Tales of the Paragon Raiders

Episode I

Egyptian Nights

written by Imagination Persona

Egypt. A cradle of civilization whose rich history and culture date all the way back to the tenth millennium B.C. With its earliest developments in writing, agriculture, organized religion and urbanization, Egypt is widely regarded as a significant focus of archaeological study with a worldwide popular interest, resulting in an influx of tourists from all corners of the world every year. One of its biggest mysteries, which baffle historians and archaeologists the most even to this day, revolve around the pyramids, the final resting places for the Egyptian pharaohs. So little is known about these massive triangular-shaped constructions, generating a considerable number of conspiracy theories and myths. The most popular one, though, has to be that they are all under the influence of a curse that would befall on the ones daring to venture in with the sole intention of stealing the treasures which had once belonged to the pharaohs.

But not even the superstition of everlasting misfortune would deter Isabella Vulpea away, an adventurous, young, anthropomorphic arctic vixen, from doing her profession as a Paragon Raider as she was standing proudly on the shore beside the Nile river, the soles of her brown, hiking boots being sunk into the sand. Taking in a deep breath and then stretching her arms, she opened her eyes and glanced down at the water while also cracking her knuckles. The reflection soon became visible as a pair of sparkling blue eyes stared back at her with her long, pristine, white as snow hair matching with the fur covering her from head to toe. In addition to her hiking boots, her preferred choice of garment included a pair of short, red cargo jeans covering only half of her thighs along with a plain black t-shirt with matching fingerless gloves of the same color. Completing her image was a blue backpack personalized with a small doll in the shape of a white rabbit attached to the zipper.

“Woohoo! Nothing like a kayaking trip down the Nile river with rapids to show Mother Nature who's running the show! Wouldn't you agree that it was fun, Milo?” Isabella Vulpea exclaimed, fist pumping with enthusiasm and joy as she then glanced back with a smile at the kayak in which her partner was slumped over, panting to catch his breath and having his right hand clenched over his chest, his heart beating faster than a jackhammer.

Her partner, Milo Velox, on the other hand, didn't see eye-to-eye to her notion of traversing the Nile river with such dangerous elements like rapids added into the mix as being... fun. Quite the opposite, actually. To him, that whole experience was like a roller-coaster heading towards the end of an unfinished railroad at top speed above a waterfall with sharp rocks at the bottom. And with no safety belts, either.

Just like Isabella, Milo was also a young anthropomorphic fox sharing the same agenda as his partner, but that was where the similarities ended. Jet black-colored fur was covering his backside, arms, legs, tail along with a small portion on the top of his head, while his chest area plus the narrow, pointy snout and the tip of his tail were the complete opposite as having the same white color as Isabella's fur with the only different color being his yellow eyes. The most distinctive features sticking out were the large, sharp ears, twice the size of regular fox ears which, despite their uncomfortable stature, allowed for a very keen sense of hearing, capable of picking up the sound of a nail dropping. Milo's choice of clothing were a pair of red, hiking boots with a double set of yellow stripes on the sides, a similar pair of cargo jeans, only these ones had a beige shade with a belt equipped with pouched attached to it, and an orange bandana which Milo was using to wipe clean the sweat off his forehead.

Despite sharing common interests, that was where the similarities ended.

“This is what you call fun, Isabella? Need I remind you that we almost drowned in this wild escapade in which you had dragged me into? Is the word safety not included in your vocabulary?” Milo frowned at her, tying his bandana around the neck.

“Oh, one little incident with a wave toppling over our kayak and it was game over for you? Psssh!” Isabella waved her hand off nonchalantly. “Is that the best excuse you got? Really pathetic, if you ask me.”

“Oh, so now you want me to bring up that time when we almost got eaten by alligators , that other time when we were hunted in a jungle by a pack of jaguars, and that one time when we were taken prisoners by those mercenaries!” Milo counted the events on his fingers. “All because you didn't listen to me and acted before thinking! Should I carry on? Are you still not satisfied with my line of excuses?”

“Ugh!” Isabella groaned, rubbing her forehead with her forefinger and thumb. “I sometimes wonder whatever happened to your sense of adventure and courage.”

“I gave them to the Cowardly Lion.” Milo replied with a dry tone.

