Gen 8 Ch 1

Topaz sighed as she plucked another of her mother's amazing drinks off the tray on the bar. She was already having second thoughts about chopping off all of her hair. What had possessed her to do that, anyway? The annoying smacking sounds coming from the direction of Agate and Jojo reminded her.

She needed a fresh start, no more pining after Eva. She would concentrate on her career, and hopefully someday get to visit some of the far off places her Great-aunt Jade had been to. And like her Great-aunt Jade had always told her when she was a little girl, there's plenty of fish in the sea. And on the practical side, she was tired of trying to wash paint out of her braid.

The morning after her birthday, she filled out the paperwork down at city hall to register as an independent artist. Some of her high school pieces had already caught the eye of the art community in Bridgeport, and the consignment shop down the street from home was willing to display her work. Every time one of her pieces sold, she socked the money away in her special savings account marked 'travel'.

She eagerly watched the balance creep up, until finally the moment arrived.

"I'm off to Egypt! I can't wait to see all the places Aunt Jade talked about!"

"If I remember correctly, Jade didn't like Egypt much. All she ever did was complain about the bugs."

"Pfft. What's a few bugs, in comparison to the fantastic sights?"

"You will be back in time for Agate's birthday, won't you?"

"Of course, mom, I wouldn't miss it for the world."

First stop, the market in Al Simhara, and a taste of the local cuisine. The felefel was delicious! She would have to see if she could find the recipe for her mom.

Topaz stopped a moment as she hiked over the top of the sand dune. There it was - a real pyramid - and she held the key. She had answered an ad on the board at her base camp, and now found herself embroiled in an international smuggling scheme. How exciting! She could hardly believe that her Aunt Jade had hated it here.

The first step was to enter the Pyramid of Burning Sands. The ultimate goal would be to procure three famous relics and save them from the evil Murcocorp agents.

Hmmm.. a dead end. The only was forward was down the dive well. Ah well, at least the water was a relief from the intense heat inside the pyramid.

Now what? Another dead end?

Maybe there was a way through behind the rock piles. Topaz grinned to herself as she labored. This trip was all she had hoped it would be.

Success! Nestled in the ancient chest were the documents that would lead her to the first relic. Now, she needed a bribe. Someone within Murcocorp was willing to give up the location in return for a few chunks of mummitomium.

Her time in Egypt was almost up, but she use her last evening to head out into the desert to search for the elusive rocks. Much to her surprise, someone else was out there as well. At first she thought the girl was a tourist like herself; locals never ventured out of the town at night. But her heavily accented, almost musical voice identified her as local, immediately, as soon as she spoke.

"You are searching." It was a statement, not a question.

"Yes, excuse me, have you seen the mummitomium deposits that are supposed to be in this area?"

"You will not find it here." The girl held her gaze for a few moments, with an intensity that had Topaz mesmerized.

Suddenly, as quickly as she had appeared, the strange girl was gone.

"Wait!" Topaz called after her. "Are you sure? The map...is the map wrong then?"

But she found herself calling only into darkness.

"And this one here is the Sigil of the Burning Sands."

Topaz was giving her mom and dad a quick overview of her adventures, before Agate's birthday party, and Coal and Raven were fascinated.

"..and one time when I stuck my hand in a hole, looking for a hidden switch, there was a swarm of bugs! I just brushed them of, of course."

"Uh.. that's great dear." Her dad's smile looked forced.".. isn't it Raven."

Raven shuddered just a little. Topaz could see that maybe bugs weren't her mom's favorite subject.

"So, mom, how soon do we get to dig into that birthday cake?"

Jojo was first to join the ranks of the adults, and appeared barely tolerant of the whole situation. Topaz was pretty sure Jojo would have been perfectly happy staying a kid forever.

Agate seemed so shocked at growing up, Topaz felt a little sorry for him.

A short while later, though, she smiled when she overheard their conversation as she cleaned up.

"Oh, Aggie. Let's get married right away."

"Let's do it tonight! If we want five kids we need to get started!"

"Hehe. I'm so glad you thought having five kids was a good idea."

"Hehe. I always like your ideas, Jojo."

They had a small hastily assembled private wedding that evening. Agate insisted on wearing his new dinosaur shirt. Raven cried, and Coal just looked solemn.

Topaz watched with a faraway look in her eyes. She had only just arrived home, and she was restless already. She could hardly wait to start filling up her savings account again for another trip.