Sorry for the delay. I've been very busy these past two months. Now that I've finally got the second chapter finished, I'd like to thank my co-author Leviathan 666 for patiently enduring the long wait. So here we go...

Milo and the gang were looking forward to vacationing in Rome when they heard of the incidence in Greece. Upon Vinny's invitation they were staying at one of his large estates in the Italian countryside. Now that there was an emergency, any further plans for vacation would have to wait.

Fortunately, Mole happened to be part of Maria's archaeological team which meant that they had the best digger in their field.

Everyone was very close with Maria. As a child she was brought in by Mr. Whitmore and learned of Atlantis' culture and language. She was quickly cherished as the "Little Miss Sunshine."

Life had already gotten dull after all these years and everyone was craving for another adventure. Now that they were all filthy rich they could accomplish everything they had always wanted whether it be opening a chain of flower shops or living the night life in a private residential beach in Miami. They soon learned that even all the pleasures the world could offer them could not satisfy their desires. They then began putting their wealth to effective use such as for charitable organizations.

Taking two of Vinny's sports cars, they raced to the nearest airport where Vinny's jet was fueled and prepped to fly. They were cleared for takeoff and soon headed towards the Cyclades islands.

It was Mole who first took notice of the situations. He had just come back from his grocery shopping at the mainland when he felt the vibrations coming from underneath. With his super keen senses, he could pinpoint an animal moving under the earth. Groundwater has been disrupted and was gushing straight towards the ancient tunnels.

Wasting no time, he alerted the staff around the site and then rushed towards a vehicle depot where he brought out the Digger. Although it was an antique, he still considered it far more effective than any other digging equipment. Audrey had even taken the liberty of providing it with the latest upgrades, complete with a special analytical and GPS device.

Taking a small group of workers with him, Mole drove the Digger towards a particular spot around the site. With a soft hum, the drill whirled to life as he leveled it into the dirt.

The water continued to pour into the chamber. Exhausted, the archaeologists had tried digging through the rubble but to no avail. Maria suffered only a few bruises and cuts and Lee broke his leg from the rock fall. Demetrio, on the other hand, was seriously injured. Lee had him sit back against the wall as he tended his wounds.

"He's losing a lot of blood. I don't know how long before he loses consciousness."

"I'll be fine," Demetrio said, his words slurred.

All her life Maria dreamed of this kind of adventure. Fat chance she was going to live to see the end of it. She closed her eyes. She saw her homeland, Saint-Petersburg. The snow-covered city was founded by Peter I. For three hundred years it stood as the capital of the Russian Empire until the rise of the Soviet Union. She had a normal life and a family. That is, until the incidence.

It all started when she was five. She and her parents were crossing a street from a park when she heard a horrible squealing of breaks. It was the last thing she heard before blacking out. She later awoke to find herself in a hospital. Her first instinct was to find her parents only to learn that they had died in the operating rooms. They were killed in a car accident.

"It was the result of drunk driving," the doctor told her. "Your parents managed to shield you with their bodies but at the cost of their lives. You're very fortunate. Your parents must have really loved you."

Maria spent the next few weeks at an orphanage home. She was still grieving for her parents when a nun came in and introduced her to a wealthy old man named Mr. Whitmore. He wanted to adopt her. At first she was in no mood for an adoption. She then saw the warmth and kindness through the old man and agreed to let him adopt her. She was brought to America where she lived a privileged life and her first taste of a McDonald's cheeseburger. That was when she met Milo, Kida, and the rest of the gang. For the first time since the accident she finally had a family. She would never get to know her parents but at least she knows they loved her. Their sacrifices proved it.

By now the water had filled to their waist, forcing everyone onto the altar.

"What we need is a miracle," Lee muttered.

The entire room suddenly shook. Everyone gave out a yelp as an enormous drill protruded from the wall followed by a dozen floodlights. The Digger stood before them, lights shining in all directions. Four figures jumped from the enclosed cabin. Each of them was wearing hard hats with lights.

Instantly Maria recognized one of the figures. "Mole?"

Mole gave out a cackle. "See? You do need me."

Maria opened her eyes and found herself lying in a makeshift tent. Her arms were connected to IV needles with a heart monitor beeping next to her. In the corner was a nurse who was rummaging through some medical containers. She also noticed a girl around her age was sitting next to her.

"Audrey?" she asked her voice grainy.

"How are you feeling amigo?"

Maria tried to sit up but found she was too exhausted. "Like a million bucks." She noticed that there were bandages draped around her arms, legs, and forehead. She couldn't recall what happened since Mole came bursting into the chamber with his Digger. The only thing she remembered was passing out inside of the Digger's cabin "Aren't you supposed to be in Rome?"

"Well, we decided to do some sightseeing in the Greek isles along the way."

A nurse came and checked in on Maria's readings. "How are you feeling Miss Yurieva?"

"I'm feeling fine." She stretched her stiff neck muscles. "How long have I been here?"

"About a week."

"A week?" Maria scoffed in disbelief. "Where are the others?"

"Your friends had to be flown to the nearest hospital. Don't worry. Sweet is taking good care of them."

"That's good."

The nurse wrote in her clipboard. "I'll come by to check on you later. Let me know if you need anything." She walked away.

"You're all lucky that we happened to have our crystals with us," said Audrey. She took out a metal case and unlatched it open. Resting in the case was the sword. "Surprise!"

Maria's eyes widened.

"Lee and Demetrio asked that I give this to you. They wanted you to fill in their work until they can recover."

With delicate care Maria took out the sword and cradled it as if it was a newborn infant. The blue ruby seemed to gleam from its hilt. "I'm only a linguist." Gripping the hilt, she slowly pulled the blade from its sheath. Its edge was still sharp from the day it was forged. She also noticed that on each side of the blade there were letters etched into them.

"By the way, your team's made the front page."

Maria gazed over the weapon at Audrey, her brows lifted in doubt. "Are you serious?"

"Seriously, the locals are even calling your team a hero!"

Maria smiled. "I could use the appreciation."

They stared at it silently for a long time- a gleaming weapon whose golden surface reflected the evening sunset that was streaming in the flap of the tent. The sword looked brand-new. Every inch was buffed to a high shine and the intricate engraving of sea waves that curled around the hilt and sheath were as clear as the day they were etched.

With reluctance, Maria shifted her gaze from the weapon over at Audrey. "Audrey, when I was in the chamber I saw records that indicated that this sword could actually be a talisman. Since I can't decipher the language, I'm hoping Milo's archives could shed some light."

Audrey shifted nervously. "So in other words this thing could actually be a weapon."

The room was silent for a long time.

"I don't like this Maria. What if someone comes after us?"

"That's why I'm bringing it to the city. It'll be more safe there than on the surface."

"Makes sense to me. I'll get this to Milo immediately. In the meantime, you need to sleep."

Maria nodded. She tried to stifle a yawn. "Remind me to thank Mole." She laid her head back and within seconds she was asleep.

The orange and red sunset was already sinking behind the horizon when Audrey stepped out of the hospital tent. A hundred different thoughts were going through her head. How many more of those terrifying weapons were there from the ancient world? She took a deep breath, breathing in the Mediterranean air. Gripping the metal case, she strode towards a campfire to meet up with her team.