“Oh, very funny. Ha ha ha. A real gut buster.” Isabella remarked with a sarcastic tone, rolling her eyes. “So, are you gonna sit in that kayak till vultures peck on your flesh or are we gonna do some treasure hunting?”

“Now that I think about it, that doesn't sound nearly as bad as going on expeditions with this vixen.” Milo said in his thoughts, lifting himself from the kayak and packing up their stuff.

-~o~-

Crossing over the Egyptian desert on foot proved to be no easy feat for the two raiders. Sand would find its way into their boots and their clothes, itching and burning their furs like having ants crawl over your skin. But, by far, the most unpleasant and harsh of them all was the burning sun shining brightly above them. Milo and Isabella's water supply was running low as the heat was unbearable, forcing them to consume the precious liquid from their bottles at an alarming rate. The only thing missing was for them to encounter a sandstorm, but Lady Luck was on their side as there were no signs of the sand rising up from the ground menacingly in the distance. Despite trudging for what seemed like hours, they managed to reach their destination: a patch of ground with seven columns sprouting from it like plants, all positioned in the shape of a circle. Although a good of number of them had been tilted by the force of the wind as well as being, possibly, centuries old, the pillars stood their ground majestically, refusing to fall into the sand and become forgotten as well as the hieroglyphs on them still remaining visible to the naked eye.

“Well, we've arrived.” Milo announced, removing his bandana from his mouth.

“That's it?” Isabella complained, tossing away an empty bottle. “We traveled all the way here just for this cheap knockoff of Stonehenge? Where's the tomb or temple or whatever?Where's the... thing that we came here for?”

“The Amulet of Bastet, you mean. And have you forgotten what Doctor Arnab told us? There's a reason behind these columns, you know.” Milo crossed his arms, not looking pleased.

“Sorry, I must have slept during that class. Why don't you enlighten me, Professor?” Isabella mocked her partner, placing her hands on her hips.

“Ugh!” Milo sighted heavily. “Well, I won't bore you too much, even though the historical facts are quite fascinating, but you won't have any of that. Basically, you know that the Egyptian Pharaohs were buried along with their treasures in their own pyramids, right?”

“Mhmm.” Isabella nodded her head.

“Well, the legend goes that the Pharaoh Seka had chosen to break that custom, for nothing brought more terror into his heart than his prized possessions, including the Amulet of Bastet, being stolen by thieves. Instead, he had ordered his subjects to transport them to a location known only by him. Everyone involved had to swear an oath that they would never disclose where the treasures were being kept less they would face the Pharaoh's wrath and one thousand years of misfortune to both them and their families. That's the reason why the only thing discovered in his pyramid was the sarcophagus. After a lot of research, all the clues pinpointed to these columns.” Milo explained, pointing at the circle. “Rumor has it that these columns are connected to the whereabouts of the vault the treasures are being kept somehow.”

“Uh-huh, I see.” Isabella said, glancing up at the pillars. “So, how are they supposed to guide us?”

“According to Dr. Arnab, there's supposed to be a switch somewhere that would reveal the entrance, but nobody was able to find it.” Milo replied.

“Well, that's very assuring.” Isabella remarked with a sarcastic tone. “We're probably gonna end up as skeletons by the time we find it.”

“Not quite. For Doctor Arnab gave us one tiny clue.” Milo revealed, taking out a piece of paper from his pocket. “The name of Seka's favorite pet panther: Kamilah.”

“And how's that gonna help us?” Isabella raised an eyebrow.

“Just give me a minute to examine them.” Milo said, lifting his forefinger and approaching the pillars, studying the hieroglyphs on each of the pillar to see if he could determine a pattern or a code.

Isabella was starting to become impatient after about ten minutes, crossing her arms and tapping her foot to the ground. If there was one thing she was not known for was for her patience.

“Well? Anything?” she said with a rather annoyed tone.

Milo threw her a deadpan expression as a response before resuming his work, placing his hand on one of the columns.

“Come on, reveal your solution, puzzle. It's only a matter of time...” Milo muttered to himself, scanning each of the symbols with utmost attention to detail.

And then, a light bulb lit up above his head as he had solved the puzzle. Seka's servants had been pretty ingenious in fulfilling their Pharaoh's wishes, but they had not prepared for a brilliant, modern mind such as Milo's.

“Aha! It was quite simple thanks to Arnab's hint.”

“You figured it out? How?” Isabella asked, approaching him.

