Treasure of the Caves

[Vanessa Anne Hugends]

I friend made this.

[shadow=blue,left,300]Part 1[/shadow]

Tsuki, a shadow Shoyru with numerous golden rings around his neck, tail and paws had been sitting behind the table in the Neohome's kitchen for a while now, reading an old mouldy tome. The kitchen had been quiet that day. All of Tsuki's siblings were sitting there, each minding their own business. The petpets were somewhere in the garden and the pets' owner, Huntress, was writing in the cabinet. The window was open, the sun was about to set and a slow breeze whispered in the Blackberry bushes. So far Tsuki had been reading silently, completely forgotten in his own little world. The legend had captured him so much though that he spoke the last words out loud, quietly but the others had good ears. Suddenly everyone looked up.

"You were saying, Tsuke?" Shadoron the shadow Lupe asked. He had been listening to Gruundo in another corner and everyone had thought that he wasn't paying attention to anything but Shad could easily hear everything that had the word "treasure" in it.

"It's just an old legend I was reading," the Shoyru replied, seeming confused for a second and then focusing on the book again. "Nothing much, really… sorry I disturbed you guys."

But the guys had already forgotten everything they had been doing. "Come on, read us that legend!" Ice the electric Ixi demanded, blowing out a chewing gum bubble and sitting up. She had spent the last two hours slouching on the floor and blowing gum bubbles, now she was bored and one old legend would really have hit the spot. "Go ahead, we'd love to hear!"

"Yeah, don't keep all the cool legends to yourself!" Saurani supported from the sink. He was a spotted Zafara, the newest family member and a really good chef. He was usually the one who cooked for the family and now he was washing the dishes. Saura spent most of his time cooking, washing the dishes or sleeping. He just was like that.

"Tell us a cool story, Tsuke!" the youngest of the family, Phila the green Aisha, shouted, prancing around her stepbrother. "Please? Pretty please with chocolate coating?"

"I don't like chocolate," Tsuki replied with a vague smile and then sighed. "But if you really want to… fine, I'll read you the story." He flipped the pages, found the beginning of the legend and started reading. He had a soft, quiet voice and the others completely forgot themselves, curled up on the floor and enjoyed the warm evening of Mystery Island as they listened to their stepbrother who said:

"Years ago Krawk Island was under the reign of one single pirate captain, Darkstar Daggers. He didn't have a pirate crew; he didn't need one. He was fully able to fight and defeat anyone who ever confronted him, and he was also very good at managing his ship. Anyone who had ever seen that pirate hoisting the sails, steering the ship and pulling the braces almost at the same time even during the fiercest of storms swore that Daggers had the magical powers of the Dark Faeries. Otherwise it would simply have been impossible. Others claim that he was just the best sailor Neopia had ever seen and also very strong. His ship called the Black Dagger was a small and fast clipper. No ship was ever safe when her sails appeared on the distance and no ship ever escaped her.

"Daggers ruled the waters of Krawk Island for many decades. Some say that the shores of Mystery Island also weren't new to him even though most Neopians didn't know anything about that island back then. He had been to Maraqua, sometimes visited the kingdom of Meridell and even Faerieland had held battles with him. Queen Fyora managed to defend her land but the borders were still constantly guarded.

"People usually think that Krawk Island is a small place with only a few buildings to see and some taverns to visit but the locals know better. Krawk Island has a long history; it has witnessed many things throughout the years and holds many secrets in its soil. One of them is the treasure of Darkstar Daggers, the one he had gathered from all those ships he had hijacked. Before his death he hid all his treasure somewhere on Krawk Island and swore that nobody was ever meant to find it as long as Neopia existed. Many have tried to find the money; most of Krawk Island has been dug through during the years but still nobody has found it. So some people claim that the treasure is only a legend and Daggers managed to spend it all before his death. Others believe that his huge treasure is still hidden somewhere on Krawk Island - the biggest treasure of all time."

Tsuki fell silent and glanced at his siblings with a smile. Everyone was looking aside absently. They didn't even care much about the treasure, but the story itself… One of the brothers, Cryolien, had always wanted to become a pirate. Now he sat there on the floor, looking out of the window and hearing the sounds of angry storms and shouts of the crew in his ears.

