Temple of the Zodiac

Chapter 9: Say "No" to Volcano

Team Four was made up of Boss, Roberto, Travis, Stan, and Sandy. Boss was the one who obtained the clue from Neteru's bucket and it read:

The Caidoz piece has been buried for years at the base of an active volcano called "Kakita Bogu."

Since no one in the group knew how to get to Kakita Bogu on foot, Boss ran back into the Clubhouse to find some maps of Japan. After reading the maps, the Ham-Hams realized that Kakita Boju was not as far away as they thought and fortunately for them, Travis had been there before and was familiar with the area on the way to Kakita Bogu. With the thought of entering a dangerous active volcano on their minds, the team strapped on their back packs and began the journey to Kakita Bogu.

They spent two days hiking along the roads leading through the forests. They were heading south down the road, hoping to find the volcano by following the tourists who were on their way to the same location. Surrounding the road were miles of forest which provided the Ham-Hams with plenty of shade and reason to be watchful of birds who would want to eat them. The roads remained quite, save for the occasional car that drove by.

As they walked, Sandy and Stan began to argue amongst themselves. Practically from the beginning of the trip, Stan boasted he would find the next Caidoz piece before Sandy. Naturally, the two siblings began to argue over who would find the next Caidoz piece. After over a day of tolerating Stan's taunts, Sandy eventually gave up and decided to walk without a word, ignoring Stan. But Stan continued to annoy her.

"How about we make this challenge more interesting by throwing in a bet," said Stan.

"There is no challenge and there will be no bet," said Sandy who was fighting to hold back her urge to strangle her brother.

"Oh, you're just afraid you'll lose," said Stan. "Do you hear me? You're nothing but a big chicken." Stan put his paws to his hips and began flapping his elbows and clucking like a chicken. This childish display finally drove Sandy to the breaking point.

"Chicken, am I!" shouted Sandy. "Stan, When I get that Caidoz piece, I'm going to shove it down your throat." Stan was about to respond when Boss said, "Will you two cut it out. You guys have been arguing ever since we left home."

"Yes and it's driving me bananas," said Travis.

"I say we just ditch them on the side of the road," said Roberto. Knowing they were becoming a nuisance, the twins didn't say anything more as they walked.

Eventually they came to a campground which was crowded since it was summer. Throughout the campgrounds were tents of all types, sizes, and colors. The sounds of portable stoves, people setting up tents (or taking them down), and children playing could be heard everywhere within the active campground. Children were everywhere, obviously brought along by their parents, eagerly exploring the natural forest for themselves. All of the humans in the area made it difficult for the Ham-Hams to get around unnoticed. The Ham-Hams ran along the ground, repeating, "Badda-Badda" as they ran. They repeatedly hid behind plants, trees, and rocks, dodging the watchful eyes of the humans, especially from the children. There was one man nearby who was about to start a camp fire when he caught sight of the Ham-Hams running in front of his line of sight. He stared in amazement as the Ham-Hams ran by. When his wife saw him staring, his wife asked, "What are you looking at?"

"I thought I just saw five hamsters wearing back packs run by," said the man.

"Haha, very funny," said the wife skeptically.

Unaware of the man who had seen them, the Ham-Hams continued to travel through the campgrounds until Travis led them to an outdoor pool and a hot springs. Both were located on the outskirts of the campgrounds. The Ham-Hams stood on top of the stone wall surrounding the pools, watching the people swim in the pool and relaxing in the warm waters of the hot springs.

"If there's a hot springs, there must be a volcano," said Boss.

"Yep and the volcano is not far from here because I remember this pool from when I came here," said Travis.

"How do we get to the volcano from here?" asked Sandy.

"I don't remember," said Travis.

"Well that's great," said Roberto sarcastically.

"Well, why don't we ask that ham-ham over there," suggested Stan. He pointed to a small booth where a guard monitors the people entering the pool area and in the booth was a hamster cage with a hamster inside. The hamster had yellow colored fur with orange spots all over his body and he just sat there, seemingly admiring the forests around the area.

"Good idea," said Boss. "Lets ask him."

The Ham-Hams repeated "Badda-Badda" as they ran to the booth, climbed up the side of it, and got onto the windowsill. The window to the booth was open, allowing the Ham-Hams easy access inside. They quietly squeezed their way from underneath the window so they could get inside. The man inside the booth was too busy monitoring the people coming into the pool area to notice the Ham-Hams. With the coast clear, the Ham-Hams approached the hamster inside the cage.

"Hamha," greeted Sandy who was the first to reach the cage. The hamster inside the cage was surprised to have visitors.

