Explorers of Danger

I walked out of the airport, with my face as happy as it could be. I had just been through a great adventure, with my great friends, and I was going to see my mum after a year, when Chandan is heading home. I got inside the taxi, alone, and as I was looking out of the window, I recollected the previous year’s happenings…

FLASHBACK:

It was a clammy night. I was at Kris’ house that night. Akshara, Chandan and Gaurav were also there. Even though we all are of different ages – Chandan is 19, Akshara is 17, Kris is 16, Gaurav is 14 and I’m 12 – we all are very thick friends. We were having a sleepover. It was almost time for bed, when the power went off. The whole house was drowned in pitch darkness. Kris reached the shelf – which he could not see – and grabbed at a torch. He tried switching it on, but there was no energy in the battery. “C’mon! Why doesn’t it glow only at the most epoch-making moment? God, I hate this torch! I’m buying one tomorrow as soon as the shop opens”, groused Kris.

“Guys, At least get me hand fan and a lamp. I can’t stand darkness or the heat.” exclaimed Akshara.

 “Hey! We all are idiots! How could we forget that we have our phones?! Hold this flashlight like this, Kris.” He did something to the torch, and suddenly, the whole room lit up. The power came back and the television started vociferating loudly.

“COVID-19 has started spreading like a wildfire. Everybody, stay home, stay safe. The government may even declare a lockdown. It is a very egregious situation. Already about a thousand people are taking treatment and more than a hundred have perished. Please stay safe everyone. We will come back to you with more news. For now, I bid goodbye.”

“This is the worst night ever. The power went out, and now, it’s a virus promulgating. I guess that it’s not going to be a good time. At least, let us go to sleep before the power goes off again.” I complained.

The night was okay, except the fact that the dog next door was howling almost all night and, of course, Akshara’s snores kept me wide awake till ten to midnight. I was wide awake at about quarter to seven. Why do I wake up early only on holidays? Ugh. I went to the kitchen, and made myself some hot chocolate. While I was savouring my drink, the others came out one by one. Kris made himself a cup of coffee; Akshara made herself a cup of green tea, Chandan poured himself some Cola, while Gaurav poured himself a packet of Milo.

“Good morning, sleepyheads.” I smiled. This was the third time I woke up earlier than them. After a small talk, we all went for a morning walk. It was a frigid day. I had a feel that it would rain soon. So, we decided to wind up sooner than usual.

Just as were turning back to Kris’ house, the rain decided to take over. By the time we reached his house, we were soaked from the tip of our heads to our toes. “You snooze, you lose!!” shouted Gaurav and raced off to the restroom on the left. I shot off to the right, and the others were stranded in the middle of the hall, soaking wet.

I came out, clean and neat, while the others were waiting for my arrival. Kris disappeared into the restroom behind me, as soon as I stepped outside. Gaurav, still, hadn’t come out. Akshara and Chandan had made themselves comfortable on the floor.

I started making breakfast for everyone - eggs and ham - while Gaurav switched on the TV. Again, all the channels were taken over by the news of COVID-19.

“Chandan, you’re brilliant. You must have heard about this virus. Is it spreading in all the electronics? Someone must be behind it because this thing is getting famous, bro! Literally all the channels are full of COVID-19 news! Even the kids’ channel is full of news broadcasting!”

I was pissed off. I had just left the hall and he started clamouring. “When are you going to learn to find things on your own?” I scolded him, as I came out with my plate of breakfast. “You have your own phone and Google. Why don’t you search for yourself? By the way, everyone, breakfast’s ready. I left it in the kitchen. Fetch!”

“Hey! Remember that you’re two years younger than me. You can’t boss me around.” He fretted.

“Even though I’m younger than you, I am much brainier than you are! You don’t even know how to cook, so just shut up.” I replied back. He sighed and went to get his breakfast.

After we had our breakfast, Chandan started the topic again. “Just as you guys said, I scrutinized Google. I found out the following information. Let me read it out guys.

‘Pneumonia of unknown cause detected in Wuhan, China was first reported to the WHO Country Office in China on 31 December 2019. WHO is working 24/7 to analyse data, provide advice, coordinate with partners, help countries prepare, increase supplies and manage expert networks. The outbreak was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020. On 11 February 2020, a name for the new coronavirus disease - COVID-19- was announced by World Health Organisation. To stay up to date, follow @DrTedros and @WHO on Twitter, read World Health Organisation’s daily situation reports and news releases, and watch our regular press conferences. More information about World Health Organisation's response in countries can also be found here.’

