man! That was close! He thought.
Sam Foy found the next one and stepped through, a huge club swung on top of his head. Then, when he was
going to step on the third one, he realised it was a hole.
How can I go there, it’s impossible! Sam Foy thought.
“
Go on slave! What are you waiting for?” Mr. Maverick voice slammed in his thoughts.
Oh duh! A tiger behind my back, an axe on my neck, a grave under me…let’s try! Sam Foy thought, then
jumped into it.
Then his feet landed on something.
10
Lost
Fire spouted from the other wooden square planks, but not the one Sam Foy was standing on.
Relief floated to the surface of Sam Foy’s feeling, replacing nervousness. The box was in front of him, the
extremely detailed bamboo flute stood still in front of him.
Sam Foy reached to it, Mr. Maverick grinned.
The wood touched Sam Foy’s skin; the command rang in his ears. “Give me that.”
Then pain rained through Sam Foy’s body. “Toxic!” Sam Foy cried then dropped the flute on the ground.
“
Just what I expected.” Mr. Maverick said with a “No big deal” tone.
Mr. Maverick stepped next to the moaning Sam Foy and used a handkerchief to wrap around the flute. But
not fast enough, Sam Foy’s hand clutched the flute. “I will not give you that!”
“
You want to stop me now! In this situation?” Mr. Maverick laughed. He kicked Sam Foy in the stomach
but Sam Foy’s grip didn’t loosen. He kicked him again in the stomach, sending him flying through the room.
“
I’ve spent years searching for it, you cannot stop me. At first I found this information from my father. Then
it attracted my attention, I read steles, scrolls, even tombs! Then not for long, the secret of my identity was
known by me, just before my father died. I, the heir of the Cricket Emperor, will make this family rise again!
“
The hull you are standing was the treasure ship Admiral Explorer Zheng. He used in his seventh voyages,
instructed for this voyage by the Cricket Emperor himself. But then, they, the treasure fleets, simply
disappeared. Where did they go? Right here, in the Buhai Sea, near the Old Dragon Head. And the ultimate
weapon in the world is here, this dizi.
“
Do you know what this dizi can do? You don’t, don’t you?”
Sam Foy said nothing, Mr. Maverick walked to him slowly.
“
It can bring all crickets under the control of who blows it, that means me; you’ll wonder what good
crickets are. The thing that made these people bow to me is the song of crickets, the high pitch is not easy for
you to notice, but, it does the work. With many of these little crickets, I can rule the entire world.”
A foot rammed into Sam Foy’s stomach again. “Give me the dizi!”
Sam Foy cried. “Never!”
“
What are you doing? Stop!”
“
Say goodbye to your precious dizi.” Then a crispy crack echoed in the tunnel.
“
Noooooo!” The scream of horror pieced into Sam Foy’s ear.
Mr. Catthew woke up from a bad dream about a lot of digging. He looked around himself, why was he in a
cave?
People were everywhere and Imere was bound in a chair. Weird. The agents were with him too, what
happened? Then he saw a little fat man crying, “Kill him!” to them no stop, who was he?
Then he saw Sam Foy lying on the ground with a heavily burnt hand and a broken stick or something at his
side and he said. “It’s over, Mr. Maverick, the curse is gone, and you’re over.”
“
No! You’re wrong! Kill him minions, kill him!”
“
Good bye Mr. Maverick.”
Sam Foy called to Mr. Catthew. “Arrest him.”
“
No! No! Stop them, minions stop them!” Hands bound, Mr. Maverick was carried out.
Sam Foy then called the people to go out, and then unbound Imere. “Let’s go! The adventure is over,
Imere!”
“
Really? I missed it, I slept through it.”
“
Still the same old funny man!” Sam Foy laughed.
When the police cars came, Mr. Maverick was pushed into a car, still screaming.
But, while Sam Foy was looking at the cave, Mr. Maverick ran out of the car, yelling, “No! I don’t believe
it!” then ran in back in the cave.