Temple of the Zodiac

Chapter 11: Red Herring

Team Five included the following Ham-Hams: Hamtaro, Dexter, Howdy, Neteru, and Kaiu. The clue that Neteru had obtained told them that their next Caidoz piece was located in a museum in a town called Wattocress on the island of Halastia. The Ham-Hams were thrilled to be going back to Halastia, especially Kaiu who had always wanted to see Halastia after hearing all those stories Neteru told him about his trip to Halastia. They soon realized that Team Two was also going to Halastia so the two teams went on the long journey together.

The trek through the forest took five days before the exhausted teams reached a dock which would provide them with transport to Halastia. The journey to the docks was a tiring one, especially for Kaiu but despite how tired he was from the trip, he kept his promise to his mother and didn't complain. Using some money given to them by Daruth, the Ham-Hams paid for tickets to a ship that was going to Halastia. During their three day journey, the Ham-Hams took the time to relax their tired feet.

After lunch, on the third day of their trip, the two teams sat on the floor of the deck so they could bask under the warm sun. Team Two had set up a chess game played between Maxwell and Panda. Maxwell had brought along a small chess board for the occasion and was trying to teach Panda how to play. Meanwhile, Team Five sat nearby, watching Howdy tell jokes to Kaiu.

"Hey Kaiu, what do you call someone who plays bells in a music band?" asked Howdy. "A brass player. Get it? Because bells are made of brass. Heh heh heh. I'm such a crack up." However, only Howdy was laughing at his really bad joke.

"Daddy, make him stop," whined Kaiu as he held his father's arm.

"Howdy, would you please stop with your jokes," said Neteru. "You're upsetting my son."

"Oh liven up, will you," said Howdy. "I'm just trying to teach the boy how to have a sense of humor."

"As if he would want to grow up with a sense of humor like yours," said Dexter.

"Hey, I take offense to that," said Howdy.

"Hold on, you two," said Hamtaro. "Don't fight." Howdy and Dexter glared at each other as if they were going to maul each other at any second.

Before they could attack, Kaiu said, "Hey, I see the island." The Ham-Hams brought their attention in the direction of the ship's bow and sure enough, there was an island in the distance. The Ham-Hams repeated "Badda-Badda" as they ran to the bow of the ship. They gathered around the railing so they could get a good glimpse of Halastia up ahead. The island looked small from this distance but none the less, they easily could see the cities and vegetation of the island.

Kaiu was having difficulties seeing over the railing since he was so much more shorter than the adults.

"Daddy, I can't see anything," said Kaiu. Wanting to help, Neteru picked up his son and placed him on his shoulders. Kaiu gently held onto his father's ears for support and he looked out in amazement at Halastia.

"It's beautiful," said Kaiu fondly.

"Wow, it's like I can hold the entire island in my paw," said Hamtaro. The Ham-Hams stood there, admiring the island but Neteru didn't seem that interested. He just stared blankly at the island up ahead. It wasn't until he heard the sound of his son's voice that he snapped back to reality.

"Daddy, what's wrong?" asked Kaiu. "You seem distracted."

"There's something that puzzles me," said Neteru, making sure that he doesn't accidentally knock Kaiu off his shoulder by turning his head. "Why would Glabrezu and Spat want to hunt down the Caidoz pieces if they can't activate the pieces themselves?"

"Perhaps they have others to help them," suggested Hamtaro.

"Yeah, and villains are determined little critters," said Howdy. "They probably intend on taking all the pieces for themselves and then find others to help them activate the pieces."

"Or they have found some other way of activating the pieces," suggested Dexter.

"Maybe," said Neteru.

"Don't worry, Daddy," said Kaiu. "You'll teach Spat and Glabrezu a lesson. I know you will." Neteru smiled, admiring his son's faith in him.

The ship docked into Zolphville, allowing the Ham-Hams a chance to get off the ship. Once they gathered together onto the docks, the two teams stood in front of each other to say "good-bye."

"Well, I guess this is where we part," said Panda.

"It sure looks that way," said Neteru.