This is serious guys. I don’t think our parents would be interested in welcoming us back to our homes.”

Just as he said that, Chandan’s phone rang. It was his mom. “Hello! Hi, mom! When are you coming to pick me up?” He asked imprudently. There was a sigh at the other end of the phone which made him realise she wasn’t coming. “Chandan….I….I’m sorry. I have to talk to Kris. Can you pass on the phone, dear?”

He wordlessly passed his phone to him. I could hear a slight murmur from the other end of the phone. ‘Covid….Business….Delhi….both of us….take care….bye!’ was all I could catch his mum say. Kris gave a series of yesses and cut the phone. He glanced at him and winked.

“You will have your other items and clothes delivered here. Your mum has to go on a business trip and is taking your sister for about a year and you are staying with me until she comes back. It was supposed to be a month trip, but increased to a year because of COVID-19. Isn’t it awesome?!” I was stupefied. Even though I knew that something like this was going to happen, I didn’t expect Chandan to stay with Kris for a whole year!

“Until he goes back, i, too, will be staying here. It's too stodgy to stay at home. Call my mommy!” I yelled with a joyous look. We all decided to stay at Kris’ until his mom took him back home.

After coming out of the shock, I realised that it was already lunch time. “Oh my goodness, is it already lunchtime?! Can someone else cook today? Akshara, you know how to cook right? Please help me. I get you a milky bar. Pretty please…”

After lots of begging, she finally accepted to cook on the deal that I get her two milky bars. I just don’t understand the big difference between one milky bar and two. Oh, yeah, it’s ten rupees.

Almost a month passed. COVID-19 just got worse. By that time, everyone learnt how to cook. We took turns cooking and cleaning the house.

It was my turn to cook when I realised all the groceries got over. Akshara escorted me to the only shopping complex in the whole city, which was open. We went shopping and came back, only to realise that Chandan was missing. Even though he is the eldest, he still didn’t know that place well. He was at home even after we left. No one knew where he went. We decided to split up and search for him, through the streets. I searched everywhere I could. But all was in vain.

I was just about to go back when I heard a noise coming from close to a nearby house. “Hey! Stop right there!” The man’s voice faltered slowly. I could sense that he was trying to get closer to me. I wasn’t able to see his face clearly but I was able to identify a few burn scars. He was pretty tall, and I could say that he was young. He was dressed completely in black, which made it even harder for me to see him.

 I didn’t want to stay next to a stranger during the crisis I was going through. I started running away from there. I could sense him following me. Without wasting a moment, I ran as fast as my legs could take me. Suddenly, I bumped into a person coming towards me. It was Kris. He had found Chandan and came to inform me. He never even left the house. He was in the restroom the whole time, having a stomach upset.

I was relieved, but I still couldn’t forget the man, who chased me. I also couldn’t find out why he stopped following me as soon as I bumped into Kris. All of this raced through my mind at lightning speed.

“Shwetha…Shwetha? What happened to you? I thought you fell asleep! Were you day-dreaming or what?” echoed Kris’ voice inside my ear.

I shrugged him off, lying, that I was thinking of what to cook the next day. “You were thinking of what to cook tomorrow? But, tomorrow is my turn to cook, right?”

I lied to him again that I thought it was my turn the next day. He gave me a suspicious look and went to the attic to get his old clothes, to use them as floor mats. He didn’t come down for about an hour. Suddenly, he ran back down, with a piece of paper – yellow with age – in her hand. He seemed to be really cheerful.

“Guys, come here and see what I found!” he said in an excited tone. I rushed with a glimmer of curiousness in my eyes. He opened it, and spread it across the table.

“This is the map of Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation Area, and Haida Heritage Site, which is a part of the island group of British Columbia, in Canada. This place is well known. I searched about it in the internet, and found the following information. Let me read it out.

Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation Area, and Haida Heritage Site, usually referred to simply as Gwaii Haanas, is located in southernmost Haida Gwaii (formerly known as Queen Charlotte Islands), 130 kilometres (81 miles) off the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Gwaii Haanas protects an archipelago of 138 islands, the largest being Moresby Island and the southernmost being Kunghit Island. "Gwaii Haanas" means "Islands of Beauty" in X̱aayda kíl, the language of the Haida people. The Haida Heritage Site is within the territory of the Haida people, who have lived in Haida Gwaii for at least 14,000 years. The Haida canon of oral histories show Haida lived in Gwaii Haanas when the first trees arrived at Bolkus Islands as glaciers retreated. Pollen samples indicate trees first arrived 14,500 years ago. Numerous films have covered Gwaii Haanas, including the 2011 short National Parks Project, directed by Scott Smith and scored by Sarah Harmer, Jim Guthrie and Bry Webb.

