Lost Treasure

'Torch?'1

'Check.'2

'Rope?' Rachel read off the list, scribbling a check mark beside 'torch'.3

She and her younger brother Ziggy were in his room, organising their supplies for an expedition to the beach.4

The children's mission: to find the lost treasure! 5

Ziggy and Rachel had first heard about the treasure from Old Pete. He was an aged fisherman, with windblown grey hair and a leathery, wrinkled face. Sometimes the kids were able to catch Pete before he went out to sea in the early morning. If he was in a good mood, he would tell them a story while he set up for the day. 6

Last week Pete had told them about the lost treasure. 7

'Once there was a pirate called Jemowyn Badslash,' Pete had begun in his rough, gravelly voice.8

'He was young and daring. Jemowyn raided all the finest ships, stealing money and precious ornaments. He stowed his treasures away in a large cave beneath the rocky platform on this very beach.9

'But Jemowyn was also very foolish. One day he decided to sail to one of the coastal islands and invade its small village. A couple of hours before he and his crew were to leave, they noticed a stormcloud advancing toward them. Jemowyn didn't cancel the trip. 10

'Only two crew members agreed to accompany him on those conditions. That night, Jemowyn, his remaining crew and their ship, the Wave Slicer set sail. The waves were tall and powerful, battering the ship with high ferocity.11

'Suddenly, an enormous wave hit them. It flipped the Wave Slicer right over! Jemowyn and one of his crew were trapped beneath the ship, and drowned.12

'The third pirate grabbed a piece of debris and held on for dear life until the storm was over. Luckily for him, he drifted back to shore. He was the only one to survive to tell the tale.13

'The treasure has never been found. Some say the ghost of Jemowyn Badslash guards his treasure.'14

Ziggy and Rachel had picked this sunny Saturday morning for their quest. They weren't worried about Jemowyn; he was just a myth.15

Rachel checked the supplies list. The torch, matches(in case the torch's batteries went flat), rope, a bottle of water and a roll of bandage.16

All of the stuff was spread out on Ziggy's bed, so the children put it into a backpack, once Rachel had said they were ready.17

The two exited Ziggy's room and left the house.18

Because their house was close by, it was a short walk to the beach. They stepped onto the soft sand in minutes.19

Ziggy and Rachel walked across the beach to the rocky platform. It was the polar opposite to the sand, hard, rough and dark, while the sand was silky, smooth and bleached white by the sun.20

The kids climbed onto the platform.21

'Ziggy, be careful. You might fa-'22

'Woah!' Ziggy's foot slipped on the rock, and he made a rapid descent to the ground.23

Strangely, there was no sound of his landing...24

Rachel looked down where his body should have been. It wasn't there! Instead there was a Ziggy sized hole, leading into darkness. 25

Ziggy, are you down there? Are you okay?' Rachel called out.26

'Yeah! Come down, you gotta see this!' A voice exclaimed.27

Rachel squeezed through the opening, feet first, unlike her brother. She dropped about a metre and landed with a muffled thud. 28

The first things she noticed were the musty smell and the sound of dripping water.29

When Rachel's eyes adjusted to the dimness, she gasped.30

The cave was filled with treasure!31

There were mountains of gold coins almost reaching to the ceiling! Glittering jewelry sparkled with precious stones and ivory handled cutlasses were strewn across the floor! Statues made of solid gold and silver, with priceless china cups and plates!32

We hade found the lost treasure!