"I wonder if it's still there," Shadoron suddenly said. The others started and looked at him.

"Unless it's only a myth, I doubt anyone has found it yet," AoiKatana the fire Uni replied. She was the fighter of the family and had a calm, cold personality but at least she was able to think rationally. The others glanced at each other and then at Tsuki.

"Is there… a map?" Saurani asked, forming the question that had haunted everyone.

"No," the Shoyru replied, flipping the pages again, "Daggers didn't want anyone to find the treasure so he didn't leave a map. The book does mention something about the Smugglers' Cove, but I really doubt that he hid the treasure in a place that's visited all the time."

"If he really had the powers of the Dark Faeries," Ice commented, getting up and throwing the bubble gum away, "then he wouldn't have hid the treasure somewhere too obvious. It would probably take great powers to locate that treasure; that's why nobody has found it yet. Not many Neopets have such powers - the powers of a Faerie… or a mage."

The others instantly turned their heads to look at Tsuki, who sighed. He spent most of his time reading old tomes and practicing all sorts of ancient spells he found in them so he was a very good mage. He knew all the basic Battledome spells but he was also fluent with curses that should've disappeared off the face of Neopia ages ago.

"Why would we need some old treasure?" he asked, hopelessly trying to convince his siblings.

"Not the treasure," Shad claimed, "an adventure. It's been a while since we last went travelling somewhere like that, you know."

Phila the little Aisha ran around the kitchen frantically. "We're going adventuring! Woohoo! This is gonna be so much fun!"

"You're most definitely not going, Phila." Nobody had noticed when their owner had entered the room but there she was now, looking at the pets with a frown on her face. Phila stared at her with widening eyes.

"Why not? Please let me go with them, I won't be any trouble, promise!"

"You'll get lost behind the first palm tree," Ice remarked as her owner nodded in agreement.

"You're too young, Phila. You're staying behind, got it? If you guys," she looked at the rest, "feel like going to mess with some death traps and magical treasures again, go ahead. Just be back in a week or so. And Cryo…"

Cryolien sighed and nodded. "I know. The Lab Ray. Fine, I won't go along. But you guys better bring me some treasure too, you hear me?"

"Okay then," Ice said, standing up, "let's get going."

The others stared at her. "Right now? It's getting dark already! Shouldn't we wait until morning?"

"You'll have forgotten all about the idea in the morning," Shad the Lupe remarked, getting up too, "and then it'll be impossible to talk you into this again. Saura, get some food and Ace."

Saura nodded, picked his petpet Wuzzle up and went to the fridge. "Shad's right. If we're not going right now, we're not going at all."

"Krawk Island only accepts dubloons," Huntress reminded them. "And don't even think about stealing food from the Golden Dubloon like the last time!"

"Yeah, yeah," Ice muttered absently and trotted out of the door. "Come on already!" The other four pets plus Saura's petpet followed her and in a few minutes they had disappeared into the soft shadows that were getting darker and darker around the Neohome. Cryo, Phila and their owner remained sitting in the kitchen.

"This is unbelievable," Huntress commented. "One moment they're all sitting here, minding their own business, and the next moment they're off over the hills to seek some long-lost treasure. How did I ever get stuck with that crazy gang?"

Phila was pouting in the corner. Cryo yawned widely and sat down on the floor.

"Look at the bright side - if they find that treasure, you'll finally get a chance to furnish the rest of the Neohome," he remarked with a grin. The kitchen was the only room in the Neohome that was completely done because Huntress never had the time and energy for the rest.

"I should actually demolish the rest," she replied with a vague frown, "seeing that you guys prefer running around outside one way or another. Does anyone feel like helping me wash the dishes?"

The five Neopets were trotting down the path at that moment. The moon was shining over Mystery Island and most of its inhabitants were getting ready to go to sleep but not that gang, not a chance!

"I can't believe this…" AoiKatana muttered, galloping slowly behind everyone else. "And I was planning to go training tomorrow morning…!"