We might want to go and explore, as well as sightsee that place. I’m sure that you all know Akshara’s parents are explorers and would be more than happy to book us a ticket to go there…and we might also learn new things there. There is a small red cross here, in between these weird bushes. Maybe, that’s where something valuable is hidden. Shall I call her parents now?”

We all were extremely excited. We decided to go there on the second Friday of the next month. Until then, we packed our things and ask her parents to take care of our tickets. We packed torches, ropes and others things necessary for hiking, just in case we had to sneak into the park at night. See, we had to be ready for everything.

Soon, the marvellous day we had been waiting for, came. We had to reach the airport at least by ten to eight in the morning to catch our plane on time. I was so excited that I woke up at seven to five in the morning. I was astonished and surprised to see that Chandan and Kris had already woken up, and prepared breakfast, by the time I brushed and came out. It was my favourite breakfast – pancakes! And with lots of honey and melted butter too! Yum! Kris is really good at making pancakes, and Akshara, Gaurav and I always cherish them.

Today, it was extra special as he added a bit of cream on top. It was awesome. Chandan, however, didn’t look excited. He had a gloomy face and had PB and J for breakfast instead of this awesome dish. I knew he didn’t like pancakes that much, but something about him was different. His smile was missing. He used to be smiling all the time, but today, that smile had vanished. As soon as Kris disappeared into the kitchen again, Chandan got up, pushed his empty plate a little away, and went and switched on the television.

“On 24 March 2020, the Government of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered a nationwide lockdown for 21 days, limiting movement of the entire 1.3 billion population of India as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 pandemic in India. It was ordered after a 14-hour voluntary public curfew on 22 March, followed by enforcement of a series of regulations in the country's COVID-19 affected regions. The lockdown was placed when the number of confirmed positive coronavirus cases in India was approximately 500. Observers stated that the lockdown had slowed the growth rate of the pandemic by 6 April to a rate of doubling every six days, and by 18 April, to a rate of doubling every eight days. As the end of the first lockdown period approached, state governments and other advisory committees recommended extending the lockdown. The governments of Orissa and Punjab extended the state lockdowns to 1 May. Maharashtra, Karnataka, West Bengal and Telengana followed suit. On 14 April, Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended the nationwide lockdown until 3 May, with a conditional relaxation after 20 April for the regions where the spread had been contained. But Chennai on the other hand, is having an increased number of patients, and thus, all flights, whether interstate or international, are postponed.”

 The news shocked me. I finally understood why Chandan seemed unhappy. The smile on Kris’ face also vanished. We sat on the sofa, not able to say anything. All our planning had turned to waste. We were on the verge of throwing and tearing our tickets when Gaurav came out of his room with two shirts in his hand.

“Guys, I can’t decide which shirt to wear to the airport. Can you guys help me choose?” he asked innocently. I couldn’t forbear but smile. “You can wear the red one. It suits you.” “Hey! I thought the same. And you should wear a green top because it suits you. What are you guys doing? Start working! We have to be at the airport at ten to eight.” He said in fast tone.

“Umm… they just ate breakfast and are a bit tired. I will make sure that we complete all the work before we go, alright?” I said pretending to be excited and happy. He nodded in a childish way and went back to his room.

“Why did you lie to him? All the flights are cancelled. We can’t go there. It’s not like he’s going to be heartbroken or anything. He’s not that fragile. Even though he’s excited about it, he would accept this.” Kris said.

“It’s not that. He’s such a motor mouth that he would blabber it all to Akshara. She can’t take it. She would break down. We can’t let this happen. We have to go there somehow. We’ll think of it. Maybe if we call Akshara’s parents, we can get an idea. They are already in Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation, blah, blah, blah, whatever. Maybe, they can tell us how to get there… today.”

Before half past 6, we made all the arrangements, so that Akshara still believed that we were leaving. She, being a deep sleeper, woke up only at quarter to 7. Before that, we called Akshara’s parents. Fortunately, they had a friend – who had a plane belonging to his cousin – who was willing to take us there on his private plane. So, we were going there, but secretly.

