The Volcano Awakened

Amaya cannot breathe and her lungs were about to burst. She pushed Marx away.

"What are you doing? Why did you cover my mouth? I cannot breathe." She gulped in the air.

Marx was still breathing heavily. "I am sorry." He said hoarsely. "Let us head back. I am getting sleepy. It must have been the wine." He made a lame excuse.

He stood and extended his hand to help her up. Amaya accepted it and she felt good holding his warm hand. She traced her lips with her finger and she remembered the tingling sensation she felt earlier.

Max rolled the animal skin and picked it up. She and Amaya walked back to the cabin in silence.

'Damn! What have I done!" He stole a glance at Amaya but she was walking leisurely as if nothing happened.

Marx liked the kiss. Her lips tasted sweet like the wine they had drank earlier.

Marx and Amaya were jolted out of their sleep in the wee hours of the morning. The ground trembled slightly and the animals in the jungle howled. After some time everything went back to normal and they get back to sleep.

When Amaya woke up the following morning she saw a white mist hovering over the crater of the volcano. Her forehead creased. Marx came out of the cabin and also saw the mist. He went back to his room and took out the satellite phone but he couldn't get a good signal.

"I will go look for a place if I can get a good signal." Amaya nodded. She went inside the cabin to prepare breakfast.

Marx jogged towards the tip of the shoreline and sure enough, he got a signal.

He punched a series of numbers and soon Karl was on the line.

"Karl, looks like there is volcanic activity on this island. Can the boat speed up and reach us in three days?"

"We did receive a report of seismic activity near your coordinates. Will advise the ship's captain to travel at maximum speed and be there in three days."

When Marx went back to the cabin, he explained to Amaya that the volcano has awakened and there is an impending eruption.

"Daddy said that the volcano was inactive but he did say that it can awaken anytime." She sounded troubled.

"The rescue ship will reach us in three days. If there are things that you need to bring with you, we already need to get them ready just in case."

Amaya thought for a while. She led Marx to the spare room her daddy used as a workshop. He showed Marx three big chests. When she pulled up the cover, it was filled with dried herbs and potpourri. She pulled out a second layer of cover and Marx's eyes widened. It was filled with gold nuggets of varying sizes.

The second chest where filled with raw stones and ores and the third was filled with precious gems including diamonds.

"Daddy said that these are treasures that would make me rich and that I should protect them as many will covet this. Half of this belongs to you because you found me so you help me protect these."

Marx was speechless. Indeed the treasure in front of him was beyond his wildest imagination.

"Can I bring everything here?" She pointed at all the paintings, the clay tablets, and all the other things that she and her Daddy made throughout the years.

Marx studied clay tablets. Those were dated and they showed Amaya's drawings and handwriting when she was a child.

'So she knew how to read and write.'

The clay tablets progressed into rough-looking papers later on.

He helped Amaya roll the paintings on the wall and carefully wrapped them in animal skins. He discovered a small chest under the bed that contained two notebooks and an old cell phone that ran out of battery.

The notebooks were Ibrahim's journal. It recorded the high-jacking incident on the plane and their early days on the island. He also documented Amaya's growing years. His handwriting was very small as if he was trying to contain everything in a small space.

Eventually, the ink ran out and he shifted into charcoal. The last entry in his journal was a note that said.

"To you who will find my daughter and bring her back to Lireya, half of the treasures will belong to you. I hope that she will chance upon a good and honest man. Please take care of my princess. I will be indebted to you. Signed, Ibrahim Rocas, Prince of Lireya."

Marx closed the journals and put them back on the small chest.

Amaya on the other hand worked on the three treasure chests. She wrapped them in animal skins and weaved thick hemp ropes around them so they are fully secured.

"Do you need to get some things from the tree house in the forest?" Marx asked her and she nodded. He helped her fix a rundown bamboo sled. It took a long time for him to finish but in the end, he was proud of his achievement.

They successfully carried all the items that Amaya deemed important from the tree house back to the cabin. It was already sunset when they came back.

The tremors were getting more frequent and the animals were agitated. The island seemed to be groaning like a woman in labor about to give a difficult birth. Marx and Amaya shared a quiet dinner. Amaya was unusually silent. Her face was full of worry.

"I am worried about my pets. Can I take them with me?" She asked Marx with a pleading look.

Marx thought for a while. He understood how she was feeling.

"That can be arranged," Marx said in an assuring voice and Amaya somehow relaxed.

The following morning, they were awakened by a slightly stronger tremor and a rumbling sound like thunder. The volcano started spewing more smoke and the temperature slightly increased.

Marx was worried. He scanned the horizon as if he was looking for something.

Amaya grasped his hand and led him to a mound at the far side of the backyard.

"I'd like to bring Daddy with me. Please help me dig him out."