"Now you can train tonight," Shad comforted her, slowing down a bit so that he ended up by Kat's side. "Running is really good for your muscles and you can try to kick me while you're at it, what do you think?" He poked Kat's leg with his head. "Come on, I can dodge you easily, just try me, huh, huh?"

The Uni glanced at her little brother who whizzed back and forth in front of her nose like a black shadow, then she sighed and leaped into the air, flying out of Shad's reach.

"Where are you airheads actually planning to go?" she shouted, ignoring Shad who was now hopping up and down in front of her nose and yelling: "Hey, over here!"

"Krawk Island, where else?" Ice shouted back. She was in front because her short Ixi legs made her the slowest but she was also very tough and able to run for a long time. Tsuki had already disappeared. He usually flew around at night, making sure that nothing more dangerous than a Meepit lurked around nearby.

"Then we need a ship," Saura commented. His petpet was asleep on his shoulder. Nobody could understand how it could hold on, as it had no paws, but there it was, balancing without any trouble at all.

"Oh really?" Kat floated down and dodged the Lupe's black figure that had tried to take her by surprise. "And I suppose you have one waiting for us right on the shore, huh?"

"We might as well just sneak on a pirate ship; they're bound to end up on Krawk Island," Tsuki's calm, soft voice said from the shadows. The other four Neopets gasped and blinked. Sometimes it was practically impossible to notice that Shoyru until he let them know of his presence. Kat nodded slowly and lowered her head, stuck her horn under Shad's stomach and tossed her brother over a hedge.

"There's an idea. Let's just hope they won't keelhaul us. Oh, was that you, Shad?" asked then with a wide grin as the Lupe lurked back to the others with a sheepish look on his face.

"No ship travels in the middle of the night," Saura claimed when they reached the shore and the harbour. It was full of ships: Mystery Island was visited very often. "Which pirate captain would be foolish enough to set sails after the sun has gone down?"

"I think I've heard of such captain," Ice replied, slowing down a little and panting. "Perhaps he'll allow us to join his crew for a short while."

"Which ship do you mean?" Kat asked, slowing down too. The ships were now towering in front of them, a massive jungle of masts, yards, sails and ropes. The harbour was quiet, most sailors were either asleep or somewhere on the island. But one ship was noisy, filled with Neopets and obviously none of them was planning to go to sleep. Some of the crew had climbed up on the yards to hoist the sails. Ice stopped and pointed at that ship with her hoof.

"That one," she said, trying to catch her breath.

The others blinked and stared at the ship. "The Black Pawkeet?"

[shadow=blue,left,300]To be continued...[/shadow]

[ninjagirl101]

cool

[Vanessa Anne Hugends]

[glow=blue,2,300]Part 2[/glow]

It was noon and the sun was now mercilessly burning the sandy plains of Qasalan territory and the banks of the great river. The barge had stopped to make an extended break – even though the river continued and eventually flowed into the sea, the merchants never went farther than the city of Qasala as there simply wasn’t anywhere to go – the landscape continued as uninhabited plains that only had a few desert Petpets here and there.

Shad and Saura, having waved goodbye to the friendly skipper, set off to the city that loomed in the distance just like Sakhmet had some hours ago. Qasala, however, seemed different. It was older and grimmer, completely unlike the inviting white walls and golden towers of Sakhmet.

“So where is that friend of Tsuki’s?” asked Shad.

“He didn’t know,” replied the Zafara, adjusting the belts of the leather bag that was thrown over his shoulder. “They haven’t been in touch since that friend moved away. But we have a name – Artus. He’s an Acara, painted Island. And that’s about all we have to work with.”

Shad’s ears moved quickly back and forth. “Well, those scholarly people and librarians are one big system, aren’t they? Kinda like the Thieves Guild or bank managers. Everyone knows everyone. Let’s go ask at their local bookstore, they might know.”

Saura nodded in agreement and they entered the city. It indeed wasn’t as pretty or exotic-looking as Sakhmet but still extremely impressive. The streets were dusty and crowded, most people seemed to be local and thus Qasala didn’t have that strange aura that always comes along when two cultures mix, the aura of old and new, strong contrasts that form one whole picture. Street merchants weren’t trying to foist cheap junk to wealthy tourists as it always happened in Sakhmet but haggled quietly with locals, following their old customs both sides knew very well. Wealthy tourists didn’t sail down the streets, making loud comments about dirty locals – apparently tourists really were rare in Qasala as the brothers drew many curious looks when they plunged into the crowd.