Akshara was as excited as a sloth who won a race with a cheetah. She skipped as she walked and had Horlicks for a change. She packed her bags and was ready, sharp at seven. I couldn’t believe that she got ready so fast. We still had fifty minutes to reach the airport, when I broke the news of the private flight. I thought Gaurav and Akshara would be disappointed, but Gaurav was jumping up and down with joy, while Akshara thanked god for such an awesome opportunity. We reached the airport and met with the pilot who was to take us to Canada.

“Hey, guys, can I ask a question? Mind it, because I can’t find the answer for that in Google. Can I meet with Justin Bieber there? He is a Canadian, right? So, he must be in Canada. Am I right guys?” asked Gaurav.

“Akshara’s parents are Indians. But they are in Canada right now. So Justin Bieber can go anywhere he likes. He must right now be in another country, for his concert. So, you can’t meet him.” I replied back.

His face turned sad for some time and again he started talking. I was too busy taking our entire luggage up to the plane that I didn’t take in a word he said. We boarded the plane, and before take-off, the pilot requested us to buckle our seat-belts. I was as nervous as a ship in a severe cyclone.

I held my backpack as tightly as I could and closed my eyes. “Are you scared of the plane, Shwetha? Not that there’s anything wrong in that because you’re the youngest, but, still, you’re twelve years old now. You are such a scaredy-cat.” Chandan exclaimed.

“Do you seriously want me to die of shame? Can you please be a bit silent?” I exclaimed.

“Even if I stay silent, the way you are holding your backpack gives everything away. If you don’t want anyone to know you are cringing, then either sit at the back of the plane, or throw your backpack away.”

“All my valuables are in here. I could never throw it away! Oh, okay, sorry. You meant me to keep it somewhere else. Stop looking at me like that. At least I understood it now.”

By the time I stopped speaking, the plane was already in the air. The landscape was beautiful. I checked my watch. It had stopped working. “Kris, Akshara asked you about batteries. Did you bring a few? I need to change the batteries of my watch.”

“Oops. I forgot to bring them. Maybe you can wear your blue watch. Oh, I know that look. You forgot your blue watch, didn’t you?”

I nodded. As I was worrying about my watch, the pilot announced that we were about to arrive at the airport, and that an airhostess was coming with a message from him.

As he completed saying this, an airhostess entered the cabin. She looked like a Chinese woman. As Chandan knew Chinese well, I asked him to address her in Chinese. “你好。你好吗？您可以用中文说出这则消息。我能听懂中文。[Hi. How are you? You can tell the message in Chinese if you please. I can understand Chinese]” He said in fluent Chinese. She looked as if she couldn’t understand what he said. “こんにちは。あなたは日本人を知っていますか？ [Hi. Do you know Japanese?]” Kris asked being as fluent as he could.

“はい、日本語がわかります。パイロットが飛行機に着陸したらパイロットのいとこに会うことをすべてに伝えるように私に命じました。彼はあなたのすべてに彼のいとこに感謝することを望みます。[Yes. The pilot ordered me to tell everyone that you would meet his cousin when the plane lands. He wishes all of you to thank his cousin]” she replied back in fluent and native Japanese. He nodded and thanked her for the message.

“そのような若い男の子が日本語をとても上手に話すことができたのは驚くべきことです。お会いできて光栄です。私の助けが必要な場合は、この番号からいつでも連絡できます。 [It is so amazing that such a young boy could speak Japanese very well. I am honoured to meet you. If you need my help, you can contact me anytime through this number.]” She said in a happy tone and passed him a slip of paper with a number on it. Then she bowed slightly and left.

“What did she say?” we all asked curiously. He told us what she had told him. As soon as he completed translating us the conversation, the pilot announced that we had reached the airport. I got up from my seat, and started taking all our belongings down the aircraft, with the help of Akshara and Kris. Chandan decided to thank the pilot’s cousin himself on behalf of all of us.

He returned in a few minutes and informed us that the man wished to see all of us. We all followed Chandan to the place where the man was standing. He was tall, and fair, except the fact that he had a few burn scars on his face. He was clean shaven and his eyes were hidden behind his dark sunglasses. He looked like a Korean businessman.

