Sakhmet (which were still closed), the sun was peeking up above the horizon. Exhausted, Majere slumped to the ground against the outer wall. He lay there panting for awhile, clutching his pockets and the precious treasure within. Finally, sleep stole over him...

     Majere awoke sometime later to a Sakhmet Guard poking him with a stick. He sat up groggily, rubbing his eyes, when suddenly he remembered his gold! "What's yer business here?" said the guard.

     "I was lost in the desert," began Majere, then decided he did not want to tell the guard of his find. "Please, I need some water."

     The guard nodded and took Majere's arm. He brought him through the gates to a brightly coloured stall. There were two other Sakhmet Guard's in the stall, so Majere thought this must be their headquarters. The guard brought him a tall glass of water and a pyramicake. Majere ate hungrily and thanked the guard, then left on his way.

     Majere wandered through the city all morning wondering what to do about his gold find. If he told anyone, they would probably try to find it and then there would be nothing left! But surely he should tell his sisters? Majere had three sisters: Arissa, Kiiri, and Arasia. Arissa was a Uni from Faerieland who was much like a princess. She would definitely enjoy a big hoard of gold! Finally Majere made up his mind. He would return to Neopia City, deposit his gold in the bank, and round up his three sisters. Then they would return together, and divide the treasure between them.

     It was night when Majere returned to Neopia City. The bank was already closed, and Majere was so tired from flying all day long that he went straight to the Neolodge and booked a room. He left a message at the front desk for his sister Arasia, who lived nearby, to come see him. Then he went to bed and slept soundly.

     The next morning, Arasia Penton was banging on the door of Majere's room. Majere hopped out of bed and opened the door, gave his sister a big hug, and let her in. Arasia was Majere's youngest sister, a red Zafara. "So, brother," said Arasia, "what is the news?!"

     "I have something to show you, but first we must find our other sisters," replied Majere.

     "Well, Arissa is here at the Neolodge being pampered, and Kiiri must be in Maraqua somewhere. I think she went treasure hunting."

     Majere laughed. "I don't think any of us will ever have to hunt for treasure again! Let's get Arissa and hire a submarine to Maraqua. We will find Kiiri when we get there."

     The two siblings found their sister Arissa just down the hall, receiving a pedicure. She was a bit upset at having to leave so quickly ("But I paid for three nights!"), but once she was told it had something to do with treasure, she was happy to go. They hired a submarine and were in Maraqua by lunch time. They went to the local restaurant, Kelp. The three of them ordered from the underwater menu, then ate their lunch. It had been so long since Majere had been with all of his sisters at once, it made him quite eager to find Kiiri. When the waitress came back with their dessert, Majere asked her if she had seen his sister. Being a Peophin, Kiiri naturally loved to be under the sea and spent a great deal of time about the great ocean city.

     "Well, actually," said the waitress, "she was in here last night. She said that she would be going fishing today."

     "Great!" Majere said. "Thank you very much."

     Majere and his sisters swam off to the underwater fishing hole. When they got there, Kiiri was sitting with two other Peophins laughing hysterically. They went over to her and she jumped up, hugging them each in turn. "Kiiri, have we got a surprise for you!" said Arasia.

     "What is it?!" said Kiiri.

     "Let's let Majere tell her," said Arissa.

     They were all trembling with excitement. Majere took a breath and said to his sister, "I've found a gold mine! In the Lost Desert! I took all that I could carry when I left. When I got to the bank, they said it was 25000 neopoints worth! But there was still so much more...."

     Kiiri's face lit up. "Really? We must go right away!"

     All four siblings agreed. They must reach Sakhmet immediately and prepare for a journey into the desert. None of them really considered how they would find the treasure, since Majere had left in such a hurry that he did not bother to leave a marker. They swam to the surface in a rush. Since only Majere and Arissa had wings, the other two would have to ride on their backs. It was a bit difficult to maneuver this and take off while bobbing in the water, but eventually they all took flight.

     The four companions stopped in Faerieland to rest and prepare for their trip into the Lost Desert. They had an excellent dinner of flaming fire faerie pizza, then rented a room for the night.

     Arissa was the first to wake the next morning. She went around the room, shaking her brother and sisters in turn. “Get up, get up!” she shouted. “It’s time to find the treasure!”

     Majere rolled from bed next. He pulled on his boots and started to make a pack. He wanted to make sure he had lots of food this time, so he wouldn’t end up wandering deliriously through the hot desert again. Sure, it had paid off last time... but he might not be so lucky now. Plus, Majere thought, he had just realized he had no way to find that spot again. He didn’t want to tell his sisters, because they were all so excited.

     Arasia was rummaging through his pack. “What are you doing?” he asked.

     “I want some breakfast before we go,” she said.

     Majere nodded and undid his pack. He handed everybody a piece of pizza from the night before and a piece of sausage omelette. They all ate hurriedly and were soon out the door. They walked over to an empty cloud where they could safely take off. Kiiri and Arasia mounted, and they were on their way.

     From his vantage point in the sky, Majere could see some sort of storm, hovering above the Lost Desert. He didn’t think any of his sisters saw it, or even cared, so he didn’t say anything out loud. To himself he said, This is just fantastic. Majere and Arissa began their descent, right into the cloud of blowing sand. The sand was blowing all around them; at first he could see Arissa but sand was stinging his eyes. He closed his eyes and shouted out, “Arissa! Arissa, where are you?”

     No reply.

     “ARIISSSAAAA!” Majere roared.

     “Majere? I can’t see! Help!”

     Kiiri was clinging to Majere’s back, helpless. “We have to find them! We have to try to find them!” She was in a panic. “Sisters?” she shouted. “Can you hear me?”

     No reply.

     “SISTERS?” again. “Dear blessed water, come and drench this cursed storm!” Kiiri was calling out to the water faerie, who protected Maraqua and Kiiri’s Peophin race. “Please, help me find my sisters!”

     Suddenly, a torrent of rain fell from the sky. Majere and Kiiri were soaked, and quite literally fell from the sky.

     Kiiri woke sometime later to find herself lying on the sand. It was completely dry; any traces of the storm had long since passed. Majere was next to her, opening his eyes. Kiiri sat up and looked around. She could see small forms in the sand, which could be her sisters.

     Majere had clearly seen them too, because he jumped up and ran over.

     Kiiri looked around her. There, in the sand, was a piece of gold. She picked it up and looked it over. On one side, the pyramids. On the other side, the face of the water faerie was smiling at her. “Guys!” she called. “Guys! I’ve found it!”

The End