“Each of these columns has one unique hieroglyph or symbol on them. And the first letters for all seven of these form the name Kamilah.” Milo explained proudly, stroking his chest with his fist and having a smug smile spread across his lips.

“Okay. So, where's the switch, or button or lever or whatever, Sherlock?” Isabella questioned, wiping away the smirk off Milo's face.

“Always when I gain my moment to shine, she dumps a bucket of cold water on me.” Milo said in his thoughts, before glancing back at the columns and rubbing his chin with his forefinger, deep in thoughts.

“Well?”

“I'm not entirely sure where it is. Let me try something.” Milo replied, placing his hand once more on the hieroglyphs, but now following them in the correct order. “K-A-M-I-L-A-H...”

Upon touching the last one, the ground began to shake like an earthquake, and both Milo and Isabella watched in amazement as the inner, circled part within the pillars slowly descended towards the center of the Earth, lowering and lowering itself till all that could be seen was a pitch black void. It was only moments later that steps made of stone started emerging from within the void, forming a downward, spiral staircase leading into the abyss below.

“Well, well. I'm proud of you, sweetheart.” Isabella smirked, kissing Milo on the cheek affectionately and making him blush.

“I hope to hear that more often. Ladies first.” Milo said, taking a bow before Isabella, inviting her to take the first step.

Isabella took out some flashlights from her backpack and tossed one to Milo, who was struggling to keep it from dropping, as she took one careful step after another, using her flashlight to illuminate her surroundings with Milo following her closely behind.

-~o~-

“Seka's servants sure went the extra mile to keep their Pharaoh's valuables safe, I'll give them that.” Isabella commended their effort as they climbed down the stairway, heading deeper and deeper towards the Earth's core.

The bottom step led towards a tunnel constructed from the same stone as the steps with water dripping from the ceiling, echoing throughout the interior and covered with small patches of growing vegetation.

“They were pretty much forced to do so if they valued their lives. Seka was known to be... what's the proper way to say it? Oh, yeah. A little bit off his meds. His reign had been nothing more but a nightmare to the Egyptians. An age filled with paranoia, mistrust and disloyalty.” Milo explained as they journeyed through the tunnel. “Can you even believe that he wanted to wage war on the Romans just because Caesar butchered his name during a diplomatic negotiation?”

“Sounds like my ex-boyfriend. Getting into a fight with me just because I ordered pepperoni instead of mushrooms! Freaking mushrooms!” Isabella pointed out with a comparison.

“Anyway...” Milo continued. “The servants had his demanding expectations to consider, even if they were downright ridiculous. I mean, if even a single, tiny stone was not in its proper place, Seka would have their heads chopped off and their entrails fed to his pets.”

“Yeeeesh!” Isabella exclaimed, sounding disgusted. “Definitely not a guy to invite over to a party.”
“So you can imagine that every part of this vault had a lot of care put into them, so as the servants would get to see the following sunrise.”

“That so? Well, not to sound like I'm bored or anything, but we've been walking down this tunnel for nearly ten minutes and nothing's happened.” Isabella made an observation. “How come we haven't seen any traps or defense mechanisms? No spikes emerging from the walls, no floor opening to reveal a lava pit, not even a giant boulder rolling after us.”

“I must admit that it's kinda strange, given how obsessed Seka was with his prized possessions.” Milo agreed.

“You actually agree with me on something for once?” Isabella said, sounding surprised before smiling triumphantly. “Aha! I won the bet! That witchdoctor owes me fifty bucks!”

Milo then raised his finger to shush her as his ears picked up something coming from the distance, near the entrance in the shape of an archway located at the far end of the tunnel.

“What? What is it?” Isabella asked.

“I heard something. It sounded like... growls.” Milo answered, narrowing his eyes.

“Growls?”

“I don't think we're alone here. It would be best if we stick close and remain as quiet as possible.” Milo advised her before crouching and moving forward as silent as possible.

“Well, where's the fun in that? Oh well. Have it your way...” Isabella complied with hesitation, following his lead.

-~o~-

Beyond the archway stood a gigantic chamber in the shape of a diamond with an obelisk placed at each of its four tips. Situated in the center was an enormous temple, looming over the chamber like a massive, intimidating beast with a staircase being the only path in order to reach the shrine concealed within the interior of the temple. Numerous torches with flickering, blue flames mounted on the outer walls provided light, casting dancing shadows all over the chamber. Even more imposing than the sheer size of the temple were the two towering statues of the god, Anubis, positioned beside the stairway. Each armed with a spear, the statues' presence was nerve-wracking, especially as they stared down with their soul-piercing eyes made of hundreds of rubies.