He looked at each of us, one by one. His eyesight stopped on me. A chill ran down my spine, when I realised there was something absolutely wrong and vaguely familiar with this man. I had seen him, his face, and his well-built young body, somewhere. But, where had I seen him before? I was confused and scared.

I couldn’t help but clutch onto Akshara’s hand and whisper in her ear, “Something is absolutely wrong here. Tell the others that I’ll take charge. If I nudge your arm, then reject the offer. I don’t want to answer all the time.”

She nodded slightly. The others, without her telling them, could understand what was going on because of my weird expressions. “안녕하세요. 내 이름은 Shwetha 입니다. 나는 당신이 한국어를 알기를 바랍니다? [Hello. My name is Shwetha. I hope you know Korean?]”

I asked him in fluent Korean. He seemed surprised and happy at the same time. But I was able to identify them as fake expressions.

“네, 한국어를 이해합니다. 만나서 반가워요 한국어로 말하는 것이 불편하면 영어로 말할 수 있습니다. [Yes, I understand Korean. I am glad to meet you. If you are not comfortable, then we can speak in English].” He replied back in a deep tone.

I smiled and said that I preferred English, on the concern I had on my friends who couldn’t understand a word we were saying. They were surprised, actually, as they didn’t know that I knew Korean.

The man slightly smiled and asked if he could do the honour of taking us to the hotel in which Akshara’s parents were staying. We kindly rejected his proposal, and went on our way. He stopped us, and asked if we were siblings.

“Yes, sir, we are siblings. As you know, our parents took the profession of explorers only a few years back, after I turned eight. We have been taking care of ourselves for quite a while now. We are meeting them after at least a few months. We can’t wait to meet them, sir!” I said, pretending to be excited and happy.

His face expression showed that he believed what I said, and there was a relaxation in him, which made him think I didn’t recognise him. He smiled and told us that he would like to come with us to meet our (Akshara’s) parents. I nudged Akshara’s arm and she politely declined the offer, saying that we were tired.

With a slightly grim face, he sent us off with a taxi driver. We reached the hotel room soon. Akshara’s parents welcomed us warmly. “Please pretend that you are the parents of all of us and that we are siblings until I clear my suspicions. I can’t say anything now…mom.” I said after we settled down for some time.

After having a cup of our favourite drinks, we started planning our secret trip to the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation Area, and Haida Heritage Site, or the Gwaii Haanas.

Each of us shared our own point of views on how to get inside. We decided to write it down and put a number on each paper and fold it. As we were seven of us, including ‘our’ parents, we had to choose a number between one and seven. Whichever chit had the number, we would follow that idea.

We all decided to choose the number five, which indicated our friendship and ‘our’ parents accepted it. It was Kris’ idea. Chandan was pretty happy, because other than his idea, he liked Kris’ idea the best. We were to go there the following night – which was against my wishes, because I was scared of the dark – and climb inside the park secretly with flashlights and sneak in past the guards.

If someone got caught, we were to abort the plan and create a new one, after escaping. If we got past the guards, we were to go to the place which was marked in the map and find out what’s there. If it is something valuable, we were to give it to the government.

As we finished discussing this plan, a loud ‘burr’ sound echoed through the room. Gaurav, who was embarrassed, announced that it was his stomach, craving for food. We went to have lunch, and the waiter, who was amazed by my ability to speak Haida, gave me a small gift. It was a smaller version of the Gwaii Haanas legacy totem pole at Windy Bay. It had really beautiful and intricate designs, which made me like it at first sight. I decided to keep it with me, safe and sound.

After washing up, we decided to go back to our room. I passed the corridor to realise I left my totem in the dining hall. I apologised to the others and went back to get it. As I retrieved it, I saw the same man – the pilot’s cousin – coming towards the dining hall, with a few papers and a small bag in his hand.

I didn’t want to catch his eye, and so, I hid behind the receptionist’s table which was close by. He stopped about three feet away from where I was, to address a woman standing there. They talked – asked each other how they were – for some time. Then the woman bid goodbye and went the other way. The man came and leant on the table. It was as if he knew that I was hiding there. I was about to get up, when another man, with a phone approached him. He gave the phone to him and he started talking.

I, in advance, had switched on my recorder, for spying him, as soon as I saw him, and all that he talked got recorded. The only problem was that he spoke in another language, which I didn’t know. Then, he gave the phone back, as well as the papers and the bag he was carrying. Then he went into the dining room. I took this chance to go to our hotel room. I started translating it. The others asked me a lot of times, what I was doing, but I was busy and didn’t answer them. After about an hour, I decrypted the whole conversation. He spoke in Quechua – the language of the Incan people.

