Ancient Gifts

First Name- Main Character
Last Name- Main love interest
Writer's notes: see guidelines

Somewhere in Chile...

"Look at this!" my colleague said excitedly, holding the torch to the ancient stones surrounding us. "An ancient text I guess, seems to be preceding the Incas! It looks like an animal of some sort is depicted, so maybe a farming manual or agricultural record?" I glanced at the letters, using my natural gift for languages combined with my major in South American Ancient Cultures. They seemed to indicate a direction, probably south, as it showed icy mountains. Although there were enough of those to go around, any direction you went.

"A map, maybe?" I guessed, looking at the arbitrary placement of characters. "It's much too early to be a mathematical log or governmental record, and you are right the fact its in writing indicates this isn't an Incan work. The writing itself is fragmented, broken in places." I glanced at the floor surrounding the writing, noting pieces of jadeite and clay fragments. "Not agricultural, due to the leftovers on the floor." I bent down and picked up a piece, holding it to the light. "The jadeite was typically used in ornamental or official works, such as the bead strings that the Inca used later. Here, however, its not in the form of beads. Looks like a tool of some kind."

My fellow digger, Wallis, shook his head. "I can't keep up. Its like trying to catch an oiled pig. Pretty near impossible." I smiled. If he knew that I had an uncanny gift to read the nuances and details in almost any writing, and almost always decipher its meaning, he would probably be a little less amazed. But I kept my secret, for now. Looking at the map again, I saw that it was in fact an ancient coordinate chart to some official structure or holy ground. I slowly explained this to Wallis, making sure to go not too fast. Its always important to camouflage what you want hidden at all times, or else risk discovery. I was wrapping up when the ceiling opened up.

"Hey, boys!" a woman said, jumping down to the cavern below. I glanced at the woman, my eyes adjusting to the light from the trapdoor above. Why didn't she ever knock? My archaeological assistant, Laura, was often overzealous, but I could forgive that much. Enthusiasm for digging work was a must- if your heart wasn't in the dig, you might as well pack up and leave. We had been working on this dig for over two months now, and were finding several interesting items of historical importance.

Laura herself made a striking figure- at 5' 7'' she was almost as tall as some of the men. She had a nice chest, not too large but sizable, and the curves on her were simply exquisite. With brown hair tied back in a ponytail, she always seemed to have an energetic glow around her. She had at one time or another teased most of the guy diggers on the site, but it was always flirtatious, and most had given up any hope of winning her heart.

I was broken out of my reverie by the sound of her voice. "So, smart one! Found anything?" I nodded, indicating the excavated wall.

"This here seems to be a map, with some ancient coordinates on it. They'll take some work to decipher, but I think the meaning is clear. They point to some sort of important location, maybe a temple or official structure. She studied the wall, listening as she traced the symbols.

"So what's this then, a llama?" she said, pointing to the animal. That had been an ongoing joke ever since I had said a symbol on an earlier dig resembled a llama. They were all a little skeptic, saying it looked more like an elephant, but it had turned out to be a llama in the end. Another win for the magical deciphering power.

"Actually, I've never seen this symbol before," I said. "Its hard to tell- it looks like a cross in between a snake and a howler monkey." It did look like a howler monkey- only with a snake's head.

"We can look at that some more tomorrow, its getting late." Wallis said absentmindedly. "How about we all go into town tonight? Maybe buy a few drinks?" Laura seemed to brighten up at the thought.