(A/N: Companion piece/pseudo-sequel to 'What Lurks in the Labyrinth')
At the start of the summer, I was offered the chance of a lifetime: a trip to an archaeological dig! It was the most fun I'd ever had, not counting run-ins with venomous snakes and sunburns. But as the summer progressed, I got greedy! After excavating all the rare artifacts, I wanted them for myself. So I cooked up a scheme — but I'm getting ahead of myself. It all started that one day in Demetrius' class…
Professor Demetrius passed back a stack of archaeology papers to his lecture class. "Mr. Vardos, great job…Ms. Martinez, see me after class…Ms. Rodriguez, good." The professor flopped down his last paper and ambled to the front of the lecture hall. "Okay, everyone, see you next week. Read chapter five for Tuesday."
Nick Vardos stuffed his laptop in his bag and meandered towards the door, but Professor Demetrius caught him by the arm. "Mr. Vardos, do you have a spare minute to talk?"
"Sure, Professor," Nick replied, shifting his messenger bag over his shoulder. "What's up?"
"Well, I have an opportunity to lead an archaeological dig this summer. I'm allowed to take one extra person and you're my best student this year. Would you be interested?"
"WOULD I?" Nick exclaimed.
"I'll take that as a yes," chuckled Demetrius. "You'll have to jump through some hoops…"
When it's something I want, I'll do hoops of any size. Going to a real archaeological dig was a dream come true, so I filled out all the paperwork and retrieved all the necessary visas well before the deadline. The rest of the year passed in a blur as I waited for summer to come.
Nick flipped disinterestedly through the safety information packet as the perky flight attendant demonstrated proper water landing procedure. Finally, with a roar of the engine, the plane's wheels left the ground. Professor and student were winging their way to Greece.
Nick dozed through most of the eleven-hour flight until the professor poked him awake. "My boy, did you know that you snore?" Demetrius teased good-naturedly. "Look out the window." Nick leaned over the professor to catch a glimpse of Greece from 30,000 feet in the air.
"Wow, what a view!" sighed Nick. "This summer will be awesome!"
Awesome, if you like venomous snakes and scorching heat. Those first few weeks, getting acclimated to the weather conditions and working around the clock, were murder. But as the summer progressed, I slowly got into the swing of things.
"Professor! Professor!" called Nick, racing towards the dark-skinned man. "Look what I found!"
The Professor grinned at his student's exuberance and took the artifact carefully. "Looks like an old coin of some sort," he said, brushing off some loose dirt to reveal an impression of a haughty, bearded man wearing a crown. "This looks like an old drachma. It's very rare and valuable." Demetrius pressed the coin back into Nick's hand. "What a find!" Grinning from the professor's praise, Nick pocketed the coin and dashed away. Demetrius watched him go, snickering at Nick's infectious excitement.
That night, as Nick changed in his tent, the ancient coin dropped out of his pocket and fell to the ground with a clink. Nick bent down to pick it up. "Huh, forgot I put that there," he muttered to himself. He placed the coin on his makeshift bedside table and shrugged on his pajamas before sinking into the lumpy cot. Nick toyed with the coin, giving it a spin and letting it spiral on its edge before catching it and giving it a flip. 'Is it really that valuable?' Nick thought to himself. "Hmmm…" he mumbled before drifting off to sleep.