“Hello? Yes, it is me. Yes, sir, I was about to talk about that. The kids somehow found the map. They are over here. They are siblings and I have confirmed it as all are of different ages, based on looks. We have to retrieve the map from them. It is gold and it is worth more than a hundred million bucks. It belongs to the Incan people. A few Incans marked it in a map, which I found and hid it there. If they find it, we can never get hands on it……okay, sir…yes, sir…the plan will be executed tonight. We will retrieve the map, find the treasure and make it ours…tonight. I will call to tell our success, sir. No, sir, they would be busy thinking about each other’s lives. If they were just friends, then I would have been worried. The plan will be a success. I bid adieu.”

This was the translation. I was flabbergasted that I couldn’t speak for some time. Then, I explained everything to everyone, and we decided that we had to find the treasure before they did. If they found it, then they would put it to bad use. We took all the necessary items and got ready.

“At least we are lucky that he thinks we are siblings. He might be a little careless because of his relaxation. But we should be very sharp. If we find the treasure before him, then we can guard it with all our strength.” Kris told us.

Before starting off, Akshara’s parents told everyone to switch on their GPS and locate the cross in their phones. Even if we had to separate, we can locate each other using the GPS and even if we don’t have the map, we can reach the place easily. The map was to be in the protection of them, and we were to have a fake map, with the cross marked in the wrong place. We decided to go in groups.

Chandan, Akshara and her parents were to go together, while Kris, Gaurav and I were to go together.

Suddenly, a thought struck my mind. If the man was the person who hid the map in Kris’ house, then he could have gotten a photo copy of it. Why didn’t he do it? If he did it, then why did he chase after us for the map? And, something else also came up to my mind. He gave those papers and the bag to the man who got him the phone. Why and what was in it?

As I was thinking about these, Kris nudged me, and asked what I was wondering about. I revealed to him my suspicions and he told me not to worry about it. I wasn’t convinced but still, we started our journey.

We kept on walking until we were close to our destination. It turned out to be a dense forest. We wished each other luck and we split up. Akshara’s parents are the base, while Akshara and Chandan are back up, just in case we are caught. We didn’t want to sacrifice such a treasure into the bad hands, even if it meant sacrificing our lives.

I knew how to climb trees, so I was the watcher, while the other two were to search for the treasure. The rest four of them were in a safe and hidden place, keeping track of where we were using our location. I started climbing the tree, close to a line of bushes. The other two had to find a way to go into the bushes as the map indicated that the treasure was hidden right in between the row of bushes.

As I was climbing the tree – higher and higher – I realised that the row of bushes, weren’t actually row of bushes, but was a maze. Why didn’t I think of it? The Incan people were not that dumb. They wouldn’t hide that much of gold in the bushes. They would have given a high amount of security to it. What if it was a trap? What if there were poisonous snakes inside to guard the treasure? The first aid kit was with Akshara, and not us.

I climbed as high up the tree as I could and settled down there. Then I sent a message to the others regarding the information I collected. They asked me if I was able to see the maze in the GPS. But there was no such thing there.

‘But, guys don’t worry. I am able to see the whole maze from up here. If we have a conference audio call, then I can tell the way to go inside. If it is not helpful, I can mark the place you are at and send it to you. I have already taken a clear photo of the maze. I have sent it to you, guys.’

I sent them the message. They agreed but Chandan said that it would take at least half an hour to connect us all, with full connectivity and no disturbances.

I squatted down on the branch. Ugh, so boring. I decided to learn the latest COVID-19 news. The numbers had increased extensively. I was slightly afraid, but life wasn’t so important in this situation. I decided to check on the other news.

I found out the following titles:

Minneapolis burns after racially charged police killing of George Floyd.Twitter attaches disclaimer to Donald Trump’s Minneapolis tweet for ‘glorifying violence’.NSA: Russian agents have been hacking major email program.Calm before the storm Japan suicides as coronavirus ravages economy.A physicist has created the fifth state of matter working from home using quantum technology: Dr. Amruta Gadge from the Quantum Systems and Devices Laboratory.

I forwarded all these latest news to everyone. Immediately, I received a text from Gaurav.

