The Ruby Love

" Are you sure that Ruby Tusk is hidden in the center of Mount Rushmore?", asked Sierra, a famous archaeologist known for finding a great pharaoh's coffin.

Tom said, with faith in himself, "Positive. We can leave tomorrow if you like. But only we two should go on this mission. It's dangerous."

"Sure, little brother. If you say so.", said Sierra as she walked out of the room to calm herself down as she was going to be the first to find the legendary Ruby Tusk after centuries.

The Ruby Tusk was a missing artifact that was dated back to the time of King Arthur. Merlin had made it as a gift as Arthur was crowned king after lifting the excalibur from a stone. This artifact was so dear to Arthur that he hid it safely underground. Right on top of this burial ground, the Mount Rushmore was stationed.

Tomorrow was going to be the big day for Sierra. She will find this artifact and bring fame to herself. It was her dream after all. The next day, Tom and Sierra left for the mount.

Tom said," There is a small cave like opening at the back of the mount. I think that might be the entrance."

Sierra said to Tom, with a smile," Let the great quest begin."

They hiked from the back of the mountain without anyone noticing. It was late noon when they reached the cave. The cave's path was lit up immediately as they stepped into the cave. Surely this was Merlin's magic.

Sierra spoke," Heads up. There might be some bubby traps. Watch your steps."

Tom nodded . They walked slowly and steadily. Suddenly they reached a huge snake and ladder board.

Tom spoke sarcastically," Looks like we are reliving Harry Potter a bit. Ready for a snake and ladder game?"

Sierra said with dismal,"What is it with Merlin and his tricks? No time to worry about that. Let us play."

They took their places alongside two colour tokens-red and blue. Tom was the first to roll the dice and he went up the ladder using the red token. Sierra stepped foward and rolled the dice. She was saved as she moved a few steps away from the snake. The game continued as they moved slowly till the top. But Sierra was struggling. Tom had already finished the game. She was about to get to the finish but to her suprise she landed on a snake. The huge stone snake sprang to life and was trying to kill her. After a ling battle of blood and slaughter, she finally killed the snake. Her arms had cuts and she was bleeding. She didn't care about it and she finished the game. They walked further as Tom admired himself for being a really good player.

He said," That was some game. We must be alert. Anything might happen."

As he continued talking, Sierra just kept her gaze around her looking for traps. Suddenly, she stepped on a rock and it sank. Then, an arrow zoomed past her, missing her by inches. 

Sierra examined the rocks and after thinking and thinking, she cried out in joy. She said to Tom," Walk on the dark coloured ones. They're safe. But be careful. You're clumsy."

Then, they stepped on the dark ones slowly. After some time, they passed the obstacle course. She said to her brother with a smile," Now tell me. Am I intelligent or are you the one born with brain?"

Her brother just looked at her and said,"You're intelligent. Now we have some buisness to finish."

They walked and walked. Finally they reached to a huge auditorium like ground with raised rocks. These rocks were floating on a puddle of blood. It was a horrible sight. But this one was all about balance. But before they stepped on the rocks, Sierra picked up a small stone and threw it into the puddle. The stone burned and it turned into ashes. Then, Tom and Sierra stepped slowly on the rocks and began to move forward quickly. But at the end of the auditorium, there was only one rock. Sierra jumped onto the rock and she jumped to the endline but her shoes touched the blood a bit. The shoe was burning and she could feel it. She quickly removed the shoe and poured some water into it to cool it down. Then, she wore it again. It had a hole but she didn't care about it. By the time she finished all this, Tom passed the obstacles unharmed. She was proud of her brother but didn't say it. She knew he would boast about it.They walked further and they saw two doors. The doors looked similar and had the same doorknobs, same design pattern etc. There was clue given in an old piece of parchment. It was written in greek. 

It said, 

       η μία πόρτα οδηγεί στον δικό σας θάνατο ενώ η άλλη οδηγεί στη ζωή. Επιλέξτε με σύνεση

Tom translated it. It said, one door leads to your own death whereas the other leads to life. Choose wisely. She thought and thought and thought for minutes together. Then, she walked up to the left door and opened it. It was a door that led to a garden. Tom watched it like he had seen it for the first time. Sierra snapped him out of his dream world. They walked into the garden and closed the door behind them. They walked to the center of the garden and they found a water fountain. They just stood there, staring at it. 

Tom said," Now this is surely a dream. Well, how did you find the correct door?"

Sierra muttered," Both doors lead to the same garden. It was a trick."

She went near the fountain and observed each and every corner of the it. Then, she gave a small tap at the top of it. The fountain began to shift and from the ground came the Ruby tusk. Sierra was almost on the verge of crying as this was her life's work. But she didn't. She knew there would be plenty of time later. She grabbed it and along with Tom, she followed the same pathway back to the entrance of the cave. It was a bit around six. She knew if she and Tom would hike down a bit quickly and she would run to the archaeological department, it would be perfect time to show the tusk. So, she hurried and as she had known, she did reach the department and even showed the ruby tusk which everyone were amazed to see. The whole world then came to know about her achievements and she was highly recognised person in the society. She was honoured with different awards and for the first time, she was truly happy after her brother died due to cancer. But she knew that he would be watching her and he would be happy for me like he had always been.