Treasure Poll: Awa Maru

[Velox]

Vote here for your favorite Treasure story; entries have been randomized. Please MAKE SURE YOU READ ALL ENTRIES BEFORE VOTING.Voting begins now and will end on May 31 at 11:59 PM EST. Entries that do well will move on to the Treasure Final Poll, which will be posted at the conclusion of the 12th round preliminary poll.

• [*]Diary of a Treasure Hunter 25^th July Whoever came up with this crackpot scheme clearly had a screw loose. Y'know, I'd be surprised if they had a single screw that hadn't worked itself loose and fallen head first into the ocean. Who's idea was this, anyway? Ah, wait. That'd be me. Five hours of digging in the hot sun on a tiny island direct in the middle o' nowhere is more than enough to make anyone realise just how much they hate digging. I mean, 's all very well if there's something under there, but you ever tried digging through solid earth in this weather? You'd think the soil'd be all nice'n dusty. Think the spade'd slip right in. As if I'd ever be so lucky. You probably wanna know why I'm here, ay? Wanna know why I'm suddenly in the middle of nowhere and not resting in a nice bed in some tavern with a frothing mug of ale? Bah! I doubt anyone's reading this anyhow. Perhaps I'll wanna look back some day and remind myself not to be such a brainless fool in my old age. This brilliant scheme all began a couple of days ago in an aforementioned tavern. Few drinks with the lads, some good ol' banter, then of course the talk turned to treasure. Always seems ta do that. Anyhow, this old dude said he knew of some buried treasure far out to sea on an isle no man had ever returned from. And of course, in my drunken stupified state, I took this as a personal challenge. Ain't no treasure as can elude me, I says. Tales of doom and terror don't frighten me, I says. So of course, I gets me the map and set sail at first light. Now that's one stupid idea if ever I knew one. So I arrived this morning, found me the spot where the treasure's meant to be and started digging. And digging. And more digging! I weren't even told what's down there. Could be a bucket a' rusty nails f'all I know. Anyhow, five hours and one massive hole later and I ain't found nothing. This is not best pleasing to me, but it ain't like I'm gonna return empty handed now, is it? Guess I'll start again tomorrow. In the meantime, I best get myself some food and shelter. 26^th July Well that may just rank as the worst night's sleep I've ever had. Coul'na breathe for hearing some strange moaning or howling. Probably just the wind I says, but it sure is strange. Anyhow, decided to have another crack at the digging today. Blasted hole keeps getting larger and I still found nothing! When I get back I'm having me a good long talk with that old man. Ain't no way there's treasure here. Just some godforsaken spit o' land right out where no one wants ta travel, 'cause there ain't nothing here! Ain't wasting no more time digging, or writing for that matter! Curse the treasure and curse this island! I'll be heading back now for somewhere I can at least get some company. Sitting about all on me lonesome ain't exactly my style. 'no man's ever returned.' Pah! Ain't nothing here! Certainly ain't nothing as gonna stop me leaving, that's for sure. 27^th July . . . . 28^th July . . . . 29^th July . . . . [*]Across the Lake Rain pelted down upon me as I paddled the boat through the turbulent lake water. “Is there any possible way you can move faster?” demanded an incessant voice next to me. “I’m doing…the best…I can!” The box sat between us, the weight of which forced the boat to ride low in the water, which probably contributed to our slow speed. A menacing cackle sounded behind us. Too close. “Paddle!” barked my companion. “We’ll never get away from those pirates at this rate!” “Throw that box over the edge, and we would be at the other side by now!” “That’s my father’s gold!” he insisted, as a wave crashed over the side of the boat and nearly swamped us. I bailed frantically, trying to keep the ship afloat. “Paddle!” he yelled. “You want to sink?” He ignored me. “Just keep moving!” The pirate ship had advanced closer. Soon, we would be in range of their weapons. I lifted one end of the wooden box, prepared to throw it overboard. But my adversary grabbed the other end. “No, please, don’t!” I yanked with all my strength. The pirate ship grew closer… No, no, that’s not the way. I let go of the chest, and the end of it crashed down on his foot. He yelled in pain, letting go of the chest. I reached down and grabbed the chest. He grabbed my arms. Crack. A firey hiss of powder split the air. “Paddle!” barked my companion, irrationally, as he turned and shoved me to the floor, trying to peel apart my fingers’ grip on his prize. I kicked him, causing an explosion of pain on his face. “Don’t let me down.” he hissed, pulling me up and shoving me down on my paddling seat. “Hand over the treasure, kiddies” said a savage, pirate voice behind me. “If you do, we might be persuaded to let go the fact that you got us up in themiddle of the night to go on a wild goose chase across a swimming pond.” I saw my companion frantically paddle, to no avail – the pirates were still close. “Hand over the loot, kiddies. If I have to climb down there and get it myself, it won’t be pretty.” I lunged off my seat, charging for the box. Time slowed down. A paddle dropped from a pair of hands, plunging into the drink. My hands closed around the box, lifting up…and over the side. “Nooo!” my friend shouted, diving in after the chest. My hands closed around the remaining paddle, and drove it into the water. The