"Why aren't we going with them, Daddy?" asked Kaiu who held onto his father's paw.

"Because the Caidoz piece they are after is in this city while the one we're after is in a town called Wattocress located in another part of Halastia," explained Neteru.

"Is it far from here?" asked Moonbeam.

"Is it far?" said Howdy. "Why it's so far, we'll have to shoot the bus we'll be riding out of a cannon just to get halfway there. Hehe." Everyone produced a sweat drop from their head in response to the bad joke.

"I recommend we get going," said Maxwell.

"Yeah, we need to go," said June. "Bye-Q, you guys."

"Bye-Q and don't worry, we'll be back before you know it," said Hamtaro. Team Five watched Team Two walk towards the exit to the docks.

"I bet we'll get our Caidoz piece before they do," said Kaiu.

"This is not a race, Kaiu," said Neteru.

"Speaking of race, we better race to the nearest bus stop so we can reach Wattocress," said Hamtaro.

"Yeah, we better get going," said Neteru. The five Ham-Hams turned around and began the walk to the nearest bus stop.

The five adventurers managed to find a Gray Hound Bus they could ride to Wattocress. The bus resembled the buses one would find in a human based society except the buses looked more like toys and they ran on electricity instead of gas. The Ham-Hams sat in large blue colored plastic seats on the bus. Kaiu was excited because not only was this the first time he was on a bus but this was his first chance to see Halastia. Throughout the trip, Kaiu had his face pressed against the window, watching the world go by and frequently telling Neteru (who sat next to him) everything that caught his eye. Neteru resisted the temptation to tell Kaiu that this was not a vacation but Neteru couldn't find it in his heart to spoil Kaiu's fun. Hamtaro was rather interested in the sights of Halastia as well. He sat in the seat behind Neteru and Kaiu and the two had their faces pressed against the window.

The bus drove out of Zolphville and into the open roads leading to Wattocress. Kaiu and Hamtaro kept staring out at the open dirt and grass fields that covered the land around the road throughout the entire trip, admiring the view. Eventually, the surrounding dirt land was replaced with buildings as the Ham-Hams entered Wattocress. Neteru was most surprised when he first saw Wattocress because he expected the city to be no more grander than Zolphville but he was proven wrong when he first saw the city's huge buildings. It was like entering a miniature version of New York City with tall sky scrapers (some standing taller than a human), crowded streets, and shops of all shapes and sizes. Like Zolphville, Wattocress had many modern conveniences such as electrical street lights, pay phones, and public transportation. Along the side of the roads, ham-hams of all shapes and sizes were out and about, either doing errands, going to work, or out having some fun. Kaiu watched every building that went by with interest and curiosity; admiring every shop, store, restaurant, mall, and movie theater the bus passed.

The Ham-Hams got off the bus and then started the walk to their intended destination: The Wattocress Museum where the the next Caidoz piece is supposedly held. The Ham-Hams repeated "Ticky-Ticky" as they walked along the sidewalk the sidewalk of the streets. Upon reaching the museum, they found it to resemble a library made out of dark brown bricks and white cement. Kaiu held his father's paw as he was led into the museum through the large glass double doors. Inside, the museum was barely active and hardly a soul was see. The walls were painted white and the tiled floor was also white, causing the colorful artifacts in the museum to stand out.

"Where do we go from here?" asked Howdy.

"I guess we ask around," said Neteru.

Before the Ham-Hams could take another step, however, a security guard stepped up in front of them. The guard was dressed in a blue uniform with a police officer hat and badge. Around her waist was a belt and attached to it was a night stick. The guard was a ham-ham with a white front and brownish-orange fur.

"Did you pay before coming here?" asked the guard.

"Well, no, but..." said Neteru.

"So, you thought you could just break into here without paying," said the guard threateningly.

"We don't mean to intrude but we need to see the owner of this museum," said Neteru.

"Oh, you want to see my boss?" asked the guard.

"Yes, that's all we want," said Neteru. The guard eyed Neteru suspiciously as if she was trying to figure out of he was telling the truth.