However, there was no time to admire the scenery and take photos for family vacation albums or postcards for Milo and Isabella as they quickly hid behind a fallen pillar near the archway they had come through for there was another element in this chamber more threatening than the Anubis statues.

Moaning loudly with trembling limbs and with their entire bodies wrapped in old and faded linen cloth was an army of cat mummies. With their glowing, red eyes, foul odor and sharp claws, each one of them was a force to be reckoned with, although their body movement speed was severely hampered by their rotting corpses. It was unknown to the Raiders if these mummies served as guards, but there was one thing they seemed to lack: coordination. Each mummy was wandering aimlessly around the chamber with no purpose in their state-of-decay brains whatsoever. A few even had their heads contorted to look at the ceiling like someone was dangling a bunch of shining objects for them to catch. They were also very aggressive as when two of them bumped into each other, it resulted in them hissing viciously before engaging in a brawl while a third one, that had been watching them, facepalmed itself over the sheer stupidity displayed by the two.

To Milo, the mummies were frightening but fascinating at the same time, but to Isabella, this was the perfect opportunity to satisfy her hunger for action and butt-kicking supernatural beings.

“Finally! This day just got interesting.” Isabella smiled, slamming her fist into her palm, eager to mop the floor with these mummies.

“No!” Milo cried. “Hold your horses, Rambo. There's too many of them and who knows what they're capable of. I suggest we come up with a plan on how to sneak past them without being detected and...”

Milo, having had his eyes closed while offering his suggestion, opened then and noticed that Isabella was no longer beside him. She had gotten up from their hiding spot and was marching towards the mummies, completely ignoring Milo.

“Argh! A brick wall has more common sense than that vixen!” Milo slapped his hand across his forehead.

Once reaching the center where all of the mummies could see her, Isabella decided to make her presence known.

“Hey, bandaged freaks!”

That caught their attention as they all focused their glares onto the vixen.

“You're all gonna have a really bad time!” Isabella cranked her knuckles, ready to jump into combat.

The mummies stared at her for a couple of moments, blinking in confusion before they all burst into laughter, their mocking roar echoing throughout the chamber.

That did not bode well with Isabella as her blood pressure reached critical points. Her fists clenched, her teeth gritted and her eyes were burning with fury. If there was one thing she hated the most was to be seen by others as a joke.

She then grabbed a mummy by the collar and lifted it in the air.

“Does it look like I'm joking, punk?” she growled as she then punched the mummy hard, sending it on a collision course with a wall. Stars began to swirl around its head as it slid down at a snail's pace with its tongue hanging from the left corner of its mouth before it turned to dust.

It was not long before the mummies commenced the attack, charging at Isabella with their sharp claws and fangs. Milo watched as Isabella was, masterfully, putting those mummies in their places with punches, kicks and tossing them around like stuffed dolls.

“Ouch! That's gotta hurt! Ooooh, he's so gonna feel that in the morning. Dang, right in the kisser! Holy Moly, I had no idea it could spin in all directions!” Milo commented on the brawl like an anchorman.

Several hours later...

Milo, who had gone completely bored and was now sitting on the pillar, shifted his attention onto a game on his mobile phone, while keeping count of Isabella's score with his left hand. The fox then lifted his gaze from the phone's screen when a mummy flied past him with the speed of a jet and crashing into one of the four obelisks.

“Are ya finished?” Milo asked lazily, stretching his arms and legs and yawning.

“Just about~” Isabella replied, roundhouse kicking a mummy in the jaw, causing its head to spin like a screw before, finally, dissolving into dust.

“Phew! Now that's what I call a workout!” Isabella stated, her right hand placed on her left shoulder and rotating her left arm.

“It would have been more preferable if we had taken a different course of action and a little less messy, but I can't argue with the results.” Milo admitted, leaping from the pillar, his boots landing in the soot-covered floor.

“See, Milo?” Isabella smiled happily. “These mummies were nothing but a bunch of wusses and you were worried that they would pose a serious threat.”

