The Young Nabile
By: Honestcat

"Mother, what's going to happen to you?" asked a little Ixi.

"I'm fine, Nabile. Listen to me. When I go you must take care of yourself. I've raised and trained you well Nabile. Learn to be strong." her mother, once known as Princess Neera, was dying

But Nabile knew. She knew her mother was dying. Days before she observed her mother's behavior, always struggling with the chores around their little mud brick hut.

"Your father was a good man, Nabile. If he was still here right now he would see how much you've grown over the past years. My Nabile, my child, I shall miss you." her mother breathed her last breath and lay still on her mat. A silence went through Nabile's hut and all of Sakhmet when a small cry came from her. From that night she could not live in that hut any longer. So Nabile ventured out into the streets of Sakhmet alone.

The morning sun arose all of Sakhmet's citizens, another day of selling its exotic food and Petpets. There was chattering, selling, bidding, and big commotions but in an alley poor little Nabile, who had just lost her mother the night before was crying her little eyes out.

"I sure am hungry. But I don't have any neopoints." Nabile whispered to herself. "Maybe I'll just wait for someone to throw something at me." the purple Ixi sat there for hours yet no one threw not even a scrap. She got more and more hungry.

"I guess that didn't work. Maybe I should steal something. No! Stealing is bad! I could get killed for that!" Nabile spotted a ripe Tchea sitting unprotected on a fruit stand. Nabile couldn't help herself. She swiftly walked up to the stand, blended with the crowd, and grabbed the Tchea when the shopkeeper wasn't looking. "That was close." Nabile was about to take her first bite when someone behind her shouted.

"Hey you thief! Give that back!" Nabile looked back to see the shopkeeper running after her. Unfortunately the shopkeeper saw Nabile take the Tchea. Running as fast as she could, Nabile tried to escape, but she was blocked by passersby.

While on the other side of Sakhmet, a young Lupe was running away from a street patroller.

"Stop you little thieving thief!" yelled the street patroller.

"Ha! What kind of threat is that?" the little Lupe jumped on top of some barrels, pushed them down, and they landed on top of the street patroller.

"Hey stop thief! Get back here!" the Ruki street patroller tried to get free but the barrels were too heavy for him to lift.

"Catch me if you can!" laughed the brown Lupe and he ran away.

Meanwhile Nabile was still running away from the shopkeeper.

"Someone stop that Ixi thief!" screamed the angry Grarrl shopkeeper.

"Dear shopkeeper," said one of the richer Sakhmetians, "she's just a little Ixi, probably an orphan."

"But that gives her no right to steal from me!" While the shopkeeper and the rich Sakhmetian were arguing, Nabile got a chance to run away with the Tchea.

"You sure have caused me a lot of trouble!" Nabile scolded the Tchea. The Lupe on the other end wasn't paying attention to where he was going and ran into Nabile! Oof!

"Oh my gosh! I am so sorry! I didn't see you. If I knew you were running this way I would've gotten out of the way for you! Forgive me?" pleaded Nabile. The young Lupe got up, said nothing, and looked both ways.

"Looks like they're after me again…and after you too. Come one!" he grabbed Nabile's arm and they both started running.

"Huff huff Who are you? I'm Nabile" asked Nabile.

"The name's Tomos huff follow me!" they stopped in an alleyway that was covered by clothes and on the left was a wooden door. Tomos knocked on the door twice, then once, then twice again. A little window opened on the door and a pair of eyes looked down at Tomos and Nabile then the window closed. The wooden door opened and they both entered while the street patroller and the Grarrl shopkeeper gave up their search.

"Hey Tomos!" said a blue Techo, "What treasure did you find today?"

"No treasure Hocks. I found a girl instead. She bumped into me or should I say I did." This is Hocks, the leader of the Desert Scarabs."

"Desert Scarabs?" Nabile nervously walked forward.

"Hello there little Ixi," Hocks said. He saw here still carrying the Tchea. "Where did you get this?"

"I…I…um," Nabile stuttered, "I took it without paying for it from a fruit stand."

"You did?" Hocks said with a laugh. "Hey Tomos you've been looking for a partner for a long time. Why not let Nabile join you?"

"What! But Nabile doesn't know anything!"

"I can learn fast Tomos." Nabile snapped back

"Well you do don't you? Show her around!"

"Alright. Come with me Nabile. And you better finish that Tchea first before it gets rotten." Tomos took Nabile on a tour around the Desert Scarabs' hideout. Of course this one was only one of them. There are many others in Sakhmet. The hideout led to many places like the bazaar, marketplace, outside the palace walls, outside the city, and into the desert. There were rooms, each room with four bunks, and each bunk with a member of the Desert Scarab. There were rooms that held the Scarabs' treasures.

Hocks met Tomos and Nabile back at the hideout entrance, where the duo entered this morning.

"So Tomos, did you show her around?"

"Every room! Well, not every room that we're not supposed to go into. So Nabile do you want to join the Desert Scarabs?"

"Well," Nabile muttered, "I'll join since I have no where else to go."

"Alright then. Follow me both of you." Hocks gestured. He led the children into a room with only a chair and a burning fire, which was a bit odd since it was already burning hot outside and a long iron stick with a mark at the tip of it in the shape of a scarab.

"Just sit on that chair Nabile." The Ixi sat nervously wondering what the Scarab leader was going to do. Hocks lifted up the iron stick and held it over the blazing fire. The mark at the tip started to turn red and hot. Hocks the Techo walked over to Nabile carrying the stick with the scarab mark.

"Turn your left shoulder to me." Hocks ordered. Nabile turned and the Techo pressed the scarab mark just right below her left shoulder. She screamed in anguish as it stung her. Tomos poured water over it slowly to cool it down.

"Are you okay?" Tomos asked.

Nabile looked at him in the eyes, "It hurt before you poured water on it but I'm fine now." She gave Tomos a small smile and looked at her shoulder and saw the scarab mark would be forever on her.

"You're now an official Desert Scarab, Nabile! Tomos, show her to where she will stay. Then I will tell you everything you need to know. Hocks gave Tomos a wink.

The duo entered the room they passed by this morning.

"This is where you'll stay Nabile. You can have the bottom bunk." Tomos then pointed to two other Desert Scarab members on the opposite of the room.

"Hey Tomos!" one of them cried, "I didn't see you at all this afternoon. Who's the Ixi?"

"Didn't you hear Horace?" We have a new member!" The other one jumped down from her bunk.

"Nabile, this is Zina and this is Horace. They're partners just like you and me!"

Everyone introduced themselves to Nabile and she felt glad. This "Desert Scarabs" thing was like a second home to her. Of course she did not forget her loving mother and father. Nabile looked up into the sky and saw a shining star. She knew her new life of adventure and friends began…

The End