"Very well," said the guard. "Just follow me and don't take anything." The guard turned around and the Ham-Hams followed. Neteru was surprised that she so willingly let him see her boss but he didn't think too much of it.

The guard led the Ham-Hams through the long white hallways of the museum, leading them to a large wooden door with the words "Simon's office" written on it.

"Who's Simon?" asked Howdy.

"My boss," said the guard sarcastically. The guard knocked on the door and someone behind the door said, "Come in." The guard open the door and said, "Sir, I found these five ham-hams who wish to speak to you."

"Let them in," said a voice from inside the office. The guard stepped aside to allow the Ham-Hams inside.

The Ham-Hams gathered into the office and inside they found it to be very plain looking, just like the rest of the museum; Neither a shelf, nor a picture decorated the walls. All there was inside the room was a large wooden desk, a large brown chair, and a filing cabinet. Sitting inside the chair was a ham-ham who appeared to be sorting through some documents. The ham-ham had light yellow fur and he wore a gray suit and a red tie. The guard closed the door behind her, shutting the Ham-Hams with the hamster working on the desk.

The ham-ham lifted his head from the desk so he could see his visitors.

"May I help you?" asked the ham-ham.

"Are you Simon, the owner of this museum?" asked Neteru.

"Yes, and may I ask why you are in my office?" asked the ham-ham.

"Well, my name is Neteru." said Neteru. "This is Dexter, Howdy, Hamtaro, and my son Kaiu." Simon curiously leaned over his desk so he could see Kaiu standing beside Neteru.

"Aw, what an adorable son you have," said Simon. "How old are you, dear boy?"

"I'm three years old in human years," said Kaiu.

"Aw, well aren't you the cutest little thing," said Simon fondly.

"Yes he is," said Neteru. "Anyway, we need to have an artifact from your museum."

"Have an artifact?" asked Simon. "Well, I can't just give you one."

"We're looking for the twelve Caidoz pieces and we believe that you have one in your museum," said Neteru. Simon raised an eye brow out of curiosity.

"Why do you want the Caidoz pieces?" asked Simon.

"We know how to reveal their symbols," said Hamtaro.

"Yeah, and we have to put them all back together..." said Howdy.

"...and save the goddess Neanna." finished Dexter.

"You think that the twelve Caidoz pieces can enable you to bring Neanna back?" said Simon. "The goddess Neanna is just a myth and so is the story that the pieces have hidden symbols."

"No, she's real and we know that by combining the Caidoz pieces, we can free her from imprisonment," said Hamtaro. Simon placed a finger to his chin in thought.

"It's an intriguing proposition," he said. "Tell you what, if you can reveal the symbol on the Caidoz piece that I have, that would prove that some part of your story is true. If you can manage that kind of a feat, I will give the piece to you. However, I recommend you come back in a few hours because I need to dig the piece out of storage."

"Okay, we'll just come back later," said Neteru. "Thank you for your time."

The Ham-Hams left the office, repeating "Wasa-Wasa" as they walked, and along the way out of the museum, Hamtaro asked, "How are we going to activate the Caidoz piece? We don't know for certain if the Caidoz has the same zodiac sign as any of the five of us."

"We have to convince Simon to give us the piece and it was the only way I could think of," said Neteru.

"But what if we don't, Daddy?" asked Kaiu.

"I don't know," said Neteru honestly. "I just don't know, son."

The Ham-Hams spent the day wandering around Wattocress, seeing more of the city. However, there wasn't much to look at that they hadn't already seen on the bus ride to Wattocress. They spent only two hours exploring the city until they headed back to the museum. They entered through the front door to the museum but they didn't see the guard they come across earlier. Since the guard wasn't there, the Ham-Hams had to find the location of Simon's office by themselves.

"Does anyone remember where Simon's office is?" asked Neteru.

"I think it was this way," suggested Hamtaro as he pointed in the direction of where he was indicating. Following Hamtaro's suggestion, they went into the direction he indicated.