But Milo wasn't listening to her. His attention was drawn to a blue magical aura slithering its way down from the temple's entrance, spreading itself on the floor and engulfing the soot, making it glow brightly.

Milo gasped in horror as the aura began reconstructing the forms of the mummies, at least a dozen heads with cat-like ears and whiskers rising from the floor.

“And I spoke too soon again, haven't I?” Isabella asked with a deadpan expression as she had noticed Milo's reaction to the events unfolding around them.

One by one, the mummies had regained their bodies, surrounding the two foxes, and snarled dangerously at them.

“Well, well. Time for the bonus round!” Isabella said, raising her fists, once more ready to go downtown with these mummies.

This time, however, the mummies had a trick up their sleeves as six of them raised their arms and the linen cloth unfolded itself from their arms and stretched itself towards Milo and Isabella, wrapping itself around their bodies like a snake and tying them up, forcing them on their knees. Not even Isabella's brute strength was enough to shatter the shackles of this magically-enhanced material.

“Oooops! Hehehe!” Isabella laughed nervously, looking at Milo. “Guess I was wrong. Again...”

Milo grunted and closed his eyes, tilting his head downwards. “Out of all the people in this world, I had to pick HER as my partner. I'd be better off being paired up with a gerbil.”

“SILENCE!” a shrilling voice filled the room, causing all the mummies to glance up, only for them to quickly bow before the figure standing near the shrine.

Milo's jaw dropped upon seeing a gorgeous and elegant black feline climbing down the steps while wielding a staff with the symbol of the Ankh crafted onto the tip. Her pieces of clothing painted her as a royal figure with her light, full length white dress made from silk decorated with gold and jewels around the waist and extending downwards forming the shape of a “T” along with an emerald-encrusted headdress and golden-adorned bracelets on her wrists. Her long, flowing white hair with pale yellow locks bounced lightly with each step she took down the stairwell, staring down at the Raiders with her cold but fierce green eyes.

Milo was smitten by the radiant beauty emanating from this feline as his eyes turned into hearts and his tongue sticking out of this mouth.

“You start having fantasies with her, and I'll skin you alive, buster!” Isabella growled in his ear.

The feline glanced at them briefly before stepping in front of one of the mummies and it was then that, after snapping out of his fantasy, Milo noticed that the amulet of Bastet, the artifact they had been tasked to retrieve, was hanging by her neck and silently nudged Isabella in order to pass the information and by pointing his head at it.

“I left you to stand guard while I sought out the amulet, and you pathetic worms couldn't even handle two interlopers from interfering with our quest? YOU LOT ARE WORTHLESS!” she screamed angrily, raising her staff into the air and six of the mummies, who were trembling in fear, vanished without a trace.

“So, we were not the only ones searching for the amulet.” Milo pointed the obvious while whispering to Isabella. “That could possibly explain why we hadn't encountered any traps. She pretty much did all the handiwork.”

“Oh gee, I never would have figured that one out.” Isabella rolled her eyes. “Why don't you concentrate on something more important like how do we get out of these straps and grab that amulet?”

“And as for you two.” the feline queen said, approaching the captive foxes. “I not need to ask for the reason behind your intrusion for it is obvious to the naked eye. Both of you are nothing but a bunch of thorns on my back that I will gladly remove. Once I claim possession of all the valuables this temple has to offer, I shall leave you here all by yourselves, locked in this vault for all of eternity. Now, get out of my sight!”

With one wave of her staff, Milo and Isabella found themselves suspended in the air, trapped in the constricting magic of the Queen before being tossed against a wall. After dealing with them, the feline raised her staff once more and a portal appeared inside the chamber.

“Now, my fellow subjects!” the feline queen addressed the mummies once more. “Begin transporting all valuable items you can find. And should you fail me again, I will turn you all into mice!”

The mummies responded to her command without hesitation and ascended towards the shrine with the feline supervising them.

“Please tell me that your plan of escape will involve kicking her butt.” Isabella said, shooting an evil eye at the cat, wanting nothing more but to teach that “queen” some manners.

Milo remained silent for a few moments before suddenly speaking.

“Isabella, can you reach into my pockets with your tail?”

“Um, yes. Why?” she asked, sounding confused.

“There's a pocketknife you can use to cut these straps.” he replied.

“Great! And then once we are loose, I'll teach that skank not to mess with us!”