Saura’s eyes darted back and forth in the mass of Neopets, examining people as they elbowed along. There were pickpockets, ready to nab anything they could get their paws on and already eyeing his backpack, quickly looking away as the Zafara’s eyes met theirs; there were small gangs of skinny young Neopets who had just begun to find their place in life and whose laughter echoed over the everyday chatter on the streets from time to time; there were majestic housewives doing their daily grocery shopping, usually with a few kids and maids following them to carry all the goods; there were Neopets who looked ordinary enough at first sight but who didn’t need to elbow through the crowd as everyone gave them way as soon as they spotted them and whose proud, self-confident, yet friendly and benevolent eyes suggested that they were some higher-ranked, well-known and loved advisors or politicians at the city.

“So how are we going to find the scrollery?” asked Shad. “I know that they had some huge house near the palace to serve as a bookstore but I’ve never been to Qasala before.”

“Might as well go down there and ask someone,” guessed his brother. “All streets lead to the palace, y’know.”

The main city square of Qasala was practically empty. Street merchants kept off the area that had been reserved for kings and queens for centuries, pickpockets knew better than to mess with palace guards and locals didn’t come to the palace without a reason, and they rarely had that reason these days now that Qasala was well back on its way to former prosperity. Saura stopped a Ruki on his way: “Excuse me, which way is the bookstore?”

“Right over there,” answered the Ruki, pointing at a vast house that reminded them more of an additional wing to the Royal Palace than a bookstore. He remained standing and watching the two curiously as they went on. Tourists really seemed to be a rarity even around the palace, which was after all the most beautiful building in the whole city.

The two brothers stopped in front of the orange building and almost cracked their necks looking up the long staircase. The doorway was far away, yet so big that it was clearly visible. So were three words carved in stone above the dark door, reading “WORDS OF ANTIQUITY”.

“I wonder if those library people are smart enough to put some buckets of water up there by the other end of the staircase?” huffed Shad, climbing up what had to be the three hundredth step. “This is crazy!”

“But it has a good view.” His brother smiled. “Look.”

The Lupe stopped to squint eastward at the wide plains, the golden towers of Sakhmet and the bright white sun that shone above it all in the clear azure sky. Actually, now that he wasn’t climbing any more, he could feel the cool breeze that came from the plains – it didn’t reach the maze of narrow streets down in the city.

The door of the scrollery looked really expensive, mainly because it was made of wood, which was of short supply in the Lost Desert, so once the door was made for the house, the builder had done everything to make it look worth its price. It was carved, decorated with gold, and had two handles the size of Shad’s head. It wasn’t heavy to push, however, and the brothers sneaked in to find themselves in a vast hallway under majestic arches held up by marble pillars. It was cooler in here and a lot dimmer, compared to the bright daylight outside. A small fountain was gurgling merrily in the middle of the lobby and Shad, having let out a happy bark, dove in face-first.

“Shad, mind your manners!” yelled Saura, then sighed and rubbed his forehead. Most people found it hard to believe that the Lupe was, in fact, his older brother. No wonder too.

“Don’t worry, it happens often.” The Zafara turned around to face a yellow Nimmo in a purple cloak. “Most of the visitors aren’t that... eager, though.”

Saura grinned apologetically. “He just is like that.” It was only now that he noticed wooden shelves and a counter painted golden and red a few steps left to the main entrance. Apparently it was the bookstore, small and insignificant compared to the gigantic building. Shad got away from the fountain and came to the two, his jaws dripping and his tail wagging frantically; his inner power sources had been recharged.

“Heya,” he greeted the Nimmo. “We’re looking for an island Acara named Artus. Can you help us?”

The Nimmo frowned. “Artus, Artus, doesn’t ring a bell. Who exactly is he?” Having heard that the Acara in question had recently moved into Qasala, his face lit up. “Ooh, then my wife must know. She knows everything about newcomers... give me just a minute.” He hurried off and returned shortly with a chubby spotted Korbat by his side.