"Who are you?" asked the hamster.

"We're the Ham-Hams," said Sandy. "What is your name?".

"My name is Jake, what is it you want?" asked the hamster.

"We're looking for Kakita Bogu," explained Boss. "How do we get to it from here?"

"Oh that's easy," said Jake with a smile. "When you leave this pool area, turn right and travel up the road until you find a fork in the road that splits into three directions. There, you will see a sign that points to which road you will have to take in order to reach Kakita Bogu."

"Okay, thanks," said Stan.

"By the way, why are you going to Kakita Bogu?" asked Jake. "Are you going sight seeing?"

"Actually, we're after the Caidoz piece that resides inside the volcano," said Boss. Jake gasped in shock.

"You're going after the Caidoz piece?" gasped Jake. "Everyone who had tried to get that piece had been burned alive by the lava or had died from inhaling all the soot and ash. I'm telling you, don't do it. It's suicide."

"But we have to get it," said Boss. "The fate of the world depends on the retrieval of those Caidoz pieces."

"How could a strange piece of gold be that important?" asked Jake.

"It's hard to explain and we can't tell you anyway since there are others after the Caidoz pieces," said Travis. "Just believe us when we say that there is something very important about those pieces."

"Well, okay," said Jake skeptically. "Just be very careful. Don't go near the volcano if it's hot and looks like it's about to erupt and always wear something around your mouth so you wont breath in the volcanic ash."

"Okay, thanks for the advice," said Roberto as he followed the Ham-Hams towards the open window.

"Oh, and by the way, the piece is located inside a cave on the side of the volcano," said Jake as the Ham-Hams began to walk away. "Do be very careful because if the volcano erupts while you are inside the cave, you will be buried alive under molten rock." With an image like that being imprinted on their minds, the Ham-Hams left without a word.

The Ham-Hams couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to be burned alive by lava. This thought lingered in their minds as they repeated "Badda-Badda" as they ran towards the exit. Following the directions Jake had given to them, they found the fork in the road where Jake said it was. There were three wooden signs in the fork, indicating where each road led to. One sign pointed to the road on the right and is said "Kakita Bogu, two miles." The Ham-Hams gathered up all their courage and headed out to Kakita Bogu.

As they walked further up the road, they managed to climb up a hill and once they reached the top, they found the volcano in the distance. The volcano seemed still and quite with no smoke or lava coming out of its top. Volcano looked as tall as a mountain and it ad a jet black color to it, an indication that lava had been spilled along its surface recently.

"Wow, I never seen a real volcano up close," said Sandy.

"But how are we going to get inside?" asked Stan.

"Well, we're not going to find out until we reach that volcano," said Roberto.

"I agree, lets get moving," said Boss. Once again, the Ham-Hams had to work up the nerve to walk towards the volcano as Boss bravely led them towards the volcano.

With every step they took, the tension and heat began to increase. The air around the volcano was warm and humid and the heat was radiating from the rock itself. Once they were close enough to properly see the volcano, they could tell that there was some hardened lava still on the side of the volcano. The lava was black and hard but it was still hot and soft, making the walk around the lava treacherous. Taking Jake's advice, the Ham-Hams tied bandanas around their mouths in order to protect their lungs from the sulfur. They walked up the volcano in search of the cave Jake had spoken of. The heat from the hardened lava was intense, causing the Ham-Hams to sweat profusely.

Boss kept his focus on the location of the cave that Jake had spoken of. Eventually, he noticed what appeared to be a hole in the side of the volcano that was no bigger than the tunnels leading to the Clubhouse.

"Hey guys, I think I found the cave," said Boss. The Ham-Hams gathered around Boss to get a closer look.

"That certainly looks like the cave," said Roberto.

"I'm going in first," shouted Stan as he charged towards the cave but before he could get far, Boss grabbed him by the tail.

"This mission is too dangerous for you to be goofing off like that," said Boss. "You understand?"

"Yes, Boss," said Stan irritably.

"Good," said Boss. "Okay Ham-Hams, lets go in." With Boss in the lead. They walked single file into the dark cave.

Boss pulled out a small flash light from his back pack and he used it to allow himself to see in the dark cave. Inside the cave, there was nothing but darkness and heat. The temperature inside the cave was hotter than it was outside and this heat caused the Ham-Hams to sweat even more. Their fur clung to the sides of their bodies with sweat. To make the journey even more unbearable was the fact that the cave itself didn't have a flat floor to walk on. At first, they had smooth, stable ground under their feet to walk on but as they traveled further into the cave, the ground began to swerve and become bumpy. The cave tunnel became very small in some parts, making it hard to squeeze through the small openings. The floors rose or descended sharply and the shapes of the tunnels were erratic. It became so hard to navigate through the tunnels that they spent almost an hour wondering through that dark cave and the fact that the volcano grew hotter with every few inches they went didn't help much either.

