Treasure Hunting 101

Prologue

May 21st, 1956

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Music: Title and Virusvine Veranda from Super Mario 74 Extreme Edition

Two men, each dressed in full camo gear and equipped with backpacks full of supplies, are walking through the hallways of an abandoned temple. Both men have flashlights to navigate through the dark tunnels. They move slowly and cautiously, wary of the many tricks this temple has up its sleeve.

"Sir, how close are we to the treasure?" the younger of the two men asks. He keeps his voice to a whisper, and makes sure that all of his footsteps are a mere tiptoe. His flashlight is starting to run low on battery, but the other explorer made sure to replenish his flashlight's battery life before they entered, so they'll be fine.

The older man, a small explorer with a few successful quests under his belt, takes another glance at the map of the temple that he's carrying with him. This map was diagrammed by the many brave souls who have tried to navigate this place before, all in search of the treasure. The map also has a route mapped out that will get to the treasure in the fastest and safest way. "Just a few more twists and turns, then we'll be there," he tells his companion.

Afterwards, the two men come across a hallway that branches to the left and to the right. There are many hallways like this in the temple, and while both will eventually lead to the correct destination, one is usually lined with booby traps while the other is safe to navigate. The explorer takes a look at his map to figure out which way is best. The path on the left has sketches of darts, meaning it's probably not the best idea to go that way. Instead, the arrow that depicts the correct route says the correct choice here is the right path. So, that's the direction the two men go in. According to the map, this is the last branching path before coming across the room with the treasure, so the two men are able to relax.

Several turns later, they've made it. The many twists and turns of the temple have led the explorers to the final room. It is large and rectangular, and the surfaces are made of the same grey, rusty bricks that the rest of the temple is made out of. The only object in the entire room is a large, dark brown treasure chest with a golden lock on it. The explorers have found the key necessary to open the chest, but there's a catch, which they were thankfully aware of.

The younger man reads the inscription written on a small plaque just in front of the chest. It is written in neat handwriting and easy-to-read English, and says, "TO NOT RECEIVE KAORI'S CURSE, ONE MUST FIRST DEEM THEMSELVES WORTHY OF THE TREASURES INSIDE THIS CHEST BEFORE OPENING IT."

"The items, please," he says to the older man. His partner nods and sets his backpack down on the ground. He opens it and takes out two diamond jewels, a large, black and purple scepter, a necklace with a green pendant on it, a scarlet cloth, and a small, marble statue of a monkey. These are the items necessary to perform the ancient ritual that will deem these explorers worthy of receiving the legendary Kaori's Treasure.

But before either of the men can do anything with the items, a noise that sounds like footsteps comes from behind them. Both men sharply turn around and point their flashlights in the direction of the hallway they just came from. "Who goes there?! Show yourself!" the older man yells, reaching into his jacket pocket and pulling out a pistol. Nobody can be seen in the hallway.

"I'll perform the ritual. Keep an eye on the hallway for me," the older man says to the younger one. The younger man nods and takes a few steps forward, then pulls out his own gun and keeps it pointed at the hallway. The older man gets down on his knees, places the two jewels next to each other/on top of the cloth, then places the monkey statue on top of the two jewels, forming a pyramid-like structure. "Mark? I need to see the correct order of the steps again," the man calls out. He gets no response.

"Mark?" the man stands up and shines his flashlight around the room. At first, Mark is nowhere to be seen.

Then he points his flashlight down at the floor, and what he sees is enough to make him gasp.

Mark is lying flat on his stomach, and his arms and legs are spread out. A knife is lodged into his back, and blood collects into a puddle on the floor. The older man is unable to believe his eyes.

"Who did this?! Come on out here so I can kick your ass!" the man shouts, waving his flashlight around the room. The perpetrator is nowhere in sight.

Because the perpetrator has been stealthily hiding behind the man this whole time.

Suddenly, the man feels a sharp pain in his back. He winces from pain and grimaces as the knife is dug around in his flesh. Seconds later, he falls onto the floor the same way Mark did earlier, losing consciousness, and another few seconds later, his life.

In the process of dropping to the floor, the flashlight drops out of the man's hands. When it hits the ground, the battery compartment is broken open and the batteries fly out, cloaking the entire room in darkness. Before he leaves, the perpetrator fishes through the older man's pockets and pulls out the key required to unlock the treasure chest, then stuffs it into his own pockets. The items required for the ritual begin to vanish into thin air, returning to their original locations and thus erasing all of the hard work of the two explorers to find them. Once they have completely disappeared, the perpetrator smiles to himself and exits the temple, leaving the two dead bodies behind.