“No!” Milo protested. “You didn't listen to me when I said not to engage the mummies and look where it got us into. This time, you will do as I say, got it?”

“Ugh... fine. What plan do you have in mind?” she asked, not sounding enthusiastic at all.

“Do you still have some C-4 from our last journey?”

“I guess so. Why?”

“Perfect. Now listen and listen good.” Milo began to lay out the plan. “First, set us free by using the pocketknife on the straps. I'll provide a distraction while you, quietly, make your way to the top of the Anubis statues and place the C-4 on the hands holding the spears. If my calculations are correct, after exploding, the spears should collapse and cause enough of a commotion for us to get the amulet from the queen and make a quick getaway. Did you get all of that?”

“Mhmm.” Isabella nodded her head.

"Any complaints or objections?" Milo asked.

"Well, I would have preferred a more direct approach, but I'll do you a favor, this time, and go with your plan instead." Isabella replied.

“Alright. Let's do it then.”

-~o~-

“Faster, faster!” the queen ordered her subjects, unaware that Milo was standing behind her, clearing his throat to get her attention.

The feline jumped, remaining stiff for a few moments before snarling and aiming her staff at the fox.

“What is the meaning of this? How did you get free? And where is your partner?” the feline demanded, a few of the mummies appearing beside her to both protect her and attack should she gave out the order.

“I knocked her out because she couldn't stop yapping. Listen, Ms. Queen-”

“You shall address me as Queen Entropy, peasant!” she spat.

“A thousand apologies. Great Queen Entropy, I stand before you with a proposition.” Milo said and, to Entropy's surprise, bowed before her.

While it was commendable for this fox to show her respect, Entropy was still a little suspicious. Regardless, she raised her hand and the mummies around her retreated.

“I am listening.”

“I wish to pledge my allegiance to you, Your Majesty. My knowledge in Egyptology knows no boundaries. As an example to prove myself that there is no foul play, I can safely say that Kamilah was only one of the actual seven panthers that Seka had owned and they were used to devour the flesh of the prisoners who had committed vile acts.”

“Anyone can know that.” Entropy uttered, not sounding impressed.

“Ah, but what about the assassination attempt?”

Entropy raised an eyebrow, looking interested.

“Not many know about it, mostly because it was being kept quiet. An assassin was hired to end the rule of the pharaoh, but failed because a member of the resistance had informed Seka about it and the punishment was for to be tied to a rock and left to rot in the burning sun for four hundred and twenty days.” Milo continued.

Entropy then smiled, clearly amazed before raising her hand.

“You may stand up.” she told him. “Please, continue.”

While the conversation was being carried out, Isabella was already climbing one of the Anubis statues using a grappling hook, doing her best to remain unnoticed, although there were a couple of close calls as when she tripped and almost dropped her backpack. It was very fortunate that the zipper was shut and its contents didn't fell on the mummies below like raindrops. Sighing with relief, she continued climbing and it was only a matter of time before she reached her destination and took out an explosive C4 from her backpack, placing it on the statue's hand.

“And finally, there was also the time when Queen Cleopatra had requested an audition with Seka, but the Pharaoh believed to be a plot for her to learn where he had hidden the Scepter of Was.” Milo continued his narration, while hoping that Isabella would finish her task quickly and successfully.

“Very intriguing. This is something most certainly to be admired. What is your name?” Entropy asked.

“Milo.” the fox replied. “Milo Velox.”

“Well then, Milo Velox. You have shown promise as your knowledge is quite extensive and you would make a fantastic scribe. I am willing to accept your-”

“TIMBERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!” Isabella shouted before swinging away from the statues with the cord attached to the grappling hook like she was Tarzan to safety.

Entropy turned her head upwards and saw how two massive explosives obliterated the hands of the statues, causing the spears to plummet towards the ground with one of them squishing a bunch of mummies carrying crates with treasures and spilling the contents on the floor while the other almost turned Entropy and Milo into pancakes had they not leaped out of its way.

Entropy had to use her staff in order to support herself in getting back on her feet before glancing to her right and spotting Isabella rushing towards her from the smoke with the intention of yanking the amulet from her neck, but the Queen was too fast as she used her magic to halt her attack, trapping Isabella within a magical sphere floating above the floor.

“I will make you suffer for this!” Entropy said with anger as the magic holding Isabella began to choke her, the vixen squirming and gasping for air. “And once I am done with you, your partner is next!”