boat shot forward, lancing through the water with terrible speed, the hot crackle of bullets all about. I stayed low in the boat, frantically paddling away, the shore not far beyond. I glided across on smooth water to a sandy beach, yanking my boat behind me for the first few yards of a dead sprint home. I learned a valuable lesson that day. Treasure is just deadweight that will slow you down. Everyone wants it – some are willing to kill for it, but it’s nothing of real use. Nothing but a useless burden. Like the guilt I carried for years after, believing I had killed my friend. One day, I dove down to the bottom of a turbulent lake. There at the bottom was a body, with a hand still wrapped around the handle of a wooden box. No amount of gold will pay for his life, and so I left, leaving the box in the only proper place for treasure. Where no one can get it. -------[*] The trek from our camp was a short one. It was rather ironic, I mused, that we had been so close this whole time. Though it was far from surprising – such was the nature of this whole venture, after all. It came as no surprise, either, that none had found this place before us, though I did wonder at that. It was quite obvious if you knew what to look for. Which was odd, as my men did know what to look for, and I knew beyond any shadow of doubt that I had sent them to investigate this area many times over. But that was of no matter now. I knelt, running my hand over the floor of the jungle. To many, this spot would seem no different from any other. But to me...I smiled faintly, allowing myself a brief moment of pride. The expression faded before any of my men could take notice. We had business to attend to. A swing of my knife, the flash of the blade in the single beam of light filtering through the canopy of trees, and a gash appeared in the overgrown greenery. Beneath, there was nothing but darkness. A few more slashes in the foliage and there was an opening in the ground. My pulse quickened. We were finally here... ...Almost. There was still one item left to attend to... I stood, facing my men, a satisfied grin crossing my face. “What’d I tell you, eh?” I asked rhetorically. The men were clearly excited, try as they might to hide it. Some offered the others congratulatory remarks, others shook their heads in grudging admiration. A few, it seemed, were simply eager to press on. “Who’ll go first, boss?” one asked me. The others quieted, waiting expectantly for my answer. I grinned. Why not? “How about you, Jackson?” “M-me? I don’t-” “Oh, go on already!” I interrupted, still grinning. “You’ve earned it, I think.” “Well...” he replied, trying and failing to hide his pride at the remark. Lighting his torch, he stepped down into the darkness. The others followed in single file. I took up the rear, lighting a torch of my own. The journey through the tunnel was lengthy but uneventful. The men spoke occasionally, in whispers (though there was no reason not to talk normally), their indistinguishable voices echoing eerily through the enclosed space. Words cannot adequately describe the chamber at the tunnel’s end. We knew from the moment we entered that it was simply massive, though we could not see beyond the dim light of the torches. But the size of the room was of little consequence in consideration of its contents. Gold. Gold, and lots of it. Coins, statues, silverware and dishes...everything a man could dream of, in gold. And the cavern was filled with it. The sight, even of the little gold which was visible, took my breath away. But only for a moment. The men spread out eagerly, exploring the chamber, calling out to one another to announce discovery after discovery. But I ignored them. The gold...they could keep their gold. I walked along the wall, slowly. It would be here...it had to be. My heart raced as I quickened my pace, turning over artifact after artifact with increasing desperation. It had to- And there it was. Struggling to contain myself, I reached out, gingerly lifting the book to eye level. It was nothing special to look at – about average size and weight, maybe a bit smaller...but this was it. I inhaled deeply... Slipping the book into my pocket, I headed back for the entrance. -------[*]Forever The subtle waves swept onto the shoreline, lapsing peacefully back upon the ocean from whence they came. The wind was brisk and light, with the most indistinguishable of salty tangs to the air. The sea, such as it was, was slowly and forthrightly climbing onto the shoreline, doing its best to slowly eat away at the footsteps that so marred the sand. "You think this is such a good idea?" came a whispered call. A gruff grunt and a brusque shrug was all the response that he got. "Just a little more up ..." The sheer, striated rock wall that had consistently been around a hundred yards from them took a bend, sharply descending into a mess of boulders as it met with the sea. Beyond it, the two adventurers saw, there was wood. In the dim light of the waxing moon, and the modicum of light that the stars around it provided, golden points of light twinkled on the sand. "This is it. That's the shipwreck." "Looks like it was yesterday ..." The more ambitious of the two slid down the sand that coated the greatest of the boulders, leaving his own heavy boot prints on the soft and easily scarred sand. They were gold-diggers, at heart. They couldn't help it; it was in their genes and in their blood. Gold intrigued them and enticed them as few vices could, as addictions that they could not break themselves of. "Gold!" the taller, more bearded, and slightly denser of the two yelled. As obvious as this was, this only