⤜---⤛ 𝔽𝕀𝕊𝕊𝕌ℝ𝔼 ⤜---⤛ ▬▬ 𝕠𝕦𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕓𝕒𝕟𝕜𝕤 ∗ 𝕛𝕛 ▬▬

⤛ 𝕏 ⤜

Through the rustling of tree leaves, Talia could hear the faintest sound of crickets chirping as the group stood in a semicircle around the old mausoleum. There was no name etched anywhere in the stone as far as she could see, and its only entrance was an ancient-looking hole in the top that was decorated in patches of wet moss.

"If an old letter pertaining to lost gold could be metaphorised, it would be this building," Pope said, staring at it in awe.

JJ squinted his eyes, shaking his head. "Dude, what does that even mean?"

"This is it," Noa said, taking a deep breath. "It's here." He approached the building slowly, as though it were a wild dog, and lifted up his hand to drag it along its rough surface.

"How do we get in?" Sarah asked.

Clearly feeling everyone's eyes on her, Kiara shook her head. "Nope, nuh-uh. I did my time. It's someone else's turn to crawl through creepy cemetery holes."

The group then glanced between Talia and Sarah. "Paper, scissors, rock?" Sarah winced.

Rolling her eyes, Talia let out a loud sigh. "I got it."

"I literally love you," Sarah blurted out with a grateful smile.

JJ scrambled over to the mausoleum and placed his back against the stone, bending his knees with his hands cupped out in front of him. "I saw this in a-"

"Movie once. Yeah, we know," Pope sighed.

JJ glared at him, and Kiara threw her hand up, eyebrows raised. "Just get on with it."

Talia looked at JJ, and he nodded. She placed her foot on his hand as he said, "Okay. On the count of three. 1–" She immediately hoisted herself up and into the hole, wriggling a bit before landing, less than gracefully on her hands and knees inside. Dust particles danced around her as she got up, and the air smelled stale and damp.

"Okay, so, I gotta ask. Is this a girl thing or... did, like, neither of you graduate past kindy?" JJ complained.

"See anything?" John B called out.

Their voices were muffled through the stone, and Talia turned, taking in her surroundings. There really wasn't much inside, or it was at least too dark to tell. She pulled out her phone to use as a flashlight, sweeping the area slowly. "Nothing yet," she called back.

The room was almost empty with masses of cobwebs draped around the corners of both the floor and ceiling. Although, in the centre sat a long, thick slab of stone. She frowned. "Wait, guys..."

"What?"

She leaned in to have a closer look before taking a step back. "Shit, I think there's, like, a... sarcophagus in here."

"What, like, Brendan Frasier's 'The Mummy' kind of sarcophagus?" JJ's voice called from outside.

Talia coughed through the dust. "Yeah..." she paused as a thought crossed her mind. "Please tell me I don't have to open the dead person box."

There was a moment of silence. I guess that answers that question, she thought, staring at the stone with wide eyes.

"It's for a good cause!" John B offered.

She heard faint whispering as she neared the sarcophagus. "Wait, mummies aren't real, right?" someone asked, and immediately someone else shot back.

"Dude, shut up."

Ignoring them, Talia held her breath and gripped the edges of the stone top. She felt the weight of it in her arms, and the daunting task ahead made her nervous. Okay, here goes nothing. She dragged the lid sideways with all the strength she could muster, causing a low, guttural grating noise that echoed through the tomb. The stone resisted movement at first, but then it gave slightly, resulting in a sharp crackling sound like the breaking of bones. A shiver ran down her spine as stone screeched across stone. The noise seemed to last an eternity until finally, it stopped.