Milo shook his head to recover from the impact and after seeing Isabella's about to lose conscience, the fox looked around for something that could aid him in saving her. Fortune was on his side as one of the shattered crates was near him and shining brightly in a sea of gold, rubies, sapphires, emeralds and diamonds was a silver dagger. Milo quickly reached out to grab the dagger and, after careful aiming, tossed it at Entropy. The dagger hit its target, severing the chain that the amulet was being attached to, and the trinket was reduced to pieces upon colliding with the floor. Entropy shrieked like a banshee as she felt to her knees, attempting to collect the fragments with her hands. It turned out that the amulet had been the source of Entropy's magic as the sphere strangulating Isabella dissipated into thin air and the vixen collapsed to the ground, motionless.

Unfortunately, by destroying the amulet, the whole chamber began to shake and rivers of lava began pouring through the walls, gradual at first before, eventually, bursting out like jets of water, flooding the room with magma.

The portal which Entropy had opened up was fading away and the Egyptian Queen had no choice but to submit defeat, but not before shooting a death glare at the two Raiders.

“I shall not forget this! You shall pay for your deception, audacity and crimes! I will not rest until I have my revenge!”

And with that, Entropy backed away into the portal, mere moments before it closed forever.

Milo quickly went to check on Isabella, kneeling beside her, holding her close with his right arm wrapped around her waist and holding her head with his left hand. “Honey? Honey? Are you alright? Don't you dare die on me! I'll kick your butt if you do!”

Coughing a bit, Isabella opened her eyes and smiled as she looked up at Milo, gently placing her hand on his cheek. “My gallant, witty knight. What would I do without you?”

“As much as I would love for us to discuss the intricate details of our relationship, we don't have time for that! The chamber is filling up with lava!” Milo informed her, looking around in panic as the lava levels were rising.

“Well, let's not stand here like were posing for some sappy, romance movie! Let's get out of here!”

“Shall I carry you?” Milo asked.

“Hey, save that for when we get married.” Isabella quipped as she got on her feet without requiring any assistance, wiping off the dust from her clothes before both she and Milo hauled butt towards the exit.

It took the combined strength of their legs to avoid being swallowed whole by the titanic waves chasing after them like a predator leaving behind nothing but a scorched trail as the once, grand temple was devoured by the fiery beast, its legacy doomed to be forgotten. Milo almost tripped on the last step of the spiral stairway before Isabella grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to safety mere moments before the entrance was sealed permanently. In some way, Seka's servants had fulfilled their Pharaoh's dying wish after all.

“Are you alright, Milo?” Isabella asked in concern.

“Yeah, I am. Come on, let's go home. We're running late on Frank's Barbecue Party.” Milo reminded her as they set off towards home.

“Well, just another day at the office, eh?” Isabella said, placing her hands on the back of her head.

“Yeah, I guess so.” Milo agreed. “Wherever we go, there's always life-threatening perils.”

“That's part of being a treasure hunter, sweetie. Speaking of, what happened to the amulet?” Isabella brought up.

“It was destroyed.” Milo replied with a grim tone. “I have a feeling that it's better that way.”

“Oh well.” Isabella shrugged. “At least we foiled whatever plans that queen had and it was quite an adventure. Even if we won't get paid for it.”

“Nyeh, who says that we came out empty-handed?”

Grinning, Milo reached into his pocket and pulled out a golden goblet, one of, if not, the only piece of treasure remaining intact. Isabella couldn't believe her eyes as she then jumped on Milo's neck and smooched him on his face over and over again before planting a big, wet one on his lips.

“Ya sly bastard! I love ya!” she said happily, giddy as a school girl.

“I love you too, honey. It may not be much, but it's sure to get us a hefty price from-”

But then, just before their eyes, the goblet cracked like an egg and shattered.

“OOOOOOHHHHH, SON OF A-” they both cursed in unison.

THE END

Credits:

Written by Imagination Persona

Many thanks to RaccoonPioneer and MissReaper for granting me permission for the usage of the co-created character, Queen Entropy, and for their support. You guys are the best! Best in my book!

The story was written for entertainment purpose only.

Episode 2: The Rivals (During another one of their adventurous expeditions, Milo and Isabella have to face, not only what obstacles lay before their path to obtain the treasure, but a pair of rival treasure hunters)