That was one long flight, but Anna and Wayne turned up to Al Simarah feeling refreshed and still very happy. They were a little surprised to find they’d be staying in a camp site instead of a hotel, but that didn’t matter, it just added to the charm.
Anna: “What shall we do first?”
Wayne: “Let’s get a tent picked out. After that, maybe look around?”
Anna: “I pick this tent right next to us! Ok, that’s done… how about we split up and meet back here in the evening? Sharing stories sounds like fun!”
Wayne: “That’s not a bad idea! Alright, I’ll see what adventures can be had.”
Anna: “I’m going shopping.”
Wayne: “If you go to the bookstore, could you pick up the two recipes I’ve heard about? They’re supposed to be amazing.”
Anna: “Sure! I might get a copy of each for myself too.”
And that’s exactly what they did. Wayne checked the adventure board and then went to meet his contact.
While Anna went to the market. Doing a little exploring was certainly interesting, so the Fairy soon found herself in the store for adventurer’s.
Store Owner: “Well… hello there. We don’t see many of your kind around here.”
Anna: “What? Foreigners? I thought you had loads of visitors.”
Store Owner: “Nono… Fairies.”
Anna: “OH! I’m on my honeymoon.”
Store Owner: “Your husband is a fairy too?
Anna: “Nope. Just a human.”
Store Owner: “…I see…”
The Egyptian man reached under his counter and placed a very old axe on top of it.
Store Owner: “I think you need to borrow this.”
Anna: “What is it?”
Store Owner: “My trusty rock-breaking axe. It can bust through anything… but I want it back. You came into my shop for a reason, yes?”
Anna: “Yeeeah… I thought I might do a little adventuring… but I’m-“
Store Owner: “-not sure why you got that urge or where to go?”
Anna: “Exactly!”
Store Owner: “Fate brought you here. Go to the Pyramid of the Sky… and I think you will find what you seek.”
Anna: “Um… okay. I will.”
Meanwhile, Wayne had been sent to the Tomb of Discovery. His contact, Youssef, thought it might be a nice and easy test of his skills.
The very first room had a chest in it, but only had the keystone to open the door.
After that, it was simple. Stand on this switch…
…move this statue…
…examine this wall…
…acquire loot!
Wayne easily completed the task Youssef had set for him, and was asked to speak with another of the locals. While he did that, or tried to as he forgot several times and eventually just went to bed, Anna was having her own adventure. Gaining access to the Pyramid of the Sky was the easy part.
The main room was simply breathtaking…
…which Anna completely agrees with.
A chest was visible, but she needed a key for it. The key was also visible, but getting it and the chest required getting wet. Twice. Not that she cared. The Fairy used to go swimming with her brother a lot, so the contents of the chest were soon hers.
The second room was just as breathtaking as the first.
But the novelty soon wore off. Anna was much more concerned with the deadly traps and finding out why the shop owner told her to come here. Traps certainly liked to hide…
…and doors were hidden everywhere!
She managed to get halfway through the pyramid before sleep decided to try and claim her. But Anna had come prepared. She retreated back to the very first room and set up a tent for the night. Poor Wayne woke up the next morning wondering just where his wife had gotten to, and spent most of the time asking the locals if they’d seen her.
It took another full day of exploring the pyramid before Anna found out why the mysterious man sent her to this place, and why she needed his axe. One last door…
…and a thought that her little adventure would make a great book! Then, Anna came to the final room, full of treasures and two very specific plants. She knew exactly what they were, and how they might prove useful.
A Life Fruit plant…
…and a Deathflower plant. With both of them, she stood a very good chance of helping Wayne extend his life. She didn’t know the recpie for Ambrosia, but with all the gems and money bag’s she’d found while exploring the tomb, buying it wouldn’t be particularly difficult. She just hoped that life fruit would be enough. The plant had provided her with two, so if she could get her gardening skill up, one of those could be planted and the other could be turned into the meal that would help keep Wayne alive.
Of course, she couldn’t resist peeking inside a sarcophagus. No mummies, thankfully!
It was the last day of the Honeymoon when Anna finally returned to camp. Wayne had been keeping himself busy running errands for the locals. He figured doing little jobs for them might help find Anna. People are more likely to help you if you’ve helped them, plus it meant he was out and about so he could actually look for her as well. When she finally turned up, he wasn’t pleased.
Wayne: “
Where the heck have you been?!”
Anna: “Hey! There’s no need for that!”
Wayne: “No need?! Anna, you’ve been missing for nearly 3 days! We’re going home in 12 hours and I haven’t seen you in all that time! What in Simland were you doing?!”
Anna: “Look, just calm down and I’ll-“
Wayne: “Don’t tell me to calm down, I have every right to be angry with you right now.”
Anna: “
I’m sorry, okay! I was looking for
this!” *produces a life fruit from her bag*
Wayne: “…is that? I’ve only heard stories about those.”
Anna: “Well I found two. That’s what I was doing. I had a hunch I needed to go exploring and I found something that might keep you alive a bit longer. So go ahead, be angry, but
I had my reasons!”
He couldn’t argue with that. Wayne only knew part of what Anna had been through with losing her family, and that was enough to understand why she went missing. He felt like a complete and utter fool.
Wayne: “I’m sorry. But I was worried. I thought you’d gotten yourself killed or something.”
Anna: “And I’m sorry too. I should’ve come back to camp, but I got wrapped up in looking through the pyramid. Forgive me?”
Wayne: “Only if you forgive me. Come on, let’s go back to the tent and you can tell me about your adventure.”
And that’s exactly what she did. The couple returned to their tent, chatted about everything they’d seen, done and learnt while on their honeymoon and then spent the last night together, having a little ‘private time’ fun. They were sad to see Al Simarah disappearing beneath them on the flight home, but also happy to be sleeping in their own bed at last.
It had been a tiring, but enjoyable trip.
**********
EDIT: And roughly a couple of hours later... Anna completed her LTW from selling all the wedding gifts her and Wayne can't use! So, one more update and this chapter is finished!
Now, do I continue her story in this topic, or make a new one?