“We are going through such a crisis, and you are sending news? How can you be so normal? At least, there is no COVID-19 news here. If it was there, then I would have killed you. Stay in your place and see how to solve the maze. Don’t waste your time watching news. Don’t think I’m harsh, but it is just a waste of time, according to our situation. Please be serious and not light-minded. Hey, BTW, don’t be sad, and don’t fall down!”

I did as he said – for the first time in forever – and tried tracing the way inside. As they were arranging the conference call, I finished solving the maze.

I forwarded a picture of it to the others. They were happy. Gaurav and Kris – after praying to God – started walking into the maze. As they entered it, the bushes changed direction, and woke up. I realised they were actually soldiers in disguise. They covered the pathway to go inside and formed something which looked like a Chakravyuham. They tried going in the direction which was free, but soldiers closed up behind them as they passed.

I didn’t know what to do for a moment. I started to lose hope. I felt that we should just let go of all this and just save ourselves. The treasure wasn’t ours, so the responsibility of taking care of it is also not a burden on us. I was about to give up, when my phone rang. “Don’t you want to see the sun come up each morning? Don’t you want to see the sun go down each day? Don’t to want to see that little girl who loves you so? Her heart would break if you should go.” The lyrics echoed in my mind for some time. This song gave me hope and told me not to give up. There are people who are depending upon me. I shouldn’t make them feel that I let them down. I answered the call. It was the conference call in perfect condition. I told them to stay in the same place, defending them until I made a plan.

I remembered watching Mahabharata and searched Google on how to break the Chakravyuham. There were immediate results.

“Guys, I have a plan. Don’t ask questions. Do exactly as I say. To break into this maze and reach the centre without being tired you have to find the shortest possible route to the centre, as well as to be really superior in skills to the warriors along your path to the centre. What I mean is you need to break in the layers to reach the centre than to travel along the maze to reach the centre. Injure as many soldiers as possible so as to increase the gap between them so that the gap available to breach is more than what the warriors on the left could easily fill in. Or in a way, it is a race between the seconds taken to fill the gap vs. the seconds needed to break in. The weak links have to be first identified, and you need to travel along with the formation to keep creating the gap at the intended place. And the success of breaking in depends on how effectively a panic button could be hit on an enemy formation that is designed to absorb the panic mode. So probably the creation of such a panic was achieved not just by creating a gap at one fixed point, but making gaps at few points in the same ring so that the natural filling in process of the soldiers is disturbed. After entering and finding the treasure, if there is a need to come out, injure the central warriors, one or two at a time, without giving them the chance to gang up on you. If you follow this method, then we can escape. And remember to be as fast as you can, and don’t lose each other. Did you understand, Gaurav and Kris?”

As soon as I completed saying this, they thanked me and entered inside using the method I explained to them. I was happy to see that the method worked. I loved Mahabharata for that. It took them almost quarter an hour to get into the centre.

They asked us to switch to a video call. I thought they wanted us to see the gold, but I never realised that I would see a puzzle. The people who knew Quechua are the only ones who could pass this very simple test.

We realised that all of us had to go through the maze and that the soldiers won’t attack us once we reach the centre. We used my method and all the five of us reached the centre much quicker than the other two, as we were more in number.

No one other than Gaurav knew how to read Khipu code i.e. the Incan written language. He said that it was really hard to learn. But it was worth it now. He read it out aloud in Quechua. “¿Imataq tiyasqayki wasipa sutin?”

“Gaurav, this is not the time for blabbering. Please tell us what is written there.” I complained.

“Can you please respect the language? I am reading this aloud in Quechua. It is easier to translate the Khipu code to Quechua and then to English, than to directly translate it to English. Okay, where was I? Oh, yeah, the translation. ¿Imataq tiyasqayki wasipa sutin? It translates to ‘What is the object most treasured by the Incans?”

As soon as he completed the sentence, a voice echoed through the room. “It has been confirmed that you are the chosen one. Choose wisely, and gift it to the Gods.” The voice said in a recorded-like tone.

As the voice said this, a secret door opened below us, and we all fell inside at trembling speed. I hoped with all my heart that there was no water below us as I didn’t know how to swim really fast. If there were sharks or crocodiles there, I have to say bye to my friends. I was just about to close my eyes when I landed with a thump on top of something. I was happy that there was no water there, and that I didn’t get hurt.

“Owww, get up Shwetha! You are sitting right on top of me!” Akshara screamed. Before I had got the consciousness to react, Gaurav fell on top of me, followed by Chandan, Kris and Akshara’s parents. We somehow managed to get up. It looked like a small tunnel.