served to excite them further. Fumbling with their crowbars for a few moments, they cracked open chest after chest, uncovering priceless amounts of riches in one after another. They were like two little boys in a candy store, heaping piles of gold about themselves, garnishing their garish and unrestricted piles with silver, crowns, jewels, and precious minerals. Easily tired, they collapsed onto beds of riches, thinking their goldbrick selves to be set for life, if they figured out how to cash in on this hunch. And how hard could it be? They were quite literally sleeping on gold ... *** The next morning, the sea had rushed up to the rock wall that it, so long ago, had hewn. Seagulls flew over, rushing down only occasionally to eat something. Far above, where the last bits of sand ran out and the lushness of trees began, bits of rotted wood floated away, small coins coming with it. Treasure, such as it was, was theirs forever, down where no one would ever reach again. --------[*]Treasured Memories I leaned over backward to dodge a wild swing of my opponent's blade and retaliated with a downward slash that was narrowly evaded. He lashed out and I raised my sword to parry. He lunged. I flicked it to the side. He swung the blade round his head to swipe it at me but I caught it over his shoulder. He kneed me in the stomach. I reeled. He thrust and I deflected and he sliced and I blocked. My opponent was handling his blade more like a mad chef than anything else. He may have been capable of cooking a delicious meal but not of fending off a trained swordsman. He was also capable of theft, but not of escaping successfully with his treasure. His antics were amusing, but I was growing weary of his unskillful display. He thrust again and this time I stepped nimbly to the side, weakening his arm with a punch to the elbow. He diverted his swing to the side. I easily blocked it and struck his wrist with the hilt of my sword. Now he swung with his free hand and I blocked the punch with my forearm. He brought his sword round his head into a downward sweep. I caught this easily with my blade and elbowed him in the face. Now he lashed wildly. I dodged and deflected with ease his clumsy thrusts and slashes. Finally I blocked a swing and then forced his sword over his head. Expecting his attempt to knee me in the stomach I caught his leg with my free arm; and all at once I kicked his leg out from under him, pushed his arms back farther above his head, and bashed his skull with my own. He crumpled at my feet, chest heaving, eyes half-closed. With my sword I deftly retrieved the periapt hanging from his neck. According to ancient Mayan legend, it had the power to bring to those who wore it auspicious fortune. Gazing down at my opponent I hoped there was more truth in the monetary estimate I had been given. But that had been years ago. Now, old and tired, deep in senectitude, I put the artifact back where it belonged, along with the remembrance it conjured. I hung it alongside its fellow mementos on my trophy wall and took my chair to warm my bones before the hearth. The amulet was but a sumptuous trinket, liberally gilded with pure gold and inlaid with gemstones; but it was worth nothing in any other way. All it had ever been worth to me was an ostentatious token of my glory. But with my youth I had lost my fame--and the closer one gets to one's grave, the more one realizes the ultimate inanity of fortune. "The only treasure of real value I obtained that day," I murmured to myself, as I was wont to do in my lonely villa, "was knowledge gained, a lesson learned. Indeed, if I've learned anything, it's that the only worthwhile treasure among those I've acquired is knowledge." I rose and crossed to the fireplace to stir the logs. "Ah, but there was one treasure even more valuable. The one I didn't acquire." I straightened up and half turned; but my eyes strayed to the picture frame upon the mantel. I seized it and I sighed, "The greatest treasure was that which I learned too late to appreciate." And I caressed the aureole of hair that curtained her face, the elegant nose, the incandescent smile, the eyes that scintillated even through a monochrome photograph. . . . ---------[*]Stepping Off the Pyramid “It’s been an honor rowing with you seniors, and I wish you luck with your future endeavors.” We locked eyes and smiled at each other as Connor said this, and I hope my tears were intermingled with sweat dripping from my forehead. “And it was the most fun I’ve ever had on a boat.” He and I were not close friends in the past three years, but maybe we grew closer in the past months- fighting, winning and losing together. Even though we came in dead last, the entire team was looking at each other like we were winners. It was a long rhode, I thought. But it was worth the travel. The true victors of the race lay in the shade not ten feet away, resting for the finals in a few hours time, but they didn’t have the sense of triumph in winning the fights that our boat did. “It’s nowhere near over for you,” my voice broke the moment of awe of the four seniors as I indicated him, the lone junior, Justin, Jake and Pat, even Will, the alternate who stood on the outside of the circle. “You guys have another year- most of you even two- to do even better than we did today. Half the boat will remain after we seniors graduate, and you’ll do amazing things together.” Next to me, Coach shifted in his seat, and I could feel his mind buzzing for next year’s team in the group of men that sat before him. “It was never the way I imagined it would end, but I honestly wouldn’t have ended it any other way.” It was all a