Unfortunately, the direction they had taken was the wrong one. Instead of leading them to Simon's office, it led them throughout the rest of the museum. The interior of the museum was larger than they thought and every turn they took led them further and further away from their intended destination. They asked other ham-hams for directions but there wasn't too many to ask and none of them knew how to get to Simon's office. Neteru was beginning to panic by the time they reached a large round room that was decorated with samurai armor that are over five hundred years old. The Ham-Hams observed the area, not sure what to do next.

"This is ridiculous," said Dexter. "I feel like a rat in a maze."

"You smell like one, too," said Howdy.

"Hey, you stink more than I do," interjected Dexter.

"You want a piece of me?" said Howdy threateningly.

"Hey, cut it out, you guys," said Neteru as he stepped in to separate the two.

As Howdy and Dexter argued, something caught Kaiu's eye. It was a blue and yellow samurai suit which resembled a suit warn by Kaeru, Kaiu's favorite bedtime storybook character. Since Neteru was too busy separating Howdy and Dexter, he had lessened his grip on Kaiu's paw, enabling Kaiu to slip out of his father's grasp and run over to the suit. He leaned onto the railing that kept tourists away from the suit, allowing himself a close look at the suit.

"Oh, this is so hamtastic," said Kaiu as he admired the suit.

Meanwhile, the museum's security guard overheard the commotion caused by Howdy and Dexter and she came over to talk to them.

"What is going on here?" demanded the guard. "Hey, aren't you the same guys who came here just a few hours ago?"

"Yes we are and we're trying to find Simon again but we got lost in the process," explained Neteru. "Could you help us find Simon?"

"Alright, just follow me," said the guard.

"Thanks," said Hamtaro. The Ham-Hams followed the guard as she led them out of the room, unaware that Kaiu was still admiring the samurai suit so he didn't notice the others leaving.

"Hey Daddy, this suit here looks just like Kaeru's suit," said Kaiu but when he turned around to look for his father, he realized that Neteru was gone. "Daddy?" Kaiu ran to the nearest hall but he didn't see his dad anywhere.

"Daddy!" shouted Kaiu but no one answered. Tears began to well up in Kaiu's eyes as he began to go into a panic when suddenly, someone said, "Oh, lost your daddy? I can help you find him." Relieved, Kaiu turned around to face the speaker.

"Thank you so..." said Kaiu but he cut his sentence short when he saw the face of the one behind him and froze in horror.

"Da..." cried Kaiu but before he could call his father, a large brown bag fell over his head, restricting Kaiu's speech and containing him securely so he couldn't escape. The kidnapper flung the bag over his shoulder with Kaiu kicking and screaming inside.

"Stop squirming, you little brat," said the kidnapper. "I have big plans for you. Oh yes, you will never escape the claws of Glabrezu."

The Ham-Hams were led to Simon's office by the security guard. Since Simon wasn't in the office, the guard left the Ham-Hams near the door to wait for Simon to arrive. They didn't have to wait very long because as soon as the guard left, Simon was seen walking towards them with a Caidoz piece in his right paw and a piece of paper n his left. Simon walked up to Neteru and said, "Good, you've arrived just in time. Here's the Caidoz piece you wanted." Simon handed the piece to Neteru.

"Thank you so much," said Neteru but before he put the piece in his back pack, Simon said, "Hold on, you still have to prove that this piece really is magical."

"Oh yeah," said Neteru.

"By the way, I found this in my office right after you left," said Simon as he gave Neteru the piece of paper. "It's addressed to you." Curious, Neteru opened up the piece of paper and it read:

Dear Neteru

I hope you're keeping a good eye on your son because I intend on kidnapping him. If you want your son back, go to the basement of the museum and there, give me the Caidoz piece in exchange for your son. Don't call the authorities.

Signed

Glabrezu

Shocked by what he had read, Neteru looked around for Kaiu.

"Kaiu, where are you?" said Neteru but there was no answer. "Did anyone see Kaiu?"

"I last saw him looking at a suit of armor back in the room where all the samurai armor was kept," said Hamtaro. "He must still be there unless Glabrezu got him."