“It’s so nice to see tourists around here from time to time,” the Korbat greeted the brothers, her eyes gleaming happily. “How do you like our city so far?” She didn’t even listen as Shad and Saura quickly praised the city as she blabbed on: “It can get so boring in here, you know, new faces are always so lovely to see... yes, dear?”

“They’re looking for someone called Artus, an island Acara,” said the Nimmo. “Do you know anything about him?”

“Familiar name,” admitted his wife. “Let me think... oh yeah, an Acara with a similar name came to work in the library of the Royal Palace a few days ago, or so I heard from Fiora, such a sweet girl, too bad about that thing with her parents...” The Nimmo coughed impatiently. “Right, Artus, I think that was the name, yes. He became the assistant of the librarians as I recall. Would you like to meet him?”

“Yes, please,” said Saura, still trying to catch up with the pre-last sentence in his mind.

“I’ll take you to the palace,” stated the spotted Korbat. “The guards most likely won’t let you in if you go on your own. Not that they’d be very paranoid,” - they left the building as the two brothers waved goodbye to the Nimmo - “but you see, you’re still strangers and they can’t just let everyone in; that’d be bad for their reputation and you’ll never know about strangers anyway, not that I mean that you two are some crazy maniacs; you’re both really nice kids,” - they went down the long staircase - “but you see, my son works as a palace guard and I wouldn’t want anything to happen to him,” - and crossed the city square - “you should meet him, really, actually you will soon; I think it’s his shift now if I’m not mistaken, ooh, there he is now!”

When the bookstore entrance had seemed majestic, the Royal Palace surpassed it by a long shot. Red and golden pillars stretched towards the sky, strong memories from a time long forgotten, and two guards leaned against them, chatting loudly as the distance between the pillars was too big for normal talking. As the guards spotted the three Neopets stepping closer, they stopped and raised their lances but lowered them quickly.

“Look, Harfu, it’s your mom,” said a young slender fire Scorchio. “Hello, ma’am.”


“If that isn’t young Deki!” exclaimed the Korbat. “My, you’ve grown so big since I last saw you!” The Scorchio stepped back with a sheepish grin as his friend Harfu took a step forward with an equally sheepish grin. He was a white Ixi, lank and tall, and the fact that he stood on his hind legs only added to the height. “Hi, mom,” he said.

“Harfu, my boy, it’s so good to see you guarding the palace like this, all brave and strong and proud!” squeaked his mother, jumping forward to hug the Ixi. Deki the Scorchio turned away to hide a wide grin. Shad and Saura exchanged amused glances.

“Listen, those two boys here,” stated the Korbat, letting her son go, “are looking for someone named Artus, an island Acara. He works in the palace’s library; you will let them in, right?”

Harfu scowled. “Mom, I can’t really let strangers wander around the palace all by themselves, even if I let them in.” He glanced at the two brothers. “Now if you two are willing to wait until my shift ends, I could show you around; otherwise we cannot let you pass.”

“That’s okay, we have time,” said Saura.

“Too bad I don’t. I promised to meet Mara this afternoon; she got those recipes I wanted,” said the Korbat. “Well, be a good boy then, and you too, Deki, and good luck to you two, toodles!” She fluttered off over the rooftops, leaving Harfu and Deki behind with semi-ashamed, semi-confused looks on their faces. Shad and Saura exchanged quick glances again and then sat down on the marble staircase.

“My mom is hopeless,” moaned the Ixi. “Listen, you two, I really wish you didn’t have to collide with this palace’s rules like that, but if I let you in on your own, you’d get lost very fast and I can’t leave my post before the shift is over.”

“Besides, Nightsteed would have our heads,” added Deki. “He’s been so paranoid lately. If it was up to him, we’d have to search every single person who enters the palace, including prince Jazan himself.”

“Why so?” asked Saura, looking back at the two.

The guards shrugged. “No idea,” said Harfu. “He’s been acting strangely these days. Goes out at sunset, comes back when the sun rises, glares at everyone, suspects everyone and nobody really has a clue what his suspicions are. He has no real power in the palace, otherwise he would’ve arranged something drastic ages ago, mark my words.”