pyramid, just like coach said, all the way back in September. A hard hike to the top, but the brief time spent viewing beyond the apogee was worth it, as we stepped down from such great heights, back into the shade of the giant. I stepped off with my only medal in the past four years, the medal that everyone else on the team received time and time again for three years, and that one victory was my treasure. The loss of this race wasn’t the worst- there were so many lost in the past, and I won the race I wanted most. The smiles on our faces in the newspaper cover shot were some of the happiest I was in all four years of high school. This may have been the peak for the seniors, but I suspected that Coach was simply laying a base for the underclassmen. I flashed a grin across the circle at Pat. The most polite and deserving kid was worried all season that he would lose his seat, and here he was, after the last race, earning what he deserved all along. Jake didn’t live up to his brother… yet. His time lies in the future. Why reach a prime so young, and then realize for the years to come that he’ll never be better? Picking ourselves off the grass, we gathered for one last team chant. We were headed home, to the beaches, where all the other teams would be spending hours of traffic getting to their vacation homes later. A sly grin came on everyone’s faces as we all realized it, and one other thing. We were free from crew now. The summer is ours. -------[*]The Statue of Ra Jack Smith and Chris Johnson were racing through the streets of Dubai on a motorcycle, not only because they were being chased by three fast cars, but also because they only had fifteen minutes to get outside the city, or the helicopter waiting to take them to Egypt would leave without them. All this started when Jack, a middle-aged, pot-bellied college professor, heard about a black market auction of a statue of the Egyptian Sun God Ra, from a former colleague, Terrance Taylor. This interested Jack, as he was an Archaeology professor who loved ancient Egypt, but he also had one more reason for going after it: when he had visited a tomb of an Egyptian Pharaoh that had been robbed, he noticed an indentation in the wall- one that exactly matched the statue. He wanted to figure out what the statue was for, but he wouldn't be able to get it on his own. That was when he called Chris, a tall, muscular college student, majoring in archaeology, whose help he would need to get the statue. Because they had great interest in the statue, they took a jet to Dubai, where a wealthy man, Karim, was selling the statue. When they arrived, they stayed at the building where the statue was being sold, the Burj Khalifa, which was also the tallest building in the world. However, since they couldn't afford to pay the millions of dollars for the statue, they created a plan to steal it. Chris, who had the build of a professional football player, managed to take out the two guards watching over the room that was storing the statue, while Jack broke in and stole the statue. Both of them then went down to the entrance and got on Chris's motorcycle, although not before the two guards regained consciousness and alerted Karim, who alerted his men. While Chris was driving through the streets of Dubai towards the meetup point with the helicopter, three cars came from alleys and began chasing them. Of course, this just made Chris go faster, and he managed to outrun their pursuers, all the way to the helicopter. However, when they reached the helicopter, they barely had enough time to get in before nine men jumped out of the cars and started shooting at them. However, they missed, and were unable to stop the helicopter from taking off. One of the men pulled out a rocket launcher, but he was stopped by one of the others. "Stop!" the man said. "If you do that, you will destroy the statue!" A few hours later, the helicopter landed in Egypt, near one of the oldest tombs of the ancient kings. "This is where we will find the purpose of the statue," Jack said, as he remembered that this was the one he had visited a few years before. He pulled out a map from his jacket, and started following it. Both he and Chris went down through the winding mazes of the tomb, and as they had a map and most of the traps had already been triggered, they had little to worry about. Eventually, they made it to the sarcophagus room, where Jack had had found the indentation in the wall. "Well, put the statue in!" Chris said excitedly. Jack pulled the statue out of his bag, and placed it in the wall. This caused the wall to slide open, revealing a hidden room, filled with Gold, Silver, and precious stones. "Amazing!" Jack exclaimed. "In all my life, I never expected to see a treasure like this!"

Edited May 29, 2012 by Velox

[Sumiki]

Though I wish I had more time to read over the other polls and vote in those, my time is sadly limited to looking over the ones that my story is up against. Needless to say, I voted for my own, but like the Visions polls, there were some really awesome entries. Good luck to all!

[fishers64]

Shameless self-voting.

[Excelsior]

I liked 3 best, in the end, but 2 came very close. Its setting was kind of confusing to me, though.Notes on random Entries:I enjoyed the 'mad chef' line in 5, although the plot didn't seem to hang together as well as it could have.I liked 6 too - unfortunately, it didn't stress the 'Treasure' note quite strongly enough.Anyway, may the best story win!-Excelsior

[Ballom Nom Nom]

All of these were pretty comparable, so it was a difficult choice. However, number four won out.~B~

[Velox]

Polling period over; poll closed.