"Ugh, If it gets any hotter in here, I'm going to collapse," said Travis.

"I don't think I can stand being here much longer, either," said Roberto.

"Come on, guys," said Boss. "We're bound to be..." Before Boss could finish his sentence, he suddenly tripped on a large rock and fell forwards. Since the tunnel was leading down, Boss rolled down the tunnel until he hit a dead end.

"Oh no, Boss," cried Travis. The Ham-Hams repeated "Badda-Badda" as they ran to Boss. It was hard to see since the flash light (their only light source) lay on the ground next to Boss, facing a side wall of the cave.

"Boss, are you all right?" asked Travis as he and the Ham-Hams stopped in front of Boss.

"Yeah, I'm fine," said Boss, trying to hid the fact that his muscles ached, his back hurt, and his skin throbbed from scrapping against the rock floor. Boss picked up his helmet and placed it back onto his head. He then picked up his flash light and as the light hit the end of the tunnel, something gold caught Boss's. The piece of gold that had reflected the light was none other than a Caidoz piece. To everyone's surprise, the piece was partially imbedded inside the rock. Thanks to the magical qualities of the piece, it was unharmed by the intense heat of the rocks and the years of being smothered in molten lava.

Excited, Sandy said, "Look, it's the Caidoz piece."

"But how are we going to get it out of the rock?" asked Stan.

"If Neteru was here, he would have used his magic to remove the piece," said Travis. Boss ran his paw along the rock that held the piece. As he did, he found the rock to be soft and brittle.

"This rock isn't too strong," said Boss. "I bet we can dig it out."

"Okay but hurry," said Stan. "I don't know how much longer I can stand this heat."

Using a pick ax and a shovel that Boss had been carrying, Boss and Travis began digging at the rock. Sure enough, the rock was soft enough to break off but the heat from the tunnel was quickly becoming unbearable. Travis held the pick ax but his sweat was causing his paws to be slippery and the pick ax kept slipping in his grasp. Despite the fact that they were sweating like crazy, Travis and Boss continued to vigorously pick at the rock. Boss gave the piece a strong whack with his shovel and suddenly, the Caidoz piece began to come loose. Boss gave the piece another good strike with his shovel and suddenly, the piece fell out of the rock and landed onto the cave floor. Boss picked up the piece and said, "I've got it."

"Great, now lets get out of here already," said Stan. Boss picked up the piece from the ground and placed it into his back pack. Without another word, the Ham-Hams made their way out of the volcano, eager to finally get out of the heat.

As they walked through the hot tunnels of the volcano, they began to feel earthquakes.

"What was that?" asked Roberto.

"I don't know but I got a bad feeling about this," said Boss. "My hamster intuition says that there is something dangerous going on here."

"Yeah, I got a bad feeling about this, too," said Travis. Suddenly, there was another earthquake, stronger than the one before.

"Hey, those earthquakes are getting stronger," said Stan who attempted to hide the fear from his face even though no one could see his face in the dark.

"Is it just me or is the cave getting hotter?" said Roberto. To everyone's surprise, the cave did get hotter, even the ground itself began to burn the bottom of their feet. The Ham-Hams began to dance as if they were walking bare foot on hot sand.

"What's going on here?" said Boss. "It's like I'm in an oven."

"Wait a minute, I remember Maxwell telling me something about this," said Sandy. "He told me that when a volcano is about to erupt, it will be signaled by a rise in the ground's temperature and earthquakes."

"So since the ground is getting hotter and the ground is shaking, that must mean that there's a volcano about to erupt," said Boss.

"Yeah, like this one," said Sandy. The Ham-Hams began to panic as they ran for the exit, repeating "Badda-Badda" as they ran.

They ran on all fours, running over through the many obstacles of the tunnel. With the heat of the volcano rising and the earthquakes becoming more frequent, the Ham-Hams were literally bounced against the walls in their desperate attempt to escape the volcano. Boss was in the lead, repeating "Daba-Daba" as he ran through the tunnel. He began to see a light in the distance, obviously coming from the exit to the cave.

"We're almost there," announced Boss. "Hurry, Ham-Hams." With every bit of speed he had, Boss ran towards the exit to the tunnel.

