Читать книгу The Great Mystery - Travis Ph.D. Slone - Страница 12

After talking it over for a moment, Amir and Eva decided to seek the treasure. They figured that, even if they missed their families, to return home with the treasure would be much more exciting. Never again would the ruling elders look down on them. They fought their suspicions of the mysterious woman, feeling that the reward of believing outweighed the risk of not.

Amir took charge and voiced their decision to the old woman. “We have chosen to accept your offer, and will go in search of the secret treasure.”

“Very well then,” said the woman. “From this day forth you will be driven to find the secret treasure. In an effort to build trust, I have shown you the way home as well…in case you change your minds. As you look to your left and right, you will see that your original paths have been restored.”

Glancing to their sides, as the woman had suggested, the children were shocked by what they saw. Sure enough, starting near the edge of the stone path and wandering into the woods, a lightly worn grassy path went left, and a narrow sandy path went right. Upon seeing this, Amir and Eva were fully convinced of the strange old woman’s miraculous power.

“Your villages are just beyond the horizon,” she promised. “There, you will find the food, water and security that you so desire. However, if you fail to seek the treasure until it is found, you will bring great suffering upon your people. Their food will run out, their water will dry up, and their villages will be burnt to the ground by invading armies.”

Confounded by the idea that returning home would not be safe, Eva and Amir looked at one another, simultaneously having envisioned the impending destruction of their homelands. They wondered if they had done something terribly wrong.

“Why would you bring suffering on our people?” Eva asked. “What kind of person does that?”

“In promising such things for your people,” the woman explained, “I have fulfilled my end of the bargain.”

“How do you figure that?” interrupted Amir. “It seems like we got the short end of the stick on this deal.”

“You ask for the greatest treasure in the world, and then complain about how it is delivered. If you trust that the treasure is real, why question my ways?

“Though the treasure is nearby, it will be very hard to find. If I allow you to go home without consequence, you will give up and never find it. For that reason, you have been given great motivation to search for the treasure.

“Once it is found, you may return home without worry, but until then you must search. Your own decisions will determine the well being of your people.

“I have provided you with the tools, as promised. It is futile to question my ways. I wish you good fortune on your journey, but as for me, I must be going.”

Amir and Eva stood on the cobblestone trail considering where they would begin their quest. While contemplating the road ahead, they listened as the woman offered some words of encouragement.

“I assure you that the treasure will be found. With it, you will find answers to the most fundamental questions of human existence.”

A low-lying layer of fog began to form around the woman’s feet, and slowly began to fill the surrounding jungle. The children observed, certain that she would vanish at any moment.

Fearing for the safety of the old woman who now held his hopes and dreams in her hands, Amir called out as she departed.

“Where will you be if we need you?” he asked. “How will you survive alone in the wilderness?”

The mysterious woman turned only her head as she continued to walk away.

“Do not worry about me,” she said. “I know a thing or two about nature. If you need me, just look around.”

Just then, a strong breeze blew in from both the east and the west, creating a whirlwind around the woman. Having revealed her message to the chosen ones, she began to disappear as the children looked on in awe. Her ghostly figure transformed before their eyes, accelerating into a spiral like a tornado on the path. In a matter of seconds, she had faded into thin air.

The Great Mystery had vanished.