“Who is he anyway?” asked Shad. “I mean, I know who he is, we heard about the story with Razul and everything but who is he in the palace?”

“Something like an advisor,” replied Deki the Scorchio. “He doesn’t have a direct rank so basically he’s a civilian but in reality he’s on the same level as Jazan himself. Complicated for lower-class guards like us but we need to accept it – though Jazan’s generally known as the most powerful mage in Qasala, Nightsteed’s in no way less skilled than him and getting on his wrong side would be a very bad idea.”

They fell quiet for a while. Saura slid down a few steps to lean his back against the stairs and nodded away in a trance-like sleepy state. Shad had backed to the shade of one gigantic pillar. The guards stood where they were, the sun mercilessly burning their fur and black-gold-red armor, though as the Lupe noticed, neither guard seemed to be too disturbed by the heat. No wonder – Deki was a fire Scorchio and Harfu’s white coat reflected most of the heat back. Time ticked by. The square in front of the palace seemed strangely empty, even though Qasala was rather tightly populated.

A bell tolled somewhere in the depths of the palace and the two guards came to attention at once. Shad looked out from behind the pillar and Saura turned around to see two new guards march out from the castle, stop right by Harfu and Deki, salute, reach out their lances, clash them together – in short, the new guards stopped by the pillars as the Ixi and Scorchio marched off into the palace. A moment later Harfu showed up again, this time without his lance. “Come on in, you two.”

As the two brothers plunged into the cool, dim depths of the vast hallway, the new guards leaned against the pillars and yawned widely, curiously squinting at them.

“Traditions?” Saura asked with a grin.

“Indeed,” replied the Ixi. “This time they actually proved to be useful... in most cases we have no audience whatsoever. A bit silly if you ask me but rules are rules.”

They turned left at some pillars that looked exactly like all the other pillars they had already passed. Harfu had been right – anyone who didn’t know the place would’ve gotten hopelessly lost in five minutes. A wide staircase took them to a hallway that faced the courtyard and was bordered with huge glassless windows. The long luxurious carpet seemed almost too expensive to step on and Harfu was indeed careful not to crumple it. He walked on his hind legs, thus towering a head above Saura who wasn’t short at all.

When they turned around the corner, they suddenly faced a blue Uni who had been coming down the other end of the hall. Unlike most blue Unis, he had a dark blue mane and black hooves, and his eyes were grim.

“Sir,” Harfu muttered hurriedly, stepping aside at once and bowing deeply. The Uni, who had stopped for a confused second, harrumphed quietly and hurried on, paying no further attention to the three and almost stepping on Shad’s paw. He would’ve done it too if the Lupe hadn’t jumped aside.

“Who the...!” Shad began in righteous fury but Harfu quickly hissed at him, perking his big Ixi ears up. The soft thudding of hooves disappeared down the hallway.

“That was him,” said the Ixi. “Nightsteed. He’s not unfriendly but he knows his place and expects others to know theirs. Like I said, he’s been strange these days. Worried, if you ask me.”

Shad and Saura stared at him, then peered back around the corner but the Uni had already disappeared. “That was Nightsteed?” demanded Shad. “But... come on, I’ve read about him, I’ve seen pictures of him. He’s a cursed creature with bandages and wrinkled skin and everything!”

“He’s also a shapeshifter,” said Harfu, guiding them down the hallway again. “He can take the shape you just saw in daytime. At night he turns into the creature you’ve read about, but he always remains the same at heart. He was rather nice and quiet when I came to work here but he’s changed a bit lately. But he’s not a monster, if that’s what you’re thinking. He loves this city and its people, and looks can be deceiving, really.”

Shad, who had the cheerful personality of a Snowbunny despite his shadow fur and studded collar, nodded in agreement. They had come to another staircase in the meantime and crossed another few hallways. Shad’s nose and Saura’s ears said that the palace was full of people – servants, maids, chefs, cleaners, messengers and everything else that makes a palace work but the place was simply so big that running into someone was a rare occasion.

“Here,” said Harfu, pushing a door open. “The library.”

To be continued...

[Vanessa Anne Hugends]

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