Boss was the first to come out of the cave entrance but what he saw afterwards, he was not prepared for. The volcano had indeed erupted and a river of lava was flowing down the side of the volcano. There was a river of fiery hot lava flowing on both sides of the cave, leaving the Ham-Hams with only one way to escape: forwards in-between the two lava rivers (divided by the cave entrance) before they become trapped. When Boss heard a loud bang from above. Boss craned his head towards the top of the volcano and from there, he saw a pillar of smoke and ash spewing from the volcano, as well as some molten blobs of rock that shot out everywhere. Boss also noticed that the lava around the cave had actually cooled, forming a temporary barrier which kept the lava from flowing into the cave. Boss thought that was odd but didn't have enough time to think about it as the Ham-Hams came out of the cave and into the open and Boss had to follow them.

The Ham-Hams ran away from the cave, repeating "Badda-Badda" as they ran. The two rivers of lava that flowed along side of them were blisteringly hot and what was worse was that the lava was gradually closing in around them.

"We're going to be cooked," cried Sandy.

"Just run faster," said Boss but to their horror, the lava actually begin to merge at the foot of the volcano, surrounding the Ham-Hams and blocking their only escape from the lava.

"Oh no, we're cooked," cried Roberto.

"Not if I can help it," said Boss. "Everyone, run at full speed towards the lava and then jump."

"We'll never make it," said Stan.

"Oh yes we will," said Boss. Boss ran up to the lava at full speed and then he made a flying leap into the air, crying "Oopaa" as he jumped. He flew through the air and then he landed safely on the other side of the lava, saying "Daplunk" as he landed. Following Boss's example, the Ham-Hams leaped into the air. Sandy, Roberto, and Travis landed safely next to Boss but Stan had hesitated when he leaped into the air. Stan began to fall towards the lava, screaming as he fell, but before he hit the lava, Sandy pulled out her ribbon wand and, using it like a whip, she grabbed Stan by the tail and managed to pull him away from the lava. Stan landed hard on the ground.

"Ouchichi," said Stan as he hit the ground.

"Lets get out of here, Ham-Hams," said Boss although he didn't need to say it since everyone was running away all ready. Boss followed them and they headed back into the forest.

The Ham-Hams stopped at a clearing located far away from the volcano. Even from this distance, the volcano and the smoke and lava coming from it was still visible but at a safe distance none the less. The Ham-Hams removed the bandanas from their mouths so they could breath. They all sat under the shade of a nearby tree, giving their legs a well deserved rest.

"That was a close one," said Roberto, out of breath.

"I'll say," agreed Sandy.

"Now that we have the Caidoz piece, we better activate it," said Boss. "Who wants to go first?"

"Why don't you go first, Boss," said Travis.

"Yeah, you did save us back there," said Roberto.

"Well, okay," said Boss. He removed the Caidoz piece from his back pack, placed his paw on top of it and said, "I am the sun, I am the moon. I am the clear blue sea. A gift from the stars, a gift to all. May this piece show it's sign to me." As before, the Caidoz piece immediately reacted as its power was revealed. The piece glowed a blue light, lighting up the area with its glow. Right before their eyes, a glowing blue symbol engraved itself upon the piece. The symbol looked like an "M" with a loop going through one side. This symbol represents Virgo, Boss's zodiac sign.

Once the Caidoz piece stopped glowing, Boss placed the piece back into his back pack.

"Okay, now that we have one of the pieces, what are we going to do next?" asked Roberto.

"I don't know," admitted Boss. "Let me check the next clue." Boss reached into his back pack and pulled out a piece of paper. The next clue on the paper had the following written on it:

Within the Gobi forest on the island called Halastia, rests a mysterious pyramid. This pyramid is known by many names but most just call it the "Crystal Pyramid." Inside is rumored to be loads of gold as well as a Caidoz piece.

"Wow, if we get our paws on that gold, we could be rich," said Roberto.

"We are not after gold, we are after the Caidoz pieces," said Travis.

"But how are we going to reach Halastia?" asked Stan.

"I guess were going by ship again," said Boss.

"Oh but I don't want to walk all the way to the docks," whined Stan.

"If you want to stay here, you can," said Boss.

"Yeah, just good luck finding your way home," said Sandy as she and the others got back onto their feet and began to walk off, leaving without Stan. Stan just sat there, not sure if they were serious but when they began to move out of sight, Stan said, "Wait, I'm coming" and ran up to his comrades on their way to Halastia.

Author's Note: There is no such volcano called "Kakita Bogu" in Japan. I made it up.