Treasure for All

23. Eye of Horus

Soft kisses on her cheek pulled Grace-Anne from her sleep. It was part of Seonghwa's morning ritual to wake up his fiancée, and he did so by kissing her in various places on her face. Him being so touchy-feely was only saved for Grace-Anne when it was just them alone, and it contrasted with his "no nonsense, serious man" persona. He was still a kind soul, he just wasn't a fan of PDA except for hand holding. Behind closed doors, he was all over her.

"Good morning," his deep voice sang softly.

"Hi, you," Grace-Anne's morning voice croaked, causing Seonghwa to chuckle. "What time is it?"

"Same time I always wake you: seven in the morning."

"I figured as much. Are we in Egypt?"

"Come look," Seonghwa smiled as he motioned for her to come to the window.

Still a little disoriented, Grace-Anne slowly stood from her side of the best and trudged over to see what was happening. Once she glanced outside, she felt fully awake. The sky was a beautiful blue as the sun was still rising, the desert sand a golden hue, and the breathtaking ruins of the pyramids added to the eternal sunny desert. A few men on camels could be seen riding as they led a few more, and a city could be spotted in the distance; but it was on the other side of the pyramids.

"Won't people notice the ship?" Grace-Anne asked.

"The camouflage is up," Seonghwa reassured. "So we'll be okay."

He kisses her cheek just before she turns to get dressed.

"No good morning kiss?" teased her fiance.

"You already gave me one," giggled Grace-Anne as she grabbed her clothes from the armoire.

Seonghwa snakes her arms around her, capturing her in an embrace. He kissed right below her earlobe and whispered, "I want a proper kiss."

Grace-Anne scoffed playfully. "Someone's needy."

Turning around in his arms, Grace-Anne pulled him towards her until their lips touched in a warm kiss. Seonghwa had a habit of being sneaky in stealing kisses from the woman he loved, and she always played along with his antics. Sometimes, he's so sneaky to a point it ends up with the two having laugh attacks. But this morning was just him being romantic and wanting her touch.

"Can I get dressed and make breakfast now?" she requested after breaking the kiss.

Seonghwa sulked but let her go attend to her ship duties. He then busied himself making the bed and packing his bag before meeting with the captain for the daily agenda. Today was one of the days where he packed Grace-Anne's bag for her as she spent longer in the kitchen this morning, which was not uncommon as she would make Celestia's specialized meal depending on what everyone else was eating for breakfast.

Once all of the essentials were packed in both bags, Seonghwa made his way to the board room and was surprised to find the captain standing at the corkboard pinning some new information.

"Are you feeling better, captain?" he asked.

"A little," Hongjoong answered honestly, dark circles under his tired eyes. "My stomach still feels weird, so I'm not sure if I'll go exploring the pyramids. What I can do right now is give everyone the brief."

If Hongjoong wasn't going to lead this exploration, who was going to be in charge? He was typically the one who kept everyone together, so Seonghwa wasn't sure what he or Yeosang or even Dahae would do if the position was handed over to any of them.

He put the thoughts aside as the rest of the crew piled into the board room, Celestia immediately sitting in one of the chairs.

Hongjoong took a breath before addressing his crewmates. "Good morning," he smiled weakly. "I hope everyone slept well and has what they need for exploring today. However, I won't be joining you on this one."

A few shocked murmurs erupted from the crew, and Dahae was quick to calm them. None of them could wrap their heads around the idea of exploring without their leader. Hongjoong was the one who knew how to keep everyone together, knew his maps, and made the big decisions. The fear of falling apart dangled in the back of their minds.

"I'm still having side effects," Hongjoong explained, "so I'll be putting Seonghwa in charge for now."

The First Mate wasn't expecting to be the one chosen to lead temporarily, and he didn't have the map skills Hongjoong had; but he knew San could help him decipher it if he was healed.

"First," continued the captain as he went over the agenda, "we need to establish the rotation for Celestia's caregiver during explorations. Who's going to take the first shift?"

"I'll stay," volunteered Phoebe, raising her hand.

"Excellent. Now, I've asked Celestia to look over the notes for Egypt, so she'll be handing those to Seonghwa."

"I made my own notes as well," Celestia replied as she handed a sheet of paper to Seonghwa. "It's just a little cheat sheet of symbols and artifacts mentioned in maps for this location."

Upon him reading over her notes, Celestia had made bullet points and labeled what each key point meant:

-Ankh: classic hieroglyph used in a lot of fictional storytelling; symbol used for "life" and actually holds a lot of power in Egyptian beliefs
-Treasures can vary between different artifacts like vases/pots, jewelry, heirlooms, and blue gold in some cases
-Pets were considered sacred treasure to the culture and some royal figures had their pets buried in the tombs with them

Much more had been jotted down, but the thing that stood out to him was three underlined words: Eye of Horus.

"So, are we looking for a tomb or something?" Taeran interrupted, pulling Seonghwa from his thoughts.

"No," Celestia shook her head. "It's a secret room that holds all kinds of treasures the great pharaohs of Egypt valued: gold, precious stones, even sacred items. There are symbols of the ankh and Eye of Horus in there somewhere, but it doesn't say where exactly. Those are where you'll find the next diamond piece."

Everyone, including the captain, looked at Seonghwa now to make the next move. It was all new to him now that he was temporarily in charge, but he straightened himself and cleared his throat.

"Thank you, Celestia," he spoke. "Let's get everything ready before meeting at the door."

-

"And you're sure you'll be okay without me?" San asked as he strapped on his backpack.

"San, for the last time," his wife giggled, "I'll be okay. Phoebe will be my guardian angel, and Byeol will snuggle with me. Hongjoong will be here, too, but he'll probably be resting mostly."

San sighed in defeat. He couldn't help that he worried about her so much, especially if she were to go into labor when he wasn't on the ship to attend to her quickly. However, he knew she was in good hands.

"Alright," he smiled slightly. "I love you, angel. I know I worry to death about you, but I just want you and the baby to be okay and healthy."

Celestia cups his face and promises, "We're okay. If something was wrong, you'll be the first to know."

His gloved hands went to her swollen waist and pulled her in for a long and deep kiss. He then knelt down to her belly and kissed it before whispering, "You be good for mommy, now. Okay, Princess?"