"Hamgoof, what have I done?" cried Neteru in horror. Without saying another word, Neteru ran off and the others followed, repeating "Badda-Badda" as they ran.

Neteru found the room where they had met the guard earlier but to Neteru's dismay, there was no sign of Kaiu anywhere.

"Kaiu!" shouted Neteru but there was no answer. The Ham-Hams and Simon all gathered around Neteru.

"I don't see the little critter anywhere," said Howdy. "Certainly was a smooth move of you to lose your only son like that. I bet Mara will be really mad if she found out."

"Howdy, have you no regards for other peoples' feelings!" shouted Dexter. Neteru didn't pay any attention to Howdy at all. He was too worried about Kaiu. It was his job to take care of Kaiu and he had let him down. Kaiu was the only child Neteru had ever fathered and raised and if anything were to happen to him, Neteru would never forgive himself. He examined the Caidoz piece and the letter which he still held in both paws. Remembering that the letter said for him to meet Glabrezu in the basement, he debated over what to do next. Neteru couldn't just hand over the piece but he couldn't leave Kaiu to Glabrezu's torment either. Knowing what he had to do as a father, he asked Simon, "Simon, how do we get to the basement from here?"

Kaiu was shaking in fright as he laid their on the cold basement floor. His arms and legs were bounded by rope, a sock had been stuffed into his mouth, and a blindfold was tied around his eyes. As he laid there, he heard a loud sound coming from nearby. Kaiu wasn't sure what it was but shortly afterwards, he heard footsteps walking towards him. Before he knew what happened, his blindfold was abruptly removed, followed by the sock in his mouth. Once the sock was removed, Kaiu began spiting his saliva in an attempt to get the foul taste of the sock out of his mouth his mouth.

Kaiu looked up at Glabrezu who stood over him menacingly.

"What do you want from me?" said Kaiu.

"You're daddy has something I want and if he wants to see you again, he will give it to me," said Glabrezu with an evil smile. Glabrezu turned away from Kaiu and began watching and waiting for Neteru to show up. Now that there was nothing covering his eyes, Kaiu searched the area for some way of escaping. The basement was completely dark and dirty with all sorts of wooden crates and cardboard boxes that took up much of the space in the basement. Only a few light bulbs overhead provided any light, making the light in the basement dim. The only way out of the basement, that Kaiu could see, was some wooden stairs leading to the exit. Kaiu knew he couldn't get far with his paws and feet bound like this so he searched around for something he could use to cut himself free. When he found nothing of use, he then attempted to undo the knot so he could free himself. He quietly struggled against the restraints and as he pulled on the rope, he realized that the knot was beginning to become undone. Kaiu continued to work at the knot, desperate to escape.

Just then, Neteru and the Ham-Hams came barging through the door to the basement. The first thing Neteru saw was Glabrezu and Kaiu waiting for them down stairs.

"Kaiu!" shouted Neteru.

"Daddy, help me," cried Kaiu. The Ham-Hams ran down the stairs, repeating "Badda-Badda" as they ran. Once they reached the foot of the stairs, Glabrezu held out his paw and said, "Stop where you are." The Ham-Hams froze in their tracks. "Do you have the Caidoz piece?" With a menacing glare, Neteru held out his paw, revealing the Caidoz piece he'd been holding.

"Here it is, Glabrezu," said Neteru. When Kaiu realized that Neteru was about to give Glabrezu the piece in exchange for his life, Kaiu worked frantically to untie the knot. Meanwhile, Neteru and Glabrezu just stared at each as if daring the other to make a move.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" asked Glabrezu coldly. "If you want your son back alive, you better give me the piece." With a heavy sigh, Neteru nervously walked towards Glabrezu with the piece held out in his paw. The two were approaching each other, about to make the ransom exchange.

Right before Neteru could give Glabrezu the piece, Kaiu finally managed to free himself from the ropes and made a run towards his father.