Akshara’s parents lead the way through the tunnel. We all had a torch each, except for Kris. His torch didn’t work, as usual. So, he had to stand between all of us. We would have walked for about a mile when we saw something glittering in a distance. We rushed to get there. We saw that there were all sorts of things there – gold, diamonds, rubies, pearls and more. The others were excited, but I was not.

They thought that this was the treasure, but I knew that there was more. We had to offer, one of these items, which were treasured by the Incans, to the Gods. But where will the Gods accept the tribute? My eyes penetrated through the whole room. I saw everywhere, but there was no place to offer anything to the Gods. The others, meanwhile, were discussing about the cost of these items.

“Oh my goodness, look at that big, golden monkey! If I get the treasure, then I’m taking that!” Kris exclaimed.

Suddenly, I realised where we were to offer to the Gods. “Guys, I figured out where to offer to the gods. It is that monkey. See its hands. It looks as if it is asking for an offering. But, what did the Incans treasure the most?”

As soon as I completed asking this question, a deep and unmistakable voice echoed through the room.

“The answer is gold, of course, just like me. I knew you weren’t siblings long back. I had the map, and traced it here. But I didn’t know how to cross the maze. I sent my men and only one reached the centre. He told me that he didn’t know the Incan language. So I was stuck. I decided to use you, to reach my treasure. Now it is all belongs to me!”

As he said this, he took a gold coin and placed it in the palms of the golden monkey. As soon as he did that, I signalled the others to step back, and I followed suit. There was a grinding noise and he started laughing.

“It worked! I am now a millionaire! You all thought that you were brilliant. What can you do now?” He asked.

“I knew that you knew we weren’t siblings. I also knew you followed us in here. I knew long ago why you gave only half the information and false plans to the other guy in the phone and sent the true plans with money to him to complete the true plan. I learnt before that failing the test given by the Incans would lead to dire consequences. That is why, we, are standing here. But you…you are standing, right there.”

As soon as I completed saying those words the floor below him tumbled open and as he shouted, he fell into boiling, hot lava… and perished. After we recovered from the shock, we heard the voice which addressed us outside before.

“You have angered the Gods by giving the wrong answer. You have one more chance. If you answer wrongly again, then you all will die like him!” the voice screeched.

All of them turned towards me with shining hope in their eyes.

“Shwetha, it was because of you we came so far. We want you to seek the answer. Choose wisely. We believe in you.” They encouraged me.

I took a look around the whole place. I saw all sorts of things. It was hard to decide what they treasured the most. I was getting tired slowly. My stomach started rumbling for food and my throat was asking for water. Then suddenly, it struck me. I will be able to stay without food for three to four days, but without water, I would die. I realised that water was really precious. I looked around to see if there was any water.

There it was, in a small, metal bowl. I took it and went to the golden monkey. I poured a bit of the water into the palms of the monkey and waited. There it was the grinding noise, which made my eyes turn towards my friends. There was still a glimmer of hope in their eyes, which gave me confidence. I waited anxiously to see my fate. Was I going to die, or was I going to learn? As soon as I asked myself these two questions, the walls behind the golden monkey shifted and opened. There was a really humongous golden monkey standing there. It was as if the Gods of the Incans had come alive. The scene was really beautiful. None of us could take our eyes from the amazing sight. We didn’t want to take the treasure as it is already guarded. We gave it back to the Incans and returned back to our hotel.

PRESENT:

“Mam, your destination has arrived. Mam…mam, sorry to disturb you but your destination is here.” A voice echoed inside my ear. I came back to the present, thanked the driver, got out of the taxi and walked towards my home.

Slowly, my pace increased. I missed my mom a lot. I wanted to see her as fast as I could. I rang the doorbell. There were footsteps leading towards the door. The door opened, and my mom, stood there with tears in her eyes. She asked me in.

“I missed you a lot, my dear. I tried contacting you, but your phone was mostly switched off. What happened? How did you spend your time? Is everyone fine there?” She asked.

I smiled and replied, “I stayed in Kris’ house the whole time, as I told you. My phone broke. That’s why you weren’t able to contact me. And everyone’s alright.”

She smiled and hugged me. It felt good to be in her arms again, but deep down inside, I still craved for another wonderful adventure with the Explorers of Danger.

THE END