The Jewel of Zecaj | ONC 2022

15🔸Badriya

Badriya scooped a handful of coins nearby and threw it in the air, a giddy laugh escaping her lips.

"I've found it!" she cried. "I can't believe I've finally found it!"

Sighing, she let herself fall on her back and lie under the coins and gems, her eyes glued on the floating gem from afar. After many weeks of scouring through her country, she had done something that no other man could ever do.

She found a legend that turned out to be true.

She found the Jewel of Opulence.

It was difficult to wrap her mind of that fact, for she never imagined she'd succeed in finding the Jewel, or achieving anything important for that matter. Men would say that people like her could never do great things, and she tried proving them wrong ever since. And after many years, she finally did.

After a minute of lying down, Badriya sighed in delight as she looked around the cave of treasures.

"I'm. . . rich." She cleared her still-aching throat, and spoke more confidently, "I'm rich!"

So what if a part of the Khadysian army was waiting nearby for her to emerge with the Jewel? If the glyphs outside the cave was true to its word, they could never get inside or get the jewel unless they wanted to get struck with some sort of misfortune like what Mustafa told her. She could remain inside the cavern until they got tired of waiting and curse themselves.

Badriya pressed her lips together in thought. "I better find another way to get out of here in case they do decide to wait me out."

She got up and began her search, heading over to the corners of the cavern for a sign of cracks large enough to look like an exit. To her disappointment, there didn't seem to be any, and so she found herself looking at the threshold she came from. It was still as dark and ominous when she was at the other side of it.

Although, with the endless riches lying around waiting to be taken, her disdain didn't last long. She took out her food rations out of the bag hanging over her shoulder and began filling it with coins, doing so until her eyes wandered to the jewel at the top of the hill of gold.

"You know what? Forget about this." Badriya emptied her satchel from the coins she just collected. "If the stories were real, then I don't have to take anything here except the Jewel."

Her feet sunk under the treasure with every step she took onward, her gait turning slow as if she were walking in the desert sands. But Badriya didn't let it bother her. She was almost there. Almost. The thing was so, so close she could—

"Don't."

Her heart skipped a beat.

When she finally felt a thump in her chest, Badriya dared to turn around. Ayaz stood by the cavern's entrance, his left hand clutching his side while his other hand held onto his sword wet with blood.

How did you get inside? She was curious to know, but fury got the best of her in an instant.

"What are you doing here?" she asked instead, her tone laced with venom. "I thought you left me to die, coward."

"I—we were overwhelmed by the haris." His expression was cool, albeit the gash on his side. "I had to go and bring in reinforcements to help us."

"Liar," Badriya snarled. "You wanted me to suffer at the hands of Khadysians."

Ayaz breathed out a heavy sigh. "I know it looked that way and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to leave you all alone to defend yourself. I believed you'd be able to hold on to your own, and I was right."