"Daddy, don't do it," cried Kaiu. Glabrezu saw Kaiu running towards them so he immediately cast a spell. "Vock nagno zoolk." From Glabrezu's finger tips, a bolt of lightening shot towards Kaiu but Kaiu was running so fast, Glabrezu couldn't take proper aim and it missed. The bolt struck a few box which were knocked over and burned by the strike. The force of the bolt (although it didn't directly hit Kaiu) did knock Kaiu off his feet by the shear electrical shock of it, causing him to fall over and landing hard on the basement floor. Neteru took the opportunity and shouted his own spell.

"Ziryon." shouted Neteru. A fire ball shot from Neteru's staff and the ball hit Glabrezu in the chest, knocking him in the air and landing hard on the basement floor, seemingly rendering him unconscious.

As Glabrezu laid their stunned, Neteru ran over to Kaiu's aide.

"Are you okay?" asked Neteru.

"Yes, I'm fine," said Kaiu as he got back onto his feet. Upon realizing that Kaiu was not harmed, Neteru immediately dropped the Caidoz piece he was holding and then picked up Kaiu and hugged him tightly.

"Oh thank goodness," said Neteru with relief. Both father and son embraced each other in a loving hug which was quickly interrupted by Glabrezu's voice.

"Oh, how touching," said Glabrezu sarcastically as he got back onto his feet.

"Get out of here, Glabrezu," ordered Neteru. "You've lost."

"True, you may have defeated me now but I'll be back," warned Glabrezu. "Bocka will be freed and no one is going to stop me." With that, Glabrezu immediately teleported away in a big flash of light sound.

Neteru held his son tightly as if he was afraid he might lose him again if he didn't.

"I'm sorry for leaving you behind," said Neteru.

"It's okay, Daddy," said Kaiu. "We all make mistakes and you saved me, anyway." Kaiu wrapped his arms around Neteru's neck in a hug. "I love you." The two began affectionally rubbing each other, repeating "Schmubby-Wubby" as they did. Meanwhile, Howdy picked up the Caidoz piece Neteru had dropped. He placed his paw on 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." Nothing happened.

"What are you doing?" asked Dexter.

"What does it look like?" interjected Howdy. "I'm trying to activate the piece so we could prove to Simon that this piece is magical."

"You already activated the Caidoz piece that was in accordance with your zodiac sign," said Dexter. "This one can't work for you."

"Then who else would be able to activate the piece?" asked Howdy.

"I bet I could," said Dexter. Dexter grabbed the piece out of Howdy's paws.

"Hey, give that back," said Howdy. While ignoring Howdy, Dexter placed his paw on the piece before Howdy could say anything, Dexter recited the poem, "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." Instantly the room was filled with an eerie blue light as the piece's power was activated. A symbol began to engrave itself upon the piece. The symbol looked like two horizontal lines placed parallel with each other. The line on top had a large round hump in the middle. This was the symbol of Libra, Dexter's zodiac sign.

The symbol soon stopped glowing, leaving the zodiac sign clearly visible on top of the piece.

"What was that light?" asked Simon who was coming down the stairs leading to the exit to the basement. "And what happened to those boxes?" Simon pointed to the burning boxes that were destroyed by Glabrezu's lightening bolt.

"Glabrezu burnt them," said Kaiu. "We're sorry."

"Oh, don't worry, little ham-ham," said Simon. "There's nothing in those boxes that can't be replaced. So what was that light I saw?"

"That was the Caidoz piece," explained Neteru.

"You mean all that light came from that one little gold piece?" asked Simon.

"Yep, and you can see for yourself," said Hamtaro. Curious, Simon leaned over and examined the Caidoz piece that Dexter was holding. To his surprise, Simon saw the zodiac sign engraved upon the piece.

"Why that's impossible," said Simon. "How is that symbol staying alight like that?"

"The magic of the Caidoz pieces can only be activated by someone who's zodiac sign matches the sign of the piece," explained Neteru.

"Extraordinary," said Simon in awe. "Very well, this certain proves that there is something unique about these pieces and thus you may keep it."

"Yay," cheered Kaiu. Neteru gladly placed the piece back into his back pack. The Ham-Hams thanked Simon and they left the building, on their way to their next destination.